He went back…
- Lessons: Romans 3:19-28, John 8:31-36
- Hymns: 200, 280, 293, 203
In the Name of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh.
Because today we celebrate the Reformation, you may have come expecting to hear some great stories about Martin Luther and worms – or is it “vorms”? – and to sing the “right” version of “A Mighty Fortress,” whatever you think that is.
You might anticipate a triumphalist tour through Lutheran history, praising God for birthing us as Lutherans, either from the womb or through some sort of instruction class later in life.
You might have prepared yourself for a deluge of theological terms like “justification” and “indulgences” and “theses” and Anfechtung. And I won’t dispute such expectations. I like ‘em and I’ll swap a good Luther story with you any day of the week, and twice on Reformation. And while at times I will probably indulge your expectations – or, depending on your point of view, sink to your expectations – I’d really much rather talk about the apostle Paul today.
The words I chose as our sermon text take us into Paul’s first missionary journey. Some undefined time has elapsed since Paul’s conversion to the Christian faith. After some theological retraining, we find Paul serving as one of the prophets and teachers in Antioch. There, the Spirit commands the congregation to set aside Paul and Barnabas for the work to which I have called them (Acts 13:2). Shortly thereafter they head out to talk about Jesus.
With success, I might add. On the island of Cyprus the Roman governor converts to the Christian faith and Paul wins a battle of miracles with a local sorcerer. From there, they head to mainland Asia Minor (Turkey). And there they do what Paul does. They preach and teach about Jesus. In another town called Antioch they win over large crowds, telling them: I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses (Acts 13:38-39). Did you catch it, I said “justified”?
This message angers some local Jews and a theme develops. They organize a mob, leading Paul and Barnabas to leave town. Now they go to Iconium – and closer to our text. There they preach some more, and again, the Spirit works where and when He pleases: a great number believe. But those who remained unconverted weren’t happy to see Christian churches built next to their synagogues. They plotted to stone Paul and Barnabas. This stimulated them to head down to the city of Lystra.
The Lystrians treated Paul and Barnabas like gods. Literally. Barnabas they called “Zeus,” king of the gods. Paul they called, “Hermes,” because he did all the talking. Paul and Barnabas quickly disabused the people of this notion – what a temptation though, right pastors, to be treated like gods? And then, our text: Some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust. After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia (Acts 14:19-25).
Luther (warning: Luther quote coming) closed out his 95 Theses (a two-fer: I said “theses”!) with these words: 92. Away then with all those prophets who say to the people of Christ, “Peace, peace,” and there is no peace! 93. Blessed be all those prophets who say to the people of Christ, “Cross, cross,” and there is no cross! 94. Christians should be exhorted to be diligent in following Christ, their head, through penalties, death, and hell; 95. And thus be confident of entering into heaven through many tribulations rather than through the false security of peace. Luther had no one else in mind as an example of this kind of cross-preaching (and –living) prophet than Paul. Look at what Paul did. He went back.
I think of the firefighters on 9-11 who ran up to a smoking, burning hell and went in. I think of soldiers dragging wounded comrades out of harm’s way and then turning around to get another. They get memorials and medals. Paul deserves no less. He went back. They stoned him. Then dragged his unconscious and maybe even dead body out of the city. In other words, they lynched him. And God miraculously intervened. And then he went back into Lystra. And after Lystra he went to Derbe. And then he went back to Lystra, to Iconium, to Antioch. He went back.
He went back because he had the Word they needed. No doubt the Lystrians still needed Paul. They still had to stutter to get his name right and call him Paul not Hermes. They still had altars ready for pagan sacrifices. They still probably thought some nutty, crazy things about Christianity, like some demi-god impregnated Mary to give birth to Christ. He couldn’t leave them like that, no matter what the Jews would do to him.
Look around you. Biblical literacy has hit rock bottom. People don’t know their Daniel’s from their David’s, their Chronicles from their Corinthians. Here and abroad. So much depravity and false doctrine and false religion surrounds us, that no matter how much we’ve been hurt, no matter how many stones have been thrown, we have no choice, we must go back. Because we’ve got the Word they need, the Word of Christ, the Word about Christ, the Word that is Christ!
