LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2016, Page 189

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IV. THEOLOGICAL DOCUMENTS­­—COMMISSION ON THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

Read Romans 1:18-32. What details of Paul’s discussion reveal the roots of hostility and persecution
against God, His Word, and His people? Why is it important to remember that the persecuted fall under
condemnation for sin just as surely as those who are hostile to them?
As the New Testament narrative begins, the hostility rooted in Eden bursts into full and poisonous flower,
directed against Jesus, the Word made flesh, and against all who would come to walk in His light. In
Jesus “was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). However terrible the darkness and evil, it
has not, and cannot, overcome the Light: “The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not
overcome it” (John 1:5).
Read John 3:16-21. What reasons does Jesus Himself give for the hostility against the light? Why do
people love the darkness? Read Mark 9:38-41. How sharp is the dividing line between darkness and
light? Are there “gray areas”?
Jesus, the Light of the world, warned His disciples, “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me
before it hated you” (John 15:18). A servant is not greater than his master and should not expect to be
treated any better than the master (John 15:20; Matt. 10:24-25). The unbelieving world persecuted Jesus
the Master; it will persecute His servants also. Of all of the promises of Jesus, this may be one that we
would rather not hear. But as the experiences of the disciples would later show (Acts 5:41), there is joy to
be found even in that promise.

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lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he
loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.’ It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is
treating you as sons” (Heb. 12:5-7). Every branch of the true Vine that does bear fruit the Father prunes,
“that it may bear more fruit” (John 15:2).
As sons and daughters, saints and servants of the Master, we will suffer the world’s hostility. The ancient
serpent from Eden is still determined to “make war” on all those “who keep the commandments of God
and hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Rev. 12:17). The darkness still seeks to overcome the Light. Luther,
writing to console those who were persecuted, commented: “It is the nature of the divine word to be
heartily received by a few, but to be persecuted ruthlessly by many.”9 Holy Scripture tells us, “Indeed, all
who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12). Persecution, whatever its
purpose or limits, is guaranteed. How should we respond?
Responsive Reading . . . Psalm 27

The plans and purposes of God are beyond our knowledge and understanding, except as He chooses to
reveal them to us in Holy Scripture. Even then we may not understand those purposes and can only cling
to the Word. We are warned, as Jesus warned His disciples, of the hostility that will be directed against us
as His followers. That very “advance warning” reminds us that even the powers of darkness arrayed
against us are subject to the Light. The risen Lord Jesus revealed to the Christians in Smyrna that they
were going to suffer persecution, but He told them not to be afraid. The devil would throw some of them
into prison and “for ten days” they would have tribulation (Rev. 2:10). The Lord was well aware of what
lay ahead for His people and He set limits to the suffering they would soon experience.
The Lord was well aware of what lay ahead for Him in His earthly ministry as well. Throughout the Old
Testament, the prophets foretold the hostility that would be directed against the Word made flesh (see, for
example, Psalm 2, Psalm 22, and Isaiah 53). The Scriptures mapped out His path to the cross in chilling
and accurate detail. Jesus often told His disciples what to expect in those final days in Jerusalem (Matt.
16:21; Matt. 17:22-23; Matt. 20:18-19). All that was done to Jesus, the persecution, rejection, betrayal
and crucifixion, was done “according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God” (Acts 2:23).
Briefly review events in the life of Jesus, from His birth to His crucifixion. Give examples of the hostility
directed against Him. How was He persecuted? How was Satan, directly and indirectly, involved in the
hostility against Jesus? Read 1 Peter 2:18-25. How did Jesus respond to the persecution directed against
Him? For a short time, “the power of darkness” (Luke 22:53) eclipsed the Light. Yet what was the
ultimate result of the persecution directed against Jesus? Read Romans 8:16-17. What is the ultimate
result for those who suffer as servants of the Master?
The book of Hebrews provides a catalog of saints, many of whom endured persecution. They were
tortured, mocked, imprisoned, stoned, sawn in two, and killed with the sword. At the head of this parade
of triumphant, persecuted servants, “of whom the world was not worthy,” (Heb. 11:32-38) stands Jesus,
their Master, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is
seated at the right hand of God” (Heb. 12:2). We are told to remember the hostility endured by Jesus, that
we “may not grow weary or fainthearted” (Heb. 12:3). The same chapter of Hebrews goes on to reveal a
deeper purpose behind the hostility we experience, although we may not always recognize, understand, or
welcome it: “And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? ‘My son, do not regard

9
Martin Luther, A Letter of Consolation to All Who Suffer Persecution (1522), Luther’s Works, vol. 43, ed. Gustav
K. Wiencke (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1968), 62.

