Since we have the peace that flows from God’s love in Christ, we desire peace with others and for others.

Aaron H. Goetzinger

The scene was horrific, but I can only try to imagine it since I heard about it secondhand. What I struggle to understand is the agony parents would feel when they saw their son’s blood watering the ground. Would any parent ever dream it? What started as a sibling rivalry ended in death and, more than that, murder. Cain envied Abel, and that envy grew into anger which then grew into hatred. Conflict was crouching at Cain’s door. It desired Cain, and he did not resist.

It’s difficult for many of us to see ourselves in this account. If we identify with either of the two brothers, we most likely identify with Abel. He was the good guy. He happily gave an offering to God, and God accepted it. We like to see ourselves in that kind of positive light. But the lesson is that after the fall into sin, when people live together, conflict results.

Though I have not murdered my brother, the lesson of Genesis chapter 4 has proven itself to be true right up to today. The lesson applies to all of us. We all innately desire to live in community with one another, yet the problem is that our communities are made up of sinful people. Conflict crouches at each one of our doors.

“Fine!” a wife shouts. “Fine!” a husband screams as he slams the door behind himself.

A father retorts, “You need to do your job and give my daughter more playing time!”—all while wagging his finger in the coach’s face.

“IF YOU’RE ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE, YOU’RE THE PROBLEM!” With this line the woman puts the icing on her vitriolic Facebook post and sends it.

We are heirs of the same problems that have plagued human culture and community since the days of Adam and Eve and Cain and Abel. Even in a group of like-minded individuals, strife and conflict will rise. This is precisely why the apostle Paul needed to give this reminder to Christians: “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18).

Peace does not take sides

Conflict is a question of sides. Are you a millennial or not? Did you vote for President Trump or not? Are you on the side of right, or are you on the side of wrong? Are you us or are you them? However, contrasted against such a binary view of life, Paul calls on us to live at peace. He does not take sides. Rather, peace looks for common ground and defuses conflict.

Paul takes a wide sweeping view of peace because the peace that Christians have been granted takes no sides. When Paul opened his letter to the Romans, he said “To all in Rome who are loved by God . . . Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 1:7). At the end of Romans, he gave this blessing, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him” (Romans 15:13). Then he closed by saying, “The peace of God be with you all. Amen.” (Romans 15:33).

Christians in Rome all had the peace that flows from God’s love in Christ. Our entire relationship with God has changed. A relationship that was once marked by animosity and hostility is now marked by a declaration of peace (Romans 5:1). Our minds, since they are no longer controlled by sin and death, are filled with life and peace (Romans 8:6). Just as the peace of God takes no sides, it also ushers in wide sweeping change in each of us. We desire peace with others, even in difficult relationships.

Peace is not weakness

Some may wonder if we become pushovers or if there is a certain weakness in peace making. The cynic may snarl, “Well, if you want peace, prepare for war”—as if we become losers when we seek to keep the peace. This is a very worldly view of peace and conflict.

When the disciples were worried about Jesus’ future, he assured them, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:27). Similarly, Jesus assured them that though they may experience strife and trouble the peace that he provides between sinners and the Father transcends and overcomes this world (John 16:33).

Jesus says these things because the peace we enjoy with God can never be taken from us. The peace we have with God is sealed in his blood. Though what your spouse says or does may hurt you deeply, those words cannot impact the peace you have with God. Though someone from a different generation annoys you, they cannot influence the everlasting peace Jesus gives to you. Though you disagree with someone from the opposite side of the aisle, their political statements do not change your standing with God.

Paul understands fully the kind of world in which we live. Christians live in a tense relationship with the world. In Romans chapter 3, Paul says one piece of evidence of sin in the lives of sinners is their lack of understanding of real peace. Later in chapter 12,

Paul acknowledges that Christians will be faced with persecution and evil. This is why he says in verse 18 that we are to live in peace “if it is possible.”

