Saturday, October 27, 2018

Reformation



Reformation (Observed)
October 28, 2018
John 8:31-36
Made Free

How are we to perceive ourselves? Some believe we exist to be free. That seems to be the American mantra, “I was born free, I live free, and I will die, free!”  The truth is we are born slaves to sin. All of us have been born into sin. We are in bondage to the power of the Devil.

Fortunately, this bondage was broken by a man who suffered on a cruel and bloody cross and then stood at the mouth of an open tomb. Christians are now declared to be slaves of Christ. In Christ we are now slaves who are set free.

The Emancipation proclamation is will be remembered as one of Lincoln’s greatest acts as president.  Jesus’ death on the cruel, cruel, cross is what has guaranteed your freedom. The Reformation was that event which called for religious freedom – freedom from false and misleading teachings. Freedom of a burdened conscience and the burden of guilt. We are declared to be free in Christ – free to live, love and serve.

As Christians we are
1.     Born, destined to be slaves of sin –
2.     Yet, we have been made free by Jesus Christ  the only-begotten Son of God –

I.        Each is born a slave to sin. (V. 34) “Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin.”
Because of our first parents Adam and Eve we have all been made slaves to sin. An evil conscience is a troubled conscience. An evil conscience is a conscience diseased by guilt. Guilt is heavy. It is oppressive.  By its very nature it suffocates the soul. Guilt is inward and deeply affects the heart, mind, and spirit.

The burden of guilt is a by-product of sin.  Guilt will not allow you to be emotionally or spiritually healthy. We cannot live under the burden of guilt. If you cannot resolve you guilt then your living will be painful, burdened, empty. Chronic guilt is a thief who steals the fullness of one's life. The guilty soul is a joyless soul. Guilt, like a strong man, holds the soul captive and will not yield to arguments of denial. Real guilt is cast in steel. It allows nothing to break its power. It rules over the mind, the emotions, and the heart. Ultimately, our entire personality is deeply affected - for guilt brings its presence to our daily life. [1]

Yet you have been redeemed by Christ the crucified. Yes, Christ has redeemed you from the curse of the Law. But at the same time, there is the “Old Adam [lurking] within us. He needs to die! He is killed daily by contrition and repentance. He is drowned and dies with all sins and evil lust so that a new man can daily come forth and arise who shall live before God in righteousness and purity forever.” [2]

Jesus is the only one who is able to break this bond of guilt. He completely frees you from the guilt of every sin. There is no such thing as partial forgiveness. He died for all sins. And He frees from the guilt of every sin. Little sins. Big sins. Even the unspeakable. He has taken all your sins.  Every single one was placed on His bloody back. He becomes your sin offering.

John proclaimed Jesus the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He bore the guilt and penalty of your sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. – [3]

St. Paul writes, in Romans, the sixth chapter, “We were buried with Christ by Baptism into death, that, like as He was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”[4]

Daily we fall short of the perfection the Father demands of us.

We confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have not loved the Lord with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors and ourselves. We justly deserve His present and eternal punishment.[5]

We confess both sins of commission and sins of omission. This is what we mean when we say to God and to each other, “We have sinned by thought, word and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone.” [6]
Specifically, we plead guilty before God for everything.

In Individual/Private Confession we pray, “I have lived as if God did not matter and as if I mattered most. My Lord’s name I have not honored as I should; my worship and prayers have faltered. I have not let His love have its way with me, and so my live for others has failed. There are those whom I have hurt, and those whom I failed to help. My thoughts and desires have been soiled with sin.” [7]

Transition: As humans. As sons of Adam. As daughters of Eve. We are born slaves to sin. Yet there is in us a “new man” which has made us a new people.

II.     We are made free by God’s Son. (V. 36) “So if the son has made you free you are free indeed.”

You are made free because of the action and work of Jesus Christ.  Real forgiveness restores the soul. It unburdens the heart. A life set free from guilt is a life free to live in the fullness of joy! A clear heart. And a clear conscience. Un-clutters the mind. A life free from guilt is a life free to worship with an un-fettered heart. Real joy is a fruit of a clear conscience. With the heaviness of guilt removed, our eyes are opened to God. We can be emotionally and spiritually healthy. A clear conscience frees our personality to an unburdened wholeness.

David writes: “He restores my soul; he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.” [8] David speaks of God restoring his soul. The Lord restores the guilty through the atoning work of Christ. David said He was restored by God. When He "restores" it is not a restoration of our making. It is a restoration that He performs for us and in us.  It is not something we do, or can do. Regardless of what we do, we cannot restore ourselves, and we cannot make atonement for ourselves; Jesus brings us back to God. He alone restores, heals, forgives.

He brings us back from bondage to freedom. And, this freedom is at the deepest level of our being. Your outward circumstances may be difficult. But if we possess the restoration that comes from the atoning work of Christ, then we can live thankfully and joyfully for our conscience has been cleared of all guilt.

John in his Gospel will tell us Jesus entered this world, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.[9] But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.[10] 

Jesus bore your sin. “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.”[11]

Jesus offers you new life.  St. Paul would remind us, “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”[12]

This freedom cannot be taken from you. Satan may howl and shriek. This is what he enjoys! And he’s so good it! He’s so good at what he does. “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” 9 “Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings.”[13] Satan. He’s always accusing. Always judging. Always condemning. He’s so critical. He does not approve of Christ and what He is doing in you. So He will continue to bellow and shout his accusations at you.

But in a clear small voice someone speaks even louder - it is Christ your Savior who speaks His word of peace, “I forgive you” “I love you” “I care for you.” This is what moved the Evangelist John to write, “This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.”  [14]

How are we to perceive ourselves?  As humans we are born slaves of sin – Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. That’s the Law. Yet, by the grace of God we have been made free by the Son – So if the Son has made you free you are free indeed. In Jesus Christ you are free indeed. Believe and trust in this reality.

The author to the Hebrews offers these words; “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.”  [15]

If you find yourself burdened under a heart of guilt, then come to the One who alone sprinkled His blood for you, and who alone can wash you with pure water. He will take your guilt upon Himself, and in return, will give you His peace!
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+ Soli Deo Gloria +


[2] “The Significance of Baptizing with Water” from Luther’s Small Catechism Lutheran Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO pg. 303
[3] 1 John 1:8-9
[4] Romans 6:
[5] Confession of Sins from Divine Service II Lutheran Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO p. 158
[6] Ibid
[7] Individual Confession and Absolution Lutheran Worship © 1980 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO p. 310
[8] Psalm 23:4
[9] John 1:14
[10] Galatians 4:4
[11] 1 Peter 2:24-25
[12] Romans 6:3-4
[13] 1 Peter 5:8-9
[14] 1 John 3:19-20
[15] Hebrews 10:22
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