The Lutheran October-November 2023 Sneak Preview

How the spiritual realm impacts life on earth

EDITORIAL

Editor Lisa McIntosh

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e lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au

Executive Editor Linda Macqueen

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LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

The Lutheran informs the members of the LCANZ about the church’s teaching, life, mission and people, helping them to grow in faith and commitment to Jesus Christ.

The Lutheran also provides a forum for a range of opinions, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor or the policies of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand. The Lutheran

Finding common threads

Despite a busy schedule at the recent Lutheran World Federation Assembly in Krakow Poland, LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith spread the word about good things from Australia and New Zealand with international friends. Not only did Bishop Paul share a copy of The Lutheran with Michael Martin from the Oberkirchenrat (church assembly) of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria (ELKB), but he also discovered a common appreciation of Australian First Nations accessories. Bishop Paul says: ‘Michael learnt that I wear Central Australian art ties every day, so he wore his tie purchased on a trip to Australia.’ The ELKB has a long history of mission cooperation with the LCANZ, including indigenous work in Central Australia and PNG, and oversees the Mission EineWelt ministry out of Neuendettelsau in Germany.

People like YOU bring love to life

Chris Antonini

Concordia Lutheran Church Duncraig WA

Spiritual Care Worker, Synod Agenda and Outcomes Way Forward working group member

Most treasured Bible text: Philippians 4:12

‘… I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.’

Karen Tromans

St John's Lutheran Church Unley SA

Airbnb host, church organist/pianist, women’s fellowship and netball umpire

Most treasured Bible text: Genesis 3:15

‘“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel”.’

Gary Jewson

Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, North Geelong Vic Congregational chairperson, chair of Way Forward Pastoral Care Working Group

Most treasured Bible text: 1 Peter 3:15

‘Make sure that in your hearts you honour Christ as Lord. Always be ready to give an answer to anyone who asks about the hope you have.’

Let the light of someone you know shine through their photo being featured in The Lutheran and LCA Facebook. With their permission, send us a good quality photo, their name and details (congregation, occupation and most treasured text) and your contact details.

I remember fondly from my childhood a particular print that hung on a wall at home. The image was of a guardian angel watching over children walking across a rickety and damaged bridge over a gorge. The oft-adapted famous painting is usually listed as ‘Lindberg Heilige Schutzengel’ (‘Holy Guardian Angel’), though the name of the actual artist is the subject of some conjecture. (Lindberg was one of the poster printers for the work, not its creator.) Perhaps you can picture it. And, if you can, perhaps like me, you found a sense of comfort and safety in the image. It reminds me of our cover text Psalm 91:11 –‘God will command his angels to protect you wherever you go’.

I also remember that, on the night the woman who gave that picture to my mum died, it fell off the wall. Was that just a coincidence? I guess I’ll never know.

Of course, believing that angels are a reality is one thing. Acknowledging that there are demons and other forces of evil active in our world is quite another. But in Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, we read again and again about Satan and his dark purposes, just as we are told about the angels who serve and worship the one true God.

In his explanation of the first article of the Apostles’ Creed, Martin Luther says that the evil angels or devils are ‘spirits who were created holy, but sinned and are forever rejected by God; cunning, powerful, and of great number; enemies of God, and of man, [who] endeavour to destroy the works of God’.

No wonder thinking about the devil and his charges working among us can be terrifying.

But the warning of St Peter – ‘Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour’ (1 Peter 5:8) – is not the sum total of this story. God, as Father, Son and Spirit does not allow the Prince of Darkness to be sovereign over the earthly realm. Already in Genesis 3:15, God set in motion the plan for our rescue. And Luther again leaves us in no doubt in his explanation of the second article of the same creed – reminding us that our Lord has redeemed us, ‘purchased and won’ us from ‘sin, death and the power of the devil’. God is in charge of the world we can’t see AND the world we can see, too.

In this edition, members of our Lutheran family share their reflections on and experiences of ways in which the spiritual and earthly realms intersect. I hope you will find them as enlightening, challenging and encouraging as I have.

In addition, you’ll find in these pages news, views and resources from around our church, along with our popular regular columns and devotional content.

May God bless your reading,

Our cover: iStock.com.

Design by Elysia McEwen

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that the following pages may contain images of people who have died.

Because we bear your name

‘Let your holy angel be with me so that the evil one may have no power over me.’ I say those words every day with my wife, Heidi, as we begin our day praying together the ‘Morning Prayer’ written by Dr Martin Luther.

This prayer is part of the daily worship plan that Luther included in his Small Catechism so that everyday Christian people would have guidance about what to pray at the beginning and end of each day.

Because I pray these words so frequently, I have often reflected on why Luther would include this focus on the ‘holy angel’ and ‘evil one’ in a prayer to start each day.

Firstly, the words which focus on angels set our minds on the witness of the Bible. Throughout Scripture, angels are mentioned repeatedly. They appear in Biblical stories as messengers from God to humankind and our English word, ‘angel’ is drawn from the original Biblical word which means ‘messenger’.

In particular, angels appear at key moments in the story of our Lord Jesus, from his birth where angels proclaimed, ‘Glory to God’ before the Bethlehem shepherds, to the empty tomb where the angel told the women ‘Go quickly and tell … ’.

Secondly, the mention of angels in Luther’s prayer lifts our eyes from mundane matters of the human world to the things of God and mysteries not fathomed by our human reason. We live in a material world where advertising has reduced our identity to ‘consumer’ of products and services.

At the same time, we are barraged by the human quest to be in control, to know all and be certain of everything. The mention of angels in the morning prayer captures the mystery of the gospel – that there is more to this life than what my eyes can see or what my mind can figure out.

Like all of us, our young people need to be reminded of God’s mystery at work in our world. They need this message that they are not alone but can pray with Luther’s words, ‘Let your holy angel be with me’. Here is that reminder that our gracious God is present and active, daily providing for us.

BISHOP PAUL’S LETTER

REV PAUL SMITH Bishop, Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand

Finally, Luther’s mention of the ‘holy angel’ and the ‘evil one’ in his morning prayer, takes me to the work of the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am a human being who is flesh and blood and born in sin. Therefore, I need a saviour from sin, death and the power of the devil.

At the start of the day, Luther wants Christians to recall that God has entered into my world to rescue me and to give me hope in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Because of the work of the cross, I know that ‘one little word’ can overcome all the powers of ‘the evil one’.

As I write this message for you, I am aware that Christmas is coming and soon our lives will be inundated with Christmas advertising. Because of their prominence in the nativity story, angels will appear for sale in stores.

Knowing that angel means ‘messenger’, you might consider giving a family member or friend the gift of a little angel to remind them of the mystery of God at work in the gospel of Jesus. But remember to include in the gift, something of the message of God for us all: ‘Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those upon whom God’s favour rests.’

‘Let your holy angel be with me.’ This short prayer keeps us focused on the scriptures and God’s gracious plan to bring us life and salvation, in mysteries beyond our human knowing.

I invite you to join Heidi and me, in regularly praying Luther’s morning prayer:

‘I thank you, heavenly Father, through your dear Son, Jesus Christ, that you have protected me through the night from all harm and danger. I ask you to keep me this day, too, from all sin and evil, so that in all my thoughts, words, and deeds, I may please you. In your hands I place my body and soul and all that is mine. Let your holy angel be with me, so that the evil one may have no power over me. Amen.’

In Christ,

‘LET YOUR HOLY ANGEL BE WITH ME’. HERE IS THAT REMINDER THAT OUR GRACIOUS GOD IS PRESENT AND ACTIVE, DAILY PROVIDING FOR US.