At the same time Paul is not letting us off the hook. He says, “As far as it depends on you.” Though we live in an evil world that fails to understand real peace we are to bless persecutors and not repay evil with evil. We are to live peaceful lives and seek to negotiate peace as much as we are able. Part of that task means we are to share the peace we have because of our Savior with those still trapped in a world of hostility and conflict.

As Christians we are in this world, but we are not of this world. We are salt. We are different from the world. We have peace within. This eternal peace is carried with us in our everyday lives. When Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matthew 5:9), he is encouraging us to “live at peace with everyone.” We are always Christians and peacemakers before we are defined by our own generation, politics, or nationality.

We have the peace that changes our relationship with our God. We have the peace that now fills us and changes us. We have the peace that helps us to see other people less as a threat and more as those who need peace. We have the peace that causes us to understand that the peace of God is not one of sides, but is for all people.

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Aaron Goetzinger is pastor at Redemption, Watertown, New York.

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This is the final article in a 12-part series about Christian love in action and how we can be salt in this world.

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Author: Aaron H. Goetzinger
Volume 105, Number 6
Issue: June 2018

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us

 

When we are hurt, we want to hurt whoever hurt us. God has a different way for his people.

Bruce A. McKenney

It was the ultimate example of not repaying evil with evil.

A lifelong faithful Christian was nearing death, dying of cancer at home under the care of hospice. No matter what we read from the Scriptures or what hymns we sang, he just seemed so restless and didn’t want to listen. He wouldn’t even fold his hands to pray. His wife and I were perplexed at how troubled he seemed.

Finally, when I had a few moments of privacy with him, I asked, “What in all the world is bothering you that makes you so restless?”

Then it came out. Early in their marriage he had committed an act of infidelity and he had never told his wife. And now, as he faced death, his past sin was haunting him as well as the fear of going to hell. I encouraged him to tell his wife and seek her forgiveness.

That moment finally came. Tearfully he confessed to his wife what he had done. He then told her how sorry he was. For him, it was the ultimate act of betrayal, and I didn’t know how she was going to react. I could see her clenching her jaws as he spoke. I thought that, surely, she would start yelling at him or cursing the day she had met him. Or maybe she would just keep silent, making him squirm even more in his guilt and fear.

But she didn’t do either. Although his past act hurt her deeply, she stood up, leaned over, and kissed him, saying, “I forgive you, honey, and Jesus forgives you too!”

The tears came flooding from his eyes. You could almost see the weight of that guilt and shame fall off his shoulders.

Do not take revenge

Although not every wrong committed against us will be as serious as the act of unfaithfulness in marriage, wrongs do hurt, and they can come from friend or foe, from believer and unbeliever alike. When others hurt us, there is a natural tendency to want to get even. The world and our sinful hearts look upon revenge as something sweet. But that is not true, and that is not what our Savior wants from us. We have been called to be salt of the earth and light in the world.

One way we can do this is by not repaying evil with evil, but by repaying it with good. Paul explains it this way “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. . . . Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord. On the contrary: ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head’ ” (Romans 12:17,19,20).

First of all, Paul reminds us that we are to love others because we have been loved by God. And how did God ultimately show his love for us? Rather than taking out his anger, his revenge, on us for all the wrongs we have done against him and others, he took it out on his own Son! We were his enemies, and yet he was willing to send his Son to die and take the punishment for us.

Such amazing love from God gives us the reason and the strength not to repay evil with evil. No better example of this can be given than that of our Savior himself. Think of how he responded to those who were beating and crucifying him! If someone ever had justifiable reason to strike back, it was Jesus, the Son of God. But what did he do? He prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). That is how we want to be salt and light too. “Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (Colossians 3:13).

Another reason for avoiding revenge is because it is not our place to mete out justice. It is God’s. That is what Paul was getting at when he wrote, “Leave room for God’s wrath.” When we take matters into our own hands by trying to make others pay for what they have done to us, we carry a burden we don’t need to carry and have no right to carry. As God’s people, we are to live at peace with others, always keeping in mind that we are all in the hands of the Lord who will take care of all things and bring everything into line with his justice in his own time and in his own way.

