The Spirit of the Reformation (The Call)- Ethan Cogdill

It is a great comfort to know that in the midst of all the evil that holds this generation captive, our Lord calls and sets apart a people for Himself. As I study the Scriptures, as well as the history of the Church, I find that God has never abandoned His people.

Though whole generations may be subject to God’s judgment, so much so, that He hands them over to her enemies that she may be chastised to repentance, God always preserves a remnant for Himself. This remnant has been called many things, but she has largely been known as the “Invisible Church.” This is because the remnant is not defined by the number of people filling pews on a Sunday morning, nor is she defined by the amount of people feeding the orphans and widows as some may suggest. Ultimately, what has defined the “Invisible Church” is her unwavering devotion to God as Way, Truth, and Life.

While the world demands the Church to capitulate, reducing God to merely a way, a truth and a lifestyle, the Remnant stands firm.

This stance against evil, throughout history, has largely been done through the quiet and patient endurance of the saints in the midst of persecution and compromise. However, this is not always the case. At particular times and in particular ways, God has called upon the remnant to rise up from their pews and stand apart from those sitting around them. We see this in Exodus 32, when Moses called the people to rise up against those worshipping the golden calf, and the sons of Levi gathered around him, ready to slay the enemies of God. For their obedience, Moses encouraged them by telling them, “Today you have been ordained for the service of the LORD, each one at the cost of his son and of his brother, so that he might bestow a blessing upon you this day.” (Ex. 32:29) This righteous remnant, enraged against the sin and corruption of the people of God, did not even spare their own sons and brothers from their obedience to God. The “Invisible Church” was invisible no more. They had made themselves known, and summoned God’s people to return back to their Lord or face judgment.

This was the same call that fell upon Martin Luther so many centuries later, when God’s people once more erected an idol in the place of the Lord. The righteous remnant, drawn back by God to encounter His Word, began to see how far the Church had fallen. There was no longer a need for a prophet like Moses, for God’s people now have His Word. This Word, entrusted to the Prophets and Apostles, is revealed to each and every one of the elect through His Spirit. It is His Spirit that called Martin Luther and those who would follow His example to rise up. Instead of gathering around God’s prophet, they gathered around God’s Word. With the Sword of the Spirit drawn and at the ready, they stood ordained for the service of the Lord. They too spared neither son nor brother, calling all to repent.

In a divine reversal, in keeping with the New Testament, rather than slaying the servants of idols, these men were called to die for the Gospel. They held nothing back, they spared no aspect of their life, but determined to offer all as a fragrant offering before God. For their obedience to the call, God blessed the Church with reformation all throughout Europe. This word “reformation” describes their collective commitment to return back to Scripture, cutting off and gauging out every tradition and practice of the Church which did not align with Scripture. They determined to “re-form” or “re-mold” the Church back into what God commands her to be. During this time, theology flourished, as the Church returned head-first into the depths of God’s Word. Where God’s Word was once held as so high and sacred that only the select few could approach it, now it was made available for all the elect to study and worship. Just as God provided Moses with a new set of tablets after the first were thrust down before the calf worshippers as sign of God’s judgment upon them, God had once again provided His Church with the Word that had been thrust down before them as a sign of judgment against them for worshipping the idols of Rome.

Sadly, this reformation did not last. From within the churches and denominations that had been founded upon the Spirit of reformation, (that Spirit Who conforms God’s people into the image of Christ), arose the same idols which led Israel and Rome astray. The worship of man, empty religion, hollow mysticism and compromise with the world creeped their way into the Church again and the “Invisible Church” once again returned to their place of quiet endurance. Churches and denominations, deformed and grotesque through their perversion of God’s Word, have incited the Lord to call His remnant to rise up once more. Great men of the faith have, in recent decades, laid the foundation for the Church to drive out the evil from within. Their spirit, which is the Spirit of Martin Luther, John Calvin and John Wycliffe, has issued out the same call as Moses. The “Invisible Church” must once again rise up and gather round the Word of God. We must draw the Sword of the Spirit and strike His enemies, sparing none from that two-edged Sword that pierces bone and marrow.

In this new generation of the remnant, we no longer go by the name of Levites or Lutherans. Such titles do not fit like they used to, although these are our spiritual brothers. Because we come from different churches, denominations and nations, we are often left feeling alone and isolated in our fight for God’s Word. We exist in our churches, we participate in our denominations, but all the while our faith flourishes behind video screens and the pages of books. There, online and on the written page, we connect deeply with the voices of those whose faith echoes our own. For some, this is enough, and they are content to tone down their beliefs in order to live in harmony with those around them. For us, this is not enough. Like the Church in Sardis, whose uncompromising worship and theology adorned their faith like white garments, we desire to boldly proclaim and live out the truth of God’s Word.

This is the vision and call of the Christian Reformed Men’s Association. Like the Levites and Reformers, we have heard the call of God and answered. We believe that this call is not answered by isolated and disorganized men, regardless of how passionate they may be. Such a call commands unity and organization. This call is nothing less than a call to spiritual arms. Scripture does not call us warriors, it calls us soldiers, and there can be no army where there is no organization. We are not acquaintances, we are brothers, and there can be no brotherhood where there is no fellowship or connection. The goal of the CRMA is to foster this unity, to provide fellowship and connection, organizing the elect under a common banner. Together we can achieve our “pre-destiny” as the ones ordained to stand up for the Lord. Such an honor is not realized the same in each generation. The demands of our time have produced the CRMA, and it is through the CRMA that God will work in this generation.

I have been asked how I intend to invite men to join the CRMA. I have wondered myself how to explain the CRMA to churches and believers. Then it dawned on me, that this is not how God works. Moses did not explain to the Levites why they needed to gather around him. Moses simply said, “Who is on the LORD’s side? Come to me.” (Ex. 32:26) Upon hearing this call, the Levites immediately responded and gathered around him. The Lord worked in their hearts through the call of Moses, and in a moment they stood up and stood together. This is the call of the CRMA: who is on the Lord’s side? Come to us! If you recognize that your church or your denomination has fallen away from Scripture, if you feel more fellowship and unity with theologians of the past or theologians on the internet, if you feel like you have to suppress your faith to fit in with those around you, then come to us! We do not compromise, we do not capitulate, we stand firm and we stand together. We are not on any one denomination’s or human’s side. We are on the LORD’s side. If you feel the Holy Spirit burning within you as you read this, then come to us! Rise up and join us in our battle for the faith as we assume our “pre-destiny” as God’s elect remnant. Here is unity. Here is organization. Here is fellowship and brotherhood. Most importantly, here is God’s Word and Spirit!