A Blessed New Year in the "Abundant riches of His goods"

AELW 52:157-158

God be praised, what an abundant, rich, and mighty thing is faith! It makes of man in every respect a god to whom nothing is impossible, as Christ says in Mark 9[:23]: “Can you have faith? All things are possible to him who has faith.” And so also Psalm 82 [:6] says: “You are gods and all of your children of the most High.” Fittingly his name this day is called Jesus, that is, Savior; we call a savior someone who helps, redeems, saves, and who is wholly salutary for everybody; such a one the Hebrew language calls Jesus. Thus spoke the angel Gabriel to Joseph in his sleep, Matthew 1[:21]: “She will bear a son, and you shall call him Jesus, for he will save his people, freeing them from their sins.” Here the angel himself explains why his name should be Savior, Jesus, namely, he is salvation and redemption for his people. We have heard how this comes to pass through faith, to which he conveys all his rights and goods which he has over sin, death, and the law. He makes the believer justified, free, and blessed. Now just as circumcision signifies our faith, as we have heard, so the naming of the children signifies that we, through faith, become known before God through our distinctive names. For all those who do not believe, God does not know, as Psalm 1[:6] says: “God knows the ways of the just, but the way of the unjust will vanish,” and Matthew 25[:12]: “Truly, I say to you, I know you not.” What then is our name? Without a doubt, as Christ bestows upon us all that is his, so he also bestows upon us his name. We all are called Christians after him, children of God after him, Jesus after him, Savior after him; as he is called, so we are called, too, as St. Paul writes in Romans 8[:24]: “You have been saved in hope”; for you are like Jesus or a savior. There is therefore no limit to the status and honor of the Christian estate. These are the abundant riches of his goods which he pours out over us, in order that our hearts become free, cheerful, peaceful, and undaunted, and so willingly and joyously keep the law. Amen."

Now some German...Gut macht mut, Armut wehe thut.

Having gold makes men bold, being poor makes them sour...

AELW 9:70-71

Deuteronomy 6:10. When He brings you.

He continues his exposition of the First Commandment and begins to show in what ways one sins against it, and he teaches how to avoid occasions for sinning against it. First he takes up wealth and abundance, that is, mammon and greed, of which Baruch writes (3:17): “Gold, in which men trust.” And Paul makes greed idolatry and the root of all evil. “See to it [he says], when you are full, not to forget the Lord your God” (v. 12). For the human heart trusts goods at hand but mistrusts those not at hand, as the saying goes: “Having gold makes men bold; being poor makes them sour.” But trust in wealth cannot rule in the heart at the same time with faith and love. And this he calls here “to forget the Lord God.” For you do not remember the Lord if you merely mouth His name, but if you cling to Him and love Him with constant faith in your heart.

שמע ישראל - Shema Yisrael - Hear, O Israel

AELW 9:66-67

Deuteronomy 6:4. Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord.

Note that he himself explains the First Commandment in a positive way, namely, that the Lord is one. For the name used here is the Tetragrammaton, which is applicable solely to God.1 But he treats this unity of God in the Spirit; that is, he makes the point not only that God is one, but also that He should be regarded as one by us. Merely to say that He is one God conveys no meaning to us. However, that He is regarded as one God and as our God (as he says here) is salvation and life and the fullness of all the Commandments. Thus in Gen. 28:21, Jacob says: “The Lord shall be God to me.” In what way shall the Lord be God to him? As though He had not been that before? It is only that through a particular rite and worship he determined to have none but the Lord as God. Thus God becomes God and changes in accordance with the change in our feeling toward Him.2 As Ps. 18:26 says: “With the holy Thou wilt be holy, and with the perverse Thou wilt be perverse.” Hence Antichrist is exalted above every God (2 Thess. 2:4); that is, he will set up his own worship of God, which he will raise above every true and false worship of all gods, because the word of no one is more feared and adored. Therefore the first assertion of Moses concerning the First Commandment is this: The Lord our God is to be regarded as one Lord; that is, He is not to be worshiped by this or that rite which we ourselves have devised but only by that rite which He Himself has established."

The Old began in time and after some time came to an end

AELW 9:63

Deuteronomy Chapter 5:3 Not with our fathers.

