The Lutheran Hour

"Nothing"

#80-06
Presented on The Lutheran Hour on October 14, 2012
Speaker: Rev. Ken Klaus
Copyright 2025 Lutheran Hour Ministries

Text: Romans 8:37-39

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! That Christ has defeated sin, death, and devil is good news for all the world. It is especially good news for you. No matter what this life may do to you; no matter how many pains and problems come your way, you can be sure of this: nothing can separate you from the love of God which is yours in Christ Jesus. God grant this assurance to us all. Amen.

Once upon a time, and by that I mean, not so many years ago, the world seemed to be a more certain place; for me it was a better place. By that I mean there were things I could believe in; things I was sure of; things I could trust. But the passing of years has changed all that and nothing is absolute anymore. Let me give you a few simple examples. You know, it used to be when I turned on the TV to look at the weather, the guy in front of the map said, “Tomorrow it’s going to rain” or “This week it’s going to be sunny.” Believing he knew what he was talking about we would dig out our raincoats or we would plan to play outside. But the weatherman doesn’t make those kinds of predictions anymore. Now he tells me there is a 50% chance of rain tomorrow. What does that mean? Does it mean 50% of the people watching will get rain? Does it mean it’s going to rain 50% of the day? I’m no longer sure because, apparently he’s no longer sure.

It used to be that when I bought a product, it came with a guarantee. For those of you who have never seen a guarantee, let me describe it. A guarantee used to be the printed promise of a manufacturer that if his product broke, the company would refund my money or replace the faulty item. Such a guarantee was simple. I understood it. But companies don’t put out guarantees anymore. They put out multi-page, small-print, impossible-to-read documents which inform you and your lawyer that they may or may not do something for you if their product breaks, but for sure they’re not going to do anything if you actually use that product in a real-life situation. They won’t do anything because you have voided the guarantee.

Here’s another. It used to be, on Saturday morning I would sit down and enjoy a breakfast with my family. Bacon and eggs and good conversation with the people I love. Sadly, I’ve been told that bacon has nitrates and nitrites and if it’s been smoked, the odds are it’s going to give me cancer. And the eggs? Eggs used to be one of the Lord’s perfect foods. But that was before I found out about bad cholesterol. Eggs were full of bad cholesterol. And then, after that I heard eggs were okay because the cholesterol we thought was bad is actually good. Then the cholesterol became bad again and the last I heard the bad cholesterol in eggs was being balanced out by something which made it not so…. You can understand how the idea of every bite I was taking was leading to my death took much of the joy out of those family breakfasts. Now we all just wander by the fridge and grab a personal-size container of Greek non-fat yogurt.

Yes, I get confused. It used to be that a man whose word could be trusted was a square shooter; when he paid off his debts, he was square with the world, but I’ve seen that word, square, become an insult rather than a compliment. A square is a guy who doesn’t know how to play the angles, who isn’t a good runner in the rat race, and who gets walked on, stepped on, and kicked pretty thoroughly.

Now I don’t want you to think I’m one of those guys who think the good old days were all good. They weren’t. I remember polio, thalidomide, and learning how to survive a nuclear attack by hiding under my desk or crouching beside a wall in the hallway of our school. All I’m saying is this is a sad world. Everyone wants to pass the buck and nobody wants to take responsibility. Think about it, when was the last time you heard a President say, as Truman said, “The buck stops here at my desk.” Have you ever heard any leader say, “Yup, I’m responsible for this calamity. I’m the reason the thing stinks”?

The other day I was talking with my grandson. He’s in fifth grade. I asked him how school was going and he said he had just had a test in school. “Hard test or easy test,” I asked. “Oh, definitely easy,” he said. I told him I was proud he had mastered the material so well and he told me you didn’t have to know any of the material to do well on this teacher’s tests. Intrigued at how this could be I asked, “And how do you do good on a test when you don’t know the subject matter?” “Easy,” he said, “all you have to do is read the questions. This teacher asks things like, “The Pilgrims were always good to the Indians” or “The United States always is the biggest manufacturer of cars.” I told him I didn’t understand, and I didn’t. With a sigh, he explained to me, “Grandpa, don’t you know that when a teacher uses the word always in a test question, the answer is always going to be false. Nothing is always true. Not all the time.” I was surprised and it saddened me to know that my grandson, in grade school, had figured that out. I probably shouldn’t have been surprised. In the last two years he has been told there’s water on Mars, there’s no water on Mars, there used to be water on Mars; there’s underground water on Mars; there’s frozen water on Mars. No wonder he believes ‘Nothing is true all the time.’

