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Randy Haapala | 2015 LLC Summer Services - Youth Presentation --

Walt Lampi | 2016 LLC Summer Services - Ministers and Board Members Meeting -- Overview Can we ever thank God enough for giving us His kingdom, His Word, and causing the Holy Spirit to work among us? God has revealed Himself to us through His Word as a Triune God: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Yet many things about Him remain hidden, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways” (Isaiah 55:8). And we humbly acknowledge that “now I know in part; but then shall I know even as I am known” (1 Corinthians 13:12). He has, however, revealed to us the means by which He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies living souls in His kingdom. It is by the office and work of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit calls those on the outside of God’s kingdom through the Word of God. We do not know when, where, nor who will be called to be “born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). We simply preach the Word. Within the kingdom His work is that of sanctification, which means to make holy. The Spirit teaches us, and we learn and relearn to live by faith in accordance with God’s Word. By this we become holy and heaven acceptable. It is a continuous work because we are faulty and in a daily pitched battle against false doctrine and the enemy of souls, “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh” (Galatians 5:17). In the heat of the battle the Spirit reminds us of the truth of God’s Word. Our adversary continually undermines the work of sanctification by appealing to our reason and pressuring us to conform to the norms and standards of this world (Romans 12:2). Students of the Word In the matters of faith we are lifelong learners but often slow to learn and remember our lessons. To refresh our understanding of the office and work of the Holy Spirit, we will use the Scriptures and the Third Article of the Apostles’ Creed to answer such basic questions as: What does it mean to believe in the Holy Spirit, and what is the work of sanctification? What does it mean to believe in the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and eternal life? We can also ask, How can one discern between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error? I Believe in the Holy Spirit To believe in the Holy Spirit means simply, “I believe that the Holy Spirit makes me holy, as his name implies” (LC 155). None of us have seen Him, but we believe in Him and that He works in us and in the congregation through the effectual preaching and teaching of God’s Word. As an invisible Spirit we know Him only by His voice and work, which is to edify (build up) the “body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12). There is no other way to explain the unity, love, and doctrinal purity that the children of God have than to attribute it to the Holy Spirit. Without the Spirit we would be lost and not able to believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior. Luther captured this thought by writing, “I cannot of my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me through the Gospel, enlightened me by His gifts, and sanctified and preserved me in the true faith” (SC, The Third Article of the Creed). The Holy Spirit is not something apart from God, but a Spirit and God Himself (WLS 2043). “He shall not speak of himself: but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak” (John 16:13). He is the Spirit of truth (John 14:17), and when we hear His voice, we also hear the voice of the Father and Son. The Work of the Holy Spirit Is Sanctification Jesus prayed to the Father on behalf of His disciples, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John 17:17). Sanctification is the result of the truth and light of God’s Word and not any effort of ourselves; it is an ongoing work in us because we still carry a corrupted nature. One is not holy because he is sinless, but as a pardoned sinner he desires to serve God with his life as a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1). His life is one with Christ, as Paul wrote, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). The Father sees us through His Son as free of sin. This work is accomplished only in God’s kingdom. In this life it is done by the means of preaching, teaching, and caring for the soul, and then finally through the resurrection of the body and life eternal (LC 155). The Holy Spirit uses imperfect but pardoned sinners as partners in the work, as “God has set some in the church” (1 Corinthians 12:28) to labor as ministers, teachers, deacons, board members, and in various other ways as helpers for the benefit and soul care of individual believers. Probably the most concise and clearest picture we have of the Holy Spirit and His work is found in the Gospel of John, although there are many other references to Him in the Scripture. Jesus said, “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you “ (John 14:26). The Comforter, our home teacher, quietly speaks to our consciences to remind us of what has been previously taught by Jesus through His Word in His kingdom. “We can only be reminded of such that we have heard or learned and maybe forgotten. This is not due to our short memory, but because we continuously