Pondering….

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed,
And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;
Though its waters roar and be troubled,
Though the mountains shake with it swelling.  Selah (Ps. 46:1-3)

Is not our God merciful?  He is our mighty fortress, the one who has blessed us from our mother’s arms, and the one came to save us.  Once again we have seen the beginning of the narrative.  God has promised to come; we see its glimpse in Advent 1 where He comes unto Jerusalem.  We hope and wait, and our expectation turns into joy when he finally comes.

He came not only be a cute baby in a manger, but even to be our Savior.  The spotless lamb of price was born in a stable.  He, who was wrapped in death cloths and placed in a stone manger, would 33 years later be again wrapped death cloths and placed in the stone tomb.  That cute baby came; he came to die.

But a dead Savior avails us nothing; therefore he rose.  He rose and gave us new life.  Yet, our Lord still hears our prayers and he is a God who still comes.  He comes in baptism, he comes in His supper, he comes in the Words of Absolution, and he comes in your Pastor.  Still we die.  Death sill mocks us.

When death comes to a loved one we once again hear what Adam heard in the Garden, “On that day you shall surely die.”   But still our baptismal grace cries, “It is finished!”  Recently I just heard about a LCMS Pastor and his wife that were in a car accident.  She was pregnant, and the accident tragically took the life of their unborn child.  When we hear of this our reaction may be akin to what Job’s wife’s advice was to Job, “Curse God!”  We may look to God and ask “Why?”

We are not given to know everything that is in our Father’s heart, but we do know that he is merciful.  Can I say that child is in heaven?  No.  Can I say that child is in hell?  No.  Can I say that child has gone to a place for unbaptized babies?  No.  But that doesn’t lend us an answer.

It may not be pretty or easy, but I don’t know the answer.  But I know God tends not to do things the pretty or easy way!  I know He didn’t just snap his fingers and make us whole, but sent and killed his only Son to die for us.  I know he allows his word to work even on those in the womb [Luke 1:41].  I know all we can do is be lilies of the field, and have no final trust or confidence in God.  Just cling to the cross of Christ, and there remember that our Father in heaven knows something about what it’s like to loose a child.

2 thoughts on “Pondering….

  1. I have to say that I sincerly agree with you. My personal opinion is that unborn/unbaptized babies DO go to heaven. I believe that they are forgiven.

  2. Psalming Padawan March 5, 2007 — 1:03 am

    The question I would pose to you is how is the forgiveness applied to them? God is not one to deal with abstracts. He is a concrete sort of God. He deals with means: water, wine, bread. He deals sometimes through things that aren’t up to his standards: your pastor. He uses things to apply his grace.

    Another question is: what about original sin? Does original sin damn? Because we are rotten sinners from the beginning (Ps. 51:5). But the flip side is what my my first question of the post is “Is not our God merciful?”

    What are we left with? A tension. One the one hand God works through means (babies can’t get the means), on the other we have original sin (babies have it), and yet on the other God is merciful (wanting all men to be saved and that includes unborn babies). We are left with not trying to claim wisdom into this mystery. I trust that God knows what to do with the babies, and that is enough for me. I have enough to worry about besides where unborn babies go; I’ll leave that to the Almighty.

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