Chaos in Christendom

Newsletter article for December 2003

© 2003 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

It has been said that chaos begets chaos. Forgive me for not knowing the source of that saying, but it is often true. When all the structures that keep our lives in order have vanished then our sinful nature sees an opportunity to exert itself and unless one possesses a good amount of self control then we only add to the chaos. Lutheran doctrine teaches that the first use of the Law is that our sinful nature is kept in check by the threat of punishment. We don’t wish to be punished, so we don’t do what is wrong. This is obviously not the same as doing right, but it keeps things relatively safe and orderly in a world where few people even care to obey God. An example of this self-perpetuating chaos is when those who enforce the law are rendered incapable, such as during times of war or other great disaster. The ongoing quagmire in Iraq is an example of this. Chaos can also erupt during power outages, and I think we can all be thankful to God that during this summer’s massive blackout that there were relatively few instances of looting and thievery. There were some reported examples of these, but compared to the scale of the blackout it could have been much worse.

I bring this up only as a general example of how lawlessness brings about more lawlessness and chaos. There seems to be a growing chaos in the church. Now when I say the “church” I mean what used to be called “Christendom” or the visible church on earth. Among the True Church, that is all the believers in Christ throughout the world, things are as good as they always have been because the believers in Christ live by faith, and not by sight, and we know that Christ is Lord of all and has everything in control, even when everything seems to be spinning out of control.

Yet, it is still disturbing to read reports of apostasy and growing division within Christian denominations. The hearts of Christians throughout the world must hurt for our brothers and sisters who are affected by public denials of the clear teaching of Holy Scripture. We have been hearing a lot lately about a growing rift in the Episcopal Church over Sixth Commandment (marriage and sexuality) issues. These reports hit close to home for Lutherans for at least two reasons. First, the news reports say that if there is a denominational split then it would be the biggest since the LCMS lost about 100,000 members in the early 1970s. And second, regardless of what happens among the Episcopal Churches, it would seem that the LCMS is threatening to soon follow.

It is true that the issues are quite different on the surface, but underneath the root causes are the same. Actually all division and false teachings and chaos in the church has a similar cause, and that is the sinfulness and unbelief of some who call themselves “Christians,” but we can go further than that to note that underlying a lot of controversy in Christian churches worldwide is a lack of trust in, and obedience to, God’s Word. Among the Episcopal leaders who approved the appointment of a bishop who is an avowed practicing homosexual, they could only have done this if they denied the clear teaching of God that such things are “detestable.” Now this wouldn’t concern us too much unless chaos begets chaos. When unbelievers and heretics see others getting away with such sins then they are emboldened and then try to do something similar where they can.

“God tempts no one to sin, but we pray in the Lord’s Prayer that God would guard and keep us so that the devil, the world, and our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief, despair, and other great shame and vice. Although we are attacked by these things, we pray that we may finally overcome them and win the victory.” In this way, Martin Luther explains the sixth petition of the Lord’s Prayer in his Small Catechism. The thing about temptation is that it is most effective when you don’t realize it is happening to you. Temptation to sin is always dangerous, and we all have our weaknesses where we sometimes fall into sin even when we know we shouldn’t, but we are most vulnerable when we don’t realize that what we are doing is a sin.

The devil can be sneaky. St. Peter compares him to a lion prowling around seeking for someone to devour. If you don’t know the lion is there then you are easy prey. That is why in my catechism and membership classes I devote quite a bit of time to teaching the ten commandments. In tempting us, Satan tries to get us to believe that sin is somehow desirable. If he can get us to think that committing a sin is somehow a “good” thing to our eyes then he has won, and we have lost. If we want to sin then the devil doesn’t have to do anything to get us to sin, which he can’t do anyway because God has mercifully limited his powers, but because of our sinful nature we are only too ready to cooperate to our own downfall. The phrase, “the devil made me do it” is just a cop-out and is completely untrue. All the devil can do is lie to you. If you believe him it is your own fault. Our trouble with temptation is that we all too often believe the lies of Satan and fall into temptation and sin.

We are not without defense against temptation, however. God has given us a powerful weapon against sin and temptation and the devil. That weapon is the Holy Scriptures. The power of the Holy Bible to work against Satan is the power of God because the Bible is God’s Word. Since the Bible is God’s Word the more we know the Bible the more we know God, and the more we know and love God the better we can recognize and resist the work of the devil because Satan is always opposed to God even when he pretends not to be.

