A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD

A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing;
Our helper He, amid the flood of mortal ills prevailing:
For still our ancient foe doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and pow’r are great, and, armed with cruel hate,
On earth is not his equal.
 
Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing,
Were not the right Man on our side, the Man of God’s own choosing:
Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is He;
Lord Sabaoth, His Name, from age to age the same,
And He must win the battle.

(Verses 1 and 2 from “A Might Fortress Is Our God” by Martin Luther)

Like many, [Martin] Luther’s behavior did not always reflect his theology. Still, his discovery in Scripture that people by God’s grace can have a right relationship with God vastly changed his outlook on life. Having that fundamental relationship secured, he believed that a joyful and loving life would follow.

During a period in 1527 when he suffered from dizziness and from a disease occasioned both by high fever and physical weakness, Luther succumbed to a feeling of psychological abandonment. The prayers of his wife and friends sustained him in his despair. During this time he composed “A Might Fortress Is our God.” A clue to his faith lay in his admission that “the prince of darkness grim” raged in his life. Luther surmounted these personally trying times with the assurance that he need not fear the devil’s onslaughts because “one little Word shall fell him.” That Word is Jesus Christ. The reformer survived his rough moments by naming and clinging to Jesus Christ. 

-- K. James Stein in “Spiritual Guides for the 21^st Century”

And though this world, with devils filled, should threaten to undo us,
We will not fear, for God hath willed His Truth to triumph through us;
The Prince of Darkness grim, we tremble not for him;
His rage we can endure, for lo, his doom is sure,
One little Word shall fell him.
 
That Word above all earthly pow’rs, no thanks to them, abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours through Him Who with us sideth;
Let goods and kindred go, this mortal life also;
The body they may kill: God’s Truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.

(Verses 3 and 4 from “A Might Fortress Is Our God” by Martin Luther)

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THE STORMS OF LIFE - Part 1

“When [Peter] saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out His hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ He said, ‘why did you doubt?’ And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”  (Matthew 14:30-33 NIV)

It’s interesting how God works in the storms of life. I’m not suggesting God sends them, though there are a few examples of that in Scripture, but if we’re paying attention we certainly can see that God uses them and works through them. Storms often play a part in great revivals of faith. Noah, Jonah, Peter, and Paul all had profound encounters with God in the midst of storms. Martin Luther left his law studies to become a monk because of an experience in a storm. And storms in the Atlantic, during which the terrified Wesley thought he was dying, prepared him for his own Damascus Road experience. 

-- Adam Hamilton in “Revival: Faith as Wesley Lived It”

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PLANT A TREE

Martin Luther was once asked what he would do if he knew that the world was coming to an end tomorrow, and he said: “I would plant an apple tree.” In other words, Luther, trusting in God’s gracious, unmerited mercy would live life just as he had been living it. When John Wesley was asked the same thing, being an obsessive-compulsive type, he said that he would arise at 4:00 AM, preach at 5:00, visit the sick at 7:00, go to communion at 8:00...etc., until the questioner realized that that was exactly what Wesley had planned to do tomorrow anyway! Because we believe that God is like Christ, we can dare to live in faith and hope and love now; trusting God for whatever the future holds, because we believe that God holds the future, and that God’s Name and God’s Nature are love.

-- Donald B. Strobe in Collected Words


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