face the opposite doctrine. The Holy Spirit is present to make sure that the teachings of Jesus would not be forgotten, but would be remembered and would help us stay on the road that leads us to the Father’s home” (JU). I Believe in the Holy Christian Church, the Communion of Saints Believing that God’s kingdom is a unique assembly of pardoned sinners or communion of saints is the key to salvation and to doctrinal purity. Luther wrote, “The Church is termed ‘one holy Christian Church’ because it represents one plain, pure Gospel doctrine, and an outward confession thereof, always, and everywhere, regardless of dissimilarity of physical life, or outward ordinances, customs and ceremonies” (SET, Seventeenth Sunday After Trinity). We can paraphrase that the doctrine of God’s kingdom and living faith doesn’t change to conform to the various cultures, living circumstances, economic conditions, or norms of the countries or societies in which the children of God live. Only with eyes of faith can one see the kingdom for what it is, namely, “the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). As the pillar and ground of truth, it cannot err because the Spirit of truth is leading and guiding it. If one does not see it as such, he or she will not be able to believe what is preached and taught in it nor be able to accept the decisions it makes or positions that it takes. Eventually one will not be content to remain in its fellowship. The Prophet Zechariah was awakened from sleep and questioned: “What seest thou?” He answered, “I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold” (Zechariah 4:2). He saw the kingdom of God in all her beauty even though her citizens are faulty and frail. Focusing on the faults and mistakes of individuals, especially those called as workers, will cause one to doubt that we live in the house of God, the pillar and ground of truth. It is dangerous to become critical of God’s kingdom, and prolonged opposition is a grave sin which may cause one to forever lose sight of the “the mother of us all” (Galatians 4:26). Only by faith are we able to confess, “I believe that there is upon earth a small holy flock, a holy assembly of pure saints under one head, Christ. They are called together by the Holy Spirit in one faith, one mind and one understanding. They possess many gifts, but are one in love and without sect or division. Of this assembly I am also part, and a sharer and owner in its blessings through the Holy Spirit“ (LC 159). There is only one kingdom of God, not many. It is undivided without sect or division. “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4–6). SHZ 208: 5,6 5. The Holy Spirit calls and gathers / and by the spoken gospel gives new birth. / This Spirit never teaches errors, / it makes His church the ground of truth on earth, / creates a new creation by the Word / in hearts He makes to trust what they have heard. 6. These trusting hearts make up His kingdom / wherein the only living hope is found; / the Spirit holds this flock in union, / and here the hearts of men are loosed and bound. / And when the Lord shall resurrect the dead / He'll bring His flock unto himself! Amen. I Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins Where would any of us be without the forgiveness of sins? Certainly not in God’s kingdom. Neither would we have the hope of eternal life. Every child of God has personally experienced the power of the gospel to remove the burden of sin and guilt or doubt and to experience the joy that follows. He or she can readily testify, “I believe in the forgiveness of sins.” It is the power by which we make our daily journey as believers, and it is available wherever two or three are gathered together (Matthew 18:20). Paul wrote, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Romans 1:16). Luther once wrote, “There is no greater service that we can do for our fellow man than to preach the gospel to him.” Jesus authorized his disciples to go and preach repentance and the forgiveness of sins throughout the world (Luke 24:47). That is still our mission two thousand years later, and there are still those who are troubled over their sins and are searching for a gracious God. The Spirit leads them to God’s kingdom, and they joyously receive the forgiveness of sins. Jesus promised to give the “keys of the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 16:19) to His disciples and after His resurrection did so by saying, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained” (John 20:22–23). He gave two keys for two specific purposes, both based on love for the undying soul. “The Holy Spirit, then, has the keys of the kingdom of Heaven. With one of the keys, the penitent are released from their sins, and with the other key, the impenitent and disobedient are bound in their evil condition so that they would understand and repent. With all this also, the Holy Spirit reveals the love of God” (BF).In God’s kingdom we are “quick to forgive and slow to bind” (Raattamaa). Hearing the Voice of the Spirit in the Spoken Word “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). The Spirit is in the spoken word and gives life to it. It won’t return to God void (Isaiah 55:11). Preaching is an office of the Holy Spirit and the means by which God makes known His will to us. The Spirit comes as a “still small voice” (1 