If you haven't heard, the pope has come for a visit. 

The Lutheran Church has, from the start, had a few things to say about the pope, but what does the pope say about himself? What is the Romanist teaching on who the pope is? 

Here is a list of the top 6 most surprising things that Roman Catholic Church teaches about the pope. 

​#6: The pope has primacy over the entire world.

The pope is the boss, not only of the church, but also of the world. Here it is from the Council of Florence (1439): 

"We also define that the holy apostolic see and the Roman pontiff holds the primacy over the whole world and the Roman pontiff is the successor of blessed Peter prince of the apostles, and that he is the true vicar of Christ, the head of the whole church and the father and teacher of all Christians, and to him was committed in blessed Peter the full power of tending, ruling and governing the whole church, as is contained also in the acts of ecumenical councils and in the sacred canons."

This paragraph defines the universal claims of the pope. We also see in it the claim of the Roman Catholic Church that the pope is the successor of Peter and the vicar of Christ. 

The claim to primacy in both the church and the state is an ancient claim of the popes. In Unam Sanctam (1302) argues that the pope possess "both swords" this way:

"We are informed by the texts of the gospels that in this Church and in its power are two swords; namely, the spiritual and the temporal. For when the Apostles say: 'Behold, here are two swords' [Lk 22:38] that is to say, in the Church, since the Apostles were speaking, the Lord did not reply that there were too many, but sufficient."

We might find the Biblical support for this assertion a bit wanting.  

#5: The pope is the pillar of faith and the foundation of the Church.

Here's an excerpt from Vatican I (2:2, 1870):

"For no one can be in doubt, indeed it was known in every age that the holy and most blessed Peter, prince and head of the apostles, the pillar of faith and the foundation of the Catholic Church, received the keys of the kingdom from our lord Jesus Christ, the savior and redeemer of the human race, and that to this day and for ever he lives and presides and exercises judgment in his successors the bishops of the Holy Roman See, which he founded and consecrated with his blood." 

In the paragraph preceding this excerpt, the pope serves the "continual salvation and permanent benefit" of the Church. When the Roman Catholic Church talks about the church being built on the rock, that rock is understood to be the pope.

#4: The unity of the Church is found in the pope.

Who knew. Here's another quotation from Vatican I (3:3-4, 1870): 

"In this way, by unity with the Roman Pontiff in communion and in profession of the same faith, the Church of Christ becomes one flock under one Supreme Shepherd. This is the teaching of the Catholic truth, and no one can depart from it without endangering his faith and salvation."

The Roman Catholic Church not only teaches that the church finds her unity in the pope, but it also makes the confession of this truth a matter of salvation. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (Q 882, 1995) teaches this same thing, quoting Vatican II: 

"The Pope, Bishop of Rome and Peter's successor, 'is the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful.'"

#3: The pope is the head of the church. 

Vatican I, quoting the Council of Florence: 

"...the Apostolic See and the Roman Pontiff hold a world-wide primacy, and that the Roman Pontiff is the successor of blessed Peter, the prince of the apostles, true vicar of Christ, head of the whole Church and father and teacher of all Christian people." 

The Scriptures teach that Christ is the head of the church (see Ephesians 1:22 and Colossians 1:18), but the pope claims to be the "vicar" of Christ, to stand in the place of Christ on the earth. This leads to some particularly difficult teachings, for example, this excerpt from Unam Sanctam (1302): 

"Therefore, of the one and only Church there is one body and one head, not two heads like a monster; that is, Christ and the Vicar of Christ, Peter, and the successor of Peter."

Amazing. The "one head" of the Church is (1) Christ, and (2) the Vicar of Christ, Peter, and (3) the successor of Peter. The only way to make this math make sense is to make the pope into Christ. 

#2: The pope teaches infallibly. 

This, again, is made dogma in Vatican I (4:9, 1870): 

"Therefore, faithfully adhering to the tradition received from the beginning of the Christian faith, to the glory of God our savior, for the exaltation of the Catholic religion and for the salvation of the Christian people, with the approval of the Sacred Council, we teach and define as a divinely revealed dogma that when the Roman Pontiff speaks ex cathedra, that is, when, in the exercise of his office as shepherd and teacher of all Christians, in virtue of his supreme apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine concerning faith or morals to be held by the whole Church, he possesses, by the divine Documents Related to Papal Supremacy  assistance promised to him in blessed Peter, that infallibility which the divine Redeemer willed his Church to enjoy in defining doctrine concerning faith or morals. Therefore, such definitions of the Roman Pontiff are of themselves, and not by the consent of the Church, irreformable. So then, should anyone, which God forbid, have the temerity to reject this definition of ours: let him be anathema." 

"Anathema" means condemned, and Vatican I has this anathema for anyone who would deny the infallibility of the pope. 

#1: It is necessary for salvation to be subject to the pope. 

We're going way back for this one, Unam Sanctam (1302), where we read this flourishing end to this papal bull: 

"Furthermore, we declare, we proclaim, we define that it is absolutely necessary for salvation that every human creature be subject to the Roman Pontiff."

This bold and astonishingly godless assertion needs little comment. 

There is much more that that the Roman Catholic Church says about the pope. All of the above quotations may be read in context by clicking the link below. Download, read, share, be astonished...

“No one can serve two masters.” Jesus is preaching to us today about the sin of worry, and He begins by letting us know that He is talking about the heart, what it is that you fear, what it is that you love, and what it is that you trust above all things.

This is really the definition of what it means to have a god, to have a master, to worship something. Where is your confidence? What do you trust? Where do you look for all good? This is the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods.” What does this mean? We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things. 

