Jesus Cropped from the Picture

Sacred Roots: No Nostalgia, No Antagonists

The Holy Spirit comforts and guides believers as they wage the good warfare together, provides gifted shepherds to protect and mobilize the army, and prompts people to “count it all joy” whenever various trials are encountered (1 Tim. 1.18, Eph. 4.11-13, James 1.2, Rom. 5.1-5). There can be joy in the midst of pain because God can sovereignly redeem every trial, changing it into a victory against the enemy’s kingdom. What the devil means for ill, God can turn to good (Gen. 50.20, Heb. 12.3-15). While the devil desires God’s people to give up in discouragement, shame, or guilt, God desires his people to fight back by pressing on, “getting back into the game.” Jesus’ victory over the devil pays for sin, so Christians do not have to entertain the persistent accusations of the enemy. Baptism is a weapon for battle in that it is a concrete reminder of allegiance to the Victorious Christ and his Kingdom, despite how defeated one feels (Acts 26.17-18, Mark 16.15-16, Rom. 6.3-23). When under attack, Luther often exclaimed, “I am baptized!” These weapons provide courage in the face of trying circumstances, forgiveness in spite of failure, and a will to win when everything seems hopeless. Christ’s guaranteed victory over Satan carries his people through, despite the onslaught of the devil, the world, and the flesh (1 Cor. 10.13). Believers are instructed to meet together regularly in order to remember their destiny and hope (Heb. 10.25). Because of the human tendency to forget, the celebration of communion is a frequent reminder, not only of Jesus’ past death, but of his future victory, consummated at the Wedding Banquet of the Lamb (Mark 14.25). As John White said:

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