Kings 19:12) that speaks to our conscience. It is the voice of the Good Shepherd. The flock of God’s children knows His voice and will flee from the voice of a strange shepherd (John 10:4–5). The Good Shepherd leads His sheep, and they follow in His footsteps. “When the Holy Spirit governs over the congregation, there will be no conflict between the Bible and the congregation” (JU) nor between the written Word and the Spirit. The Spirit creates unity of faith and doctrine in the congregation, not different understandings. The Scripture is not “of any private interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20), that is, not left to each individual’s interpretation. Hearing the Voice of the Spirit in the Congregation We also need to listen for and hear the voice of the Spirit when the congregation faces difficult issues or questions. The Spirit then works to enlighten and preserve souls. The exhortation, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit sayeth unto the churches” (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29 and 3:6, 13, 22), is always needed in congregation life and must be taken personally. We are also wise to avoid “foolish and unlearned questions” which cause strife (2 Timothy 2:23), as our opinions cannot enlighten matters better than the Word and Spirit can. We can unwittingly assist the enemy of souls by communicating hearsay or rumor. Faith teaches that the Spirit speaks in the congregation, but we can be slow to recognize His voice. We can relate to Jacob who suddenly awoke from his sleep, realized where he was, and exclaimed “This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven” (Genesis 28:17). The exhortation to “hear what the Spirit sayeth unto the churches” was given as a conclusion to the Spirit’s testimony of the faith, life, and ministry of seven individual servants of the Word (angel of the church). Yet it was not made only to the individual servant but also to his home congregation and “to the churches,” that is, to all in God’s kingdom. Five of them had fallen deeply and were urged to repent. They could not of themselves understand how or where they had fallen, and therefore the Holy Spirit revealed it to the congregation. They had become spiritually “dull of hearing” (Hebrews 5:11). Perhaps it was due to unforgiven sin, weariness, carelessness, or carnal mindedness. Only by hearing the voice of the Spirit, which is the voice of the Good Shepherd, and being obedient to it can the work of the Holy Spirit continue in one’s own life, and only then can one remain heaven acceptable. Sin and the threefold enemy work to silence the voice of the Holy Spirit in our consciences. We need to arm ourselves with “the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesian 6:17) in order to protect ourselves from the false sermons and lies of the enemy of soul. SHZ 547: 7. May the armor of the Spirit / be upon us ev'ry day, / for the enemy attacks us / and surrounds us on this way. 8. Shield of faith, sword of the Spirit- / may they ever brightly gleam! / Let us wear salvation's helmet, / girt with truth and shod with peace. 9. Let us bravely battle onward / in the path our King has trod, / for our hero goes before us / with His vestures dipped in blood. I Believe in the Resurrection of the Body and in Life Everlasting If Christ did not arise from the dead, our faith is in vain and our sins are not forgiven (1 Corinthians 15:17). If there is nothing beyond the grave and “in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable” (1 Corinthians 15:19). The anchor of our soul is the hope of eternal life that we have (Hebrews 6:19), and it is the reason why we are able to continue in faith and endure the adversities of life. The Greeks mocked Paul for preaching about the resurrection of the dead (Acts 17:32), for it is incomprehensible to the human mind. In this life we are comforted by the knowledge that we will arise with a resurrected new body free from sin and corruption. Many places in the Bible testify of everlasting life, but it is only by the power of the Holy Spirit that we believe it to be true. Jesus promised, “I go to prepare a place for you” (John 14:2). We are incapable of comprehending what that place is like and what it means to live forever without the sin, corruption, and the sorrows that weigh us down, but we know that the “gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:23). The Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Error How can we discern between the Spirit of truth and that of the spirit of error? Apostle John wrote, “We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error” (1 John 4:6). In other words, the Spirit of God unites one with God, His Word, and to the congregation. Apostle Paul described the Holy Spirit by His fruits (Galatians 5:22–24) of which love, joy, and peace are mentioned. Luther adds that the Spirit “calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth and preserves it in union with Jesus Christ in the true faith” (SC, The Third Article of the Creed). On the other hand, the spirit of error scatters the flock and produces the works of the flesh which include “variance” when subgroups form within the congregation, and “sedition” when the sense of fellowship and togetherness with the congregation is lost, and then finally “heresy,” which is a choosing to go