It’s almost comical when one thinks about it, writing next month’s newsletter article about things yet to come, while at the same time significant dates that belong to the previous month have yet to happen. Such is the case as I write this installment. November is a month during which the Christian church marks three important occasions: All Saint’s Day, Christ the King Sunday, and Thanksgiving. This year we also begin the season of Advent before the month of November concludes. And here I am writing about these before October’s big event…Reformation Sunday. As I study the texts for Reformation Sunday, I’m trying to iron out how to talk about All Saint’s Day, Thanksgiving, and Advent while still in the shadow of October.
There is a beloved hymn that is most often sung at the Reformation celebration that sums up the challenge well. “God’s Word is Our Great Heritage” (LBW 239). It is but one verse, albeit an important one. Many of you will recognize this hymn as I share it with you.
(To the tune of “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God”)
God’s Word is our great heritage,
and shall be ours forever.
To Spread its light from age to age,
shall be our chief endeavor.
Through life it guides our way;
in death it is our stay.
Lord, grant while time shall last,
your church may hold it fast;
Throughout all generations.
Indeed, God’s Word is our great heritage. We are all people who have been brought up in the truth of God’s Law and Gospel. We cannot deny that we depend on God’s mercy and grace for for[1]giveness of our sins and life in God’s kingdom. God’s Word for us stands forever. It is the strong, undeniable saving Word that comes from the very God we worship and glorify. Ah…there is the rub. How is it that we hear the Word and respond by glorifying God through the way we live our life?
God’s Word is our great heritage and shall be ours forever. If it is to be ours forever, well then, we should know and understand it. So much so, that it shall be our chief endeavor to spread its light from age to age so that all generations of people may claim possession of it and have the Word as their great heritage also. So how do I fit this in with All Saint’s, Thanksgiving, and Advent? Well, here goes.
As we pause to remember those church family members who passed away in the last twelve months, we take great comfort in knowing the truth of God’s salvation. Truly, we believe we will dwell with God and be reunited with all who have gone before us in faith. Those who cling to God’s promise of salvation for believers have the assurance of faith. As so many who have gone before us, our lives are to be shaped by faith – the faith we receive from God in our hearing the Gospel and abiding in Christ. If we live a life shaped by cultural norms, we cannot claim this great heritage as being ours forever. Worldly endeavors simply cannot fulfill that which God promises in the Scriptures. So many of our predecessors understood this and now rest in the love of Christ our Lord. For the fulfillment of this promise, we can and surely ought to give thanks.
As we journey to the beginning of Advent, we do so along our life’s pathway illuminated by the Word of God. Through life it guides our way; in death it is our stay. The promise of Advent is that Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead. And his kingdom will have no end. How wonderful to be among those whose great heritage is the promise of everlasting life through Christ Jesus!
Lord, grant while time shall last, your church may hold it fast; Throughout all generations. Are you holding fast to your great heritage? Are you daily pondering, meditating, and dwelling in the Word of God? If not, why not? As a child of God, saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus, God’s Word is your great heritage, your promise from the God whose Son has purchased and won you from sin, death, and the power of the devil. Hold fast to this promise. Hold fast to your great heritage.
Grace to you and peace,
Pastor David Nuottila
