Author: Nina Schmidt

Paul announces God’s rejection of worldly “somethings” for the preference of the divinely chosen nothings. These rejections and preferences set out by Paul and drawn upon by Luther for his theology of the cross precipitate the division of the assembly of hearers brought about by the preaching of Christ, him crucified, and him alone. This division is worked by God himself. We suffer in this division because we are unsure where the line is drawn. The division is marked by the line between believers and unbelievers. That line of belief/unbelief is drawn around the assembly, between it and the unassembled. That line of belief/unbelief is drawn among those assembled, separating those with faith and the Holy Spirit in the heart from those who are merely assembled. And that line of unbelief is drawn within the believer who “stands under judgment for his lack of faith and lives alone by God’s continued work of salvation,” as said by Vilmos Vajta.

God chose the world’s foolish; God chose the world’s weak; and God chose the world’s low and despised. In those choosings, God would, respectively, shame the wise, shame the strong, and bring to nothing the things that are. In the Mediterranean world at Paul’s time, to shame was to destroy… to bring down to nothing. God chooses to bring all these things to nothing so that he can create ex nihilo—out of nothing. Notice that God’s gracious choosing did not make the world’s foolish wise; it did not make the world’s weak strong; it did not make the world’s low and despised into its high and admired. Lowliness, weakness, and foolishness would then be used by God in denial of his creation ex nihilo.  God brings to nothing the things that are, so that Jesus Christ, him crucified, and him alone is everything to us. Jesus is the one something to all of our nothings. Paul reiterates this theme in Galatians, “For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Gal. 6:3). Out of nothing (that is you, the unbeliever), God creates a believer (that is, a new creature in Christ Jesus—2 Cor. 5:17).

Table Talk: Discuss why you think God must create believers out of nothing.

Pray: Heavenly Father, make me nothing so that Jesus Christ will be my one and only something. Amen

I Corinthians 1:26-31 (ESV)

26 Think about the circumstances of your call, brothers and sisters. Not many were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were born to a privileged position. 27 But God chose what the world thinks foolish to shame the wise, and God chose what the world thinks weak to shame the strong. 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world, what is regarded as nothing, to set aside what is regarded as something, 29 so that no one can boast in his presence. 30 He is the reason you have a relationship with Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

Paul is captive. Christ Jesus is his captor. Paul is now the prisoner of Jesus Christ. Prisoners receive only what their captors… their jailers… provide for them. Paul received a “stewardship” of God’s grace (vs. 2). In this stewardship, the mystery of Christ was revealed to him. Paul received what had previously not been disclosed, namely that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not merely for the Jews but is given to the Gentiles as well (vs. 6). For grasping the magnitude of this gift, understand that Paul knew only two kinds of people: Jews and Gentiles. The revelation of God’s secret plan proclaimed Jesus Christ as the savior of the entire world—all of its people, not merely the Jews.

Neither Jew nor Gentile bore responsibility for this hidden mystery. Paul (called and sent) received the gift of apostleship by the grace of God, who, in the power of the Father, bestowed the gift upon Paul. Paul’s commission (1 Cor. 9:17) had him “the least of all saints” (vs. 8), preaching this revelation not only to the Gentiles but also disclosing it to the “rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms” (vs. 10).

The result accomplished by God in Christ Jesus—Paul’s Lord—is that now Paul and we are given two blessings: 1) boldness and 2) confident access to God. The boldness is ours not from any quality or behavior of our own but simply because Jesus Christ was faithful. We are bold before the Father and the world even when all the circumstances would deny such boldness. Again, our confident access to God is not the result of our pious practices nor of any quality we may possess in and of ourselves. Instead, Christ’s faithfulness and his faithfulness alone (vs. 12) provides such access.

On this Day of Epiphany, when the royal Lordship of Jesus Christ was revealed to the world, we receive from the Apostle Paul the revelation that this baby Jesus Christ and the man he will become is the royal Lord of the Gentiles (that’s you and me, by the way), too. We possess nothing—not one thing—that brought this about. Only the faithfulness of Jesus Christ accomplishes it.

Table Talk: Discuss what it means to you that Jesus Christ’s faithfulness counts instead of your personal worthiness.

Pray: Heavenly Father, grant that I lean on Jesus’ faithfulness and not my own. Amen

Ephesians 3:1-12 (ESV)

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles 2 if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that by revelation the mystery was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly. 4 When reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ 5 (which was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit), 6 namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. 7 I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power. 8 To me—less than the least of all the saints—this grace was given, to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ 9 and to enlighten everyone about God’s secret plan—the mystery that has been hidden for ages in God who has created all things. 10 The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and confident access to God by way of Christ’s faithfulness.

No Christian suffers in vain. However, theologians of glory count suffering as foreign to the Christian life. In this, they practice Christian triumphalism and strive for an inappropriate and ill-timed glory. On the other hand, theologians of the cross-count suffering as a blessing. They count it as sharing “in the sufferings of Christ” (vs. 13). Therefore, suffering is not in vain. Here, both apostles, Peter and Paul, preach that the Christian’s suffering joins him or her with the sufferings of Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul writes, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up in my physical body—for the sake of his body, the church—what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ” (Col. 1:24). We may wonder just what could be lacking in the sufferings of Christ. The lack is the application of Christ’s suffering “for you.” You, the Christian, do not suffer in vain. Your pain, affliction, and hardship directly apply Christ’s suffering to you. Jesus Christ, God Incarnate, our Savior and the Redeemer of the World, blesses all suffering by the touch of his flesh. His touch and blessing do not mean that your suffering is justified any more than Christ’s suffering and death were warranted.  That your suffering and Christ’s suffering are unwarranted binds your sufferings together and prompts Peter to admonish his hearers to avoid criminality and trouble (vs. 15) since such behavior would justify your suffering. Peter again joins Paul as they both preach a delayed glory. Peter writes, “… so that when his [Jesus’] glory is revealed, you may also rejoice and be glad” (vs. 13).  Paul writes, “When Christ (who is your life) appears, then you too will be revealed in glory with him” (Co. 3:4). This sequence, suffering first and then glory, is rejected by Christian triumphalism and theologians of glory. Theologians of the cross grasp what Christ preached to his disciples, “A disciple is not greater than his teacher…” (Mt. 10:24; Lk. 6:40; Jn 13:16). So, the Apostle Paul concurs, “…because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son…” (Ro. 8:29).  The image of Christ in this sin-broken world is that of a man suffering the will of God, being hanged on the cross, and dying—suffering first, glory later (vs. 19).

