Reforming DNA

in an ever-changing world

10.25.2026

The texts: Jeremiah 31:31-34 ▪️ Psalm 46 ▪️ Romans 3:19-28 ▪️ John 8:31-36

Grace and peace to you from God our Creator and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Two weeks ago, I preached about how we show up in the world

by wearing something on our hearts.

Today, we gather with all our hearts to celebrate one of the most significant movements in the history of the church: the Reformation of the sixteenth century.

So perhaps a question for us today is this:

What should we wear in our hearts if we hope to experience even a moment of reforming?

When I think about the Reformation, I remember a professor who taught Lutheran Confessional Heritage during my time of discernment. I took the course as an auditor at the seminary.

At that point in my life, I was asking many questions.

• Should I pursue a Master of Divinity, a four-year program leading toward ordained ministry, or a Master of Theology, a two-year graduate degree?

• Should I serve in a Lutheran denomination or somewhere else?

One statement from that professor has stayed with me all these years.

He said, "Lutheran DNA is always reforming."

Then he explained it this way:

If everything we do and everything we say no longer points people to the truth that we are saved by God's grace through Christ's faithfulness, then we are no longer serving the world well.

That simple conviction became one of the major reasons I remained Lutheran.

So whenever I hear the word Reformation, that story comes to mind.

Because the Reformation is not simply about Martin Luther.

It is not simply about the sixteenth century.

It is not simply about what happened in Germany more than five hundred years ago.

At its heart, the Reformation is about continually returning to our spiritual DNA.

The church's DNA.

The gospel's DNA.

The DNA that reminds us who we are and whose we are.

Now here's the challenge:

The gospel does not change.

But the world does.

Cultures change.

Technologies change.

Communities change.

The questions people ask change.

The ways people connect, learn, work, and build relationships change.

We are living in an ever-changing world.

And because the world keeps changing, the church is continually called to ask:

• How do we remain faithful to the unchanging gospel while responding to a changing world?

• How do we preserve our DNA without becoming trapped in old forms?

• How do we reform without losing our identity?

A simple answer to all three questions is this:

Not only to proclaim God's Good News.

But to teach God's Good News.

The Reformers understood this well.

They wanted people not merely to hear the gospel,

but to understand it, trust it, and live it.

Because the gospel cannot reform what it has never reached.

And it cannot shape hearts if it is never understood, embraced, and lived.

As I was writing this sermon, I found myself returning to the question I asked earlier: What should we wear in our hearts if we hope to experience even a moment of reforming?

• Because if the Good News is never taught, never understood, and never connected to everyday life, why would anyone choose to wear it on their heart?

• And if it is not worn on the heart, how can it become part of our spiritual DNA?

Today's scriptures invite us into exactly that conversation.

Jeremiah speaks of a covenant written on the heart.

A reforming heart remembers God's covenant as the foundation of its DNA.

The psalmist speaks of trust in the midst of upheaval and change.

A reforming heart continues to trust God even when everything around us says otherwise.

Paul speaks of grace at the center of our identity.

A reforming heart allows God's grace to overflow into every corner of life.

Jesus speaks of the truth that sets people free.

A reforming heart embraces the freedom that comes from following Christ.

These are the four words from each reading:

Covenant. Trust. Grace. Freedom.

Perhaps these are the very things we are called to wear on our hearts today.

These are not merely religious ideas.

• They are the spiritual DNA of God's people.

• They sustained God's people in Jeremiah's day.

• They inspired the Reformers five hundred years ago.

• They continue to shape disciples today.

Because while the world continues to change,

God's work of reforming hearts never stops.

And perhaps that is the good news of Reformation Sunday:

The church's DNA is not found in a building, a tradition,

a program, or even a particular century.

Our DNA is found in God's covenant, God's faithfulness,

God's grace, and God's liberating truth.

And whenever we return to those gifts,

God continues the work of reforming us

for the sake of an ever-changing world.

Let us pray.

God of Reformation,

In every generation, you call your people back to their spiritual DNA.

Back to covenant. Back to trust. Back to grace. Back to freedom.

As we gather on this Reformation Sunday,

help us wear these gifts upon our hearts.

When the world changes, help us trust.

When we are uncertain, help us remember your covenant.

When we stumble, remind us of your grace.

When fear holds us captive, set us free through your truth.

Reform us, renew us, and send us forth as disciples of Jesus Christ,

so that our lives may proclaim and teach your Good News

in an ever-changing world.

We pray this in the name of Jesus, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Amen.