This is really the definition of what it means to have a god, to have a master, to worship something. Where is your confidence? What do you trust? Where do you look for all good? This is the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods.” What does this mean? We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.

God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, should be who we trust, but Jesus warns us that other things are pushing in trying to take the place of the true God. This, by the, is idolatry, to fear or love or trust anything above God. And Jesus warns us about the number one contender for our trust: money.

Money Contending for Your Heart
“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 6:24)

This false god of money Jesus gives the name Mammon. Luther, in the Large Catechism, says that this is the most common of idols.

"Many a one thinks that he has God and everything in abundance when he has money and, possessions; he trusts in them and boasts of them with such firmness and assurance as to care for no one. Lo, such a man also has a god, Mammon by name, i.e., money and possessions, on which he sets all his heart, and which is also the most common idol on earth. He who has money and possessions feels secure, and is joyful and undismayed as though he were sitting in the midst of Paradise. On the other hand, he who has none doubts and is despondent, as though he knew of no God. For very few are to be found who are of good cheer, and who neither mourn nor complain if they have not Mammon. This [care and desire for money] sticks and clings to our nature, even to the grave." (Luther, Large Catechism, First Commandment, 5-9)

We cling to the illusion that our safety and security, that our life itself and all our happiness depends on having money.

I heard a song the other day that was working this theology out. “I know everyone says ‘Money can’t buy happiness,’” the fellow was singing, “But it can buy me a boat.” 

This is pretty funny, at least it’s funny if it is a joke, but maybe it’s not a joke. There is the constant temptation to bind up things like security and satisfaction to money. “If I have money, then I’m safe from things like hunger, cold, trouble, and so forth.” But how much money will keep you safe? It always seems like the answer to that question is, “A little bit more.” 

And this is true both for the rich and the poor. The poor are thinking about the money they don’t have, wishing they had more, and the rich are thinking about the money they do have, hoping it will stick around. The rich have watch the stock market like you watch a guy who you think is trying to pick your pocket. 

The Liturgy of Money Worship: Worry
Now, Jesus tells us what the worship of money looks like: worry. 

“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?”

The worship of money results in worry. Worry, then, is a sin, and Jesus tells us, very specifically, not to do it. “Do not be anxious about your life.” And He is going to attack our worry in three waves, with three pictures: the birds, the lilies, and the kingdom. 

Jesus' Three-Fold Attack on Our Worry


Part 1: The Birds and the Futility of Worship
First, the birds, and futility of worry. 

“Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?”

How much do you have to worry to extend your life another hour? Which of you, by worry, has put a meal on the table? If you worry enough will you grow a foot taller? When has worry actually helped anything? These are the questions Jesus is asking. As much as we want to find security in the things of this world, whoever had enough money to avoid death? Worry, says Jesus, is useless. This is the first point. 

Part 2: The Lilies and Prayer
Jesus second attack on our worry: the picture of the lilies, and our recourse to prayer. 

"And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. "

Jesus is mocking the people who worry, saying, “That is how the Gentiles live, but you are different.” The Christian does not say, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” but rather, we pray, give us this day our daily bread. In other words, the Christ alternative to worry is prayer. 

This is a particularly important and practical point. These words of Jesus, “Your heavenly Father knows that you need them all” are the same words that Jesus used to introduce the Lord’s Prayer only a few paragraphs before our Gospel reading. This is the basis of Christian prayer, that our Father in heaven knows what we need. 

So we use our worry as a gauge for the things we need to pray for. In fact, in this way we can understand our worry as a gift from God to teach us to pray. When worry hits us, and we think of something that troubles us, we take this as a reminder from the Holy Spirit to pray. 

Paul teaches it this way, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). And Peter says, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6-7). When we are saying our prayers in the morning and at night, we ask ourselves this question, “What am I worried about?” And we pray for those things. 

I heard a story about two people, and one of them was particularly worried about the next day, so their friend listened to them, and heard all their worries, and then said, “Let’s pray.” So they said a prayer about all the things that this person was worried about, and asked the Lord for His help, that He would take care of them, and such. Something really interesting happened after that prayer. The person who had been worried still had all the difficult things to face tomorrow, but when they came back to their mind, they knew that these things were in God’s hands, and that worry was inappropriate. “If I worry about this,” they were thinking, “then it means that I don’t trust God to take care of it.” 

Now, as it turned out, this person got frustrated because they wanted to worry about these things, and not that they prayed, they couldn’t. But this gets to the point that Jesus has made here, that worry is the opposite of faith. “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?”

Faith, and the voice of faith, prayer, are the anti-worry, and this gets to the third and final attack of Jesus on our worry, the picture of the kingdom, and the forgiveness of our sins. 

Part 3: The Righteousness of God as Pure Gift
"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."

All through His sermon Jesus has spoken about your Father in heaven, and this is more than a description, it is a promise. Because of the death of Jesus God our Father is not mad or angry or full of wrath, that is spent on Jesus. 

If we want something to really worry about, we should worry about what to eat or drink or wear. We shouldn’t worry about living or dying. We should worry about God, His anger over our sin, His condemning us to hell. This, really, is the only thing worthy of our fear. But Jesus says, “This is nothing to worry about at all. The righteousness of God has been given to you by faith. Your sins are forgiven. You are adopted into the family of God. You are loved by heaven. And your heavenly Father hears your prayers, He knows what you need better than you do, and He will provide for you all through this life.” 

“Seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness” means believe in Jesus and rejoice in His love, His mercy, His kindness in this life and the next, and know that He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for all will not spare us all the other things that we need. This is worry-free good news. 

