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Summation of 12 Lessons - The Pillars

11/28/2017

Summary. The Reformation and the life of Martin Luther show that effective long lasting ministry is a result of the integrated presence of personal bible study, prayer, preaching, teaching, training, mentoring, evangelism and the arts. These lessons are like pillars in the house of ministry upon which the roof of beauty and protection rests, provide a place of safety and ministry for those God has entrusted to us. How strong and varied are the pillars of your ministry? May God enable you to develop strength in each area. and in humility work together with others of great diversity.

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Lesson 12 Our highest privilege

11/26/2017

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Photo above by author taken in Wittenberg town square 2017 Reformation 500 anniversary celebration
Text below part of presentation to musicians, artists and worship leaders in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 2017

Lesson 12. The proclamation of the Gospel to all people is the Christian's highest privilege.
Luther had a passion for missions and evangelism. To a great extent, all his actions are typical missionary activity:
     —translation of the Bible into the language of the people
   —creating a body of songs in the language of the people for praise and instruction of scriptural truths
     —clear biblical teaching and education
   —discipleship and mentoring.

Luther was called to reach his large “Jerusalem”. His faithfulness resulted in the Reformation spreading to the “Judea and Samaria” of his day and ultimately to the “ends of the earth”. His teaching helped give birth to Anabaptist, Moravian and other Pietistic movements. Zwingli, Calvin, Crammer, Tyndale, Cromwell are only a few of the many leaders impacted by Luther’s teaching. Key figures of the Lutheran church include Gustavus Vasa of Sweden (1559) who founded a mission among the Laplanders; Heyling, of Lubeck, laboured alone as a missionary in Abyssinia; Frederick IV, of Denmark, established the East India mission at Tranquebar (1706) where one of the missionaries, Ziegenbalg, translated the New Testament into Tamil (1715). The list goes on and on.

This is what Luther concluded from Col. 1:23, Mark 16:15 and Psalm 117:
the Gospel and Baptism must traverse the whole world."

From Haggai. 2 he concluded:
"God wants to bless not two or three nations but the whole world." The course of the Gospel to all nations is an act in progress in Luther's conception, "The Kingdom of Christ passes through the whole world."

Luther thought of evangelism in very practical terms as a duty and obligation of every child of God.
"Christians should also bring forth much fruit among all the heathen by means of the Word, should convert and save many by eating about themselves like a fire that burns amid dry wood or straw; thus the fire of the Holy Spirit should consume the heathen according to the flesh and make room everywhere for the Gospel and the kingdom of Christ."

The priesthood of all believers resulted in Luther's high regard for missionaries and the mission calling of the church. The whole church was seen to have the responsibility to do mission work. All Christians are needed to witness and serve with their talents and gifts of grace. He was aware of the fundamental importance of the preaching and felt that the primary work was not to be done by societies or individuals but by the church:
"For if all the heathen are to praise God, it must first be established that He has become their God. If He is to be their God, they must know Him and believe in Him . . . . If they are to believe, they must first hear His Word . . . . If they are to hear His Word, preachers who proclaim God's Word to them must be sent to them."

"The preaching of the Gospel was begun through the apostles and continues, and is carried farther through the preachers here and there in the world, is driven out and persecuted; yet it is made known farther and farther to those who have never heard it before. . . . Or, as the saying goes, when someone sends out a message, the message has gone out, even though it has not yet come to the intended place or the specified location but is still under way."

In Luther's theology this world is a battlefield with a battle between God and Satan. Missions means fighting. Man can never be in a neutral position in this world. He is either in God's kingdom or satan's. Preaching the gospel is not possible without cross and suffering. True knowledge about God is possible only through the word, the gospel. This is the fundamental basis and motivation for mission, evangelization, and reformation. For Luther, the proclamation of the Gospel is the Christian's highest privilege, and he should begin by exercising it in the normal situations of life. In a sermon he preached in his own home in 1533, he said:
"The noblest and greatest work and the most important service we can perform for God on earth is bringing other people, and especially those who are entrusted to us, to the knowledge of God by the holy Gospel" (WA, 53, 415).

