A group of us has just returned from a visit to Germany, where we saw many of the sites of the great Reformation begun by Martin Luther.  This was the area where much of the world changed 500 years ago.  It was the place where Luther fought the good fight of faith, where he stood up for the Word of God among authorities who wanted him to sit down and be quiet.

          One thing the 25 travelers all learned for sure: all of us were grateful to the Lord for the country we live in and also for the church we're a part of.  We have visited a nation and a people which appears by and large to have lost its love for the Lord.  Churches are empty, and people are drifting.  They have wealth but no central compass to guide them.  They know the price of much, but the value of little.  Important lessons learned from the Reformation, or even from the Great War, appear to have been forgotten.

          But we here in America are not so much better off.  We, too, are in danger of drifting, of losing sight of the cross and our faith.  Cares of this world, and the lure of pleasure and possessions constantly take our eyes away from God.  We must work to be vigilant.  If we don't continually work to keep our eyes fixed on the cross of Jesus Christ, we will lose our way on the road of life.

          St. Paul, speaking as an old man to young Timothy advises him and also us, to stay faithful.  He said, "Fight the good fight of the faith.  Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses."

          He was talking about the most important fight we can ever engage in - the fight between faith and unfaith, between good and evil.  Fighting the good fight means struggling to keep away from whatever separates us from God.  Taking hold of eternal life is clinging to what is eternal and letting go of what does not last.

          A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art.  They had everything in their art collection, from Piccaso to Rembrandt.  The father loved his only son greatly, but when the Vietnam conflict broke out, the boy went to war.  He was a courageous soldier and he died in battle heroically rescuing other soldiers.  The father grieved deeply at the death of his only son.

          A few months later, there was a knock at the door.  A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.  He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life.  He saved many lives that day, but he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart.  He often talked about you, and your love for art.  I'm not an artist, but I think he would have wanted you to have this."  The young man held out his package.

          The father opened it to see a portrait of his son, painted by that young soldier, and he had captured the very personality of his son in that painting.  The father's eyes welled up with tears as he thanked the young man and offered to pay him, but he would take nothing.  The father hung the portrait over his mantle.  And when visitors came, he showed them first the portrait of his son, and then the other great works in his art collection.  The old man died a few years later, some say of a broken heart.  There was to be an auction of his paintings.  Many wealthy and influential people gathered, excited to purchase one of the great paintings for their own collection.

          On the platform sat the painting of the man's beloved son.  The auctioneer pounded his gavel.  "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son.  Who will bid for this picture?"  There was silence.  "Do I have a bid?" he said.  A voice in the back of the room said, "Skip that one!  We want to see the good paintings."  But the auctioneer persisted.  "Who will bid for this painting?  Do I hear $100?  $200?"  A voice shouted, "We didn't come to see that thing.  We came to see Van Gogh and Rembrandt.  Show us the real paintings!"  But still the auctioneer continued.  "The son!" he said, "Who will take the son?"

          Finally a voice came from the back of the room, "I'll give $10, all I have with me."  It was the old gardener.  "We have a bid of $10.  Who will bid $20?"  "Oh for Pete's sake, give it to him for $10.  Then let's get a look at the great ones!" someone complained.  As there were no more bids, the auctioneer dropped the gavel.  "Sold for $10!"  And the auctioneer said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, the auction is over."  "What?" someone shouted.  The auctioneer said, "A stipulation in this man's will is that only the painting of the son would be sold.  And whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including all the paintings.  The gardener got the son, so he gets it all!"

          Two thousand years ago God the Heavenly Father saw His only Son Jesus Christ die on a cross for the sins of the world.  His message to us today is this:  "Who will take the Son?"  Because whoever takes the Son in faith, gets it all.  Life does not consist of what I can grab or buy or earn or build.  Life is not even doing good things for others.  Life is what we receive by God's mercy through faith in Jesus.

          "Fight the good fight of faith," said St. Paul.  But how does one do this?  Spiritual fisticuffs?  Holy warfare?  That doesn't seem to square with the Jesus who said, "Love one another." (John 13:34)   Is the good fight a real fight or just a figure of speech?  And what are we fighting for?

          One of the memorable German cities we visited was Dresden, a hundred or so miles south of Wittenberg.  Its magnificent buildings and priceless works of art make it one of the jewels of Germany.  But in the waning months of WWII, the Allies bombed Dresden, either because they thought there were weapons being produced there, or because they felt it would demoralize the enemy.  In one night, 35,000 people were killed and its great buildings were reduced to rubble.  Fortunately, most of the works of art were saved and now most of the buildings have been rebuilt.

          The past is still very much alive in Dresden.  The evening of their elections we saw a mob of people demonstrate to show their anger at things connected to the war of 60 years ago.  They are still willing to fight to get what they had lost.  There is a feeling of being cheated, of having lost what is theirs, and they are still angry.  I believe many of them want to get it back.

          Today there are many people, some even inside the church, who believe there is little that is worth fighting for.  They think the way to win is to compromise with the enemy.  Yes, compromise can be useful, but it is not always right.  St. Paul said we must never compromise with evil when the consequences are eternal.  Martin Luther was unyielding as he stood before the greatest powers of his day, a simple monk armed only with the Gospel of Jesus.  He believed life was worthless without Jesus Christ, and that every man, woman or child has the right to stand before God without requirements of law or mediation of the church.  Whoever stops struggling against the forces of evil faces mortal danger.  Whoever compromises faith in God, loses more than life; he loses eternal life.

          There is a sign on the wall of a "Ready Room" for pilots of F-106 Interceptor jets where pilots protect our borders from enemy attack.  It says this: "War is an ugly thing, but it is not the ugliest of things.  A depraved consciousness that believes there is nothing worth fighting for, nothing for which you are willing to pay the ultimate price, is much worse.  There are eternal virtues greater than ourselves, greater than our wants and desires.  And the only way the man who is unwilling to pay the price for those virtues will enjoy them, is by the efforts of those who are better than he is."

          "Fight the good fight of the faith.  Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called."  We fight the good fight when we read and study our Bibles.  We fight the good fight when we confess our faith before those who would ridicule us.  We fight the good fight when we teach our children about Jesus and bring them to Sunday School and worship each week.  We fight the good fight when we help others in need.  We fight the good fight when we refuse to give in to evil and hold fast to what the Word of God says, no matter what others might say.

          Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ died to forgive us our sins.  He rose again so that we too might rise.  His death gives us life.  His life makes life worth living and death worth dying.  Yes, "Who will take the Son?"

          Ours was a good trip.  We saw many things, made new friends and ate a lot of good bread and sausage.  But I will always remember sitting in our room, early one morning, listening to the bells ring at 6 AM in Regensburg, wondering if anyone besides me heard God in those bells, or if they only heard relics of the past.  I pray our American churches and bells don't become museums and relics.  May you and I be among those who take the Son.  So fear not, my friends, what evil may befall you if you stand for the Lord, even in the face of criticism.  By faith you have the Son, and with Him you have it all.  Amen

Copyright © 2004 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.