Repay evil with love

Living at peace with our loved ones is challenging enough. Living at peace with our enemies is even more difficult. So, if we are not to repay evil with evil, what are we to do? Repay it with kindness. When our enemy hungers, we feed him. If he thirsts, we quench it. In so doing, Paul says, we will heap coals of fire on their heads.

There are a number of ways to understand these words. Have you ever been touched by a hot burning coal? It can leave a red burn mark. Maybe Paul’s point is that when we repay evil with kindness the person reacts with burning anger: “I meant to hurt you. How dare you try to be nice to me.” Such hard-hearted reaction to kindness can be part of God’s judgment on our enemies. Such reactions make plain to all, especially to God, who indeed is in the wrong.

Or, when we repay evil with kindness that person’s face might blush in shame, possibly leading them to repentance! Isn’t that what happens to us when we sin against God for the umpteenth time, and yet his forgiveness is always there? We sing about that in a Lenten hymn, “Thus might I hide my blushing face while his dear cross appears, dissolve my heart in thankfulness and melt my eyes to tears” (Christian Worship 129:4). Isn’t that what we want most for those who hurt us, especially our enemies? Jesus said that this is the ultimate goal in doing good. “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). How much greater our effectiveness as salt when we flavor life with forgiveness and love, and how much greater our light shines in repaying evil with good!

That is what happened that day on my member’s deathbed. He had sinned against his wife. He had hurt her deeply. But she didn’t strike back. She didn’t take revenge. She didn’t repay evil with evil. Rather she forgave. That forgiveness dissolved his heart in thankfulness and melted his eyes to tears. Mine too.

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Bruce McKenney is pastor at St. Paul, Lake Mills, Wisconsin.

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This is the tenth article in a 12-part series about Christian love in action and how we can be salt in this world.

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Author: Bruce A. McKenney
Volume 105, Number 4
Issue: April 2018

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us

 

Peace! The last word of the Benediction sends us out into the world with the privilege of sharing his peace.

Glenn L. Schwanke

The service is almost over. In a moment, your pastor will raise his hands for the Benediction. The words he will speak are the same as those the Lord first instructed the high priest Aaron and his sons to use as a blessing for the Israelites some 3,500 years ago! Well not exactly. Back then, those words were spoken in Hebrew, but they carry just as much meaning and power when we hear them in English today.

“The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord look on you with favor and + give you peace” (Christian Worship p. 37).

Think of it! We’re sent out those church doors and back into our everyday lives with the threefold blessing of the triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!

A powerful reminder

But maybe we haven’t thought much about the Benediction lately. Maybe, because we’ve heard these words so many times over the years, we’ve allowed them to become little more than the obligatory “Amen” that signals the end of our worship. And if the service is running a smidgeon long—because of the pastor’s seven-part sermon—maybe we even sneak a peek at our watch, as we worry, “I hope I can still make the all-you-can-eat Sunday brunch buffet at Bubba’s, because it only goes ‘til 1 p.m.”

Well, maybe Bubba’s will keep the buffet open a little late for us. And if our pastor actually did preach a seven-part sermon, I pray every word was anchored firmly in God’s Word and seasoned liberally with God’s grace. Because then our pastor’s message—as well as the Scripture readings for the day, the prayers, the hymns, the choral anthems, and the liturgical responses—have all prepared us for this mountain-top moment—the Aaronic Benediction!

That Benediction is so much more than an “Amen” that punctuates our worship. It’s so much more than having the Lord, like a kindly grandpa, wave farewell from the porch of heaven as we wave back, jump in our car, and head home. Our God explained exactly what was important about this blessing: “So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them” (Numbers 6:27 English Standard Version [ESV]).

