He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire. ’Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations; I am exalted in the earth.’” vss. 9-10
Psalm 46:8-11
Martin Luther lived most of his life in Electoral Saxony, during some of the most tumultuous times in European history. Suleiman the Magnificent, one of the greatest Muslim conquerors, had brought his troops to the gates of Vienna, and was being resisted by the combined armies of the Holy Roman Empire. During those same years there was a Peasants Revolt, one that was brutally repressed by the ruling classes, nobles who had found inspiration in Luther’s “Against the Murderous, Thieving, Hordes of Peasants.” Luther lived precariously, not always on the “right side,” knowing that at any time he could be arrested and charged with heresy. In that context, Luther found comfort in the words of Psalm 46, and used it as the framework for his most famous hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” We can’t use all that Luther said and did as our guide for these confusing times, but we can join with him in turning to the psalmist. And when we don’t know what to pray for, we can always repeat his familiar refrain, “Be still, and know that I am God!” Even while chaos continues, and the shadow of death grows even darker, we know that God is, and always will be, and in God there will be restoration.
Thought for the Day: How do I know I’m on the “right side?”
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