"And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre? And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him. But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you. And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.” - Mark 16:1-8
The Story of Christ’s Resurrection
This Gospel lesson is part of the overall story and the first announcement of Christ's resurrection, which the angel gave to the women who went early to the tomb to anoint the Lord's dead body. This happened before Christ appeared to them and spoke with them because he wanted to reveal his resurrection through the Word, even before they saw him and experienced the power of his resurrection.
Just like we mentioned, there are two ways to think about Christ’s suffering and death and the other teachings of Christ. There are also two things we should know and understand about the Lord’s resurrection. First, the history that tells us what happened, along with the different details and how He showed Himself alive in various ways. This gives us a reliable record and testimony of everything as a foundation and support for our faith, because this belief in the resurrection is the main one on which our salvation is finally based. Without it, all other beliefs would be useless and completely pointless. Now, what a person should know about the historical events, like the order of the angel’s appearance—which is partly reported in this Gospel—and the Lord’s appearance, should be discussed with the full account, compiled and arranged in order from all the Gospels. Therefore, we will talk about the part mentioned in this Gospel along with that account.
The Benefit and Comfort of Christ’s Resurrection
The second point, which is more important and necessary, and the reason why the story has been recorded and is preached, is the power, benefit, and comfort of the joyful resurrection of the Lord; and how we should use this faith. Paul, all the apostles, and the entire Scriptures teach and preach about this gloriously and richly. But most gloriously of all, Christ the Lord himself preached when he first appeared to the women. So, for us to hear and gain something useful from it, let's consider the words Christ spoke to Mary Magdalene, as recorded in John 20:17, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended unto the Father; but go unto my brethren, and say to them, I ascend unto my Father and your Father, and my God and your God."
This is the first sermon our Lord gave after His resurrection and, without a doubt, it's also the most comforting. Although it's very brief, it's incredibly kind and tender. He first spoke it to His beloved Mary Magdalene, and through her, to His disciples after their deep sadness and grief caused by His departure and death. He wanted to comfort and cheer them with His resurrection. Since Mary was more deeply and tenderly concerned about the Lord than the others, and was the first at the grave to anoint Christ's body with expensive spices, and especially because when she couldn't find Him, she was frightened, confused, deeply troubled, and in tears, thinking He had been taken away, He allowed her to experience His love by appearing to her first. He comforted her in her fears and preached this beautiful sermon, which we will now consider.
First, when Jesus appears to her near the tomb, before he speaks, she mistakes him for the gardener. But when he calls her by name and says "Mary," she immediately recognizes his voice and instantly turns, calling him "Rabboni," which means "O dear Master" or "dear Lord." While they would say "Master," we usually say "My Lord." Right away, as she was used to doing, she falls at his feet to touch him. But he stops her and says, "Touch me not," as if to say, "I know you love me, but you can't yet see or touch me as you should." Her joy is only as high as the simple, physical pleasure of having her Lord alive again, just as he was before. She clings to the fact of his return, thinking he will be with them again as before, to eat, drink, preach, and perform miracles. She intends to show him the same love she showed before by serving him and touching his feet, as she did when she anointed him in life and death.
He doesn't allow himself to be touched like this now because he wants her to stop and listen, and learn something new. He tells her, "I don't want to be touched and anointed or to be served and waited on, as you have done before. I will tell you something different and new. I have not risen to walk and stay with you physically and temporarily, but to ascend to my Father. So, I don't need or want that kind of service and attention, and you shouldn't look at me like you look at Lazarus and others who are still living in the body. I don't plan to stay here; I want you to believe that I am going to the Father, where I will rule and reign with Him forever, and where I will also bring you out of your death and sorrow. There, you will have me visibly and tangibly with you, and you will rejoice forever in eternal communion with me and the Father." Therefore, he means to say, "Stop all such physical service and reverence, and instead become a messenger. Proclaim what I tell you to my dear brothers, that I will no longer be here in bodily form, but that I have left this mortal state to enter a different existence, where you can no longer handle and touch me, but will know and possess me only in faith."
Here he uses completely new language when he says: "Go and tell my brethren," taken from Psalm 22:22, which is all about Christ, and where he talks about both his suffering and resurrection, saying: "I will declare thy name unto my brethren, etc." He had never spoken to his apostles like this before. During the Lord's Supper, he calls them his "dear children" and his "friends" (John 13:33; 15:14), but now he uses the most loving and honorable name possible and calls them his "brethren." This is very important to him; he doesn't wait, but as soon as he rises, his first priority is to have them told what he plans to do and why he has risen from the dead.