one’s own way (Galatians 5:20). Paul warned, “There must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you” (1Corinthians 11:19). The spirit of error works through false prophets, and John instructs, “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). Jesus warned, “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?” (Matthew 7:15–16). False prophets are known by their fruits. A speaker brother was once asked how one could avoid falling into heresy, and he offered the Scriptural advice, “keep faith and a good conscience (1Timothy 1:19), study the Bible (John 5:39), and pray unceasingly (1 Thessalonians 5:17).” If this advice were adhered to, the enemy would not gain a foothold in the congregation from which to do his work and there would be no heresies and no one would lose faith. We also need to live in childlike obedience to the gospel and endeavor “to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). Congregation Life Is the Setting in which the Holy Spirit Works The workplace of the Holy Spirit is the congregation. How fortunate we are to experience a time of visitation of the Spirit in our land and generation! In order to benefit from this work, we must be a partaker of congregation life. The work of the Holy Spirit takes place in so many forms through the means of preaching and teaching! By them He calls, gathers, and enlightens. The preaching of God’s Word is the oldest work form and most important one. Sunday School, Bible Class, Day Circle, camp work, diaconal work, publication work, and other areas of work help us and the coming generation keep faith and a good conscience. At the gatherings of God’s children we often find that God has prepared a grace table for us in the presence of our enemies to strengthen and nourish us for the battle ahead (Psalm 23:5). Let us not become weary of gathering together as a congregation nor be tempted to belittle the work of the Spirit by our absence. Let us continue to bring our children and grandchildren to be blessed by Jesus, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14). The enemy vigorously tries to keep us away from congregation activities and at the very moment we need them most. He offers many excuses. The exhortation to the severely tried, doubting, and weary Hebrew believers was “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25). I Believe in the Holy Spirit Together we confess, “I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Christian Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.” References Holy Bible SC, Luther’s Small Catechism, AALC/LLC. LC, Luther’s Large Catechism, Augsburg Publishing House, 1967. BF, By Faith – The Holy Spirit, AALC/LLC, 1982/2007. WLS, What Luther Says, Concordia Publishing House, 1991. JU, “The Holy Ghost as our comforter, teacher and leader,” Juhani Uljas, 2007 SRK Speakers and Elders Meeting SET, Sermons, Epistles, Trinity Volume 9, - Luther’s Epistle Sermons, Trinity Sunday to Advent, Lenker, J.N., The Luther Press, 1909

John Stewart | 2017 LLC Phoenix Winter Services - Congregation & Youth Evening - February 25 -- The theme for this introduction, Behold, I was shapen in iniquity, from Psalm 51, perhaps in some ways takes on special significance, because in 2017 we commemorate a monumental event that occurred five centuries ago: Martin Luther "published" the Ninety-five Theses and, according to tradition, posted these on the door of the Wittenberg Church. It is an event widely recognized as marking the commencement of what we call the Reformation. Although we can gaze back to that time 500 years ago and be thankful that God allowed that work to take place, it was nonetheless, a time of great turmoil and difficult spiritual warfare. Among the key issues at the forefront of battle was the question of man's basic nature. Is man basically good or evil? Is man a creature of complete free will or is he bound in some way to fate? These, as well as numerous other questions, dotted the landscape of that era, and I think in many ways laid the pathway for the future progression of God's kingdom, the continued proclamation of the living gospel and the visitations that would come to many nations and tongues all the way up to the present. Some 2500 years before the Reformation, the author of Psalm 51, King David, had in a profound way personally experienced man's true nature – and found that nature to be utterly corrupt, even to the point of experiencing spiritual death. Fortunately, at the preaching of Nathan, David by God's grace was also able to experience the life-giving sweetness of repentance and forgiveness, which is the work of God through the Holy Spirit enabling one to believe and to hold in the heart the promise of eternal life! In reference to Psalm 51, Luther wrote: "Where is there a man who could speak about repentance and the forgiveness of sins the way the Holy Spirit speaks in this Psalm?"(1). 1 Martin Luther, Luther's Works, Vol. 12, Psalm 51 (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1955), 304. 