If all the heathen are to praise God, He must first have been made their God. If He is to be their God, they must know Him and believe on Him and let go of all idolatry. For man cannot praise God with idolatrous lips and an unbelieving heart. If they are to believe, they must first hear His Word and thus receive the Holy Spirit, who purifies and enlightens their heart by faith. For one cannot come to faith or receive the Holy Spirit before one has heard the Word, as Paul says ( Rom. 10:14) : "How shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?" (Gal. 3:2) ( WA, 31 I, 228f.).

Luther also expressed his profound missionary vision in hymnody. He composed the hymn "Es woll uns Gott genädig sein” (May God bestow on us his grace) in 1524, based on Psalm 67, that is the evangelistic counterpart to the doctrinal song"A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.” English translation follows (Original German at end of blog)
May God be gracious to us
and give us his blessing;
May his face with its clear radiance
enlighten us to eternal life,
So that we understand His works
and what pleases him on earth
and thestrength and salvation of Jesus Christ
may become known to the heathen
and they may turn to God

Then the heathen everywhere
praise and thank you, God,
and the whole world rejoices
and sings with great joyful noise
that you are judge on earth
and do not let sin prevail;
your word is the protection and pasture
that maintains all people
to travel on pilgrimage on the right way.

Let the people in their good deeds
thank you, God and praise you;
the land produces crops and is improved,
your word is well regarded.
May the Father and the son bless us,
May God the holy spirit bless us,
to him let all the world give honour,
revere him most of all.
now from your heart say : Amen!

Luther was not perfect and in some areas did not go far enough down the path of biblical understanding. Yet compared to where he was when he started, he journeyed far down the path. Although Luther did not live in a time or region of the world where overseas, cross-cultural mission was in vogue, he nonetheless had a passion for worldwide missions. As many have pointed out, it was not as well developed as ours today, nor as free of racial bias as we like to believe our perspective of missions is. Yet, considering the cultural field in which he lived, his statements remain inspirational.
I am by no means of one mind with those who set all their store by one language, and despise all others; for I would gladly raise up a generation able to be of use to Christ in foreign lands and to talk with their people. . . It is good that the youth be practised in many languages. Who knows how God will make use of them in years to come? It is for this end also that schools are established.

In a letter of March, 1522, Luther stresses the vital connection between missionary proclamation and the power of God's Word-in the threefold sense of Christ, His Gospel, and the Scripture that conveys it:
"This noble Word brings with it a great hunger and an insatiable thirst, so that we could not be satisfied even though many thousands of people believe on it; we wish that no one should be without it. This thirst ever strives for more and does not rest; it moves us to speak, as David says: `I believed, therefore have I spoken' (Ps. 116:10 ).

Here we have Luther's philosophy of missions, distilled in six scriptural words: "I believed, therefore have I spoken.”

And if we truly believe, then we consider it the highest privilege to speak at home and cross culturally through the creative gifts that we possess.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Es woll' uns Gott genädig sein
Und seinen Segen geben;
Sein Antlitz uns mit hellem Schein
Erleucht' zum ew'gen Leben,
Daß wir erkennen seine Werk',
Und was ihm liebt auf Erden,
Und Jesus Christus Heil und Stärk'
Bekannt den Heiden werden
Und sie zu Gott bekehren.
2
So danken, Gott, und loben dich
Die Heiden überalle,
Und alle Welt, die freue sich
Und sing' mit großem Schalle,
Daß du auf Erden Richter bist
Und läßt die Sünd' nicht walten;
Dein Wort die Hut und Weide ist,
Dei alles Volk erhalten,
In rechter Bahn zu wallen.
3
Es danke, Gott, und lobe dich
Das Volk in guten Taten;
Das Land bringt Frucht und bessert sich,
Dein Wort ist wohl geraten.
Uns segne Vater und der Sohn,
Uns segne Gott der Heil'ge Geist,
Dem alle Welt die Ehre tu',
Vor ihm sich fürchte allermeist.
Nun sprecht von Herzen: Amen!

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Lesson 11 The sustaining power of education

11/26/2017

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Photo above by author taken in Wittenberg museum
(Text below part of presentation to musicians, artists and worship leaders in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 2017)

Lesson 11. Without education, our work will not have sustaining power.
It is amazing to think that we are celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Many of these lessons underscore the reality that many people and factors have contributed to the worldwide impact of the Reformation.
In this lesson we want to briefly explore the educational project of the Reformation based on Bible reading to enlighten the believers and strengthen them in their faith. Without education no religiousness and without religiousness no education! Its leading principle was the priesthood of all believers. According to the Protestant understanding of biblical clarity everyone is able to find out God´s will on their own. The Reformation’s basic assumption was that every man had the right to education. This was also true for girls. As early as 1530, a girls’ school was opened in Wittenberg.

In Geneva too, education was of paramount importance. As soon as the Reformation was adopted, the city of Geneva made public school compulsory. Children, boys and girls, benefited from free public elementary education. Without education no religiousness and without religiousness no education!

Luther rated the schoolmaster’s calling as high as the priest’s ministry:
“As for me, if God chose to keep me away from pastoral functions, there is no other occupation I would more gladly take up than schoolmaster, for next to the pastor’s work, no other is more beautiful or significant than his.”

It is worth repeating the fact that Philipp Melanchthon designed a comprehensive educational system for people of all ages. Melanchton was particularly interested in modernizing the school system in Germany which is why he was called “professor of Germany” in his lifetime. He believed education was a requirement for every man to live in society and to understand the gospel. His aim was to make school compulsory for everyone.

Jean Calvin was also interested in religious education. He wrote a catechism in use in Geneva and in France for more than a century. In 1559 Calvin founded the Geneva Academy where many French pastors were trained in the 16th and 17th centuries. The practice of reading and writing gave the calvinists a cultural lead that lasted over the following centuries, even more so as it was done in French everywhere.

For the Reformers, compulsory education depended first and foremost on the family. Luther, Melanchton, Zwingli, Calvin, and Farel insisted on the paramount aspect of family education for the future of the Church and of society in general. It was the parents’ responsibility to bring up their children to become well-read Christians. Domestic education was completed by schooling. In his sermons, Luther reminded the parents that they should send their children to school.

In our context, it is also worth mentioning that Luther regarded music as an essential component of education. For example, Luther wrote hymns to illustrate the Catechism which he drew up for the new church, knowing that the church's teaching would be best implanted in young minds if it was reinforced with hymns.

He also believed that education was into only integral to a child’s education, but to the education of teachers and ministers as well. As mentioned in the previous lesson, he was so committed to the high place of music in the life of the Church that men had to demonstrate competency in music before they could be accepted for ministerial training.

If we want our ministry to have long term impact, then we need to ensure that we encourage, support and participate in effective education, where ever and whenever, formal or informal, church and family.

(Important source for a lot of the above information - https://www.museeprotestant.org/en/notice/the-protestant-education-in-the-xvith-century/)

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Lesson 10 Root-like unity of theology and music

11/25/2017

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Lesson 10. Music and theology have a root-like unity. Theology, when wrapped up in music dwells in the heart and mind of a believer and becomes a powerful weapon in spiritual warfare.

In this blog, I will let the words of Luther speak for themselves.

Next to the preaching of the Scriptures, I afford music the highest place in the church. I want the Word of God to dwell in the hearts of believers by means of song. There is a root-like unity of music and theology. Music is wrapped and locked in theology. I would allow no man to preach or teach God's people who did not realize the power and use of sacred music. - Luther

Next to the Word of God and theology, music deserves the highest praise. . . . Whether you wish to comfort the sad, to subdue frivolity, to encourage the despairing, to humble the proud, to calm the passionate, or to appease those full of hate . . . what more effective means than music could you find.
The Devil, the originator of sorrowful anxieties and restless troubles, flees before the sound of music almost as much as before the Word of God.- Luther

David made Psalms; we also will make Psalms, and sing them as well as we can to the honour of our Lord, and to spite and mock the devil. - Luther

Luther was so committed to the high place of music in the life of the Church that men had to demonstrate competency in music before they could be accepted for ministerial training. Luther did not envisage music as a human invention, but as an “outstanding gift of God.”

