For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation Read Rom 1:1-7, * * * * *

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1 UNITING REFORMED CHURCH IN SOUTHERN AFRICA & DUTCH REFORMED CHURCH IN SOUTH AFRICA SA GESTIG CONGREGATION, BELHAR, 27 NOVEMBER 2016 LICENSING OF THEOLOGICAL STUDENTS FOR THE MINISTRY OF THE WORD Read Rom 1:1-7, to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, The one who is righteous will live by faith (Rom 1:16-17) We are gathered to worship and witness the licensing of theological candidates into the ministry of the gospel in the five hundredth year of the Reformation. During this coming year, leading up to the commemoration in Wittenberg, from where Martin Luther proclaimed his 95 theses, churches worldwide will remember this history and reflect on this tradition in which we stand. It is indeed a remarkable time in which to be allowed by the church into the ministry of the gospel, since the heart of the Reformation was precisely about the rediscovery of the ministry of the gospel. Shortly before the end of his life, in the foreword to his Commentary on Romans, Luther himself wrote that it all began for him with his discovery of these words in Rom 1: He recalled how, in what became known as his tower experience, he studied these words in the tower of his house in Wittenberg when he understood, for the first time, what these remarkable words really say. It was, he wrote, as if he entered paradise itself through open gates. A totally other face of the entire Scripture showed itself to me, he wrote. He ran through the Scriptures from memory, he remembered, and suddenly found so many other ways in which the same gospel was proclaimed, although he could not appreciate it before these words provided him the key to the whole of Scripture. This experience of Luther probably began when he lectured on Romans for the first time, only 32 years old. His discovery led to the Reformation and is also still the reason why we may witness the licensing of candidates into the ministry of the gospel today.

2 A century ago, another young minister of only 27, recently licensed and in his first congregation, Karl Barth in the small Swiss town of Safenwil, preached a series of 6 sermons all on these words and even told the congregation that it could just as well have been 14 or 21 sermons! At that time he began writing his Commentary on Romans which would become epoch-making for church and theology in the 20 th century. For him, in Romans we hear the heart of the gospel itself and in these few words of Rom 1:16-17, he wrote, we hear the theme of Romans. Now, one does not have to preach a series of 21 sermons on these words it may in fact be wise not to but the truth is that all our sermons rest on these words. The ministry of the gospel is based on these words, our whole ministry presupposes them, takes place and becomes possible because of them. These words promise all ministers of the gospel what we may believe, what we may depend on, what we may always remember, what we may trust in order not to lose our way. Why would someone be ashamed of the gospel? In the New Testament this notion plays a key role, in several writings, but why? It means losing our trust in the gospel, our conviction and confidence; beginning to think that the gospel does not really provide answers to our human questions and needs; starting to doubt whether the gospel is really credible, reliable, trustworthy, worthwhile following. It means that we become silent when we should witness, that we no longer publicly confess, that we are no longer ready to give account of the hope within us. It means that we back away from the implications of the gospel, from its sometimes radical consequences, that in certain company we lose the confidence to speak the gospel, since we fear the possible responses, what others may perhaps say and think and do, and how they may regard us. Indeed, the candidates today are called to the ministry of the gospel in times in which it has become almost popular and normal to be ashamed of the gospel in public, even for those who privately continue to believe. It is not even necessary to describe this spirit of our times, we all know these experiences only too well. 2

3 3 Why then is Paul not ashamed of the gospel? Because it is the power of God, he says, because the gospel is powerful, in itself, as message, as good news (which is what gospel literally means, evangelie, euangelion). This is what Luther saw and then suddenly recognised everywhere in Scripture. This is the insight on which Protestantism is built. The ministry of the gospel is about what Godself is doing. He suddenly realised that the righteousness of God revealed in Jesus Christ is not about God s character but about God s action, said Luther. This is what he saw in the tower, opening the gates of paradise for him, it is about what God is doing, God s actions, God s faithfulness, God s own power. The ministry of this gospel is not about us and about what we can do it does not depend on us, our talents and gifts, character and charm, training and knowledge, popular personalities and social skills. The success of our ministry does not depend on our leadership qualities and professional abilities, our visions and missions, plans and projects, programs and strategies, authority and influence. The ministry of the gospel is about God s Word and Spirit bringing about what the gospel promises. For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation, Paul adds. This is what Luther understood. This is what makes the good news so good. God uses this message to save which means to justify, forgive, reconcile, sanctify, heal, make new, transform, resurrect, liberate, assure, comfort, bless, bring joy, move, inspire, strengthen, empower, warn, guide, enlighten, lead, protect, keep, guard, feed, satisfy thirst, nourish, make flourish, bring justice, give peace, and so much more. This salvation takes many shapes, comes in many forms, touches and changes lives in many ways. This is what Luther understood, and why he recalled the whole of Scripture, to be reminded of the many, many different ways in which God does what God has promised. One only has to continue with Romans to see how salvation comes in many forms from justification in chapters 3 and 4 to peace and hope and love in chapter 5 to new life in chapter 6 to new obedience in chapter 7 to freedom early in chapter 8 to imagining a new world towards the end of chapter 8.

