I remember this phrase thrown about a lot in my youth, as a twist on the famous James Dean movie about a Rebel Without a Cause. While a rebel without a cause knows what he’s rebelling against in general but just doesn’t have anything to direct his rebellious spirit against at the moment, a rebel without a clue was generally a quip made against someone who was in rebellion for no particular reason or with no particular ends. A clueless rebel could be anything from pitiful to laughable, or even dangerously wild. A rebel without a clue just likes to fight.
As we approach Reformation Day on the 31st of October, it’s pretty tempting for Lutherans to act like rebels—tearing down what is traditional, or what may smell of being “catholic,” and imagining that such rebellion is both our birthright and our purpose. We’re protestants, right? Let’s get to protesting! But what if I told you, that Lutherans are not really protestants nor rebels, particularly in the way that those terms are bandied about in the church today… what if I told you, there’s much more to being a Lutheran Christian, than simply being a rebel or a protestor.
If we read the Lutheran Confessions, which our forefathers penned during the controversies of the 16th century in Germany, you’ll notice something peculiar. Not only do the Reformers note their opposition to false doctrines and dangerous practices of the time, but they also affirm what is true, and right, and good. There is both affirmation of the good, and rejection of the ill. Lutherans were not anarchists looking for something burn down or destroy—on the contrary, Lutherans were seeking to shore up what was good in the church, while weeding out what was not. Neither Luther nor his comrades were out to rebel against Christ’s Church, but rather, to be faithful to Christ and serve the Church, by reforming it more to the image of Christ and His Word.
Of course, at their time, the Pope asserted his divine right to control every living thing on earth, from political kingdoms to every individual Christian. The Lutheran Reformers rejected that idea as unbiblical, and contrary to the spirit of Christ. For having said so, a tyrannical pope and his minions, declared the Lutherans rebels, and put them under the ban excommunication. Since that time, some Lutherans have embraced that label of rebel, and used it to justify all sorts of bad ideas… from prejudice and bigotry against non-Lutherans, to rebelling even against the Apostles and Prophets of Holy Scripture, and ultimately against Christ Himself. Living as a rebel might seem cool to our worldly and fleshly minds, but in God’s Kingdom, Christ doesn’t have much good to say about rebels… in fact, the chief of rebels, Lucifer, is destined for the Lake of Fire, together with all his co-conspirators.
As we approach this Reformation Day, I encourage you to meditate with me, on the not-so-rebellious nature of our Christian calling as Lutherans. Ponder for a while, what it means to affirm everything that Holy Scripture teaches, no matter how hard it may be to hold onto—and likewise, to reject everything that Holy Scripture rejects, no matter how easy it would be to hang onto it. Think of what it means to build up the Body of Christ, which is the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, rather than tearing down its venerable walls and burning down its ancient forms. Consider what it means to weed out the vineyard of Christ’s Church, rather than hacking the ancient vines to the ground.
I wager that what you’ll find, is that you have more friends—more brothers and sisters—than you thought you did, scattered in places you didn’t expect. Some of those brothers and sisters might seem a little wonky, some downright strange, but we remember with the authors of the Lutheran Confessions, that where the faithful gather around Christ in Word and Sacrament, there is the One Church of Christ—spread across time and space, yet united in the One Lord and Savior of us all.
So, there’s my challenge. Rather than considering ourselves rebels (with or without causes or clues,) may we think of ourselves as stewards, servants, and keepers of the Word of Christ—born from above by Water and Spirit, living by grace through faith in the Son of God. With eyes focused thus on Christ our Savior, you might be surprised to see how many others are gathered together with you, in Him. May the Lord God Almighty, bless and keep His whole household of faith. Amen.
