It’s Not About You

Another great post from Pr. Larry Peters over at Pastoral Meanderings – a good reminder for every one of us who shepherd the Lord’s flocks, and a good reminder for God’s people too when it comes to their relationship with their shepherd(s). This is a lesson that is often only learned in the crucible of experience. Shepherds need to take the Church and its work seriously, but not themselves, let alone make everything personal. Take a read…

I was given good counsel when about to begin my life as a Pastor of the Church. A wise Pastor with many years of service to the Lord told me to take the Church seriously, take the work of the Church seriously, but do not take yourself seriously. I must admit that when first told these words I was not so sure this was sage advice and proven wisdom. Now some thirty years later, I can see the truth and wisdom in it.

When we take ourselves seriously, everything is personal. And that is one thing a Pastor cannot afford to do — to take things personally. It cannot be about me. I cannot afford to take personally everything that happens in conjunction with what I do as Pastor or every that is done to me or around me as Pastor. The tone of voice, the challenge that seems pretty personal, the upset… these are the things I must learn to look beyond or they will become the barriers and roadblocks to my ministry that will alienate me from the people and prevent me from serving them as I am called to do.

Often I have people who come into my study or call on the phone or email me with complaints about this or that in the Church. Implicit in their complaints is always the threat to leave and find another congregation. Often I have people who come to me wounded by this or that in life and work and somehow I end up getting the brunt of their backlash though it seldom has anything to do with me. Often I have been there when people exploded in anger, frustration, or sorrow only to find out that the trigger may have had some small connection to me but the cause was something unrelated to me or the Church. In those moments, a Pastor cannot afford to take it personally. Indeed, the challenge of the calling is to learn to look beyond the momentary outburst and extend to these wounded and hurting Christians, the love, forgiveness, mercy, guidance, counsel and Word of the Lord.

I do not always heed these words about not taking yourself personally, and when I do not, I always regret my failure to heed this good and wise counsel. When I fail to listen to this wisdom, I end up looking the fool I was trying to avoid and apologizing and begging forgiveness to clear up what my failed response did to exacerbate the situation.

Do not take yourself too seriously — do not be too concerned about respect or authority or honor that should be due you. Instead focus your concern upon the Church and her work — and your part in that work — and these other things will probably come. Take the Church seriously – her image and stature in the community, her life flowing from and back to the Word and Sacraments, her mission of witness and proclamation to the world, her community of life as the baptized people of God who share a common life in Christ, her welcome to the stranger that walks through the door, her service to the poor and needy who are always with us, her doctrine and confession of faith that we receive from the fathers and profess with our own voice and then pass on to those to come — these are the things a Pastor must take seriously. But not so much himself.

I understand this and even though I do not always heed the good counsel I was given, I accept this wisdom and truth as key to who I am as a Pastor of the Church and what I do in service to the Lord and His people. But, my family, well that is a more complicated situation.

It is very hard for a Pastor’s family to not take seriously words and actions that are intended to threaten, wound, or demean their husband and father. It is natural for a family to circle the wagons around a family member who is hurt by the words or actions of others. It is a mark of love that we do this for those whom we care about. The old adage about how it is okay for a family member to criticize, mock, make fun of, or challenge another family member but not for others to do so — it is true. The same is true when the Pastor’s family becomes the victim of the slings and arrows of others. What I struggle not to take seriously when it involves me, I must take seriously when it involves my family. That does not mean that we cede all objectivity away and blindly defend those who have been wounded by truth. It does mean that what we work out in private as a family is different that how we stand together before others.

I do not fear personal slights or critical words or complaints or even attacks — I do not welcome them or like them but I do not fear them. As a Pastor I will have to account for all my actions and for all my failures to act before the Lord. This accountability is of greater consequence to me that the understanding or appreciation of others around me. I have to separate me from the mix of things and make sure that I do not take myself too seriously or take things too personally. It is a wise man who can do this most of the time and it is something I struggle with every day as a Pastor.

It is also a difficult situation for my family — who love me, support me, and who sacrifice a great deal for me so that I can serve as a Pastor. For this reason, I honor them in my heart and in public for their great love, patience, and encouragement to me. I am humbled by what they often endure from me and from others because I am a Pastor. Sometimes with great resolution and sometimes with tears they find themselves caught between circling the wagons around me to defend me against any and all — and the knowledge that in doing this they may inadvertently make things more difficult so they bear the wound in silence and try to walk beyond it.

So today I sing a Te Deum Laudamus for my wife and children, parents and in-laws, who know me and all my weaknesses and still love me… who defend me and stand up for me always… who tell me what I need to hear when no one else will say it… and who endure the sometimes rocky road that belongs to a Pastor’s family. I take them seriously. I take the Church seriously. I take the work of the Church and my calling as part of it seriously. But I do not make things personal to me or take myself too seriously or all their many sacrifices would be in vain…

Welcome, New Readers!

This past week has seen the highest increase in daily visitors to The Shepherd’s Study in its nearly two-year history. For that, thank you to all of you who’ve spent some of your valuable time here! I think a big thanks goes to the folks over at Issues, Etc. and their pick of The Shepherd’s Study as blog of the week last week. I thought it would only be fair to post one of their latest promo videos below

If you have a moment and you are a new reader or have been lurking for a while, but haven’t made yourself known, please feel free to add a comment and let us know who you are and where you’re from. Whether you’ve been following The Shepherd’s Study for a while or have just started, thanks for reading!

The Clear Voice of the Gospel Still Rings Out!

Sermon for the 1st Sunday of End Time: The Festival of the Reformation – 1 November 2009

It was one of the busiest days of the year in little Wittenberg. Travelers from all over Europe streamed into the city. Children chased each other through the crowds. Vendors hawked their wares and pilgrims snapped them up. Wittenberg was abuzz with people gathered to celebrate All Saints Day over at All Saints Church, known as the Castle Church because it looked like a tall castle. It wasn’t the appearance of the church that drew the crowds, though. It was the relics—vials of milk from the virgin Mary, straw from Christ’s manger, wood from the cross, and other relics that were supposed to take off years of punishment in purgatory with every pious viewing. All Saints Day drew thousands every fall to the city of Wittenberg.

Over the noise of the crowds, the clear voice of a hammer striking a large nail rang out. Martin Luther—a local university professor, Augustinian monk, and pastor over at St. Mary’s down the street—was nailing a large roll of parchment to the door of the Castle Church, which served as the community bulletin board.

Little did he realize, but that parchment would start a fire that still burns today. He had written 95 theses arguing against the practice of selling indulgences, pieces of paper sold to willing buyers with the promise of forgiveness for a price. Those pieces of paper had quickly become licenses to sin. Out of pastoral concern for God’s people, Martin Luther offered a debate on indulgences and other abuses in the church. Pastor Luther wanted the clear voice of the Gospel of Jesus Christ—to be heard. He wanted his flock to enjoy real freedom from sin and guilt in Christ.

