“Some pastors and preachers are too lazy and no good. They rely on these and other good books to get a sermon out of them. They do not pray; they do not study; they do not read; they do not search the Scripture. It is just as if there were no need to read the Bible for this purpose.
They use books as offer them homiletical helps in order to earn their yearly living; they are nothing but parrots and jackdaws, which learn to repeat without understanding, though our purpose and the purpose of these theologians is to direct preachers to Scripture with such books and exhort them to plan to defend our Christian faith after death, against the devil, the world, and the flesh…Therefore the call is: Watch, study, attend to reading. In truth, you cannot read too much in Scripture; and what you read you cannot read too carefully, and what you read carefully you cannot understand to well, and what you understand well you cannot teach too well, and what you teach well you cannot live too well.
Believe a man who has found this out. It is the devil, it is the world, it is our flesh that are raging and raving against us. Therefore, dear sirs and brethren, pastors and preachers, pray, read, study, be diligent. Truly, this evil, shameful time is not the season for being lazy, for sleeping and snoring. Use the gift that has been entrusted to you, and reveal the mystery of Christ.”
–Martin Luther, What Luther Says: An Anthology, comp. Ewald M. Plass (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959), entry no. 3547, 1110.
Wow. That was a humdinger of a quote. Ouch.
ReplyDeleteI'm a little behind the curve......GREAT QUOTE!!!!!!!! I forgot where I heard this, but it is from a pastor we would be familiar with, but he said, "I tend not to use the term 'Office' for its administrative connotations, rather I go to the 'Study.'" (That was the ipsissima vox :) for those geeks!!!)
ReplyDeleteWhat a great balance that awaits us that we stay long enough in our seats to "study to understand" and to live more amidst the people!!!!!