And, indeed, this is expressed in a way that is wonderfully sweet and beautiful, so that anyone who wants to believe has every reason to believe, throughout their life and as long as the world exists, that these things are truly real. Just as the beloved apostles themselves found more than enough encouragement to believe. The comfort is too immense and the joy too magnificent, while the human heart is too small and limited to fully grasp it.
The Apostles were hiding behind locked doors, not only feeling discouraged and scared, like sheep scattered without a shepherd, but also troubled in their conscience. Peter had denied and renounced his Lord with an oath and cursed himself; and the others had all run away, showing themselves to be disloyal. That was indeed such a deep and terrible fall that they might well think they would never be forgiven for denying the Son of God and so shamefully abandoning their dear Lord and faithful Savior. How could they have ever imagined that Christ would send such a loving greeting and a kind good morning to them, who had been so disloyal and denied him, and would not only forgive everything but also call them his dear brothers? Or who can believe and grasp it today? I myself would like to believe it at times, but I cannot fully get it into my heart so that I dare rely on it completely and dare count it to be really true. Yes, if we only could, we would already be in heavenly bliss in this life, and would fear neither death, nor the devil, nor the world, but our hearts would constantly leap for joy and sing to God an eternal "Te Deum Laudamus," i.e., “We praise thee, O God.”
But unfortunately, this isn't how things are on earth; our miserable, limited selves, this old skin of ours, is too tight. So, the Holy Spirit has to help us, not only by preaching the Word to us but also by expanding and motivating us from within. Yes, even using the devil, the world, and all kinds of troubles and persecutions for this purpose. Just like a pig's bladder needs to be rubbed with salt and thoroughly worked to stretch it, our old skin must be well salted and troubled until we ask for help and cry out. This way, we stretch and expand ourselves through both internal and external suffering, so that we can finally achieve this heart and joy, happiness, and comfort from Christ's resurrection.
Let's take a moment to think about the kind of words Christ uses here. We shouldn't just skim over them like we've done before, especially in the Catholic Church, where we've read, heard, and sung them so much that we're tired of them. Yet, we've ignored them, like a cow walking past a sacred place. It's a sin and a shame to have heard and known such words but still let them sit cold and lifeless outside our hearts, as if they were spoken and written for nothing. Even Christians, who don't dismiss them like others do and use them daily, don't value or believe in them as much as they would like to.
Think about what these words mean and offer: "Go, my dear sister," because he would definitely address these women this way, since he appeared to them first, and tell the denying and disloyal disciples that they are called, and shall be, "my dear brothers." Isn't this, in a word, including and placing us with Christ into the complete ownership and inheritance of heaven and everything Christ has? Rich and blessed indeed must be the brothers and sisters who can boast of this Brother, who is not hanging on the cross now, nor lying in the grave under the power of death, but is a mighty Lord over sin, death, hell, and the devil.
But how did these poor, scared, and discouraged disciples come to such honor and grace, and what did they do to deserve such brotherhood? Was it because of Peter’s shameful denial of Christ and the disloyalty of all the others to Him? And how have I and others deserved it, if we apply this to ourselves? I, who have conducted the idolatrous mass for fifteen years, blaspheming God and helping daily to crucify Christ again? What a fine merit this is, indeed, riding to hell in the devil’s service and looking to other brotherhoods—those of the devil and his group, bearing the names of dead saints like St. Anthony, St. Francis, St. Sebastian, St. Christopher, St. George, St. Ann, St. Barbara, some of whom we don't even know if they were saintly or if they ever lived at all. What a sin and shame for us, who are called Christians, to have had this brotherhood of Christ the Lord so graciously offered to us, only to despise and reject it, and fall into such deep blindness as to have ourselves inscribed in the disgraceful brotherhood of the shameful monks and the whole herd of the pope, and to preach about and praise this as though it were something precious! But that is what the world deserves. Why did we not appreciate the Word of God that was written, painted, played, sung, and rung before our eyes and ears? And even now, when the Word of God itself points this out and rebukes us, we continue to blaspheme and persecute; whereas we ought to thank and praise God for having so graciously delivered us, without, and contrary to, any merit of our own from such blindness and blasphemy, and for having granted us the grace to recognize it.