"Here Moses points out the difference between the New and the Old Testament. The New Testament is the older, promised from the beginning of the world, yes, “before the times of the world,” as Paul says to Titus (1:2), but fulfilled only under Christ. The Old Testament promised under Moses was fulfilled under Joshua. However, there is this difference between the two: the New is founded wholly on the promise of the merciful and faithful God, without our works; but the Old is founded also on our works. Therefore Moses does not promise beyond the extent to which they keep the statutes and judgments. For this reason the Old Testament finally had to become anti-quated and be put aside; it had to serve as a figure of that New and eternal Testament which began before the ages and will endure beyond the ages. The Old, however, began in time and after some time came to an end."

The Son wrapped in the flesh

AELW 9:60

"Luther’s lecture, commenting on v. 36, gives a discussion, with reference to 1 Cor. 10:4, of the signs through which God signals His voice. “Here it is necessary to distinguish external works, signs, and times from our signs, works, and times. Nevertheless, through the same faith the same God, the same Spirit, lead; the cross is for us just as it is for them. Therefore they are for the sake of an example, that we may know that we, too, ought to believe our signs as they believed theirs. … Just as they exercised their faith in their external sign, so we, too, in our signs. In the stead of their exodus from Egypt we have one sign, which is Jesus Christ, who did not come down as then in a cloud and column but has spoken in the Son wrapped in the flesh.”

Free will - Walking on earth, walking on clouds

AELW 9:51

"Unless, therefore, God reveals His Law, by which He makes His will known to us (Ps. 103:7), there remains only that saying of ours: “Every man is a liar; every man, vanity” and Is. 55:9: “Just as the heavens are above the earth, so are My ways above your ways.” Hence that argument of the scholastics about free will is most foolish: “I have the freedom to govern a cow or to throw away money; therefore I have the freedom to do what pleases God and to serve Him.” But that is the same as if you said: “I can tread on the earth with my feet and walk on the earth; therefore I can also go into the heaven and walk on the clouds.” Indeed, from his creation man has free knowledge and power to rule and deal with those lesser than himself. But to govern himself and to do what pleases his superior, he neither knows nor is capable of. There free will ends; there he is necessarily blind, powerless, yes, dead and condemned. Therefore one should not be presumptuous here or choose what to do; but one should lean only and solely on the Word of God, neither adding nor subtracting anything. Hence where a man is not altogether certain that the Word of God is present, there he should not go at all; where he is certain that the Word of God is present, he should not draw back. This is such necessary counsel!"

They have to be repeated

AELW 9:48

[A note regarding chapter 4 of Deuteronomy]

“In this whole book, just as in all the other books of Moses, there is frequent repetition ad nauseam. Beware lest anyone be moved to boredom on account of it. For the cause for its being repeated so often is that it is the Word of God, which is to be distinguished from the work of men. Therefore the Word of God cannot be impressed enough. Since our nature is slippery and adversaries stand in opposition about us and do not cease to repeat their things and to impress them upon us, therefore, lest we be oppressed and forget the things that are of God, they have to be repeated.”

Christ is Born! Blessings to all....

Complete Sermons of Martin Luther
Volume I, p. 113 (1.1:113)
ed., John Nicholas Lenker

From Martin Luther’s Sermon for Christmas Day Luke 2:1-14

"Faith is first, and it is right that we recognize it as most important in every Word of God. It is of no value, only to believe that this history is true as it is written; for all sinners, even those condemned believe that. The Scripture, God's Word, does not teach concerning faith: that it is a natural work, without grace. The right and gracious faith which God demands is, that you firmly believe that Christ is born for you, and that this birth took place for your welfare. The Gospel teaches that Christ was born, and that He did and suffered everything in our behalf, as is here declared by the angel: "Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all the people; for there is born to you this day a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord." In these words you clearly see that He is born for us.

He does not simply say, Christ is born, but to you He is born, neither does he say, I bring glad tidings, but to you I bring glad tidings of great joy. Furthermore, this joy was not to remain in Christ, but it shall be to all the people. This faith no condemned or wicked man has, nor can he have it; for the right ground of salvation which unites Christ and the believing heart is that they have all things in common."

