[Thirty-Seventh in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
King David was a prime example of someone who needed forgiveness. In one episode, he managed to shirk his duty as a commander, lust after his neighbor’s wife, use his power to rape or commit adultery with her, lie to her husband, send him on a suicide mission to murder him, then marry Bathsheba to cover it up. He sinned against everyone, it seems. Yet it is to God he goes for forgiveness. In the end, all sins are rebellion against God. (2 Samuel 11:1-12:25 and Psalm 51)
Forgiveness is hard to come by in this world. When we are hurt, we want to return that hurt in kind. Eastern religions like Hinduism and Buddhism have no forgiveness — you pay back the bad karma you give with suffering in this life or nearly endless reincarnations. Mormons must cease sinning to pay for forgiveness and progress towards godhood. Pagan religions require a suitable sacrifice to an appropriate spirit.
Christianity is different. We have a loving and merciful God, who, in Jesus, died to pay for our forgiveness and, through the Holy Spirit, gives faith, the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. The Spirit uses his Church to bring this forgiveness to all. In the Church, the Gospel is preached, God adopts his children through baptism, Jesus gives his body and blood for the forgiveness of sins, and he hears our confessions and absolves us of our sins through pastors he sends to do so.
So, then, the Church is not a country club, a place where only good people need apply. It is a hospital, where we who are sick can get well, taking the only medicine that can make us well. We are, after all, beggars telling other beggars where they can find bread.
[Thirty-Sixth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
The word “Church” is used in many ways by Christians. We call our buildings churches. We name our local gatherings of Christian churches. We talk about national organizations of Christian believers, congregations, colleges, seminaries, and churches. We even call worship services church — in a way. Strictly speaking, the Church is all those who have faith in Christ. Even though only God knows for sure who is a Christian or who is not, the public confession of Christians and their good works reveal them to us and to the world. The same thing is true for the Church as a whole. When the Gospel is preached and the sacraments are offered, there you will find the visible Church. So, these things are called the marks of the Church.
The Means of Grace are the instruments that the Holy Spirit uses to call people to faith in Christ and to strengthen and maintain that faith. He places these gifts into the hands of the church and the pastors he calls to shepherd them. They are the masks God wears to seek and to save the lost. He calls them together to receive these gifts, encourage one another, and thank and praise him. This divine service is what we often call worship.
The church in this sense is also called the church militant — the fighting church — because it is at war with the World, the devil and his forces, and our sinful desires. These earthly organizations formed by members of the Church are plagued by the same things individual Christians are. Because its members are sinful, the congregations also sin, are persecuted by the world, tempted by the devil, and suffer along with the Christians who form them. Unbelievers may also belong to them, all the while deceiving themselves and others, behaving like any other Christian.
Yet, as flawed as they are, God loves his people and chooses to use them to proclaim his Gospel, to create faith, to forgive sins, and to bring the lost home. After all, the Lord of the Church, her Good Shepherd, laid down his life for them. And the day will come when he will return to bring his bride, the church, home to enjoy the marriage feast, which has no end.
In my congregation, we have been reading and studying the book of Isaiah now for quite a while. A theme that I have come across a few times now is this: You become what you worship. And when one worships false gods, he takes on their characteristics. And when one worships the true God, the same thing occurs. Let us note a time or two when worship of an idol leads Israel to become like the idol they worship.
In Isaiah 6, Isaiah is called to preach so that the people of Israel would not hear, and that they would actually become blind and deaf. And again in Isaiah 42, the Lord speaks of His people as being deaf and blind. The idols they worship are unable to speak, hear, or move. For more, see Isaiah 44. You can see a great story about this in 1 Kings 18, where Elijah’s showdown with the false priests of Baal takes place on Mount Carmel.
