NOTES ON COURAGEOUS ENDURANCE AND THE NEED FOR A CONFESSING AMERICAN CHURCH: IT’S TIME!

SCRIPTURE. “So do not throw-away your confidence, which has a great reward. ‘For you have need of endurance,’ in order that having done the will of God, you might receive the promise. For yet in a very little while, ‘the One coming will come and will not delay. But My righteous one will live by faith. And if he draws-back, My soul is not well-pleased with him’ [Hab. 2:3-4]. But we are not of a drawing-back resulting-in destruction, but of a faith resulting in the preserving of the soul.” – HEBREWS 10:35-39, DLNT

KEY TERMS. Confidence; Reward; Endurance; Promise; Faith; Draws-back; Destruction; Preserving

QUOTATIONS

“In that instant they felt an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment. Though they had failed dismally even to come close to the expedition’s original objective, they knew now that somehow, they had done much, much more than ever they set out to do.” ― ALFRED LANSING, Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage, 1959; edited

I. FIRST THOUGHTS

It happened for me in Great Bridge, Virginia, in or around the year 1987, just a few years into this Christianity Road, when God nearly shouted to me in the most profound and memorable way that as a true follower of His, I must be prepared and learn to:

“ENDURE!”

I have told the details of this story before, so I won’t go into detail again except to say, God meant for me to grasp a most serious doctrinal matter when He wonderfully shattered some of my early Christian delusions about living a passive Christian life.

Well now, to further suspend and obliterate all doubt and illusion about the Passive Model of the Faith, recall what JESUS CHRIST said this in His towering Olivet Discourse:

“But the one who endures and bears up [under suffering] to the end will be saved” (MATTHEW 24:13, Amplified).

WHAT IS ENDURANCE? From the Greek word, ‘Hupomenó’ [ὑπομένω]: “Literally, remaining under (the load), bearing up (enduring); for the believer, this uniquely happens by God’s power (cf. 1 Thess. 3:5); steadfastness, especially as God enables the believer to [remain faithful despite] the challenges He allots in life; to have fortitude to persevere under trials.”

American theologian, fierce abolitionist and temperance advocate, ALBERT BARNES, draws an airtight interpretation around the unmistakable meaning Jesus meant to impart: “He that bears afflictions and persecutions faithfully that constantly adheres to his Religion, ‘and does not shrink until death’ shall be saved, or shall enter Heaven” (Notes on the Old and New Testament, 1884; edited).

Let me say it in Dr. Kelly’s loosely unabridged translation so that you get the point: ‘Only’ those who endure to the end, under suffering, will be Raptured when Christ comes to gather His Church just before He unleashes His Terrible Wrath on America and the whole earth at the Opening of the Sixth Seal (cf. 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 5:9; Revelation 6:12-17).

So much for the prevailing Mythology of ‘Once Saved Always Saved.’ No! We must also ‘endure to the end’ in a semblance of fidelity to Him and His Commandments, my friends (John 14:15). And do not let anyone tell you differently, even or especially if it is your own pastor!

It is for me, theologically speaking, ipso facto, Settled Law.

OTHER REASONS. To set this up just a little bit more personally, I remember growing up in the 1950s when my dad taught me at about age 11 (an important year for me when he started in earnest investing himself into the ways of life with me). He said this:

“Son, I want you to know that with your Mom and me, divorce will never be an option.”

Unless you think me holier than thou, Mom and Dad went through very, very stormy waters more than once and came very close to divorce. And I am in my second marriage, now 41 years in and plan to remain so, by the way. So, I’m not talking down to any of you, but rather bringing up the vital importance of a word that most Americans seem to have forgotten concerning the faith:

COMMITMENT:“The state or quality of an engagement or obligation that restricts freedom of action; being dedicated to a cause, activity, etc.; a promise or firm decision to do something; [‘until death do us part,’ in the context of a marriage agreement].”

So let that serve as springboard into the next section, the deep dives into the absolute Biblical requirement that followers of Christ must be willing and dedicated to ‘living for the Messiah’ unto life or unto death, no matter what. No. Matter. What.

Selah.

II. THE CENTRAL IMPORTANCE OF ENDURANCE

As we all of us move further and further down this theologically charted but yet untraveled Road of the Birth Pangs, we experience a growing dual sense of urgency and excitement. Urgency due to the increased pace of the pangs; Excitement as they herald not only Perilous Times ahead (2 Tim. 3:1), as the Messiah makes ready His thunderous Return for His Church – and Judgment of the nations.

