Löhe devotional for 10. January

Perhaps those involved in the events surrounding February 19, 1974 should have read more Löhe and less Elert. 

The following is from the blog "Wilhelm's space" http://kwaweber.org/2014/01/10/lohe-on-2-timothy-316/

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness. (2Ti 3:16 NAS)

The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament  are like the starry skies at night. Whoever lifts up his eyes from the dark earth up to the bright stars above sees the shiniest first – the big ones and those in the milky way. Yet as the eye is accustomed to the sight, it begins to see more and more. Finally even the dark blue of the night seems to be interwoven with light and shining brightness. So it also for the reader of the holy Bible. At first you perceive the strong and catchy verses, which are obviously clear and impressive at first sight. Yet as you continue reading more and more verses light up until you don’t just get the flow of the story, but rather comprehend the perfect harmony, which makes up the whole entirety.

So it’s not just a wise crack to get over the difficulties of some parts, if it is suggested to let the light and insight of the clear and main parts, which make up the rule of faith and guide all exegesis, light up the obscure and darker passages.

Holy Scripture has always proven itself as comprehensible and clear. All supposed obscurity and darkness is not so much its own drawback, but rather rests in the eyes and heart of the reader. All misconceptions, contradictions and heresies projected into God’s Word – and even the most drastic lie, that God’s Holy Spirit did not reveal his truth aptly and comprehensibly in the holy Bible – are not to be blamed against God and his Holy Spirit, but rather fair and square at the doorstep of our human blindness and sinful rebellion, which impede our insight into God’s will and prompt us to disobey his clear commandments and doubt his gracious promises. The holy Word of God suffers the same predicament as the Son of God himself: For the faithful it is faithful and true, for the holy it is holy and sanctified, with the pure it is pure and salvific; yet with the wrongful it is wrong and for the children of darkness it is utter darkness and obscurity. Praise be to God, the Lord, who is the living source of goodness and in whose light we see the light + Amen.

Lord, our God! We thank you for your most holy Word, which shows us the way to you and can save us eternally. Grant that we respect, honour and love your holy Word in such a way, that we trust and believe it, gladly hear, read and learn it and thus be guided from one truth to the other until we see you from face to face, hear you yourself and thus come to the blessed peace you have promised us. Amen.  

God’s Word is our great heritage And shall be ours forever; To spread its light from age to age Shall be our chief endeavor. Through life it guides our way, In death it is our stay. Lord, grant, while worlds endure, We keep its teachings pure. Throughout all generations. (Nikolai F. S. Grundtvig, 1783-1872 tr Ole G. Belsheim, 1861-1925)

This is a rather free translation of Wilhelm Löhe’s devotion for the 10th January during the high holiday of Epiphany. It is found on Pg. 51 in Lob sei Dir ewig, o Jesu!   (Eternal Praise to you o Jesus!) edited by A. Schuster and published in the Freimund Verlag, Neuendettelsau 1949.

A paragraph from Löhe on Matthew 9 for Trinity 24

With all the snow we've been getting lately, I have had more time to devote to translating. I undertook a project several years ago to translate from German the sermons of Wilhelm Löhe on the Holy Gospels. I completed that project over a year ago, minus two Trinity sermons that rarely occur in the long season of Trinity. Honestly, I was worn out translating Löhe and needed a break. I had intended to finish the last two sermons at some point, so I am thankful for the rejuvenation and opportunity to tackle those last two sermons now.

One is now finished, and the other is near completion. Thankfully, Löhe's last few sermons in the Trinity season are briefer than his others.

Here's a sample from the last sermon I'm translating. The Gospel Reading is Matthew 9,18-26 for the 24. Sunday after Trinity. Löhe preached this in 1859.

1. (489) 1. So there were still some good people among evil Capernaum. The nobleman, who comes to Christ in Cana to gain his son's recovery — the paralytic, proved the Lord's power to heal and thus also forgive sins, — in today's Gospel of the chief teacher, the ruler of the synagogue and the woman with the issue of blood were found in Capernaum. Like many others, the heart beat for the Lord in "His city!" Yet it was enough for the Lord and we hear once again from His mouth a mighty woe spoken against Capernaum on account of their spiritual resistance, for they were opposed to His miracles and sermons! To whom much is given, of him much is required! The more seeds sown, the more bountiful harvest is expected! For what is much for one, is little for someone else, and and as the case may be God gives gifts, as the case may be He expects sacrifice! But nevertheless, the souls adhering to them believed the Lord in Capernaum, and they have been praying and sighing to God in addition to the Divine forbearance is the reason why the temporal punishment of God does not befall Capernaum, which had once befell upon Sodom and Gomorrah, and in other ways come across Tyre and Sidon. After all, the meek are considering ​​Jesus' judgment and woe right rightly upon Capernaum, which may be something not unlike a huge debt, even if they cannot be completely proven from the Gospel. A debt so blatant that it brings the Lamb of God to utter woe and measure such great threats from the wrath of Almighty God have challenged that a strong arm belonged to withhold God's abolished arm. But this strong arm — I find it in the faith and prayers of those mentioned above and indicated by the small flock of Jesus, and it has urged me to point out the strength of their faith and prayer, because I can prove to you a spoken example of the fact that sometimes only a few in a village and a city intercede for God's patience and long-suffering, perhaps  an unknown supplicant thanks the Lord, and may He also grant our congregation such a crowd faithful intercessors and protect us in mercy! 