This phenomenon of becoming like what you worship is not isolated to Isaiah or 1 Kings 18, though. It can be traced at least to Exodus. In Exodus 32, the Israelites are waiting on Moses, who had gone up Mount Sinai to speak with the Lord and receive the Instruction (Torah/Law) of the Lord. However, the Israelites lost interest in waiting for Moses. They cry to Aaron to make for them a god to worship. Aaron gathers gold from the people; he melts it down and makes a golden calf. Left unbroken, calves are difficult to manage, especially if you desire them to wear a yoke. They are stiff-necked and stubborn. How is Israel described in later episodes by Moses and the Lord? They are “stiff-necked” and “stubborn” because they do not follow the Lord and His Word. Israel worships a golden calf, so Israel becomes like a stubborn calf unwilling to follow its master.
During this Lenten season, I encourage you to examine yourselves. What are we fearing? In what are we placing our trust? Whom or what do we love? Luther says in the Large Catechism, “Anything on which your heart relies and depends, I say, that is really your god.” So, what are you becoming like?
Is there something positive to say about the phenomenon that we become like the thing we worship? Indeed! And it is a true blessing from God. Through His Service to us, He is working to conform us to His image as we hear His Word and receive from the Sacraments. We are to become like that which we worship. What does the Lord look like? Consider how He is self-sacrificial, giving His life for us at the cross. Christ our Lord intercedes for us as our Great High Priest before the Father in Heaven. What can we do that emulates this? We cannot save another; only Christ can do that, but we can and should love our neighbor through our prayers on their behalf. Like Jesus with us, let us be patient with one another. Like Jesus listening to His Father in Heaven and coming to earth as a man, let us listen to and obey our parents and those put in authority over us. Coming to the Divine Service to hear and gladly learn God’s Word. This how we become more like the God that we worship.
As Lent continues, let us continually pray: Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word, that we be brought into a life that conforms more with Your good and gracious will, now and into eternity. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word, that we might be brought into a life that conforms more and more with Your good and gracious will now and into eternity. Through your Son Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
[Thirty-Fifth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
Military planners labor long hours to plan every detail of a campaign before the first soldier or sailor even receives their orders. They consider carefully all the strengths and weaknesses of their enemy and their own troops. They weigh every possible variation and the effects that unforeseen weather might have on the battle. Yet the moment the battle begins, all of that goes away. “The fog of war” sets in. You can’t see clearly. Sometimes you mistake enemies for friends. The battle might be won everywhere but where you are.
In this sin-filled world, you are at war and in the middle of a battle. The old and new man compete for control of your life. The world and the devil try to bend you to their will. Sin, sickness, grief, and death explode all around you. In the middle of this chaos, the Holy Spirit fights to keep you in the true faith. The good news is that he will. Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:38-39) The Holy Spirit, who began a good work in you, will complete it on the day Christ returns. (Philippians 1:6)
We can be sure we will be with Jesus when we die because he promises it. (John 12:26) It does not depend on how many good works we do, whether we confessed and repented of all our sins, whether we really accepted Jesus as our Lord. It all depends on God, who does it all for us and promised we would be with him forever. He guarantees it. After all, he gave us the Holy Spirit.
Encore Post: For six days, God had been creating the world. He spoke, and light appeared, earth took form, land appeared out of the great sea. The sun, moon, and stars shone in the sky. Plants grew on the ground, fish swam in the sea, and animals roamed the earth.
Now Father, Son, and Holy Spirit conferred and said, ” Let us make man just like us. “And so he made us — male and female. He planted a garden, came down, formed Adam (His name means “ground, soil” in Hebrew) from the soil, and breathed life into him. But something still was not quite right. Adam was alone.
So God brought all the animals to Adam. He named them all one by one. While they were good, something just was not right. Dogs and Cats just didn’t do it. So God made woman from his own bones. Now at last man was just like God–– two persons in one flesh. Adam called her woman—she-man, and named her Eve—life, because she would be the mother of all people. God’s creation was finally complete. He had made marriage and the family. This was very good.