To help us along a deeper understanding of this crucial idea, I turn to JON BLOOM, teacher and cofounder of Desiring God along with New Testament scholar and author, JOHN PIPER. The title of his essay, appropriately enough: “You Have Need of Endurance” (May 16, 2021; edited). Here are some of his main points.

• LOVING GIFT IN A PAINFUL PACKAGE. “The New Testament makes it clear that, for the Christian, developing endurance is essential. It tells us ‘The way is hard that leads to life’ (Matthew 7:14), and fiery trials most certainly will befall us (1 Peter 4:12). Therefore, it says, ‘you have need of endurance’ (Hebrews 10:36) because ‘by your endurance you will gain your lives’ (Luke 21:19). God promises to us the ‘eternal weight of glory’ of knowing and being known by Christ (2 Corinthians 4:17; Philippians 3:8). But The Promise has a crucial condition: ‘Our endurance.’”

• NEED OF ENDURANCE. “‘God’s discipline [which is what He’s up to] can be a confusing, disorienting experience for Christians. It certainly was for the original recipients of the Epistle to the Hebrews. As a Church, they were suffering various forms of persecution and social alienation because of their faith in Christ. They too were in a howling Spiritual Storm, continually being pressed by their own questions and doubts. They were growing weary and discouraged … Therefore, he didn’t mince words. He warned them of the danger and said, ‘You have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God [then] you may receive what is promised’” (Hebrews 10:36).

• GOD TREATING YOU AS SONS. “God’s children in every age need this reminder. That’s why the author pointed his Hebrew readers back to an ancient Proverb they all knew, and said, ‘Have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor detest His correction; For whom the Lord loves He corrects. Just as a father the son in whom he delights’ (Proverbs 3:11-12) … This exhortation didn’t immediately quiet my [own] internal storm; it didn’t alleviate all my anguish. But as I began to understand my suffering as the endurance-building discipline of my loving Father, I was able to ‘rejoice in [my] sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance’ (Romans 5:3). The God of Hope filled me with joy and peace in believing the Promise in this exhortation (Romans 15;13). And that hope fueled my resolve to endure.”

• ENDURE FOR JOY. “That’s why we all ‘have need of endurance, so that when [we] have done the will of God [we] may receive what is promised’ (Hebrews 10:36). And what is promised, what is set before us, is ‘fullness of joy’ and ‘pleasures forevermore’ (Psalm 16:11) … In the middle of a howling storm in the soul, in the agony of ‘a severe test of affliction’ (2 Corinthians 8:2), it is easy to grow weary, and the temptation can be strong to just give up. At that point, what we often most need is an exhortation to ‘endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ’ (2 Timothy 2:3). Because ‘by [our] endurance [we] will gain [our] lives’ (Luke 21:19).”

JOHN GILL. Of that passage from Luke 21:19, Mr. Gill writes: “By patiently bearing all afflictions, reproaches, indignities, and persecutions, ‘enjoy yourselves;’ let nothing disturb or distress you; possess that peace and joy in your souls, which the world cannot take away; see Romans 5:3. The Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions read, ‘ye shall possess’: and the sense may be this; ‘by patient continuance, or by perseverance in the ways of God, and the truths of Christ unto the end, ye shall be saved;’ shall find your lives, and enjoy your souls, as in Matthew 10:22.”

Beloved friends of God, the Scriptures and the Commentaries are in perfect accord on this crucial matter of Salvation: ‘It is by Grace and [active] Faith’ that shows up in unflagging, steady (yet imperfect) loyalty to Christ and Canon – no matter what! And all those who refuse this Doctrine shall be ‘left outside.’

THE MESSIAH SPEAKS: “For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. ‘And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness.’ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ – MATTHEW 25:29-30, NKJV

III. THE TEACHING

SCRIPTURE. “So do not throw-away your confidence, which has a great reward. ‘For you have need of endurance,’ in order that having done the will of God, you might receive the promise. For yet in a very little while, ‘the One coming will come and will not delay. But My righteous one will live by faith. And if he draws-back, My soul is not well-pleased with him’ [Hab. 2:3-4]. But we are not of a drawing-back resulting-in destruction, but of a faith resulting in the preserving of the soul.” – HEBREWS 10:35-39, DLNT

KEY TERMS. Now we dive still deeper into the Central Message of this essay, as always, to mine its rich core.