What? The Benediction is a powerful reminder of the new names we first received when, through water and the Word, God’s Spirit washed away the filth of our sin and instead gave us pure, clean clothes as we “put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27 ESV). Then “in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13 ESV). Then we were declared “fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God” (Ephesians 2:19 ESV). Through Baptism, our Lord adopted us as his own.

The Benediction reminds us of that miracle of grace. It reassures us that we leave God’s house with the promise our Lord once shared through his prophet Isaiah. “But now thus says the LORD, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine’ ” (Isaiah 43:1 ESV). We don’t need to face Monday alone, empty, and afraid. We don’t need to be consumed with worry over whether the next mass shooting will be in our town, or God forbid, even our church. For with the Benediction, our Lord has served notice to the devil himself: “This one is mine! Marked with the blood of Christ. Hands off!”

This is the lasting comfort that is ours, when our pastor raises his hands for the Benediction and, once again, our Lord puts his name on us!

A solemn privilege

But it’s not just for our comfort, is it? The Benediction also brings with it a solemn privilege. After all, we’re carrying God’s name out into the world. But will we act like it? Will we be the “salt” that Jesus called us to be in his Sermon on the Mount? (Matthew 5:13)

To help us remember the name we bear and the salting we’ve received, in some of our worship services, just before the pastor raises his hands in blessing, he speaks the following words: “Brothers and sisters, go in peace.” That sentence is nothing but the sweetest gospel. For you and I have true, lasting peace. It is the peace that passes all understanding, the peace that no one in this world can earn and no amount of money can buy. It’s peace with God!

Then, “serve the LORD with gladness.” Those words from Psalm 100 remind us why our Lord has given us a pulse for yet another day in this world. We do not live for ourselves, but for the one who bought and paid for us (cf. Romans 12:1; Romans 14:8).

But wait a minute! Didn’t we skip something? “Live in harmony with one another.” That’s the niggling sentence that sometimes catches us and trips us up. Did you know that’s a Bible verse too? It’s Romans 12:16. It was Paul who gave us this inspired command.

But what exactly does it mean? Is “harmony” to be understood the way our society

currently defines it? “Your spiritual truth works for you. My spiritual truth works for me. I’ll accept your truth, but you’ll also need to accept mine, because there is no absolute truth.” That can hardly be what our Lord had in mind, because he also moved Paul to write, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5 ESV).

“Live in harmony with one another.” Does that mean if your sister or brother in the faith is walking down a dangerous path of sin, that you won’t get involved? That you’ll let sleeping dogs lie? If that’s what these words mean, then why did Jesus bother to give us the guidance of Matthew chapter 18?

Perhaps if we take a closer look at the rest of this verse, we’ll understand the words “live in harmony” better. Paul continues, “Do not be arrogant, but associate with the humble. Do not think too highly of yourselves” (Romans 12:16 Evangelical Heritage Version).

Now do we get it? By grace, we’re all members of God’s family, but the Lord definitely doesn’t want us to act like squabbling siblings who can’t stand one another. He doesn’t want cliques in the church. He doesn’t want us to look down our aquiline noses at fellow Christians who don’t participate as much as we do or give as much as we do. Such snobbery is little more than stealth self-righteousness. It will undercut our witness. It will dilute our saltiness.

But when we “live in harmony with one another,” then we’re carrying God’s name in a way that brings him glory. And that is what it means to be salt.

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Glenn Schwanke, pastor at Peace, Houghton, Michigan, serves as campus pastor at Michigan Technological University.

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This is the eighth article in a 12-part series about Christian love in action and how we can be salt in this world.

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Author: Glenn L. Schwanke
Volume 105, Number 2
Issue: February 2018

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us

 

I must find strength in God’s promises to carry out his words to bless—to bless, even those who persecute.

Mark W. Henrich

I looked out at the congregation, and I hesitated. The text, short though it was, had been difficult for me. Too many hours during the week had been spent staring at these words: “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse” (Romans 12:14). The thought kept coming, Persecution? What do I really know about persecution?

