Prophetic Words for Today’s Issues

Taken from Balthasar Hubmaier – Anabaptist and martyr for biblical truth.

The second error; that nearly everywhere the Supper of Christ has been restored and (so-called) communion given to people “in both kinds” and yet there was preceding this no baptism, which is counter to clear Scripture, which indicates this sequence: first preaching, second faith, third confession, fourth water baptism, fifth the breaking of bread, Acts 2:42 and other texts. But Satan can well stand to have us build something up today and break it down again after a short time, for thereby many persons are seriously weakened, confused and scandalized, so that they no longer know at all what they are supposed to believe or practice.

Yes indeed, says our carnal wisdom, which in such matter above all does not want to look like a fool: “We must have forbearance with the weak. Right now it is not fitting to preach that. In a while it will be fitting. Now I preach what, if I had preached it a year ago, I would long ago have been chased out. But now I am still with my sheep.” O you o f little faith, you are speaking as if it was through your own counsel that the people have stood by the Word of God, and that God would not have been able to sustain it. Here you rob the divine Word of its power and of the efficacy which is ascribed to it everywhere in Scripture, Isa. 40:8; 55:11; Gen 1; Jer. 6; 23:29; Heb 4:12; Rom 1. But so that one can tell when to exercise forbearance and when not, let me this time establish this rule.

In those things which have to do with human practices, such as eating meat or not eating meat, holding or not holding holidays, etc., one may well forbear and do or admit something for the sake of the weak, but only for a time until our neighbor is better instructed in the Word of God, and so that Christian freedom should not be made into a new human law. But in true doctrine and in Christian deeds, one must freely proclaim and do what God has commanded us and not other wise, and trust again to the Word of God for its efficacy, even if the whole world were to fall away again. For it is much better that a person should fall than that the Word should fall, for the Word it will be very easy for him, as with Jacob’s ladder, to be helped up again. Thus Christ himself did with the teaching on food, Mat 15:17ff. and with the eating of his flesh, John 6:53ff. He does not ask whether the Jews and the disciples are offended but speaks out freely the Word of truth, whoever might fall away from him or toward him