The Field Of Faith

The Field Of Faith Romans 1:16-17 It might go without saying, but in the game of football, if there is no ball, there is no game. Players can put on all their gear, wear their helmets, tie on their cleats, and run out onto the field, but there is still no game without the ball. In football, nothing really matters if you don't have the ball. When you think about it, the ball controls a lot. A touchdown is only a touchdown depending on where the ball is. A first down is only a first down because it's measured by where the ball is. You're either offside or onside in relationship to the ball. Whether a player makes a catch or an incomplete pass depends on the player's control of the ball. 3 points or a lack of 3 points has to do with if the ball went between the goalposts or not. Everything has to do with the ball. Isn't it amazing how something so big revolves around something so small. You can have all the other stuff right and be dressed for game day, but you're just wasting your time if there is no football. In our Christian faith, it's also possible to have a bunch of stuff right. You can get all geared up and run out onto the field. You can go to the right church, carry the right Bible, and even use the right "Christian-ese." You can wear the jersey saying you play for Team Christ and have all the accessories of Christianity and still be missing the main thing. If you don't have the main thing, everything else is simply a waste of time. Just like how we can't play football without a football, we can't be effective Christians without the Gospel and faith. You can have all the other stuff right, but if there is no faith, you're just wasting your time. It was the Gospel and faith that was at the heart of the matter for the Reformation. It's been 503 years since Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg's Castle Church door, and we still celebrate his bold efforts to take The Field Of Faith and present the truth of the Gospel and the need for faith. Perhaps we'll catch the meaning of Reformation Sunday a little better this year as we see how Martin Luther helps us to see God's divine love even in the midst of pandemic suffering. So, let me set the stage for you so we can better appreciate Luther's game plan. Martin Luther was born and lived while the Bubonic Plaque (Black Plaque) was taking the lives of almost 50% of the population. He was an educated man but also a man who knew suffering. Not only the suffering of others but also his own suffering because of his view of God. He was supposed to become a lawyer, but by divine chance, Luther drastically turned his life around. Luther stayed playing on the defensive side, becoming a monk and living a secluded and simple life. But no matter how secluded Luther was, he could never escape his sin and the guilt that resulted from his sin. He could never defend his soul because the Catholic Church's only game plan was for people to pay indulgences. An indulgence was the money you would pay to the Catholic Church so you or your loved ones could spend less time in purgatory. Now, we don't believe in purgatory, but that was all the talk 500 years ago, and buying indulgences was the Church's way of guaranteeing that you would have a successful afterlife. The more you pay, the better off you would be. But simply throwing money didn't fix Luther's issue of sin and guilt. Like football, the team owner can spend all the money they want to draft better players, but all that money goes to waste if there is no ball. So Luther began to prayerfully read and study the Bible, which was only written in Latin at that time because the Catholic Church didn't want ordinary people to be able to read the Bible for themselves. During his reading, Luther came across today's Scripture passage, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed - a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: 'The righteous will live by faith.'" If you write in your Bible, underline or make a note of these words in today's Scripture: Gospel, God, Salvation, Everyone, Righteousness, Faith. With these words, Luther's conscience was captive to the living and active Word of God. Luther could finally take The Field Of Faith on the offensive side because he finally understood that it's not money, work, the saying of right words, good deeds, or even the church that can remove your sin and guilt. It is only by faith in Jesus Christ who can forgive you! Luther was now a bold player on Team Christ because he publicly taught that making the church richer does not guarantee your salvation; it's only faith in Christ. As followers of Christ, you and I are called to obey Christ and His Word before all other authorities. Once you learn biblical truth, you can't be ashamed of it. Even during the Black Plaque, Luther took The Field Of Faith, reborn and encouraged. When asked about how he would handle preaching during the pandemic, Luther replied, "I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance inflict and pollute others and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me and I have done what he has expected of me." How accurate are Luther's Words for us today during the midst of COVID. We are to avoid where our presence is not needed while continuing to remain