in thee, then receive ye one another, even as Christ received us, to the gloryof Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: who beingin the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equalwith
If thou esteem thyselfbetter than others,do not pride thyselfon that,but be as one of them, bearingtheir burdens.
For he is a pitiable saint who will not bear patiently with those worse than himself, and longs only for solitude,when he, through patience, prayer, and example, might be exercisinga salutary influence over others.
Lord's talent, and not givinghis fellow-servants their due.
Therefore, be thou a lilyor rose of Christ,knowing that thy walk must be among thorns.
Only see that through impatience,hastyjudgments, or secret pride,thou dost not thyselfbecome a thorn Christ's kingdom," says the psalmist,
" subsists in the midst of its enemies."
Why then rejoice in being surrounded onlyby faithful friends ?
If He, thy Lord, had only lived among the good, or had died only for His friends,for whom then would He have died, or with whom could
He have lived .f* Remember this,brother, and pray for me.
Luther comforts a brother in Erfurt.
Salvation in the Lord, most cherished Brother.
I hear that your brotherlylove is deeplytried by manifold waves of temptation.But God, the Father of mercies and all consolation, has placedover you the best of comforters and advisers,Father
Only see that you keep a tighthand over your thoughts,and make room for His word in your heart.
I know from my own experience, as well as from that of all troubled souls,that it is solely our own selfconceit which is at the root of all our disquietude.
For otir eye is a knave, and, alas,what miseryhe has caused me, and stillplagues me to the utmost.
The cross of Christ is distributed through the whole world, and each receives his portion.Therefore pray do not cast thy portionfrom thee, but cherish it as a preciousrelic, certainly not enshrined in a casket of gold or silver,but in a golden heart filled with loving charity. For, even as the wood of the cross is consecrated through coming in contact with the flesh and blood of Christ,so that henceforth they are esteemed to be the costliest of relics, how much more will the injustice, persecution, and hatred of men, whether it be rightor wrong, not through contact with His flesh,but through union with Divine will,which consecrates everything which is in touch with it,therebytransform the curse into a blessing, suffering into glory,and the cross into a crown of joy.
Farewell,dearest friend and brother,and pray for me.
Luther thanks him for his kindness to a fugitive monk.
I was sorry to hear that Baumgaertner,from our cloister in Dresden, who had fled in a hurried manner, and for good reason, had found refugewith you.
I must thank you for receiving him so kindly, so that the scandal might be put an end to.
He is my lost sheep,who belongsto me, therefore I must try to restore the erringone, if God will.
So, I beg you, by our common faith in Christ,and the order of St. Augustine,that you will either send him to Wittenberg,or lovinglytry to persuade him to return of his own free will.