Now, let anyone who can believe it. Whether we believe it or not, it's still the truth. This brotherhood is established among us, and it's not like the loose brotherhoods of the Kaland or the monks. It's the brotherhood of Christ, where God is our Father and His own Son is our brother. In this brotherhood, we receive an inheritance that offers more than just a hundred thousand dollars or a kingdom or two. We are freed from the company of the devil, from sin and death, and we gain the inheritance and possession of eternal life and eternal righteousness. Even though we were once in sin, deserving death and eternal damnation, and still are, we should know that this brotherhood is greater, mightier, stronger, and superior to the devil, sin, and everything else. We haven't fallen so deeply, and things aren't so bad or ruined that this brotherhood can't fix and fully restore everything again, since it is eternal, infinite, and inexhaustible.
Who started this brotherhood? It's the only Son of God and almighty Lord of all creatures, who didn't need to suffer or die for himself. But he tells us, "I did all this for your sake, as your dear Brother, who couldn't stand to see you, eternally separated from God by the devil, sin, and death, perish so miserably. So, I stepped into your place, took your misery upon myself, and gave my body and life for you so that you might be saved. I have risen again to announce and share this deliverance and victory with you, and welcome you into my brotherhood, so you can possess and enjoy everything I have and hold with me."
So you see, it's not enough for Christ that the historical event happened and that, as far as he's concerned, everything is done. He brings it into our lives and creates a community from it, so it becomes something we all share and inherit. He doesn't treat it as an isolated fact but as something relational. He did this not for himself or for his own benefit, but as our Brother and solely for our good. He wants to be seen and known as belonging to us with all these blessings, and that we, in turn, belong to him. We are so closely connected that we couldn't be more intimately related, having a common Father, sharing an equal, common, and undivided inheritance, and having the right to use all his power, honor, and estate, to take pride in it, and to find comfort in it, as if it were our own.
Who can fully understand this? And what heart can truly believe that the Lord is completely ours? It is truly too great and indescribable that we, poor and miserable children of Adam, born and aged in sin, are to be the real siblings of supreme Majesty, co-heirs and co-rulers in eternal life. As St. Paul so gloriously declares (Romans 8:17; Galatians 4:7), "And if children, then heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, etc." For all this follows logically: if we are called the children of God, then we must truly also be His heirs, and siblings and co-heirs of Christ the Lord, who is the only essential Son of God.
So, let anyone who can, learn to start praying the Lord’s Prayer correctly; and understand what it means for me to call God my Father, and for me to truly and fully see myself as His dear child and the brother of Christ the Lord, who has shared everything He has with me and given me His eternal treasures. Here, examine and ask your own heart whether you can say without doubt and hesitation from the bottom of your heart: “Our Father;” whether you are firmly grounded and assured before God: I see myself as Your dear child, and You as my dear Father, not because I have earned it or could ever earn it, but because my dear Lord wants to be my Brother, and has willingly declared it and invited me to see Him as my Brother, and has said that He would also see me as such. Just start this, I say, and see how you will do; and you will soon discover what an unbelieving person is hidden inside you, and that your heart is too slow to believe it. Oh, I am such a poor sinner, nature exclaims, how dare I lift myself so high, place myself in heaven, and boast that Christ is mine, and I am His brother! For this greatness and glory is so extremely high, beyond all human sense, heart, and thought, that we cannot understand it; even as Paul himself admits in (Phil. 3:12), that he is striving to grasp it, but has not yet achieved it. Yes, a person is amazed and frightened at themselves for daring to accept and boast of such honor and glory.
But what should we do? We have to admit, and it's true, that we are poor sinners, and like St. Peter, we have denied our Lord (I especially more than others). But what should we do about it? It's already enough and more than enough that I turned away from Him and acted wrongly. Should I also make Him out to be a liar and deny this comforting message, and speak against Him? God forbid!
"Yes," says the devil, "because of my flesh, you are not worthy of this." Unfortunately, that's true; but if I didn't believe and accept it, I would be making my Lord a liar and saying it's not true when He tells me that He is my Brother. God forbid I do that, because it would mean rejecting my God and all my salvation and eternal happiness, and treating it with contempt.