Persecution isn’t just when bad things happen—someone cuts you off on the road, your supervisor has a bad day and takes it out on you, or even the heartaches that you have living in a world of sin. There is a difference between problems and persecution. Persecution is hostility or ill treatment designed, intended, targeted to injure, grieve, or afflict. Persecution is normally defined as something that happens because of race, ethnicity, political persuasion, or religious beliefs.

Modern-day persecution

I may have difficult times in my life journey, but persecution has been—can it be?—absent. Yet I know persecution has not been absent in the lives of my spiritual brothers and sisters.

Walter—How can I not think of Walter? He grew up in an orphanage; served in World War II; and received a scholarship, sight unseen, to play ball at a major university. He arrived on campus, and the scholarship was taken away.

“Why, Walter?”

“They didn’t know the color of my skin. What could I do? I had to go south to find a school.”

Walter graduated, married, got a good job, and moved to a new neighborhood.

I commented on what a nice street it was. “Oh, Pastor, it wasn’t always so quiet. We were the first people of color on this street. I can’t tell you what things happened to me, my wife, and my children. And it kept happening. Pastor, you wouldn’t know.”

No, I wouldn’t. Persecution.

Michelle—Michelle was 16 when the phone call came. “Come quickly.”

The family was in tears because the announcement had come from the father: He had arranged for Michelle to be married in his home country. The plane ticket was in hand to leave that same week.

Along with the arranged marriage came the further pronouncement. Michelle must give up Christianity and convert. If not? From her father’s lips came the words, “I never want to see you again. You will not see my wife and the other younger children. Decide now. Obey me. Agree to marriage and your new religion or never be in my life again.”

An ultimatum I’ve never been given. Persecution.

Avery—the 20-something-year-old—came to the church office to talk. So much had already happened in his life. In order to find a better life, he left his home country and traveled to South Africa, then to South America, and finally to Toronto. Here he came to know Jesus and became a Christian. How wonderful to share the joy of being brothers in Christ!

I asked Avery when he thought he would ever get home to visit family and friends. His words shook me. “Oh, I can never go home. Because I am now a Christian, my family has rejected me, and in the area I am from, I will be killed for following Jesus. And my community here now shuns me.”

Rejected by family, not allowed home? Not me. Persecution.

Jesus, persecution, and Paul

I don’t know much about persecution. But the Bible speaks often and openly about it. The word is used more than 50 times. Jesus himself talked about the reality of persecution and how his disciples are to respond. Recall his challenging words from the Sermon on the Mount? “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you. . . . Rejoice and be glad.” (Matthew 5:10-12). “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also” (John 15:20).

And so it happened. The apostles were arrested because they spoke about new life in Jesus (Acts chapter 5). Stephen was martyred for his faith. (Acts chapter 7) Then we read, “On that day a great persecution broke out against the church” (Acts 8:1). Paul suffered persecution. He was flogged, stoned, threatened by his own countrymen, and imprisoned (2 Corinthians 11:23-28).

What does Paul write about persecution? “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.” How is this possible? Bless, that is, to think well of or to wish God’s blessings on those who cause pain? Our hearts say no. Our hearts say to get even, to get revenge, to let others feel the pain they themselves have inflicted.

But Paul saw Jesus—the one who taught about persecution and the one who was persecuted. “When they hurled insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; ‘by his wounds you have been healed’ ” (1 Peter 2:23,24). Paul saw the cross and forgiveness. He was healed. Paul could face whatever came his way. He would live for Jesus as Jesus had lived, died, and rose for him.

Soul searching

To the congregation in front of me that Sunday, I paused, prayed, and spoke more quietly than normal, “Persecution . . .”

I must soul search. I haven’t seen persecution in my life. Not really. Is this because I am a spiritual wallflower and am better at blending in than speaking about my Lord? Or perhaps God has given me grace to live in a time and place where persecution has not been in my life story. Thank you, Jesus!

