If you’ve read American history at all, you probably know that the signers of the Declaration of Independence placed their lives on the line with their signatures.  In the eyes of the English king, that signature immediately made each them rebels, whose property and possessions could be seized by the crown.  If captured, they could have been executed.  It’s only from our vantage point of history that it seems that the success of that Declaration was inevitable.  On the fast-approaching Independence Day weekend, it would be good for us to consider the courage and commitment it took to sign that document.  They literally laid their lives on the line.
 
Less well known is another list of men whose signatures put them at odds with another emperor, men who’s signatures placed their lives and livelihoods in real jeopardy.  It was 500 years ago that the following 7 men and two free cities pledged themselves the truths set for in the Augsburg Confession.  They were:
            John, Duke of Saxony, Elector
            George, Margrave of Brandenburg
            Ernest, Duke of Lueneberg
            Philip, Landgrave of Hesse
            John Frederick, Duke of Saxony
            Francis, Duke of Lueneburg
            Wolfgang, Prince of Anhalt,
            Senate and Magistracy of Nuremburg
            Senate of Reutlingen
 
The Augsburg Confession, largely written by Martin Luther’s coworker Philip Melanchthon, was read at the Diet of Augsburg, an imperial diet called by Emperor Charles V. 
 
Upon hearing it, Charles V rejected it gave the signers until 1531 to repudiate the Augsburg Confession.  Instead, they stood firm in their confession and formed the League of Schmalkalden.  The members of the league pledged to protect each other from any religiously motivated attack.  Charles V probably could have marshaled his forces against the League to make short work of their principled stand for the truth of the Gospel, but a large Ottoman army transformed the situation. Charles had already lost large parts of Hungary to them, and renewed attacks in the east prompted the Emperor to declare a religious truce with the Lutherans: the 'Peace of Nuremberg.' This cancelled certain legal cases and prevented any action being taken against the Lutherans until a general church council had met, but no date was given; the Lutherans could continue, and so would their military support. This set the tone for another fifteen years, as Ottoman - and later French - pressure forced Charles to call a series of truces, interspersed with declarations of heresy. The situation became one of intolerant theory, but tolerant practice. Without any unified or directed Catholic opposition, the Schmalkaldic League was able to grow in power.
 
In 1546, Charles took advantage of a truce with the Ottomans and gathered an army, drawing troops from across the Empire. The Pope also sent support, in the form of a force led by his grandson. While the League was quick to muster, there was little attempt to defeat any of the smaller units before they had combined under Charles. Indeed, historians often take this indecisive activity as evidence that the League had a weak and ineffectual leadership. Certainly, many members distrusted each other, and several cities argued about their troop commitments. The League's only real unity was Lutheran belief, but they even varied in this; additionally, the cities tended to favor simple defense, some princes wanted to attack.

The Schmalkaldic War was fought between 1546-47. The League may have had more troops, but they were disorganized, and Maurice effectively split their forces when his invasion of Saxony drew John away. Ultimately, the League was beaten easily by Charles at the Battle of Mühlberg, where he crushed the Schmalkaldic army and captured many of its leaders. John and Philip of Hesse were imprisoned, the Emperor stripped 28 cities of their independent constitutions, and the League was finished.  But by the time the League of Schmalkalden was crushed, the Reformation had gained sufficient momentum and was so widespread that there was no way to stop it.  Truth is an unrelenting thing when it gets moving, and move it did. 
 
It still is.  In a time when it seems that true Christianity is torn apart by false teaching from within, faces increasing intolerance from an increasingly post-Christian culture, and in parts of the world is still viciously attacked by radical forces of Islam, it may seem to be in jeopardy.  It isn’t - not if those who know the gospel stand on it and stand by it and refuse to compromise on it.  Besides, Jesus has said that heaven and earth would pass away, but his Word would stand forever.  That means standing on the Word is the safest place to stand in the long run.  Where are you standing?

The spiritual thoughts I share with you this week leading up to Father’s Day weekend were written by a good friend and brother in Christ, Dan Nommensen.  Dan is a counselor on the staff of Christian Family Solutions, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  When I served at Salem Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, Dan was a member of our congregation and was a valuable part of the lay leadership team in a number of different capacities.  This is an article he wrote back in June 2016 for print in Forward in Christ, a magazine produced in the fellowship of the Wisconsin Ev. Lutheran Synod.  It is my prayer that his words will turn your heart more confidently to your heavenly Father!  Happy Father’s Day!
 
A clothes pole and a new lawn mower set the scene for a lesson on forgiveness and love.
It’s Father’s Day! It’s that time of year where men everywhere get new ties and gift cards to their favorite local hardware store! Along with the time spent with family and special gifts, on Father’s Day, I can’t help but remember my own father who has now been in heaven for nearly 20 years.
An accident revisited
My father was a busy pastor of a large congregation in Milwaukee. As busy as he was, he always seemed to find time to take me fishing or watch my baseball games, and we always enjoyed cutting the lawn together. Each of us had a push mower, and we’d go back and forth for what felt like hours.
Then one day we got a riding lawn mower! When it arrived, my dad looked at me and said, “Well, Dan, go ahead.” I was the first to ride it! Me!
This was the greatest moment of my life up to that point. Off I went! Sure, Dad told me to start off in a low gear, but I was 11 years old! I had ridden go-karts at full speed. I could handle higher speeds. There was nothing but open grass all around me . . . and one clothes pole.
I literally moved that lawn mower 50 feet before hitting that clothes pole. I managed to avoid all the open grass and hit it straight on. The front end of the mower was cracked, the headlight was broken, and part of the metal cover was bent. I felt absolutely, positively horrible. I prepared myself for the biggest punishment I would ever see. What was Dad going to do?
God’s love reflected
Well, here’s what happened. He ran over and helped me turn off the tractor because it was still in gear and hitting the pole again and again. Then he said . . . nothing. Before I could even say a word, he knew that I felt absolutely horrible. He knew that what I didn’t need at that moment was a huge dose of the law with scolding and a permanent restriction from ever riding the lawn mower again.
I got off the tractor and announced my own punishment: “I’ll never ride this again—EVER! I promise.”
He responded, “That’s okay. We’ll just take the clothes pole down when we cut next time.” The damage to the mower was never repaired. My dad never mentioned it again.
I used that mower for nearly 25 years. The damage to the front served as a reminder to me about the use of the law and gospel. The unconditional forgiveness my dad showed me that day flowed from a heart that loved the Lord. It was a demonstration of the love shown by our heavenly Father through the sacrifice of his son Jesus. When I felt I needed to dole out my own punishment, Dad helped me see something different. He helped me realize mercy, grace, and forgiveness. I knew Dad’s love and forgiveness for me came from his heart as a reflection of God’s love for him.
I can recall this and other moments that help me recognize the opportunities I have to make a lasting impression in the lives of my own children. Because Jesus loves me, I want to make every day an opportunity to demonstrate that love in the lives of my children and others.