Now, there is a danger about preaching about worry, and mostly it is this, “Pastor, now I’m worried that I worry so much!” Right? Listen, all of this worry, fear and trust of all the things that are not your Father in heaven, all of this is washed away in the blood of Jesus. He is not worried about you; He’s got you, and He will take care of you in this life, and in the next. That is His promise, and He cannot lie. Amen. 

Audio of this sermon is hanging around here. 

This winter the ACELC graciously invited me to give a paper at their conference. They asked for a discussion of the duties of the pastor. 

The audio of the conference may b found here: http://s3.amazonaws.com/mychurchwebsite/c1922/3_duties_of_pastor_wolfmueller.mp3

I have also uploaded a draft of the paper. I believe the edited text will be available on the ACELC website soon, and when it is I will provide that link. 

As always, I would love to hear your feedback. 

Lord's Blessings, 
Pr Bryan Wolfmueller

Here is the paper, ready for download: 

Are there ghosts? What does the Bible teach? 

I hear more and more about ghosts. There is always someone ghost-hunting on the History channel, or talking with Ghosts, whispering to Ghosts, looking for Ghosts or running from them. Hollywood seems obsessed with ghosts. In fact, the Materialistic worldview of Hollywood, if it were consistent, would teach that death is the end, and we cease to exist when we cease breathing. But becoming a ghost when we die seems to be the preferred narrative. 

Many people have their own ghost stories. Ghosts, though, are certainly not a modern phenomenon. Hamlet was haunted by the ghost of his father. Martin Luther talked about ghosts, and the topic of ghosts even comes up in both the Old and New Testaments.

A ghost is the disembodied soul of a person, normally hanging around to cause some sort of trouble. We do believe that when we die our bodies are unnaturally separated from our souls, but our souls do not linger. The souls of the Christians go to heaven, as Paul teaches, “we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8). The souls of the unbeliever go to hell (Luke 16:23). The idea of the soul of a departed hanging around is distinctly unbiblical.

There are a few places in the Bible where people think they see a ghost, and the results are never good.

The Vision of Eliphaz

In Job chapter four Eliphaz, one of Job’s “friends”, opens his mouth to report his vision of a ghost. Job had lost just about everything, his family, his livelihood, his health, and his friends had sat with him in a pile of ashes for a week. The silence is broken by Eliphaz.

This is a strange text.

 “Now a word was brought to me stealthily; my ear received the whisper of it. Amid thoughts from visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, dread came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones shake. A spirit glided past my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. It stood still, but I could not discern its appearance. A form was before my eyes; there was silence, then I heard a voice: ‘Can mortal man be in the right before God? Can a man be pure before his Maker?’” (Job 4:12–17).

Eliphaz gets his theology from this spirit, and the theology is bad. He is rebuking Job for claiming righteous before the Lord. Now, it is true that no one is righteous by their works, but Job never claimed (at least until the end) this kind of righteousness. Job claimed the righteousness of faith, the righteousness revealed in the sacrifice. This spirit is opposing the Gospel and the comfort that Job had in the Lord’s Word. This spirit’s teaching to Eliphaz is a doctrine of despair.

Saul and the Witch of Endor

1 Samuel 28 is another strange text. The prophet Samuel has died (1 Samuel 25:1). David has been anointed king, but has not taken the throne. Saul is still the acting king of Israel, and his attention is split between assaulting David and fighting the Philistines.

The Philistines have mustered an army, and Saul has called all Israel together to fight. Normally Saul would ask Saul if the Lord would have mercy on them and give them the victory, but Samuel is gone. Saul prays, but there is no answer. He consulted the other prophets, paid attention to his dreams, but there was no answer, and Saul was terrified (1 Samuel 25:5-6).

Saul, then, puts on a disguise and goes to Endor where there was a witch who had not been exiled. Saul asks her to call up Samuel from the dead. Here’s the conversation:

Then Samuel said to Saul, “Why have you disturbed me by bringing me up?” Saul answered, “I am in great distress, for the Philistines are warring against me, and God has turned away from me and answers me no more, either by prophets or by dreams. Therefore I have summoned you to tell me what I shall do.” And Samuel said, “Why then do you ask me, since the Lord has turned from you and become your enemy? The Lord has done to you as he spoke by me, for the Lord has torn the kingdom out of your hand and given it to your neighbor, David. Because you did not obey the voice of the Lord and did not carry out his fierce wrath against Amalek, therefore the Lord has done this thing to you this day. Moreover, the Lord will give Israel also with you into the hand of the Philistines, and tomorrow you and your sons shall be with me. The Lord will give the army of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines” (1 Samuel 28:15–19).

This, again, is a teaching of despair, despair of God’s mercy, a sermon with no hope. Saul listened to the preaching of the ghost, and ended up falling on his own sword in despair (1 Samuel 31:1-7). 

What is going on here? Did the ghost of Samuel really come back from the grave to preach despair to Saul? Or is this ghost of Saul something else, a spirit taking the form of Samuel to deliver false doctrine? This, in fact, is what is appear to be, a demon disguised as Samuel to bring destruction.

The New Testament

There are two passages in the New Testament where ghosts are mentioned. The first is when Jesus is walking across the water as the disciples were fighting the wind to cross the sea.

But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” (Matthew 14:26–27).

They thought it was a ghost, but were wrong. The same thing happens after the resurrection.

As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. (Luke 24:36–40).

Again the disciples though Jesus was a ghost, and again they were wrong. Jesus has His body; He is raised.

Necromancy

Necromancy is the act of trying to communicate with the dead, and it is strictly forbidden in the Scriptures. It is included in the prohibition of witchcraft and satanic arts in the Second Commandment.

