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How many Lutherans does it take to change a light bulb?

None! Lutherans don’t like change.

I once owned a 50 volume set of Luther’s Works not to mention Kettle’s Dictionary of the NT – that was only 12 Vols. I have a habit of giving things away. 

I also owned a collection of Luther’s sermons bound in leather and dated between 1520 and 1527.

The collection was given to me by my bibliophile uncle with the one condition that I not take it apart and sell the individual tracts.

I kept the promise. The whole collection with some Harvard was sold to a German library to pay my college debt.

MJ dare not leave home for more than a day for fear that half of her stuff will be gone.

I barely seem to have time to answer most of my e-mail, and write a sermon.

How did Luther write 50 volumes of books, not counting many of the documents that later became the confessional books of the Lutheran Church?

So today is a red-letter day for Lutherans.  We remember the work and faith journey of an Augustinian Monk who lived at the time of Christopher Columbus, the man who sailed West to find East, and Gutenberg who invented the printing press which made copying books by hand obsolete, and the Polish Priest Nicolas Copernicus who told the world that the sun, not the earth, is the center of the solar system.

On this day we again read from Paul’s letter to the Romans – where Luther found the passage that gave him the courage and inspiration to challenge the foundation of Roman orthodoxy.

Luther and the Apostle Paul had much in common. 

Both studied law, both were on a road when they had their conversion experience.

Luther was on his way back to the University after a weekend at home with his parents when a lighting bolt almost got him.  In the NT book of Acts.9.9 Luke tells us that the same happened to Paul.

Saul changed his name to Paul and Luther in becoming a monk changed his name, as all those who take monastic vows do.

Paul gave us the letter to the Romans. Luther, as I said, translated that letter and found the peace that even the priesthood did not give him.

The Reformation is now almost 600 years old...Luther’s translation of the Bible into German standardized

the German language, as the KJ Bible standardized the English language.

Last Sunday, I said that as Lutherans we have a unique place in world. I’d like to expand on that a bit.

I was fortunate to have Dr. H. George Anderson who taught church history where I went to seminary. He referred to the Lutheran Church as the Jesuits of Protestantism.

Dr. Anderson later became the first bishop of the ELCA.

What he meant was that as the Jesuits are the teaching order of the RC church, so Lutherans are the teaching order of Protestantism.

That was brought home for me last week in our adult class when one of our recent converts told me that when he told some friends that he now attends a Lutheran Church, the friend said “Oh you mean those eggheads?”

And I realized that that is what I have been saying when I tell people that God does not expect us to put our brains in our back pockets when we come to church.

So what is so egg-head-ish about Lutherans?

Let’s see how smart we are?

1. True or False? Luther Married Katharine von Trapp and they had 6 children?

2. On the first day of creation God said let there be:

a. Peace b. Animals c. Light

3. Cain and Abel were: a. friends of Jesus b. invented the Hebrew alphabet c. Children of Adam and Eve

4. In the Biblical account of Christmas when the Magi found Jesus he was in a. house b. a stable c. a tent?

While the Bible continues to be an all-time best seller, it seems that few people actually read it. According to a recent Gallup Poll 93% of all American homes have at least one copy. In a 2007 Kelton research study it was found that more people know what goes into a Big Mac that what is in the Bible; 12% said that Joan of arc was Noah’s wife, one half didn’t know the book of Isaiah was in the OT and one in ten said that Moses was one of the ten Apostles.

Luther the Priest, Monk, the Knight, the Father, Husband and Reformer risked all so that everyone could read the Bible in their own language.

So why are we still so reluctant to become more acquainted with the “first language of faith?”

I have it on good information that we may soon have a new translation of the Bible published by the same group who has a web site conservapedia–-you have heard of Wikipedia? 

According Andrew Schlafly, his translation will correct the liberal bias of Jesus' parables and other sayings attributed to Jesus. He claims that the Jesus that we read about was not the Jesus of history. He states that those who translated the NT were liberals who made Jesus more a socialist when in fact he was the first capitalist.

Well, I happened to know that when it comes to one of Luther’s hymns,the one we are going sing a few minutes “Lord keep us steadfast in thy Word” Schlaf-ly  may have a point... but he doesn’t know it.

I doubt if he ever read much of Luther.  The verse that reads - Lord keep us steadfast in thy word; curb those who by deceit or sword would wrest the kingdom from your Son and bring to naught all he has done…

originally read: Lord keep us steadfast in Thy Word and CURB THE TURKS AND PAPIST’S SWORD who Jesus Christ Thy only Son, fair would tumble from off Thy throne p.7 Dietrich Listenwede.

So what is the message of the Reformation?

One more quiz.

What do the following have in common? 

Hypatia of Alexandria 370-415

Pelagius 345-418

Joan of Arc 1412-1431

Martin Luther 1483-1546–-all were declared heretics by the church.

Two were women. Hypatia was a philosopher, mathematician, astronomer, and the head librarian in Alexandria –- the largest library in the ancient world. Her crime was to know more than the Bishop and being a woman.

Joan of Arc – not the wife of Noah and the Ark.

At 19 she was burned at the stake. Her crime was being a better military leader than her male counterpart.

Martin Luther – challenged the teaching of the church and especially the fundraising tactics of Pope Leo X.

When Luther was challenged to defend his writings, it was the Holy Bible that he called as his witness.

On April 18^th 1521 Luther stands before the

Emperor Charles V, along with 6 Electors, 24 Dukes, 7 Margraves, 30 Bishops, knights and emissaries of the Empire…

The pageantry was impressive.

He speaks both in Latin and German and closes with these words: “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason, I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted. My conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not retract anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.

The three hallmarks of our Lutheran Church that come from Luther’s struggle with the church of his time and his own inner conflict are these:

1. The Universal Priesthood of All Believers, this is because we are all consecrated priests through baptism.

2. Sola Scriptura (scripture) alone is the norm for faith and life.

3. Justification by grace through faith. Need I say more?

One of the last things Luther writes in one of his journals:

“Who would have ever predicted it, who would have read it in the stars that I would one day cause such heartache to my father, get into such a scrap with the pope, and marry an ex-nun?"