This perfect image of God, holy like him and the closest human beings have to understanding the nature of God, was ruined by sin and its consequences. When people make themselves the center of the universe, there is no room for a god or another. Now sin tempts us to look everywhere for pleasure rather than in the very good gifts God has given to us. As we turn our hearts from our beloved and the Beloved, they grow cold and unfeeling.
This is why God condemns adultery, pornography, same sex relationships and acts, pre-marital sex, sexual assault, rape, and all other seeking of desire outside of the love of one man and woman, united in marriage for a lifetime. It divides what God himself has joined together and mars the image he placed in us. It destroys the image of Christ’s marriage to the Church and obscures the work he has done for us.
But when we were lost, unfaithful to God our husband, Jesus came and sought us to be his holy bride, with his own blood he bought us, and for our life he died. When he found us, he washed us, cleansed us in baptism, so that he could present us as his radiant bride. On the last day, he will come for us, and bring us to the wedding and the marriage reception that lasts forever.
[Thirty-Sixth In a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism,]
Everyone loves receiving gifts. They show us we are appreciated and that someone was thinking about us. This is true even when it comes from someone you love. Of course, a young woman loves to receive an engagement ring. It not only shows her that her boyfriend cares about her, but it also carries a promise. The day soon will come when he will make her his bride. It is filled with visions of a happy life, children, and the hope that she will not be alone as long as they both live.
It is likely the ring is not the first gift she received from him or the first gift he gave to her. And it will not be the last. Yet she would never consider returning a gift from her beloved. Each new gift comes with the same reminder that she is loved.
God, the Holy Spirit gives us many gifts. The Means of Grace are the most precious of them. While they are simple in form — written words on a page or said by a man, water poured on your head, bread and wine eaten with other very ordinary people — they are precious gifts. All of them come with the power of the Holy Spirit to create faith in our hearts, make a new Adam or Eve within us who loves God and wants to serve him. They give us the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.
In the waters of baptism, we are adopted as God’s children. With the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, we eat the body of our Lord broken on the cross to pay for our sins and drink the blood of the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world. In Absolution, we hear the words of Jesus that our sins are forgiven in the voice of the one sent to say them to us.
These are gifts that produce more gifts. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,gentleness, and self-control. These gifts serve God and our neighbors and testify that God is indeed good. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog
Invocavit Sunday March 9, 1522 Dr. Martin Luther Preacher at Wittenberg
The challenge of death comes to us all, and no one can die for another. Everyone must fight his own battle with death by himself, alone. We can shout into one another’s ears, but everyone must be prepared finally to meet death alone. I will not be with you then, nor you with me. Therefore, everyone must know for himself the chief things in Christianity, and be armed with them. These are the same things which you, my beloved, have long ago heard from me.
In the first place, we must know that we are the children of wrath, and all our works, intentions, and thoughts are worth nothing at all. To prove this point we must have a clear, strong text, and although there are many such passages in the Bible I will not overwhelm you with them, but ask you to note just this one, “We are all the children of wrath.” (Ephesians 2:3) And pray, do not boast in reply: “I built an altar, I gave a foundation for masses,” etc.
Secondly, That God has sent us His only-begotten Son that we may believe in Him, (John 3:16) and whosoever will put his trust in Him, should be free from sin and a child of God, as John declares in the first chapter, “He gave them power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his name.” (John 1:12) Here we should all be thoroughly at home in the Bible and be ready with many passages to confront the devil. In respect to these two points nothing seems to be lacking or amiss, but they have been rightly preached to you. I would be very sorry if it were otherwise. No, I am well aware and I dare say, that you are more learned in this matter than I, and that there are not only one, two, three, or four, but perhaps ten or more, who have this wisdom and enlightenment.