With the ring of a hammer 492 years ago, the clear voice of the Gospel soon was heard once again. Since the earliest days, that clear voice of the Gospel has sounded in spite of attempts by Satan and our world to confuse or silence it. The Romans tried to persecute its proclamation into silence. The Papists nearly silenced it with false teaching that turned Christ into an angry judge and made man responsible for his salvation. Countless voices try to drown it out today with the denial of Holy Scripture as the Word of God, the denial of absolute truth, and the denial of the need for Christ, yet THE CLEAR VOICE OF THE GOSPEL STILL RINGS OUT!

Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” – Revelation 14:6-7

It was a dark time for the Apostle John. Seventy or so years had passed since the Lord had called him to leave his fishing nets beside the Sea of Galilee and follow him. The years had flown by, yet with God’s help, John had proclaimed the good news of Christ Jesus. Now he was an old man, the last living apostle, and sentenced to end his days in exile on the tiny Greek island of Patmos for his Christian faith. Darkness loomed.

Throughout those many years, though, John had seen how the light of the Gospel broke through the darkness of sin and guilt and unbelief. He had seen how pagan unbelievers who had once reveled in awful lifestyles now stood firm in the Christian faith even in the face of death. He had seen the light of the Gospel break through the darkness of unbelief in lands all across the known world. The Holy Spirit had used John’s writings to strengthen God’s people with the clear voice of the Gospel. Now the Lord had one more letter for him to write to prepare the Church for the challenges ahead, and to encourage God’s people with the final victory already won by Christ.

God’s people needed to know that the Gospel rings out with a clear voice. Without a clear voice, the Gospel wasn’t the Gospel—the good news of all sins freely forgiven and salvation won through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Plenty of other voices threatened to overwhelm that clear voice of the Gospel. Some threatened to rob Christ of the glory he deserved by giving man a role in his salvation, that Christ’s saving work was incomplete without man’s cooperation. Some threatened to overthrow Christ’s authority with their own. Some argued that Jesus was just a man and not God, while others twisted Holy Scripture for their own personal gain. Some tempted God’s people to desert Christ in their hour of suffering or persecution or hardship, arguing that the Gospel was powerless.

Into all this darkness, the Savior shined the pure, clear light of the Gospel, shattering the darkness and putting the clear Gospel out of reach of all its clamoring enemies. In so doing, he assured his Church he will never abandon her. John wrote, “Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people.”

The Word of God would not be overcome by Satan or his hellish forces. The “eternal Gospel” would endure forever ringing out with a clear voice. Those of us sitting here can attest to that fact since that Gospel brought us here, but still today so many misleading voices clamor to drown out the Gospel’s clear voice. They deny absolute truth. They transform Christ into just another moral teacher. They trade Christ and his cross in Christianity for the latest pop fad, and promote the worship of self as my sin, my lifestyle, my choice, my life, my body, my will take priority over God’s holy will. These voices diminish the importance of what Christ did on the cross so it doesn’t offend, and remove the teachings of sin and hell for a message that sounds pleasing to the ear, but is poisonous to the heart. These voices clamor for unity amidst diversity, even if that unity includes watering down the pure teaching of God’s Word or condoning sin as a matter of choice or an alternative lifestyle. Woe to those who follow those voices!

Sadly we so often do. A congregation allows a little error to stand or looks the other way when it comes to unrepentant sin, and the clear voice of the Gospel is lost. Gospel-taught Christians like you and me become ashamed of that Gospel when faced with an awkward situation or a little heat for our Christian faith. At times, you and I put more confidence in our own abilities, our own wisdom, or our own intelligence rather than the eternal Gospel of Jesus Christ proclaimed from heaven. When we’re so bombarded with those misleading voices, we easily let them confuse the clear voice of the Gospel.

We need to know that the eternal Gospel rings out with a clear voice! It rang out clearly when God in his grace forgave our first parents who disobeyed him. “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers. He will crush your head and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15) It rang out clearly when the cry of a baby conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin rang out in a Bethlehem stable. It rang out clearly when that baby grew into a man and began three long years of difficult ministry with one sole purpose—to proclaim the good news of sins forgiven, of guilt wiped away, of death destroyed. It rang out clearly when a hammer pounded nails through the hands of the Son of God pinning him to a cross. It rang out clearly when that same Son of God cried out with his dying breath, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) It rang out clearly when three days later an angel told some frightened women, “He is not here. He is risen!” (Matthew 28:6) It rang out clearly when the risen Christ entered the heavens victorious and sent his Holy Spirit so his followers could clearly proclaim his Gospel. It rang out clearly from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. It rang out clearly when the Lord raised up Martin Luther and others to restore the truth of the Gospel to his church. It rang out clearly when that message traveled across oceans to the Americas. That clear voice of the Gospel still rings out today!

In all those places at all those times, the clear voice of the Gospel overcame every misleading voice with the truth of God’s holy Word. The clear voice of the Gospel has always outlasted every attempt of sinful man, Satan, and the sinful world to overcome it. The clear voice of the Gospel brings forgiveness from Christ for your guilt, confidence and strength for your weak and struggling heart, truth and clarity for the confusion of our present age.

The Gospel still needs to ring out though. The angel proclaims the purpose for proclaiming that Gospel, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.” He doesn’t command us to be terrified of God, but to give him glory in childlike awe and respect. Yes, God’s holiness terrifies our sinful natures, but his gracious love makes us his beloved children who respond with praise as the Psalmist wrote, “With you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared.” (Psalm 130:4)

There is no time but the present for this to take place “because the hour of his judgment has come.” With every passing day and hour, the Last Day looms closer when there will be no more opportunity to proclaim the Gospel.

So who will go? Who will proclaim that good news? God in his grace has provided pastors and teachers to proclaim this Good News, but the truth is, we pastors and teachers have never been able to go to every nation, tribe, language, and people. That messenger with the eternal Gospel, then, is also you. God gives you the simple message of Christ crucified for you to forgive your sins and save sinners like you. The Lord doesn’t call you to blow people away with some complicated kind of shock and awe, but to simply confess what you know and believe, to sound the clear voice of the Gospel in an age of confusion and error and lies. The Gospel needs to ring out if people you know and love are to join you with all believers in Christ around the throne of the Lamb of God. Find strength and ability to do that, then, by spending time in the Word and at the Lord’s Table. Wake up each morning remembering your Baptism with repentance and living each day as a forgiven child of God equipped with the clear voice of the Gospel.

We live in times that grow darker with each passing day. The Last Day is coming soon, when Christ will come to judge the living and the dead. Hostility grows against those who hold to Holy Scripture as God’s Word and who live out their Christian faith, but Christ will never abandon you, even in your darkest hour, even when it seems the misleading noise of the present age will overwhelm the clear voice of the Gospel once and for all. Instead let that clear voice of the Gospel be heard. Let it ring out with the message of freedom from guilt and despair and death in Christ. Let it ring out with the good news of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone found in Scripture alone. May the eternal Gospel ring out clearly through you and all believers in Christ until He returns at last! Amen.

