Minkota Mission District – NALC

Index

Romans 5:1–2

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning Justification 

Likewise, Paul says, “Through him we have obtained access” (Rom 5:2), and adds, “by faith.” Thus, we are reconciled to the Father and receive forgiveness of sins when we are comforted with confidence in the mercy promised for Christ's sake. The adversaries regard Christ as mediator and propitiator because he has earned the habit of love. Therefore, they do not urge us to rely upon him as mediator now. Rather, as though Christ were altogether buried, they imagine that we have access through our own works and earn this disposition through them, and by this love come to God. Does this not to bury Christ altogether and remove the entire doctrine of faith? Paul, to the contrary, teaches that we have access, that is, reconciliation, through Christ. To show how this takes place, he adds that we have access by faith. Therefore, we receive forgiveness of sins by faith because of Christ. We cannot set our own love and our own works over against God's wrath.

Pulling It Together: Some people rely on religion as a way to gain peace or go to heaven—or rather, not go to hell. This puts the cart before the horse. Instead, they should be interested in being with God. When they have gained access to God, they will then gain heaven, for that is where God dwells in eternity. If they have gotten into his eternal presence, they will of course therefore, be in heaven. They will also have peace in their consciences and spirits, though not because they are going to heaven. They have this peace because they know that their sins have been forgiven. They know that their sins have been canceled because they believe the promise: that their “sins are forgiven freely for Christ's sake” (Eph 1:7). Only those who believe this, that their sins are remitted through faith in Christ alone, have true peace of conscience and spirit. To the degree that they rely even a little bit on their religion, their works, their morality, or their so-called goodness, to that degree, they lack peace. To that degree, they worry about heaven. But when they know that they have most certainly been forgiven of all their sins, they no longer worry about heaven because they know that they stand in his grace by faith, and rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, I trust in you alone as the one who has negotiated my salvation. Amen. 

It is a vital task of the church today to encourage a renewed interest in and use of God’s Word. Unfortunately, many people find the Scriptures difficult to read and hard to understand at first. The purpose of Epistles, a Guide to Reading the Scriptures is twofold: to encourage Christians to read God’s Word on a regular basis and to help the reader slow down and concentrate on each chapter of the epistles before moving on to the next.

Source: Daily Devotions in the Lutheran Confessions

Index

2 Corinthians 5:17–21

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning Justification 

It will then become easy to state the minor premise if we know how the remission of sins happens. The adversaries carelessly dispute whether the forgiveness of sins and the infusion of grace are the same change. Being idle men, they do not know what to answer. In the forgiveness of sins, the terrors in the heart about sin and eternal death must be overcome, as Paul testifies, “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 15:56-57). In other words, sin terrifies consciences through the law that reveals the wrath of God against sin. Yet we gain the victory through Christ. How? By faith, when we comfort ourselves with confidence in the mercy promised for Christ's sake. Thereby, we prove the minor proposition. The wrath of God cannot be appeased if we set against it our own works, because Christ has been set forth as the propitiator so that for his sake, we may become reconciled to the Father. But Christ is not taken hold of as a mediator except by faith. Therefore, by faith alone we obtain forgiveness of sins, when we comfort our hearts with confidence in the mercy promised for Christ's sake.

Pulling It Together: Søren Kierkegaard wrote in Sickness Unto Death that we acquire a new appreciation of ourselves when the self is viewed “directly in the sight of God.” When we see ourselves as God sees us, everything changes. And it is terrifying. So long as we are our own measure, everything seems right enough; we are barely troubled by our thoughts and actions. The only time we are bothered at all is when we have said or done something wrong and it has become public enough that it brings about uncomfortable consequences. We are then forced to measure ourselves by the views of others.

What a difference there is between our own standards and how others measure us. Still, when the trouble blows over, we fall back into a personal measurement of self. We seem good enough again. However, when God becomes the measure of a person, an absolute measure of our state is understood. “Getting God as a measure” is terrifying. We are backed up to the doorjamb of his holy righteousness and we discover that we do not measure up. The thought that makes sin so dreadfully alarming is that one no longer stands against his or her own measure but is reckoned by the measure of the Almighty.

When one realizes their true measurement against God's standards, eternal death now constantly looms nearby. So, how do we conquer eternal death? How might we even overcome the fear of it? We cannot, except by God's view of us being changed. We cannot, however, change the way he regards us though love and good works. We will never measure up. God's view of us is only altered when we are “in Christ.” When he sees us through the skin, so to speak, of his own Son, we measure up. This is nothing that we do; it has been done for us and the new measure is given to us freely.

This is the only way that we can ever be confident when being viewed “directly in the sight of God.” When we realize that, clothed in Christ as we are (Rom 13:14; Gal 3:27), God sees us as being in his Son, we have a sure and confident hope. So long as we attempt this through our own actions, our own measure, we remain uncertain, lacking confidence in God's mercy and love for us. But when we know that the Father is reconciled by the measure of the righteousness of his Son, then we who are by God's grace in Christ by faith are therefore justified by Christ.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for newness of life by bearing our sin and reconciling us to your Father. Amen. 

Portraits of Jesus is a nine-session Bible study that explores the "I AM" statements given to us by Jesus himself. In comparing Jesus' words with related Scripture in both the Old and New Testaments, the study provides a well-rounded look at the center of our faith in Christ.

Leader's Guide

Source: Daily Devotions in the Lutheran Confessions

Index

Psalm 32:1–5

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning Justification 

That We Obtain Remission of Sins by Faith Alone in Christ

We think that even the adversaries acknowledge that in justification the forgiveness of sins is necessary first. For we all are under sin. Therefore we reason as follows:

To receive the forgiveness of sins is to be justified, according to Psalm 32:1: “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven.” We receive the forgiveness of sins solely by faith in Christ, not through love, nor because of love or works, although love follows faith. Therefore we are justified by faith alone, understanding justification as the making of a righteous person from an unrighteous person—that one is regenerated.