Thirdly, there must also be love, and through love we must do to one another as God has done to us through faith. For without love, faith is nothing, as St. Paul says, 1 Corinthians 13:1, “If I could speak with the tongues of angels, and of the highest things in faith, and have not love, I am nothing.” And haven’t you failed here badly, dear friends? I see no signs of love among you, and I observe that you have not been grateful to God for His rich gifts and treasures.
Let us beware lest Wittenberg become Capernaum. (Matthew 11:23) I notice that you have a great deal to say of the doctrine which is preached to you, of faith and of love. This is not surprising. A donkey can almost chant the lessons, and why shouldn’t you be able to repeat the doctrines and formulas? Dear friends, the kingdom of God — and we are that kingdom — consists not in speech or in words (1 Corinthians 4:20) but in deeds — in works and exercises. God does not want hearers and repeaters of words (James 1:22) but doers and followers who exercise the faith that works by love. For a faith without love is not enough — rather it is not faith at all, but a counterfeit of faith, just as a face seen in a mirror is not a real face, but merely the reflection of a face. (1 Corinthians 13:12)
Fourthly, We need patience, too. For whoever has faith, trusts in God and shows love to his neighbor, practicing it day by day, has to suffer persecution. For the devil never sleeps, and continually molests. But patience works and produces hope, (Romans 5:4) which freely yields itself to God and finds comfort in Him. Thus faith, by much affliction and persecution, ever increases, and is strengthened day by day. And the heart which by God’s grace has received such virtues must ever be active and freely expend itself for the benefit and service of the brethren, even as it has received from God.
And here, dear friends, one must not insist upon his rights, but must see what may be useful and helpful to his brother, as St. Paul says, Omnia mihi licent, sed non omnia expediunt, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are useful.” (1 Corinthians 6:12) We are not all equally strong in faith. Some of you have a stronger faith than I. Therefore, we must not look upon ourselves, or our strength, or our rank, but upon our neighbor, for God has said through Moses, “I have borne and nourished thee, even as a mother her child.” (Compare with Deuteronomy 1:31) How does a mother nourish her child? First, she feeds it with milk, then oatmeal, then eggs, and soft food. If she weaned it and at once gave it the ordinary, coarse food, the child would never thrive. So we should also deal with our brother, have patience with him for a time, suffer his weakness, and help him bear it. We should give him milk for food, too (1 Peter 2:2), as was done with us, until he grows strong, too, and thus we do not travel to heaven alone, but bring the brethren, who are not now on our side, with us. If all mothers were to abandon their children, where would we have been? Dear brother, if you have suckled long enough, do not at once cut off the breast, but let your brother be nourished also. I would not have gone so far as you have done if I had been here. What you did was good, but you have gone too fast. For there are also brothers and sisters on the other side who belong to us, and must still be won.
Let me illustrate. The sun has two properties, light and heat. No king has power enough to bend or guide the light of the sun. It remains straight in the place where it shines. But the heat may be turned and guided, and yet is ever about the sun. Thus, the faith must always remain pure and immovable in the heart, never wavering. But love moves and is guided, so that our neighbors may grasp it or follow us. There are some who can run, others must walk, still others can hardly crawl. (1 Corinthians 8:7-13) Therefore, we must not look upon our own, but upon our brother’s powers, so that if he is weak in faith, and attempts to follow the strong, he may not be destroyed of the devil. Therefore, dear brethren, obey me. I have never been a destroyer, and I was also the very first whom God called to this work. Neither can I run away, but must remain as long as it pleases God. I was the first, too, to whom God revealed it, to preach His Word to you. Moreover, I am sure that you have the pure Word of God.