[Graphic #1 Source: National Geographic Photography]
[Graphic #2 Source: Wikimedia Commons]

Logos 4 Released Today!

Word came out from Logos Bible Software that they release Logos 4 today. For those of you who make use of Logos with the Libronix Digital Library System, this is quite a new release, since Logos basically did a “from-the-ground-up” restructuring of their previous release of Logos 3.x.

For those not familiar with Logos Bible Software, the name gives a pretty good idea of what it is – great Bible study software, but for pastors wanting to do deeper exegetical studies, Logos is second to none in my opinion. At the same time, one can also build quite the digital library with a host of resources from various publishing companies, including Concordia Publishing House and Northwestern Publishing House.

I personally have not seen the software, but Pr. Aaron Frey – WELS pastor, founder of the Logos for Lutherans newsgroup, and teacher of the Exegesis with Logos course at Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary – has been posting various reviews of different aspects of the new release on his blog. Here are links to his latest reviews.

• Logos 4 Initial Impressions
• Text Studies, Guides and Searching
• Library and Resource Management, Conclusion
  

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God!

Four hundred and ninety-two years ago today, with roll of parchment, hammer, and nails in hand, an Augustinian monk and faithful shepherd named Martin Luther made his way to the door of All Saints Church, “the Schlosskirche” (Castle Church), in Wittenberg, Germany.  He made his way to post a broadsheet of 95 theses against the practice of indulgences in the church for the purpose of holding a debate on the subject. He went out of pastoral concern for the flock which God had placed under his care. He went as a watchman of the Lord standing high on Zion’s wall and sounding the warning to God’s people, as every shepherd of God’s flock is called to do (Ezekiel 33:7ff.). Little did the shepherd realize, but the Lord would reform his Church (not just Luther’s!) and change the world as the Gospel was given free reign once again in the years that followed. For this, we give thanks to the Lord and praise His holy name!

For further Reformation reading, here are four posts worth a look:

• Fifteen Minutes that Changed the World: Thoughts on the Festival of the Reformation, October 31 (Cyberbrethren)
• The Reformation in Luther’s Own Words (The Blog of St. Mark)
• The New Reformation (Pastoral Meanderings)
• Reformation Reflections (Pastor Strey’s Weblog)

In celebration of the 492nd Commemoration of the Lutheran Reformation of the Church, below you will find “the Battle Hymn of the Lutheran Reformation” – A Mighty Fortress Is Our God (Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott), followed by a video featuring one of the many English translations and depicting works of art from the era of the Reformation.

Christian Worship: Handbook explains about the hymn,

It was a hymn of great comfort to Luther and his followers because when he was discouraged he would often invite his friends to sing it for courage and strength (“Kommt, lasst uns den 46. Psalm singen“) and he apparently sang it regularly while being sheltered at the Coburg castle. Called the “Marseillaise Hymn of the Reformation” by the 19th-century literary figure Heinrich Heine, the hymn spread rapidly throughout Germany. Philipp Melanchthon, Justus Jonas, and Casper Cruciger, during their banishment in 1547, were comforted by hearing a young girl sing it in Weimar. It was sung at the Diet of Augsburg. Gustavus Adolphus caused it to be sung by his army before the battle of Leipzig in 1631. It has been translated into a host of other languages, with over one hundred English translations alone.

In the spirit of the Reformers, then, come let us sing the 46th Psalm!

A mighty fortress is our God, a trusty shield and weapon;
He helps us free from ev’ry need that has us now o’ertaken.
The old evil foe now means deadly woe;
Deep guile and great might are his dread arms in fight;
On earth is not his equal.

With might of ours can naught be done; Soon were our loss effected.
But for us fights the valiant one whom God himself elected.
You ask, “Who is this?”
Jesus Christ it is, the almighty Lord.
And there’s no other God; He holds the field forever.

Though devils all the world should fill, all eager to devour us.
We tremble not, we fear no ill; They shall not overpow’r us.
This world’s prince may still scowl fierce as he will, he can harm us none.
He’s judged; the deed is done! One little word can fell him.

The Word they still shall let remain nor any thanks have for it;
He’s by our side upon the plain with His good gifts and Spirit.
And take they our life, goods, fame, child, and wife,
Let these all be gone, they yet have nothing won;
The Kingdom ours remaineth.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A Mighty Fortress Is Our God
Author: Martin Luther (1483-1546)
Sources: Christian Worship 200:1-3, The Lutheran Hymnal 262:4 (Also Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary 250, Lutheran Service Book 656)
Tune: Ein feste Burg

E’en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come

Peace be to you and grace from Him
Who freed us from our sin
Who loved us all, and shed his blood
That we might saved be.
Sing holy, holy to our Lord
The Lord almighty God
Who was and is, and is to come
Sing holy, holy Lord.
Rejoice in heaven,
all ye that dwell therein
Rejoice on earth, ye saints below
For Christ is coming,
Is coming soon
For Christ is coming soon.
E’en so Lord Jesus quickly come
And night shall be no more
They need no light, no lamp, nor sun
For Christ will be their All!

The church music world mourns today following this news announcement from Morningstar Publishers:

Beloved composer, organist, and church musician Dr. Paul Manz passed away in St. Paul Minnesota on Wednesday evening, October 29, after several weeks of hospice care.  He was 90 years old.  He died surrounded by his family while they sang his famous motet “E’en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come.”  Funeral services will be held in St. Paul on Sunday afternoon, November 8.  Paul’s many compositions, recordings, and hymn festivals have influenced the art and practice of church music in the United States since the 1960’s. His playing and teaching has influenced untold numbers of organists throughout this country who considered him a mentor and friend.

Here is the full obituary from Morningstar Publishers.

Much has and could be written about this man who has made such a profound influence on church music in the United States. As an organist, his hymn improvisations are familiar to many a Lutheran organist. My favorites were his “Praise to the Lord, the Almighty”, which was the Recessional for our wedding, and “Jesus, Lead Thou On”.  His motet, “E’en So, Lord Jesus, Quickly Come” is world-renowned and has been recorded numerous times, even by choirs of which I’ve been a part.  The haunting beauty of that peace coupled with the confidence of faith in Christ expressed there makes the piece unforgettable. Here’s a snippet from an excellent post on this piece written by Pr. Larry Peters,

If you want to know what is genius in liturgy and music, I think of this anthem. I think of the faith rooted in Jesus Christ from which the words flowed and the music of the man so anxious about his son and the mystery of the moment of pain that gave birth to such words and music of hope, confidence, and peace. It is one of those wonderful intersections of music and words where neither is bigger than the other but both form a piece of what is larger than either — the message understood in the mind with words but felt in the soul with the notes that speak the same message.

When I die I want the choir to sing this piece in the funeral. It is about all that needs to be said of me… of any Christian… Even so, Lord Jesus, quickly come….