The Law and the Gospel

AELW 9:42-43

"The fact that Moses does not cross over the Jordan to the Land of Promise but is commanded to turn it over to another leader is an outstanding hidden lesson to the effect that the Law leads nothing to perfection, as it is said to the Hebrews (7:19). For the Law does not give the Spirit of grace, and therefore it does not lead into the kingdom of God, where the true inheritance of the Lord is. Moses kills two kings on this side of Jordan; that is, the Law humbles sinners, shows them that they are slain, and leaves nothing alive, that is, no trust in anything, since it leads to hell and is the ministry of death. Cattle and goods, however, are safe; they come in as booty. For the Law does not kill the man bodily, but it kills the trust of his heart; when that is dead, then a man surrenders whatever he is and has into the service of the Law as booty, and the miserable wretch lives with all his powers as a captive of the Law.

But since the Law does not preach forgiveness of that sin which it had provoked through its ministry, therefore it is forced to die in the land of Moab outside the kingdom of God. Since it is not right to teach the demand of the killing Law among the people of freedom, but the gift of the life-giving Spirit, therefore the whole Law collapses here, so that nothing is left of it, and man does not even know where it is buried. Joshua, however, denotes Christ, because of his name and because of what he does. Although he was a servant of Moses, yet after his master’s death he leads the people in and parcels out the inheritance of the Lord. Thus Christ, who was first made under the Law (Gal. 4:4), served it for us; then, when it was ended, He established another ministry, that of the Gospel, by which we are led through Him into the spiritual kingdom of a conscience joyful and serene in God, where we reign forever."

larva Dei - mask of God

AELW 9:40-41

Deuteronomy 3:18. Shall pass over armed before.

"This he says to the men of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh. Now this sounds as though he wanted them to wage the war with their own strength. But these things happen that there may be room for faith and the divine promise and that God may not be openly tempted. For even if God creates, nourishes, preserves, and governs all the sons of men, nevertheless He does not want any to be idle but gives them members with which they should bear, cherish, and govern one another, whereby God is given the occasion for creating, nourishing, and ruling. Thus the power of God hidden under the human activity is seen by faith to do all things; and the unbelieving, who see only the work of man and do not know the power of God, are deceived. So here, too, they are ordered to use arms, and yet they are forbidden to trust in arms. In the work of God they proceed with their own powers, and yet they are not presumptuous with their own powers. What, then, are human powers, where faith and the Word reign, except masks of God, as it were, under which He hides and does His wonders, while through their weakness He stirs up the proud, brave, wise, and holy against Himself? [NOTE SEE BELOW] And where they have collided, He soon gets rid of them, triumphs over them, and makes a show of them openly (Col. 2:15). Blessed is he whose members and arms thus serve God. Yes, if someone knows that the power and wisdom of God are of such a sort, he trusts wholly, not in the mask of God but in the Word behind the mask; and he can and does perform wonders, yes, everything, in the Lord. So it will come about that he walks on, free and safe in the midst of presumption and despair, and does not tempt God while he has what he needs; again, he does not despair if what he needs is lacking. For God, who works with him under the things which he has, will also work with him without these things, where he has nothing. Thus he does not have an abundance or have more when everything is at hand, nor does he suffer want or have less when everything is lacking. For in both situations he has God, just as Paul says (Phil. 4:12): “I have learned to abound, I have learned to endure want.” The godless, however, are puffed up by the property that is on hand; and when this is gone, they are downcast, because they grasp only the mask of things. Others are groping, because they do not want to use what has been given."

NOTE:

"The term larva Dei, “mask of God,” is an important one in Luther’s theological language. By it he designates the various external forms—the universe, other men, Satan, even Christ—through which (God carries out His hidden purposes for men and for His church."

He knows your way...

AELW 9:33

“He knows your way” is a Hebrew idiom, as in Ps. 1:6: “The Lord knows the way of the righteous,” and in Matt. 25:12: “Verily I say to you, I do not know you.” This is a word of outstanding comfort. By it faith is aroused. In German we say it Er nam sichs an; he recognized it and took care of it. Thus it denotes feeling more than the mind, as is the way of the constructions and words of this holy language."

Gradually the godless grumblers died...

Not a particularly deep quote but for some reason I like it....Maybe the reminder of the Law has found the bullseye...again.


AELW 9:32

Deutronomy 2:1 And for many days we went about Mt. Seir.