Let us, therefore, take up this matter with fear and humility, cast ourselves at one another’s feet, join hands with each other, and help one another. I will do my part, which is no more than my duty, for I love you even as I love my own soul. (Ephesians 6:12) For here we battle not against pope or bishop, but against the devil, and do you imagine he is asleep? He doesn’t sleep, but sees the true light rising, and to keep it from shining into his eyes, he would make a flank attack — and he will succeed, if we are not on our guard. I know him well, and I hope, too, that with the help of God I am his master. But if we yield him but an inch, we must soon look to it how we may be rid of him. Therefore all those have erred, who have consented and helped to abolish the mass — in itself a good undertaking, but not accomplished in an orderly way. You say it was right according to the Scriptures. I agree, but what becomes of order? For it was done recklessly, with no regard to proper order and with offense to your neighbor. If, beforehand, you had called upon God in earnest prayer and had obtained the aid of the authorities, one could be certain that it had come from God. I, too, would have taken steps toward the same end if it had been a good thing to do. And if the mass were not so evil a thing, I would introduce it again. For I cannot defend your action, as I have just said. To the papists and the blockheads, I could defend it, for I could say: How do you know whether it was done with good or bad intention, since the work in itself was really a good work? But I can find nothing to reply to the devil. For if on their deathbeds the devil reminds those who began this affair of texts like these, “Every plant, which My father hath not planted, shall be rooted up,” (Matthew 15:13) or “I have not sent them, yet they ran,” (Jeremiah 23:21) how will they be able to withstand it? He will cast them into hell. But I have a weapon to brandish in the devil’s face, so that the wide world will become too small for him. I know that in spite of my reluctance, I was regularly called by the Council to preach in this place. And I would that you should have the same assurance as I. You could so easily have consulted me about the matter.
I was not so far away that you could not reach me with a letter, especially since I did not interfere with you in any way. Did you want to begin something, and then leave me to shoulder the responsibility? That is more than I can undertake, and I will not do it. Here one can see that you do not have the Spirit, in spite of your deep knowledge of the Scriptures. Take note of these two things, “must” and “free.” The “must” is that which necessity requires, and which must ever be unyielding, as, for instance, is the faith, which I shall never permit any one to take away from me, but which I must always keep in my heart and freely confess before every one. But “free” is that in which I have choice, and may use or not, yet in such a way that it profit my brother and not me. Now do not make a “must” out of what is “free,” as you have done, so that you may not be called to account for those who were led astray by your exercise of liberty without love. For if you entice any one to eat meat on Friday, and he is troubled about it on his deathbed, and thinks, Woe is me, for I have eaten meat and I am lost! God will call you to account for that soul. I would like to begin many things, in which but few would follow me. But what is the use? I know that those who have begun this thing, and when push comes to shove, cannot maintain themselves, and will be the first to retreat. How would it be, if I brought the people to the point of attack, and though I had been the foremost to exhort others, I would then flee, and not face death with courage? How the poor people would be deceived!
Let us, therefore, feed others also with the milk which we received, until they, too, become strong in the faith. For there are many who are otherwise in accord with us and who would also gladly accept this one thing, but they do not yet fully understand it — all such we drive aware. Therefore, let us show love to our neighbors, or our work will not endure. We must have patience with them for a time, and not cast out the weak in the faith. Much more should we regulate what we do and do not do according to the demands of love, provided no injury is done to our faith. If we do not earnestly pray to God, and act cautiously in this matter, it seems to me that all the misery which we have begun to cause the papists will fall upon us. Therefore I could no longer remain away, but was compelled to come and say these things to you.
This is enough about the mass. Tomorrow we speak about images.
Translated by A. Steimle. Edited and Language Modernized by Robert E. Smith From: The Works of Martin Luther. Philadelphia: A. J. Holman, 1915, 2:387-425.
[Thirty-Fifth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
God’s grace knows no limit. He loves us so much that all three persons work for our salvation. The Father chose us to be his before the world was made. He sent the Son to die for us. The Son became a flesh-and-blood man, lived a perfect life for us, suffered and died to pay the price for our sins, and rose from the dead so that we might rise to live forever.
