The Miracle of Forgiveness!
Eight times Uwe Holmer’s children tried to enroll at the university in East Berlin and eight times the Ministry of Education in East Germany said No! Author Joel Gerlach, writing in “The Northwestern Lutheran”, the official publication of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod, shares the rest of the story.
“The Ministry of Education does not usually give reasons for its rejection of applications for enrollment. But in this case, the reason was not hard to guess. Uwe Holmer, the father of the eight applicants, was a Lutheran pastor at Lobetal, a suburb of East Berlin. For 26 years the Ministry of Education was headed by Margot Honecker, wife of East Germany’s premier, Erich Honecker, who led the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1971 until shortly before the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989.
"When the Berlin wall cracked and fell, Honecker and his wife were unceremoniously dismissed from office and he was put under indictment for criminal activities during his time as premier. At the end of January 1990, the Honeckers were evicted from their luxurious palace in Wandlitz, an exclusive suburb of palatial homes reserved for the VIPs in the Communist party. The Honeckers suddenly found themselves without friends, without resources, and with no place to go. None of their former comrades showed them any of the humanitarian help that Communists boast about. No one wanted to identify with the Honeckers.
"Enter Pastor Uwe Holmer. He remembered the words of Jesus, “If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also,” so he gave an invitation to the Honeckers to stay with his family in the parsonage of their parish church in Lobetal (from January to April of 1990).
"Joel Gerlach concludes, “Pastor Holmer has not reported that the Honeckers have renounced their atheism and professed faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. But at least they fold their hands and bow their heads when the family prays together. Who knows what the Holmer’s faith-in-action plan will lead to before this extraordinary episode ends?”
Pastor Holmer demonstrated great forgiveness and grace to the Honeckers. He declared, “If we preach mercy, we have to live it out”. He was compelled to pass along the same forgiveness to the Honeckers that Jesus had already given to him. I’m sure it would have been tempting for the Holmers to think that the Honeckers got what they deserved. Thankfully the message of Jesus Christ is that we don’t get what we deserve. We deserve judgment and punishment and suffering for all eternity due to our sin and rebellion against Him, but Jesus gives us His forgiveness and grace and mercy and loving kindness. And we can’t keep it to ourselves; we are called to pass it along to others in need.
This Sunday, November 1, we will continue our new study entitled, “Welcome Home!” with a “House of Forgiveness” (Ephesians 4:32; John 8:1-11). Jesus Christ has given us blessed forgiveness. And what the Lord does To you, He also wants to do Through you, so He calls us to pass that forgiveness on to others. Please invite someone to join you at the 10:35am worship service in the building or online for the Live broadcast on either Facebook (Honolulu AG) or our YouTube channel (Honolulu Assembly of God). We Livestream every Sunday to both locations and would love to have you join us! And please join us in person for Bible Study this Sunday morning at 9:30am. Be blessed & grow in your Christian life by studying the Bible together.
Another saint has graduated to heaven. Harry Ah Nee, long-time part of Honolulu Assembly of God, passed away yesterday morning. Please pray for his wife, Mabel, and the rest of the family.
Coming Up: “Girl Time Lunch & Fun” for all ladies is Saturday, November 7, at 11:30am. Bring a friend or two plus something delicious to add to the table. Our next Drive-Through Prayer outreach in the parking lot happens that same day from 11am-1pm.
Aloha and Aloha ke Akua!
Comments