I must soul search. Have I been the persecutor, the one who has made life difficult for others? Am I quick to put down, in words or actions, those with whom I do not agree? God, have mercy on me a sinner.

I must soul search. Have I been blind to the persecution, in all its forms, that goes on all around me? Have I stepped in? Have I stepped up? Have I spoken for those who are put down? Have I helped?

I must find strength in God’s promises to carry out his words to bless—to bless, even those who persecute.

Walter did. “Pastor, I’ve seen a lot of ignorance in my life, but I’ve also seen how God worked things out in my life for good. And I know this. Jesus has never let me down.”

Michelle received this strength. In the midst of tears in the room that night came her words, “I choose Jesus.”

Avery has been renewed. He will never go home. His community had ostracized him. “But, Pastor, it’s okay. I know Jesus, and I have never known such joy.”

And I am humbled—and strengthened. This is a hard verse. It is a beautiful verse. It is given to each of us.

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Mark Henrich is pastor at Hope, Toronto, Canada.

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This is the sixth article in a 12-part series about Christian love in action and how we can the salt in this world.

 

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Author: Mark W. Henrich
Volume 104, Number 12
Issue: December 2017

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us

 

After making several communion calls, a pastor is encouraged by his members’ faith, hope, and patience.

Glenn L. Schwanke

The door is partially open, so I step into the room at the Omega House. There sits one of our shut-ins, picking with a fork at some late breakfast. I pause and call out, “Diane, it’s Pastor!” It takes a second or two for her to register who I am, but then her eyes sparkle and a warm smile covers her face.

Be joyful in hope

“May I visit with you and share the Lord’s Supper with you?” I ask.

“Of course!” she responds.

“Diane,” I continue, “my heart breaks over what you and your family have gone through in the past few weeks. First, your husband dies. And then less than a week after his funeral, your house burns down! Now here you are in extended care at the Omega House. How are you holding up?”

Still smiling, she responds, “Jesus has always taken care of me. Every day, no matter what. I know he will take care of me now too.”

I struggle to hold back a tear at such simple, childlike trust. After a moment, I respond, “I want to reassure you that Jesus has made a promise to you, guaranteed in blood. He will be with you always.”

“Oh, I know he is! He talks to me through his Word, and I talk to him—all the time. Every day!”

Another tear fights at the corner of my eye. Then I open my communion kit and prepare the Lord’s Supper. We celebrate the Supper using the words Diane has heard countless times before. However, age strips away the inhibitions of her youth, so Diane adds commentary along the way. But I don’t mind.

“Take eat, this is my body.” “I know it is! I know he loves me.”

“Take drink, this is my blood.” “Oh, he died on the cross for me!”

“For the forgiveness of all your sins.” “I know he paid for my sins. He loves me! He has always been with me. He always will.”

After the Supper is finished, we visit a bit more. Then I pack up my communion kit and leave Diane. I leave a richer man, for I have been with a child of God who is living what the apostle Paul encouraged: “Be joyful in hope.”

Endure trials patiently

It’s Sunday evening, and I’ve been puttering in the shop. I glance at the clock and notice it’s almost 7 p.m. It’s time to make a communion call. As I pass through my home office, I grab my communion kit, agenda, and Bible. But I don’t go out to the garage and jump into the car. Instead, I walk to the living room and sit down in one of the recliners. The communicant, my wife, Teresa, is already seated in the other recliner. She’s been patiently waiting for me.

We begin with the “short sermon” I promise all the sick and shut-ins I visit. It’s far less structured than the message I shared that same morning in church. With my wife, it’s even more so. Our devotion is more like a dialogue based on Scripture, as we discuss God’s plan for our lives and the reason he allows affliction to come into our lives.

As our devotion continues, it’s nigh onto impossible for me to rigidly control my emotions. Tears start to trickle down my cheeks, while tears stream down my wife’s. But Jesus’ words help dry those tears. “In my Father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to be with me, so that you may also be where I am” (John 14:2,3). We know heaven waits. Our mansions have already been bought and paid for in full.

