Gems Volume 3
Christ’s
Kingdom – poor, needy, wretched
9. Now, Christ uses this
trait or nature of the animal as an illustration in explaining that he is the
good shepherd. In this manner he plainly shows what his kingdom is, and wherein
it consists, and would say: My kingdom is only to rule the sheep; that is poor,
needy wretched men, who well see and realize that there is no other help or
counsel for them.
Misericordias Domini, First
Sermon
Christ
Rejects Nobody
20. Therefore, we should so
preach Christ as one who will reject nobody, however weak he may be, but will
gladly receive and comfort and strengthen everybody; that we may always picture
him to ourselves as a good shepherd. Then hearts will turn to him of their own
accord, and need not be forced and driven. The Gospel graciously invites and
makes men willing, so that they desire to go, and do go, to him with all
confidence. And it begets a love for Christ in their hearts, so that they
willingly do what they should, whereas formerly they had to be driven and
forced. When we are driven, we do a thing with displeasure and against our
will. That is not what God desires; therefore it is done in vain. But when I
see that God deals with me graciously, he wins my heart, so that I am
constrained to fly to him; consequently, my heart is filled with happiness and
joy.
Misericordias Domini, First
Sermon
Faith Moves Us to Good Works
22. If in this way you have Christ as the
foundation and chief treasure of your salvation, then follows the other part of
laying hold of him as your example, that you give yourself to the service of
your neighbor as he has given himself for you. Notice, then faith and love will
be exercised, God’s commandment will be fulfilled, and man becomes happy and
fearless to do and to suffer any and everything. Therefore, give heed and mark
well; Christ as a gift nourishes your faith and makes you a Christian; but
Christ as an example moves you to do good works; these do not make you a
Christian, but they go forth from you who have already become a Christian.
Misericordias Domini, Second
Sermon
Not the Outward Appearance
60. Here we are also to
learn, as I have often said, that we must not judge of the kingdom of Christ
and his church by the outward appearance and with the judgment of reason and
human wisdom. For here you are told that this knowledge of the sheep belongs to
Christ alone, and that it is as much hidden to reason under the greatest
offense as he himself was when hanging on the cross.
Misericordias Domini, Second
Sermon
We
Have Neither the Joy Nor the Persecution
But
when Christ departs out of the heart, then the joy also departs. The grace
continues, but the conscience can easily fall. I tell you this to the end that
you may not be offended in the future, when many of you shall fall from the
Gospel and deny Christ. For wherever Christ shall be with his joy and comfort,
there the cross and persecution are also soon at hand. But I fear we have
neither the joy nor the persecution, since we so little appropriate the Gospel.
We continue ever in our old nature and despise the dear and precious treasure
of the Gospel; therefore God will visit us with greater punishment than he did
the Jews, namely, with blindness and error. As Paul says to the Thessalonians:
“And for this cause God sendeth them a working of error, that they should
believe a lie: that they all might be judged who believed not the truth, but
had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12. For God cannot allow
his Gospel to be disgraced. That one should stumble he will indeed allow, but
for one thus to despise his mercy he will not permit, and it is not right that
he should. Therefore, it is to be feared that heresy and working of error will
come, so that no one will know what is the trouble, as is already evident and
will become still more so. May God restrain Satan and save us from such a
visitation! Amen.
#19, Jubilate, Second Sermon
The
Result of No Faith
10. As if he wished to say:
Had they believed on me, everything would already have been forgiven them,
whatever sin they might have committed, for I know that they by nature cannot
do otherwise. But because they will not receive me, neither believe that I can
help them, this it is that will condemn them. Therefore, God will at the final judgment
pass a sentence like this on them: Behold, thou wast in sin and couldst not
free thyself from it, still I did not on this account wish to condemn thee, for
I sent my only begotten Son to thee and intended to give thee a Savior, in
order that he might take the sin from thee. Him thou didst not receive.
Therefore, on this account alone, thou wilt be condemned, because thou hast not
Christ.