So, here's what I want to say: I know very well that I am an unworthy person, deserving to be the devil's brother, not Christ's and his saints'. But now Christ has said that I, for whom he died and rose again, just like he did for St. Peter, who was also a sinner like me, am his brother. He really wants me to believe him without doubt and hesitation, and he doesn't want me to think about how unworthy and full of sin I am, because he himself doesn't see it that way or remember it. Even though he has every reason to repay his followers for what they did against him, he has forgotten and erased it from his heart. Yes, he has destroyed, covered, and buried it, and now he only speaks kindly and positively about them. He greets them and talks to them affectionately as his faithful, dearest friends and good children, as if they had never done anything wrong or hurt him, but only done good to him. This way, their hearts won't be uneasy or worried that he might remember and hold it against them. Since he doesn't want it remembered and wants it gone and buried, why shouldn't I leave it at that and thank, praise, and love my dear Lord with all my heart for being so gracious and merciful? Even though I am full of sin, why should I continue to call this gracious Word, which I hear him speak, a lie and willfully reject the offered brotherhood? If I don't believe it, I won't receive its benefits, but that doesn't make it false or prove that anything is lacking in Christ.
If someone wants to burden themselves with new sins and doesn't want to forget what they've forgotten, let them sin in such a way that it will never be forgotten, and they can never be helped. As we read in the Epistle to the Hebrews (Hebrews 6:4-6; 10:26), this is about those who have sinned by turning away from God's Word and calling it a lie. This is the sin against the Holy Spirit and is described as crucifying the Son of God again and openly shaming the Spirit of grace. May God protect all who want to be Christians from this! Sadly, there is still too much of the old blindness and foolishness that we've been wrapped up in until now. This should disappear and be forgotten now that we have become His followers, if we only accept it. If we can't believe as strongly as we should, let's start, like young children, by at least taking a small spoonful of this milk until we become stronger, and not reject it completely.
So, even if you feel unworthy when you pray and think, "Oh no, my sins are too many, and I'm afraid I can't be Christ's brother," fight back and defend yourself as best as you can, so these thoughts don't take over your mind. You're in great danger of committing a sin against the Holy Spirit here. With full confidence and boldness, respond to these thoughts from the devil: "I know very well who I am, and you don't need to tell or teach me, because it's not your place to judge this. So, go away, you lying spirit! I will not and must not listen to you. Here is my Lord Jesus Christ, God's only Son, who died for me and rose again; he tells me that all my sins are forgotten, and that he will be my Brother, and that I am to be his brother too; and it is his will that I should believe this from my heart without doubting."
A scoundrel and a villain, yes, even a brother of the miserable devil himself, must be the one who wouldn't accept this. Even though I am not worthy of it, I am in great need of it; and even if that weren't the case, God is at least worthy that I should honor Him and recognize Him as the true God. But if I don't believe, I would, in addition to all other sins, in the worst possible way, bring dishonor upon Him by violating the first commandment, making Him a liar and a vain God. What greater wickedness and blasphemy has anyone ever heard or proclaimed? Instead, do this: When you feel that it is too hard for you to believe, fall down on your knees and complain to God about your inability; and say with the apostles: "O, Lord, increase our faith" (Luke 17:5). I would gladly count You as my dearest Father, and Christ as my Brother, but my flesh, unfortunately, will not submit; therefore, help my unbelief so that I may honor Your name and hold Your Word to be true.
See, in this way you will experience for yourself what a great struggle it takes to truly believe God’s Word and to pray the Lord’s Prayer correctly. It's not that this Word isn't sure, steadfast, and strong enough on its own, but rather that we are so weak, like unstable, wretched mercury, that we can't hold on to something that deserves to be held with hands and hearts of steel and diamond.
In the past, when we were misled and deceived by lies and false worship, we could confidently rely on and find comfort in a strong, though false, faith in all the saints and the brotherhoods of the monks. We would joyfully say: "Help, dear Lord St. George, or St. Anthony, and St. Francis, and let me enjoy the benefit of your intercessions!" There was no doubt or opposition then; this activity was agreeable to us, and we had the strength and determination to believe. But here, where Christ, the Truth itself, offers us His fellowship, even invites and urges us in the most loving way, saying: "Beloved, receive Me as your Brother," He cannot succeed in leading us to believe and accept it. The flesh and the devil resist and oppose it so strongly.
So, I say, it's best for everyone, when they go into their private space to pray, to really try to understand what they're saying and to carefully think about the words, "Our Father." For example: My friend, what are you praying? How does your heart respond? Do you truly see God as your Father and yourself as His dear child? No, indeed, says the heart, I don't know; how can I dare to claim something so great and wonderful for myself? Then why don't you stop praying, when with your lips you call God your Father, while your heart contradicts yourself and Him as He has revealed Himself in His Word? Instead, admit your weakness and say: "I do call you my Father and should call you that, according to your Word and command; but I'm afraid my heart is lying like a scoundrel. And the worst part is, not just that I'm lying; but that I'm also accusing you of falsehood. Help me, dear Lord and Father, so that I don't make you a liar; because I can't become a liar myself without first having made you one."