The Holy Spirit makes us holy—sanctifies us. In theology, we use the word sanctification in two ways. The first is everything the Spirit does, from placing faith in our hearts to maintaining it to the day of our death. The second way we use it is for everything the Spirit does after he saves us. Martin Luther describes the first definition in this way: “the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified and kept me in the one, true Faith…” (Small Catechism, Creed, 2.3)
The Holy Spirit calls us through the preaching of God’s Word.(2 Thessalonians 2:13-14) He inspired Moses, David, the prophets, evangelists, apostles, and the other human authors of the Scriptures to record his words. In the Word of God, we find the law, which condemns us all as sinners, worthy of eternal death, and the gospel, which reveals that God is gracious to us for the sake of Jesus’ death on the cross and will forgive all those who believe this. This gospel is preached to us by those God sends to do so, read in the Bible, and when put together with water in Baptism. In this way, the Holy Spirit calls us to faith in Jesus. (Romans 10:14-17, Titus 3:5-7)
Originally posted at What does this Mean? Blog: https://whatdoesthismean.blog
The posts in the blog What does this Mean? are now available at What does this Mean? | Rev. Robert E. Smith | Substack
Rev. Robert E. Smith Pastor Emeritus Fort Wayne, Indiana
[Thirty-fourth in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
God the Holy Spirit gives no end of blessings to God’s people. When he calls us by the Gospel and creates faith in our hearts, we hear the voice of our Shepherd. We will live with him forever. “What else can he give us?” we think.
And yet, there is more. He calls us to be members of his church. The Greek word for church is ἐκκλησία (ekklesia) which means literally “to call out, to call up.” Greeks used it for a city council or a militia unit. The Greek translation of the Old Testament (Septuagint, LXX) used it for the gathering of God’s people. Jesus, the Gospel authors, and St. Paul used it in this way. Martin Luther defined in the Smalcald Articles 10.2: “For, thank God, a child seven years old knows what the Church is, namely, the holy believers and lambs who hear the voice of their Shepherd.”
The Holy Spirit calls, gathers, and enlightens the whole church into which he places us. But this church is not limited to our local congregation. It is catholic — a Latin word that means universal. All people who believe in Jesus Christ are a part of this church. It includes people of all nations, races, places, and situations. It also includes the Church Triumphant, Christians who have died in the faith and whose spirits now live with Christ. It is eternal and cannot be destroyed. This Church is one and cannot be divided.
It is also invisible. Since the faith that makes us a member of the Church dwells in our hearts, only God knows who belongs in it. Yet it is very real. It means that we are never alone. Not only is Jesus with us always — not only does the Holy Spirit dwell in our hearts, we have our brothers and sisters to be with us, pray with and for us and to share our burdens with us. And one day, they will be with us before the throne of God, praising God forever for his grace and mercy.
[Thirty-Third in a series of posts on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism]
Evangelicals are looking for seekers. These are people without Christ, who are looking for someone or something to fill the God-shaped hole in their hearts. Evangelicals believe that when they hear the gospel, they are won over by the preacher and accept Jesus as their savior. Or perhaps they responded to an altar call and prayed the sinner’s prayer. This decision theology holds that it is our decision that saves us. Lutherans believe they are mistaken. Why?
Because the Holy Scripture describes people without faith in Christ as dead in their sins, unable to accept the things of the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:1-3, 1 Corinthians 2:14) Nowhere in the Bible do we find a passage commanding us to accept Jesus as Savior. In fact, if you review in your mind all the Sunday school lessons about people God used in his plan to save us, you will discover that God came looking for them. They didn’t seek him. Faith is not accepting a series of facts as true or choosing to follow Jesus.
We are saved because God seeks and saves the lost. The Holy Spirit used the Gospel, shared by parents, friends, and loved ones with us, read in the pages of the Bible, and preached to us, and when we are baptized. He used it to create faith in our hearts that trusts in Jesus to save us. He calls us by the Gospel, enlightens us with his gifts, sanctifies and keeps us in the faith. We can be confident in our salvation because it depends on God, not on our own strength.
