Concordia Evangelical Lutheran Church
The M3 - Monday Morning Mail
Saint Michael and all Angels
Everything is Not What it Seems–Thank God!
Yesterday I made two summary statements that I wanted you to remember. The first is the Biblical truth that we live in a cursed world (Ge 3:17). This truth pushes back against all worldviews that see solutions in economic or political reforms. For Christians, then, no amount of evil should confound us. Yes, we may be shocked at what we see or hear, but after the initial response, we remember that the world is cursed--it is falling apart, unwinding, collapsing, etc.
The second Biblical truth I emphasized is that God is battling for you and me against the forces of evil that we can't see. What we see are the manifestations of the cosmic battle between Jesus and the great dragon, the serpent, Satan himself. Yet, we remember the encouraging words from Daniel the prophet: "At that time shall arise Michael, the great prince who has charge of your people. And there shall be a time of trouble, such as never has been since there was a nation till that time. But at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone whose name shall be found written in the book" (12:1). To be sure, you and I experience the effect of the curse in this life, as it rips through creation. Yet, YHWH's angels are constantly working to protect us. Ultimately, the battle has already been won, and the scars that we acquire in this life have been redeemed by Jesus' scars: "And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death" (Re 12:11).
So...the result is that we live without fear. We know how things are going to end–how they are going down. With the victory secured by Jesus, we live peacefully and hopefully, reminding ourselves when we are sad, hurting, in pain, that Christ is risen, he has won the battle!