Reformation Day 2017

On All Hallow's Eve 1517, Martin Luther nailed 95 theses to the door of All Hallow's Church (aka Schlosskirche, or Castle Church) in Wittenberg, Germany, stating his points of disagreement with the Roman Catholic Church. This event is recognized as the beginning of what came to be known as the Protestant Reformation.  

In 2002, when I was living in Germany, I heard about an unsual installation in Wittenberg by artist Ottmar Hörl, so I made the trip from Frankfurt to view (and take pictures of) it. It consisted of hundreds of plastic statues of Martin Luther on the town square. The statues were a good-humored replacement for a larger and more dignified statue of Luther, which had been removed temporarily for restoration.

I Will Walk with Integrity

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.2.4

I will study the way that is blameless. When shall I attain it? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house. 

⭐︎ Psalm 101:2

The Lord Is Good

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.2.3

For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. 

❁ Psalm 100:5

Semper Reformanda

Introduction: Waldo & Francis

We’re celebrating an event today that might have turned out to be nothing in the scheme of things. A man in a college town in Germany became upset with certain practices of the church, and wrote out 95 reasons why he thought those practices were wrong. Then he nailed them to a church door. The rest is history. But it might not have been.

You see, Martin Luther’s attempt to reform the Christian church was neither the first nor the last. But because of the politics of the day, Luther’s Reformation became the event that started a movement which changed the world.

Long before Luther, however, there were some who tried to change things and were quickly forgotten about.

Pastoral Prayer for Reformation Sunday*

Spirit of God, tender breath, strong powerful wind,
come and renew our lives.

Spirit of God, blow into our lives and into our church
and sweep away all that is wrong and all that is false.

Spirit of God, enter into us and give us insight
as to what we should change and where we should start fresh.

Spirit of God, enlighten us, that we can see clearly
where our light is and where our darkness.

Spirit of God, rekindle us that your fire may burn in us once again,
and that we may be the spark for renewal in the world.

Spirit of God, give us good counsel, that we may recognize
what we should do and what we should refrain from doing.

Spirit of God, drive us on
that we that we might feel a new sense of urgency.

Spirit of God, shelter us under your wings
that we might dare to dream,
and dream of participating in Christ’s struggle on behalf of the world;
for we pray not only in his Name, but as he taught us...

*Reformierte Liturgie: Gebete und Ordnungen für die unter dem Wort versammelte Gemeinde (Wuppertal 1999) trans SG

Enter His Gates with Thanksgiving

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.2.2

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his Name. 

➣ Psalm 100:4

Come into His Presence with Singing

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.2.1

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladness; come into his presence with singing. 

❧ Psalm 100:1-2

Extol the Lord

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.28

Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain; for the Lord our God is holy. 

✥ Psalm 99:9

Worship at His Footstool

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.27

Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he! 

✶ Psalm 99:4-5

Make a Joyful Noise

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break forth into joyous song and sing praises. 

✢ Psalm 98:4

His Steadfast Love & Faithfulness

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.25

He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.

❦ Psalm 98:3

Light Dawns for the Righteouss

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.24

Light dawns for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart. 

—Psalm 97:11

László Tőkés

 

Here I am on the campus of Yale Divinity School with László Tőkés, former bishop of the Nagyvárad (Oradea) district of the Reformed Church in Romania and current member of the European Parliament (which he once served as vice president). 

The Lord Is King!

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.23

The Lord is king! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad! Clouds and thick darkness are all around him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. 

—Psalm 97:1-2

He Is Coming

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.22

Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth.

—Psalm 96:11-13

Firmly Established

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.21

The Lord is king! The world is firmly established; it shall never be moved. He will judge the peoples with equity.

—Psalm 96:10

Greatly to Be Praised

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.20

For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; he is to be revered above all gods. 

—Psalm 96:4

Declare His Glory

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.19

O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth. Sing to the Lord, bless his Name; tell of his salvation from day to day. Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples. 

—Psalm 96:1-3

The People of His Pasture

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.18

For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!

—Psalm 95:7

The Sea Is His

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.17

In his hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are his also. The sea is his, for he made it, and the dry land, which his hands have formed. O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! 

—Psalm 95:4-6

A Joyful Noise

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.16

Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! For the Lord is a great God, and a great King above all gods. 

—Psalm 95:2-3

Let Us Sing

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.15

O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! 

—Psalm 95:1

The Rock of My Refuge

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.14

But the Lord has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge. 

❉ Psalm 94:22

Your Consolations Cheer My Soul

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.13

When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. 

❥ Psalm 94:19

Happy Are Those Whom You Discipline

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.12

Happy are those whom you discipline, O Lord, and whom you teach out of your law.

✺ Psalm 94:12

More Majestic Than the Waves of the Sea

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.11

More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the Lord! Your decrees are very sure; holiness befits your house, O Lord, forevermore. 

☞ Psalm 93:4-5

Like a Cedar in Lebanon

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.10

The righteous flourish like the palm tree, and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God. 

—Psalm 92:12-13

Thoughts and Prayers and the Sixth Commandment

A Sermon on Gun Violence

You shall not murder.

—Exodus 20:13

Introduction: Statues & Plaques

We here in Alabama are experts on the Ten Commandments, aren’t we? Now, I know I’ve only lived here about ten months. But there’s just something in the air. The statue of the Ten Commandments may have been removed from the judicial building in Montgomery, but it stood long enough to make Alabama the holiest state in the Bible Belt. That is, until Arkansas put up their own statue of the Ten Commandments. The jury’s still out on who’s less sinful.

This whole thing got its start in Kentucky, you know.

It Is Good to Give Thanks

It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your Name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night. 

—Psalm 92:1-2

Nero Fiddles While Rome Burns

Those Who Know My Name

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.8

Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my Name. 

—Psalm 91:14

He Will Command His Angels

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.7

For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 

❖ Psalm 91:11

He Will Cover You with His Pinions

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.6

You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence; he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 

✧ Psalm 91:1-4

Te Levantarás

🇵🇷

Puerto Rico will rise again

Prosper the Work of Our Hands

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.5

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and prosper for us the work of our hands—O prosper the work of our hands!

⌘ Psalm 90:17

Satisfy Us in the Morning

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.4

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.

☩ Psalm 90:14

Thoughts & Prayers

by Kristian Nygård, source optipess.com

Teach Us to Count Our Days

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.3

So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.

✦ Psalm 90:12

Running on Empty

Though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself.¹
 

The second chapter of Paul’s letter to the Philippians is a beautiful and deeply meaningful passage of scripture, but I think its opening might be a little bit misleading to people in our day and age. That’s because it sounds downright pleasant. These days, we’re told that if we only look for the positive in any situation, we’ll be happy. And that seems to be what Paul is saying.

If there’s any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.²

Like a Watch in the Night

PSALM OF THE DAY 1255.4.1.2

For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past, or like a watch in the night. 

✜ Psalm 90:4