Trinity 8
Text: Matthew 7:15-23
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ Jesus,
One reason for the spread of the Reformation was a little-known invention at the time: the printing press. Unknown to Martin Luther, some of his writings were taken, copies made, and then spread throughout the neighboring areas.
After seeing how easily his writings could be disseminated, Luther went on to employ the printing press in many ways and methods to combat the false doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church and ensure the Word of God was available to more and more people throughout the towns and villages of Germany and eventually Europe.
Like Luther, others who disagreed with the Roman Catholic Church seized the moment and followed Luther’s lead. They also used the newfound ease of printing books and papers to spread their heretical writings, leading many of God’s sheep astray.
Fast-forward to the twentieth century and the Lutheran Church again found a new way to communicate the message of the Gospel to the masses. This time, it came in the form of the radio, as the Lutheran Hour aired for the first time on October 2, 1930. It became one of the first radio programs to broadcast a weekly message throughout an entire country and the world, proclaiming the love of Christ to parts unknown, eventually even taking to television. This year is its 94th anniversary, which is pretty impressive.
As many historians have remarked, the invention of the printing press in the sixteenth century was revolutionary, as was the use of the radio in the twentieth century.
These advances and uses of technologies are correctly seen as gifts from God.
Like the Lutheran Hour, Martin Luther was on the front line of using innovative technology to advance the Gospel like never before. However, as in instances of history, others have also naturally employed these modes of communication since their inception to spread a misleading and false confession of God’s Word.
Yet today, technological advances have grown beyond print or radio. The television evangelists of the 1980s and 1990s are almost all but forgotten; some are still out there, but their presence has significantly diminished. Instead, today’s most pressing means of communication and technology are in a computer and the hands of anyone with a cell phone.
Every preacher who wants to be heard has a podcast, a live stream, or a blog (guilty). Theological memes abound with heresy. However, what’s even scarier than all this is how AI (Artificial Intelligence) has risen and begun to take over what we read, consume and influence how we think and believe.
You are living in the future today, where computers gather information about you to help an organization or person tell you how to think, what to think, and when to believe it.
Now, I know not all of you are online or have social media, but with these technological advances, the internet proves fertile ground for the false prophets of our day. With every new technology platform or artificial intelligence’s arrival, new opportunities for little devils also arise to fill your eyes and ears with a word that does not ascend from the Scriptures.
These little devils are the false prophets of our day. People who stand and say they are from God without being first Called and then sent to preach His Word.
For clarity, a prophet or pastor is Called (by a Church) and then sent by God to proclaim His Word or expound upon it. The Divine Call and sending is outside the man; he cannot appoint himself as prophet and pastor.
A false prophet prophesizes falsely—they speak untrue words or bend the Word of God to suit their need, cause, or personal belief. As one theological dictionary puts it, they are a “bogus prophet.”
So why does this all matter? Because when the Word of God is not proclaimed in its truth and purity, or even by a human nonetheless, you are in grave danger of being led astray and into unbelief.
Unbelief will lead you away from Jesus and, in the end, to not being with Jesus in His heavenly kingdom.
This is why you must be on guard for the wolves in sheep’s clothing, coming to proclaim false words to you.
Saint John Chrysostom wrote,
The movements of wolves are hidden in shadows. Hence, [Jesus] commanded that one should… continuously and carefully look out for wolves because one cannot see them the moment they attack. For this reason, he says, “Watch out!” to make his hearers more careful in distinguishing deception from truth.10
So, can you discern and decipher the words of a wolf from the true Word of God?
It’s challenging, isn’t it? Especially when you cannot see into the shadows of the dark web where so many things are being written and spoken that are meant to tell you how to think.
So, what are we to do in this new world?
The same thing Luther did as he pointed the church and world back to God’s faithful and unadulterated Word.
That’s what I have been called to do, to point you back to God’s Word.
The Apostle Paul’s letter to Timothy helps us to know how to distinguish between deception from truth as he wrote,
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
So, how do we know what is true?
We return to God’s Word, reading, studying, and learning. The only way is to go to the source, open your Bible, and return to your heavenly Father.
Now, this is hard work. It means setting aside time each day to read God’s Word, meditate, and grow in the fertile soil it presents because the soil of your heart requires this Word to grow in the faith.
It means coming to Bible class or taking advantage of opportunities within the church to grow in your faith and be armed with God’s Word.
Come, read your Bible, ask me questions, and ensure that I, too, do not fall into the shadows and that I am not enticed by the wolves that wish to attack us and our faith.
My friends, we are truly living in the future. We can look back and see all the gifts God has given not only to us but also to our world, especially when it comes to technology. But as He created us, we must remember how He gave us reason and intellect to discern the information we receive, the good from the bad and evil, the diseased fruit from the ripe and good-for-eating fruit. The kind that feeds our faith.
All of this takes work, daily reading of God's Word, and a life of prayer. But through this pattern of faith, you will grow in the knowledge of Jesus Christ and see how His death upon the cross took the disease of your sin into Himself so that you might receive His forgiveness and life.
So, let us always be like the Apostle Paul and Martin Luther, returning to God's Word, even in this quickly changing world. A Word that we judge everything we consume against because it is the Word that will never mislead you but guide you into eternal life with Jesus. +INJ+
Rev. Noah J. Rogness
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Tomah, WI
