Vandalism
is a crime of spite and disrespect. We can never approve of such a thrilling
misdeed. Nothing but a wicked form of titillating satisfaction may be gained by
the vandal thereby. It calls for a strict sentence of menial community service,
if only the delinquent could be found out. But is not the question that was
spray-painted on the front doors of this church exactly a question God himself
might ask? ‘The motivation for this’ is of little account. The ‘refurbishment’
that should follow the vandal’s act is what counts: that which could make this
church more ‘about Jesus’ and as Luther-like as its heroic name.
How
far has this Lutheran church fallen from the cross? A comparison between what
goes on there and the sermons of Luther shows that it is far below the gospel
standard that Luther set. Mighty Fortress
Lutheran should heed even the vandal’s call if it has fallen from that
standard by even one inch. It must get back up on the cross where the death of
Christ is found, from which alone must flow any spiritual benefit sinful man
can ever hope to obtain.
Substandard
church services go hand in glove with unholy ties. This Mighty Fortress Lutheran is part of the Red Deer Ministerial Association. So are the
local Catholic churches. And so, by virtue of this Ministerial being a
spiritual partnership, these Lutherans and Catholics are content to forward the
illusion that the gospel Luther preached must be the same as the Pope’s.
Mr.
Ratzinger (Pope Benedict) has lately reaffirmed the old Popish opinion that
Protestant churches are not true churches on account of their lack of certain
elements like the Catholic ‘Eucharistic Mystery.’ How did Luther interpret such
an opinion? The Pope’s declaration means that “the Pope goes to work…and blots
you out of the book of life, and casts you four thousand miles on the other
side of hell, and you are now a rotten member cut off from holy Christendom”
(Luther, Sermons, 3.1, p. 94.) In other words, the Pope maintains that one
cannot be saved by Christ so long as one is outside the Roman Catholic Church.
Concerning the Pope’s ‘Eucharistic Mystery,’ the supposed sacrifice of Christ
in the Mass, Luther thundered, “This is the most monstrous abomination that ever
arose on earth” (Sermons, 3.2, p. 48.) Why? Because the Bible says that
salvation is by the historic death of Christ upon the cross, not by some magical concept of his being
re-crucified.
So the truth is, the Pope is still at odds with Luther
and the gospel, and yet local Lutheran and Catholic ministers rub shoulders as
if they’re in spiritual unity. How can a Lutheran pastor honestly exclaim with
Luther that ‘A Mighty Fortress is our God’ if he steps outside the fortress to
fraternize with priests who “crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh”?
(Hebrews 6.6.) If this Lutheran pastor were worthy of being under Luther’s
banner, he would fearlessly shout with Luther, “Hearken, then, ye deceivers of
the world and blind leaders of the blind; ye Pope, ye bishops, priests, monks,
learned and idle talkers; who teach the purification of sins by human
achievements, and that satisfaction for sins may be made by men…Listen to the
teaching here: Purification of sins is not effected by human effort, but solely
in Christ and through himself. Christ is communicated to us, not through any
work of ours, but through faith alone” (Sermons, 3.2, pp. 180, 181.) Faith
means a believing trust or confidence in Jesus to save your soul by his merits. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment