The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1904, Page 66

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66

The.Lutheran Pioneer.

There is only one name given among men whereby
~we must be saved. It is the name of Jesus. The
unbeliever despises this name, rejects the only Say-
iour, and rushes into everlasting damnation.
Beware of unbelief—the greatest of allsins! In
the Gospel there is a free offer of present pardon,
fullness of joy, and everlasting life. Of what mad-
ness and folly is he guilty who rejects all this, and
prefers death and damnation! What a great sin
does he commit who treats as a lie the Gospel mes-
sage, the record that God gave of His Son! ‘‘He
that believeth not God hath made Him a liar, be-
cause he believeth not the record that God gave of
His Son,’’ 1 John 5, 10.
* Beware of this sin of unbelief—the greatest of
all sins! .

Saving the Lost. ~

Christ came that He might save the lost. When
a sinner has come to the end of himself, when he
takes the place of one utterly lost, then God can
deal with him in grace, and give him life. Christ
came not to call the righteous, but sinners to re-
pentance. :

‘*Why did you not rush after your friend when
he fell into the water?’’ someone was asked, and
the reply was made, ‘‘He was trying to save him-
self; if I had gone to him at first, then both of us
might have been lost. I waited till he had come to
the end of his own strength, and then it was pos-
sible for me to save him.”’

You understand. When a man takes his place
as one who is lost, and gives up all his self-right-
eousness, and finds himself under sentence of death
and damnation, then he is thankful to be saved by
grace through faith in Him who came to seek and
to save that which is lost.

The Means of Grace.

God’s grace and salvation is brought to man in
the Word of God and in the holy Sacraments. These
are called the means of grace. In them grace comes
to man, and through them the Holy Spirit does His
work for the salvation of sinners. It is wicked folly
to speak to sinners of grace, and forgiveness and
salvation without telling them where they may find
thege precious gifts.

Dr. Luther says: ‘“‘Some fanatical people have
- much to say of God, of forgiveness of sins, of di-
vine grace, and of the death of Christ. But of the
means whereby a man may have Christ and whereby

grace comes to a man, so that a man obtains grace
and so that grace and sin are brought together, they
know nothing; and they tell us that all this is done
by the Spirit without means, and that the external
oral word, Baptism, and Sacrament can accomplish
nothing. It is like telling a man of some great
treasure and speaking very highly of it, but at the
same time hiding the key and destroying the bridges
by which the treasure is reached.”’

——— SSE

Punishment of Unbelief.

When people were drowned in the days of Noah,
it was because of unbelief. They did not believe
Noah when he preached about the coming judg-
ment, and would not take refuge from the wrath to
come. When the Israelites died in the wilderness,
and were shut out of the promised land, it was be-
cause of their unbelief. They would not believe
what God had said. Therefore the Lord swore in
His wrath that ‘‘they should not enter into His
rest,’? Hebr. 3, 10—19. And why is Jerusalem now
desolate, and the Jews scattered over the whole
world? Because they would not believe in Jesus;
they would not accept Him as their promised Say-
iour. This was their great and damning sin; and
this is the great and damning sin of men yet.

a

The Christian.

Luther thus describes the Christian:

‘“‘A Christian is a child of God, a brother of
Christ, a temple of the Holy Ghost, an heir of the
kingdom, a companion of the angels, a lord of
the world, and a partaker of the divine nature. The
Christian’s honor is Christ in heaven, and Christ’s
honor is a Christian on earth. He is'a dear child
of God, clothed in Christ’s righteousness, living in
holy fear and cheerful obedience before the Father.
He shines as a light in the world and as a rose
among the thorns. He is a wonderfully beautiful
creature of God’s grace, in whom the holy angels
rejoice and whom they continually accompany with
joy. He is a miracle to the world, a terror to the
devils, an ornament to the Church, a desire of
heaven.”’

She Did What She Could.

A poor woman said: ‘‘I have no money to give
to missions, but I can speak of the Saviour to my
neighbor.’? ;