The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1880, Page 23

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The Lutheran Pioneer.

23

The Life of Dr. Martin Luther.

XVII.

A COUNCLL PROMISED.—LUTHER DANGER-
OUSLY ILL.

The pope had for some time promised to call
.a Church Council. Luther did not expect much
good from such a council; for he knew that the
pope and his people hated the pure Gospel.
When therefore, in the year- 1535, Paul Ver-
gerius, a Romish legate, came to Germany for
the purpose of announcing the Church Council,
Luther told him that the pope’s party were not
in earnest, and that, even if such a convention
were brought about, the matters of faith, jus-
tification, and true unity in the Spirit and in
faith would not be discussed.
gerius turned to his attendants and said, “ This
man certainly sees the chief point in the whole
transaction.’’ Luther added: ‘‘We are fully
certain—through the Holy Ghost—on all points,
and have no need of any Council for ourselves,
but desire it for the sake of those wretched
people who are oppressed by your tyranny;
for you do not know what you believe. But,
if you desire it; call a Council, and, by the
help of God, I shall come, even though I knew
that you would burn me.’’ This Vergerius,
ten years afterwards, became an earnest Luth-
eran; for when he studied the works of Luther
for the purpose of refuting them, he became
fully convinced of the truth of Luther’s doc-
trines.

The Lutheran princes wished to be prepared
for the promised Church Council, and they
therefore held a convention in the city of Smal-
cald, in the year 1537. Luther had drawn up
several powerful articles containing the pure
Gospel truth over against the idolatries of the
pope, the Romish Antichrist. These Smalcald
Articles were signed and were held ready for
presentation at the Church Council. The Coun-
cil, however, was not held.

During Luther's stay at Smalcald he became
dangerously ill. He suffered great pain from
an attack of the gravel,.so that he and others
saw death staring him in the face. All the
princes and Jords who were there visited him;
and when the pious Elector of Saxony came to
his bed of suffering, Luther prophetically told
him that after his death dangerous times would
come. The Elector comforted Luther with the
words: ‘Our dear Lord God will have mercy
upon us for the sake of His word and His name,
and spare your life.’”” He then turned away,’
for the tears started in his eyes.

As his pain became more severe, Luther de-
sired to be taken to his home at Wittenberg.
When he left Smalcald he commended himself
to the prayers of the Church and made a brief
confession of his faith: ‘‘I cling to the Lord
Jesus and His word, and in my heart know of no
other righteousness than the precious blood of
Christ, which graciously cleanses me, and all
Who believe, from every sin, as this is freely
eee in my books and in the Augsburg

nfession.”” At his departure he called out

Upon this Ver-.

to his friends: ‘‘ May God fill you with hatred
toward the pope!’’ that is, they should remain
open enemies of the pope’s idolatry unto their
end. While in the carriage he made his will
and prepared himself joyfully to receive the
Lord Jesus, when he should come to take him
to Himself. But the Lord again delivered
him, after eleven days of suffering, from all
his sickness. When he was asked what remedy
had cured him, he answered: ‘ Prayer; for
in all Christian congregations fervent prayers
were offered in my behalf, according to the
command of St. James 5, 14#—15.”’

Luther came home in restored health and
continued to earnestly pray, study, lecture and
preach. With joy he saw that his enemies,
with all their rage, could not hinder the spread
of God’s truth. The number of cities and coun-
tries which received the Gospel was constantly
increasing. But with great sorrow he also saw
false teachers arising among his own followers,
men who perverted the pure truth and who
made ill use of Gospel-liberty. Luther well
knew that Satan was thus trying to injure the
cause of the Reformation; but he was ready to
defend the truth against all the attacks of the
enemy. With a firm hand he wielded the
mighty sword of the Spirit, which is the Word
of God, against all false teachers, and thus
guarded the pure Gospel against all corruption.

s+ or oe

kittle Knud Iverson,
The Young Martyr.

On the afternoon of August 9, 1853, a little
Norwegian boy, named Knud Iverson, who
lived in the city of Chicago, was going to the
pasture for his cow, as light-hearted, I suppose,
as boys usually are when going to the pasture
on a summer's afternoon. He came at length
by a stream of water, where there was a gang
of idle, ill-looking big boys, who, when they
saw Knud, came up to him and said they
wanted him to go into Mr. Elston’s garden and
steal some apples.

‘No,’ said Knud promptly, ‘‘I cannot steal,
Tam sure.”

‘Well, but you've got to,’’ they cried.

“No,’’ said Knud; ‘‘I cannot steal for any-
body.” .

Then they threatened to duck him, for these
wicked big boys had often before frightened
little boys into robbing gardens for them; little
boys, they thought perhaps, were less likely to
be found out.

They could not frighten Knud; so, to make
their words good, they dragged him. to the
river, and in spite of his cries and struggles,
plunged him in. But the heroic boy, even with
the water gurgling and choking in his throat,
never flinched, for he knew, that God says,
“Thou shalt not steal,’’ and God’s Iaw he had
made his law; and no cursing or threats or

cruelty of the big boys would make him give |)

up. Provoked by his firmness, I suppose, they
‘determined to see if they could not conquer;

so they ducked him again, but still it was,
“No,” “no,” and they kept him under water.
There was no one there to rescue the poor child
from their cruel grip. The cries of the drown-
ing child grew faint and fainter, and his
struggles less and less, and the boy was drowned.
He could die, but he would not steal.

A German lad who had stood near, much
frightened by what he saw, ran home to tell
the news. The agonized parents hastened to
the spot, and all night they searched for the
lifeless body of their lost darling. It was found
the next morning; and who shall describe their
feelings as they clasped the little form to their
bosoms? Early piety had blossomed in his little
life. He loved his Bible and his Saviour; and
he would rather die than grieve that dear Sav- .
iour whom he had learned to know in school
and at home. :

As he left home that afternoon, and looked
his last look in his dear mother’s face, he
thought he was only going after his cow; and
the other boys, and the neighbors, if they saw
him, thought so too. They did not then know
that, instead of going to the pasture, he was
going to preach one of the most powerful ser-
mons in favor of Bible Jaw and Bible prin-
ciples; they did not know that he was going
out to give an example of steadfast love to the
Saviour and of unflinching honesty such as
should thrill the great heart of this nation with
wonder and admiration.

He was then only a Norwegian boy, Knud
Iverson, only thirteen years old, but his name
was soon to be reckoned with martyrs and
heroes. And as the story of his heroism winged
its way from State to State, and city to city,
and village to village, how many mothers have
cried with full heart, ‘‘ May his spirit rest upon
my boy!’’ And strong men have wept over it,
and exclaimed, ‘‘God be praised for the Iad!”’
And rich men have put their hands in their
pockets, and said, ‘‘ Let us build him a monu-
ment; for his memory’ is blessed.’”’-—We re-
member of listening with great interest’ to this
story of Knud Iverson in our school-boy days,
and as we lately read it again in one of our
weekly papers, we thought we would put it into
the pockets of our little PionrrEr for the benefit
of our readers. We only wish there were many
Knud Iversons among our young friends, strong
in their love to the Saviour, true to their Bibles,
ready to die rather than do wrong!

A PRAYING man is a treasure and a blessing
in any country. One Joseph preserved the
whole of Egypt in the time of scarcity. One
Moses stood in the gap, when God would have
destroyed the people of Israel.—TZnither.

Conscrence in an ungodly man is like a
captain of a vessel in a mutiny—he is bound
and cannot rule, but he protests.

_ Farra is to believe what we do not se, and
ithe end of this faith is to see what we believed.