This means (as he himself says in the text) for thirty-eight years, so that gradually the godless grumblers died, and to the Gentiles time for repentance was given, and to the unbelieving Amorites the stumbling block of obstinacy through this weakness of the people of God.

He keeps on preaching to the unbelieving...

AELW 9:22-23

"If Moses, equipped with so many words and signs of God, is not believed but is forced to hand over the whole nation to godlessness, why are we astonished if few believe us today and the whole world rages with unbelief? Only two men out of so great a number cling to Moses; but in spite of this he does not stop, or abandon the office of the Word and his command. He keeps on preaching to the unbelieving, even though in vain. This is a great story and a remarkable instance of the Word of God and human planning; in it one can see how the almighty power of the Word fares in the world."

Better for a ruler to be prudent and not good...

AELW 9:18-19

Deuternomy 1:13 "Choose wise men."

"You see, therefore, that in divine Law no account is taken of the rich, powerful, noble, strong, and friendly, for handling public office, as is the custom of the world; but of the wise, understanding, and experienced, even if they are poor, lowly, weak, etc. The question has been properly raised whether a prince is better if he is good and imprudent or prudent yet also evil. Here Moses certainly demands both. Nevertheless, if one cannot have both, it is better for him to be prudent and not good than good and not prudent; for the good man would actually rule nothing but would be ruled only by others, and at that only by the worst people. Even if the prudent man harms good people, yet at the same time he governs the evil ones, which is the most necessary and suitable thing for the world, since the world is nothing else than a crowd of evil people. And here Moses seems to approve of this opinion, since he deals first with the wisdom of the princes, and afterwards with their goodness."

The stuff and substance behind the masks

AELW 9:7

"I[Luther] have taken pains, however, first to treat everything in the simplest manner. I have not allowed myself to be snatched away into so-called “mystic” interpretations if at times laws came up that appear absurd or foolish to some. For first of all Moses teaches godliness. He preaches faith amply and richly. He attaches the most beautiful ceremonies, by which the common people must be grasped and held, to keep them from making up their own, which God hates. Then he busies himself with the ordering of civil government and the nurture of mutual love, and he directs and arranges everything with the most suitable and just laws. Nothing here is foolish or useless, but everything is necessary and useful, as he will easily understand who knows what it is to manage government among people that are a little too free and wise in their own estimation, as this Jewish nation was. In such circumstances it is often necessary to ordain and do and permit things that would otherwise be laughed at and hissed down with very good reason. I do not think that God wanted to shape people by means of such ceremonies for any reason other than that He saw that the masses were most moved and captivated by those surface displays. To keep them from being empty masks and mere spectacles, He added His Word, the stuff and substance behind the masks, as it were, that by it they might become serious and meaningful, and the people themselves might know that what they did pleased God, and that if they themselves devised others without the Word, mere games and trumpery would result. "

Introduction to Deuteronomy

AELW 9:x

"In 1524 Luther began his own transcription of his notes on Deuteronomy with the intention to dedicate the work to the bishop of the Prussian diocese of Samland, George Polenz, who was showing inclinations toward the evangelical cause (see p. 5 below). Luther gave sections of the manuscript to the printer Lufft as rapidly as they were finished, and by February 1525 he complained that he might not complete the entire work except for the fear that the printer would incur damage if he did not. Lufft evidently published an incomplete edition in 1524. When Luther finally completed the work in 1525, Lufft issued a second edition, resetting the initial sections without change. This is the work translated into English here (WA XIV, 497–744; St. Louis, III, 1370–1639)."

AELW Volume 9 - Lectures on Deuteronomy

LUTHER’S
WORKS

VOLUME 9

LECTURES ON DEUTERONOMY

Do not sin rashly...

AELW 8:331-332

"neither sin nor death is something that can be freely laid or east aside as a garment is stripped off. No, it penetrates the marrow of the flesh and the spirit. Thus we see that those who despair in trials are consumed by heartache and wasting away. David felt its power and tyranny horribly when he heard from the prophet Nathan the exceedingly sad reproof: “You are the man” (2 Sam. 12:7). Then he exclaimed: “I have sinned against the Lord!” (v. 13), and with his eyes and heart nothing else than sin and destruction is observed. He would have perished at that very moment if the prophet had not immediately added: “You shall not die; the Lord has put away your sin” (2 Sam. 19:13). So great indeed is the power of despair and sin that it exhausts the body together with the soul.