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Session 2
“My Power is Made Perfect in Weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9)
Responding in Joy and Forgiveness

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Consider the following contemporary examples:
The Westboro Baptist Church, known especially for its protests at military funerals, planned to
protest at the 2014 Colorado State University graduation. The protesters believe that the
graduating students of the current generation are “unique in their filthy manner of life; unique in
the lies that pervade their every thought” and unique in their enabling of same-sex marriage.11

“For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and
calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10). The apostle Paul repeatedly asked the
Lord to deliver him from a thorn in the flesh, “a messenger of Satan” sent to harass him and keep him
from becoming conceited (2 Cor. 12:7). The nature of this “thorn” is not known, although scholars have
suggested that it may refer to those who attacked and persecuted Paul or to a physical issue such as
malaria, a speech impediment, or difficulties with his eyesight. Whatever the nature of the affliction, the
Lord replied, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor. 12:9).
Paul responds in faith, concerning his weakness as well as the insults and persecutions he experienced: “I
am content.” The Greek word for Paul’s response, eudokeo, is sometimes translated to mean something
stronger than mere contentment. It is the Father’s response to His Son: “This is my beloved Son, with
whom I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17; see also Matt. 17:5).
Repeatedly imprisoned, whipped five times, beaten three times, stoned and left for dead, shipwrecked and
adrift at sea (2 Cor. 11:23-25), and Paul is pleased? He is not only pleased—he boasts about his
weakness, because in weakness the power of Christ is made perfect, as it was in the humiliation and
shame of the cross. Christ crucified is for us who believe “the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1
Cor. 1:24). As we are pleased and take delight in Jesus’ cross and the salvation won for us there, we may
be pleased—or at least content—with the crosses we bear for His sake, because in them God is at work
and displaying His mighty power.
Read Acts 5:17-42. What message must the apostles proclaim? What is Gamaliel’s advice, and how does
the Jewish ruling council respond? Why do the apostles rejoice? The apostles were not “of the world,”
but how might the world have expected them to respond?
The apostles rejoiced at being counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name of Jesus. One of those
apostles, Peter, would write in his first epistle that believers should not be surprised when a “fiery trial”
came upon them. Instead they were to rejoice, Peter told them, “insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings,
that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of
Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you” (1 Pet. 4:13-14). However,
believers should not suffer for the wrong reasons—“as a murderer or a thief or an evildoer or as a
meddler” (1 Pet. 4:15). We must not become self-made martyrs or create situations for the purpose of
attracting hostility, seeking for ourselves glory that rightly belongs to our Lord. As the writer to the
Hebrews cautions, “In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your
blood” (Heb. 12:4).
As Christians we are to go about the daily work to which God has called us; we are not to search out a
cross to bear. In a sermon on John 18:2, Luther commented that Jesus did not try to flee the suffering that
awaited him on the night he was betrayed, but went with His disciples to Gethsemane according to His
usual custom. “[Christ] followed along to His death, and yet He did not seek out the cross for Himself. He
took His ordinary path as He was accustomed to do. This is a teaching for everyone, that we should
neither seek nor flee the cross.”10

In 2009, Dr. George Tiller, who performed late term abortions, was shot to death at his church in
Wichita, Kansas. His killer, Scott Roeder, was sentenced to life in prison. Roeder defended his
actions, stating that he had to obey God’s law to save babies and that God’s judgment against the
United States would “sweep over this land like a prairie wind.” Roeder promised to “avenge
every drop of innocent blood.”12
How have the individuals in the above news stories created crosses for themselves? Are they
suffering dishonor for the name of Jesus? What impact do such events have on the world’s
perception of Jesus, His Church, and His Word?
We are not called to run toward persecution; it may in fact be necessary at times to flee from it, as the
early believers fled Jerusalem when persecution arose against the Church (Acts 8:1; Acts 11:19). As He
sends His disciples out “as sheep in the midst of wolves” with the urgent message of the kingdom, Jesus
warns them, “When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next” (Matt. 10:16-23). In Antioch of
Pisidia, when persecution rose up against them, Paul and Barnabas “shook off the dust from their feet”
and moved on (Acts 13:51; see also Luke 10:10-12).
At other times, flight may not be desirable or possible. It may be necessary to stand and take up the cross
in a particular place or situation. Paul wants to hear that the Christians in Philippi are “standing firm in
one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything
by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from
God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also
suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have” (Phil.
1:27-30). Before Jesus warns of the necessity of flight He tells His sheep not to be anxious about their
witness when facing the wolves: “For what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. For it is not
you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Matt. 10:19-20). Throughout His
earthly ministry Jesus stood firm against the unbelieving Pharisees and others who opposed Him, yet at
times it was necessary for Him to elude their hostile grasp because “His hour had not yet come” (John
7:30; see also John 10:39 and Luke 4:29-30). But when His hour came, He took up His cross and died for
those who persecuted Him.
The circumstances and limits of persecution remain in God’s hands and are bound by His will. We pray
that we will always stand firm and strive “side by side for the faith of the Gospel.” But for what reasons
or in what circumstances might it become necessary to flee or avoid persecution instead of facing the
hostility?
Jesus Christ has chosen us out of the world to be His own, and therefore, as He warned, the world will
hate us (John 15:19). Still, we should not try to be hated or live in a hateful manner. The world should see
in us the love that marks us as followers of Jesus: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Although they would in due time experience persecution
11

Channel 9 News and the Fort Collins Coloradoan, April 16, 2014 at
http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/2014/04/16/westboro-baptist-church-to-protest-csu-graduation/7793793.
Roxanna Hegeman, “Scott Roeder Sentenced to Life in Prison,” The Huffington Post, April 2, 2010 at
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/01/scott-roeder-sentenced-to_n_522654.html.

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Martin Luther, On the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1528-29/1557), Luther’s
Works, vol. 69, ed. Christopher Boyd Brown and Benjamin T. G. Mayes (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,
2009), 149.

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2016 Convention Workbook