Christian Connections Presents:
WHAT LUTHERANS BELIEVE AND TEACH
LUTHERANS BELIEVE WHAT THE HOLY SCRIPTURES TEACH
We believe and teach that the Holy Bible, both the Old and the New Testament is, in all its words, the inspired Word of God and consequently true and trustworthy; that it is the only source for the proclamation of the Gospel through which the Holy Spirit creates faith in Jesus Christ; and that it is so clear in its denunciation of sin and in its offer of salvation that any believer in Christ may read it and understand it.
REFERENCES: 2 Pet. 1:21; 2 Tim. 3:15-17; 1 Cor. 2:13; Gal. 1:7-9; John 20:31; 2 Pet. 1:19; Ps. 119:105, 130
Lutherans believe and teach that the knowledge of God which man has by nature is defective and insufficient for salvation; that sure and saving knowledge of God can be gained only from the Holy Scriptures in which God has clearly revealed Himself as the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, three equal Persons in one Being; and that every other god worshiped by men is an idol.
REFERENCES: Rom. 1:19-20; 2:14-15; Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; John 5:23:1; 1 Cor. 8:4-6.
Lutherans believe and teach that man was created by God in His own image; that this image of God, consisting in man's perfection and holiness, was lost when man feel into sin; and that through this fall all men have become sinners, wholly depraved and helpless through any power of their own to save themselves from sin.
REFERENCES: Gen. 2:7; 3:1-16;; 1:27; Gen. 1:27 compared with Gen. 5:3; Ps. 53; 1 Rom. 5:12; Ps. 143:2; Is. 64:6
Lutherans believe and teach that right and wrong can be determined only in relation to God's holy Law: that every thought, word, or deed contrary to His will is wrong and sin; that every sin, original or actual, is rebellion against God; that sin is the root of all misery in the world; and that every man because of sin is from birth subject to death and eternal damnation.
REFERENCES: Ez. 18:30; Rom. 8:7; 1 John 3; 4; Gen. 8:21; Zech. 8:17; Rom. 6:23.
Lutherans believe and teach that God in His infinite love did not abandon men in their doom but resolved to save them through the sacrifice of His own Son; that the Gospel is the special revelation in which God offers to all men forgiveness of sins and salvation through Jesus Christ; and that those who penitently embrace this Gospel of reconciliation through Christ are declared righteous before God and saved--not through their own merit, but for Christ's sake, by grace and through faith.
REFERENCES: John 3:16-17; 1 Tim. 2:4; Rom. 3:22-24; 28; Eph. 2:8-10.
Lutherans believe and teach that Jesus Christ is the God-man; that as the Son of God He existed from eternity and is equal in every respect to the Father and the Holy Ghost; that as the Son of Man He was born of a Virgin Mother and perfectly sinless but in every respect a true man; that He fulfilled the Law of God for all men and then paid the penalty for the guilt of all men by His suffering and death on the Cross; that through this sacrifice the world was redeemed and reconciled to God; that by His descent into hell He showed His triumph over His enemies and by His resurrection from the dead was declared the all-sufficient Redeemer; and that He will return visibly to the earth on the Last Day to judge all men, living and dead.
REFERENCES: John 1:1; Matt. 1:18-25; 1 Pet. 2:22; 2 Cor. 5:19; 1 John 2:2; Col 2:15; Rom. 1:14; Acts 10:42.
Lutherans believe and teach that conversion is contrition and faith; that it is not merely moral reformation or the solemn resolution to improve one's life, but it is a complete change of heart, a spiritual rebirth of the sinner, a miraculous recreation affected by the power of the Holy Spirit working through the Gospel; and that in conversion God creates faith in the penitent heart.
REFERENCES: Ex. 11:19; Jer. 31:18; John 1:12-13; Rom. 10:17; Acts 11:21.
Lutherans believe and teach that the faith which saves is not merely intellectual assent to Scriptural propositions but is alone the penitent sinner's trust in God's forgiveness offered in Christ's name: that such faith is not an act of obedience or a self-induced achievement of the human will but is entirely God's act of grace by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel; and that if a man has not this simple trust in Christ, he cannot be saved.
REFERENCES: Jas. 2:19; Is. 55:6-7; Mark 1:15; John 1:12, 16; 1 Cor. 12:3; Rom. 10:17; Acts 16:31; John 3:36.
Lutherans believe and teach that the Sacrament of Holy Baptism was ordained by Jesus Christ as a means of grace through which the Holy Spirit offers forgiveness of sins and the promise of eternal life; that through the Word of God in Baptism infants become children of God and adults are assured of their adoption through faith in Christ; and that Baptism may be administered by sprinkling, pouring, or immersing so long as water is applied in the name of the Triune God according to Christ's command.
REFERENCES: Matt. 28:l9; Tit. 3:5; Mark l0:l4; Mark 7:4 (cf. various meanings of the original "baptize" here translated "wash"); Mark l6:l6; Acts 22:l6.
