A Sermon Series for Reformation season
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church & School
They’re somewhere. A collection of dusty VHS tapes. Maybe they’re home movies. Maybe they’re well-worn copies of Jurassic Park and E.T. So few of us have VCRs these days, but we still keep the videocassettes. It’s because we believe what’s on those cassettes is meaningful, worth hanging onto, worth sharing with the next generation. Plug in any one of those tapes, and you’ll see part of the story that shapes who we are today. The treasures of the Reformation aren’t all that different. We don’t often dust off our Latin or crack the cover on our Book of Concord to revisit the treasured teachings of generations past. And yet we hold onto them, because they’ve shaped what we believe, who we are, and how we live today. The distinction of Law and Gospel, the priesthood of all believers, the theology of the cross, and justification by faith aren’t just dusty doctrines. They’re a living part of our story we just don’t often pause to appreciate. This is particularly important in this milestone year. For 40 years, this congregation has been building upon an inherited foundation. It turns out what was true 500 years ago was true 40 years ago. What was true 40 years ago is still true today. And what is true today will remain true for the generations who come after us. What we received, we treasure. What we treasure, we teach. What we teach, we hand to those who come after us. Because our Lutheran foundation isn’t tradition for tradition’s sake. The foundation is Christ and His Gospel.
The Reformers didn’t set out saying, “Here is our new theology.” They instead called Christians back to the bedrock of God’s Word, declaring, “Here is what Scripture teaches, and here is what the Church has always been called to confess.” Jesus hasn’t left His Church behind, even as our questions remain: Am I enough? Why do I still fail? Where is God when life hurts? How do I know Jesus is really with me? What am I supposed to do with my life? His Gospel still delivers the answers the world is searching for.
Christ gives me a righteousness I cannot earn. Christ claims me even though I remain a sinner. Christ meets me in the places He has promised to be. Christ remains with His Church. Christ frees me to become His gift to my neighbor.
The answers are not techniques for becoming better Christians, but treasures of the Gospel that direct us again and again to Christ. The Gospel we inherited is not a relic from the Reformation. It is the living truth of Jesus Christ—and it is still strong enough to carry the Church into the next generation. So let’s dust them off, bring the PAST FWRD and name the gifts of Christian truth that anchor our Church and comfort our souls in Christ Jesus.