• CONFIDENCE.  ‘Parrésia’ [παρρησία]: “Freedom of speech, outspokenness; openness, especially in speech; boldness, bluntness, frankness; strong assurance; presupposes the right or authority to speak; courage; persuasiveness; on reservedness or plainness of speaking; fearless; conspicuous [for speaking forthrightly].”

• REWARD. ‘Misthapodosia’ [μισθαποδοσία]: “Recompense of reward [for service or duty rendered; good or bad]; a soldier’s pay; ‘Divine compensation’ determined by God the Judge – i.e., what He personally values [about our work]; requital; justice, vengeance or vindication [depending on God’s assessment]; the measure of reward or punishment deserved.”

• ENDURANCE. [As before] ‘Hupomenó’ [ὑπομένω]: “Literally, remaining under (the load), bearing up (enduring); for the believer, this uniquely happens by God’s power (cf. 1 Thess. 3:5); steadfastness, especially as God enables the believer to [remain faithful despite] the challenges He allots in life; to have fortitude to persevere under trials.”

• PROMISE. ‘Epaggelia’ [ἐπαγγελία]: “An announcement or declaration; a Divine assurance of some good, and hence guaranteed by His own eternal Law (Being); a guarantee of future blessings and the enjoyment of God’s favour; also, the promised ‘effusions [gifts and enablement] of the Spirit; holds strong implications for prophecy; hopes; expectation, or that which affords expectation of future distinction.”

• FAITH. ‘Pistis’ [πίστις]: “Persuasion, credence, ‘moral conviction of Biblical truth’ or of God as our Supreme Teacher; belief, trust, confidence; fidelity, faithfulness; is always a gift from God, and never something that can be produced by people; refers to and is built upon ‘truth itself;’ also means good faith as with sincerity; in sum, faith (4102/pistis) is a persuasion from God that we receive as He grants impulse (‘Divine spark’); presupposes we shall keep watch for the Lord at all times.

• DRAWING-BACK. ‘Hupostelló’ [ὑποστέλλω]: “To draw in, let down, draw back, withdraw, draw back, keep back, shun, conceal; to withhold under (out of sight, i.e., to hide); to cower; to retreat, shrink from, shun; to ‘back off,’ especially as in compromise [of Biblical truth or principle]; ‘to conceal [truth]; to be timid or cowardly;’ to dissemble [i.e., lie];’ to hesitate to avow what one believes; to run to a place of presumed safety or security [away from danger or risk].”

• DESTRUCTION. ‘Apóleia’ [ἀπώλεια]: “Ruin, loss, perishing; ‘eternal ruin; destruction, causing someone (something) to be completely severed’ – cut off (entirely) from what could or should have been; damnation, death, perdition’ [a state of eternal punishment reserved for the unrepentant; i.e., the second death]; an eschatological ruination surprising people like labour pains coming upon a pregnant woman; the end of all life; utter waste and loss of well-being.”

• PRESERVING. ‘Peripoiésis’ [περιποίησις]: “Preservation, by acquisition or purchase; acquiring, obtaining, possessing; ownership; properly, to make one’s own; completely obtain, i.e., as a full possession (to real advantage) – literally, ‘for abundant (all-around) gain; unto the saving of one’s soul;’ to keep or save from injury or destruction; to defend from evil; to save from decay or corruption; to keep in a sound state.”

COMMENTARY. “‘For ye have need of patience.’ For shows this to be an enforcement of the former direction: ‘Cast not away your confidence,’ for you have need of grace, which that must maintain in order to carry back your reward. It is therefore absolutely necessary, as well as useful to you, for the bearing of your burdens, persevering in all duty, and waiting for your reward, notwithstanding your reproaches, afflictions, and fiery trials, that you preserve your confidence in maintaining this patience; Hebrews 6:12; Romans 2:7; James 1:4.

‘That, after ye have done the will of God.’ That having believed God’s Promises, obeyed His precepts, endured his trials, and persevered in all, according to the good, acceptable, and perfect will of God; and so exercised our patience, and evidenced our confidence, and ‘finished our work.’