Lutherans believe and teach that in the other Sacrament, Holy Communion, the Lord Jesus Christ, according to His own plain Word, gives us His body and blood for the remission of sins; that the Lutheran belief, called the "Real Presence", does not imply, either by transubstantiation or consubstantiation, any kind of change in the visible elements, that the bread remains bread and the wine remains wine, but by virtue of Jesus' word of institution, this bread is His Body and this wine is His blood; that all who eat and drink at the Lord's Table receive His body and blood in and with the bread and wine, those who believe to the strengthening of their faith, those who reject to their condemnation; and that this Sacrament ought therefore to be withheld from those who are unable to examine themselves in the Christian faith.
REFERENCES: Matt. 26:26-28; Mark l4:24; l Cor. ll:24-25, 26-28; Matt. 7:6; l Cor. ll:29
Lutherans believe and teach that the church is not an outward earthly organization, but the communion of saints, made up of all those, regardless of denomination, language, or color, who in their hearts accept Jesus as their God and Savior; that this church, found wherever the Gospel of Christ is preached, is known to God but invisible to men since it is impossible for men to determine which of those who profess Christianity have true faith in their hearts; and that no church-body can rightfully claim to be the "only saving Church" outside of which there is no salvation.
Lutherans also believe and teach that there is a visible Christian Church consisting of all those who profess the Christian faith and use God's Word but among whom are hypocrites and teachers of unscriptural doctrine; and that it is the duty of every discerning believer to join that church-body which preaches the Bible fully and purely and to avoid spiritual fellowship with such who depart from the Divine Word.
REFERENCES: John 18:36; Eph. 1:22-23; Is. 55:10-11; Luke 17:20-21; 2 Tim. 2:19; Matt. 13:47-48; Matt. 15:9; Rom. 16:17; 2 Thess. 3:6, 14; 2 Cor. 6:14-18.
Lutherans believe and teach that the Christian ministry is an office ordained by God for the public ministry of his Word and Sacraments, not a special order like the Old Testament priesthood: that it is the call of the congregation and not the rite of ordination which makes a minister; that the dogma that ordination by "apostolic succession" confers a special gift has no support in Scriptures; that the New Testament terms "bishop," "elder," "pastor" are descriptive of the one and the same office; and that the office of the public ministry must not be given to women.
REFERENCES: Heb. 10:12, 14, 18; 1 Tim. 2:5; Acts 6:2; 1 Pet. 2:9; Tit. 1:5, 7; Acts 20:17, 28; 1 Cor. 14:34ff; 1Tim. 2:11.
Lutherans believe and teach that on the Last Day the bodies of all men, separated from their souls in death, will be raised and reunited with their souls; that in the subsequent judgment of Christ, which will include all men, the determining factor will not be morality but faith in His atonement; that all believers will rise like Christ with glorified bodies to live with God forever in heaven, while all unbelievers will be sent to eternal punishment in hell.
REFERENCES: John 5:28-29; Acts 10:42; 1 Cor. 15:51-52; Rom. 8:18; Matt. 10:28; Is. 66:24.
A simple liturgical service for the congregation. Worship is the act of God's people coming together into His presence to ask for, to receive, and to thank him for His grace. Since God communicates His saving grace through His Word and sacraments, Lutheran worship centers in these means of grace. In the Lutheran view, any worship in which the gospel is rightly taught and the Sacraments rightly administered is God-pleasing.
Diversity in Rites
Unity in Word and Sacrament is vital; uniformity in rites and ceremonies is not. This is characteristic of Lutheranism. Where God has spoken, Christians must agree; where He has not spoken, they may differ. The unity of the Church is not created by uniformity of ceremonial and church order, hence is not disturbed by diversity in rites. In fact, Martin Luther thought that variety in outward ritual had the advantage that it indicated where the unity of the Church does not lies.
The Lutheran Church is a liturgical church. Very early in Christian history, the Christian Church realized that public worship, as distinct from private devotion, becomes more edifying as it takes on order and form. Out of early Christianity came a form of worship or a "liturgy" whose symmetry and beauty were a real aid and guide to communities of believers in their service of adoration. The ancient forms for Holy Communion, and for the minor services of Matins, Vespers and Compline are still used for congregational worship.
Martin Luther, when it became his task to reform the worship of the Church as he had its doctrine, was guided by the characteristic principle, whatever is contrary to the Word of God must be rejected, but whatever else, even though of human origin, is edifying and contributes to the beauty and meaning of public worship, may be retained.
Thus the Lutheran Church still uses also the ancient prayers, Gospels and Epistles, collects and responses which were a part of the worship of the early Church. She retains primitive symbolism in her altars, crucifixes, candles and vestments. None of these, however, are regarded as essential for worship. Any ordered worship, whatever its form, which is centered in the Word and Sacraments and in their message of sin and grace is truly Lutheran.
