#21 Our Only Comfort is The Possession of the Word and Its Power

Consider therefore, my dear children, what great advantage you have, if you willingly hear and learn the Word of God. Learn, first of all, that you are of God, having conquered the devil and hell, so that neither sin nor the judgment of God can terrify. You will also be enabled to endure calmly other annoyances which, though they be ever so trifling, make the world impatient and hopeless. It is true, the Christians must suffer much from the devil and the world, their bitter enemies. Their body and life, their possession and honor are often in great danger. How shall they endure all this with patience? In no other way than by clinging to the promises of God, so that they can exclaim: Let the world wag and do as it pleases, I am not of her, but of God, else would the world be my friend; but I prefer that she should hate and harass me on every side, to having her good will and then to be not of God. If the heart is thus minded, all tribulation and adversity will pass by as do the clouds in the sky or the birds in the air; we see them for a time and then no more. Our only comfort in this life must be the possession of the Word and its power, especially when the last hour comes, when death approaches. If we believe the Word with a childlike faith, death will be as a sleep to us. Yea, it will be as when one who journeys along in a dense mist is attacked and slain before he is aware of the presence of the murderer. The devil is indeed a murderer, who has determined upon our death; we know that well. But this his threat and sure attack shall not alarm us. We have the Word, to it we cling; that causes resignation, joy and courage in the presence of dire visitations, even of death. The confidence that through Christ we have in heaven a Father, kind and merciful, will give us strength and patience to endure with true fortitude all the trials of life to the end. This consolation we find in the Word, and nowhere else. (Luther’s House Postil, Sermon for Judica, Volume 1, p. 298-299)