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Lesson 9 - The arts redeemed for a purpose

11/22/2017

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Photo above by author of "Ten Commandments Panel" in Wittenberg museum
(Text below part of presentation to musicians, artists and worship leaders in Kyiv, Ukraine, May 2017)

Lesson 9. The arts are part of the creation redeemed by Christ and play an important role in all aspects of corporate worship, evangelism and teaching. However, they must always be servant to the Word of God.
Luther was keenly aware of the central role of iconography in the false teaching of the Roman Catholic Church but also believed that art and iconography could be powerful teaching tools, especially for the illiterate. Believers, therefore needed to be taught that images are symbolic of the divine, and are not holy in themselves - which was the Catholic position.

Luther did not see the arts as fundamentally flawed but as part of the creation redeemed by Christ. He was the only Reformation leader that treasured and encouraged the arts as a reflection of the creative ability granted to people by their Creator, and as such pleasing to Him.

Considering the extensive theological library that Luther created, many forget his involvement and commitment to the arts. Most of course are aware of the songs he composed, many of which would be sung passionately for hundreds of years. Not only did Luther exercise a profound influence on the religious and cultural life of sixteenth century Europe, but also he freed music from the domination of the Roman Catholic Church, opening the door to a revolution in music and in the arts generally. He demonstrated that music could have a much wider use and variety than previously allowed. His influence on music cannot be understated, setting the stage for the next 300 years of music. The idea that music as an expression of personal creativity could be pleasing to God opened the door for Bach, Handel, Haydn, and Mendelssohn.

His views were not shared by all of the reformers. It contrasted with Calvin and Zwingli who considered the arts to be purely secular and banned or strictly regulated their use. Luther celebrated the organ, while some opposed it. He celebrated using "artistic musical effects" while others felt things needed to be simplified. He wrote songs with original poetic texts while some felt only scripture texts should be sung.

Luther strongly supported and encouraged the creative output of others. The best example is the extensive collaborative work with Cranach - father and son - highlighted. In addition to the illustrated books, Cranach's 1516 painting of the Ten Commandments (see photo in header) panel for the Wittenberg town council, is a wonderful example of art as a teaching tool.

Prints became an important part of German art and visual culture as a result of the popularity of woodcuts, the invention of engraving in Germany in the fifteenth century, as well as the invention of the printing press with cast-metal movable type by Johannes Gutenberg (d. 1468) of Mainz in 1450. Prints were overwhelmingly published in German vernacular to reach the widest audience. For those who were illiterate, the texts were highly illustrated with woodcuts and engravings. Reformation polemic used a range of media including book-length publications, pamphlets, broadsheets, and interactive leaflets with fold-out flaps and spinning dials.

Luther recognized the usefulness of all the arts in worship, especially music.
Nor am I at all of the opinion that all the arts are to be overthrown and cast aside by the Gospel, as some superspiritual people protest; but I would gladly see all the arts, especially music, in the service of Him who has given and created them.

Being keenly aware of the dangers of imbalance, he made it clear that the art of music serves the Word and not the other way around.
“We must be careful that we do not start worshipping music and forsake worshipping Christ.”

We need to guard against worshiping the arts or creative output and ensure that the arts remain in the service of Him who created them.

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SWIRLS OF NURTURE

Summation of 12 Lessons - The Pillars

Lesson 12 Our highest privilege

Lesson 11 The sustaining power of education

Lesson 10 Root-like unity of theology and music

Lesson 9 - The arts redeemed for a purpose

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