But that’s not the only reason Paul went back. He went back because this is the Christian way. Luther echoed Paul, “Better a pastor who says, ‘Cross, cross’ and there is no cross, than one who says, ‘Peace, peace,’ and there is no peace.” Paul prepared the way. He strengthened. He encouraged. He instructed about the way of the Christian faith: “It’s hard.” He knew thorns would grow soon among these new sprouts. He knew that they needed more Word-ilizer. Because this particular part of Jesus’ teaching really rankles. “I must deny myself and take up my cross to follow Jesus? In this world I’ll have trouble? It’s necessary for us to go through hardships before we enter the kingdom of heaven? All men will hate me because of Jesus? We share in his sufferings? Seriously?” Remember though, it could be worse, you could be forbidden to eat bacon.
Yes, hardship, the cross, is the Christian lot. This is, after all, the great tribulation. Godlessness holds a supermajority. Most people don’t want to buy what you’re selling. Most people think it’s at best quaint, at worst bigoted what you think and feel about sin, the family, sexuality, abortion and a whole host of other topics. To follow God is to forsake the world which is to invite hardship, trouble, the cross.
Luther lived it. From 1521 on he was considered outlaw. That is, he could be killed and his murderer hadn’t committed a crime. His church excommunicated him and anyone who taught what he taught or believed what he believed. His enemies weren’t just cranks and fringe groups, they were the most powerful and popular men in the world – emperors, popes, princes, scholars, kings. You try having Henry VIII not like you. Ask some of his wives. Enemies lied about him. Friends abandoned him. His own health deserted him. Two of his children died at a young age. He foresaw the fracturing of the Lutheran church from the very day he died (correctly, I might add). But he didn’t stop. He kept going back. Like Paul. Because he heard the end of that verse. We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22). Luther saw the promise of heaven at the end. Luther wasn’t the first to suffer such for Christ. He wasn’t the last either. Neither was Paul. And boy did Paul suffer. Flogged, beaten, and shipwrecked among other things. But still, on this day, stoned for preaching about Jesus, miraculously raised, he still went back. Because he too saw the promise of heaven. And he wanted others to see it. So he went back.
He went back because you can’t kill the Word. And boy did they try in Lystra. Stone after stone pummeled Paul. So badly did they attack, that later Paul writes, I bear on my body the marks of Jesus (Galatians 6:17). In another context, Paul wrote to a young man who might very well have witnessed the events at Lystra, Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained (2 Timothy 2:8-9). Because you can’t kill the Word. And how God illustrates that by raising Paul up from this stoning. “You will not kill my Word or my Word-speaker!”
He went back because he knew that. The Word will live on, even when Paul dies. Even when we die. God will find a way. He raised up Paul so that Paul could go back and appoint pastors in those towns that hated Paul so. He still does it today. He preserves his Word around the world, sometimes through the lonely work of just one pastor in a hostile place, or one small congregation surrounded by a sea of Joel Osteens and Rob Bells and Benny Hinns, or Roman Catholicism, or paganism.
Because you can’t kill the Word. Oh how the world tried. It even nailed the Word made flesh to a cross. It beat Him, thrashed Him, embarrassed Him, and mutilated Him. It let Him put our sins upon Him. Oh how we’ve tried, letting congregations and schools of the Word flounder and pass away. Letting Bibles sit unopened or unread, Sunday School classes unfilled, church pews perilously empty. We’ve tried to take the Sacrament away from our people and restrict it to quarterly moments, or monthly moments, or if we’re lucky bi-weekly moments. We’ve tried to break all of God’s commandments – in the same day or hour. And we’ve succeeded.
But so did He. You can’t kill the Word. He went back too. Not Luther. Not Paul. But Christ. Through Him, through Christ, is proclaimed the forgiveness of sins you need to hear – and to have – as well, not just the world around you, not just them. Through Him you have the justification, the right standing with God that you need, not just the world around you, not just them. That’s why Paul got up, brushed off the dirt and went back into Lystra. He went back into the hardship. He went back.
It’s cool to be Lutheran. Let’s celebrate that. Hey, we are! It’s wonderful to have a spiritual father like Martin Luther. Let’s tell some stories about him later today over food and drink. But don’t forget why we celebrate the Reformation at all – because He went back. Not Luther. Not even Paul. But Christ. He went back and found sinners like us and made us into saints like Him. He went back. Amen.
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