A Welcome Rebuke

I have been rebuked twice now in the last week. And I here shall publicly thank both of the men who did so . . .

On Tuesday, November 11, 2008, the area pastors of Northwest Ohio Circuit Number 1 gathered for our monthly "Winkel" (from the German word that means' "corner," I believe, and alludes in this case to a gathering of clergy for mutual consolation). Our topic of study was the Word of God, which was led ably by Pastor Jeff Patterson of Zion Lutheran Church in Schumm, Ohio (one of the founding churches of The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod, by the way). One of the concluding questions of our study went as follows:

Our pastors and lay people may well agree that Scripture is inspired; but there are times, as we deal with a changing culture, where some will say, "But who can know what it means?" How do we relate the perspicuity [clarity] of Scripture to life in a postmodern world within our congregations?

I was--and am--particularly interested in the question, and in the course of bringing up the question I attempted to answer the postmodern flailing at wisdom with my own philosophical reflections. Finally, after a minute of my bumbling, my good friend Pastor Michael Saylor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Convoy, Ohio said to me, basically, "Lance, just preach the Word!" We had been talking all morning, as men who have pledged themselves to the authority and truth of the Scriptures, about trusting the Word, and my answer to the question basically expressed doubt in the Word. Pastor Saylor called me on it, though I didn't realize it fully until almost a week later . . .

On Monday, November 17, 2008, I returned to my desk after lunch and checked my Facebook page. I noticed a post there from a newly-added "friend" (On the Facebook social networking site you allow your "friends" to view posts and information about you. I was skeptical at first, but I keep in touch with a lot of friends through Facebook now.). I followed a link he posted to his blog and there found video of a recent address of his at Concordia Seminary's "German Days." This presentation by Rev. Matt Harrison, in response to a German theologian's paper, was for me a stern rebuke of my doubt, a clear call to repentance in this regard, and also a great message of truth and hope in the Gospel and concerning the Church's place in a "postmodern" world.

Here's a link to Rev. Harrison's blog: http://mercyjourney.blogspot.com/. Look for "Replenish the Glass."

And here also is a big THANK YOU to my friends for speaking the truth to me.

"Lord, I believe. Help Thou my unbelief"--Mark 9:24