But what about the road ahead on this side of the grave? How many U-turns will it hold? How much longer will we be pressed down by the pain? Again, our Savior’s gentle whispers help dry the tears.

“And surely I am with you always until the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23:4).

“But God is faithful. He will not allow you to be tested beyond your ability, but when he tests you, he will also bring about the outcome that you are able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Then I add, “Jesus knows all about what’s going on in our lives. The cancer, the treatments, the pain, the setbacks. And he knows all about our weaknesses, our fears, our worries, all our sins. That’s why he came, lived, and died. And that’s why he has made us another promise, guaranteed in his blood. “If you ask me for anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:14).

“I know,” my wife responds. “I am praying all the time. Every day.”

Then it’s time for the Supper, a final prayer, and the benediction. I get up from my chair a humbler man, because I’ve been with a child of God who is living what the apostle Paul encouraged: “Endure trials patiently.”

Persist in prayer

“I talk to him—all the time. Every day!”

“I am praying all the time. Every day.”

It strikes me that both my shut-in and my wife have taken Paul’s admonition to heart: “Persist in prayer.” Sometimes—first thing in the morning or late at night—our prayers may stretch to an hour or more, as we petition our Father on behalf of friends, neighbors, family, coworkers, and classmates. At other times, our prayers last longer because we’re wrestling with our Father during a personal crisis—whether it be work, health, family, or faith. Then there are times when our prayers are little more than a sentence or two or even nothing but a sigh or a groan (Romans 8:26).

Concerning our prayer life, Dr. Martin Luther once wrote, “A Christian is always praying, whether he is sleeping or waking; for his heart is always praying, and even a little sigh is a great and mighty prayer. For so God says: ‘For the sighing of the needy now will I arise, saith the Lord’ (Psalm 12:5)” (What Luther Says, Vol. 2, #1087).

We keep praying to our “Abba, Father,” trusting that he answers every prayer in just the right way and at just the right time. We keep praying because we know prayer is a healthy exercise for our Christian faith.

And a healthy, active faith? That will be salt for those around us, just like my shut-in’s and my wife’s faith have been for me.

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Glenn Schwanke, pastor at Peace, Houghton, Michigan, serves as campus pastor at Michigan Technological University.

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At the author’s request, all Bible verses are from the English Heritage Version.

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This is the fourth article in a 12-part series about Christian love in action and how we can be salt in this world.

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Author: Glenn L. Schwanke
Volume 104, Number 9
Issue: September 2017

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us

 

Acts of love and devotion can create opportunities for us to witness about the one who gives us strength—Jesus.

Steven J. Pagels

Ann wasn’t just a member of my congregation. She was a woman I had come to deeply respect and admire. She had grown up in a loving Christian home, but that didn’t prevent her from experiencing some significant setbacks in her life. When she was just a child, her mother suffered a stroke, and from that day on Ann became the matriarch of the family. To make a difficult situation even more so, her father died suddenly and unexpectedly when she was in high school.

Instead of complaining about her lot in life, Ann went into the workforce after graduation. She poured herself into everything she did, and in time her hard work was rewarded. Ann eventually became a business executive, and she enjoyed the perks that went along with the job.

Being devoted in love

But no matter how successful Ann became, she never forgot where she came from, and she never forgot her family.

When her mother could no longer live on her own, Ann brought her to live with her in her own home. That arrangement lasted for several years until it became necessary to find a place where she could receive around-the-clock care. Even though Ann was forced to relinquish her role as her mother’s caretaker, she remained a devoted daughter and visited the nursing home after work almost every night.

You don’t have to be a Christian to do what Ann did. Lots of people, including lots of people who don’t believe in Jesus, take care of their aging parents. They will say, “You do it for family.” But that’s not why Ann did what she did. As much as Ann loved her mother, she loved her Savior even more. And it gave her great comfort to know that Jesus loved her more than anything.