2 Martin Luther, Luther's Works, Vol. 12, Psalm 51 (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1955), 303. Shapen in Iniquity As clearly as perhaps any place in Scripture, Psalm 51 speaks about sin and human sinfulness, for example, when we take a look at the full 5th verse where David declares: "Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Ps 51:5). The declaration is a powerful statement about the depth of inherited sin – specifically, the inherited sinfulness that resulted from man's Fall in the Garden of Eden. In some ways the recognition of this concept or the idea of complete sinfulness – a sinfulness that remains and works in mankind even after he has become a partaker of God’s grace – can be a harsh reality. The sinfulness to which this Psalm refers is not simply committed sins, or actual sins (Luther calls them "elicited acts"), but rather the complete sinfulness that is inherited in man's basic nature. Human reason itself (or our carnal portion) does not want to accept this truth, but as Luther explained, unless a person is taught by the Holy Spirit, one cannot really understand the nature of repentance, sin, or grace. In other words, as Luther points out, such an understanding of complete sinfulness is revealed and given from heaven.(2) In Psalm 14, the writer describes the depth and completeness of sin rooted in man's basic nature: "The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one" (Ps. 14:2-3). Each of us, born of man and woman possess the same extent of complete sinfulness that David described. Jesus, on the other hand, was born without inherited sin: He was conceived by the Holy Ghost. In this Jesus' nature was like Adam's had been prior to the Fall. Therefore Jesus is called the second Adam (3), and unlike the first Adam, Jesus overcame temptation and did not fall into sin, having become a perfect and pleasing sacrifice for our sin. Unspeakable joy it is that, even though inherited sin dwells in all born of the seed of man and woman, by faith Christ is our righteousness! 3 Ref: Romans Chapter 5. 4 Martin Luther, Luther's Works, Vol. 10, Psalm 51 (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1955), 239. 5 Martin Luther, Luther's Works, Vol. 10, Psalm 51 (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1955), 239. 6 Olavi Voittonen, The Voice of Zion, Introduction: Sin and Its Consequences, p.2, (LLC, Loretto, MN: March 2009). Original Sin and Actual Sin Holy Scripture bears out that, on the basis of inherited sin, man is completely corrupt. Even blessed Mary, the mother of Christ, recognized her lowliness. In her humility she expressed: "For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden" (Luke 1:48).(4) Apostle Paul, who was a diligent worker, especially called into the work of proclaiming the gospel to the Gentiles wrote to Timothy this way concerning himself: "This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief" (1 Tim 1:15).(5) Paul also wrote of himself: "Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not" (Rom 7:17-18). Compared to inherited sin, actual sin seems to be somewhat easier for us to readily recognize because we so frequently commit actual sins. We describe actual sins as a falling away of the heart from God, or transgressing God's will. However, it is specifically because of the original sin remaining in us, that we all inevitably commit actual sins6: sins against others, sins that are our own personal faults and failings – all of which really are sins against God. David confessed, "Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified" (Ps 51:4). Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans concerning Adam and inherited sin: "... by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Rom 5:12). However, in the same passage Paul also described grace that comes only by living faith: "... if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many" (Rom 5:17). Consequences Of Sin Included in God's instructions to Adam and Eve in the Garden was the command: "Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die" (Gen 2:16-17). So as a consequence of sin, death came. Adam and Eve, of course, faced temporal death which we as humans subsequently face. In addition to temporal death we also recognize two other kinds of death – which, frankly are also related to sin: spiritual and eternal death. Spiritual death is the separation of a person from God, while eternal death results when one passes away from this earth in unbelief. The Bible assures us that, after the Fall into sin in the Garden, God promised to send His Son to give His life on our behalf (Gen. 3:15). Jesus, during His ministry, described that promise to Nicodemus: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). The Old Covenant believers had journeyed with that hope. New Covenant travelers likewise journey believing the same promise, just as Apostle Paul proclaimed one time in a synagogue at Antioch: "Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things" (Acts 13:38-39). The gospel, of which the essence is the forgiveness of sins, is the freeing word preached through the power of the Holy Ghost that, when believed, promises eternal life through faith. Juhani Uljas describes living faith this way: "Faith is being in the righteousness of Christ and living in forgiveness every moment."(7) We're saved only by faith, which is the grace gift of God. But as a result of our inherited sinfulness we stumble. Sin presses on the conscience and the journey becomes slow. In the 32nd Psalm David wrote: "When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long" (Ps 32:3). The child of God so often experiences the need to hear the reassuring gospel. Apostle Paul wrote that the gospel is: "... the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes" (Rom 1:16). 