faithful witness for Christ while doing what God has called us for. God called Luther to preach righteousness in Christ through faith, and it's the same Gospel message we are to preach today! Martin Luther laid the contents for the protestant playbook of faith in Christ, which, almost 200 years later, was further developed by John Wesley, the founder of the United Methodist Church. Like Luther, John Wesley took the Gospel's message, not to create a new denomination, but so the people could understand God's truth. John Wesley traveled 250,000 miles on horseback, preached 40,000 sermons (2 or more per day), and his brother, Charles, wrote over 10,000 hymns, all to help people grow in their faith. These are people who learned "not to be ashamed by the Gospel because it's God's power to salvation." Those words right there should convict us. If you're ashamed to share the Gospel, it's because you don't understand the Gospel's power. You must believe, like the Reformation proclaimed, that the Gospel has the power not only to save sinners but also to give victory to the saints. Instead of focusing upon your own faults and shortcomings and being embarrassed or ashamed of the Gospel, focus on God and what He is doing in the world. Preach salvation through faith because it's the power of God to salvation. The Gospel is the message of salvation by faith. It's a message to the Jew first because they are God's chosen people through whom God prepared the coming of His Messiah into the world. We read about God's dealings with His people so we can learn more of our Creator. Believers, Jew and Gentile, are not to be ashamed of the Gospel because salvation is offered to all by faith. You can have confidence in the Gospel because "in the Gospel the righteousness of God is revealed," as verse17 says. The word righteousness means "to be right." Not "better than others," "good enough," or "holier than thou," but right, as in, "right with God." The problem is how easy it can be to reduce God down to our level, so our sin doesn't seem that bad. The Gospel, though, makes God's righteousness the standard. It doesn't matter how nice of a sinner you are because you're still a sinner. But the Gospel doesn't just reveal the standard; it also reveals the main thing, FAITH. "The righteous will live by faith." If we appeal to our own goodness. If we seclude ourselves and try to escape the world as Luther did at first. If people pay indulgences as they did in Luther's day. If we get all geared up to take the field with all our own strength but forget the main thing, the football, or as the Gospel calls it, "faith," then we'll always fall short or the goal line. The church is here, not to get rich, but to provide a sacred space for believers to meet, worship, teach, evangelize, and mature people in their faith as God's kingdom citizens. When the Gospel's effort is all-important in the church, the Gospel's force is unstoppable in the world! The Field Of Faith is the ground you plant seeds. As Jesus taught in the Parable of the Four Soils in Luke 8, what type of ground are you scattering your seed, and what will it bring forth? The Field Of Faith will have its rocky ground, and the enemy will try to plant thorns in your way, but the good ground that produces a crop is The Field Of Faith. Whether you're more offensive or defensive in your faith, all of us have felt defeat in our lives. In 1960, the Green Bay Packers felt defeat when they lost to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship game. One year later, in July of 1961, the Packers were gathered together for the first day of training camp. Their feelings were all wrapped up in their loss, but now, finally, training camp had arrived, and it was time to get to work. All the players were eager to become better and begin working on the details that would help them win the championship. But their coach, Vince Lombardi, had a different idea. Lombardi never took anything for granted and was known for starting from scratch. Even though he was the coach of professional football players who almost won the biggest prize in all of professional football, he began training camp with the most basic statement of all. Holding a pigskin he said, "Gentleman, this is a football." Then each player reviewed how to block, tackle, and catch. They opened the playbook to page one and went over the fundamentals. Six months later, The Green Bay Packers beat the New York Giants 37-0, winning the NFL Championship. Folks, the Reformation, Martin Luther, John and Charles Wesley, all show us the importance of going back to the basics and taking nothing for granted. Sometimes we just have to go back to page one and read, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Don't feel ashamed to go back to the basics, but rejoice because it's the power of God! Taking The Field Of Faith means all your efforts are centered around the main thing, faith. It may be as small, like a football or a mustard seed, but as Jesus said, that faith can still move mountains! Remember, that as you travel your own Fields Of Faith, don't be ashamed of the Gospel, but boldly declare, like Paul the apostle, like Martin Luther, like John Wesley, and like so many who have gone before us, that, "The righteous will live by faith." AMEN 2