Ideas to use in sermon messages:
In his letters Luther emphasized the nearness of Christ and his love and esteem for believers. These emphases seemed designed to counteract the very nature of Satan’s thoughts: Namely that Christ has forsaken the believer and no longer loves or esteems the believer. For Luther, nothing could be further from the truth. In the midst of these struggles, God in Christ is near us though we may not see him. He reveals his presence though his word.
As a result Luther constantly advised reading comforting scriptures like the Psalms. Luther also saw God’s invisible presence in visible people. Believers became the bearers of God’s comforting and strengthening words to troubled souls.
Luther repeatedly encouraged a variety of behaviors to combat solitude and the poison of one’s thoughts. Repeatedly he exhorted the depressed to seek the company of others. For example, in a letter to Jerome Weller, Luther advised him (Prince Joachim of Anhalt) Luther wrote: “Seek the company of others. Rejoice in a godly, honorable way.
Reaching to others and speaking openly was important to Luther.
From: https://www.churchhealthdevelopment.com/luther-and-depression.html |