Maybe that’s why I love what St. Paul wrote in the closing verses of the eighth chapter of Romans. This is what he said, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Did you hear? “Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Imagine the people in the hospitals, the nursing homes, in hospice care tuning into the broadcast and hearing, “Nothing can separate you from the love of God which is yours in Christ Jesus.” What a joy it would be for them, for you, for the troubled souls in this sad, sorrowful, sinful world to hear, “Nothing can separate you from the love of God which comes to you through Christ Jesus, your Lord.” With those words St. Paul tells me that no matter how bad my life may be; no matter how many friends have deserted me; no matter how lonely and lost I feel, through the blood of Jesus Christ my sins are forgiven. Without hesitation or reservation St. Paul assures, “Nothing can separate me from God’s love.”

You know there are words in the English language which are, by their very nature, sad words. Almost is one of those words. I almost passed, I almost got promoted, I almost got a hole in one, I almost was saved. Yes, almost is a sad word and so, quite often, is the word nothing. When your car sputters and dies in traffic because your gas tank has nothing in it, that is a bad thing. When your life’s partner turns to you and with disdain says, “I feel nothing for you,” that is a bad thing. When the banker tells you, ‘There is nothing left in your account,” that is a bad thing as well. When the physician you trust turns to you and gravely says, “There is nothing more that I can do for you,” that is as bad as it gets.

Still, when we read ‘nothing can separate us from God’s love’ the word nothing makes us anything but sad or sorrowful. That’s because in these words we have God’s absolute promise, His absolute unshakable, unchangeable, unalterable pledge that we are now and always will be encompassed by His care, compassion, and salvation. God has given His word and that is an absolute. And it is here my grandson and many of you have been trained to look for exceptions. Our society and our age have taught you there must be an exception.

After all, your mama didn’t raise no fool. You have learned, from your youngest years, to be wary about false claims and grandiose promises. We know that the toy airplane shown on the box of cereal really isn’t going to fly around the world. We know that using the right toothpaste is no assurance of achieving true love. We know that soap will not get our laundry whiter than white. We know it because we’ve taken the time to read the small print that is flashed for a millisecond at the bottom of the screen at the end of their commercial. It says, “No soap product can remove all stains in every circumstance.”

You’ve all seen the infomercials for Ginzu kitchen knives. I’m sure those knives do great things. They cut through all kinds of things that I never knew should be cut: cans of corn, a blacksmith’s anvil, and the concrete of the Hoover Dam for all I know. They are good knives, but as far as I’ve heard, no fire department has thrown away its jaws-of-life in favor of a Ginzu kitchen knife.

All of us have learned to be wary about false claims and the sureness of statements which have an escape clause built in. But Paul has no such hesitation or reservation when it comes to what happens when a sinful soul is washed in the blood of Jesus Christ. From experience he knew there is no sin so dark, so ground into our souls that it cannot be cleansed by Jesus’ blood. Boldly, proudly, confidently Paul says, ‘Jesus’ blood is the universal cleanser which washes every spot from our sin-besmirched souls.’

Does that sound too good to be true? Does it sound impossible? Our skeptical age might think so. If doubt is what you are feeling, I understand. More importantly, the Lord understands. That’s why He inspired Paul to be very particular, very thorough in what he was writing. It probably didn’t take much convincing. After all, Paul was a lawyer and he was used to promises which have excuses and escapes built in; he had seen contracts which weren’t worth the parchment they were written on. To close up as many of those loopholes as was possible, Paul spent a number of verses listing things which might try to separate us from God’s love.

The list begins with the most common, the most shared of human experiences: death. It’s a rare day when death travels alone. Almost always it brings with it disturbance, destruction, and disorder; sadness, sorrow, loss, and loneliness. Still, St Paul claims, “not even death can separate us from God’s love.” Indeed, for those who know and have been forgiven by the Christ, death will actually bring them closer to their Lord.

Well, if death is helpless, how about life? For some people life is a terrible hard cross to carry. There was a lady who lived under a physical burden for so long that her heart knew only songs of lament and sorrow. One day, despairing, she commented to a friend, “Oh, I wish the Lord had never made me!” It was a thought her friend could not let go unanswered. The friend consoled, “Bless you, dear, the Lord hasn’t made you; not yet. Right now He is in the process of making you and you are complaining about the way He’s doing it.” If you identify more with the lady who had a burden than you do the lady who wished to give a blessing, you should know your Lord has made a commitment to you: not even the worst life has to offer can separate you from the love He shows to you through Jesus Christ.