4 The salvation brought about by the gospel is about so much, much more than what we may perhaps think or dream. It means that through our ministry of the gospel God is bringing about salvation so much, much richer and larger and more wonderful than we may ever appreciate or even hope. The criteria that we often use to measure the success of our own ministry will never enable us to fully discern this power of the gospel which is at work, bringing salvation. We perhaps look at numbers and count funds, long for popularity and seek praise, try to achieve influence and exercise authority yet seldom sense what God is actually doing through our ministry of God s good news. Ministers never fully see what the gospel is doing in the hearts and minds and lives of so many. We hardly comprehend and can never fully know the hidden working of the power of God for salvation which is why we should learn to trust this promise on which our ministry rests, even and precisely when we fail to see much effect and fruit, since it may be there, abundantly, only invisible to us. to everyone who has faith, says Paul, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. This good news is for everyone, from Jew to Greek, and whoever gladly accepts and trusts this news, shares in this salvation. In the first chapters of Romans he develops this wide spectrum of people needing and receiving salvation more fully, showing how comprehensive and all-inclusive this love and grace of God s salvation truly is, deliberately rejecting all possible distinctions and exclusions. This is precisely what Luther in the tower understood for the first time. This is the righteousness of God, God s action, he understood, God s own work in Christ God justifies whoever God wants, God does not respond to our own justice or morality and does not need our justice or morality. In Christ God justifies sinners, God justifies us while we are God s enemies, God justifies the unjust and the lost, and everyone, from Jew to Greek, who rejoices in this good news and rests in these assurances and trusts these promises and praises this gracious God shares in this salvation with its many forms and shapes. In Romans this argument builds up to the climax of chapters 9 to 11 in which Paul sings the praises of God s election, God s free and undeserved grace that can save everyone, anyone, irrespective of who we are and what we have done and what others may think and say of us. Some of the candidates may remember Herman Bavinck s words that this good news of God s election and free grace means that there is now hope for even the most miserable, vir die allerellendigste 4

5 hoop, because the gospel is the power of God for salvation, not in any way dependent on us and how upright and deserving we may be. In chapters 12 to 15 Paul then spells out the practical consequences of these mercies of God, amongst others that we should therefore also accept one another, everyone, irrespective, even the most miserable, as Jesus Christ accepted us, to the glory of God this God. These implications spelled out in the later chapters are already hidden in these thematic words in Rom 1: John Calvin saw that clearly. Commenting on the words that the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith (verse 17) he said in his typical way that when at first we taste the gospel, we indeed see God s smiling countenance turned towards us, but at a distance; the more the knowledge of true religion grows in us, by coming as it were nearer, we behold God s favor more clearly and more familiarly. The good news of the gospel is that God s smiling countenance is turned towards us just another way of explaining God s righteousness revealed in Jesus Christ. With this message, the church is sent into the world, to tell and assure and show all and everyone, irrespective, including the most miserable, including those who do not even respect or love themselves, that God s smiling countenance is turned towards them, too. God s smiling countenance is turned towards all of us. God is not ashamed of us, not of anyone, not even of God s enemies. Faith is simply to be glad when we hear this good news, to rejoice when we see the gates of paradise open to us, to enjoy the experience when we taste this for the first time, says Calvin. Salvation is to be moved, touched, changed, healed, comforted, renewed by the power of this good news, in so many ways. And therefore true religion Calvin s words for the Christian life, for faith itself is to reflect daily on this smiling countenance of God, this friendly face of God turned towards us. Faith is to be continuously drawn closer, nearer, to behold God s favor more clearly and more familiarly, to grow ever more accustomed to the smiling face of God, to appreciate ever more deeply that God is not ashamed of us, or anyone, whether Jew or Greek or any other stranger in between. It is significant that Paul says he is not ashamed of the gospel, and that he does not say he is not ashamed of the church because we should be ashamed of the church, often. 5

6 Since the ministry of the gospel to which we are called is to proclaim this gospel of the power of God for salvation to everyone, irrespective, and to assure them, show them, demonstrate to them, make them feel, make them touch, make them see, make them sense and taste and enjoy the good news that God is not ashamed of them either we should sadly be ashamed of the church, so often. The church has failed and still fails this ministry of the gospel in so many tragic ways. Being licensed as ministers of the Word therefore does not mean that in future you should always defend the church and everything the church says and does and stands for. In fact, central to your ministry is the task to remind the church of this gospel and to call the church back to this gospel, whenever necessary. This is why Protestantism lives with the slogan that Reformed churches should continuously be reformed according to the Word, according to this message for salvation, this good news that God is not ashamed of anyone. Of course, this means that we often have reason also to be ashamed of ourselves. Whenever we fail to show the world and the times in which we live, this friendly, smiling, gracious face of the God who called and sent us, then we have reason to be ashamed of ourselves. Whenever we are ashamed of this gospel, we have reason to be ahamed of ourselves. Because we so often measure our own ministry with the wrong criteria we may even sometimes be very pleased with ourselves, satisfied with our successes, impressed by our authority, in awe of our own ability, and fail to see that we should rather be ashamed of ourselves, because we fail to show our world, including the most miserable within it, the smiling countenance of the gracious God. God does not need us, wrote the young Karl Barth, indeed, if God were not God, He would be ashamed of us. Still, gates of paradise!, God is God, and God is not ashamed, even of us who are called to the ministry of the good news of God s saving power. 6