Answering the Call

 

I am in the process of preparing a weeklong study for an adult class.

Its focus will be the life and faith of Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian when the Nazi regime rose to power.

He found himself opposed both to the regime and its leader.

He took this position as a Christian and made some exceedingly difficult moral decisions along the way.

Living abroad in safety, he chose to return to Germany.

Upon learning of the regime’s atrocities, he willingly took on a more active role to oppose it.

Eventually, he and his fellow conspirators were imprisoned.

Although in prison, he continued to share his faith with others.

This included his guards as well as fellow prisoners.

Writing to his family from prison, he shared his reading of scripture.

“I am reading the Bible straight through from cover to cover and I have just got as far as Job, which I am particularly fond of. I read the Psalms every day as I have for years. I know them and love them more than any other book.”

Bonhoeffer, like Job, faced adversity.

And, like Job, he struggled to find answers to morally tough questions.

Bonhoeffer would eventually be executed by the regime he opposed.

This happened mere weeks before the war’s end.

In the end, Bonhoeffer faced his execution in peace.

Facing the gallows of Flossenburg prison he said, “This is the end. For me the beginning of life.”

The book of Hebrews reminds us that God equips us to do his will.

Hebrews 13:20-21 (NET) - Now may the God of peace who by the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep, our Lord Jesus, equip you with every good thing to do his will, working in us what is pleasing before him through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever. Amen.

Through his faith, Bonhoeffer lived his life in accordance with the will of God.

He approached the end of his earthly journey with serenity.

Bonhoeffer understood that death was not the end, but rather a new beginning.

A new beginning made possible by the grace of God through Jesus Christ.

In this life, we too will face adversity and challenging questions.

Through it all, God equips us to do His will on our journeys of faith.

These journeys begin with putting the needs of others before our own desires.

In short, this means loving and serving them.

And it is Christ within us that makes this possible.

1 John 4:19 (NET) - We love because he loved us first.

Blessings,

Jim Pokorny

The Other Brother Jim

Look for me at https://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, May 20, 2022.

I will be back here on Friday, May 27, 2022