Löhe on Mark 16,16

Jesus said to the Eleven: Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. (Mark 16,16 ESV). 

from: http://kwaweber.org/2013/05/10/lohe-on-mark-1616/

What did the Lord Jesus Christ leave those, whom he left behind when he ascended into heaven? According to the gospel of Saint Mark, we can answer this question as follows: He left them holy Baptism and also gifts of miracles and wonders. That’s his coat – much richer and more potent than the coat of Elijah ever was. Holy Baptism can cover the entire world with God’s peace and blessing. It is wide and big enough and also has a very great promise that it will not cease nor stop granting fountains of living water just as little as all the oceans, rivers and fountains of this world will stop to pour forth precious fluid. They will remain doing so until the end comes.

And the miracles and wonders? They all have this one commonality that they strive to overcome and remove the evil disturbing the godly creation. So the talking in many languages is nothing else than overcoming the evil of Babylonian confusion. All the detrimental consequences and outgrowths of sin and evil must finally disappear and be eradicated by the power of salvation and the blessed cure of holy Baptism. This holy Baptism is the blessed beginning and sanctified start while the miracles and wonders point us to the end, the finalization and completion of all in Jesus Christ. Beginning and end, way and goal, means and purpose are all given and present in him, who has ascended gloriously into the highest heaven and received gifts and graces for his people.

Löhe on 1. Peter 2,11

»Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul« (1. Peter 2,11 ESV).

from http://kwaweber.org/2013/04/23/lohe-on-1-peter-211-2/

The Apostle encourages the Christians to live chaste and pure lives. This does not only relate to the 6^th commandment, but goes further than that. Even the fifth and seventh commandments are directed against sinful desires, which war against our souls. Anger, revenge, theft, corruption and many other sinful desires war against our souls. They destroy the joy and gladness in our hearts. They work like frost in a spring night – destroying the blossoming fruits of the season in no time.

The word “war against your soul” can be understood in more than one way, but all will agree that the happiness of our souls and the associated holy lives are severely damaged by these sinful desires. How is the pilgrim to make his way home steadily if these things preoccupy him and keep him from going about his real business. Where is the joy and courage to come from to reach out to heaven if these things are pulling him back and holding him down? That is why we should concentrate our energy, strength and capacities to abstain from sinful desires, to rid ourselves of sinful ways and to put off all that holds us back and makes us sluggish in our Christian pilgrimage.

O holy God, who will be perceived only by those with clean hearts, grant us your Holy Spirit, that he cleanse our hearts from all sin and sanctify us through and through. Work in us both the will to do and the doing of good works. Strengthen, empower, confirm and capacitate us that we will be found pure and without blame on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Whoever strives to accommodate himself to this world, will be put to shame. The sinful world does not hold its promises. It is not dependable.

Whoever depends on God and the world, will limp on both sides. His heart will remain divided and won’t find peace. It’ll have trouble and pain – no end.

On God alone – that’s how it should be – he is the true sanctuary. Who trusts in God, builds on him alone, is blessed here and saved eternally. (Julius Sturm, 1816-1896)

This is a rather free translation of Wilhelm Löhe’s devotion for Tuesday after the third Sunday after Easter: Jubilate. It is found on Pg. 182 in Lob sei Dir ewig, o Jesu!   (Eternal Praise to you o Jesus!) edited by A. Schuster and published in the Freimund Verlag, Neuendettelsau 1949.

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Easter Monday

That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them: „What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?“ And they stood still, looking sad. (Luke 24,13-17 ESV)

Yesterday’s gospel tells about Easter morning, today’s gospel talks about that evening. What a morning and what an evening – and all the difference made by Jesus Christ’s victorious resurrection from the dead. Two disciples are going to Emmaus mourning and crying. Asked by the stranger concerning their sorrow, they give an Easter answer, but without the joy of Easter. They are crying while spreading joyous seeds, which had not yet sprouted to their own rejoicing. In this way you can be rich without knowing about those boxes of treasures – hungry in spite of all your wealth. But this is to change quite dramatically. The stranger can call these sorrowing men out of their distress and bring them to the hopeful glory by his insight into matters. Their hearts start to burn. It was the fire of hope for an eternal life and the resurrection of the body, which even today still has the power to kill all sorrow, kindle comfort and awaken peace and in this way vitalize the soul with eternal joy.

Two disciples go with longing across the veld to Emmaus; their eyes are full of tears, theirs souls full of regrets and they’re sharing words of mourning, but Lord Jesus close already close by to dispel all misery.

Oh, so many hearts are caught up in despair, bewailing own pain and hurt while going forward heavily burdened – yet Jesus is already quite close by to dispel all misery.

If two souls are in discourse Jesus is the third. He knows all hurts, but has the cure too. He won’t fail us even as we are at a loss without hope, but does all to comfort and to heal.  (Johann Neunherz, 1653-1737)

This is a rather free translation of Wilhelm Löhe’s devotion for Monday, the 2^nd Holiday of Easter. It is found on Pg. 160 in Lob sei Dir ewig, o Jesu!   (Eternal Praise to you o Jesus!) edited by A. Schuster and published in the Freimund Verlag, Neuendettelsau 1949.

Learning from Löhe: Reminiscere

15. "And therefore finally being heard. The intercessory mother had made the whole thing to her daughter and her faithful interchange pleases the Lord. We must pray in our time of need, which can be seen here, even praying in external hardships. These are holy, heavenly souls who live as they perceive as their own, and so strange woe (153) long outlive our own distress, as they perceive external hardships. External needs are no different in the hearts of the saints, intercession and petition are distinctions which  the petitioner should not perceive, but which sees the Lord as gracious and joyfully forgets this distinction when they come to pray. So it is here. This mother's healthy body is sick because her daughter is sick. They begged for help for themselves. Thus the Lord now heals together both mother and daughter, heals the mother lying near His feet, and in the distance the daughter - and His simple help, such as the thanks and honor is doubled by the compassionate love that was doubled in need" (Löhe 152-53; Matthew 15,21-28).