Lutheran worship is two-fold: sacramental in the parts where God speaks to man in Word and Sacrament, and sacrificial where man speaks to god in prayer and praise. Worshipers come to receive from God's hand the rich gifts He offers in the absolution, in the Lessons from the Scripture, in the Sermon, and in the Sacraments, and to reply with their sacrifice of contrite and grateful hearts in the Confession of Sins, in Collects and Prayers, and in Hymns. The double action is symbolized in the person of the pastor. He is robed in special dress because he officiates, not as a private person, but as the minister and spokesman of both God and people. In the sacramental parts of the service, he turns from the altar and faces the congregation, speaking on God's behalf to the people; in the sacrificial parts, he faces the altar and addresses God on behalf of the people.
Luther's most important single work in theology was his translation of the Bible into the vernacular; his most valuable liturgical reform was to adapt the ancient liturgies to the common tongue. In a church service, Lutherans are not to be spectators witnessing a religious performance, but participants in a joyful act of worship, every step of which they can enter into and understand. The Lutheran Church is a singing church. Canticles and responses are not left to the choir but are set for, and sung by, the ordinary congregation. The Church of the Apostles adorned their worship "with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs." Hymn-singing formed an important part of early Christian services, but in the encroaching professionalism of the medieval Church, elaborate choral chants of clergy gradually usurped the place of the simple hymn, and congregational singing perished.
The congregational hymn was one of the great contributions which the Reformation of Luther made to public worship. The first Protestant hymnal appeared in 1524 and contained eight hymns, four of them by Martin Luther. Since that time, hymn-writers like Paul Gerhardt and composers like J.S. Bach and George F. Handel have given to the Lutheran Church a musical heritage which is unsurpassed.
In the Lutheran form of church government, the primary unit is the local church or congregation of Christians assembled around the Word and Sacraments. Made up of men and women who by faith in Christ are priests and kings before God. The Christian congregation is self-governing and sovereign, subject only, yet always, to the authority of Jesus Christ and His Word. The only power in the Church is the Office of the Keys, the power of the Gospel to forgive sins, and this is given to each congregation as a whole.
The Lutheran congregation therefore conducts its own affairs. It chooses its own pastor. All pastors have an equal status. The local minister performs the rite of Confirmation. Congregations may indeed delegate certain of their powers to a central body like a diocese, consistory, or synod, or to an individual bishop (the title is retained in many parts of the Lutheran Church), superintendent, or president, but these have authority derived from and delegated by the congregations. The specific form of church organization is a matter of Christian liberty.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LUTHERAN CHURCH--MISSOURI SYNOD
Much has happened to The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod--and to North American Lutheranism generally--since that day on April 26, 1847, when Dr. C.F.W.
Walther and 11 other pastors and 16 congregations formed the "German Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States" at St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chicago.
First, the latter half of the 19th and the early years of the 20th century witnessed a period of rapid church growth because of the heavy influx of immigrants from Lutheran countries: Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, and even Iceland. Confirmed membership in Lutheran churches in this period grew from 175,000 in 1850 to 2,205,000 in 1910.
Second, thanks to the expansion of railroads and the opening of the frontier, many of these immigrants settled in the upper Midwest, in the Northwest, and in western Canada. There they established communities with strong ethnic flavors and were able to transplant much of the culture and way of life from their old homeland to the new. They continued to use their national languages--German, Swedish, Norwegian, Finnish, and Danish.
And it was during this period that the LCMS grew from just over a dozen congregations scattered throughout Indiana, Illinois, and eastern Missouri to nearly 350,000 baptized members in 1885; almost 700,000 in 1900; and more that 1,250,000 in 1935. The Synod would go on to grow to 1-1/2 million by 1947, its centennial year, and to 2,873,814 in North American congregations in 1973.
As its membership increased so did its activities. The Synod has been involved in education, for example, from its beginning, when it inherited two seminaries, one at Fort Wayne, Ind. (Concordia Theological Seminary, now back at Fort Wayne after periods in St. Louis, Mo., and Springfield, Ill.), and one at St. Louis, Mo. (moved from Altenburg, Mo., it became Concordia Seminary).
The Synod also soon acquired a teachers college, now Concordia College, River Forest, Ill., founded in 1885. A second teachers college (Concordia Teachers College at Seward, Nebr.) was added in 1894. Over the years a network of 11 other North American colleges has developed.
By 1938 the Missouri Synod was supporting missionary work in India, China, Nigeria, Brazil, and Argentina. The north American church included American Indians and blacks. Special ministries included the deaf and blind.
Today The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod has about 2.7 million baptized members in more than 6,000 congregations throughout the United States, Canada, and Argentina (those in Brazil have become a sister church). Through its missionaries and overseas workers the LCMS ministers to people in 29 nations of the world, joyfully joining the apostle Paul in saying, "Him we proclaim!"
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