Below I’ve provided one of several recordings of the motet with scenes from the Castle Church in Wittenberg. E’en so, Lord Jesus, quickly come!

“God Hates the Sin, Not the Sinner”…Really?

In some recent conversations, including one with some fellow pastors, I’ve heard the familiar statement, “God hates the sin, not the sinner”. For some time now I’ve been thinking about that statement and have wondered if that’s really a proper Scriptural statement we can make.

It seems to me that that something is missing from that statement. Now I realize that when a statement is made in such a pithy way, there’s usually more that could be said or at least more explanation.  The missing component in this particular statement, “God hates the sin, not the sinner”, however, seems to make this statement not quite scriptural or at the very least vague enough that it could be easily misunderstood.

The component that seems to me to be missing is the fact that apart from Christ, does not God, who is holy and just,  hate the sinner because of the sin? At the same time, does not the same God, who is also gracious and loving, love the sinner because of the Savior? Perhaps such questions could be put into a pithy form that is clearer than the statement above:

God hates the sinner because of the sin.
God loves the sinner because of the Savior.

Like I said, I’ve been mulling over this for some time. Still perhaps I’m off-base on this and misunderstand. What do you think? Your thoughts are welcome!

Update – 11/02/09 – Thanks to Issues, Etc. host Pastor Todd Wilken for picking this post as his “Blog of the Week” on Friday, 30 October 2009. Here is an audio link for the ”Blog of the Week” segment.

A Man Named George

Monday was a bittersweet day in our family. Five years ago on 26 October 2004, the Lord in his grace called from this vale of tears to himself in heaven the soul of my paternal grandfather, George Jacob Gumm. I remember receiving the phone call from my father in the midst of my last class period of the day during my final year at the Seminary. Ironically, it was counseling class and we were beginning our unit on of all things, grief counseling. My grandfather’s death was not unexpected. In fact, it was only by the grace of God that he had not died any number of times before in the years previous, because as you can read below, he led a hard life for a long time. It was hard as it was with the death of my maternal grandfather years before.

What made it different this time around though was that less than one week before I had had the privilege of conducting my first solo shut-in call visiting my grandfather. I had managed to not make a single shut-in call during my vicar year, since we had none at the time. So I brought him the Holy Supper and all the wonderful blessings that come with it. I shared with him the Gospel as we considered Psalm 121 together and spiritually lifted our eyes to the Savior who watches over us. I reminded him of God’s grace, which he hadn’t truly understood until he was much older.  Just days later, he was enjoying the marriage feast of heaven with the Church Triumphant and lifting his eyes to the Lamb on the throne.

My brother, Joe, who was serving as a tutor (dorm supervisor & teacher) at Luther Preparatory School in Watertown, WI, had the unenviable task of conducting evening chapel about the same time, but the Lord blessed the opportunity as he always does whenever his Gospel is proclaimed. So I share his devotion with you and pray the Lord blesses you through the hearing of his Gospel too.

I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (Romans 1:16-17)

I once knew a man named George.  George was a bartender – his father owned a tavern-restaurant and when he retired, George took over the family business.  And he was quite successful at it, too.  He earned quite a living for his wife and his two sons.  He made a name for himself for two things: for his burgers and for his storytelling.  Yet his lifestyle left something to be desired.  Years of carousing, hard living, and alcohol abuse began to take their toll not only on his body but also on his family life.  Once, in a drunken rage, he tried to hit his oldest son with a car.  In the eyes of God, this man, George, was a worthless sinner.  Even if he had piled up all his successes and all the worldly merits that he had ever scored, they could not compare to the staggering price demanded by God because of his sin.  By his own efforts, George would have never been able to earn righteousness before God.

Yet, somewhere along the way, George heard the gospel message, God’s powerful good news that his sins would not count against him, that God had punished his perfect Son in his place, so that one day he would not go to the eternal fires of hell but rather to the eternal joy and happiness of heaven.  The Holy Spirit, through the power of the gospel, worked faith in George’s heart.  And by that faith, George, who was once the worst of sinners, now stands justified before God, clothed in the robe of righteousness earned by Christ’s perfect sacrifice.

Couldn’t we put our own names into this story, maybe with a few changes in the circumstances surrounding our childhoods, but yet keeping the main ideas?  We were once spiritually dead.  Nothing we could do could ever get us out of the hopeless situation we were in – looking forward to death and an eternity of despair.  Even if we tried and performed countless good works, Isaiah reminds us (64:6), “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind our sins sweep us away.”

Yet, somewhere along the way, we heard the gospel message, the powerful good news of God.  Our pastor or our teacher in our Christian school or our parents or whoever it may be told us that our sins did not count against us any longer, that God had punished his Son in our stead, that one day an eternity in heaven awaits us.  Those pastors and teachers and parents – they were not ashamed of the gospel, they were not ashamed to tell you that you were saved, they were not ashamed to point you to Jesus, because by faith they knew that God’s gospel was powerful and that through it you might be saved.

Let’s talk about George for a little while longer.  He got out of the tavern business and kicked his drinking habits.  As the years passed, the years of hard living finally caught up to him.  Slowly arthritis took away his ability to walk and rendered his hands useless.  On Monday, he went to the hospital for heart surgery.  As he lay on the table with the nurses preparing him for the operation, George said a prayer aloud, asking God to guide the hands of the surgeons.  When the doctors opened him up, they found that no amount of surgery was going to help – George’s heart was too tired.  All George and his wife and his family could do was wait for the end.  Yet after the surgery, George told the pastor, his son, that he wanted to bring one more soul to faith, that he wanted the opportunity to tell one more person about Jesus.  George was not ashamed of the gospel, because he knew it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes.

On Tuesday morning, this man, George, my grandpa, passed away, a believer in Jesus, and he was awarded the crown of life by his Savior.  No longer is he confined to a wheelchair by arthritis, but stands before the throne of God with all the multitudes who have come out of the great tribulation, those who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb, those who during their sojourn here on earth heard the gospel and believed its promise.  May we never be ashamed of the gospel, but proclaim with the apostle Paul, “The righteous will live by faith.”  Amen.

[Devotion delivered by Tutor Joseph Gumm - Luther Preparatory School, Watertown, WI - 29 October 2004]

For the Disgruntled Lutheran…

A few months ago I noticed that a blog called No Church Home had linked up to The Shepherd’s Study. I found that it was the blog of a self-described “disgruntled Evangelical” named Doug Cohenour, who had left Evangelicalism in search of a new church home. His and his family’s search from church to church finally ended at a confessional Lutheran church.

