Sermon: St. Bernard of Clairvaux

19 August 2009 at Salem Lutheran Church, Gretna, LA

Text: John 15:7-11 (Ecclus 39:1-10, Rev 3:7-11)

In the name of + Jesus. Amen.

In our ever-changing world, it’s easy to forget how important the past is. And for us Lutherans, it is very easy to forget that we are part of a Church that spans back in time well beyond the time of Luther, a time that includes the middle ages – even though in many ways, those were dark times for the Christian Church.

In this darkness, there were still lights. St. Bernard of Clairvaux, who lived in the 12th century, 400 years before Luther, was one such light. Bernard was a monk who prayed and an abbot who led men in prayer. He was a Christian who delved the depths of God’s love, as well as a doctor of the Church who wrote on matters theological. He was a man under orders who understood that his duty to the truth meant, at times, even criticizing popes.

Luther quoted St. Bernard in his own sermons and lectures. Our Lutheran Confessions mention Bernard eight times, even quoting him in support the Lutheran teaching on faith, and calling him a “holy father.” Two of St. Bernard’s hymns are in our hymnal, and we are singing them tonight: O Sacred Head, Now Wounded and O Jesus, King Most Wonderful.

St. Bernard was a doctor of the church, but he was always a student of the Scriptures, one “who [devoted] himself to the study of the law of the Most High,” who sought out “the wisdom of all the ancients,” “concerned with prophecies,” one who preserved “the discourse of notable men,” a disciple of parables and proverbs. And Bernard was certainly to “appear before rulers,” respected for both his learning and his piety, St. Bernard was a reformer before the reformation.

But St. Bernard was not a people-pleaser. He did not shy away from wagging a finger at prince or pope when they needed to be rebuked. Bernard never sought fame and glory by seeking high office in the church – whether as a bishop or as a bureaucrat. Bernard’s weapons of choice were prayer and the pen.

Our Lord Jesus promises: “If you abide in Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be My disciples.”

Nearly a thousand years after the life of St. Bernard, we Christians can pause on this day and reflect on one of the Lord’s humble, and yet fruitful servants. For as we confess in our Augsburg Confession: “Our churches teach that the history of the saints may be set before us so that we may follow the example of their faith and good works, according to our calling.”

Though none of us are called to monastic life, we are all called to pray. Though none of us have the vocation of universal “doctor of the Church,” we all have the vocation to study the Scriptures. Though none of us are called upon to give up all worldly possessions and live as paupers for the sake of the kingdom, we are all called upon to be good stewards with what the Lord gives us to manage for the sake of the Kingdom.

We are, like St. Bernard, living in difficult and dark days. Both the Church and the world have made peace with the “synagogue of Satan.” And we indeed, like the Church of Philadelphia that our Lord addresses in the Book of Revelation, “have but little power,” and yet, we are called upon to keep the Lord’s Word in spite of it all, in “patient endurance,” knowing that the Lord sets before us “an open door” leading to eternal paradise, a door that no-one, neither “life nor death, nor angel nor ruler” is able to slam shut.

For as St. Bernard reminds the Church, the Lord says clearly: “I have loved you.” And the Lord promises to watch over us in every time of trial.

We Christians are blessed by the long train of saints, from the apostles, through the early church fathers, down through the days of the middle ages and reformation, right up to the saints we have today: parents, friends, grandparents, teachers, and other Christians the Lord gives us as gifts to set examples for us to follow, and who serve as channels of His love and grace to us through their various vocations and godly callings.

Though St. Bernard of Clairvaux never sought the riches of the world nor the praise of men, we Christians remember him with reverence, affection, and joy for the life given to him at baptism, and the life he offered to the Lord as a living stone in the temple of the Lord’s Holy Church. The praise of the writer of Ecclesiasticus is most fitting to be read in honor of our brother, Blessed Bernard, who himself followed in the footsteps of our Lord Jesus Christ:

“He will be filled with the spirit of understanding; he will pour forth his words of wisdom and give thanks to the Lord in prayer. He will direct his counsel and knowledge aright and meditate on his secrets. He will reveal instruction in his teaching and will glory in the law of the Lord’s covenant. Many will praise his understanding, and it will never be blotted out; his memory will not disappear, and his name will live though all generations. Nations will declare his wisdom, and the congregation will proclaim his praise.”

Praise and thanks to God for providing the Church with such saints. For they provide us with courage in times of trouble. As our Blessed Lord promises: “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full,” and, “I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” Amen.

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Amen.