‘Ye might receive the promise.’ You may carry back, as your full prize, after your race. It is a necessary and true reportation from God, after His will is done, 1 Peter 1:9 5:4; the reward promised metonymically expressed by the Promise, Hebrews 6:15 Hebrews 9:15; ‘all that life and glorious inheritance in the reality and fulness of it, called a crown of glory that fadeth not away,’ 1 Timothy 4:8 2 Timothy 1:1.” – MATTHEW POOLE, English Annotations on the Holy Bible, 1685; edited

DK. This is a massive Doctrinal Maxim in the context of an equally massive ‘Falling Away from the Faith’ because of Trump “Christian” Nationalism, QAnon Conspiracy Theory, and the worship of money and power. ‘You cannot have both’ – God and Mammon, the World and the Kingdom, Christ’s Table, and the table of Satan!

Countless millions of so-called Christians are going to suffer The Fire because they violated this Core Teaching of the Church. For all Pastors who didn’t warn them, they shall be much more severely punished for their staggering failure of duty to shepherd, feed and protect God’s flock.

In this powerful doctrinal chapter, Paul makes it absolutely clear in verses 23, 26, 28, and 31, that: ‘You cannot enter the Kingdom of God on half or partial commitment.’ Jesus will not honor that! Pastors had better fast return to teaching the Canon instead of the teachings of men, lest they remain self-condemned to Perdition.

That is correct, Pastor: If you continue to hide from your sacred duty, God will not only remove your Candlestick, but will erase your name from the Book of Life – along with all who followed your catastrophic Error.

JESUS SUMMARIZES. “He who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] will accordingly be dressed in white clothing; and I will never blot out his name from the Book of Life, and I will confess and openly acknowledge his name before My Father and before His angels [saying that he is one of Mine]. He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches …

Therefore, the one who confesses and acknowledges Me before men [as Lord and Savior, affirming a state of oneness with Me], that one I will also confess and

acknowledge before My Father who is in heaven. But the one who denies and rejects Me before men, that one I will also deny and reject before My Father who is in heaven.” – REVELATION 3:5-6; MATTHEW 10:32-33

Beloved, I neither wrote these sayings, nor submitted them to the scholars. Here, God needs no interpreter. The Words speak boldly and clearly; dare not doubt His Teaching. Selah.

IV. TOWARD AN AMERICAN CONFESSING FELLOWSHIP

You may have noticed that I haven’t used the term “Church” to follow the adjective, “Confessing,” for a couple of reasons that I mentioned briefly in the last Commentary. One, I am not interested at all in seeing still another ‘Church’ be launched, with all its strictures, bylaws, legal requirements and a government hunched over its shoulder scrutinizing all that it does and teaches. No thanks.

Second, given what I believe is coming in the desperate times just ahead, an above-ground, highly visible Church is pretty much the last thing we need to assemble. No, more like an informal network of on-site and online ‘House Churches’ is more fitting to the times, and more insulated from the treachery of an increasingly encroaching opposition to the true Canon and true followers of Christ.

So yes, “Fellowship,” carefully defined in the paragraph that follows.

FELLOWSHIP. ‘Koinónia’ [κοινωνία]: “Properly, what is shared in common as the basis of fellowship (partnership, community); connection intimacy [and mutual trust]; requires participation (commitment); friendly [loving] association, especially with people who share one’s interest; companionship; society; consort; mutual association of persons on equal and friendly terms; familiar association; communion; ‘Koinónia’ can be defined as ‘holding something in common’ and is specifically used 20 times in the New Testament (e.g. Phil. 2:1-2, Acts 2:42, 1 John 1:6-7).”

What we have together constructed on Facebook is known as THE PELOTON FELLOWSHIP, as one example of what I am trying to describe. It exhibits all the characteristics in the definition above, and much more. I have presented its foundations in TWO ESSAYS:

• “The Peloton Fellowship: Introduction to a Community of Christ Followers in the Tradition of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Confessing Church.” – Sat July 30, 2022

• “Further Notes on ‘The Peloton Christian:’ Toward Becoming the ‘Excellent Ones’ in Whom God Delights.” – Sat Aug 13, 2022

I commend them to you as, again, foundational to what I am presenting today as a Part III installment (Sat May 6, 2023). Should we proceed to a more official organization of The Fellowship, there will likely be a Part IV soon enough.