I’ve read Doug’s posts with interest since coming across his blog and have found some very insightful writing about a former Evangelical’s journey from Evangelicalism to confessional Lutheranism. This afternoon an interesting post from No Church Home came across my newsreader entitled A Word for the Disgruntled Lutheran. It’s a very Christ-centered response to those who have grown “disgruntled” with Lutheranism and worth a read. Rather than publish the entire post, here’s an excerpt…

Search for Christ

You have probably heard it before, but it bears repeating; there are no perfect churches. As long as there are people involved, there will always be something that we can find to be unhappy about. Lutheranism, for all of its faults, is one of the last refuges of truth in our day and age. The church at large is disintegrating. It is on the decline. If you care about the church, about doctrine, about fidelity to God’s Word, about faith in Christ alone for salvation, and about all of the things that mark the true church, you are in the minority. I have seen enough evidence of this trend over the last 20 years to convince me that we live in a time of decline for the church.

Jesus said that the gates of hell would not prevail against the church. I believe this. But He also wonder if He would find faith on the earth when He returned again. I wonder this myself. Before you reject Lutheranism, maybe it deserves a fresh look. Perhaps you are disgruntled because you do not really know what your church teaches. It may be that if you gain a fresh perspective on the doctrines of the Reformation, the Lutheran confessions, The Word of God, and the finished work of Jesus Christ on your behalf, that the Lutheran church will not seem like such a bad place to be after all.

It’s really all about Jesus Christ and what He has done. It’s not about you, or professional clergy and their vision, or synods and their decisions, or the politics of your local church. Your personal worship preferences are not relevant, and neither are your felt needs. Being turned inward on yourself leads to being disgruntled. Search for Christ instead. Look for the place where you get the most of Christ, Jesus in all of His fullness, crucified for you.

You will find this in the churches of the Reformation. You will find this in confessional Lutheranism. For where Jesus is, there is life and salvation.

[HT: No Church Home - Now linked on the blogroll too!]

Here, O My Lord, I See You Face to Face

Here, O my Lord, I see you face to face;
Here would I touch and handle things unseen,
Here grasp with firmer hand eternal grace,
And all my weariness upon you lean.

(Christian Worship 315:1/Lutheran Service Book 631:1)

Last week our Colonial North Conference (North Atlantic District-WELS) met for a conference focused on “God’s Gift to Us: The Lord’s Supper and Its Importance in the Life of the Church”. We had a great exegesis of Luke 22:7-20 and presentation of Formula of Concord: Article VII: Of the Holy Supper. I had opportunity to present the practical paper for our conference on the subject of “Encouraging Frequent Reception of the Holy Supper”.

That paper was one of the main reasons why The Shepherd’s Study has been rather quiet in the last couple weeks (apart from the usual busyness of ministry!). It was really quite a joy to study this subject, which only a couple years ago was a hot topic in our congregation here. So for your reading pleasure (or if you need sleep or something to put at the bottom of your bird cage…), I’ve provided a PDF copy of my paper below.

Here, O My Lord, I See You Face to Face:
Encouraging Frequent Reception of the Holy Supper

[Graphic Source]

What Would Jesus Do?

This post isn’t what you might think when you read that title. This isn’t an encouragement to lead a God-pleasing life motivated by the great example of Jesus, rather than the good news of Jesus. Instead it’s an encouragement to faithful shepherds struggling with the temptation to “soft-peddle” the clear and often offending truth of God’s Word to people who often don’t want to hear it. It’s an encouragement to avoid the theology of glory and instead proclaim the theology of the cross no matter how much it offends.

In his book, The Fire and the Staff: Lutheran Theology in Practice, Pr. Klemet Preus warns, “When you measure success by large numbers, you are not measuring by suffering and the cross.” He, then, provides the example of our Savior Jesus preaching to over 5000 people on a single day and then miraculously feeding all those people with 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish. People were “confessing that Jesus was the prophet who was to come into the world”, but then “Jesus gave a little homily that permanently destroyed His successful ministry” (pg. 330) Preus goes on to show from John 6:40-66 how Jesus’ message went against everything the people expected, and what most people in American society expect today (pg. 331).

1. Jesus claimed that He was the only way to salvation. (6:40)
2. He said that no one could come to faith except by the grace of His Father. (6:44)
3. He made it clear that eternal life comes only through his sacrificial death. (6:53)
4. He insulted the audience by criticizing their religion (6:58)

The apostle John tells us that many rejected Jesus and turned away from him after that. (6:66). Now here’s the encouragement for faithful shepherds struggling with the temptation to “soft-peddle” their message (pg. 331).

Would you say that Jesus’ sermon was a success? Should He have preached it?

Whenever a pastor is tempted to soft-peddle his preaching, he should ask, “What would Jesus do?” Jesus would insist on saying the unpopular thing if it were true. We need to insist that Jesus is the only way to heaven, that you get there only because God draws you, that faith in the flesh and blood is indispensable, that other religions don’t get you there. Jesus preached the theology of the cross, and He suffered for it. Thankfully, our Lord did not measure the effectiveness of His ministry by how many people stayed in His church or by how His messages were received. He was called to proclaim the truth. The result, for Him, was the cross. The result for us is the same.

God bless you as you proclaim the offensive theology of the cross in a world enamored with the theology of glory!

[Source: Preus, Klemet I. The Fire and the Staff: Lutheran Theology in Practice. Concordia Publishing House, 2004: St. Louis. pgs. 330-331]

The Holy Word of God Endures Forever

While I await the arrival of my large-print copy of The Lutheran Study Bible, an announcement came across my newsreader sharing a new hymn penned for Reformation Day 2009 by Pr. Stephen Starke with a new melody by Jeffrey Blersch. The hymn is entitled The Holy Word of God Stands Forever. Concordia Publishing House commissioned it in celebration of the publication of The Lutheran Study Bible. I’ve had a chance to play through it and, God-willing, we hope to use it for our Joint Reformation Service coming up on November 1. Oh, and the cost to use the hymn in your congregation for Reformation Day 2009 is free!

Here is the announcement of the hymn on Cyberbrethren. Links to a congregational melody version and an accompaniment version, both in PDF, can be found there. You can also find the text for the hymn at Pr. Starke’s blog, starke Kirchenlieder. He explains the stanzas…

Stanza 1, the power of God’s Word to bring sight for those blind in sin.; stanza 2, the Gospel call goes out to all enemies of God, made such by their sin; stanza 3, the work of the Holy Spirit who makes spiritually dead people alive by the power of God’s Word; stanza 4, God’s Word as Law and Gospel, to cut (Law) and to heal (Gospel) with the result that our lives become Christ’s letter to a fallen world.