Therefore you should not sin rashly, confident of obtaining God’s pardon; but you should rely on this pardon and find rest in it only when you are in despair. And here the pastor and the ministers of the church should give assistance; and mercy, which is far greater than sin, should be glorified. Thus Nathan raises David from the dead with this consolation when he says: “The Lord has put away your sin from you. What are you doing? Do you want to die in your sins because of this?” Yet for a long time David could not get over it. For a long time afterwards he struggles with the sting and bite of that sin in spite of the fact that it had been forgiven and pardoned. Look at his exceedingly sad complaints in the Psalms, and you see what harm sin does. It is an intolerable burden and plainly the devil’s poison.

Therefore do not smugly do evil in order that good may come. For even though God uses this crime of the brothers of Joseph for the help of many men and many other examples of His mercy are found again and again, there is still danger that those who are without fear will be seized by death and descend into hell before they can flee for refuge to God’s mercy. For this present account also testifies and shows how difficult it is to come to repentance after sinning, and to believe in this help, namely, that to those who acknowledge their sins God is propitious at no cost for His Sons sake."

Christ's blood annoints and preserves us for the future resurrection

AELW 8:320-321

Genesis 50:1. Then Joseph fell on his father’s face, and wept over him, and kissed him.

2. And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel;

3. forty days were required for it, for so many are required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days.

"it is apparent from that anointing that the Egyptians had excellent spices—myrrh, balsam, and cassia—which could preserve a body for 70 days. For to myrrh they attribute the power to prevent putridity and stench. When Augustus had come to Egypt, they showed him the bodies of Alexander the Great and Ptolemy, who had been buried for many years. He was greatly surprised by the fact that the bodies could be preserved in such a way that the skin and all the members were still in existence. They say the same thing about the corpse of the emperor Titus. Accordingly, these were very precious spices with which they made cadavers incorruptible for so many years; for the region was very hot, and this heat destroys bodies very quickly.

In winter we keep meat from putrefaction with cold instead of with myrrh, especially in the northern areas, in Denmark and elsewhere. This is our German myrrh. But it is truly wonderful that there, under such a burning sun, they were able to keep putridity and stench from corpses. God wanted to point out that the dead in Christ have been anointed with myrrh. Christ is our myrrh, just as myrrh is also offered to Him by the Magi, as Matt. 2:11 tells. For if we believe in Him, we are anointed with myrrh, so that we do not decay but are preserved for the future resurrection."

Asleep in faith

AELW 49:314-315

33. When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.

"The words “was gathered to his people” are truly splendid and full of meaning. This is a form of speech which belongs entirely to the saints and the godly, and for this reason I believe that Ishmael was also received into fellowship with the blessed; for it was also written concerning him that he “was gathered to his Kindred” (Gen. 25.17). Accordingly, this way of speaking should be pleasing to us; for it testifies that ever since the beginning of the world the saints fell asleep in faith and in the hope of the resurrection."

A different Word and a different government

AELW 8:271

"those who believe and whom the Holy Spirit touches through the Word know and receive the Holy Spirit, even though this is not at all apparent to the world. Therefore it is a different word and a far different government from that of a man. Beyond question it is the Word of God that speaks through us and through which He is powerful in the church. He does all things with the Word alone, illumines, buoys up, and saves; for it is a Word of promise, grace, eternal life, and salvation.

Concerning this efficacy of the Word the world knows nothing. Yet just as in the Gospel Christ casts out demons by means of the Word, so the minister says to the sinner: “I absolve  you from all your sins.” And this is the way it happens. For it is not the word of a man, at whose voice the devil would by no means flee. Even if all the jurists and all the philosophers were to heap up all their books, nothing would happen. But when the minister pronounces absolution, liberation from the devil and from sin is sure to follow. If the Holy Spirit grants you grace to believe, there He drives out Satan and death with one word."

If Christ is the vine, what does this make Luther?

or me for that matter...

