The Lutheran Hour

"Love Lays Life on the Line"

#78-25
Presented on The Lutheran Hour on February 27, 2011
Guest Speaker: Dr. Alton Wedel
Copyright 2025 Lutheran Hour Ministries

Text: 1 John 3:11-18

Original air date: September 14, 1969

We pray that God create in us the heart and mind of Christ to live the life of Christ sensitive to every human need. Oh, God, Whose mercy never fails, Whose love has given us Thy Son to heal our hurt, Whose compassion offers rest to all who are distressed for any cause, we bring the burden of a suffering world to Thee. Kindle in our hearts the flames of love and mercy that we may be the agents of compassion to all who are in any want. Grant us the gift of life in Jesus Christ Who gave His Life for us and enable us to live it in the service of a suffering humanity. Give us the heart of Christ that bears the suffering of the world. Give us the eyes of Christ that sees the sorrows of the world. Give us the hands of Christ that offer help where help is needed and bless our service in the Name of Christ. Amen.

What’s the difference? We have had almost two thousand years of Christian history. What difference has it made? “This is the message we have heard from the beginning that we should love one another.” Has that made any difference? Through these twenty centuries there have been millions who have laid life on the line for Christ. Have they made any difference?

A world that measures usefulness by what it sees and tastes and touches wants the answer – has Christ made any difference? Is His religion practical? Does it work?

Long years ago a Danish theologian by the name of Kirkegaard declared, “Society is sick!” Today the patient’s chart reads, “Condition failing!” Ambulances full of experts have been summoned, sirens screaming, to the death bed with adrenalin and oxygen and heart massage to do whatever might be done to save the patient. Up and down the corridors battalions of her relatives are scurrying about and shouting at the experts, “Do something. Do something quickly. Don’t just stand there!” And others in the waiting room – or shall we call it wailing room – weep bitter tears and shake their heads in hopelessness and wait the word of death. Society is sick. If you have anything to offer for its aches and pains, any oil you can pour into the wounds, any band-aid for the cancer of humanity, any pill to tranquilize the unrest or reduce the fever or bring an end to these convulsions, then step forward. If not, then step aside. Don’t just stand there making words.

Now that’s the mood today. “This is the message we have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another” and although there are a few faint echoes of the theme of love and peace, our age seems totally immune to any Word from God. In a world of grizzlied news, the good news hasn’t made much difference, so let’s get on with something else or else go out of business. Experts multiply suggestions on how to make the church more useful, or how to spend our time with greater profit than indulging in the luxury of liturgies and sermons. There are more significant and vital needs that cry for help. We have no need for words.

We are agreed on that. This is no time for words. The world is bathed with words – words that are empty, or if not empty, full of hatred – words that deceive, divide, confuse. And there is action, too – convulsive action born of pain, sometimes despair, sometimes of guilt – as humanity meets crisis after crisis in the never-ending catalogue of problems. But neither human words nor human acts will ever meet the needs. We need the Word – the Word from God – the Word that acts – the Word of love that grabs your life and lays it on the line.

That Word of love from God is not a tender flower that takes root easily in human hearts. It is more than warm affection, kind personal greetings from a God beyond the skies, or compassion for our human hurt. It is more than God’s desire that every little boy should have whatever he might need to make him happy, or that every one should have his way – exactly as he thinks his way should be. In fact, when God’s great Word of love takes hold of us, there may be nothing, absolutely nothing, that will fall in place the way we want to see it. The definition and dimensions God has given love are different from our own – so different that we cannot understand until we see that God spells love not with four letters, but that He spells it with a cross.

The Apostle John should know. His definition of this thing called love was overhauled, revised, reversed. He put it this way, “By this we know what love is all about, that He laid down His life for us.” God loved the world that much that He laid His life on the line for us – He gave His only Son. This is the way God writes His definition of this thing called love, not with a sentence somewhere in the Bible dictionary, but in the action of a place called Calvary. There He came to meet us. There He came to shoulder every burden of our sin and suffering. There He paid the price that love and life required. The penalty that sin exacts from all its victims, the guilt that crushes man in his despair and hopelessness, the death that makes life meaningless because it drops the iron curtain in our face at any unexpected moment – God’s love took care of that in Jesus Christ.

If it’s action you are looking for, then look at that. God made no words – He spoke the Word – the strangest word our language knows – forgiveness. He loved us not in word or speech, but in the costly deed of Calvary and in the truth of Jesus Christ, His Son.

