Responses

So, would it be correct to say that the church exists in order to enact the Great Commission? Matthew 28:16-20. If the answer is yes, or a qualified yes, why do we as Lutherans find evangelism and witnessing to others so difficult?

The church does exist in order to make disciples and bear witness to who God is and the love, mercy, grace and forgiveness that is offered in Jesus Christ. Lutherans find it so difficult because historically we have developed our theology, and worldview and understanding of scriptures in a world that is completely different than the one we are currently in. In the days of Luther and the reformers the entire world was Christian and so the issues were around which Christianity was most faithful to the Scriptures. In the time of Lutheran Orthodoxy, it was believed that the Great Commission was given only to the disciples and was actually fulfilled and completed by them.

Views like that do not bode well for a solid understanding of the mission of the church.

Are Mormons considered part of the church using the definition in the Smalcald Articles? I think not, but would appreciate your take on it.

Again this is where the historical understanding of the documents that we are looking at is helpful. For Luther and the reforms, they were defining themselves as Christians and showing that they were not like the “heretics” that the Roman church was saying that they were. So this is an internal discussion. Mormons were not even conceived up and did not show up until a few hundred years later.

If you go back to the beginning of the Smalcald Articles you will find articles on matters of Christian faith. These include things like the doctrine of the Trinity, Christ, sin, justification. The proper understanding of these articles would be assumed in the latter articles as well. So to deny those articles would be a denial of Christianity.

My question is not on point with this week's article, but is topical nonetheless. What do you think will be the result of the ELCA's change in position that will now allow openly gay and lesbian to serve as pastors. Some think it will hurt the ELCA, but I've heard others say they feel the church will grow since it will now be "comfortable" for those who have chosen to live in sin. I would be interested in hearing your take on this.

You are right. This is not on topic. And I do not have what it takes to predict the future. If I did, the church would be set for life. I always find it interesting different issues surface and what happens with that. For example you use the phrase “to live in sin.” Are you implying that heterosexual people do not sin as heterosexuals? Or are you saying that heterosexual sin is not as bad as homosexual sin?

Now I am not saying that any sin is OK and we can or should just overlook it. But, we in the church, have a tendency to say, not in so many words, that some sins are OK to commit, and other sins are not. And yet, we are all in need of God’s grace, mercy and forgiveness in Christ.

So what does this mean? Well, one, we take the Scriptures seriously. We can’t just throw them out. But as we take them seriously and as we deal with sinners, we deal with them in love, and grace and mercy. One, we would want people to treat us with love and grace and mercy, and Two, we know that God deals with people lovingly, graciously and mercifully.

I don’t know what will happen in the ELCA as a result of the events of last week. I do know that those of us in the church need to be sure that we seeing people as God sees them and treating them accordingly. Once we get that figured out, then we can talk about what to do next, but let’s not jump the gun on that one.

Now somewhere in those three responses there should be some good dialogue. I look forward to it. Blessings.

Pastor CJ

Part III Article XII

You can read the article for this week here.

This week's article asks the question about what the church is. Answer: it is simple the people (the believers) who hear the voice of the Jesus. In other places in the confessions, the church is described as being the place where the gospel is preached purely and the sacraments are administered correctly. 

That doesn't seem so bad, but if you read the article it can sound pretty harsh. Is this article saying that members of the Roman Catholic Church are not really church? Not at all. The point that is being made here is a helpful distinction. The church is not a building or an institution. The church is simply the people of God who hear the voice of Jesus. 

Remember the situation that this is written in. In those days the leaders of the church were not always the most godly of people. There was much corruption by power and money and it was everywhere. Often, teachings or practices would be devised in order to maintain that power and money. So it was more often about that, than it was about the truth. 

Luther and other reformers were being accused of not being the church and falling away from the church. That is they were not going along with the abuses of power that they witnessed in their day. And so, Luther and others define church as we see it in this article.

This is an important lesson for us to remember and hold onto today. It is all to easy to see church as an institution and not as the people of God. It is too easy for "church" to become a word about a building where we spend a couple hours a week. 

But the church is important, because it is the community where God's love, and grace and mercy are seen and proclaimed. The church is important because she takes these things out into the world. The church does not exist for the sake of the church, but the church exists for the sake of the world. Because this is true, the church should act accordingly. 

This is all wonderful and exciting stuff. I look forward to the opportunity to continue this conversation in the days ahead.  God's blessings and peace be with you this week.

Sincerely,

Pastor CJ

Refrigerator Theology

You don't always realize what you have, until it is gone. This is especially true with a refrigerator. Talk about an appliance that is easy to take for granted. You just always kind of assume that it is going to be there, and then, when the silly thing goes out, you realize just how dependant you are on it.

This is what happened to us this past weekend. Ours went out. It just flat stopped working, gave up the ghost, and almost the milk too, but luckily we caught it in time. Turns out the thing was about 15 years old. So I guess it was no surprise. Some friends loaned us some space in their freezer and gave us some coolers for what didn't fit. So if you wanted Milk you went to one cooler. The eggs were now downstairs on the lower level in a different cooler. The ketchup was outside in a different cooler. It's a good way to burn some calories. But meals became a lot more work. 

Luckily, today the new one came. I never ever expected to be so excited to see an appliance. Everything in one place. No late night trips to the store to buy ice. Sweet. 

OK. So what does this have to do with anything? Well it can be a good reminder of the preciousness of life. You don't always realize what you have, until it is gone. Until it is too late. The gifts that God pours out into our lives are things that we are not always aware of. And yet, if we take a moment to reflect on them and how prevalent they are...

I am not saying that God will take them away if we are unappreciative. God is not petty like that. But being aware of them, sure makes us appreciate life more and maybe even enjoy it more. No matter what life throws at us, God will always be present. He is like a refrigerator that will never stop working, that will never go out, that will never give up on us. 

On those days when we feel differently, we remember God's great love in Jesus, the salvation and victory that was won for us on the cross. And we can rejoice. God is indeed good. May his presence and goodness be a blessing to you, now and always.

Sincerely,

Pastor CJ

Comments Response

Two comments were left on the blog last week.  Thank you. 

Comment 1:

When did polygamy, as practiced by the Old Testament Israelites, end? Was it before the first century? What I'm trying to ask is if Christ's model of marriage is the same as our contemporary model of one man/one woman.

I am not sure when polygamy fell out of practice? My hunch is that it was more the exception than the rule for the Israelites. It was present with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, but after that you don't hear too much about it. Perhaps the weight of having multiple sets of in-laws had something to do with this. 

Generally, we say one man and one woman because that is how things were set up in the garden. God made Adam. God made Eve. And this was set up before the fall and before the creation was corrupted. 

As far as whether or not our understanding is the same that Jesus had, is up for debate. The only reason I say this is because I think in our culture, we have a much lower view and understanding of marriage than existed in Jesus' day. I saw a show on TV the other night that featured wedding chapels in Vegas. And let me tell you, it made me sick to my stomach. I think we need to have a higher appreciation for what marriage is and the significance that it has in the life of a community.

Comment 2:

The Roman Catholic church considers marriage one of the sacraments. How can it be a sacrament since it does not involve the forgiveness of sins and wasn't instituted by Christ?

While I wish this was a more exciting answer, it is not. Roman Catholics do not have the same requirements for a sacrament as what Lutherans do. That is why they can consider marriage a sacrament, and we do not. I am not sure what their requirements are. For Lutherans it is to have a physical element and it has to be instituted by Jesus. 

Thanks for continuing the conversation. I am excited to see where it takes us.  God bless.

Sincerely,

Pastor CJ