The Watchword for the coming Reformationfestival is from the 1st epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians in the 3rd chapter verse 11: For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. The Church has one foundation, one cornerstone, one head – the Lord Jesus Christ. We as confessional Lutherans are not very innovative. We don’t have many new things on our Agenda. That is because we stick faithfully to the things our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ taught his apostles long ago and we pay careful attention to convey them word for word and sentence for sentence – adding and subtracting nothing, not even adjusting here and there. We adhere precisely to his precious institutions and hold them as our most valuable treasures in the Church here on earth. His holy word in Law and Gospel, his gracious institutions of holy baptism, his holy supper and also the holy office of the keys are the most prized gifts he has entrusted to his one, holy Christian Church to say and do, what he has commanded until he comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead.
Of a good, faithful and obedient servant of the Lord it is expected that he carry out the will and testament of his master painstakingly, precisely and punctually to the letter. That is why it is our prayer: Speak, your servant is listening! We read, study, learn and memorize the Holy Scripture daily, because that is where the Holy Spirit allows us to hear the voice of our good Shepherd. We believe and confess that we don’t live by bread alone, but rather by the word of the living God. That is the true daily bread for our weak and stressed faith! We confess that we often let ourselves be distracted from this good voice and follow all sorts of other noises, tunes and alluring melodies, ranting and ravings. Thankfully the Lord our heavenly God does not punish us as severely as we deserve it, but rather allows us to hear his good word still being preached, written, sung and prayed. He thereby calls us and our congregations to daily repentance, to sincere conversion, but most significantly to the only saving and true faith in his son Jesus Christ and to the holy life with him in this time and age. That is the triune God’s most precious gift to his beloved people here on earth: Saving faith through the means of His grace +
Daily we as Christians, but especially as servants called to serve not at tables, but rather with the Word of God, we also need to read and study and learn and memorize the Lutheran Confessions as we find them in the Book of Concord because they are the true exposition of the biblical truth and Christian faith. This does not only refer to Luther’s blessed Catechisms, which provide iron rations of God’s word for daily living, but also to the other creeds and confessions. It is not possible to be a faithful servant of the Lutheran Church and not be grounded in both the Holy Scriptures as well as the Book of Concord. That is not only the solemn oath we promised at our ordination, but it is also the life-line for a true and faithful Christian life in this world. Without this daily diet our faith starves and finally perishes of malnutrition. We need it more than any other food. That provides the living water of Christ, which alone stills our thirst as our Church father Augustine writes: “My heart is restless in me until it finds rest in the living God: Jesus Christ.”
We as Lutherans are also very gifted to have not only the Book of Concord, but also the Lutheran Agenda, the Lutheran Hymnal, the Pastoral Care Companion and the Ministers Prayer Book. These give us good guidelines on how to deal with specific situations in life and provide God-pleasing words, sentences and actions in times, when we are dumbfounded, speechless and even paralyzed by faithlessness and other serious doubts and temptations. Brothers I urge you most sincerely: Make use of them! Take them, read them, learn them by heart and sing, pray and preach on them to the glory of God and to the benefit of your people. Don’t think that your own ideas or cheap stuff and fast food from here and there are better than these old, established and proven writings. It compares like junk-food with good wholesome food as grandma made it.
The Lutheran Reformation was nothing more and nothing less than a return to the good old ways of the Christian Church – getting rid of all exotic paraphernalia even if it looked mighty impressive and brought in a lot of profit [Indulgences, Monasteries, Papacy etc]. The Lutheran Reformation put the first things first again: God’s holy will and promises! In the Church and especially in its divine service the word of God is the most vital, essential and decisive. All else must be judged and evaluated by this godly standard. That is the true benchmark, that provides best practices and that is what it is all about. Therefore if we worship our Lord our God, if we baptize babies, teach and confirm our people, celebrate the Lord’s supper, practice the office of the Keys, ordain pastors, sing, pray and live our daily lives, marry young couples, visit the sick, care for the needy, pray with the suffering, support and help the marginalized and poor, celebrate festivals, inaugurate new buildings, bury the dead and comfort the living – we do this only according to the will and promise of the living God. His word alone creates true faith. His creative word alone is efficacious and sustaining confidence, trust and reliance in God’s goodness and mercy. Therefore preach, teach and share it in good and bad times. It is your true treasure entrusted specifically to you as pastors and bishops of the Church to create and sustain true faith whenever and wherever it pleases God. So do it for Christ’s sake – because you love him and care most for what he wants, does, says and promises!
It does not take much technology, organization or even finances to do this. You have a pulpit, you have an altar, you have churches and houses, you have pews and school benches, you have attentive listeners/hearers. Don’t disappoint them, give them, what you have – the pure preaching of the delightful gospel and the proper administration of the Lord’s sacraments. Do it for Christ, for his church and also for his people!