AELW 8:246

Genesis 49:11

11. Binding His foal to the vine
and His ass’s colt to the choice vine,
He washes His garments in wine
and His vesture in the blood of grapes;

AELW 8:247

"Lyra gives the following explanation: The tribe of Judah will be so fertile and rich even before Christ that they will bind the ass’s colt to the vine, and one vine or branch will produce so much wine that an ass cannot be loaded with it. But this is plainly frivolous. For even in our lands, to say nothing of what might be the case in the Holy Land, one vine could easily be so fruitful that the wine would equal the load of an ass. Nor do I see how these things agree: to bind an ass to the vine, that is, to load it with wine"

The weapons of our warfare

AELW 8:238

Genesis 49:10

10. The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until Shiloh comes;
and to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

AELW 8:244

"it is our duty to inculcate these matters diligently and to heed this striking difference between the kingdom of Christ and that of others, even David’s. For this is what Jacob means: “The kingdom of my son David, which cannot be administered without the sword and arms, will not endure; but the kingdom of שִׁילֹה will follow, and it will be governed by the Word alone.” Thus Christ says: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation” (Mark 16:15). For that Word is most powerful. It is able to save from the hands of death and the devil as well as from the power of hell, and to translate into the kingdom of God. To this king, then, the nations shall listen; that is, they will be ruled by the Word. The work will be done through preaching. This will be the mark distinguishing the kingdom of Christ from the empires of the world, which are ruled by the sword and physical might. “The weapons of our warfare,” says Paul, “are not worldly but have divine power to destroy strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4). “I absolve you; I baptize you; I declare you to be a child of the kingdom; I announce to you the remission of sins; I promise and offer you victory over the devil. Believe, and you will be saved.”

Thinking about Scipio Africanus

What with a new book out on Scipio Africanus (June of 2008, Richard A. Gabriel, ISBN-10: 1597972053 ) that our library does not yet have and I have been too cheap to buy.....this quote from Luther is spot on...

AELW 8:237

"Psalm 44:4-6 "Through Thee we push down our foes; through Thy name we tread down our assailants. For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me." He is a king of faith, and his kingdom is a kingdom of faith; and although he is a temporal king, nevertheless he has been fortified with and surrounded by divine promises.

And this is the way to read the histories of the saints, which should be preferred to all chronicles of the achievements of Hannibal, Scipio, and Alexander the Great. Although those chronicles were held in the highest esteem among the Greeks and Latin authors, they are by no means to be compared to these. For they lack this glory of a divine quality; they have no promise. Therefore they are fortuitous and uncertain. But even though seemingly trifling and obscure things are described in the histories of the saints, nevertheless they are actually very important and glorious; for here it is not one nation and the people of the Philistines, the Moabites, etc., that are conquered. No, the prince of the world, who wanted this small and feeble kingdom to be destroyed and annihilated, is overcome. Therefore they are very find and precious histories in the sight of God. For they have greater weight and influence than all other chronicles, which are uncertain and contain things that happen fortuitously, especially before the fact. They cannot boast of a successful outcome except after the fact."(emphasis mine)

Understanding of the flesh and the eyes

AELW 8:235-236

"Thus we in the New Testament have the promise of the forgiveness of sins and of life in the sacraments and in the Gospel. But if you look at the fact and follow the judgment and understanding of the flesh and the eyes, you will come to the conclusion that nothing is less true than what is announced to you about the remission of sins and eternal life. For we see that men die and are buried most ignominiously, are even gnawed and consumed by worms in such a way that the cadaver of no beast stinks more and is more loathsome than the body of a human being. To be destroyed, to be buried in the ground, to be consumed and reduced to dust, and indeed with such foulness that, as cadavers are commonly depicted, owls are born from the human brain and serpents from the intestines - this is not what it means to have eternal life, is it? Yet here faith must come to a firm conclusion and expect resurrection and a return to life."

Faith and fear

AELW 8:204

"Faith and fear should exist in the hearts of men, because a promise and faith, like a threat and fear, are correlative. There is no promise if faith is not present; and, on the other hand, there is no faith without a promise, just as there is no fear where a threat is lacking. But God defers both in order to test us. And since the world is not willing to endure this trial, it despises both and neither fears Him who threatens nor believes Him who promises."

They want the belly to be full

or "Dem bellys full but dem hungry"(Bob Marley)

AELW 8:203

"the flesh neglects God when He threatens and when He promises liberation. For because He delays and defers His help, He is despised. No one wants to become accustomed to the exercises of faith, but men want to live without faith and to enjoy the things that are at hand. They want the belly to be full. But they reject the sure promise. Even though this promise concerns invisible things, yet these things will surely come to pass."