Even though I realize and sadly experience that I can't say "Our Father" with my whole heart—as no one on earth fully can, otherwise we would already be in heavenly bliss—I will still try and begin, like a little child starting to nurse at its mother's breast. If I can't fully believe it, I won't consider it a lie or deny it. Even if I can't do it perfectly, I will be careful not to go against it like the monks and those with despairing hearts do, who see Christ not as their Brother, but as an enemy and a taskmaster; that would be turning Him into the devil himself. Instead, I will practice daily, trying to say "Our Father" and this teaching of Christ as best as I can, even if I stammer, stutter, or lisp. May God grant that I can achieve it to some degree at least.
As mentioned before, the greatest sin is when God is gracious and wants to forgive all our sins, but people, through their unbelief, reject God's truth and grace, throwing it away and refusing to let the death and resurrection of Christ the Lord benefit them. I cannot claim that this fellowship, which brings us forgiveness of sins and every blessing, is my work or the work of any person, or that anyone worked or sought for it. This resurrection happened and was completed before anyone knew anything about it; and the fact that it is announced and preached to us is not done through human words but by God's word; therefore, it cannot fail or lie. Since it is solely the truth and work of God, we must, under the threat of God's extreme anger and displeasure, accept it as coming from God and hold onto it by faith, so we do not fall into the sin that cannot be forgiven.
For any other sins that go against God's command and Law, which include everything we are supposed to do and what God asks of us, these are all covered by forgiveness, since we are never completely free from them throughout our entire life. If God were to judge us based on our life and actions, we could never be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe the Word of Christ or accept His work sins much more because they resist grace and deny themselves forgiveness. Grace says: "The law will not harm or condemn you, even though you have sinned greatly against it, because these sins will all be forgiven and taken away by Christ," since that is why He died for you and rose again, and now offers all this to you through this message of His brotherhood. Now, if you refuse to believe or accept this, and stubbornly reject it, saying: "I want no grace," what will help you then? Or what else will you seek to obtain forgiveness and be saved? Yes, I will become a Carthusian monk, walk barefoot to Rome, and buy an indulgence, etc. Very well, go ahead as you wish, not in God's name, but in the miserable devil's name; because by doing this, you have denied not only grace but also the law, and have completely turned away from God, since you seek such works and holiness that are not commanded by God, and are even forbidden.
Shouldn't God be angry and punish us for mindlessly babbling, singing, and reading the Lord’s Prayer and the Creed without understanding, faith, or sincerity? We often ignore not only Christ but also God’s Law, boasting about our own efforts and false spirituality, going against His grace and command, and expecting to reconcile with Him and earn heaven this way. This is what we deserve for ignoring God’s Word and the glorious, comforting message of Christ: to be shamefully blinded and deceived by the devil, and punished and troubled by the pope. It's as if God is saying: Fine, if you won't accept my Son as your Brother and me as your dear Father, then take the pope with his monks, who lead you away from the Gospel, the Creed, and the Ten Commandments, to their shabby, stinking robes and the devil’s brotherhood.
Because they didn't want Christ to be and remain our Brother without our merit and worthiness, and to bring us God’s grace and forgiveness of sin, what is this but really denying faith in God and His Son, as St. Paul says in Titus 1:16, even though they confess Him with their lips? Just as I did in my former ignorance, when I helped to sing and read these words with others, yet thought much more highly of my monkhood and my own works. If I had accepted as true and certain what St. Paul says in Romans 4:25, that Christ died for our sins and was raised again for our justification, so we might become His brothers, then I would have learned that my own works and my monkhood couldn't achieve this for me. Otherwise, why would Christ need to take my sins and God's wrath upon Himself in His cross and death, and by His resurrection, place me into the inheritance of the forgiveness of sins, eternal salvation, and glory?
But now, since they cling to their monastic practices and seek God's grace through their own merits, trying to get rid of and atone for their sins, they show that they don't really believe what they say with their lips: "I believe in Jesus Christ who died for me and rose again," etc. Instead, they believe in the habits and ropes of the barefooted monks, in St. Ann, St. Anthony, and, forgive me, even in the devil himself. It's impossible for someone who truly knows Christ in this community to be involved in such foolishness, which is taught and followed not only without faith and against it but also against the commandments. These are truly sinful acts, the worst of all sins.