7 Juhani Uljas, The Treasure Hidden in a Field, p. 79, (LLC, Loretto, MN: 2003). 8 Martin Luther, Luther's Works, Vol. 10, Psalm 51 (St. Louis, Missouri: Concordia Publishing House, 1955), 239 God's Grace Even though Psalm 51 speaks so plainly about sin and our human sinfulness, God through the writer doesn't leave us with only bitter chastisement over our innate sinfulness and corruption. The Psalmist concludes with uplifting comfort: "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoice. Hide thy face from my sins, and blot out all mine iniquities" (Ps 51:7-9). The Psalm helps teach us that one cannot properly understand grace if one does not properly understand sin. Luther wrote: "... the one who is most attractive in the eyes of God is not the one who seems most humble to himself, but the one who sees himself as the most filthy and depraved."(8) The weakest, the poorest. David was able to express his own great joy over God's marvelous grace, and then reveal in a remarkably prophetic way, how the living Word has been and still is preached to the poor: "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee" (Ps. 51:12-13). We yet experience joy in the proclamation of the gospel – the same joy that David experienced. We travel as a believer journeying simultaneously as righteous and as a sinner, therefore we live of God's grace and endeavor on the way holding faith and a good conscience.

Kimmo Puolitaival | 2019 LLC Summer Services - Ministers and Board Members Meeting – July 5 -- Righteousness and Faith Our Creed states that God has a holy congregation on this earth. The Holy Spirit, through the gospel, has called and preserved us in its unity and fellowship. In his Lecture on Galatians, Luther explains that the congregation is preserved only through the correct doctrine of justification. If it is abandoned, then the entire Christian doctrine is abandoned along with it. If we do not keep the doctrine of justification undefiled, we are not able to battle against anything that is deceiving. (Luther’s Works, Vol. 26, p. 29; The Formula of Concord, Epitome, Article III. The Righteousness of Faith before God.) According to Luther’s teaching, the basis for sin-fallen man’s justification is God’s righteous being. God is the beginning of everything. Righteousness is God’s basic characteristic. He is always absolutely righteous, trustworthy, eternal, almighty, omniscient, good and loving. In His loving righteousness, God prepared righteousness in Jesus Christ for humankind whom He created. Paul speaks of this righteousness in the first chapter of Romans, naming it God’s righteousness, which is made known through the gospel. This righteousness, whereby God justifies us, is complete and holy. It is solely the righteousness that Christ gained for us. Humans contribute nothing in this righteousness. God alone is active in this, man is passive. Since its source is completely apart from man, it is a gift, it is grace. God grants faith as this grace- gift to all people born on this earth, faith which takes refuge in and owns righteousness in Jesus Christ. Our teaching concerning justification through faith, also the faith of children, is based on this (Matt. 18:6). In the Formula of Concord, Article III, The Righteousness of Faith before God, there is mention of two contentious issues that had arisen among theologians of the time regarding the significance of Christ’s divinity and humanity in justification. The text states that “one party has held that Christ is our righteousness only according to his Godhead. When he dwells in us by faith, over against this indwelling Godhead, the sins of all men are esteemed like a drop of water over against the immense ocean. Others, however, held that Christ is our righteousness before God only according to the human nature.” The text continues, “In opposition to these two errors just recounted, we believe, teach, and confess unanimously that Christ is our righteousness neither according to the divine nature alone nor according to the human nature alone. On the contrary, the entire Christ according to both natures is our righteousness solely in his obedience which as God and man he rendered to his heavenly Father into death itself. Thereby he won for us the forgiveness of sins and eternal life, as it is written, “For as by one man’s disobedience many were made sinners, so by one man’s obedience many will be made righteous” (Rom. 5:19). I interpret this to signify that the dismantling of undivided obedience of the person of Christ leads firstly to a doctrine in which falling away can’t occur, a doctrine of freedom of the flesh, a trait of the kind that appeared in Pollarism (P. Nevala, Unto This day the Lord has Helped, pp. 42-48) Secondly it leads to a doctrine of works, in which the personhood of Christ constitutes an example to be achieved (cf. Catholic Church doctrine – The human contribution in justification/The Council of Trent, Decree On Justification). Why are righteousness and faith required? Righteousness means being acceptable to God. According to Luther, justification is formed from two factors: 1) faith of the heart, and 2) the fact that God counts righteous (WA 40, 1, 34, 11). Paul teaches that, “a man is justified by