Lessons Amidst Tragedy

Newsletter article for June 2001

© 2001 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

I’m sure by now most of you who get this newsletter have heard about the accident where a car crashed through and destroyed our fifth and sixth grade classroom on the day before Easter. I have been thinking about what I can learn from this incident, and what we as a congregation and school community can, or perhaps should, learn from this.

If you saw the aftermath from the accident, or if you have seen the photographs of the wreckage you know that this kind of incident is extremely unsettling. Possible reactions to this include anger that someone would lose control of a car and cause so much damage. Another possible reaction is fear. Could such an accident happen in broad daylight when children are in the classroom? Such reactions are quite disturbing. Is there something we can we learn from this tragedy without being overcome with anger or fear?

The day after the accident was Easter Sunday, and I reworked the Easter sermon to try to put it into perspective. In a message which kind of had the theme, “What could have been … but wasn’t” I noted that viewing the damage which was at the time still very much in evidence, it was easy to imagine what could have been. However, that way of thinking isn’t always constructive (except when planning to rebuild with more protection for our precious children). Especially on Easter Sunday a better way of viewing this is to focus on what didn’t happen. No children had been in that room for two days, so none of our students were even close to being injured, and they remain safe and secure to this day. Even the driver of the car was spared, which must be considered a miracle (especially if you saw the damage).

We can view the death of Jesus in the same way. The crucifixion of our Lord was a great tragedy, but think about what could have been. It should have been each one of us paying the price for our sins for the rest of eternity, but because of Jesus, that won’t happen. All who trust in Jesus will never be punished for their sins, but will look forward to a resurrection and eternal life just as Christ himself enjoys today.

Another lesson from this accident focuses on the driver of the car which crashed into our building. I would like to meet this man and give him a message. This may not be the same message as you would give to the man, especially if your children were students in the destroyed classroom, but I have a potentially life-changing message to give. I would tell the man who survived this accident that it is truly a pleasure to be able to meet him. Given the force of the impact no one should be able to meet him ever again. God must have something great planned for him to have spared his life after coming so close to death. I hope he appreciates it. Of course this message comes with a warning: Whether this crash was truly an accident, or whether it was an inevitable consequence of foolish actions, this should be a clear warning to avoid being in a similar situation again. The next time someone will surely die. But God is a merciful God, slow to anger and abounding in love. God often gives people second chances, and for that we should praise our savior, Jesus Christ.

Christ’s death and resurrection are the best signs of God giving us second chances. None of us should take them for granted. Not all of us have had near-death experiences, nor should we tempt fate by requiring such things to make us trust in God and give Him the credit and praise He deserves. What can someone say who survived such an accident except that “God has graciously spared my life, and I will praise Him for as long as I live, and even forever, should He give me the chance. And I know He will, because of Jesus.” To say anything else is to invite disaster. God is a patient God, but His patience is not infinite. I would like this fortunate man to know that God has great things in store for his life, and I pray that he appreciates that and takes advantage of this opportunity. It doesn’t matter whether this accident was out of his control, or self inflicted, this man can still give a powerful testimony of God’s gracious love, and God seems committed to giving this man at least one more chance to accomplish great things through Jesus Christ.

For the rest of us, we too, ought not to take for granted the second chance we have in Christ. Without Christ none of us would have any hope whatsoever of enjoying the bliss of God’s paradise. But because of what Christ has done for us, He gives us the whole world for free, forever. We all should act as if we have been miraculously spared certain death, because we have. We all were under a death sentence from God because of our sin, but Jesus spared us by dying in our place. God has great things planned for your life too, so put your trust in Jesus and give God all the credit and praise, and humbly serve Him in all you do.

What is Lent all About?

Newsletter article for March 1998

© 1998 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

We are now in the church season of Lent until Easter. I’m sure that each of us observes Lent to a different degree, from not at all, to religiously keeping a fast of one sort or another. Whether or not you observe Lent I think that we all could be well served by learning (or reviewing) what Lent is all about, and some of the reasons for what we do to observe this church season.