“Do not turn to mediums or necromancers; do not seek them out, and so make yourselves unclean by them: I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 19:31, see also Leviticus 20:6, 27, Deuteronomy 18:11, 2 Kings 23:24, 2 Chronicles 33:6, Isaiah 8:19, 19:3).

The Bible puts the voice of the dead, the teaching of Ghosts, in opposition to the voice to the Lord. One delivers death, the other delivers life. It is only in the Lord’s teaching that we have life and hope and God’s good pleasure.

Ghost Theology

There is, then, a ghost theology, a teaching that comes when we believe that the souls of the dead linger around us and interact with us.

Luther called out the ghosts for what they were: demons disguised as the souls of the departed to deliver false teaching about life after death.

From this it has followed that evil spirits have perpetrated much knavery [exercised their malice] by appearing as the souls of the departed, and with unspeakable [horrible] lies and tricks demanded masses, vigils, pilgrimages, and other alms. All of which we had to receive as articles of faith, and to live accordingly; and the Pope confirmed these things, as also the Mass and all other abominations. Here, too, there is no [cannot and must not be any] yielding or surrendering. (Smalcald II.II.16-17)

Who the ghosts really are is proven by their teaching. The ghosts of the middle ages taught purgatory, proving that they were the demons.

Our ghosts today don’t teach purgatory, but works righteousness. Consider this: the ghosts are trapped here, and unable to go to the light and rest because there is some wrong that needs to be righted. There is a sin that needs atoning, a work that needs doing, reconciliation that needs to be accomplished, and when the work is done the ghost is free to go to its rest. The ghost is stuck because there is a work to do.

This theology completely contradicts with the Scripture, with the good news of the Gospel. “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8), but not for the ghost. They are saved by their works, no Jesus necessary.

The “Ghost Worldview” also denies judgment, have an afterlife without Jesus, and denies the resurrection of all flesh.

These false teachings prove the source. There is a spirit interested in this perversion of the Gospel. Luther’s diagnosis is as correct today as it was then, the demons deceive many in the guise of the ghosts.

The Christian doesn’t need to hear the voice of the dead, but the living voice of the living God, the voice of mercy and truth in Christ, which is our confidence in life and in death. 

The Church: The Body of Christ

In his letter to the saints in Ephesus, St. Paul paints the picture of the church as a body, a very unique and special body. In fact, the church is the body of Christ. “And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all” (Ephesians 1:22-23).

There is “one body, one Spirit,” says Paul, referring to the church, “the body of Christ,” (Ephesians 4:4, 12). Jesus, ascended to the right hand of the Father, gives gifts to His body.

…until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. (Ephesians 4:13-16, emphasis mine).

Get the picture? It’s beautiful. Just as our bodies have different parts, a hand here, an eye there, a foot down there, so too does the Body of Christ, the Church. All of us are bound up into Christ, into one body, walking and working and rejoicing together.

But now, at the end of the epistle, Paul gets to something he’s been hinting at all along; this body is under attack. This body, in fact, is a soldier, and it’s at war.

This is a bit of a surprise. It could be that this body of Christ is a dancer, or a construction worker, or a king. Nope, not this body, not the Lord’s Church. You are a soldier. And we are under attack.

So Paul will answer a number of questions. We’ll consider five. Who is the enemy? Where is the battle? What is our role? What is our protection? And what weapons are we given for the battle?

 

Our Enemy

First, who is our enemy? Who is your enemy? Who is trying to destroy your society, your family, your church?

The devil loves it when we think our enemy is flesh and blood, that our real enemy is in Washington, or our real enemy lives next door, or is in our family, or whatever. But Paul is emphatic: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). 

This attack is not from people, no matter how wicked; the real attack is from the devil and the demons. The war is a spiritual one. The battle is unseen. Our enemy is the devil. He is the one who attacks the church. This has to do with the second question.

 

Our Battlefield

Where is the battle? Is it in the media? In Afghanistan? Is it down the street in the shady parts of town?

The devil comes raging against the Church. His attack is on the Lord’s Body. There are two theaters of this cosmic war: the Church and your conscience. And the two are related. Jesus came and still comes to save you, to forgive your sins and hand you over to a good conscience to stand before Him, in this life, and on the Day of Judgment, and forever. The devil comes to undo this work, to unravel the kingdom of God. He does it by attacking God’s order, the order in society, the order in our families, the good order of the church, and God’s ordering of your conscience in the forgiveness of your sins.

 

Our Role

This also means that we don’t have to go looking for the fight, but that the fight will come to us. We are not given the command “Charge!” but the command, “Stand!”

“Stand,” says St. Paul to the Ephesians. Four times in four verses.

 

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. … Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. Stand therefore… (Ephesians 6:10-11, 12-14a)

 

This is the third question: What is our role?

Paul is giving the saints of Ephesus (and the saints in the church today: you) a new duty, dressing them like soldiers, and stationing them as sentries.

As the Roman Empire expanded, one of the most important jobs was that of the sentry, guarding the borders, staying at a post watching and listening for the enemy to attack. There were two offences for which a sentry could be immediately killed with no trial and no court, just a sword: abandoning his post (and this was either to retreat or to charge because he was not supposed to attack, but to call for reinforcements), or falling asleep.[1]

We are to stay awake. This doesn’t mean that we don’t sleep at night; it doesn’t mean that you’re put to death if you fall asleep during the sermon. We are to be spiritually awake, which means we are watchful in our prayers. The sleeping Christian is the Christian who does not pray. We are on the front of the devil’s attacks, and we are stationed as sentries to watch and pray so that the devil would not find a way in.

