The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1917, Sheet 67

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Che Lutheran Pioneer,

A. MISSIONARY MONTHLY.

‘

PuBlisHED By THE Hyancenica, Lurarran Synopican Conrerence or Nort Amurrca.

REY. F. J. LANKENAU, EpDiTor.

Entered at the Post Office at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter.

Vol. XXXIX.

ST. LOUIS, MO., SEPTEMBER, 1917.

No, 9.

Onward in the Strife.

Onward, child of God Almighty!

Do not falter in the strife.

Though the Evil tempts and calls you,
Fight it as you would for life. ~

Satan’s helpers there are many;
Who rejoice to see you fall;
But remember God is with you,
For He watches over all.

Though the fight is hard and bitter,
And your heart is filled with fear,
God the Father’s ever near you,
Giving comfort, strength, and cheer.

He will help you past all danger;
Trust Him, He will guide you right
From the path of sin and darkness
To the path of peace and light.
E. E. Horrs.

3

Sanctification.

The Holy Ghost calls us by the Gospel, works
and preserves faith in us until we die, and thus ap-
propriates eternal salvation to us. This entire work
of the Spirit we call sanctification in the wider sense.

Sanctification in the narrower sense, however,
which is our present subject, is described in the fol-
lowing words of our Synod’s short exposition of Lu-
ther’s Small Catechism: The Hi oly Spirit has sanc-
hified me in the true faith; that is, He has by faith
renewed my heart, and gives me power to struggle
against and overcome Satan, the world, and the
flesh, and to walk: in godliness and good works.

When a man is regenerated and justified by |

faith, he is also sanctified by the Spirit of God; for
“where there is faith, there also the fruits of faith

are found, which consist in thankfulness for divine:

grace, a new (2 Cor. 5, 17) and willing obedience

(Ps. 119, 32) to God’s Law, love to God and the
neighbor, and a sincere resolution to wage continual <
warfare against our spiritual foes and all that is
evil. “This is the will of God, even your sanctifica-
tion” (1 Thess. 4, 3).— One who is without faith
cannot do good works in God’s sight; but he who
“abideth in Christ” by faith “bringeth forth much
fruit,” many good works; “for without Christ we
can do nothing” (John 15, 5).

As soon as the Holy Ghost has entered a sinner’s
heart and given him a new principle, the spirit, He
brings forth fruits in that person, as St. Paul
writes to the Galatians: “The fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness,
faith, meekness, temperance” (chap. 5, 22. 23). At
the same time the new man in us fights against the
sinful flesh which still clings to us, and the works
of darkness, which St. Paul enumerates in the fol-
lowing words: “Adultery, fornication, unceleanness,
lasciviousness, idolatry, witcheraft, hatred, variance,
emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envy-
ings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and such
like” (Gal. 5, 1921). Thus there is in all Chris-
tians a continual struggle between spirit and flesh
(Gal. 5, 17; Eph. 4, 24; 4, 22; Rom. 8, 3; Gal.
5, 24; Col. 3, 5). Tf this fight would cease in a
Christian while he lives here below, his spiritual life
would have become extinct. A churchyard peace, as
it is expressed in German, would prevail within
him. — Only in heaven, when we shall be completely
cleansed and delivered from the flesh, shall we enjoy
an undisturbed peace of the right kind; for then
we shall be perfect and no longer assailed by Satan,
world, and flesh. This ever renewed conflict which
all members of the Church Militant must wage is
a sign to us that we are not. fictitious, .but real
Christians.

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