So during the corrupt era of the church, there came reformers, ones who had a genuine heart to see the church come back to become the church of Jesus. And one of these ones that we're going to be talking about, his name is John Wycliffe. The Morning Star of Reformation is what he's known for.
And so we're going to talk about his life. And again, there are a lot of other reformers that we speak about, but John Wycliffe, there's something about him. And so let's go and dive into his life right now. He was born sometime in the 80s, 1320s. And his name came from a Yorkshire village northeast of England.
And John Wycliffe, he was known for his brilliance. And he was known for what they called an unflinching logic. He was educated from Oxford. Then he taught there as a professor of philosophy.
And then he began teaching theology. And during that time, Oxford was the premier university in the world at that time. And a lot of people still believe Oxford is the premier university around the world.
And so he was known for his sense of humor, really the lack of it. He was a very serious man. He was, you know, he was serious all the time. And so if you see some of his pictures, he has a very stoic, serious face, you know, in the way that he's portrayed. So he wasn't impressed with what the church had become and he felt it fell into sin and fractured into a true church.
And in fact, he believed that the church of his time was a false church. And he saw lots of corruption and sin in the church leadership. He felt that much of the clergy was corrupt.
And in his eyes, he even felt and suspected that the pope wasn't even a follower of Jesus. He didn't even believe that the pope was saved. And he thought that the church became too powerful.
too wealthy, and wasn't using the wealth to help people. They weren't using their influence to serve the poor. Instead, it became this corrupt worldly institution.
So when it comes to the Christian faith, Wycliffe thought perhaps instead of listening to the Pope, listening to years of tradition and to clergy, that we should primarily follow what the Bible says, mainly what the Gospels say and what Jesus says. This was a radical statement at the time. No one thought this. No one said this.
It was in fact revolutionary, even though we believe that the Bible has the ultimate authority. But up to this point, it was the papal office that had the final authority. And so for the most part, the Bible mainly was used by the clergy, and there were very few Bibles around. All they had was the Vulgate.
In other words, it was a Latin version. of the Bible. Most people didn't speak Latin and so they couldn't understand the Bible.
Whether it was read to them or whether they read it, no one could really comprehend what the Bible was saying. So they would always need someone to explain and interpret what the Bible was saying. So who would do that? It was the clergy.
They could teach them and make up man-made doctrine and perpetuate their self-benefiting ways because the people didn't know any better. The commoners didn't understand Latin. And they kept the Vulgate Bible, the Latin Bible, very intentionally.
That's why they did it, because they could create whatever they wanted and apply and appropriate whatever they wanted as doctrine, as religious laws, to gain wealth and power. And so it was this culture where Wycliffe proposed that the Bible should be translated into their vernacular, which was English, the language of the people. And so Wycliffe began to translate the Bible into English.
And so if you're wondering where did the Bible come from and where, you know, how did it become translated into English, it was John Wycliffe. You know, that was his contribution really as a reformer, as a morning star of reformation that he gave to us. He thought that by hearing and reading the Bible in their own language, they can see the difference between what the Bible says versus the practice and the teachings of the church. and even the demands of the Pope of Rome. And he believed that the scriptures, especially the gospels, should have primacy over the church, over the tradition or Pope, to listen to Jesus and the Bible, not listen to the people on the Christian throne of power.
Now this was his perspective, this is what he believed. So how do you think the church and the Pope felt about Wycliffe? You know, him trumpeting this message that the final authority does not lie within the Pope or the Popal throne, but instead the Bible. Obviously, they were less than impressed.
And what complicated this even more was this, that the Pope of Rome, who was supposed to be living in Rome, was living in France. So why was he doing that? The Pope moved around based upon the national power he was associating himself with.
So the church and the French interests were completely connected at the time where religion and politics really became one. So if you know anything about the history of England, the English and the French have a long history of not getting along. So based upon this, Whitecliffe's idea with the ideas against the Pope from England and the people in England, the rulers, the politicians, the kings, they loved what Whitecliffe had to say just because of the disdain for the French.
or the Italians I should say. They love what he was sticking, he loved that he was sticking it to the French, the Pope, and to the French nation. You know, so Wycliffe also had this idea that if you were not faithful in using the money well to take care of the people, you know, because he questioned whether they should even be receiving any monies.
And so you're going to love this. So the English rulers rallied around that thought and believed that, you know what? Why should they keep giving money and send it to the Pope when he's not taking care of the people?
He's not taking care of the English people. He's not taking care of the people in England. And so they stopped giving money.
And so that infuriated the Pope, obviously. And so Wycliffe, in this situation, entangled himself not only in high church politics, but also in geopolitical arenas, the national politics. So those who were supporting him... or those against him had far less interest in whether he was right or wrong, but they were interested in whether it would help them gain wealth or power as a nation. And so in this sense, again, we could even say that in this period that Wycliffe became a magisterial reformer because he had the support of the influence of politics and government leaders and so on.
So it wasn't too long until the Pope officially condemned Wycliffe as a heretic. and his teachings a heresy. And so basically again the pope what is heresy?
It's anything that anyone would teach against the church or church doctrine and in this case anything contrary to the teaching of the pope or the church. So since Wycliffe was deemed his teaching heretical and he was a heretic now he needs to be punished. So the pope sent out an order for Wycliffe to be arrested to have him stop teaching and preaching immediately and for him to confess his sins and his sin of heresy by recanting all of his teachings.
But in the midst of this, the Pope suddenly died. So this papal condemnation no longer had the same force or same meaning on Wycliffe. And so the responsibility of Wycliffe's fate as a heretic lied on the next Pope. And so the next Pope was to carry on Wycliffe's fate in that sense. So something strange happened in this period of history where something takes place that hasn't happened for a long time.