For those of you wondering about the hymnody of Pr. Starke, ten can be found in Christian Worship Supplement – all of them gems. (By the way, he’s tied with Herman Stuempfle for the most hymns authored or translated in the Supplement!) Here’s a listing…

• Jesus, Once With Sinners Numbered (CWS 710, LSB 404)
• Scatter the Darkness, Break the Gloom (CWS 722, LSB 481)
• Holy Spirit, the Dove Sent From Heaven (translator) (CWS 723, LSB 502)
• O Gracious Lord, I Firmly Am Believing (translator) (CWS 743, LSB 635)
• The Tree of Life (CWS 754, LSB 561)
• Consider How the Birds Above (CWS 762, LSB 736)
• Jesus Sat With His Disciples (CWS 763, LSB 932)
• There Is a Time for Everything (CWS 764, LSB 762)
• Lord, Support Us All Day Long (CWS 782, LSB 884)
• O Gracious Lord, With Love Draw Near (CWS 784, LSB 599)

Twenty-two other hymns authored or translated by Pr. Starke can be found in Lutheran Service Book. He was also commissioned to write the text for the Gloria, Sanctus, and Nunc Dimittis in Divine Service II in Christian Worship Supplement, which our congregation has been learning and using since early August.

So check out the new hymn and maybe even use it in your congregation for Reformation Day 2009. You can’t beat the price (FREE!) to make use of the hymn this year and it’s some good Lutheran hymnody. Enjoy!

…But Will It Fly?

Do you ever wonder why the pews (or in our case, chairs) aren’t completely filled on an average Sunday morning? Do you ever feel the tug of temptation to look at the “same old” Word and Sacraments week after week as antiquated, irrelevant, or weak when it doesn’t seem to make the  impact on people that you desire or bring in the crowds you expect to see? Are you ever tempted to flee to the “experts” who say the Word and Sacraments “just won’t fly” in this  sophisticated age and their way is better?

Using the comparison of the bumblebee and the message of the cross, Pr. Larry Peters offers a great response to those doubting thoughts, that afflict and tempt every faithful shepherd, at his blog Pastoral Meanderings. I found it very encouraging.

I recall a nature documentary on the humble bumble bee. According to the experts, it should not fly. This creature does not possess the right characteristics or aerodynamic qualifications to fly. Except that God wills it to fly. God’s will triumphs engineering declarations every time.

It seems that we have come to a certain juncture in history when many in the Church have become convinced that God’s Word as it has been read will not fly with the people. It is antiquated, out of touch, irrelevant to, and distant from the judgments of modern day man. It may have once been vital and vibrant when folks thought the earth flat or had no distractions of entertainment and pleasure but not in our world of choice, sophistication, learning, and self-confidence. It will not fly, they have decided. It must be so.

Those of us who see empty pews on Sunday morning fear that perhaps this judgment may be correct. Those of us who have labored to faithfully proclaim the Gospel in unbroken solidarity with the apostles often have our own anxieties fueled by what seems to be a lack of progress or success within our parishes and communities. We may not be ready to exchange the yesterday, today, and forever Jesus with the Christ who wears a current wardrobe of opinion, culture, and values… but we do face up to our questions and fears from time to time.

Many have gone well past the point of fearing. They have decided that something must be dared in the name of God to save Jesus from being a historical footnote. Some have decided that it is best to confront change and to simply admit that we were wrong and now we have changed… changed about evolution and creation… changed about sin and death… changed about abortion and life… changed about sexuality and marriage… changed about eternity and this temporal reality… These are those among the most liberal of “Christians” who meet and vote or who simply make on their own the changes that update Christianity to keep it from becoming irrelevant. “God is doing a new thing,” they say. And boldly they embrace what is contemporary, entrepreneurial, and innovative. It is as if they are striving not just to keep up but to get ahead of where they perceive the culture is going — the cutting edge of proclamation, ministry, and belief.

Some have chosen not to publicly make such a judgment but in more subtle nuance have adjusted the message. These have quietly began preaching a message of me in which sins are more hindrances to my full pleasure, happiness, and fulfillment than, well, sins. So what is confessed are those things that keep us from becoming all we want to be and worship becomes the learning center where we grow past these impediments to fuller humanity. And the Church becomes a large self-help group with the pastor the chief motivator and prognosticator of looking at what makes you sad, ditching it, and finding what makes you happy (usually it works out to more money at work, fewer kids at home, freer responsibilities in marriage – or none at all – and a life defined by all the experiences you can pack in). The Thee of Christianity has become the ME of pop psychology and life coaching for better choices.

Others have made the truth so relative that it exists in bits and pieces of every religion and spirituality is about picking and choosing from the buffet of all religion to find the thing that centers you in the universe. Some of these have turned religion into a green revolution in which the goal is saving the planet — not the people. Animals and plants have lives and feelings and value on the same plain as people for these radical reformers.

A few have become bitter and angry. Their words to the world are doom and gloom and they speak of the Savior in such brutal terms that it is a religion of fear that few want except those ideologues so determined that nothing else will do. These folks do not really want to save their neighbors as much as condemn them. Their weakness is their own seeming lack of sin or failure but so often those who are the hardened believers in this movement of triumphalism come out of the most wounded or sordid pasts.

And then there are those who struggle to be faithful — faithful to the message and the mission of Jesus Christ. I suspect that there are far more of them than we think. People like the vast majority of those in my own parish and my own denomination who come every Sunday to confession because they know the destruction and death breeding power of sin in their own lives. They come kneeling and confessing because they year to know freedom in the peace of a conscience washed clean by the blood of Jesus. They pass the font every Sunday knowing it was there they were caught and claimed by the compelling love the flows from the cross and through the water to mark us for the Lord and for life in His kingdom — now and eternally.

They sing sometimes with faltering voices and sometimes bold and strong. They sing not because they like the music or because they love the melody. They sing because the words tell the story, the old, old story of Jesus and His love. They sing in praise of what God has done for us in Christ, of the forgiveness that answers sin’s pointy finger of guilt and of life that laughs at death’s seeming defiance of God’s purpose and plan. They listen as they sing and sing as they listen — voices of today that echo the voices of yesterday and teach the voices of tomorrow.

They listen to the sermon not because they are looking for help for this problem or that… not because they think a new way of living will bring them more happiness or fulfillment… not because they want to be confirmed in their sins… They listen for Jesus Christ and they glory when they hear the message of the cross and empty tomb. They are silent as they listen but their hearts are filled with the “Amens” of a people who have come to hear the cross, who hear it for their joy and salvation, and who pray they may take it and speak to those outside the doors of this sanctuary.

They come to the Table of the Lord to receive what is promised — knowing not how to understand this mystery but knowing to receive it with faith and all its blessings flow freely and fully into their mortal frames preparing them for immortality. They come to eat the bread come down from heaven given for the life of the world and to drink the cup of salvation that points to the heavenly banquet yet to come. “Here, O my Lord, I see Thee face to face,” they sing — because they do see Him where He has promised to be and it is a glorious glimpse into the presence of God, the face of mercy, and the hand of pure grace.

They go home, in part tired for the all the energy expended in this House of the Lord on the Lord’s Day and in part invigorated by the experience of it all. They wonder why the pews are not filled with people looking as they do at the richness of the mercy, the wideness of the grace, and the blessing of such participation in the means of His presence among us. But they are not so much disheartened as they are confused by the way the world chooses a moment of false hope over a lifetime of real hope… by the way the world is content for a message of the moment when it might have eternity spoken to them… by the way the world is looking for pleasure when the joy of the Lord is what fills the heart no matter the circumstance around you…

I must admit, despite all my wonderings about why the pews are not fuller, this is how I come each week to the place of God’s presence, to the people bidden by His Spirit, for the purpose of His pleasure, to give us His gifts of forgiveness, life and salvation.