Table Talk: Discuss those times when you, as a theologian of glory, have practiced Christian triumphalism.

Pray: Heavenly Father, join me in my sufferings to Christ in his. Amen

I Peter4:12-19

12 Dear friends, do not be astonished that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice in the degree that you have shared in the sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory is revealed you may also rejoice and be glad. 14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, who is the Spirit of God, rests on you. 15 But let none of you suffer as a murderer or thief or criminal or as a troublemaker. 16 But if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but glorify God that you bear such a name. 17 For it is time for judgment to begin, starting with the house of God. And if it starts with us, what will be the fate of those who are disobedient to the gospel of God? 18 And if the righteous are barely saved, what will become of the ungodly and sinners? 19 So then let those who suffer according to the will of God entrust their souls to a faithful Creator as they do good.

The Apostle Paul uses two striking images of the law as he writes to the Christians of Galatia. They describe the law in its purpose and place before the coming of Christ. The first is the image of the law as a jailor in charge of prisoners, keeping them locked up in confinement until their liberator, Jesus Christ, should come (Gal. 3:22-23). The second image is that of a custodian, a person who maintained control of children until their adulthood. This custodian directed their activities and handled their discipline while they were “minors” (Gal. 3:24-25).

Now in chapter 4, Paul employs a third image: the people were little different from slaves while they awaited their inheritance (Gal. 4:1). The terms of the estate’s distribution were set by their father and the children had to bide their time beneath the control of custodians and managers. Even though the heirs possessed it all, as children they were still subject to the “elemental principles of the world” (Gal. 4:3).

But then, the fullness of time arrives. God sends forth his Son. Jesus Christ had to go “under the law” by being born of woman—that is, he was made man (as confessed in the Nicene Creed). Going under the law, Jesus Christ “redeemed those who were under the law…” (Gal. 4:5). Jesus not only went under the law but, as he took on the sin of the whole world, the law found him a sinner—cursed because he hung on a tree—and the law put him to death. His death was the redemption price for all those who were also under the law. Redeemed from the law’s custodianship… freed from the law’s prison… those who had been mere minors become adopted sons and daughters. No longer slaves but heirs, they speak by the Spirit and cry out, “Abba, Father!”

For the Apostle Paul, the Spirit’s work in giving us God as our Father is like that of the Spirit’s work of giving us Jesus as Lord (1 Cor. 12:3). Both are transformations of status. The slave of the household obeys because of who his master is, but the heir of the household cannot help but be who he or she is—an obedient child of a heavenly Father.

Table Talk: Consider the distinction between a slave’s obedience and the behavior of an heir.

Pray: Heavenly Father, so give me Jesus that my jailor and custodian are behind me. Amen

Galatians 4:1-7

1 Now I mean that the heir, as long as he is a minor, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything. 2 But he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 So also we, when we were minors, were enslaved under the basic forces of the world. 4 But when the appropriate time had come, God sent out his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we may be adopted as sons with full rights. 6 And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, who calls “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave but a son, and if you are a son, then you are also an heir through God.

Paul wrote to Titus, who was sent to proclaim this salvation come for all people. Titus was sent to the island of Crete, a people much maligned by the more cultured mainlanders. The disdained and despised people of that island received the same good news and blessed hope preached to them as did the Jews, the Greeks, and the Romans—all recipients of the apostolic message.

Paul wrote this letter and now you hear it read on the Eve of the Nativity of Our Lord.  In the person of Jesus Christ, the babe born in Bethlehem, God’s grace appeared (vs. 11).  This historic event was witnessed by shepherds, angels, wise men, and parents.  It was heralded as the fulfillment of prophecy:  the bringing of God’s salvation for all people.  There can be no diminishment of the “all people.”  God gave his only begotten Son in love for the entire world.  This includes those whom we would malign, disdain, or despise.  When Jesus sends out his apostles, he sends them to the ends of the earth… to all people… so that they, too, will receive the message of God’s grace appearing in the person of Jesus Christ, bringer of salvation for all people.

This gospel, this good news, proclaimed again and yet again is our trainer.  This mighty Word of God kills and makes alive.  This Word, sharper than any two-edged sword, slices through our pretensions, exposes us in our self-righteousness, and puts to death the Old Adam who always covets the things of God.  This Word, full of mercy and compassion, speaks into the still darkness of our white-washed tombs and calls us forth to live in this present age—the days of our baptism.  Time and again we are trained through dying and being raised so that we would wait… wait for our blessed hope, “the appearing of the glory of our Savior Jesus Christ.”

Table Talk: Consider how salvation is for all people, yet not all persons are saved.

Pray: Father in heaven, place your Word in my ears that I may be joined to the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ, and wait in hope for his appearing.  Amen

Titus 2:11-14

11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.