He does come, and comes for sure

AELW 8:202

"But the flesh is so smug and evil that it not only distrusts the promises but also despises the threats. For the threats, too, are delayed. Therefore the flesh does not believe God when He threatens. And when those despisers and irrational people hear that a judgment against sin remains for that Day, they say: “Perhaps what you are threatening is true. I wish I had money to count in the meantime.” God wants His threats to be feared and His promises to be awaited. But this is impossible except by faith.

For the world cares about neither of these things, no more, in fact, than if a goose were hissing at it. For God is patient and slow in carrying out both His promises and His threats. But He does not lie, and He makes up for that slowness either with the severity of the punishment or with the large number and the greatness of His blessings. Finally He does come, and comes for sure."

God feeds us with His Word

AELW 8:200

"This was the cause of all the idolatry among the people of Israel, even in the desert, as Ps. 78:8 testifies: “A generation whose heart was not steadfast, whose spirit was not faithful to God.” For they wanted to be led and governed in such a way that they did not live from faith in the promise but from what was actually present. On the other hand, God wanted them to rely on faith and not to long for the things that were pleasant at the time. Therefore they raged in indignation, saying: “God should not feed us with words. No, He should give us what we need.” Thus they seek what is plainly contrary to the will and government of God, and if at this time they do not get what they seek, they look for another god. This perversity of human minds is described throughout the aforementioned psalm, where we read: “They did not keep God’s covenant, but refused to walk according to His Law. They forgot what He had done, and the miracles that He had shown them.” (Vv. 10–11.) Likewise in Ps. 106:13: “They soon forgot His works, they did not wait for His counsel”; that is, they refused to believe. Stephen reproaches them with the same thing in Acts 7:43: “And you took up the tent of Moloch, and the star of the god Rephan, etc.”

Therefore one should carefully observe these things in the Holy Scriptures, which contain accounts far different from the records of the heathen, which do not have the promises of God. On the other hand, God makes promises to His people, to be sure; but at the same time He also tests and exercises them in the faith and teaches that they should live more by the Word than by bread, as Moses testifies in Deut. 8:3–4: “He humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know; that He might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but that man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.”

Live by the Word that Promises....

AELW 8:199-200

Genesis Chapter Forty-nine

1. Then Jacob called his sons, and said: Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you what shall befall you in days to come.

2. Assemble and hear, O sons of Jacob,
and hearken to Israel your father.

This chapter is somewhat obscure and difficult, especially because it has many teachers and interpreters with completely divergent views. Therefore we must make the crooked and curved road we are following smooth and straight. But we shall do what we can.

Jacob arouses his sons and gets their attention. He is about to speak on a great and memorable matter, namely, on the promise and the threat. And it is truly a great and difficult thing to speak beforehand about future matters with such certainty.

But we know from Holy Scripture and from actual experience that when God’s promises and threats are being fulfilled and taking their course, as it were, they seem to be altogether contradictory. For although the people of Israel had excellent promises, yet if you look at their history and at matters as they stand at present, they seem to be very miserable people and forsaken. It seems that God is either untruthful when He makes promises or is negligent, as we have had several examples above with respect to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The histories of these men seem to show nothing else than that they were without God or that God forgot them or had ceased completely to take care of them and had permitted their adversaries to reign and triumph over and to rage against the godly and innocent people with impunity.

In the same manner the people of Israel were harassed by hostile neighbors, the Philistines, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Idumaeans, the Egyptians, etc. Therefore nothing seemed less likely than that they had the promise. And what could be mentioned or thought of that would be more wretched than the history of the patriarch Jacob, which is full to overflowing of troubles and disasters of every kind? This is not a promise or a blessing, is it? This is not what it means to have God, life, and eternal bliss and happiness, is it? Surely the godly have the very opposite in sight, and, as it seems, what they experience is, in effect, completely different from what is offered in the promises, which reason declares to be false and, as the saying goes: “The good fare badly; the bad fare well.”

Accordingly, faith, which should rely on and live by the Word that promises, pertains to the promise. For if it is not present to cling to the promise and live by it, things certainly seem to conflict with the promise, in such a way that men are driven to despair."