Like the bumble bee, this message of the cross should not fly. But then, God wills it to fly and so it shall. Whether we see all of its wings in flutter or its meandering journeys. This Gospel will fly and will accomplish the purpose for which He sends it forth. His Word has wings.

[Graphic Source: Wikimedia Commons]

Defeatism in the Church

Temptations to fall into despair or defeatism have not been unusual in the history of the Lutheran church (nor in its present or future for that matter!). As a follow-up to my last post, I would like to share an essay written in the midst of the Great Depression by Prof. August Zich of the Theological Seminary (now known as Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary) at Thiensville, WI. In 1933, Zich was commissioned to write this paper for general distribution entitled Defeatism in the Church to respond to the prevailing spirit in the Wisconsin Synod and the Lutheran church at that time. If you click on the paper title above, you can get RTF or PDF files of the paper or listen to it via mp3. It’s definitely worth the read or listen.

As another encouragement to you, dear Reader, here is an excerpt from Zich’s paper talking about how God heals the “prevalent weariness of spirit” in the Church.

If we are to be healed from the prevalent weariness of spirit, that has gripped so many of us during these latter days of sore trials, we must submit to the wise ministrations of our great Healer Jesus the Christ. From the rich storehouse of His word He will gladly supply all that we need for our cure. We must submit to rebuke, His pointing out to us the sin of doubt and misbelief in His promises. Why are ye fearful, ye Lutheran Christians? Have I not revealed to you more fully than to others the gospel of salvation? Have I not given you so richly of teachers in the past, enlightened by my Spirit, so that they delivered to you the truths of salvation in brightest clearness? Have not I blessed your labors in this new land of opportunity, so that ye have become a mighty army? Has the arm of the Lord become shortened now, so that He cannot help us any more? Are not the same weapons for the Lord’s warfare in your hands, that won so many battles for your forefathers? Is it not, that if ye lack now, it is because ye have lost your confidence in those weapons and in me, the Lord God? Let us hold still while the Lord wields His scalpel.

Truly, what can we answer? We know from Scripture that difficulties and perplexities such as these that beset us now were not merely the lot of all our brethren at all times, but that they are part and parcel of our calling, the outstanding characteristic of the church, as decreed by its Master. All the men of God from Adam to Jesus Christ bear witness to that. The true church is always ecclesia pressa, fighting under difficulties from within and without—but always fighting. “In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” John 16, 33. We know from the examples in Scripture that so many of our troubles are caused by ourselves. We have not heeded the Lord’s warning cries, we have loved the world, we have gloried in our own strength, we have been too self-confident, we have looked to the outward glory of the church and neglected its inner upbuilding. We have undertaken large ventures because we had plenty of money and the times were good, instead of expecting everything from the Lord and His gospel. We say it to our shame and in contrite humiliation. But again, we know from the Scriptures, that even so, even though we be at fault, the Lord in His great goodness and truth and mercy has turned these very sins of ours into crosses for our spiritual discipline. Thus would He train us to look to Him and to Him only for guidance and help. He would bring us to repentance, so that He might bless us the more. The cure of our depression of spirit, our weariness, hopelessness, in short of our defeatism, can be wrought by the Lord only. But the remedy from the Lord is in our hands.

What is that remedy? It is the Word of God. “For the word of God is quick and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Hebrews 4, 12. It is the “sword of the Spirit,” Eph. 6, 17. We need to look to it that our “feet are shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace,” v. 15. We need to understand more fully what St. Paul meant, when he so confidently asserts: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth.” Rom. 1, 16. In short we need a more thorough appreciation of the gospel.

What is that appreciation? It is a dear and thorough understanding of the gospel, resulting in a lively faith and confidence in this gospel. A hearty perception of the wonderful nature of this revelation of God’s immeasurable love, His immense grace. We need to be filled with that soul-filling wonder and astonishment at the supreme fact revealed in this word of mercy, that stupendous fact beyond all our grasp, even in but a small part, that God could so love this world, so loathsome to Him on account of its sin, that He gave His best and dearest, His only-begotten Son for us, that we might be saved from His wrath. We need a fuller understanding of the fact, that this gospel is the only message of salvation that the world has, that nothing else can save the world. We need to be imbued with a fuller sense of the power of the gospel. By the preaching of this word alone

St. Paul filled all Asia with the knowledge of salvation. It is due to this imperishable gospel that the church of Christ has persisted to this day, in spite of all the efforts of her enemies to subdue it. The power of this gospel is the greatest power on earth today, as it always was, and always shall be. Thrones and principalities, kingdoms and republics have passed away, but this word still stands. Philosophies and all the worldly wisdom of men have arisen, have held proud sway, and have been cast aside like an old garment, but this wisdom of God has not changed one iota, and is just as new, just as up-to-date, just as adapted to the needs of men, just as powerful to kindle faith and win souls for Christ, as when it was proclaimed to Adam and Eve. That is what we need to realize. All the shifting powers of this present-day world, its isms and ologies, its evolutions and religions, its test tubes and microscopes, shall be superseded, become antiquated, and be cast aside, when this gospel shall still be the only saving power for men. The threatening attitude of these human powers, that are standing in the way of the true church and its gospel, can not really obstruct the march of the kingdom of God. We have in our hands in the gospel a power, that neither world, hell, nor the devil can withstand. It is in truth invincible. This gospel has power to heal all our diseases. Preached in truth and purity, it is a weapon of defense and offense against all foes. Let us rely on it solely and let us use it rightly.

The right use of this gospel is to study it, patiently, humbly, prayerfully, persistently. We must allow it to speak not merely to our eyes, in our ears, through our lips, but to our heart, so that our faith in Him who is our Peace may be firmly anchored in that word: He who alone can cure us from all our sins, including defeatism, is the Lord God; the means of that cure is the word of God. This word of God holds before our eyes the exhortations to faith, the comforting promises for faith to lay hold on, the outstanding examples of faith for us to follow. So rich is this word of God in His Bible, that we despair to bring before you even a select number of passages. From cover to cover this written revelation from heaven is filled with these exhortations, promises, examples. Let us content ourselves for our present purpose to cursorily glance at the twelfth chapter of the Hebrews.

The writer of this epistle had cited many outstanding examples of faith from the Old Testament, after he had given his fine definition of faith in v. 1, ch. 11: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. He portrays these faithful of the former times as witnesses to our faith, surrounding us as a cloud. The subject of this whole 12th chapter is the duty of faithfulness to Christ. The things surrounding us are but impeding us in the performance of that duty, as a weight clogging our steps. It is the sin of losing sight of Christ. V. 1.

