"Seeing the Center"

 

"Then Jesus cried out, 'Those who believe in me do not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. When they look at me, they see the one who sent me. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.' "

           

            This day is called "Reformation Sunday." It is not called "Protestant Sunday." It is good for us to tell the story of the Protestant Reformation. It is our heritage and we do not want to forget it or deny it. We are in fact the "Protesters." But to focus on protest or division can lead to pride or even to hostility, so it is best to keep our eyes on Reformation.

            Reformation tells a larger story. The Old Testament prophets were reformers. Jesus was a reformer. Many people throughout church history were part of reformation of the church. This goes far beyond Luther and Calvin and Zwingli. Reformation also speaks of our continual need for renewal, for revival, for awakening. I am glad we call today "Reformation Sunday."

            What is reform? I am calling it the ability to "see the center." This week I was at Covenant Harbor for a pastors' retreat. Over the years whenever I have gone to Covenant Harbor I have been somewhat confused by the various buildings. I could never see the relationship between them. In looking at the older buildings, the ones built before the property became a camp, I could not grasp the design of the property. I should have asked someone to tell me the history. But last week, one night after dinner, I happened to look at a picture display in the hallway, and it showed all the buildings as they stood in 1947. Then I saw that right in the center of the property stood a grand old mansion, built by some person of great wealth when the estate was first developed. The mansion has been gone for many years, but when I saw a picture of it, the whole design of the property made sense to me. Of course! From the mansion you walk down to the "Boathouse," or you put your carriage in the "Carriage House," and your weekend guests from the city stay in the "Guest House" up the hill with its grand porches to sit on through the leisurely afternoons. So once you see the center, then all the old buildings, the original design, make sense; it all connects together.

            Sometimes in our spiritual lives, we lose sight of the center. We focus on the peripheral. We make too much of one part of our tradition, and we fail to see the whole. We lose what is most important. For instance, in our church, we know that we have a history that ties back to people from Sweden. That is one part of who we are. But if we lose sight of the center of our faith, of Christ, then it is easy for us to focus too much on Sweden, often without even realizing we are doing that. We can fail to appreciate what other cultures bring to our church to make it whole and our mission effective. So we need to renew our vision of the Center, of Christ, and then we can appreciate our Swedish heritage and also appreciate that which has come to us from Latin America, from Asia and from Africa.

When we see the center of our faith clearly, then we are actually able to appreciate each other more, we are able to listen to each other more and value each part of the body. Then we can welcome people from all kinds of backgrounds and traditions much more effectively. Otherwise it is as if some are entirely focused on the boathouse and some are entirely focused on the guest house, and we have forgotten the mansion that binds it all together.

            So reform or reformation always has to do with a renewed vision of the center, which means a deeper love for Christ, a deeper commitment to God's heart for the people of the whole world, and a practice of congregational vitality. This vitality flows from a clear mission that gets demonstrated in a particular quality of fellowship. What we do together: praying, studying the word, serving God, energizes and forms our mission.

            The passage that we read from John chapter 12 today is the conclusion of the public ministry of Jesus. His miracles and discourses have now been completed. People have seen and heard and now must decide. But most do not believe. They cannot see the center. Their focus is on some other part of the work of God: the temple, the law, the tradition of the Rabbis. They do not believe, and it is not because they are lost in immorality or that they do not care about God. It is because they have not seen Christ at the center. They cannot leave the boathouse and go to live in the mansion.

            This is what reformation in our lives is always about: seeing anew who Christ is, that he alone is the center of life. Then it is a matter of having faith to stand in the light of Christ, no matter the cost.

            Reformation is always a renewal of commitment to the Word of God. It must be a commitment to the Word, because Jesus said, "I did not speak on my own, but the father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken." In reading the Word you discover the heart of God.

Ajith Fernando tells of a young woman who came to her pastor and said she thought she was filled with the spirit but did not see the fruits of the spirit in her life. He asked her what type of devotional life she had. She said "hit and miss." So he asked "Do you have your meals that way?" She said, "I did once, and I nearly lost my health." So she came to understand that if she wanted to be like Jesus, she had to be with Jesus. Reformation always begins in a commitment to regular reading of the Word of God.

            Reformation is also about trusting Christ, who knows the Father. Today we think of Martin Luther, who came to a point in his life where he said, "Here I stand. I can do no other." It is easy to think we are trusting Christ, when we are actually taking our clues from the culture around us, from what everyone else is doing or thinking. We float along in life, going where the current takes us. But to listen to Christ and then really trust him, because he has listened to the father, that is what reforms and renews our lives. It gives us a place to stand in the world.

            Finally, reformation is a matter of putting into practice what Jesus commands. Gary Burge writes, "Discipleship is not just a matter of knowing Jesus' word; it is also a matter of 'keeping' and 'doing' what Jesus has said."

            That is the issue for us. How do we "keep" what Jesus has spoken so that it lives through us? This is the example of Peter and John. It says in Acts chapter 4 that they were "unschooled" and "ordinary" men -- but they had been with Jesus. The word "unschooled" means here that although they had not received a rabbinical education, they were able to teach and discuss matters that normally would require such training. They were "ordinary," that is, they were not recognized as experts in the community. But they had been with Jesus. They knew the Word of God, they followed his commands, and they had received his Spirit. So Fernando says they spoke out of the Holy Spirit's guidance and also out of their knowledge of God's Word. That gave them boldness and confidence and faith. They could not help but speak about what they had seen and heard.

            So I believe that reformation is always about ordinary people who know the Word of God, who listen to Jesus, who rely on the Holy Spirit and so put their faith into practice. These are people who see Christ as the center of life, and so they make Christ the center of their lives.

            On this Reformation Day, the Lord calls us beyond remembering a moment in history that has shaped our faith and our creed. He calls us to a reformation of our minds and hearts. He calls us to make Christ the center of our lives, so that the design of every part can be seen, and all we do can fit together to the glory of God. He calls us to listen intently to Jesus, to grasp the heart of God for the world. He calls us to believe and follow.

            Amen.