LifeDate Fall 2026 – Preach Life
by Rev. Dr. Aric Fenske
The Church has labeled St. Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus as the “pastoral epistles.” This is because Paul is addressing these men as one pastor to another pastor. He wrote to them to exhort, instruct, and encourage them for the great task of being an under-shepherd of Christ’s sheep.
That doesn’t mean that the contents of these epistles don’t apply, in some way or another, to every Christian. They certainly do! But there’s no getting around the fact that these epistles are especially applicable to pastors.
With that in mind, I’d like to use this opportunity to address my fellow pastors and encourage you as you boldly proclaim God’s Word. Look again at Paul’s words to Timothy from his second letter to the young pastor:
“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions” (2 Timothy 4:1-3).
Brothers, do not stop preaching the fullness of God’s Word. I know that it’s not easy to publicly confess the truth of God’s Law and Gospel in an age when people refuse to accept sound teaching. Reproving, rebuking, and exhorting sinners has never been popular, but it seems particularly difficult to do so today, especially in matters regarding sexuality and the sanctity of human life.
It would be easy for us to give up and stay silent, or worse, to capitulate and scratch the itching ears of the world. Instead, let us view the conditions around us as the motivation to double down and be all the more diligent to heed St. Paul’s words to Timothy.
It may not be easy, but there is nothing that this sinful world needs to hear more than the Word of God. After all, the only thing in the world powerful enough to change those itching ears into ears that welcome the truth is the Gospel of our Lord, which is the “power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16), and His perfect Law, which the Spirit uses to convict us of our sins (John 16:8; Romans 7:7-8). St. Paul himself is the perfect example of how the Word of God has the power to transform someone from any enemy of Christ into a defender of the truth.
So be bold in your proclamation. Let the world see the holiness of God reflected in His perfect Law, which instructs and commands us to love and protect the lives of our neighbors, from the moment they are conceived until the Lord decides to take them to their eternal dwelling. And shine the light of the Gospel of Jesus, our Lord, into the hearts of those blinded by sin and death.
And continue to do this from the pulpit, not just in Bible studies or new member classes or discussions with the unchurched. The people in our pews need to constantly hear what God says regarding the sanctity of life as much as the world does. Remember that the devil, the world, and their own sinful nature are constantly trying to destroy the new man that the old sinful nature might arise again. Even those who currently confess the truth and claim to be pro-life may give in to sin if they, or someone they love, find themselves in a troubling situation.
The odds are high (the statistics confirm it) that there are not only members of your congregation who ideologically approve of things like abortion, physician-assisted suicide, homosexual behavior, etc., but who have also been complicit in these acts. There are also very likely members of our congregations who have made decisions against life completely out of ignorance: couples who were never taught about the dark side of IVF, adult children who were not fully informed by the doctors or hospice providers about the decisions made at the end of their parent’s life.
Those people need to hear God’s word of forgiveness applied to their sins and guilt. They also need to hear clear instruction on how God’s Law applies to their lives and the choices that they may be forced to make. Besides that, let’s not forget that the new man in Christ delights in the Law of God and wants to do what is pleasing to Him (Psalm 40:8; Romans 7:22). We should assume that the Christians in our pews want to hear what God’s Law says and how it applies to them so that they may put it into practice, even as they know it will be imperfectly done. Additionally, I can tell you from experience that God’s children want to be equipped so that they can confidently share God’s truth with their friends and neighbors.
So, my compatriots in the ministry, and all my other brothers and sisters in Christ, stay strong and preach the Word, in season and out of season.
“I delight to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart.” Psalm 40:8
“For I delight in the law of God,
in my inner being ….” Romans 7:22