Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6) QUOTES

1 " for Isaac was neither afraid nor terrified, but of his own accord obeyed his father and God. For not terror but spontaneous obedience and fortitude should be attributed to the saints. For fear signifies that sin is ruling, and sin was not ruling in Isaac, but an obedient spirit. Although the flesh fought back, nevertheless the spirit, which subjected the flesh to itself, conquered and gained dominion. But "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

2 " Let us learn, then, to despise the threats and cruel plans of our enemies and conclude for certain that God in the heavens has decided on quite different things and is already laughing at them but playing with us so that He may prove our faith and hope and discipline us. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

3 " It is far better to bear the contempt and hatred of adversaries than to fall into reproach and into the snare of the devil, as Paul says in 1 Tim. 3:7. The "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

4 " God has not given us reason and the counsels and help of reason that we should despise them. This is what those men do who are either presumptuous or in a state of despair. When they say: “Whatever I do, I shall not hinder what must necessarily come to pass by a kind of fate,” this is the voice of those in despair. But the presumptuous are accustomed to make this boast: “If I have to live, I shall live even if I do not eat. God has promised life, therefore it does not matter whether I eat or do not eat.” But since we have God’s promises, we must take careful precautions not to tempt God by presumption and not to sin by despair. When you have a ladder, there is no reason for throwing yourself out of a window, nor should you go through the middle of the Elbe when you have a bridge. But each one should do what reason instructs him to do and commend the rest to God. He will grant fitting results. Here "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

5 " This is exactly the way others argue from predestination: “If I am predestined, I cannot perish, whatever I do.” These are voices of Satan which should be avoided. It is, indeed, true that whatever is foreordained will come to pass, but it should be added that this is unknown to you. You do not know, for example, whether you will die tomorrow or live, and it is God’s will that you do not know this. It is therefore foolish for you to search out what God by His special counsel has concealed from you. But because you do not know how long you will survive, you should use the things necessary for life. If it is foreordained that you should die after a month, nevertheless, God should not be tempted since, indeed, you are uncertain about that, but you should use the things necessary to sustain life. Therefore, "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

6 " For the Lord does not speak in vain, nor does He offer His Word to the lazy and smug, but to those who are in need, who toil, who are afflicted and are undergoing a very difficult conflict against the flesh and all external appearances, that is, against those things which according to human sense and reason fight against faith, as Heb. 11 says, so that the afflicted can rely on the sole protection of the Word of God and be sustained by it. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

7 " For although greed of itself is idolatry, there was still the additional worship of the idols, or . Rachel "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

8 " For such thoughts are accustomed to occur to men’s minds when God wants to punish sins; they regard God’s Word and absolute truth as something quite absurd. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

9 " Therefore he who apprehends and believes the Word is upright, holy, and righteous. On the contrary, all enemies of the Word, although outwardly holy, are worthless and damned. These "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

10 " Therefore it is better to endure troubles with the hope of eternal deliverance than to avoid them and rush into eternal ruin. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

11 " For the world does not discern what faith is and what power faith has, such a hidden and unknown thing is faith to reason. According to the statement of Christ (cf. John 14:17), “The world cannot receive the Holy Spirit”; it neither sees nor hears nor perceives Him by any sense. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

12 " So also in the terrors of sin and death, I do not exchange death with life, and Christ with the devil, although in the midst of temptation it seems like this. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

13 " Consolation or protection must not be expected from the world and the princes of this world, nor should carnal counsels be sought from ourselves, for they are vain. Indeed, those who seek or await help of this kind experience what is said in the psalm (116:11), “All men are liars,” and again (Ps. 146:3), “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no help.” But the whole world is carried along in its blind frenzy and perishes in its vain counsels and endeavors because it does not want to suffer the persecution of the devil, the ungodly, and the flesh. Hence, "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

14 " I do not always pray, nor do I always meditate on the Law of the Lord and struggle continually with sin, death, and the devil; but I put on my clothes, I sleep, I play with the children, eat, drink, etc. If all these things are done in faith, they are approved by God’s judgment as having been done rightly. This "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

15 " For we Germans are snoring, buried in sleep and wine, and we are destitute of leaders who could measure up in wisdom, strategy, and strength of heart to manage such great undertakings. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

16 " He who has once forsaken God finds it impossible to abide by one definite deity, that is, in one religion or definite worship of God, just as there is an infinite succession of sins through unbelief, or the loss of faith. It "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

17 " Sirach calls the people who dwelt at Shechem a foolish people (Ecclus. 50:26), just as the Germans are accustomed to judge concerning the Swabians and the Bavarians. They were a proud people given to luxury. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

18 " For this is what GOD means when Peter says: “Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of GOD” (1 Peter 5:6), and for this reason He humbles and disciplines His saints so that they should not be proud. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

19 " This is an illustrious example which reminds us that good and saintly men sometimes run into the greatest of misfortunes and dangers not through their own but by someone else’s fault. To the others, indeed, who are involved in the same danger no way of salvation or liberation appears, but they think that all is lost. But because there are some godly men, or only one godly man, in the same ship, the ship must reach port safe and sound, however much it has been tossed about by a heavy storm, even though a thousand devils have been fighting in opposition and causing tumult in the same ship. "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)

20 " It is necessary for the saints to be disciplined in this way, to descend into hell and the abyss, and to be recalled from there into heaven. For "

― Martin Luther , Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 31-37 (Luther's Works, #6)