 

Our Protection

This is dangerous work, so we ask, fourth, what is our protection? Paul gives an inventory of five things, five pieces of armor that give us the confidence to stand.

 

… having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation… (Ephesians 6:14b-17a)

 

This is our protection. Not your strength. Not your power. Not your works or awesome goodness. You are clothed in Christ. Your armor is Him. His truth wrapped around your waist like a belt. A mind readied with His Gospel on your feet. His righteousness protecting your heart like a breastplate. His salvation protecting your head, your mind, as a helmet. And the shield of faith, doused by baptism, to extinguish all the fiery darts. This faith is not that you believe, but what you believe, the Creed, the mighty fortress of the Lord’s Name.

The Armor of God, it turns out, is God Himself! The blood and righteousness of Jesus are like a bullet-proof vest to the devil’s onslaught. His attack on your conscience is to condemn you, but Jesus has been condemned already. You are acquitted. So the devil brings you all your sins, and uses them to condemn you, but the accusations won’t stick.

“You did this!” The devil shoots an arrow. “Died for by Jesus,” we say, and it bounces off the helmet of salvation. “You thought that!” The devil shoots again. “Forgiven!” Ping, it bounces off the breastplate of righteousness. “You are wicked, miserable, godless.” The devil looses a whole quiver. “My Jesus suffered for me, was buried for me, rose for me,” and all the arrows are extinguished in the shield of faith. God be praised.

We could never endure this attack on our own, but there is one who fights for us, who holds the field. Ask ye who is this? Jesus Christ it is, of Sabbaoth Lord, and there’s none other God. He holds the field forever.

 

Our Weapons

And this brings us to the fifth and final question: What weapons are we given for the fight? There is only one.

Take up … the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (Ephesians 6:17b)

Our reading ended there, but the sentence doesn’t. Here it is:

… and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak. (Ephesians 6:17-20, emphasis mine)

 

This is a surprise. The Lord gives us this spiritual sword; in fact the Sword of the Holy Spirit Himself, which is the Lord’s Word, and how are we to yield it? Thrash away at the enemy? Stab the demons? Nope. Pray. We use the Lord’s Word to pray, to ask Jesus for help.

The Roman sentry, when he heard the enemy approaching, would sound the alarm and call in the troops. We sound the alarm and call for the Champion, for Jesus, to come and fight for us, to protect and keep us.

Jesus, after all, has won the battle.

The devil knocked Him down into the grave, but He stood up. In victory and grace He stands. And, dear saints, we stand with Him. He is our Hope. Jesus is our Victory.



[1] Many thanks to Dr. John Kleinig for this insight, as well as many of the insights in this article. His Grace Upon Grace: Spirituality for Today is full of many helpful insights on the attacks of the demons and spiritual warfare. 

An Introduction to the Conscience, A Few Things about It, and What the Devil and Jesus Are Up To With It

Who Dug the Pit in Your Stomach?
You feel sick when you've done something bad because you have a conscience, that internal referee that makes judgments about the things going on around you. This conscience is a gift from God in creation, it is part of our humanity, and it works like a courtroom where thoughts and actions are tried, and verdicts are pronounced. The conscience causes us to consider three things: our own actions towards others, others’ actions towards us, and the general conditions in the world. 

But, like everything else in creation, our consciences have been affected by the fall into sin. This, please note, means that your conscience can get things wrong. It is entirely possible to feel guilty when you have done nothing wrong, or when a wrong has been done to you. We sometimes call this shame. It is often the case that we don’t feel guilt when we should. We call this a calloused or hardened conscience. Our guilt is often disproportionate to our sin — our consciences are out of whack, out of sync with the Law.


Influencing the Court
There are at least four things that influence the conscience, that affect its ability to make a correct assessment: the civil law, the culture, our peers, and, for the Christian, the Scriptures. The more the law of the land and the general cultural milieu stagger away from natural law, the more difficult it is for our consciences to see clearly what is right and wrong. (Example?)

Our peers are an especially strong influence on how well the conscience is working. Family members, for example, are often helpful in making our consciences more sensitive. A group of delinquent teenage boys has the opposite effect. Paul warns that “bad company ruins good morals,” (1 Corinthians 15:33); that is, our peers affect our consciences.

The devil is always at work in the conscience, hardening it, tempting it, troubling it. The devil knows our consciences, what troubles us and what doesn’t. He knows how sensitive we are to sin, and he always brings the properly proportioned temptation to have the best chances of snaring us in sin. The devil loves addictions because repetitive sin has the effect of hardening the conscience. The devil is at work confusing, distorting, and callousing the conscience.

The antidote to the devil’s work is the Lord’s Word. So, finally, the Christian knows the Ten Commandments, and these speak with authority in our consciences. I suspect this is why Luther, in the Catechism, sends us to work singing a hymn “like that of the Ten Commandments.” Meditation on the Ten Commandments is conscience training, tenderizing the conscience to the Lord’s aw.


A Conscience That Works Vs. a Conscience That is Good
A conscience that is working properly knows what is good and bad, what is sin and what is not, but this is not yet a “good” or a “clean” conscience. The speedometer that is working properly is the one that tells us when we are speeding. The conscience that is working properly is the one that tells us when we are sinning, and this is a busy conscience. We are always sinning.

The temptation, then, is to chase after a good conscience with good works. If my conscience accuses me of breaking the law, then it will commend me for keeping the law. But we are sinners, slaves to sin. We cannot do good. Try as we might, the accusing voice of the law in our consciences will not be silenced through obedience to the law. There is only one way to a good and clean conscience: the blood of Jesus.