Cantate, First Sermon
Righteousness Is Faith
26. These are the three
parts we have in this Gospel lesson: Sin is unbelief; righteousness is faith;
the judgment is the holy cross. Therefore give heed and learn to consider
everything that is without the Spirit as nothing and as condemned, and afterwards
be prepared for the holy cross that thou must suffer on account of it. Now
follows in the Gospel further: “I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye
cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he shall
guide you into all the truth.”
Cantate, First Sermon
Unbelief
– Dragon’s Tail
24. Lo, how the dragon’s tail
of the devil and all hell must follow unbelief!
The reason is, that he who does not believe in
Christ, has already turned away from God and quite separated himself from him.
Therefore he cannot have the Holy Spirit, nor originate good thoughts, nor have
a true, hearty pleasure in living according to God’s will; notwithstanding he
may outwardly assume a different appearance, like a hypocrite, and act so as
not to be rebuked or chastised. Just like a bad, ill-behaved servant, who is
inimical to his master, and does what he hates to do, only because he is
compelled, and as opportunity arises, does evil. Such are the beautiful,
precious fruits, produced by this fountain and stem, if Christ is not accepted
and heard as the Savior, presented to us by God in order to blot out our sin
and to take from us God’s wrath.
Cantate, Third Sermon
Papal Methods, Adopted by Lutheran Apostates
68. Truly, that would be a
fine church, which could arrogate to itself the power, as the Antichristian
church of the pope does, to teach contrary to Christ whatever it wished, and to
change his ordinances, and then would prove and confirm it with this saying: “I
have yet many things to say unto you.” Whereas he says distinctly of the Holy
Spirit, and so puts limit and measure upon him, that the Holy Spirit shall
glorify Christ and not speak from himself, but take and proclaim of his own,
that is, of that which is the Word and command of Christ. Therefore the company
that teaches otherwise, cannot be from the Holy Spirit, nor the church of
Christ, but must be the sect of the hateful devil.
Cantate, Third Sermon
Prating
Is No Prayer
Often
have I admonished that we should persevere in prayer, for there is great need
of it. Since the outward prating and muttering of prayer is done away with, we
no longer pray in any way. This is a good indication that we heretofore,
notwithstanding our many prayers, never prayed.
#1, Rogate Sunday
Foundation
of Prayer
3. So God himself now founds
our prayer upon his promise and thereby encourages us to pray. If it were not
for this promise, who would have the courage to pray? We have hitherto resorted
to many ways of preparing ourselves to pray — ways with which the books are
filled; but if you wish to be well prepared, take the promise and lay hold of
God with it. Then your courage and desire to pray will soon grow, which courage
you will never otherwise get. For “those who pray without God’s promise,
imagine in themselves how angry God is, whom they wish to propitiate by means
of their prayers. Without faith in the promise, there is then, neither courage
nor desire to pray, but mere uncertain delusion and a melancholy spirit; there is,
therefore, no hearing of prayers, and both prayer and labor are lost.
Rogate,
Faith the Foundation of Prayer
5. The second requisite of
true prayer, following that of God’s promise, is faith — that we believe the
promise is true, and do not doubt that God will give what he promises. For the
words of the promise require faith. But faith is a firm, undoubting confidence
in God’s promise that it is true; as James says: “But if any of you lacketh
wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all liberally and upbraideth not; and
it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing doubting: for he that
doubteth is like the surge of the sea driven by the wind and tossed. For let
not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.” James 1:5-7.
Moreover, he who doubts and yet prays, tempts God; for he doubts in respect to
God’s will and grace. Therefore, his prayer is nothing and he gropes after God
like the blind for the wall. John also speaks of this assurance of faith in 1
John 5:14-15: “And this is the boldness which we have toward him, that, if we
ask anything according to his will, he heareth: and if we know that he heareth
us whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions which we have asked of
him.” John describes with these words how a truly believing heart is disposed
in prayer, namely, that it is concerned about nothing else than that its prayer
be heard, knowing that it has even then obtained its petition. That is also
true. Such faith and definite assurance, however, the Holy Spirit must impart;
therefore, without the Holy Spirit, surely no prayer will be offered.