Pulling It Together: It is easy to admit that everyone is a sinner, since we see the evidence in the news, in the lives of those we love, and certainly in our own lives. Scripture also plainly states that, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Because sin has caused a fall so great as to remove us from the presence of God's glory, our sin needs covered. Adam and Eve understood this and covered themselves with fig leaves after they sinned (Gen 3:7). Notice how Adam's and Eve's works were refused by God? They tried to cover their sins but even they understood that their figgy outfits were inadequate. So they hid themselves among the trees of the garden (Gen 3:8).

Try as we might, our own efforts are unequal to the task. It is God alone who is able to cover our sins. So, from the skins of the very animals Adam was charged to care for, God made them a more lasting covering (Gen 3:31). Justification is that blessed relationship with God that happens when one's sin is covered. It is the forgiving and covering of sins that only God can do for us. “Blessed is the one…whose sin is covered” (Psa 32:1).

Prayer: Help me, Lord, to do all I can to please you but rely upon you alone for the covering of my sin. Amen. 

Genesis – "Old Places, New Faces" Series   Places have to do with geography. In the Bible, we find God's people in many different places, both physically and spiritually, in their relationship to the Creator and Savior. We, like them, journey through many lands in our Christian walk. We move from chaos to order, from Ur to Canaan, and from obedience to disobedience. As we become more acquainted with our spiritual geography, we will better discern where God would have us go or what changes we need to make in order to serve Him better.

Source: Daily Devotions in the Lutheran Confessions

Index

Romans 4:1–5

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning Justification 

The particle “alone” offends some, although even Paul says, “For we hold that a man is justified by faith apart from works of law” (Rom 3:28). Again, “It is the gift of God — not because of works, lest any man should boast” (Eph 2:8b-9). Again, “They are justified by his grace as a gift” (Rom 3:24). If the exclusive “alone” displeases, let them remove from Paul also the exclusives “freely,” “apart from works,” “as a gift,” etc. For these also are exclusives. We do exclude the idea of merit. We do not, however, exclude the Word or Sacraments, as the adversaries falsely charge us. For we have said above that faith is conceived from the Word, and we honor the ministry of the Word in the highest degree. Love also and works must follow faith. Therefore, they are not excluded as things that follow faith. But confidence in the merit of love or in works is excluded in justification. And this we will clearly show.

Pulling It Together: Imagine a man condemned to spend the rest of his life in prison. One day, the word comes from the jailer that the president has pardoned his offense. It is too good to be true. Decades later, he dies, still sitting in prison. He never could believe the guard's report that a criminal like himself had been set free. After all, there had been no conditions, only the promise of the president. So, the man spent his remaining years in prison, working off his sentence and trying to become a good man. He was only freed from prison by his own death.

It seems incredible that one could be delivered from their eternal fate because they simply believe. Surely there must be more to Christianity than that. There must be rules and regulations, things to do and observe. If people are such wretched sinners, they must have to do something to become righteous and escape the consequences. Nevertheless, Lutherans confess that we are saved by God's grace alone, this happening through faith and not works of the law. 

Prayer: Help me believe your good word alone, Lord, instead of the religion that I would add. Amen. 

The kind of church we see in the New Testament is different from what most modern people imagine when they think of “going to church.” Experience Life Together: A 15-Week House-Church Model Resource & Session Book, by Rev. Tom Hilpert, is a 15-week house-church curriculum designed for pastors, lay leaders, and churches interested in getting a taste for what church in the home is really like. Whether referred to as a house-church, organic church, alternative church, or cell church, this material applies well to any group that wants to experience Christian worship in the context of a small group meeting within the homes of the participants.

Source: Daily Devotions in the Lutheran Confessions

Index

1 Peter 1:3–5

From the Confessions: The Defense of the Augsburg Confession

Concerning Justification 

But when we confess that faith justifies, perhaps some understand it as the beginning of justification or preparation for justification. But then it would not be faith itself through which we are accepted by God, but the works that follow faith. Accordingly, they would imagine that faith is highly praised because it is the beginning. The beginning is important because the beginning is half of everything, as they commonly say. It is just as if one would say that grammar makes the teachers of all arts, because grammar prepares for further arts—although in fact it is his own art that renders every one an artist. We do not believe this about faith, but we maintain that properly and truly, by faith itself, we are accounted righteous for Christ's sake, or are made acceptable to God. And because "to be justified" means that just persons are made out of unjust people, or born again, it also means that they are pronounced or accounted just. For Scripture speaks in both ways. Accordingly, we desire to first show this: that faith alone makes an unjust person into a just person, that one receives forgiveness of sins by faith alone.

Pulling It Together

What else do I need to do? Nothing. Christ has done it all. He has taken unrighteous sinners and assigned his own righteousness to their account. This is not the beginning of salvation, to which you must now add your own deeds to the work of Christ. He has done it all. Now, you will want to respond with all kinds of good deeds but remember that these do not justify you to God. Christ alone justifies you. He has at once converted you and made you righteous. You are born again to the Christ-life. All this happened when faith in him was kindled in a sinner's heart, when you believed in Christ.

Prayer: Your righteousness is all I need, Lord. Amen. 

Many in the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) remember the loyalty, strength, and uniqueness of our Lutheran tradition and the necessity of "Christ Alone." Stand and Confess explores these traditions in light of Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions.

Source: Daily Devotions in the Lutheran Confessions