PENTECOST XXI
October 17, 2021
“Beyond Learning to Understanding”
Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes, and I will observe it to the end.
Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart. (Psalm 119:33-34)
And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life. (I John 5:20)
Autumn has finally arrived, and many of us feel it’s about time. Here it is the middle of October, and many trees are still hanging on to their unseasonably green leaves. But as we all know very well, change is inevitable, but when it occurs is highly variable. Also, we’re only a couple of weeks away from that uniquely Lutheran commemoration and celebration, Reformation Day.
The life work and legacy of Martin Luther, who never intended a religious denomination to bear his name, fits well as we experience the changing season. Hoping to bring about change within the church of Rome, turning it away from the corrupt and misdirected institution it had become, Luther spoke out through every venue available to him. But the resistance against his call for reform was intense and powerful, as Luther endured persecution, exile, and significant personal hardship. Other reformers (“protestants”), contemporaries of Luther, were also working for change, for an understanding of humans’ relationship with God, and advocating for much more freedom and openness within churches.
These were turbulent times, as literacy was spreading, thanks to Luther’s translation of the Bible into German, and the invention of the Guttenberg press, which made mass printing widely available. Everyday people were eager to read God’s Word, and developed an understanding of what it said, rather than the highly edited versions they had been hearing.
The desire of humans to be in a relationship of understanding with their Father in heaven is expressed in the psalm, as the writer asks for understanding of the law so as to observe it whole-heartedly. The writer of I John makes it clear that Jesus, God’s own Son, opens the hearts and minds of all believers, and the gift of understanding brings us into relationship with him and with one another.
Martin Luther had a unique perspective on sharing the message of the Gospel, as he wrote: “The Gospel should really not be something written, but the spoken word which brought forth the Scriptures, as Christ and the apostles have done.” Why does this scholarly man, who wrote volume upon volume, turn around and say this? Well, remember, Luther was also a preacher, and he understood that the message, spoken from the heart, could connect uniquely with another person. Sharing the Gospel happens as we listen, care, and connect with one another.
Keeping heart and mind open,
Your friend in Christ,
Mary Rogers