All you Biblical scholars may notice that nowhere in the Scriptures is Lent mentioned. Nor are any of the seasons of the church calendar mentioned. The observance of Lent is considered Adiaphora. Adiaphora are practices which are neither commanded nor forbidden by God. This means that the faithful Christian can, with clear conscience, either observe Lent, or not. However, Lent has been celebrated in the Christian Church for over 1,500 years. Even Martin Luther, the great reformer, did not abolish the observance of this season, but he did clean up the practice to return the focus to Christ, where it should be in all we do in the church.

Let me begin at the end. Easter marks the end of Lent. It also is the reason for Lent, just as the death and resurrection of Jesus is the reason why we put our faith in Him as our savior. Lent is meant to be a time of preparation. For the six weeks of Lent we prepare for the Easter celebration.

The Lenten season is also a time of contrition (sorrow over sins), repentance (asking God for mercy and forgiveness), and contemplation of our sinfulness. Now, six weeks of thinking about sin may seem to some to be a very depressing exercise, that is kind of the point, isn’t it? What I mean is that the best way we can appreciate just how absolutely tremendously fabulously awesome, wonderful, and amazing Easter is for us, is if we first realize just how much we had to gain from Christ’s death and resurrection. We do this in Lent by focusing on our own unworthiness.

The season of Lent does not portray a flattering portrait of human beings, even Christian people. Instead it portrays a painfully accurate portrait of our guilt and sin. Only when we realize just how much it cost Jesus to rescue billions and billions of disobedient sinners, then we can appreciate the vastness of His infinite love, and with thankful hearts sing His praises on Easter morning.

One of the ancient traditions of Lent is the tradition of fasting. This tradition is most often associated with the Roman Catholic Church because in the past the Pope commanded that all Christians must observe Lenten fasts. This practice is not so common in the Lutheran Church because this is one of the reforms that Martin Luther brought to the church. Based on Romans 14, which speaks about eating (or not eating) certain kinds of food, and the book of Galatians, which speaks against burdening Christians with additional laws and practices, Luther showed that it is wrong to add requirements about different practices in the church. The Ten Commandments still stand and we must obey them, but beyond that, we cannot command Christians to do what God did not command, nor can we forbid Christians from doing what God has not forbidden.

The result of this is that while Luther abolished the requirement of fasting during Lent, he did not condemn the practice altogether. He also spoke about how fasting can be good training in self discipline and self control. When I listen to people talking about fasting for Lent, I think sometimes they think they must give up things which are bad for them anyway, like smoking, overeating, over-drinking, and things like that. While I agree that it is good to stop doing things which harm our health and bodies, that isn’t the purpose of a fast. If we are sinning or hurting ourselves we should stop that for good, not just for the six weeks of Lent. A fast should be a temporary thing where we give up something which we like, but only for a limited time. This is a good exercise because as we deny ourselves something we like (but which doesn’t harm us) we are training ourselves to control our actions. Then after our fast is over, we may be stronger, and better able to stop doing the things which hurt ourselves, or are sinful.

If we do give up something we like, such as meat, or chocolate, or sweets, or alcohol, we may find that it is a struggle to hold to our fast. When we are struggling with the temptation to break our fast, we can also appreciate just what an accomplishment it was for Jesus to go His whole life without sinning even once. In times of weakness and temptation we can also learn to turn to God in prayer, and ask Him to give us the strength we need to resist temptation and do what is right.

We should also remember what Jesus said about fasting in Matthew 6:16-18. Jesus says that fasting should be a private thing, between you and God. You shouldn’t make a show of your fasting in order to elicit sympathy from your friends, or to get their admiration for your strength of will. Instead keep it secret, and humbly accept whatever reward God sees fit to give you (if any).

It is most important to remember whether we fast for Lent, or don’t fast, neither practice makes us better in God’s sight. We are still sinners, whether we can successfully keep a fast, or not. We still need Jesus to forgive us our sins every day. We still must keep our eyes focused on the cross of Jesus, for that is our only hope for salvation. We still trust in the victory of Easter, because that is where Christ has proven His love, and has shown us that He has rescued us from sin and death.

When you come and worship here at St. Timothy this Lent, you may hear quite a bit about sin and guilt. The purpose is not to depress you, or make you feel bad, although it may do that momentarily. The purpose is to help you understand just how much God loves you, and just what a wonderful thing we celebrate on Easter.

May Christ bless you this Lenten season.