This is what the Scriptures speak regarding a good conscience, a clean conscience. Paul writes to Timothy: “The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5). Hebrews says, “...and since we have a great priest [Jesus Christ] over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water,” (Hebrews 10:21-22).

A good conscience is a conscience that knows the death of Jesus. A good conscience is a conscience where the voice of Jesus is heard. A good conscience is not a conscience that has no sin, but it is a conscience where sin is forgiven, died for by Jesus, covered with His blood; it is a conscience wrapped in the white robes of His righteousness. A good conscience is a forgiven conscience.


The Law, the Gospel, and the Conscience
In the end, the devil tempts our consciences to pass the verdict. The attorney wants to act like the judge. So the devil (misusing the law) will declare us good enough. “I’m a good person, surely I will go to heaven.” Wrong. There is no good conscience without Jesus.

Or, the devil (again misusing the law) says, “You’ll never be saved. You’ve sinned too much. You are too wicked.” Wrong. It is God who judges, and He gave your death sentence to His Son so that you might have life.

The devil is right when he calls us sinners. He is wrong when he condemns us to hell. Jesus has suffered. He has died and rose again and ascended to God’s right hand. Jesus brings before the Father the evidence of His blood, His cross, and the testimony of our sin is struck from the record. We are absolved, declared righteous and holy by the heavenly court. And if the blood of Jesus stands in this courtroom, then it stands in our consciences as well.

“How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Hebrews 9:14)  

You have a conscience, and Jesus wants it. He wants your conscience to hear the Law, but most especially He wants your conscience to ring with the Gospel, to be comforted with the absolution, and to be settled and at peace because He, your Jesus, has done everything for your life and salvation.
 
Pastor Bryan Wolfmueller

A Few Thoughts on What is Unique about the Theology of the Lutheran Church 

Here is a simple question: What do Lutherans believe and confess that no one else does? Lutherans have a unique history, unique texts, unique songs, but what is theologically unique about Lutheran teaching?

The answer is simple, but with profound implications. Lutherans are the only ones who teach that the Holy Spirit works exclusively through the external Word of God and sacraments to create and sustain faith and give salvation. Lutherans believe this. No one else does. This Lutheran uniqueness has deep significance. 

The External Word Confessed
The confession of the Holy Spirit working through the external word grows out of the Lutheran understanding of Justification, that a person is declared righteous before God apart from works, but by faith alone. After the great confession of Justification in article four of the Augsburg Confession, Melanchthon writes:

Article V: Of the Ministry.
That we may obtain this faith, the Ministry of Teaching the Gospel and administering the Sacraments was instituted. For through the Word and Sacraments, as through instruments, the Holy Ghost is given, who works faith; where and when it pleases God, in them that hear the Gospel, to wit, that God, not for our own merits, but for Christ’s sake, justifies those who believe that they are received into grace for Christ’s sake.

They condemn the Anabaptists and others who think that the Holy Ghost comes to men without the external Word, through their own preparations and works.[1]

First, we note that the Lutherans were meany-pants, condemning people just because they taught false doctrine. But we might also note, second, that they considered this to be a very important teaching, the way the Holy Spirit gives us saving faith is through the Word and sacraments.

Luther makes this fantastically plain in his Smalcald Articles (III.VIII.3-7). (This quotation is long but very important.)

And in those things which concern the spoken, outward Word, we must firmly hold that God grants His Spirit or grace to no one, except through or with the preceding outward Word, in order that we may [thus] be protected against the enthusiasts, i.e., spirits who boast that they have the Spirit without and before the Word, and accordingly judge Scripture or the spoken Word, and explain and stretch it at their pleasure, as Muenzer did, and many still do at the present day, who wish to be acute judges between the Spirit and the letter, and yet know not what they say or declare.

For [indeed] the Papacy also is nothing but sheer enthusiasm, by which the Pope boasts that all rights exist in the shrine of his heart, and whatever he decides and commands with [in] his church is spirit and right, even though it is above and contrary to Scripture and the spoken Word.

All this is the old devil and old serpent, who also converted Adam and Eve into  enthusiasts, and led them from the outward Word of God to spiritualizing and self-conceit, and nevertheless he accomplished this through other outward words. Just as also our enthusiasts [at the present day] condemn the outward Word, and nevertheless they themselves are not silent, but they fill the world with their pratings and writings, as though, indeed, the Spirit could not come through the writings and spoken word of the apostles, but [first] through their writings and words he must come. Why [then] do not they also omit their own sermons and writings, until the Spirit Himself come to men, without their writings and before them, as they boast that He has come into them without the preaching of the Scriptures? But of these matters there is not time now to dispute at greater length; we have elsewhere sufficiently urged this subject.

One of the places where Luther discussed this at further length is his delightful Against the Heavenly Prophets[2]. He offers this helpful distinction:

So that our readers may better perceive our teaching I shall clearly and broadly describe it. We treat of the forgiveness of sins in two ways. First, how it is achieved and won. Second, how it is distributed and given to us. Christ has achieved it on the cross, it is true. But He has not distributed or given it on the cross. He has not won it in the supper or sacrament. There He has distributed and given it through the Word, as also in the Gospel, where it is preached. He has won it once for all on the cross. But the distribution takes place continuously, before and after, from the beginning to the end of the world. For inasmuch as He had once to achieve it, it made no difference to Him whether He distributed it before or after, through His Word, as can easily be proved from Scriptures.  (Against the Heavenly Prophets, AE 40:213-214)

That's good stuff. Jesus wins forgiveness on the cross, but He gets that forgiveness to us through the Word and sacraments, and through the Word and sacraments alone.