The trouble nowadays is that most people don’t know or don’t believe in the Scriptures and because of this they have no chance against the temptations of Satan. This is even a problem in the church. This is no more clearly illustrated than in the recent controversy in the Episcopal Church where they have ignored the clear teachings of Holy Scripture and have elevated an openly homosexual priest to a position of leadership as bishop in the church. In this controversy there is no shortage of faithful Christian Episcopals (and others) who have given a true Christian witness to the sinfulness of this action, and yet the Episcopal church has proceeded. Their justification of this disgrace is in the interest of diversity and a kind of “love” which is foreign to God and His holy Word, but which is right at home with the devil.

One local Episcopal priest wrote a column for the Detroit Free Press recently in which he wrote that this situation was an “embarrassment.” But it was very strange that what embarrassed him was not the fact that his Church had abandoned even the pretense of obedience to God and His good will for us, but instead, he was embarrassed by the faithful Christians who objected to the appointing of this bishop. In the column which was a little shorter than this essay this man denied the authority of God’s Word because it was several thousands of years old; implied that the Old Testament laws were not God’s Word, but the ancient bias of “a priestly cult”; and called St. Paul a “homophobic … mid-First Century AD Pharisaic Jew-turned-militant-Christian” who presumed to “dictate the very will and law of an unseen God.” He also called the Bible a “bin for discarded concepts and notions” and finally he denied that God created the universe in seven days as He said He did.

This is of course an extreme example, but this shows where temptation can lead when it is unchecked by God’s Word and the repentance that comes from the proper preaching of God’s Word. The only way that such an obvious sin can be so vigorously defended by otherwise good people who call themselves “Christian” is if they deny the authority of God in the Bible. If the Bible is not God’s Word then it is probably outdated and unreliable and can be replaced by something else. In the case of the Episcopal Church the Word of God is apparently replaced by something of Satan’s devising. That is the only way that good “Christian” people could defend something that God calls “detestable” and which goes against all Biblical teaching on marriage and sexuality.

Of course my purpose is not to bash the Episcopals. There are plenty of faithful Christian Episcopals. Many of them seem to be in Africa, but wherever they may be (God bless them and give them strength) they are not afraid to speak the truth even though they are condemned by the American liberals as backward and foolish. Such is the lot in life for faithful Christians in an age where sin is seen as a good thing and what is truly good is despised. No, my purpose here is to illustrate the dangers of temptation.

The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod is not yet in danger of following in the footsteps of the Episcopal Church, but with the events of the past couple years we have started to head in that direction. Remember that it begins with a denial of God’s Word as a living and valid authority. When God’s Word doesn’t have authority then God doesn’t have authority in our lives, and we replace His rule with something else. Usually we place ourselves in that place first, doing what is right in our own eyes, but in doing so we open the door to Satan to do what he wants in our lives. Satan doesn’t come to good Christian people and tell them to commit all kinds of disgusting sins such as homosexuality. No one would fall for that. Instead he starts off small and works his way to greater and greater sins until we are far off of the path of God’s righteousness that we can’t remember any longer what it is like to truly be obedient to God. That is the real tragedy of the Episcopal situation. Many of their new bishop’s defenders truly believe that they are doing something that is pleasing to God even though God calls it “detestable.” In our own Church we are alarmed by this year’s resolution of the charges against the Atlantic District President in which the Dispute Resolution Panel ignored the clear teachings of the Scriptures which determined that President Benke was guilty. Instead, they somehow exonerated him by a faulty interpretation of some lesser man-made rules which really should have had no authority in the case. If this is allowed to stand then our own Denomination will fall down the slippery slope toward an end which only God can see. God’s Word gives us our only hope for salvation and rescue from sin and its consequences. Pray that God will keep us faithful and standing firm against the temptations which seek to destroy us.

Rejecting the Survival Instinct

Newsletter article for May 2003
© 2003 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

Behavioral philosophers (Psychologists and sociologists call themselves scientists, but human behavior is so complex and inscrutable that their work is nothing more than philosophical speculation) describe something which they call “survival instinct”. This is a subconscious drive to preserve one’s own life when faced with life-threatening danger. In some situations this instinct is a gift from God. Many people’s lives have been spared from dangerous situations when they acted on this instinct while their rational minds were paralyzed by fear. However, in God’s kingdom here on earth (i.e. among Christians) this natural instinct must often be overcome in order to remain God’s people and survive in His kingdom.

Proverbs 14:12 tells us that “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.” The way that seems right to us is that we ought to do everything we can to save ourselves both for this life, and in the life to come. However Jesus taught that “whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25) This goes against all of our natural survival instincts, and yet, Christians know that Jesus loves us and He would never tell us to do anything that isn’t in our best interests, so we accept this as true, and we struggle to understand this paradox and live our lives according to it. So then we need to know, “What does this mean?”