Therefore, in response to all this, a Christian should get into the habit of praying the Lord’s Prayer, firmly crossing themselves, and thinking: “Keep me, dear Lord, from the sin against the Holy Spirit, so that I may not fall away from faith and Your Word, and may not become a Turk, a Jew, or a monk and a papal saint, who believe and live contrary to this brotherhood; but that I may hold on to even a small part of the garment of this brotherhood.” Let it be enough that we have believed and lived contrary to it for so long; now it is time to pray to God to make this faith sure and steadfast in us. For if we have this faith, then we are healed and delivered from sin, death, and hell, and are able to test all other spirits, to discern and reject all error, deception, and false faith, and to declare: He who puts on the cowl and shaves his head to become holy, or joins the brotherhood of monks, is a mad, senseless fool, yes, a blind, miserable, unhappy, and despairing creature; he who tortures himself with much fasting and self-punishment, like the Carthusian friars or Turkish saints, is already separated from God and Christ and condemned to hell. For all this is nothing but blasphemy and contradiction of the blessed heavenly brotherhood of Christ. They may indeed pray and read a lot about it, as Isaiah 29:13 says: “This people draw near to me with their lips,” come before my face in the churches: with singing and ringing, “but their hearts are far from me.” What pleasure, do you think, can He have in such saints, who outwardly act as though they were real children of God, reading and singing the Gospel, using the most beautiful words, and celebrating a glorious Easter festival in processions, with banners and candles, and yet, do not try to understand or believe it, but rather oppose it by their doctrine and life?
If they truly understood and believed it, they wouldn't hold on to their mockery and meaningless things. Instead, they would immediately throw away their robes and cords, saying: "Shame on this disgraceful brotherhood! To the miserable devil with it, for opposing the brotherhood taught to me by the Creed and the Lord’s Prayer! It is not worth any notice or attention." In Philippians 3:5, Paul talks about his own holy life in Judaism: "I was," he says, "a pious, blameless man, not only in my own vain estimation, but according to the law of Moses; but when I learned to know Christ, I counted all my righteousness under the law as loss, yes, not only loss, but I considered it garbage and filth. I thought I was a great saint, that I had kept the law strictly and with all diligence, and considered this my highest treasure and greatest gain; but when I heard of this brotherhood and inheritance of the Lord Jesus Christ, oh, how my pride and the boast of my own righteousness left me so completely that I now shudder at it, and do not even want to think of it" (Phil. 3:5-8).
Look, he praises the righteousness that this brotherhood gives us so much that he downplays and completely dismisses the life and holiness of all people, even when it's at its best according to God's law. This law must indeed be followed, and there's truly nothing more commendable and better on earth. Yet, because it is still our own effort and life, it cannot and should not have the honor and glory of making us God's children or of gaining the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. This happens when you hear the word of Christ, saying: "Good morning, my dear brother; in me, your sin and death are overcome, for all I have done, I have done for you," etc.
This is why St. Paul boldly challenges sin and death: "O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Cor. 15:55). It's as if he's saying, "In the past, you were powerful and terrifying enemies, making everyone, no matter how holy and devout, tremble and despair. But where are you now? How did I completely overcome you?" He answers, "Everything is swallowed up and completely drowned in a victory." But where is this victory, or whose victory is it? "Thanks be to God," he replies in verse 57 (1 Cor. 15:57), "who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
This is truly a wonderful and great confidence, but it's only possible for a faith like St. Paul's. However, even he admitted that his faith wasn't as strong as he wanted it to be. Still, he definitely had it and could stand firm against the anger and power of the devil. The fact that we can't do the same and are still so scared of death and hell shows that our faith is still too weak. Therefore, we have even more reason to call on God, pray, and ask our fellow believers to pray for us. We should also work on embedding the Word into our hearts every day until we, too, can achieve this level of confidence to some extent.
Let our opponents mock us and sarcastically say that we only know how to teach about faith, and let them insist that we need to aim higher and do much more. But if we only had enough faith, we would soon take care of everything else. The most important and necessary thing, which they know nothing about, is how to get rid of the fear of sin, death, and hell, and how to have a peaceful conscience before God, so that we can truly and sincerely pray “Our Father.” Without this, everything else is pointless, even if we exhaust ourselves with our works. But since everyone falls short in this area, we shouldn't be ashamed of learning and focusing on these things daily, just like we do with our daily bread. Additionally, we should ask God to give us power and strength. Amen.
