I love Luther quotes and the more I find the happier I am. This is one I had seen before and had forgotten. It’s a translation that Matthew Harrison makes on Luther’s works volume 37: 642 – 43. Luther is discussing Gods name. It is the understanding that this name is the one we are baptized into, and the name in which we are to go and make disciples of all nations. Here is what Luthers says – “I, for one, must not let the name of God be such a minor thing. Where Gods name is it makes all things pure and holy and makes and does all things in this regard. In short, God’s name is nothing other than the almighty divine power, eternal purity, holiness, and life; and where it is used according to divine command, there it cannot be without fruit and benefits. Rather, it must work great unspeakable things and make such things as it itself is. Therefore in baptism it must make pure and holy and thoroughly heavenly, divine men.” I blogged not too long ago about mood and mercy. We talked about the fact that Paul contents himself and helps himself by remembering who called him. We sometimes get depressed because we think about our call and what we are doing or not doing in it. There is something to be said about the nature of the name into which we were baptized, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. That name is the revelation of God’s mercy and grace and love with us and for us as we go out to preach that name to all the world so that many receive the promise of that Mercy wrapped up in Jesus Christ our Savior who is “with us always even to the end of the age”. It is, I would submit, hard to get depressed about that.
