Monday, August 28, 2018
Psalm 72:8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.
O GOD, THOU FAITHFUL GOD
O God, Thou faithful God, Thou Fountain ever flowing,
Who good and perfect gifts In mercy art bestowing,
Give me a healthy frame, And may I have within
A conscience free from blame, A soul unhurt by sin!
(The Lutheran Hymnal, 395:1)
Johann Heermann's hymn reminds us that it is God who is faithful. And we could add "not us." God is faithful in sending out His people and in supporting them. We are the ones with the shortsightedness that causes us to be like Jonah. Can we possibly think that God does not know the situation, but we do?
Adversities are not signs to not go forward, but rather to march in place. Sacrifice -- and even what we might call an "untimely death" -- are not hindrances to His Gospel's movement. Johann Heermann knew this well. Just read up on his life and times, that of the Thirty Years War. Or consider his predecessors, the Apostles. A millennium and a half earlier they knew this. Do we?
It's not farfetched to think, as one tradition states, that the apostles drew lots to see who would go where. Of course, we cannot verify this until we are with them in heaven. The fact is that the post-resurrection Apostles were different men. Though the Lord of glory was killed He arose from the dead and now leads us on this life-quest called: being a Christian. Oh, that more of our brothers and sisters in Christ would participate in being involved in the fulfillment of that prophecy of Psalm 72, that He " . . . have dominion . . . to the ends of the earth . . . May men bless themselves by Him, all nations call Him blessed."
All of the apostles except John evidently died violent deaths in His service. All except James the son of Zebedee faced "the foe's envenomed ire" far from home. In the tradition of the apostles drawing lots it is said that Thomas drew Parthia (Persia/Iran) and also went to India. The evidence for Thomas being in India along both the Malabar and Coromandel coasts is pretty good. The supposed date of his arrival in India was 52 AD. Many believe that Bartholomew also worked in India.
I have stood on the Thomas Mount where it is supposed that a Hindu speared the Apostle to death. I have been at the cathedral built over the place on the coast where Thomas' body was buried. After one removes the fanciful Roman Catholic notions from the sites, there is still good evidence that the Apostle went to India. He perhaps worked for twenty years, with traditions placing him on both southern India coasts. Is it likely he died a violent death? Yes. Untimely? Hardly. God knows what He is doing. As Paul wrote to the Philippians, "to live is Christ and to die is gain" (1:21) and "I can do all things in Him who strengthens me" (4:13).
