Reformation Sunday, 2025

Text: Matthew 11:12-19

Title: Mourning and Dance

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“There is a time to mourn and a time to dance.” That’s what Solomon teaches us in Ecclesiastes.  “A time to mourn, and a time to dance.”

John the Baptist called the people to mourn as he preached the law.  “Repent!” he said.  “Bear fruit! If you don’t God will come in judgment and destroy you.  You’ll be cast into the fire like a dead branch.”

John the Baptist called the people to mourn over their sin, to repent, and to be baptized.  And many of them did. 

But not everyone.  Some said, “It’s not time for me to mourn.  I don’t need to apologize.  I don’t need to change my life.  You’re crazy John!”

Jesus called the people to dance as He preached the Gospel.  “Rejoice!” He said.  “You are loved and forgiven.  No matter what you’ve done, if you repent and return to the Lord, He will welcome you home as His beloved child.”

Jesus called the people to rejoice in the love and grace and mercy of God.  And many did—the tax collectors and the prostitutes, the poor and the lame, they received Jesus with joy and thanksgiving.

But not everyone.  Some said, “It’s not time to dance.  And certainly not with folks like that.  What are you thinking Jesus, hanging out with all those unclean and undesirable people?  You’re crazy!”

There is a time to mourn and a time to dance.

When you are full of yourself, when you are arrogant, when you only care about your own pleasure, then it’s time for you to mourn. It’s time for you to look into the mirror of God’s law and see what a mess you’ve made of things.  It’s time for you to hear the word of God from St. Paul, “By works of the law no human being will be justified in God’s sight… all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

“You’re not good enough.  You’re a failure.”

But when you’ve been emptied of your self-confidence, when you recognize your sin and feel it so intimately that tears actually flow, when the law puts you to death and you are in mourning, then comes Jesus’ invitation to dance.

Have you ever watched children dance, especially young children?

They’re not trying to do a perfectly choreographed routine.  They aren’t dancing to impress a potential lover.

They just move their bodies to the music in utter joy and excitement.

That’s what Jesus is talking about, to be so filled with joy that you can’t keep it inside.

You are loved, you are forgiven, you’ve been set free from guilt and any sort of punishment for your sins.

Jesus took that from you in His death on the cross. Your sin died with Him there.

You are promised an eternity free from sin and all its consequences.  You will live forever in paradise, feasting, rejoicing, celebrating Jesus’ victory over death when He rose triumphant from the grave.

Let that Gospel, that good news fill you with joy, the kind of joy that makes you want to dance.  I know most of you are good German Lutherans who rarely show any emotion in church, but perhaps now and then we can take a lesson from our fellow Christians who actually make it seem like they enjoy being in church, who aren’t afraid to manifest that joy with their bodies.

Now, since it’s Reformation Day, I guess I’m supposed to fit Luther in here somehow.

Martin Luther’s initial experience of church and of God Himself was one of law, one of mourning.  He tried so hard over and over again to do the right thing but found himself continually failing.  He spent hours confessing his sin and found no relief.

Finally, when meditation on God’s Word, Luther began to understand that the righteousness of God isn’t something that we can ever accomplish on our own, but it is a free gift given to us by faith.

Overwhelmed by joy and relief, Luther danced through the Scriptures, finding over and over again this Good News that Jesus has done everything for our salvation.

Many of the people of His day said to Luther, “You’re crazy.  If you start telling people that they don’t have to earn God’s love and forgiveness, they’re just going to become more and more sinful.  They’re going to abuse the grace of God.”

But there were many who heard the Gospel and their lives were changed, as Luther’s was.  And they were willing to suffer and even die rather than compromise on the Gospel.

Which is why we are here today.  Not because Luther’s a big deal or those who followed after him.  Lutherans didn’t want to be called Lutherans in the first place.  The name they gave themselves was “Evangelicals.”  “Gospel folk.”  “Good News people.”

And that’s who you are, too.  People whose lives have been transformed by the Gospel, who have heard Jesus’ invitation to dance and joined in.

There is a time to mourn and a time to dance. Knowing which time is which requires wisdom.

There will be times to mourn over your sinfulness. There will be times to mourn when sickness, death, and losses touch your life.  There will be times to take an honest look at how awful this world has become and to mourn it.  It’s okay to lament.  This is a good and proper thing (just take a read through the Psalms, or the entire book of Lamentations).  Sin should make you sad and bring you to tears.

But there are also times to dance.  There will be times to rejoice and celebrate God’s goodness to you in this world as He provides you with more than you deserve. There will be times to reflect on that incomprehensible love of Christ that led Him to the cross.  There will be times to ponder the joys of everlasting life.

Because, one day, all mourning will be over.  All tears will be wiped away.  And Jesus will come and call you up from your grave to dance on streets of gold in the Jerusalem, to join with all the faithful in the celebration that will never end.

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