Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I have had the privilege of spending the past two weeks serving with our nation’s finest as a chaplain in the Indiana Army National Guard. These young men and women have raised their right hands and promised to defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.
With their service to the country comes sacrifice, birthdays, anniversaries, first words and first steps missed; time that they will never get back, because they are part of the 1% that choose to serve our country and defend the freedoms we enjoy every day. If a country is to enjoy peace, freedom, and security she must have Soldiers to defend it. If this is true of countries, what ought we say of churches? Less than 0.01% of the population serve as pastors.
St. Paul says in Romans: “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things (Rom. 10:14-15)!’”
The reality, dear friends, is that we need to encourage our children into vocations of service. Mothers and fathers need to be willing (from my perspective) to give up their sons to be soldiers and pastors. Both are honorable vocations that are necessary in this fallen world, and we do not have enough of either. The need for soldiers has been stated above and hopefully is obvious to all. But there is also a need for pastors. Without pastors, eventually, sooner or later, church bells in various towns and cities will go silent. I am not saying that Christ’s Church, the holy catholic and Apostolic Church will ever cease to exist, for we have Jesus’ promise that it will endure.
However, He has not said that there will always be a church in Kewanee, or Geneseo or Peoria. Nevertheless, if we do not raise our children for lives of service or if we ourselves are unwilling to suffer hardship or the inconveniences of high taxes and the like, who will? It is supremely unhealthy to never be willing to stick it out in one location for the sake of the Gospel. The Gospel will endure till Christ returns in glory, nevertheless, it can cease to be preached in a particular place. For the Holy Spirit creates faith in the hearts of men through the proclamation of the Gospel, but how shall they believe in Him in whom they have not heard?
If Christians are not preached to and the sacraments not rightly distributed to Christ’s Christian people, faith will grow weak and faint and eventually die. Just as the body needs nourishment so too does the soul, as Christ says, “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest (Mt. 9:38).”
Therefore, at the very least dear friends, we should offer prayers of thanksgiving to our heavenly Father that He has provided with both soldiers and pastors to us. Nevertheless, we owe to the next generation to help raise up those that follow. To all those who have served as soldiers or pastors, thank you for your sacrifice and service and know that your labor is not in vain.
Pastor Winston Grieser
St. Paul’s Lutheran Church
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of The Kewanee Voice.
***This column is sponsored by the Kewanee Ministerial Association