Therefore we are to look to Jesus, “the author and finisher of our faith.” For as Jesus has begun this faith in us, it is He alone that can so order, govern and give direction to our fight of faith, that it be finished, crowned, with glorious victory. v. 2. Him we are to consider, “lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.” v. 3. Christ’s example of patiently enduring the cross, despising the shame, to be “set down at the right hand of the throne of God,” is to be the inspiring example for us, and His powerful strength is to be our help in reaching the goal of glory.

Our trials and difficulties are many and great. Granted. Yet are they not as heavy or hard as they might be. “Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.” v. 4. Life and limb have not yet been jeopardized in our struggle for the gospel. There has been no real martyrdom. Of our monies for the church we have not given to the extent of hurting our fortunes. We have given, but rarely sacrificed in so giving. We gave of our abundance. We lacked neither food nor clothing through our giving to the church. We labored hard in the vineyard, but we have not risked our lives in the work. We have not counted every thing for dross, so that we might win Christ and for Christ. Indeed we complain much, but without reason. We have forgotten that these straitened circumstances of ours are a chastening from the Lord. v. 5-11. “Ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as children.” v. 5. We have only too often overlooked the fact, that being children of God, we must endure His chastening rod, that this chastening may seem a scourge to us, but yet it is only a proof of His love and of our sonship. In the prosecution of our labors for the Lord we must bear the cross for His sake, as He bore His from the Father for us. It is for our correction. We have indeed deserved it by our remissness in doing His work, and in our over-confidence in ourselves, When money was plentiful and times were what we foolishly called good. But the Lord’s chastening now is not for our despair in His mercy or goodness. It is for “our profit, that we might be partakers of holiness.” Not as an angry judge does the Lord visit us, but as a loving Father. Thus are we humbled in our own conceit, thus are we made dependent on Him alone, thus do we learn to call on Him more earnestly, thus are we drawn to Him more closely.

From all these examples of faith, from all these exhortations to faith, from all these promises for faith, let us be cured from all lack and weakness of faith, and thus from our defeatism. “Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.” V. 12-13. Instead of losing courage or discouraging one another, let us rather take courage to go on fearlessly in the Lord’s work, so that the weary and the feeble and the lame amongst us be not left in that condition, but healed. Is it not written: “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.” Mal. 4, 2.

The effects of this healing from the Lord will appear in our church councils where we deliberate upon the mode of procedure in carrying on the work of the Lord. It will be a guiding light to our feet on the way, a strength to run the prescribed course. Let none fear that such encouragement tends to make us light-headed, reckless and overconfident in our decisions, without sober judgment as to the how and where and how far we are to go on our course to preach the gospel. Looking to the Lord only for help and strength will make us sober, vigilant, willing and strong to do what the Lord has so plainly set before us as our duty. Being cured from fear we shall be all the more faithful to our Lord Jesus Christ and to His kingdom. Let us but act upon the plea of Hosea, ch. 6, 1: “Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.” May the Lord give us grace to believe His gracious promise, as if it were an answer to our prayer, Isaiah 57, 18-19: “I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord; and I will heal him.”

[Source: Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Essay File]

Update – 9/14/09 – Thanks to Issues, Etc. host Pastor Todd Wilken for picking this post as his “Blog of the Week” on Friday, 11 September 2009. Here is an audio link for the ”Blog of the Week” segment.

Need Some Encouragement?

In the life of a shepherd or his congregation or his church body, as much as we try to avoid it, there are times when you get weary with the struggle, times when it seems like you can never win, times when discouragement and despair seem all too tempting because of the constant battles raging all around without and within. There are times when the shepherd wonders if the Word is even getting through to the people, times when a congregation wonders how long it will be able to keep its doors open, times when a church body grows weary struggling with financial problems on the one hand and the ongoing struggle to stave off the destructive cancer of false teaching.

Far too often it’s easy for shepherds or congregations or church bodies to be like the Old Testament prophet Elijah as he hid in the cave after God’s great victory on Mt. Carmel (1 Kings 19:1-18 – For an interesting article on Elijah and encouragement for discouraged pastors, check out this post from Pr. Paul McCain), waiting for the Lord to take his life because he was out of hope.  Far too often the tendrils of discouraging despair grow around our hearts and threaten to choke off the hope we have by faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Far too often, like Elijah, we wonder if there is any reason for hope anymore. We wonder if all is really lost, if we’re bound for failure and if the time has come to resign our selves to defeat.

At times like that, I’m reminded of a quote from St. Augustine of Hippo that one of my Seminary professors shared during an Ascension sermon, “In aeternum Christus regnabit in sanctis suis. Hoc Deus dixit. Hoc Deus promisit. Et si parum est, hoc Deus etiam iuravit.” Roughly translated – In eternity Christ will rule among his saints. This God has said. This God has promised. And if that is too small, this God has also sworn. At times when it seems I am without hope or things seem hopeless for the congregation I serve or the church body of which I am a part, I am reminded that Christ is still ruling and reigning among his holy people and will never forsake his Church. I’m reminded of other God-given, Christ-earned reasons for hope…

• For me personally, through the waters of Holy Baptism, I have been made a child of God through faith in Christ Jesus, and therefore I am a member of the one holy, Christian, and apostolic Church, which Christ has promised to not only preserve, but to rule and to bless. For that reason, I need to be like Dr. Luther and tell Satan, that demon of hopelessness, to go to the hell from which he came, and cling to the truth of Christ crucified.

• For myself and the congregation and the church body, we need to hear again and again and again the good news of Christ Jesus, the real message of hope that gives real hope to people dealing with uncertainty, unemployment, depression, woe, grief, sorrow, guilt and hopelessness.

• We need to appreciate the oft-hidden grace of God in the theology of the cross! Isn’t it amazing that God in his grace has not allowed things to get worse? It always could be, but yet the Lord in his grace preserves his people, his Church. Even in the days of empire persecution, even in the bad old days before the Reformation and the struggles after, even in the most difficult times of controversy and hardship, the Lord hasn’t let it get worse, but has maintained and continues to maintain his hand of blessing, his grace, even though he allows us to bear the cross of hardship and difficulty and woe whether personally or corporately.

• Above all, my/our hope is in the Lord! He’s given us so many reasons for hope. In his incarnation, he gave up heaven to take on our human flesh and live as our Substitute. In his crucifixion, he took on the guilt of all your sins and mine to bring us forgiveness, and then took on the death we deserved. In his resurrection, he conquered death and guaranteed forgiveness and eternal life. In his ascension, he now rules among his saints for all eternity working all things for our good. Of all these reasons, what better reasons are there than these?

So in those times when Satan tempts you or your congregation or your church body to defeatism and despair and discouragement, find real encouragement in Christ, in his grace, in his cross, in his victory for you. It is true what St. Augustine said, In eternity Christ will rule among his saints. This God has said. This God has promised. And if that is too small, this God has also sworn. In Christ, then, we can always have hope.