Pentecost
3-A, 2008
Confirmation Sunday
So then,
brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were
taught by us,
either by our spoken word or by our letter. 2 Thessalonians 2:15
(ESV)
Grace, mercy
and peace be yours from God our Father, and his Son, Jesus Christ.
We gather here this morning, as we gather every Sunday to honor
the Lord Jesus, receiving with thanks and joy the gifts he offers
by means of Word and Sacrament. This is our custom, our tradition;
but more than that, it is how we honor God; we receive his gifts-all
of them-with grateful hearts. This is the heart of our religion.
Our faith consists in living in grateful appreciation for all
God's gifts.
God is the
giver of all things, especially his Son, offered for you as an
atoning sacrifice on a cross. Today we will receive four young
people as gifts of God to our congregation: Sara, John, Kara and
Tom. Certainly they've been here all along, but now we want to
acknowledge them and number them among the adults.
Religion
generally hasn't fared so well lately. Recently in the news, that
LDS cult in Texas; polygamy. Some 400 children were temporarily
in foster care while the allegations of abuse are sorted out.
LDS began in NY state: in the name of God and in the pursuit of
a faith, Joseph Smith founded a new religion-the Mormons. They
are an American success story; though not recognizably Christian
by their teachings, they have become part of the landscape.
That's the
American way, isn't it? -the American tradition. If you don't
like it, you start something new. Protestants are notorious for
seeking what is new, as if God were all about novelty; as if he
sat in heaven merely to take care of your personal desires. Paul
warns Christians, the days are coming when people will not pay
attention to sound teaching, but having itchy ears they will find
teachers to suit their own passions, (2 Tim. 4:3).
In America
eastern religions are on the rise with the influx of immigrant
popula-tions. The Islamic population too is growing. If you are
looking for a religion, you can find it in America. And the protestants
too have a flavor to suit everyone's personal desires.
Not that
we haven't tried, but we don't do trendy things very well. Lutherans
have never been part of the in crowd, we're not big on novelty.
Reforming the old, we understand. But we've never been too creative.
A casual read through our Augsburg Confession (AD 1530) will show
you how the reformers bent over back-wards in their attempt to
avoid newness, they tried to honor the traditions and the teachings
of the one holy Church.
In 2 Thessalonians
Paul exhorts the faithful to stand firm and hold fast to the traditions
they learned from him "either by letter or by word of mouth,"
(2 Thes. 2:15). I think this scripture must be more frequently
honored in the breach by faithful Christians than any other Word
from Lord. For when you constantly search out newness and novelty
for its own sake, you are not holding to what you received from
those who went before you. It's as though we've become Athenians
(Acts 17:21). Luke gives a back handed complement to the Athenians,
writing they have nothing better to do all day than telling and
learning new things, new philosophies…
They, who
were so into all that was new, didn't give Paul (the Holy Spirit)
a fair hearing. Once they heard the word "resurrection"
they never heard anything else he had to say about Jesus Christ.
The Gospel in Athens is not a success story. They did not receive
the Gospel; most of them did not receive God's gifts.
We Lutherans
are not cool; we've never been about novelty. But we bought the
Gospel hook, line and sinker. Some suggest that we would have
been far more successful as a religion if Luther demonized the
Catholic Church more and jettisoned a greater part of her tradition
like other protestants. But he did not; he could not. Luther,
took his stand on God's Word as he faced Emperor Charles V. He
could not subsequently just ignore or reject the word encouraging
us to "hold fast to the traditions."
You my young friends are heirs to the Reformation, its holy faith
and its traditions. Some of these we cherish and even relish.
Consider how much time, money and energy we spend on Christmas,
gifts, trees, food, decorations…all to honor God and Jesus.
If anything needed reformation in 2008 it might be our excesses
in the name of Jesus at Christmas. But that's not what I want
to leave with you as my final thought.
Our tradition
is this: God has revealed and given to you the gift of righteousness;
that is, he has given to you a perfection and a holiness that
has nothing to do with how well you keep his laws. We are law-breakers,
that is a given; we know it, God knows it. "We have all sinned
and fall short of the glory of God."
To redeem you, to save you, to justify us, God imparts as gift,
what we cannot earn; RIGHTEOUSNESS in and through Jesus Christ.
He is the way, truth and light. He is your strength, your rock.
You can always count on him.
One more
word about the tradition; For I delivered to you as of first importance
what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance
with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on
the third day in accordance with the Scriptures… 1 Cor. 15:3-4
(ESV)
The Gospel
is our tradition; we receive it, we live it, and we hand it on.
The good news of Jesus is the rock on which you have an opportunity
to build your life. For when everything is gone, and that day
does come to all of us, you will still have God. Wouldn't it be
great if he knew you on a first name basis?
Prince of Peace Lutheran Church
Hamburg, NJ 07419
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