ST. CATHARINES CONCORDIA - Brock University

26 LLTHERAN THEOLOGTCAT, REVIEW
Srom the Law to live according to thc Gospel.
Similarly, Dr. Luther did not resort to the Law or an ethical system when he
exhorted Christians to live a sanctified lice. Rather, because Christ has won forgivcncss
and everlasting lifc for Christians, they have bccn freed from worry about any of their
personal concerns and for love and service to God and their- neighbours. When
Christians are confronted by a situation demanding action on behalf of a neighbour,
their primary question is not: What does the Law say? But they rather ask: How can
we serve God and help our neighbour in need'?
S7
This includes the secondary question:
If necessary, what injustice must bc overcome in order to serve God and help our
neighbour? This is the Christians' principle of serving God and preventing harm to
their neighbour by deed despite injustice and despite the danger they may incur for
thcmsclves. Acting by this principle, for example, Israel's midwives disobeyed and
deceived Pharaoh, risking punislment for themselves while saving the lives of baby
boys; the Apostles disobeyed the orders of the. duly constituted authority of the
Sanhcdrin by continuing to preach the Gospel ublicly (Acts 4: 18-21; 5:21,28); some
Christian pastors preached against Nazi evilsp md some Christian laymen hid Jews
from the Nazis.
Likewise, Abram misled the Egyptians intentionally because he knew of the
treachery praclised hy them (Gen. t2:12). Tn order to save his own lifc hc had to rcsort
to dcccptive strategy. He did this not for his own sake, but, as the context indicates,
for the sake of God's plan to bring the salvation oTHis blessing LO all the people groups
of mankind (1 2:3). As we have seen in an~lnlber of Scriptural cases, God has no qualms
about deceiving His enemy who, ultimately, is Satan, the arch-deceiver (see Gen.
3:l-5; Jn. 8:44). Considering how God Himself employed deceptive tactics against
His Satanic focs in human form, that Abram's stratagem was inspired by the Holy
Spirit as Luther intimated would certainly not be an unreal possibility. Allhough
Abranl knew that Sarai would be endangered, he did not yet know for sure that Cod's
Promisc would be fulfilled through her as well as through himself (not until Gen.
17: 16). Neither did Abrarn act without trust in God's help. The best he could do initially
was Lo ensure his own safety. From thcn on, he had to leave everything--including
Sarai-up to God. The LORD did not let him down, but plagued Pharaoh's household
to save them both (12:17). That God did not judge Abram guilty of sin and that he
acted rather in sinccrc faith is indicated by his and Sarai's leaving Egypt safely with
many gifts (12: 16,20).
In conclusion, there are no holds barred when dealing with "the fathcr of lies" and
his human hcnchmcn who allow themselves to become his instruments of treachery
and tysanny.39~l~e Cluistian must be sure that he is being led by his conscience as it
57 Sec Cother, 'Ihr F~wdnrn ofn C'lil-istion, AE 31.344-5, 349,364-371.
58 li.g., Hermann Sasse (''Die Kixhe und die politiaclle~i Mvlacl~le Jer Zeil" 119321, in: 112 Sratu Coifessiorzis, ed. F.
W. Hopf, Berlin: Ve~lag die Spur, 1975, 251-264) dnd Paul Schneider (Der P~mligci' von Buchcrrwuld, ed.
Heinrich Vugel, Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstdlt, n.d.).
59 Hummel434: There really is no "abstract 'evil' apart from embodiment in evil pcoplc ..."