 
The External Word Taught
The Lutheran Confessions teach clearly that the Holy Spirit works exclusively through the Word and sacraments to give faith and salvation, but do the Scriptures teach the same? It is important to know the Biblical basis for such a bold claim. We will offer a handful of Biblical passages to support this teaching.

Matthew 17:5  He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him."[3]

John 6:63  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

John 15:3-5  Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

John 17:17  Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

Acts 10:44  While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.

Romans 1:16-17  For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."

Romans 10:17  So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.

2 Corinthians 2:14-17 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

Galatians 3:2 Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?

Galatians 3:5  Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith--
 
Ephesians 1:13 “In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in who also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.”

James 1:18  Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

1 Peter 1:23-25  ...since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for "All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever." And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

It should be clear from these passages that the Holy Spirit works through the external Word to accomplish His saving purpose.


The External Word Applied
This understanding of the way the Holy Spirit works has a profound impact on all that we do. When we turn to the Lutheran Confessions we find that this understanding of the external Word and sacraments undergirds, in fact is, the very definition of the church, worship, evangelism, sanctification, spiritual warfare and so many other topics. We will consider the Confessions' confession on two topics of great importance, the church and evangelism.


The Church

Growing out of article five (quoted above), article seven of the Augsburg Confession defines the church:

Also they teach that one holy Church is to continue forever. The Church is the congregation of saints, in which the Gospel is rightly taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered. And to the true unity of the Church it is enough to agree concerning the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments. Nor is it necessary that human traditions, that is, rites or ceremonies, instituted by men, should be everywhere alike. As Paul says: One faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of all, etc. Eph. 4, 5. 6.

Zap! The Church is marked, found, identified by the presence of the external Word (Gospel rightly preached) and the sacraments (rightly administered). If the church is the collection of believers, then they will be found where the Holy Spirit creates this faith and belief.


Evangelism

Evangelism is the Lord's work through the church to convert unbelievers into the people of God. We are not surprised, then, that the understanding of the external Word and sacraments lies at the center of the Confessions' understanding of evangelism. Here's a passage from the Formula of Concord (article II.5):

Moreover [On the other side], both the ancient and modern enthusiasts have taught that God converts men, and leads them to the saving knowledge of Christ through His Spirit, without any created means and instrument, that is, without the external preaching and hearing of God’s Word.

Against both these parties the pure teachers of the Augsburg Confession have taught and contended that by the fall of our first parents man was so corrupted that in divine things pertaining to our conversion and the salvation of our souls he is by nature blind, that, when the Word of God is preached, he neither does nor can understand it, but regards it as foolishness; also, that he does not of himself draw nigh to God, but is and remains an enemy of God, until he is converted, becomes a believer [is endowed with faith], is regenerated and renewed, by the power of the Holy Ghost through the Word when preached and heard, out of pure grace, without any cooperation of his own.

Or later in the same article (II.48):

For this reason we shall now relate, furthermore, from God’s Word how man is converted to God, how and through what means (namely, through the oral Word and the holy sacraments) the Holy Ghost wants to be efficacious in us, and to work and bestow in our hearts true repentance, faith, and new spiritual power and ability for good, and how we should conduct ourselves towards these means, and [how we should] use them.

To make sure we drive the point home (that means you have to read this passage also, FC II.50-52):

Therefore God, out of His immense goodness and mercy, has His divine eternal Law and His wonderful plan concerning our redemption, namely, the holy, alone-saving Gospel of His eternal Son, our only Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, publicly preached; and by this [preaching] collects an eternal Church for Himself from the human race, and works in the hearts of men true repentance and knowledge of sins, and true faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. And by this means, and in no other way, namely, through His holy Word, when men hear it preached or read it, and the holy Sacraments when they are used according to His Word, God desires to call men to eternal salvation, draw them to Himself, and convert, regenerate, and sanctify them. 1 Cor. 1, 21: For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Acts 10, 5. 6: Peter shall tell thee what thou oughtest to do. Rom. 10, 17: Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God. John 17, 17. 20: Sanctify them by Thy truth; Thy Word is truth, etc. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their Word. Therefore the eternal Father calls down from heaven concerning His dear Son and concerning all who preach repentance and forgiveness of sins in His name: Hear ye Him, Matt. 17, 5.

Now, all who wish to be saved ought to hear this preaching [of God’s Word]. For the preaching and hearing of God’s Word are instruments of the Holy Ghost, by, with, and through which He desires to work efficaciously, and to convert men to God, and to work in them both to will and to do.

The external Word and sacraments are the exclusive means of the Holy Spirit to convert an unbeliever, and this means that the external Word and Sacrament are the start, center and goal of all of the evangelistic efforts of the Lord's church. 


Standing Alone, and a Conclusion
We've made the claim that only the Lutheran Church teaches that the Holy Spirit works through the external Word and sacraments. Is that true? A simple survey of Christian theology will establish the fact.

Most Protestants (including American Evangelicals, Baptists, etc.) have abandoned the sacraments and replaced them with symbolic ordinances. The Scriptures (in revivalistic fashion) are simply information that needs to be acted upon by our free will.

The Reformed (our closest theological relative) has inherited from Calvin the distinction between the external word and the internal call. They understand the sacraments as “spiritual,” whatever that means.

The Roman church places the authority of the church over (or at least on par with, which means over) the Scriptures. The sacraments are not the means of pardon or forgiveness, but means through which the church dispenses God's meritorious-good-work-empowering grace.

And that basically covers them all. There is not a single church out there that understands the work of the Holy Spirit through the means of grace.