CONFESSIONAL VS. CONFESSING. I was able to find two excellent articles that speak to our topic today the first of which is and by and inner-city pastor, TYLER CRONKRIGHT. His Bio says this: “Cronkright is the Associate Pastor at Family of God Lutheran Church in Detroit, Michigan. He gets to walk with recovering and active addicts, sharing the good news of Jesus in a very dark neighborhood, alongside the many congregations that support Family of God. He and his wife, Brandi, live just north of Detroit in Clinton Township.”

Here are a few of his excellent insights for us to consider as we continue to coalesce around a ‘Confessing Fellowship.’ – “A Confessional Church or a Confessing Church?” 1517, Sep. 1, 2021; edited

• CONTEXT. “In the 1930’s, the Third Reich of the Nazi Regime in Germany was being ushered in. In 1933, Adolf Hitler was elected Chancellor by the Nazi Party. German Socialism began to take over the churches. Where the Cross was, now hung a Swastika. There was no longer separation of Church and State. The Church was being urged to conform to the State. The Confessional Church was easily swept up in National Socialism with Hitler as the German messiah … Theologian and pastor DIETRICH BONHOEFFER was having none of it. Though he was a proud German, ‘his conscience compelled him to speak out.’ On Reformation Sunday. 1934, Bonhoeffer stood in the pulpit and preached on 1 Corinthians 13, with heavy emphasis on verse 13: ‘So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.’”

• TWO CHURCHES. “In this sermon, he was referencing the difference between the Confessional Church and the Confessing Church, two wonderful German Lutheran entities that he regularly preached about, comparing the two. The ‘Confessional Church’ refers to the Christians who come to Church on Sundays, sit in their pews (or cushioned chairs), speak crystal clear and pure doctrine, say their prayers, sing their hymns, and celebrate the Sacraments. All wonderful things that should be observed in the Church. Culturally speaking, the ‘Confessing Church’ was a movement within Nazi Germany that fought back against the German Reich Church. The mission of this church was to reestablish Church freedom and uncompromised fidelity to God’s Word, both which were under threat by the Third Reich.

• CONFESSONAL LOVE. “‘A Church that is great in faith must be greater in love.’ Bonhoeffer preached about the Confessional Church, saying, ‘The message of saving and redeeming faith alone became rigid, became a dead record because it was not kept alive through love.’ Pushing his point even further, Dietrich boldly proclaims, ‘The Church of Faith – even if it is the most orthodox (Confessional) faith that faithfully adheres to the Creeds – is of no use if it is not even more a Church of all-embracing love.”

• CONFESSING LOVE. “Did you catch that? Dietrich puts the Church on blast, calling the Church that does not love useless. And so, he urges the German Lutheran Church to be ‘more’ than just a Confessional Church, but a Confessing Church. For Germany, ‘the Confessing Church was a Church that would love without calculating what it might cost.’ A Church that would serve without wondering who was worthy of serving. It was a Church that would not submit to Hitler and German Socialism. It was a Church that would stand on the Confessions of God’s Word and continue to speak Truth in the face of persecution. It was a Church that would not fold like a cheap tent, but be willing to drive a stake into the wheels of injustice to stop the forces of evil.”

• SUPREME LOVE. “‘This is the love of neighbor. This is the love of Christ.’ For it is Christ who has stakes driven into His wrists and His feat, thorns into His head, and lashes into His back and side. It is precisely this that defeats sin, death, and the Devil. All for you. Jesus was not passive, but active. Jesus did not board up the heavens and tell people how to love and serve. Jesus did not cheer hopefully for the Church to prevail against the gates of hell. ‘Jesus loved. Jesus served. Jesus stormed. Jesus acted! And He calls his Church to act, too.’”

• THE CHURCH MILITANT. “The Confessing Church, after all, is an active Church.Confessional churches without love are useless and destructive. ‘The Confessing Church exhibits the love of Christ, the sacrificial love of Christ.’ The Confessing Church serves, while the Confessional Church tells other churches that they need to evangelize. ‘The Confessing Church storms the gates of hell because the gates of hell cannot prevail!’ Let me be very clear. We are indeed saved by grace alone, through faith alone, on account of Christ alone, which is revealed to us in Scripture alone. But, for the Christian, it is impossible for faith to be alone. It cannot exist alone.”