faith” (Rom. 5:1; 3:28; 10:10). Faith is; therefore, imperative in human salvation: “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is” (Heb. 11:6). Righteousness and the Law The law has a specific important task in justification. The law demands righteousness, truthfulness, love toward God and neighbor. It reveals what God demands, but in itself it does not have power to justify. Luther says “trying to be justified by the Law is like counting money out of an empty purse, eating and drinking from an empty dish and cup …laying a burden upon someone who is already oppressed to the point of collapse…”( Luther’s works, vol. 26: Lectures on Galatians, 1535, Chapters 1-4.) The picture of humankind revealed by the Law alone is actually deadly, lethal. It makes a person completely empty, meritless and without possibility before God. A person who is under the Law is an heir to the complete legacy of the Fall: death, perdition, and God’s wrath. His heart is governed by the entire reality of the Fall. “Therefore everyone who falls away from the promise to the Law, from faith to works, is doing nothing but imposing an unbearable yoke upon himself in his weak and beggarly condition…until he finally despairs, unless Christ comes and sets him free.”(Luther’s works, vol. 26: Lectures on Galatians, 1535, Chapters 1-4.) In summary we can say, as it is taught in our Christianity: the function of the Law is to drive an unbelieving person to Christ. This means that when God, through His Spirit calls an unbeliever to repentance, “He comes to see his true condition. He sees that he has broken God’s commands. He begins to grasp that he not only has individual sins, but that the direction of his entire life is wrong. But in addition to distress over sin, in him awakens a drawing to the Savior and a hope that in spite of all the Savior will not reject him” (CD 70). Luther writes, “between these two kinds of righteousness, the active righteousness of the Law and the passive righteousness of Christ, there is no middle ground. Therefore he who has strayed away from this Christian righteousness will necessarily relapse into the active righteousness; that is, when he has lost Christ, he must fall into a trust in his own works” (Luther’s works, vol. 26: Lectures on Galatians, 1535, Chapters 1-4). At times a certain criticism concerning our sermons emerges containing the thought that warning of the dangers of sin or rebuke is the law. It is entirely clear that the preaching of the gospel and the viewpoint of faith is in the core of Christianity’s sermons, but God’s Word in its entirety also includes, along with words of comfort and teaching, words of correction, rebuke and teaching (2 Tim. 3:16). Words of rebuke spoken in the spirit of the gospel are to Christians thus not the Law but the gospel. Righteousness and Sin The image of God in humans was corrupted in the Fall. Man took pleasure in evil and lost the desire and power to do good (CD 1948, 22). Sin is always rebellion against God. It is like a wedge which wants to separate us from God. In its essence, sin is the heart rejecting God, it is transgressing God’s will and his holy law (Ps 51:6, Jer. 3:25, Rom. 7: 7, 8). Unless sin is atoned for, it results in the punishment prescribed for sin, death (Rom. 6:23). God prepared this atonement in Christ. Paul concluded on the basis of observations of his own behavior and the testimony of the Bible that all people are, by their nature, under the power of sin (Rom. 3:9). Quoting from the Psalms, he stated that God sees from heaven that there is no one on earth who does good, no not one. (Rom. 3:10–12). According to this, sin is like a distinct power which tears us away from God. “Sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire” (Gen. 4:7). “Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me” (Rom. 7:17). “For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me” (Rom 7:11). Sin is not only the reality of a person living in unbelief, but also that of a believing person. The Confessional Books state: “This hereditary sin is so deep a corruption of nature that reason cannot understand it. It must be believed because of the revelation in the Scriptures (Ps. 51:5, Rom. 5: 2, 1, Exod. 33:20, Gen. 3:6.)” (The Smalcald Articles, Part III, Article I.) “They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” (Rom. 3:12) Paul testified of himself, “I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing” (Rom. 7 15–18). This nature always strives to come forth in our thoughts, words, and deeds. This causes us to do deeds of sin. These deeds cause harm and sorrow. This sinfulness is so great that no person has any possibility to make it to heaven and during his or her lifetime to obtain unity with God and become His child, if their sins are not all forgiven through grace. The magnitude of God’s grace is difficult for a person to understand. The debt of ten thousand talents has been forgiven. As owners of God’s grace, we —regardless of our sinfulness—are also righteous. We are at the same time completely sinful and completely righteous. Righteousness, Obedience, and the Endeavor A person who has received the grace of repentance and lives as a child of God is by faith a partaker of righteousness, free from the Law, under grace. In this faith Christ dwells in a Christian through His Spirit and causes the