In preparation for our series of addresses related to the Reformation (October 31st being the 500th Anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenberg church) I have been reading a lot about Luther.

He fought bravely for the principles of justification by faith, the authority of the Word of God, and against the practice of indulgences in the Catholic Church.  His actions could have lead to his death and certainly lead to his excommunication from the Catholic Church.  But he stood firmly on His principles.

Today we live in an era where some people want to silence the voice of the church.  Over the weekend we saw that two Churches in Melbourne (one Anglican) were damaged by graffiti, over their stance on Same-Sex marriage.  I heard of someone else who published their decision to vote no on facebook and lost 20 friends immediately.

We are not to be ashamed of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Luther would also urge us never to go against our conscience.  I can only encourage each of us to remain bold and strong in our faith in Jesus Christ and to listen to our conscience.  To act contrary to our conscience will lead us to hard heartedness towards God and others.  However, as the apostle Peter says, ‘Always be ready to make your defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in you yet do it with gentleness and reverence‘ 1 Peter 3:15.

People will know the genuineness of our faith by both our love and respect for them and our willingness to clearly express our faith in Jesus.

I pray that you will have a great week serving the Lord, and that you will be strengthened by the power of God’s Holy Spirit.