The LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations has archived three historic yet timeless documents: C.F.W. Walther’s "Theses on the Ministry," a "Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod," and "A Statement of Scriptural and Confessional Principles."
The LCMS Commission on Theology and Church Relations provides an introduction to the LCMS, guidelines on scriptural and confessional principles, and theological considerations for altar and pulpit fellowship with other church bodies.
For this topic, there is really only one question to be considered: What is the importance of this sentence: “Baptism is nothing other than God’s Word in the water, commanded by His institution”?
The heart of the Scriptures, the heart of Luther’s preaching and teaching, and the heart of Lutheran theology, is the Gospel. This time we read Part III, Article 4 of the Smalcald Articles, which brings us back to this heart.
While we often think of repentance being poorly understood because of Papist emphasis on man’s efforts, the Reformers (and we still to this day) also recognized that many are burdened in conscience by the notion that Christians shouldn’t need to repent.
The Large and Small Catechisms of Dr. Luther were born of pastoral necessity. In 1528, Luther and his colleagues visited the congregations in Saxony to assess their spiritual health. Luther was horrified.
Luther, in the Smalcald Articles, isn't so much confronting an error directly (that comes in the next Article on Repentance), but is instead making a positive confession about what the Law is and what role it plays in the world.
A lot of people think they know what “sin” is, but usually see their remedy to sin as “try harder, do better.” This not only confuses the remedy, but also the ailment!
The Formula of Concord has two parts, the Epitome and the Solid Declaration. Together, these comprise the final document of the Book of Concord (1580), or the Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.
Luther states that the papacy demands obedience to itself (to the pope) and to whatever is said from that office of pope, even to the point of tying salvation to that obedience. What is the true Gospel?
The culture increasingly maintains that marriage is man’s institution. Thus marriage can be defined according to the shifting winds of popular opinion, and ultimately government mandate. This is to rob marriage of any real objective meaning.
Philipp Melanchthon composed the Augsburg Confession in preparation for the Diet of Augsburg in 1530. The emperor Charles V called the diet in order to resolve the religious issues that were divided the empire.
In article III, Luther confesses how dangerous the monastic life was to him and to all ensnared by its promises of “grace through holy living;” Such reasoning robs Christ of His glory as the Savior.
In this life, we need the church, where our sins are daily and richly forgiven for the sake of Christ. The Holy Spirit crucifies the Old Adam and the body of sin every day of our lives by daily contrition and repentance.
Luther says that the invocation of saints "destroys the knowledge of Christ." How would you say the invocation of saints does this? What is the consequence of such destruction?