A Mighty Fortress is Our God LBW 503

“A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing amid the flood of mortal ills…”  This hymn by Martin Luther is often associated with the Reformation.  The Reformation was a time of uncertainty and upheaval as many began to question practices of the Catholic church. Luther publicly posted his disagreements with the church on the doors of the church at Wittenberg. The church door was an equivalent of the “internet news” in his time.

Luther looked to Psalm 46 for strength in time of this geopolitical struggle and as a source of inspiration for this hymn. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble…” The Psalmist continues “Be still and know that I am God. I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”  

In Proverbs 3:5 we read “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not rely on your own insight”

Luther placed his trust in God at the time of his persecution by the church and the government. Where do we place our trust when we face life’s challenges?  Is God a mighty fortress against evil in our lives?

Read Job 1-2

In the first two chapters we see Satan and God negotiate a deal over Job’s life. Satan makes a bet that in the face of tragedy Job will rebuke God. “The Lord says to Satan ‘Behold all that he has is in your power; only upon himself do not put forth your hand’ ” (Job 1:12) 

Job responds to all the suffering that Satan imparts with faith. He responds to the loss of his ten children “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job is not unique in the Bible. David was forced into hiding to save his life.  Paul was imprisoned for two years. They responded with prayer and faith in God’s steadfast care.

We all experience pain, suffering and loss. Can we respond with prayer?  How do we find God in the light of our own suffering and pain? When we are tested by events in life how do we respond? 

Receiving Grace…

“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, they are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:23-24). Each of us has received God’s favor as a gift. We didn’t earn it nor deserve it. It is freely given. We must only accept it. Our response to God’s grace is prayer. The grace of God is our hope and our salvation from our human state. We receive God’s grace every day.

Giving Grace

If we receive undeserved grace from God, how should we act toward others? The Bible often speaks to a “servant heart”. In Matthew we find Jesus teaching that “whoever would be great among you must be your servant. ” (Matthew 20:26) Jesus is our example as well as our savior. When we serve others, we serve God. When we show compassion for those in need, we are reflecting the grace freely given to us every day-without our request and undeserved. In 1 Peter we find “If one suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed but under that name let him glorify God” (1Peter 4:16)

You receive God’s grace-do you give grace to others? “Know this my beloved brethren, Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” (James 1:19)

Do you know someone in need of grace now? “We love because he first loved us.” (1John 4:19)

What does grace look like for you?

The Lord’s Prayer

Every Sunday we recite the Lord’s Prayer. Have you ever thought about what you are asking of God? Mankind faces the power of the devil, the world and our own flesh in our struggle to obey God’s Laws. We lose every time as no one can perfectly keep the Ten Commandments (Deuteronomy 5:10-21). It is for this reason we call upon God with prayer. Prayer is often a reactive response to challenges in our daily lives. When do you pray? Is it only when “life happens”?

In the Lord’s Prayer we pray that God helps us to keep his name holy and use it to call upon Him in time of need. The prayer recognizes the daily peril to our faith and calls upon us to respond in prayer. When we ask for “daily bread” we are petitioning God to sustain us with temporal needs and with peace and concord with those around us. It asks us to reflect the model of Christ’s life in our own lives.

As Job, David and Paul did, we also find the devil is all about us. God forgives us but calls upon us to recognize that forgiveness (grace) he freely offers. “In as much as we sin greatly against God every day and yet he forgives it all through grace, we must always forgive our neighbor who does us harm, violence and injustice, bears malice towards us etc. (Book of Concord, p 433)

If God forgave your trespasses as you forgive others where would you be?

Do you know someone who needs to hear about God’s forgiveness? How could you bring grace into that person’s life?