Reformation Dedication Celebration
Today, we are combining celebrations.
We are celebrating the dedication
of the sanctuary which this congregation
has been working on in one way or another
for about six years.
And we’re also
celebrating the Reformation
which began in 1517 with Martin Luther
nailing the 95 theses to the
door of the Wittenberg church in Germany.
As Lutherans, we look to Martin Luther for guidance,
he was the founder of our denomination,
and he was a wise professor as well as a man dedicated to
Jesus.
People knew he was
important, even when he was alive,
so lots of his letters and conversations were written down,
so you can find a
Martin Luther quote for almost anything,
so I wanted to look up an inspiring quote that he might have
about
church buildings, sacred spaces, the places that we
celebrate God and Christ and here’s what I found:
For where God built a
church,
there the Devil would also build a chapel.
Not quite the inspirational quote that I wanted
for the celebration of our sacred space
but what else do we expect from Martin Luther?
Always keeping us humble and on our toes.
He’s probably made a good point about church buildings
though.
They can be delightful, but they are also problems.
They are the bane of some churches existence actually.
Buildings are temporary, they decay, they leak,
they get musty and smelly they fall down around our heads,
Sometime their upkeep ends up being
a lot of the focus of a church’s activity.
Sometimes they become a church’s only focus,
And people tend to use them for comfortable security.
We lock ourselves up insider rather than
taking our ministry out into the world.
Actually, the building of St. Peter’s basilica in Rome
and the money extorted from faithful Christians with the
threat of hell in the form of indulgences,
was the impetus for Martin Luther’s 95 thesis
Many a church conflict has been started
over the church building:
who has control of the kitchen,
what color should the carpet be,
to have kneelers or not to have kneelers
Anything that a group of people can disagree about
about power, aesthetics, and finances comes
up in the construction, care, and maintenance of a church
building,
And everything in a church building gets raised to the level
of
a divine disagreement as we try to guess
which way God would like the furniture arranged.
So maybe it’s proper that Martin Luther
reminds us to look out for the devil’s chapel
in our church buildings.
But even the cynical Martin Luther can’t deny
that church buildings are also wonderful things.
They contain our history, they tie us back to
those who worshipped God here before us.
They will remain, in one way or another,
long after most of us have gone.
They are testaments to the faith and conviction of God’s
people.
They evoke memories, they connect us to
those who have passed through before –
the ancestors of our faith.
Even St. Peter’s Basilica stands as one of the marvels
of history, art, and architecture, preserving
masterpieces from some of the most talented artists in
history.
And our more humble
buildings of congregations
around the world aren’t just buildings, they are the place of
our faith.
The place where we have loved and hugged,
and prayed and helped one another.
It’s a place used for worship, music, prayer.
This building and other
buildings like it are the places
where we do the work we are called to do in the world
it is one of the most important tool of our ministry
Much of the work of the church goes on inside these walls.
Therefore these are sacred spaces.
Which brings me to my next quote from Martin Luther:
Anyone who is to find
Christ must first find the church.
How could anyone know
where Christ is and
what faith is in him
unless he knew where his believers are?
The church building is the place where the congregation is
found,
the central location for us all to meet one another
and, most importantly, where other people know to meet us.
It’s where we come for worship, and also
for meetings, gatherings, meals, to make
sandwiches and lunches for hungry people,
to give our blood, to house the homeless.
It’s where we collect food and make quilts
it’s where we have baptisms, and weddings, and funerals.
All the milestones of our lives happen here.
Church buildings are where God is found.
I mean we know that God is everywhere,
God is in trees and skies and sunsets
and in city streets, and schools, and bars even.
As Martin Luther said, God is found in our cabbage soup
but we know that God can reliably found here
where we share God’s word and sacraments.
For those who are seeking God, the building
is a landmark: people know that here,
we will be washed in God’s cleansing water,
that we can find Jesus body and blood,
where we know that we will be fed and forgiven.
And this is a place where people can find a message about God.
Where people can come for a message and sign of
God’s love and acceptance and abundance.
It starts here and leaks out into the world.
And that is because the people gathered here
have experienced God’s grace and
love for themselves
and want to share it with others.
That’s what a church – is people
shaped and inspired by God’s Word
and
gathered together by the Holy
Spirit.
As we always try to remember,
the church is not the building, it is the congregation.
Which brings me to my last quote from Martin Luther:
Now the Church is not wood and stone,
but the company of believing people;
one must hold to them, and see how they believe, live and
teach.
Today is also another celebration,
the 48th anniversary of the founding of this
congregation.
Today we celebrate Christ Lutheran’s dedication
to this Hilton Head Island where it was founded.
And we celebrate this congregation’s vision and tenacity.
It’s ability to overcome obstacles.
To take risks even in times of uncertainty.
We can see that embodied in the
completion of this renovation and
in the joy and vision of all the
people who have made it happen.
Today we celebrate the
presence of God
in this place at 829 William Hilton Parkway,
We celebrate the love of God that is found in Christ.
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