A pastoral reflection on our current decisions:
In the constitution of our congregation the following confession of faith is stated:
Chapter 2 CONFESSION OF FAITH
C2.01 This congregation confesses the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
C2.02 This congregation confesses Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and the Gospel as the power of God for the salvation of all who believe.
C2.03 This congregation accepts the canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the inspired
a. Jesus Christ is the Word of God incarnate, through whom everything was made and through whose life, death, and resurrection God fashions a new creation.
b. The proclamation of God’s message to us as both Law and Gospel is the Word of God, revealing judgment and mercy through word and deed, beginning with the Word in creation, continuing in the history of Israel, and centering in all its fullness in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
c. The canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the written Word of God. Inspired by God’s Spirit speaking through their authors, they record and announce God’s revelation centering in Jesus Christ. Through them God’s Spirit speaks to us to create and sustain Christian faith and fellowship for service in the world.
Word of God and the authoritative source and norm of its proclamation, faith, and life.
C2.04 This congregation accepts the Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds as true declarations of the faith of this congregation.
C2.05 This congregation accepts the Unaltered Augsburg Confession as a true witness to the Gospel, acknowledging as one with it in faith and doctrine all churches that likewise accept the teachings of the Unaltered Augsburg Confession.
C2.06 This congregation accepts the other confessional writings in the Book of Concord, namely, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, the Smalcald Articles and the Treatise, the Small Catechism, the Large Catechism, and the Formula of Concord, as further valid interpretations of the faith of the Church.
C2.07 This congregation confesses the Gospel, recorded in the Holy Scriptures and confessed in the ecumenical creeds and Lutheran confessional writings, as the power of God to create and sustain the Church for God’s mission in the world.
As we have been working through the process of analyzing our relationship with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America this Confession of Faith has played an important role in our decision to find a new affiliation.
1. The constitution starts out with the clear statement of our understanding of God as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is not an option for us but is rather the revealed truth of Christian faith. As the ELCA has become more lax in its willingness to call God Father, we have instead chosen to uphold this teaching.
2. Secondly, we understand Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6) He is not one way among many ways to eternal life, but he is THE way and thus we preach that it is only through Christ that we have salvation. As the ELCA has moved away from this exclusive call of Christ we have had to cling more closely to this revealed truth.
a. Jesus fashions us into a new creation. We are not compelled as Christians to live out any way of life that is contrary to scripture. Rather through Christ we can let go of lifestyles that are not pleasing to God and subject our lives to the transforming power of Christ.
b. We preach law and gospel – not a gospel only faith (cheap grace.) The Book of Concord teaches three uses of the law:
1.) to keep order in society
2.) to make us aware of our sin and thus drive us to Christ
3.) to lead Christians in holy living
The ELCA currently encourages only the first two uses of the law.
c. Scripture is the written word of God and is not in conflict with Jesus, the word of God made flesh. The Spirit leads us to Christ through the power of that word. The ELCA is now encouraging Christians to think that the Spirit can work in a way that is not consistent with the written word. This cannot be – God is one God.
3. Scripture is our norm for faith and life. The ELCA would like us to think beyond scripture for our guidance on issues of sexuality. We would like to have scripture form and shape our lives of faith.
4. We accept the ancient Creeds of Christendom. The ELCA has modified the wording of those creeds in their new hymnal in order to say that Jesus was human rather than man and to subdue the reference to God as His “father.”
5. The confessional writings of the Lutheran Church include: the Unaltered Augsburg Confession, the Apology of the Augsburg Confession, the Smalcald Articles and the Treatise, the Small Catechism, the Large Catechism and the Formula of Concord support the writings of Holy Scripture and do not contradict the faith.
As we move through this process these basics of our lives together are important to reflect on because they can help us to see that the issues we are facing are not built on a singular topic of sexuality but are rather due to our desire to uphold our confession of faith as it has been passed on to us from the saints of old. Please feel free to contact us for further discussion on any of these issues. We continue to serve in prayer to God and in thanksgiving for your faithful witness in this challenging period of our lives together.