Of course Paul knew that there is more to God’s creation than that which can be perceived by our senses. Even modern man, in spite of his brave daylight boasting, is awed by the supernatural forces which are all around. As children, we thought there were monstrous things in the closet and malevolent things under our beds. As adults, we still are lured by the unknown, still frightened by the unseen which goes bump in the night. How about these things? “Not to worry,” says Paul, “even Satan with all his lackeys cannot successfully split up the relationship between the Creator and His redeemed children.”
Still, Paul’s list of our enemies is not yet complete. He wants to know: “Is it possible that the clock and calendar are your enemies? Is there a sin committed long ago, a kindness left undone which haunts you?” If so, you can be at peace. The changeless God forgives all sins of the past and He promises His believing faithful a place with Him in heaven. There the clock’s ticking will only be a memory and the pages of the calendar unnecessary. Still there’s more. Are you afraid of the future? Future economic woes; future health problems; future loneliness; future heartbreak, or a dark and future unknown? If that is your situation, you need to know, there is no scenario, real or imagined where God cannot be a part, rescuing, restoring, refreshing, relieving. He will be there far longer than any unknown. Let the future come, don’t be concerned if your days are long or your years are short; nothing can separate you from the love of God which is yours in Christ Jesus. Struggle to the top of the highest mountain, take a submarine to the deepest depths of the sea; God, His love, your Savior will be there.

Now you might well think that Paul has exhausted the list of possibilities and potentialities. A lesser mind and a smaller god might have been content with such a lengthy list. But Paul is not yet done. He has one more thought… a thought which covers anything and everything his list might have missed. He writes: “Nothing else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God.” It was the apostle’s way of saying, “In case, just in case you encounter something I haven’t listed, something which escaped my attention, please, please remember: nothing else, nothing can separate us from God’s love which comes to us in Christ Jesus.”

Those are words you can take to the bank. After all, Paul wasn’t speaking about things he didn’t know. His ministry had not gone from success to bigger success. On the contrary, he had been persecuted; he had faced death. His friends from years ago were now his enemies bent on eliminating him. Did their attitude bother Paul? Don’t be silly, of course it did. He was a brilliant, well-traveled man, but the idea of death and what life might do to him before death came was intimidating. Very few people want to die; even fewer want to be hated. But Paul was a Christian who lived under the protection and forgiveness of His God. It was his nearness to the Lord which made him content in whatever situation he found himself. No, not content; he was more than content; he was secure and victorious because of the love of God which was his in Christ Jesus.

And you can be the same. The radio is a wonderful invention, but it does not allow me to see what dark circumstance or difficulty is camped outside your door. Even so, I am sure Satan has looked at you, evaluated you, and tried to find your weak spot. I am equally sure he has picked up a tool from his workbench so he might split you away from the Lord. Maybe he hammers at your desire to hate; or he saws at your heart filled with sadness. What is his tool? Is it a cold chisel of jealousy or the painful twisting of the screw of sickness? Does he work on you using a steel file to scrape away at the protection of your finances? Whatever tool he uses, you need to be sure nothing can separate you from the love of God which is yours in Christ Jesus.

Well over 100 years ago there was a man whose late teens and early manhood had been spent in evil ways. By God’s grace he was eventually brought to know his Savior. It was a fact which was not appreciated by his old associates. Indeed, one day when he met one of his past drinking pals, he found himself being cursed at right thoroughly. It took a long time before his old acquaintance ran out of curse words to be thrown at him and his religion. Still, patient waiting produced that moment when the Christian could say, “Look, old friend, you know I’m the lamplighter. When I go around turning out the street lights and I look back at the road where I’ve been, that is all dark and dreary. That’s what my past is like. Then I turn around and look to the front and there’s a row of twinkling gas lights to guide me and that’s what the future is with Jesus.” “Sure,” said the ex-friend, “but by and by you will get to the last lamp and turn it off. What then?” “Oh, then,” said the lamplighter, ‘Then, when the last lamp goes out, it’s dawn and there isn’t any need for lamps when the sun lights up the world.”

My dear friends… today, in whatever dark situation you find yourself, be at peace. The living Lord Jesus is by your side. He can illuminate every step of the path you must walk; He can spread light on the streets you must travel. You have God’s promise: He will dispel the darkness and the shadows of this world so you may walk with confidence until the dawning of a new life in heaven. This is God’s irrevocable promise, His unbreakable guarantee. In this world nothing can separate you from His love which comes in Christ Jesus.

If you would like this promise of God to be His promise to you, a soul who is longing for the salvation and presence of the Savior; please, if you need some guidance, we invite you, call us at The Lutheran Hour. Amen.

LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for October 14, 2012
Topic: Hard Questions, Pt. 2

ANNOUNCER: Now, more questions Christians supposedly can’t answer! I’m Mark Eischer, here with our Speaker Emeritus, Pastor Ken Klaus.

Hello, Pastor.

KLAUS: And hello to you, Mark. We’re calling this the Big Questioning.

ANNOUNCER: That’s right. You recently received a letter from a former Christian, who said he was looking for answers to hard questions…

and by that, he meant answers more than just saying, “We take it all on faith” or “We’ll never know this side of heaven.”

KLAUS: So, did you select one of his questions for today?

ANNOUNCER: It’s more a scenario. Here he says: a Christian man, in a moment of weakness, gets drunk. On his way home from the bar, he

crashes into a minivan and kills an entire family along with himself. The man dies instantaneously and has no time to repent of his

sins. Will he burn in hell? If God is a God of love and is all-powerful, why can’t He give someone the chance to repent of their sins

after they die?

KLAUS: Tough question, Mark. I guess we’ll just have to take it all on faith because we’ll never know, not this side of heaven.

ANNOUNCER: OK, we said we weren’t going to do that.

KLAUS: Yeah, you’re right. This is a serious business and these are legitimate questions.

ANNOUNCER: Well, what do you think? Is the man in the story going to wind up in hell because he didn’t have time to repent?

KLAUS: Working within the parameters of the example, I’d say, “No, this man is not going to go to hell.”

ANNOUNCER: Can you explain?

KLAUS: Absolutely. The way this example is set up, it uses emotionally-charged details that try to insinuate that the person in the

story is some kind of a murderer, but we should note he didn’t set out to kill himself or anybody else. The auto accident was a tragic

consequence of his sin of drinking irresponsibly.

Mark: …for which he may have been truly repentant…

KLAUS: Yeah, but the real key to my answer is in the premise, where you said this was a Christian man. That means he knew and trusted in

Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior from sin. When this man was made a believer, all of his sins were washed away. Note I said ALL his

sins were washed away. Not just the sins which he knew and about which he was sorry.

ANNOUNCER: And the truth is, we all commit sins every day and we don’t know we’ve done them. At one point, Martin Luther was extremely

troubled by those sins he might have forgotten to confess or never knew about and he feared God would punish him for those sins.

KLAUS: Okay, that’s not the way it works. The Bible says when you are in Christ, you are a new creature. Your sins which were as scarlet

have become as white as snow. Most importantly, this all happens without us doing anything. All the credit goes to Christ.

ANNOUNCER: Thinking here of Romans 6:23 which says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ

Jesus our Lord.”

KLAUS: Yeah. We all deserved eternal damnation for our sins. But now we’re saved because of the free gift of salvation which is ours

because of Jesus’ sacrifice. Most importantly here: it’s a gift, received through faith. It’s not earned; it’s not worked for; we don’t

participate in it. It’s a gift. First Corinthians, chapter 6, says, “You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the

name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” Take away the fancy words and it reads, “We have been washed of our sins,

we have been made holy, we have been declared innocent because of Jesus and God’s Holy Spirit.” From start to finish, the Lord does all

the work. We’re just the recipients of His work.
ANNOUNCER: Okay. So getting back to our listener’s scenario.

KLAUS: Okay. The Christian man did something wrong by getting drunk “in a moment of weakness.” He did something tragic by drinking and

driving. He caused uncounted pain by the deaths which resulted. Still, as a child of God, he remained in a state of grace, covered by

the blood of Christ. We all sin. Christians, too. It’s ultimately not sin that condemns, it’s unbelief.

ANNOUNCER: But does that mean Christians can do anything they want to and think they’re getting away with it?

KLAUS: Good question, Mark. The answer is, “No.” Jesus told the woman who was caught in the act of adultery: “You are forgiven. Go and

sin no more.” If you are a Christian, your life tries to glorify Jesus. We continue to struggle every day against temptation, but we do

so, trusting in the grace of God that is ours in Jesus Christ.

ANNOUNCER: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. And more on this next week. We thank you for joining us. This has been a presentation of Lutheran

Hour Ministries.

Music Selections for this program:

“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.

“For You, O Lord, Have Delivered My Soul from Death” by Kevin Hildebrand. From Hymns for All Saints: Psalms, Hymns, Spiritual Songs (© 2011 Concordia Publishing House)

“Lord, It Belongs Not to My Care” From The Concordia Organist (© 2009 Concordia Publishing House)

“Toccata on Old Hundredth” by Charles Callahan. From Charles Callahan Plays the Organ of the Church of the Holy Family by Charles Callahan (© 1997 Charles Callahan)