Could a Lutheran, then, go and ask his Baptist friend for advice on church? On evangelism? But this is a minor point. The major consideration for us is this: how might all of our work together as and for the church reflect the bedrock teaching that the Holy Spirit works exclusively through the external Word and sacraments?

It is in the Word and sacraments that the Holy Spirit delivers all the gifts and treasures of our Lord Jesus, His blood, His righteousness, His forgiveness and eternal life, and all of our joy and comfort and peace.


Pastor Bryan Wolfmueller
Reformation Day, 2010

NOTES
[1]All quotations from the Lutheran Confessions are taken from the Concordia Triglotta. The text is in the public domain.
[2]This writing is one of the writings of Luther that is unconditionally approved by the Lutheran Confessions, See The Formula of Concord VII.91.
[3]Bible quotations are taken from the English Standard Version of the Bible.

There is a lot of talk in the church about sanctification, about following Jesus and being His disciple. There is not a lot of talk about suffering. But the two go together. The Bible describes the Christian life as a life of suffering. The TV preachers describe the Christian life as a life without suffering. Which is it? 

The “Health and Wealth” teachers and the “Prosperity Gospel” take this to the extreme. Sickness, poverty, too many red lights on the way to work are signs of a lack of faith, a lock of God’s blessings. If you are suffering then you show yourself to be a false disciple of Jesus. This is a horrible and disastrous false teaching.

But there is a subtle “sanctification-means-less-suffering” doctrine in all of us, and inner Buddhist that thinks that our suffering means that we are far from Jesus, our troubles are indications of God’s abandonment. Which is why, I suspect, troubles always stir up questions about God’s location. “Where is God in the midst of trouble?” We ask the question because we think (without thinking) that God must keep suffering at arm’s length, and if we’re suffering, God must keep us at arm’s length. 

This is wrong, totally wrong.

First, God is not a stranger to suffering. The cross shows us this. The prophet Isaiah even gives the name “Man of Sorrows” to Jesus (Isaiah 53:3). No one suffered like Jesus suffered in the garden and on the cross. There all the sins of all humanity and the wrath of God that goes with them is piled on Jesus. When we see Jesus crying out on the cross, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” then we ought, at least, to know that God is not a stranger to suffering.

Second, Jesus teaches us that the Christian is also not a stranger to suffering. When Jesus is calling His disciples, He doesn’t bid them “take up your Lazy-Boy and follow Me,” but “take up your cross,” adding “daily” to the command (see Luke 9:23 and then Luke 14:27). The yoke of Jesus is an easy yoke (Matthew 11:28-30) not because it lacks suffering, but because it doesn’t lack Jesus, it doesn’t lack forgiveness.

Our following Jesus is a following of suffering. The only Bible passage that teaches us to follow Jesus example gives us the example of Jesus suffering.

For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. (1 Peter 2:20-24)

Wozers. WWDJ? He would suffer. If we are following the example of Jesus then we are suffering, silently, patiently suffering. In a terrifying way, our sanctification is simply getting better at suffering.

This difficult realization opens up all the Bible passages about suffering and the Christian life. The uncomfortable realization that almost every time the Bible takes up the topic of my life it talks about my suffering begins to make sense. I’m supposed to suffer. I’m supposed to be troubled and tempted and weak. I’m a Christian.

Our Christian life, then, is not Jesus removing suffering from us, but rather Jesus being with us in the midst of suffering, and this is our comfort, not the lack of trouble, but the promise of Jesus that He, the one who suffered in our place, will never leave us or forsake us (Matthew 28:19-20, Hebrews 13:5).

Third, we see, now, a purpose in our suffering. Martin Luther taught that three things made a theologian: prayer, meditation on the Lord’s word, and tentatio, temptation or suffering. Luther wrote this in his introduction to Psalm 119, the great “Torah Psalm.” In Psalm 119 David said, “This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life” (119:50), and “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep your word” (119:67), and “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes” (119:71). Affliction, tnetatio, suffering is good, it teaches us the Lord’s Word. In fact, in our suffering we are being shaped by God.

Consider Paul’s treatise on suffering for God’s Word, 2 Corinthians.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. (2 Corinthians 4:7-11)

Jesus life is manifest in our dying. Jesus’ kindness is manifest in our suffering. So…

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal. (2 Corinthians 4:16-18)

In Christ our suffering is a preparation, a renewal, an instruction, a gift. “For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake” (Philippians 1:29).

Fourth, knowing that Jesus is with us in suffering, and that suffering is a gift from the ascended Jesus to show us His mercy and prepare us for the resurrection, we, then, joy in our suffering.

Acts 5:41: Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name [of Jesus].

To rejoice at a beating seems strange to the world, a little crazy, but these disciples know Jesus.

Romans 5:3-5: Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

We rejoice in the Gospel (Romans 5:1-2), so we rejoice in suffering. Paul loves to talk about this.

2 Corinthians 12:10: For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Colossians 1:24: Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church…

The other apostles teach the same. They knew the suffering of Jesus; they knew the suffering of the Christian, and they knew the joy of it all.

James 1:2-3: Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

Peter values our suffering more valuable than gold, a badge of honor.

1 Peter 1:7: …so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 4:13-16: But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a meddler. Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

Christians don’t go around looking for suffering, but we don’t have to wait long. The world and the flesh and the devil hate you with the rage they have for Jesus, and they are after you. Suffering will come. Crosses will come. Temptations and agony and loss will come. But Jesus has already come, already died, already risen, and He is with you in suffering. He suffered for you, and now He suffers with you. He promises it, and He promises joy in the midst of it.

Jesus says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you” (Matthew 5:10-12)