AMERICA’S CHURCH. What Cronkright has brilliantly and passionately done is historically and contemporarily offered us a stunning contrast between Two Churches in America today. The overwhelming majority of us are at best, “Confessional,” offering us the rather safe and passive old shibboleths of praising, tithing, listening, then going home.

Worse, the American Christian dares to violently contravene God’s Command to ‘judge each other,’ and NOT the lost!

“For what business is it of mine to judge outsiders (non-believers)? Do you not judge those who are within the church [to protect the church as the situation requires]? God alone sits in judgment on those who are outside [the faith]. Remove the wicked one from among you [expel him from your church].” – 1 CORINTHIANS 5:12-13, AMP

Beloved, the American Church is so vastly separated from her Greatest Commandments of Loving God and Neighbor more than oneself (Matthew 22:37-39), that in her morbid rigidity and deadness, she has for seven years running, signed on board with an Antichrist, Donald Trump. This is not mere Rebellion, but rather idolatrous spiritual Harlotry, the penalty for which is Perdition.

Yet our pastors remain silently, timidly, uselessly ‘Confessional’ to this very day. I will take this up in my closing remarks once again. They simply refuse to engage the greatest Spiritual Battle in our entire history, looking away.

V. LAST THOUGHTS

As I often do, I turn to an authority much wiser than this old soldier to take us home. This time it is DR. STEPHEN SHOEMAKER, theological, biblical, and liturgical scholar and currently pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Statesville, North Carolina (United Methodist Insight, July 27, 2021; edited).

Permit me to allow Dr. Shoemaker to take us all to school for a few minutes, followed by my own conclusions.

“In late May 1934, the Pastors’ Emergency League met in Barmen, Germany. DIETRICH BONHOEFFER had helped organize it to help pastors withstand the Nazification of the German Church. The German Protestant Church was falling under the thrall of Nazism and Hitler with its dark energies of Racism and Nationalism.

With KARL BARTH as the principal writer, they issued ‘The Theological Declaration of Barmen.’ It said in short: Hitler is not Lord. Jesus Christ is Lord. With the Declaration, the Pastors’ Emergency League formed ‘The Confessing Church – the small Christian community of Christian churches and pastors seeking to be true to Christ and so necessarily in resistance to Hitler.’

Those gathered thought the Reich Church of Germany was breaking up and destroying the German Protestant (Evangelical) Church. The hope of the Declaration was a reunification of the Church under a set of theological principles. (It would not accomplish its goal, so strong was the German Christians’ allegiance to Hitler) …

The American Church is today [as of 2021] confronted with the same issues, the heresies of Racism and Nationalism, of Christian Nationalism and Christian White Supremacy. There is a growing number of new churches today identifying themselves as ‘Patriot Churches.’ Many churches have become that without naming themselves that.

‘Do we need a New Barmen Declaration’ to state what is at stake theologically, spiritually and politically? Do we need to go beyond the theological statement and name the present dangers to the Church and Nation?

‘We must start with the Church,’ with an examination of our Racism, of our temptation to Nationalism and of our own obsession with Worldly Power, including the major efforts of the Religious Right, Evangelical and Catholic, to create a Christian Theocracy in America. We must shun allegiance to any ideology of Right or Left that competes with our allegiance to Christ.”

CODA. Dr. Shoemaker’s plea captures my heart and my soul, beloved. This is what we must do even if it leads to nothing, or worse, to our personal destruction. Before Christ I declare to you all in the very Words of the Messiah: “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” – LUKE 19:40, NKJV

This far therefore has He brought me to share this with you. I don’t know what comes next or how to begin such an enterprise. Perhaps we should first ask: Do we have a Bonhoeffer or a Barth among us in America, and if so, who and where are they? Let us find them quickly now!

But if there are none, then what, beloved?

THIS. I call every single one of us in the Peloton Fellowship to begin to PRAY if this be the Lord, or merely the rantings of a rancorous old man pounding a frustrated fist on the table once again.

Wouldn’t it be a grand thing, dear friends, if, as WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE wrote it of that great Battle of Agincourt in 1415:

“From this day to the Ending of the World, that we in it shall be remembered as‘We few, we happy few, we band of brothers,’”could indeed inspiresuch a wonderful event as a Band of American Confessors?

It’s time.

Ever your servant, DK

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