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Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16) QUOTES

Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16) QUOTES

1 " For what harm can come to you even if the world is most hostile to you, persecutes and torments you? You still know that you have Christ the Lord as your Friend, and not only Him but also the Father, who assures you and testifies through the mouth of His Son that He loves and cherishes you because of your faith in Christ, and your confession of Him. Now, since you have this Lord on your side, together with all the angels and saints, why should you worry about or fear the world's ire? "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

2 " For Christ says: 'I am the Way by which one comes to the Father; there is no other way. I and no one else am the Truth and the Life.' You must take this road in order to hold to this Man and to persevere in this faith and confession. You must travel it in suffering and death, saying: 'I know other help or counsel, no salvation or comfort, no way or path, except Christ my Lord alone, who suffered, died, rose, and ascended to heaven for me. I will stay on this road all the way, even though nothing but the devil, death, and hell were under and before me. For this is surely the right road and bridge; it is firmer and safer than any stone or iron structure. And heaven and earth would have to collapse before this road would ever deceive me or lead me astray. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

3 " The Christian should always think: 'If peace and tranquility reign today, it will be different tomorrow. The devil can shoot a dart into my heart, or some other affliction can befall me. Therefore I must see to it that when sorrows appear, I am prepared to weather the storm and draw comfort from God's Word. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

4 " I adhere to the fact that I am baptized, not to my life and my vocation, but to the Man called Jesus Christ. Through Him, I am in grace and have forgiveness of sin. Similarly, when I hear the Gospel, I hear nothing about myself or about my works that could justify me before God; I hear about Christ, who has been given to me by the Father for my redemption from sin and eternal wrath. Thus through the Word and Baptism you have a reliable testimony and a confirmation. You need no longer doubt and waver, but you can and should have the conviction that you have a gracious God and Father in Christ. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

5 " For more than twenty years I was a pious monk, read Mass daily, and so weakened myself with fasting and praying that I would not have been long for this life had I continued. Yet all this taken together cannot help me in even one little crisis to be able to say before God: 'All this I have done, now please consider it, and be gracious to me.' What else did I achieve with this than to plague myself uselessly, impair my health, and waste my time? "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

6 " As long, therefore, as I am surrounded by danger and the uncertainty of death, so long must I believe in Christ, my Life, and this means my whole time on earth. Hence time, hours, and years have no bearing on this sermon. It does not refer to an annual resolution, so that you may say 'Christ will be my life when I am about to give up the ghost. Meanwhile, I will live as I please.' No, you must know that you are already engaged in crossing over; you have already set foot into the sea with the Children of Israel, and you must now continue until you have come ashore, lest the enemy attack you en route. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

7 " Therefore, beware of such misleading, shameful, and deceptive prattle, which represents Christ solely as a Teacher of works, as though He had taught and showed us nothing but proper conduct and behavior. In that capacity He could not be called the Way; then He would be no more than a cross or a votive picture on the wayside. This indeed directs the wayfarer correctly, but it itself does not bear him along. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

8 " We surely have no reason to be at odds with God. He gave us His holy Baptism, His Word, the Sacrament, the Office of the Keys, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Who then can say that we receive anything but sheer grace, love, and comfort from Him? If He promises us Christ's blood and death in Baptism and, by means of this, forgiveness of sin and absolution; if He closes hell and opens heaven for us, what animosity or displeasure toward us can there be in Him? "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

9 " For this Victor has accomplished everything. There is nothing for us to add to what He has done - neither the blotting out of our sin nor victory over the devil and death. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

10 " Christians have nothing to rely on but Christ, their Lord and God. They willingly surrender all things for His sake and say: 'Before I deny or forsake my Christ, I will bid farewell to neck and belly, honor and goods, house and home, wife and child, and everything!' Therefore this courage cannot be a sham or a delusion; it must be genuine and real. Its comfort is not rooted in earth's temporal or transient things, for the sake of which it would be willing to suffer this. No, it pins its hopes solely on the Lord Christ, who was crucified and died for us. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)

11 " The devil is our mortal enemy, the world attacks us horribly, and it is evident everywhere that there is no more miserable and contemptible person on earth than a Christian. That is why we must have a greater, stronger, and more reliable comfort, to offset all their defiance and might. "

― Martin Luther , Luther's Works, Volume 24 (Sermons on Gospel of St John Chapters 14-16)