Isn t that interesting? The first words spoken by a person in the New Testament are: WHERE IS

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1 REFORMATION 2014, CFO: YOU ARE AN ANGEL! Revelation 14:6-7 Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. And he said with a loud voice, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water." The words, Where is the Messiah? are the first words spoken in the entire New Testament. Isn t that interesting? The first words spoken by a person in the New Testament are: WHERE IS THE MESSIAH? The first words ever spoken period were spoken by God in Genesis 3. He spoke them to Adam. God said to him: WHERE ARE YOU? Throughout history God has been reaching out to man. That s what the Bible is all about. It is a salvation history. It records all that God has done for us to restore us to Himself. The quest of man has always been that of searching to find God. God can be known. In fact, God has many messengers. Indeed, that s what an angel is. An angel is a messenger. Angels are heralds. They carry with them the message of God. What does an angel look like? Do you picture a spiritual being with wings? Do you think of a young man dressed in white? The Bible often describes angels as having wings. During Jesus day angels often appeared as young men dressed in white. Has anyone ever said that you look like an angel? Your parents and grandparents may have said that about you when you were a few months old. Are they still saying that about you today? If not, they should. You may not have wings. You may not wear a white robe but you are an angel! Really? Yes, you are an angel! Our text is taken from one of the most misunderstood books of the Bible, the book of Revelation. Revelation is often misinterpreted because many forget that it is a book of symbols. For example in the first chapter of Revelation, the Apostle John describes a vision he had of Jesus. He saw Jesus dressed in white. He was walking among seven golden lampstands. This vision was not a peek into Jesus heavenly living room. The golden lampstands were not His choice for interior lighting. The lampstands symbolized churches. We know this because Jesus tells us that in Revelation 1:20. In that same vision John saw Jesus holding stars in his hand. Jesus says that these stars symbolized the angels of the churches. To understand what Jesus meant by that we need to know that the Greek word angel simply means, messenger. Anyone who carries with them the message of God is an angel.

2 The context is what determines whether the messenger spoken about is a heavenly one, like the angel Gabriel, or an earthly one, like a prophet, or even just a regular person. The angels that Jesus held in his hand were not heavenly messengers. They were the pastors of the churches to whom John was to send the book of Revelation. Knowing that the word angel simply means, messenger helps us to understand our sermon text. Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth to every nation, tribe, language and people. He said in a loud voice, Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water. Who was this angel? Why is it significant that he was flying in midair with the eternal gospel? The angel John saw could certainly represent heavenly angels. One of their tasks is to share messages from God. Think of how heavenly angels told the shepherds about the birth of Jesus. But when s the last time a heavenly angel told you the good news about Jesus? What other angels or messengers have spoken to you about Jesus? Perhaps the first people to tell you about Jesus were your parents. Maybe it was a neighbor, a Sunday school teacher or a pastor. Whenever you tell someone about Jesus, you re an angel. You are acting as a messenger from God. You are a fulfillment of this vision John saw. At the beginning of the Reformation, a man by the name of Martin of Basle came to a knowledge of the truth. Unfortunately, he was afraid to make a public confession. He wrote the following on a leaf of parchment: "O most merciful Christ, I know that I can be saved only by the merit of your blood. Holy Jesus, I acknowledge your sufferings for me. I love you! I love you!" Then he removed a stone from the wall of his bedroom and hid it there. It was not discovered for more than a hundred years. About the same time another Martin named Luther found the truth as it is in Christ. He said: "My Lord has confessed me before men; I will not shrink from confessing Him before kings." The world knows what followed. Today it reveres the memory of Luther. But who remembers Martin of Basle? What message are you carrying? Are you speaking up? ARE YOU AN ANGEL?

3 There was a man named Earnest Heed Who simply refused to listen But when his wife cooked apple pie His eyes would always glisten. Earnest had a few close friends Named Apathy and Lazy They like Earnest refused to hear And drove other people crazy. One day, Earnest and His Friends went on a trip, For rest and relaxation Then suddenly an angel appeared Without an explanation. He said to Earnest and his friends Have you realized thus far That you have gone through all your life Without realizing who you are. For You have chosen what you want to hear In your ears have made no room For God has spoken many times And now you are facing doom. Earnest and his friends passed away that day With Angel s words in their ears. For they had ignored and refused to listen For many, many years The meaning behind this story my friends Is evident and clear For when the Lord speaks to you Make every effort to hear. The message of God s love and forgiveness in Jesus Christ is never more than one generation away from extinction. Every Christian of every generation must be a bold witness and messenger for our God. We live today in very discouraging times. The church of Jesus Christ is under attack. The Christian church is increasingly becoming a persecuted church. But we must take heart. The whole story of the Church is one which imitates the story of Jesus Himself. She dies and she rises again. She was buried in the catacombs; she rose again with Constantine. She died in the Dark Ages; she rose again with Charlemagne. She died with the Renaissance; she rose again with the saints of the Reformation. The church- indeed all of us- are constantly dying and rising again. We are the messengers. We do the work of angels.