But did it make a difference? “This is the message we have heard from the beginning”: the message of the cross, that costly act of God that spoke forgiveness to a world of men who would be gods. But has it made a difference? We know that we have passed from death to life because we love the brethren – did the Apostle John say that? He had to be a dreamer. Are those who name the name of Christ in faith more loving, more humanitarian, less caustic, and less hateful for it? Is the company of Christians an elite society beyond the possibility of criticism where sin no longer dwells and where the serpent’s fangs of selfishness and lovelessness no longer spew their venom? Face it and admit it – any judgment you would like to speak against the church, if that’s your favorite indoor sport, is true. Page the encyclopedia of sin and take your choice – not one of them is missing from the people of the Lord. God’s people are a people whose performance always lags behind profession, whose deeds are always several miles behind their creed, whose life of lovelessness belies their words of love. And if you ever hear it said from voices in the gallery, “We’re just as good as you are,” you can fire back, “You’re right, my friend, and just as bad!” There is no difference.

But now stay on! There is a difference. We know that there’s a difference, for we have passed from death to life.
We know there is a difference, because we know the One who makes the difference. Christ laid life on the line for us. He gave His life an offering for sin – now He extends it as an offer! His life – love lays it on the line and we can have it – the life of Christ in us that has the power to break the habit of self-adoration, or the habit of despair and hopelessness, or the habit of a living death. As Christ lays his life on the line for us, as love extends the offer of His life to us, then we develop new perspectives. We see ourselves not as the center of the universe to whom all others bow and scrape, but as a people loved of God for whom He bowed His head in death. We see our fellow man not as the objects of our cynicism and contempt who dance to any tune we whistle, nor as intruders on our personal pads of ease, nor as people useful to our purposes, but as men who meant enough to God that love would lay life on the line for them.

In this perspective, when the life of Christ becomes our life and when we see as God sees, then we see the difference, Since the day that Cain destroyed his brother Abel and set the pattern for this world’s unbrotherly behavior, men who would be gods live in the insecurity of living death, We choose our friends from those who can advance our cause and name our enemies as those who threaten us and need the feel of our sharp elbows, Life has become a matter of “Let’s see what we can get away with,” as a modern motion picture has it, and if anyone should cross our path, “Let’s see who we can do away with!” Even great words in the language -words like love and peace -become distorted, tipped upside down, drained of their content, and refilled with the garbage of our self-satisfying interests, But this is not the character of life, This is the character of death, We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren -with a love that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things -a love that lays life on the line -because it is the love of Christ, and not our own.

“By this we know what love is all about, that He laid down his life for us.” And by this we understand what love is all about, as Christ’s love takes our lives and lays them on the line in the compulsion of compassion, “and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” This self-giving love of God comes out with no cheap comforts -not for Him and not for us. It offers no foam rubber mattresses for flights to heaven, no security against the fires of trial and suffering, no guarantee for safety, no peace of mind that comes from having things the way we want them. Love lays life on the line to be consumed, not comforted; disturbed, not tranquilized; involved, and not a drop-out.

Are we prepared for that? Are we prepared to have our definition overhauled, revised, reversed, and then prepared for everything that happens when it is? There are those inside the church today who, if ever they found out that love will grab their lives and lay them on the line, would leave in haste. And there are those outside the church today who know too well what happens and who would rather find a cheaper way to cure our human ills. But the surgery required must be radical -not just a change of attitude or change of heart, but total transplant -the exchange of Christ’s heart for our own.

This is the message we have heard from the beginning. This is the Word we need to hear today -this Word of love from God that lays life on the line, this Word that acts. When Jesus told the parable of judgment recorded by Saint Matthew, those who stood condemned were not the vicious evildoers of his day, but vicious nothing doers. He had come across their pathway in the faces of the beaten people -those who were imprisoned, hungry, thirsty, naked, sick. But they had no eyes to see or ears to hear. Today He comes across our pathway in the faces of an even more impressive list of troubled, for a complex world has multiplied our human need to staggering proportions ¬the lonely aged, the grieving and the sorrowful, the handicapped, the anxious and the fearful, the depressed, the hostile and the alienated -people who have lost the purpose and the meaning of their lives, and some who never had it -those who kill the pain of life with drugs or alcohol, those burdened with the guilt of sin. Every one of us, in fact, can be included in the list. We need each other. We need a neighbor who will help. But most of all we need to be a neighbor and be consumed in help. Our first word is forgiveness, for forgiveness changes our perspective. Forgiveness says that no one is excluded from the love of God. Forgiveness says that no one can be cast aside or put away in corners. Each man, each woman, and each child has this Word stamped upon his heart -“The Property of God!” it is stamped on our hearts, too. God made us, God redeemed us with the blood of Christ, God loves us with a love that wants us to enjoy abundant life. And how else can life be made abundant, thrilling, and adventurous if not in the commitment of ourselves to being someone’s answer to a problem instead of everyone’s problem? For there is no problem like the problem of the selfish man who sees his brother’s need but closes his heart against him. How does God’s love abide in him? Love lays life on the line, as Christ laid His life on the line. He gave His life -and what He gives is all He asks -our lives for Him -for others! Amen.

LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers)
February 27, 2011
Topic: Mysticism

Announcer: And now, Pastor Ken Klaus answers questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer. From a recent e-mail.alistener writes, “In some Christian circles there is a move towards spiritual formation through the reading of works by religious mystics … Could you give me some Biblical insight or understanding regarding … mysticism?”

Klaus: Well, let’s define mysticism. According to The Lutheran Cyclopedia, that term has been applied to a wide range of phenomena, such as a state of dreaminess or strange experiences. The goal of mysticism is to achieve an intuitive and emotional contact or personal communion with God or some other spiritual value.

Announcer: Our listener also asked: In the tradition in which she was raised, there was the teaching that God may put what is sometimes called a burden on one’s heart to pray or intercede for someone else. And what is the truth of that?
http://www.lutheranhour.org/sermon.asp?articleid=0016377 A&mode=print 2128/2011

Klaus: Can people receive a new and ongoing personal revelation; and, two, can God encourage us to pray for a specific someone?

Announcer: Right. That sums it up.

Klaus: OK. First, does God offer ongoing revelations about Himself and Christian doctrine through some sort of mystical experience? That’s an important question. There are numerous cults which claim to have received some kind of “special revelation” from God. Not to mention certain media evangelists who claim to receive special revelations about people who are watching the TV; you know, like how much they should give, and so forth.

Announcer: I’ve noticed that although their special revelation tells them somebody is ready and willing to give, they never mention that person by name.

Klaus: Yeah, if the revelation is really accurate, they ought to just be able to pick up the phone and call the person. I mean, if the Lord can reveal the amount a person is supposed to give, He ought to be able to reveal a name and phone number. But I do think we’re getting off the topic.

Announcer: Agreed.

Klaus: Let me try to answer. In our church, the Lutheran Church, we do not believe that God is today providing new doctrinal revelations that replace or supercede what He has already revealed to us in the Bible. In fact, Martin Luther went so far as to say, “We ought and must constantly maintain that God does not wish to deal with us otherwise than through the spoken Word and the Sacraments.

Announcer: Now, some people would call that narrow-minded. And they would say, “Well, what gives you the right to say that?”

Klaus: God gives us that obligation, Mark. Jesus Himself said, “If you continue in My Word, then you shall know the truth.” That’s in John 8:31. Listen to what Jesus said before He ascended into heaven: (Matthew 28:19-20) “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Announcer: And, what’s so important about that?

Klaus: Jesus said teach them “to observe all things that I have commanded.” He doesn’t say, “all things that I’m going to command.” Jesus did His work, and upon Him the church has been built. Jesus said He is present with His Church through His Word and Sacraments, and not through some sort of special, extra-biblical revelation or experience!

Announcer: And there have been problems in the past.

Klaus: Right from the beginning, false prophets tried to change, or add to, Jesus’ words. Saint Paul spoke to that when he wrote to the Christians in Galatia. He said, (Galatians 1 :6-8) “I am astonished that you are so quickly … turning to a different gospel-not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the Gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”

Announcer: Well, that doesn’t leave a whole lot of room for discussion. What about the
other question, about whether the Lord encourages believers to pray for specific
individuals?

Klaus: Right, I was getting to that. There is no doubt in my mind, and Scripture will bear
this out, that the Holy Spirit can direct our hearts and our prayers toward specific people
and needs. But when and if this happens, it is a private, and not a public thing. Nobody
can say, “God has laid on my heart that all of us should pray right now for Billy Bob who
has this need which has been revealed to me.”

Announcer: So you’re saying God wants us to pray for others, and maybe even specific individuals, but we can’t command others to do that.

Klaus: Yes, I’m saying, such a prayer would be private not public; it leaves the ultimate result of the prayer in God’s hands; and it certainly doesn’t dictate to anyone that this is what they’re supposed to do.

Announcer: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.

Music selection for this program:

“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC

“Lord of All Nations, Grant Me Grace” by Olive Wise Spannaus & Georg Joseph. From Lutheran Service Book: Selected Hymns by the Kammerchor (© Todd A. Boettcher) Text © 1969 Concordia Publishing House

“Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good” arranged by Henry Gerike. Used by permission.

“Son of God, Eternal Savior” arr. Michael Burkhardt. From Hymn Improvisations, vol. 1 by Michael Burkhardt (© 1993 MorningStar Music Publishers)

“Sing Praise to God, the Highest Good” arr. Walter Pelz. From Heirs of the Reformation (© 2008 Concordia Publishing House)