It doesn’t mean that we ought to try and hurt ourselves. Instead Jesus means that we ought to put our lives into God’s hands in all things, and instead of trying to save ourselves we ought to be obedient to God in all things, even if it causes us pain or costs us our lives. In doing this we must rely and trust in God to rescue us from all dangers of body and soul. One of my favorite examples of this in the Old Testament is David. Several times in his life, David acted in a way which was sublimely faithful to God, but from a human perspective was suicidal. The first incident happened when David was only a teenager or a young man. David risked his life in a one-on-one battle with the giant Philistine warrior, Goliath. David trusted that God would give him the victory over the blaspheming pagan, and that is exactly what happened. (1 Samuel 17) Later David allowed King Saul to escape his sword twice even though Saul had sworn to kill David, but David refused to kill the man God had chosen to be king. (1 Samuel 24 & 26) David did this even though Saul had turned against God, and God had already chosen David to replace Saul as the next king.

Other Old Testament examples of risking one’s life in order to save it are shown in the lives of Daniel and his friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Each of these four men remained faithful to God in violation of the King’s decree, and would have been executed except for the miraculous power of God who rescued Daniel from the hungry lions (Daniel 6), and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the blast-furnace (Daniel 3).

In the New Testament we see faithful believers going even further. Stephen continued to witness to the Lordship of Jesus even while he was being stoned to death, and other Apostles and believers were persecuted and killed for their faithfulness to Jesus.

What is wrong with instinct? Since we are by nature sinful, our natural instincts are basically selfish. Selfishness means that we are more concerned with pleasing ourselves than pleasing God. God doesn’t want us to be selfish because he knows that selfishness will lead us to despise Him and we will be lost forever. Instead God wants us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” (Prov. 3:5) Gideon is a great example of this (Judges 6-8). When God called him to raise an army to defend God’s people against the attacks of the Midianites he started with an army of over 30,000 soldiers. God told Gideon that he had too many soldiers because when they won the victory they would think that it came by their own strength and power, and they would again forget about God (which is why God allowed the Midianites to harass them in the first place). When Gideon’s army was down to only 300 soldiers God was satisfied that it was small enough that they would know that the victory was won by the power of God, and not by their own strength.

If we save our life by losing it then does this mean that we shouldn’t care for others? Not at all! God commands us to “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 19:19; Matt. 22:39; Mark 12:31& 33; Luke 10:27; Rom. 13:9; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8) However, this command is described as the Second greatest commandment. The First is that we ought to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” (Deut. 6:5, 10:12, 11:13, 13:3, 30:6; Joshua 22:5; Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27) This means that while we do care for the needs of others, we don’t do it above and beyond the will and commands of God. If we try to love our neighbor, but in the process disobey God, then not only are we not loving God, but we really aren’t loving our neighbor either. We can’t despise God and still love our neighbor at the same time.

So what does this mean for the church? Well, in times of trial and testing, as we are presently experiencing, it means that we don’t necessarily take the obvious or easy path. If our problem seems to be a lack of money then we don’t solve the problem by seeking to get more money. God is in control of His church. If God thinks that we are trusting too much in money He can invent ways to relieve us of that problem, and no matter how much we may try to keep up with the bills, it won’t be enough until we learn the lesson that God wants us to learn. In God’s tests the only correct solution is to die to yourself and live for God. This means that we may have to do things which we “know” won’t work. The ways which “seem right” to us, are often wrong in God’s eyes.

If we want to grow the Church then we “know” that if we stand firm on teaching the true Christian doctrine of the Lutheran Church we will drive people away. However, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32) The Lutheran Church has a marvelous treasure in its doctrine and teaching. It is nothing less than the treasure of heaven itself. If we are to call ourselves by the name “Lutheran” then we should learn exactly what that is all about and know and make use of the great riches which have been entrusted to us. This calls for great faith because it means trusting in God’s Word and Sacraments to work miracles when we would rather trust in ourselves and the way that “seems right” to us. God is faithful (1 Cor. 1:9) and His word will accomplish great miracles that we can’t understand how (Isa. 55:11). Through His Word, God has kept His church alive through all kinds of trials and tribulations for many thousands of years, and He will continue to do so to the end.

Stand Up for Jesus

Newsletter article for February 2002

© 2002 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

Jesus said, “I tell you, whoever acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man will also acknowledge him before the angels of God. But he who disowns me before men will be disowned before the angels of God.” (Luke 12:8-9)

It is in times of crisis that it is important to stand up and be counted for what you truly believe in. Unfortunately there more than enough crises to go around. There are always several international crises to choose from, although they don’t always impact us directly. There are national, state, and local problems which often affect us negatively. There are family problems, work problems, social problems, and even personal problems which cause us concern and possibly worry.