A few years later Ann’s mother passed away, and in a perfect world that would have finally given Ann more time for herself and her own life. But we do not live in a perfect world, and it wasn’t long before Ann’s husband took the place of her mother. His decline was a long and slow process, but even as he grew weaker Ann’s resolve grew stronger. She remained devoted to her husband in sickness and in health until the Lord called him home.

Ann never asked me the question, so I will ask it for her. Why? Why is life so full of heartache and headaches? Why didn’t God give Ann a break after her mother died? Maybe you ask similar questions. Why would God allow me to suffer or expect me to give up so much to help another person who is suffering? Why does God seem to be asking me not just to go the extra mile but to run a full-length marathon?

The Lord may not always give us the answers we are looking for, but he does give us promises. He promises he will never leave us or forsake us. He promises he will make every situation in our lives work out for our eternal good. He promises that the challenges we face will stretch us, and, when we turn to his Word, he will strengthen our faith.

In addition to all of God’s promises, the obstacles in our lives also present us with opportunities to share our faith. In fact, some of the most difficult situations give us some of the best opportunities to be salt in the world.

Being salt in the world

A story like Ann’s can lead us down two very different paths. We can be inspired to follow her example, or we can become depressed because we know we will never be able to follow her example. If you are leaning toward the latter, you need to know something about Ann. As much as she loved her family and as much as she was devoted to others, Ann wasn’t perfect. There were times when she became frustrated. There were days when she was tempted to give up. Instead of being some kind of superwoman, Ann was a sinful human being who sought refuge in the loving arms of her Savior.

Jesus gives rest to weary souls. Jesus assures sinners burdened by guilt that they are forgiven. Jesus gives us the peace we could never go out and get on our own. And by his perfect life our Lord also gives us a perfect example to follow. No one was more devoted to others than Jesus. Nobody ever put the needs of others before their own like Jesus. And at no time was that selfless love on greater display than on Good Friday.

The Lord of heaven and earth had been sentenced to death. Even though he was innocent, even though he could have called down angels to rescue him at any moment, Jesus willingly went the way of the cross. And even though he was suffering in ways that we can’t even imagine, he remained focused on the needs of others. He asked his Father to forgive his enemies. He assured a dying criminal that they would be reunited in heaven. He wanted to make sure that his mother would be taken care of after he was gone.

In Jesus’ sinless mind, the pain and persecution he endured were never reasons to withdraw from the world. Instead they created opportunities for him to reach out. It is a radically different and liberating way to look at life. The daily challenges we face are more than problems that need to be solved. Our struggles may lead to conversations, and those conversations may give us opportunities to witness, to be salt in the world.

Think about Ann’s struggles but now look at them the way Jesus did. Imagine all the people Ann encountered every week—her family, friends, coworkers, even the staff at the nursing home. They knew how much was on her plate. They could see how she was holding up. And if anyone ever asked Ann how she was doing, if anyone asked her how she did it, she could tell them. She could tell them about the source of her strength—Jesus.

When you look down at your own plate, when you consider the sacrifices God is asking you to make in your life, when you see the faces of all the people the Lord has called you to love and serve, you can ask the question. In fact, as a follower of Jesus who wants to follow his example, you should ask the question. Why? Why has God brought this situation into my life? What is Jesus telling me? What doors is the Holy Spirit opening for me? How can my acts of love and devotion create opportunities for me to witness, to be salt in the world?

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Steven Pagels is pastor at St. Matthew’s, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.

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This is the second article in a 12 part series about Christian love in action and how we can be salt in this world.

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Author: Steven J. Pagels
Volume 104, Number 7
Issue: July 2017

Copyrighted by WELS Forward in Christ © 2021
Forward in Christ grants permission for any original article (not a reprint) to be printed for use in a WELS church, school, or organization, provided that it is distributed free and indicate Forward in Christ as the source. Images may not be reproduced except in the context of its article. Contact us