4 But why was the angel flying in midair? And why was the gospel he proclaimed described as eternal? Evil governments and false prophets will try their best to silence the truth about him. But the gospel of Jesus will continue to be shared by people like us until the end of time. That s a promise for which we give special thanks in our Reformation service today. Close to five hundred years ago it seemed that the Word of God had been silenced. It s not that people didn t talk about Jesus. The church in those days certainly spoke about Him. But it was denying that he had done everything necessary for our salvation. The church taught then that sinners must do acts of penance. They must carry out good works to show their seriousness of wanting to be saved. The church also sold indulgences. Indulgences were coupons that granted the forgiveness of sins without contrition, without repentance, without faith in Jesus. Five hundred years ago the gospel message that we are saved because of what Jesus has done was in danger of being lost. God, however, ensured that the gospel message continued to ring out loudly and clearly. He used a man by the name of Martin Luther to get that message out. Through his study of Scripture, Luther learned that we are saved by God s grace alone, through faith alone. Luther was an angel to the people of his day. Through his writings he is still speaking today. At that time in the history of the church this doctrine was all but lost. By the fifteenth century the church had become a massive institution of power, and the gospel was polluted. The church was teaching salvation by subjection to the pope, receiving the sacraments, and doing good works. In fact, by the fifteenth century salvation was for sale. In order to raise funds for the building of St Peter s basilica in Rome, the church was selling admission to heaven, even for dead relatives. It wasn t by faith at all. It was being told that it was silver and gold that got you into heaven. In those dark days, God raised up a hero of the faith to stand against the powers of the empire, and the most powerful institution on the planet, to preach sola fide. That hero s name was Martin Luther. We are saved because of what Jesus has done, not because of anything we do. To prove his point Luther pointed toward the quote that St. Paul used from Habakkuk 2:4, "The just shall live by faith." Those words shook Martin Luther to the core.

5 They brought him to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. On this point, I quote from a letter by Dr. Paul Luther, the reformer's youngest son: In the year 1544, my late dearest father, in the presence of us all, narrated the whole story of his journey to Rome. He acknowledged with great joy that, in that city, through the Spirit of Jesus Christ, he had come into the knowledge of the truth of the everlasting gospel. It happened this way. As he repeated his prayers on the Lateran staircase, the words of the prophet Habakkuk came suddenly to his mind, "The just shall live by faith." Thereupon he ceased his prayers, returned to Wittenberg, and took this as the chief foundation of all his doctrine. From that unlikely beginning came the Protestant Reformation. And with it the battle-cry sola fide, "by faith alone." Faith alone! Not by works of the law. Faith alone! Not by obedience to the Church. Faith alone! Not by human righteousness. Faith alone! Not by good intentions. Faith alone! Not by the sacraments. Faith alone! Not by penance. Faith alone! Not by almsgiving. Faith alone! Plus nothing and minus nothing! Is that the message you believe? As Lutherans we re quick to say, Of course it is! But I wonder if we re not a little like the man in the following story. A man died and stood before St. Peter at the gates of heaven. Peter said: Here s how it works. You tell me all the good things that you ve done, I ll tally them up, and when you score a hundred points, you get to come into heaven. The man hesitated for a moment and then said: Well, I was married to the same woman for fifty years and never cheated on her, not even in my heart. Great, said Peter. That s worth 2 points. 2 points? the man said. Well I attended church all my & life & supported its ministry with my offering and talents. Terrific, exclaimed Peter. That s certainly worth a point. One point?!! the man retorted. I started a soup kitchen and worked in a shelter for the homeless.

6 I spent my Thanksgiving and Christmas days serving dinners to the less fortunate. Fantastic! That s good for 2 more points, said Peter. Exasperated the man cried: At this rate the only way I ll get into heaven is by the grace of God! Bingo! One hundred points. Welcome to heaven! As Lutherans we claim to know and believe that we are saved by God s grace through faith in Jesus. Yet how often don t we think, like the man in the story that God owes us something for the things we ve done for him? And how quickly we forget or take lightly our sins whether jealousy or pride. Sure we know that these things are wrong but we often think that God will gloss over them because we re otherwise decent people. If we rely on anything or anyone other than Jesus for salvation we have no salvation. Supposing that our good deeds will get us into heaven is like using duct tape to make repairs when only a nail will do. And that s exactly what God did. He fixed our problem of sin with a nail. What needs to be added to what God has done? What can we add? Nothing. Jesus has done everything necessary for salvation. Believe it! Share it. Be a messenger. This message of free forgiveness through faith in Christ will not just last forever; it s for all people. Did you notice how the angel in John s vision cried out in a loud voice so that all tribes, nations, and people would hear? Sometimes we think the theme of Reformation is guarding the gospel message. We do want to guard God s Word from error but that doesn t mean we are to lock it away so that we re the only ones who know about it. No. This message is for all people. Jesus died to pay for the sins of the whole word. So remember who you are. You re an angel, a messenger of God. You have the only message that saves from hell. Get the Word out here and abroad, not because you must, but because you will, because that s what God made you for to be an angel.