So in France the cardinals elect a new pope because this pope died and at the same time in Rome the cardinals there also elected a new pope. So now for the first time for years, decades, and centuries there are now two popes fighting for power. The church is now divided and it wasn't Based upon doctrinal issues, it was based upon political power. And so during this period, Wycliffe, who had already accepted that he was deemed a heretic, he became ever more bold. He became more focused in what he believed.
He became even more radical in his writings and was outspoken against the sin of the leadership of the church, the worldliness of the clergy and the pope. And he continued to propose that the translation of the Bible to English was a necessity. And he began to insist that everyone should have access to a copy of their own Bible.
And so the Bible needed to be available to all the people because the fundamental truth of Christian faith was founded in the Bible, not in the institution of the church. And this was Wycliffe's belief. So John Wycliffe's remaining years would be troubled by further persecution from the church.
From the Pope's and poor health, you know, he struggled. His writings and ideas continued to influence people, especially to another reformer known as Jan Hus or John Hus, you know, in our language. And so Wycliffe was extremely important for the starting point of the Reformation. He was far from being perfect and he is no way innocent of not playing politics, power, or wealth.
But he had plenty of faults, but within that His lasting legacy remains from the first English translation of the Bible. That he translated the Bible from Latin to English. And a lot of it was translated by him, but some of it were translated by his friends. And overall, the Bible was completely translated after about two, three years after he died.
And so Wycliffe, born in the 1320s, died on December 31st. 1384. Now more than 30 years after his death the church council, listen to this, officially declared him to be a heretic. His writings were to be banned and if he had copies of his teachings they were to be burned.
And so this is how radical and this is how fearful they were of Whitecliffe's influence. The council went back and dug up Whitecliffe's grave. took his corpse and they burned it and they dumped his ashes into the river. And so the church lost sight of what it meant to be a follower of Jesus. In connecting with political power and the might of the empire, it became no longer the church of Jesus.
And it changed from a group of people who denied themselves, picked up their cross and followed Jesus, living a humble life like Jesus, to a group of people who primarily were interested in power, wealth, and rewards. And it was led by people whose actions and decisions reflected the power of the empires instead of Jesus's way or the way. Anyone who opposed them they would persecute even if they lived the godly life in Jesus.
They would find a way to push them away from any place of power, including deceiving all the common people who didn't know any better because they didn't have the bible to use as a measuring stick. They didn't have a barometer of truth to compare it to. So we're fortunate to live in a time where we all have Bibles.
In fact, most of us have multiple Bibles, multiple translations of the Bible, multiple Bibles of the same translation. You know, in 2 Timothy 3.16-17 says this, All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching, disciplining, reproof, for correction. for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. Spending time in the Bible changes us. It teaches us.
It shows us what's right and wrong. It corrects us. It shapes us. And it trains our character so that we can go and do good and represent and represent Jesus. The Bible points us to Jesus to know Jesus intimately in a very deep in a relational way.
This is what moves us to live a life that's changed for Jesus. Knowing who he is, how he loved, it keeps us from being deceived because the word of God is truth. For us, it's to know what a false gospel by revealing the truth is.
It keeps us from being deceived from worshiping an empire, power, and military might. It keeps us on the narrow path. It's what the word of God does.
And we have to take time. Make the time to read the Bible. And John Wycliffe was so convinced that the Bible would change people's lives that he risked his reputation. He literally gave his life. He challenged the sinful church leadership structure by translating the Bible, you know, for everyone, including you and I, so that we can understand it.
And so I'm going to end here and just with a couple quotes from Wycliffe. And this is what he says. Englishmen learn Christ's law best in English.
Moses heard God's law in his own tongue. So did Christ's apostles. He also said, Also, our all Christian life is to be measured by Scripture, by every word thereof.
So even in English, the Bible can be confusing, and we know that. But it's by the help of Holy Spirit. Through our careful study and meditation, you know, as we come together in a community to talk about the Word of God.
We approach it with humility. You know, the Bible, the Word of God is powerful. And so without humility, there is no revelation.
There is no insight. And so we need to approach the Word of God with a humble attitude. We need to ask the Holy Spirit to give us passion and hunger to thirst for His Word.
That the Word of God can shape us, that it can shape you, so that you can live the way Jesus lived, love the way Jesus loved. So let's pray right now. Let's ask the Holy Spirit that He would give us a heart, a love for His Word. that would draw us closer to Him. So Holy Spirit, we ask you right now that you would stir our hearts, that you would cause us to hunger and thirst for righteousness, and we know that your word is right.
I pray, God, that you would just cause this hunger for the depth of your word, God, that we would approach it with humility. And Holy Spirit, it's our confession that we say that apart from you, we cannot understand, we cannot know the scriptures. And so we ask that you would lead us into all truth, that you would guide us into all truth, that you would teach us the truth, that we would, by your word, come into knowing the one who spoke the word, that we would know you, Jesus, by your word, that we would be grounded on your word, that we would be founded on your word, your eternal word, that we would build our lives and live our lives on solid foundation, the rock, the word of God.
Let your seeds be planted deep within us, into our spirit, into our heart, that as Psalm 119 says, that I've hidden your word in my heart, that I may not sin against you. That we would be ones to live a holy and pure life for your glory, that we would live a life so that we would die for you. And so Lord, we thank you.
We thank you for your word. We thank you for these ones who've gone before us. We thank you for John Wycliffe.
Raise up ones like Wycliffe today, God. that would have such a conviction in your word that would call us back into the truth of who you are and what you said to our generation today. In Jesus'name, amen.