Jesus tells us several times in Matthew 6, “Do not worry.” God, our Father, provides us with all we need, so we are always well taken care of, and we don’t need to worry about anything. This lack of worry, however, only comes from a strong faith that trusts that God will take care of us and provide for all our needs. This faith also helps us to accept the fact that although God always provides for our needs, He may not always provide for our wants and desires.

St. Timothy has had to deal with several situations lately which might be cause for worry. With the public school system moving toward a chaotic-like state, it has decreased our school enrollment the past couple years. Our congregation has supported the school (as it should), but our current resources are quite limited. Our financial troubles have forced us to determine what is most important for us to be doing, and cutting back on things that, while still important, are not vital to the operation of the Church and School. We have been forced to examine our priorities, but isn’t that just like human nature — people don’t change their priorities until they have no other choice (and sometimes, not even then).

Well, we are human, but with all our troubles we can take comfort in a couple of things. First, we are still God’s people, and Jesus tells us “Do not worry” and “Trust in Me.” As long as we listen to Jesus and put Him first in what we do, then He will bless us. Along the way we may have to learn some hard lessons, but in the end we will be better for them. We have learned, for example, that Christian churches probably ought not to get involved in raffles, but instead should focus on the Bible verse at the top of this page and concentrate on proclaiming Christ as Lord.

Second, it may sound strange, but we can take comfort in our financial troubles. It is not a pleasure by any means to struggle to pay bills, or to lay-off staff, but we can be thankful to God that our troubles are only financial. There are troubles that are much worse. Despite our troubles we still belong to God. We have pulled together to prayerfully resolve our problems, while at the same time we have remembered that Christ wants us to confess Him alone as Lord, and that to everyone who does this, He will also claim as His children. This is a wonderful blessing. There are many churches which are much better off than us financially, but are beset by troubles which are much more difficult to overcome. Our troubles are not small, but in many ways they have drawn us closer together, and made us rely more on God for help and direction. It is my prayer that we will work even harder to remain faithful to Christ and do the work of God’s people, which is, above all, to share the Gospel with those who don’t know Christ, and make disciples through baptizing and teaching God’s Word.

The Will of God is always best and shall be done forever;
And they who trust in Him are blest, He will forsake them never.
He helps indeed in time of need, He chastens with forbearing;
They who depend on God, their friend, shall not be left despairing.
“The Will of God is Always Best” The Lutheran Hymnal #517

I Was Glad When They Said To Me, Let Us Go Into The House of the Lord

Newsletter Article for November 1998

© 1998 by Rev. Paul A. Wolff

“Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25)

I suppose it should give us some comfort to know that the early Christian Church in the first century had some of the same troubles as we do now. Although the way we live now is vastly different, people are unchanged. The same exhortations that we read in the New Testament also apply to us.

At one point or another we all need to be encouraged, prodded, cajoled, or dragged kicking and screaming into Sunday worship. Actually I would prefer to forego much of the kicking and screaming, but it would give those in attendance something to talk about. (“You’ll never believe what happened in Church on Sunday.... You should have been there!”)

The writer of the book of Hebrews is talking about what a great honor it is that God invites us to come near to Him and come into His house. This was almost unheard of among the Hebrew people in the Old Testament because only the priests could go into the holy place of the temple, and only the high priest could go into the most holy place on one day a year. At the death of Jesus God’s house was opened up to all the faithful. When Jesus died God was no longer our enemy. He was instead our salvation, and He welcomes us with open arms into His house.

Habits can be a good thing when we make doing good a habit. But habits can be bad when we do harmful things without even thinking about it. Bad habits are hard to break precisely because we don’t think about what we are doing. If we are in the habit of attending worship on Sunday then we are regularly reminded of God’s care and concern for us every day of our lives. If we are not in the habit of worshipping regularly then we have to rely on our (sometimes faulty) memory. The longer we stay away from God’s house, the worse off we are, but we forget why.

But let us encourage one another to attend worship. God’s people are like a family. A large family. A family of millions and billions of people both here on earth and also in heaven. However, we need that encouragement because sometimes we forget that those sinners we see in the pews and in the pulpit are people whom God loves, just as He loves the sinner we see in the mirror every day.

Our time is short on earth, but that is no reason to skip Church on Sunday. Instead that is the very reason why we should come to Church. We should be eager to come to God’s house and learn more about Him. When Jesus returns on the last day we want to be eager to see Him and be near Him. We don’t want Jesus to be a stranger to us when He comes back. It would be so embarrassing if we have to ask the guy next to us who that is coming from heaven on the clouds. Worse than that, we don’t want Jesus to say “I don’t know you” because if He says that then that would be the last time we ever see Him.

Let’s all recommit ourselves to worshipping God every Sunday. That way, we will get a head start on some of the joys we will share in heaven. See you in God’s house.