Sermon A: Reformation Rom 3:19-28

In many congregations this Sunday the festival of the Reformation will be celebrated. The assigned readings are Revelation 14:6-7; Romans 3:19-28 and John 8:31-36. Normally the sermon text is one or two verses in length, but for this occasion the text will be Romans 3:19-28. Because of the length we will not type it out here but open your Bible to the passage to follow along.

Why is this passage so important? It not only is the crux of the Bible but it is also practical in an evangelism sense. How so? What suggestions do we have for Christians to testify of the hope that they have in Christ? Perhaps we encourage them to use one of the creeds which certainly provides a outline of our faith. Or one could use a confession of the Church; eg., Augsburg or the Small Catechism, to share what Christians believe.

However, if one is looking for a short portion of the Scripture that gets to the heart of the matter of the Christian faith, Romans 3:19-28 is marvelous. First of all, it works with the historic facts of the Bible in regard to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Second, it offers an understanding of Law and Gospel that is unique, radical and totally different than that found in any other religion of the entire world.

The two religions of the world are Christianity and everything else. And everything else uses the Law as a friend who guides you into a right relationship with a god through proper works, thoughts, words, sacrifices, offerings and so forth. But the Christian faith points forth to an understanding of God’s use of the Law that not only hinders your salvation but clearly reveals the impossibility of your doing, saying or thinking anything in order to be saved.

And the Gospel found in this passage is not some good news report in light of your increasing holy works, words and thoughts. Instead, the Gospel is that your entire salvation was accomplished by God without any help or contribution from you. You are totally saved by grace through faith on account of the work of Jesus Christ. It is a passage that destroys the hearer’s hope of salvation because of his holiness or his change in behavior or whatever else all the other religions worship.

This righteousness of God is not something to which we need to attain but is rather what we receive as a gift when we are the enemies of God. There is no experience one has that can be compared to the radical nature of God’s gift to us the unworthy. For God first declares us redeemed and then He begins the work of making us holy. In fact, no holy work can even be done until one is totally saved.

Totally saved? Who is totally saved? Certainly not those who imagine that being saved is like becoming perfect. But from God’s viewpoint, being saved is becoming God’s child which occurs through adoption for sure in the waters of baptism. And what does a child to to get adopted? Nothing. What did you do to get saved? Nothing. In fact, if you ever add something to your being saved, you have subtracted from the cross of Christ.

As an aside, along with Romans 3:19-28 as being a brilliant summary of the essence of the Christian faith, another tool one can use in witnessing is a hymn. And what is the assigned hymn for Reformation Sunday besides “A Might Fortress Is Our God?” It is “Salvation Unto Us Has Come.” In that hymn you also have a wonderful summary of the unique, radical and uncommonsensical theology of that which is the Christian faith.