Rogate
Faith Swallows Up Sin, Unbelief Cannot Remain
with Unbelief
12. Now, place the two side
by side, and you can rightly conclude: Where there is faith, there cannot be so
many sins, but they will surely be swallowed up and exterminated by faith;
where there is unbelief, you will never be able to do good works enough to blot
out the least sin. Little, therefore as sin can stand in the presence of faith,
so little can good works abide with unbelief. Therefore, nothing is needed, in
order to do good works, but faith; and nothing more is required, in order to do
sin and evil works, than unbelief. Thus it follows that he who believes has no
sin and does nothing but good works; on the other hand, he who does not
believe, verily, does no good work, but all he does is sin.
Faith Makes Christ as Our
Own Treasure
13. Therefore I say, however, you cannot have
committed so many sins, neither is Satan such an invincible enemy of yours, but
that all is taken away and forgiven as soon as you begin to believe. For
through faith you have Christ as your own treasure, who was given to you for
the very purpose of taking away sin; and who will be so bold as to condemn
Christ?
Ascension,
Energy in the Ascension
24. We must, therefore,
conceive of his ascension and Lordship as something active, energetic and
continuous, and must not imagine that he sits above while we hold the reins of
government down here. Nay, he ascended up thither for the reason that there he
can best do his work and exercise dominion. Had he remained upon earth in
visible form, before the people, he could not have wrought so effectually, for
all the people could not have been with him and heard him. Therefore, he
inaugurated an expedient which made it possible for him to be in touch with all
and reign in all, to preach to all and be heard by all, and to be with all.
Therefore, beware lest you imagine within yourself that he has gone, and now is
far away from us. The very opposite is true: While he was on earth, he was far
away from us; now he is very near.
Ascension
Where Is Christ?
Hence,
he who would be freed from sin and delivered from Satan and death, must come
thither where Christ is. Now, where is he? He is here with us, and for this
purpose did he sit down in heaven, that he might be near unto us. Thus, we are
with him up there, and he is with us down here. Through the word he comes down,
and through faith we ascend up.
34. So, we see everywhere in the Scriptures that
faith is such an unspeakably great thing that we can never preach about it
sufficiently nor reach it with words. It cannot be heard and seen, therefore it
must be believed. Such is the nature of faith that it feels nothing at all, but
merely follows the words which it hears, and clings to them. If you believe,
you have; if you believe not, you have not. In this wise must we understand
this article of faith, that Christ is ascended into heaven and sitteth at the
right hand of God.
Ascension
The Faith of the Apostles
6.
To sum up all: We should expose and reprove what is wrong, and exercise truth
and love toward everybody; we should be plain-spoken, not letting ourselves be
silenced, for none of us, since we are flesh and blood, will so live as to be
found without blame in all things. I in this, you in that. We all see, that
even the apostles were lacking in the chief things yet they were cornerstones,
the foundations and the very best part of Christendom.
7. But let no one think that the apostles were
altogether unbelieving; they believed what was written in the Law and the
prophets, although their faith was not yet perfect. There was a faith there and
yet no faith; they did not yet believe all things, although they believed that
God created heaven and earth, and was the Maker of every creature. So the
apostles were not altogether without faith, for they had faith in part. Faith
is a thing that always grows. It is with faith as with a man who is ill and
begins to get well — is increasing in strength. Therefore the Lord shows where
they did not believe, and what they lacked; it was that they did not believe
the resurrection of Christ from the dead. Although they believed the other
things, they were still lacking in this. I hold that they believed that they
had a gracious God. Yet this was not enough; they must believe also the
resurrection of Christ. The Lord upbraided them with their unbelief, reproved
them and said that in spite of all they had seen, they were not believing, they
still lacked in a certain article of faith, namely the article on the
resurrection. Hence Christ’s words to them at the Last Supper: “Ye believe in
God, believe also in me.” John 14:1.
Ascension, Second Sermon
God
and Man
But
let us thank the Father for ordering it as he has, and placing between us one
who is God and equal with God, and also man, on a level with man; for we are
human and he is God. Where God and man oppose each other, man meets with
instant destruction, for he cannot stand against God. God has intervened by
placing as mediator one who is alike true God and true man. Through him we are
to come to the Father; with the price we can pay nothing is accomplished.
#3 Pentecost Monday
When all eight volumes are published, the final volume will be the gems from all eight. That would make a great sharing booklet to give to people.