Christian to want to remain righteous and want to live in obedience to God’s Word. The Holy Spirit guides the child of God to seek “first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness” (Matt. 6:33). “Jesus answered and said unto him, if a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him” (John 14:23). “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you” (Rom 6:17). Obedience is a fruit of faith. If there is no faith in the heart, outward or forced obedience does not help. Obedience of faith is a question of obedience to God’s Word, the Word which the Holy Spirit reveals in the midst of the congregation. This obedience generated as a fruit of faith, as well as the love produced as a fruit of the Spirit, bring us again and again to the instruction of God’s Word, to the center of the congregation. It affects a desire to own the gospel of the forgiveness of sins for the power of faith. The endeavor is also a fruit of faith and the Holy Spirit. Sin which dwells in us always tries to separate us from God. At the same time, Christ’s Spirit dwelling in us prays unceasingly to Christ for help to battle against sin, to help us cling by faith to God’s Word and to own it. Paul compares the endeavor of faith to an athletic competition, “And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible” (1.Cor. 9:25). The endeavor’s destination is heaven. “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:7, 8). There is reason to repeat that the endeavor is not a work, or a merit, but rather the desire flowing from faith to remain on the way to heaven and the desire to get to heaven. Simply put, we can say the endeavor is this: when we feel our sinfulness and weakness that we want to trust in the gospel. Righteousness and Love Jesus says that mutual love is a characteristic of His followers (John 13:35). Paul mentions love as the first of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22). God given love is that love which “seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth” (1Cor. 13). “When God in His grace forgives our sins, it gives birth to love, thankfulness, and the obedience of faith in our hearts. These cause us to serve God and our neighbors” (CD 1948, 85). Questions about the basics of faith—regardless of the time, place, and culture— are always the same: sin, the gospel, faith, righteousness, the congregation, the Word and the sacraments. Whereas love seeks that which builds up and strengthens us in faith at this time. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Rom. 12:2). Love guides us to take responsibility for each other. The Letter to the Hebrews instructs: “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works” (Heb. 10:24). The fundamental desire of love is that no one would give up their faith. The love affected by God causes the desire to give up that which entices a weak brother into sin and unbelief. Love guides us to the teachings of God’s Word and causes a desire to carry our travel friends with the gospel, encouraging and blessing them. Christ’s church law, in which Jesus teaches how a brother or sister in faith who has fallen into sin is cared for in God’s congregation, can also be called the instruction of love (Matt. 18). Love is shown in Jesus’ exhortation in that the matter is initially handled between two. If further care is needed, several believers should be present, several gifts considering how it would be good to proceed. If even this does not help, Jesus instructs to tell the matter to the congregation. Thus, in matters between Christians and matters within the congregation, Christ ultimately gives the keys of binding only to the congregation. Instruction that is according to Christ’s church law is not in fashion nowadays. The individual’s unlimited freedom to choose for oneself is idealized in the world. According to this way of thinking, no outsider can say to another what is right and what is wrong. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that Christ’s church law is Jesus’ teaching and as such it is unchanging (Juhani Alaranta, Yearbook 2008). Life in Christ, Righteousness of Faith The counterforce to sin and the effects of original sin is God’s promise to humankind of the righteousness of faith. Luther has stated that Christ has brought grace in exchange for sin, life in exchange for death, and the forgiveness of sins in exchange for the curse of the law. Paul writes of this to the Galatians, “For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:19, 20). This opens to us a view of the righteousness of faith. “Our righteousness before God consists in this, that God forgives us our sins purely by his grace, without any preceding, present, or subsequent work, merit, or worthiness, and reckons to us the righteousness of Christ’s obedience” (The Formula of Concord, Epitome, Article III. The Righteousness of Faith before God). An individual, who in him- or herself is corrupted and sinful, and consequently deserving of the Law’s curse, can travel as a partaker of the forgiveness of sins. Through the faith that God gives as a gift, a person can personally own the merit of Christ. Because of Christ’s perfect obedience, a person can own all of God’s grace promises, so that he or she could and would have strength to endeavor as a child of God on this earth as a partaker in the inheritance of eternal life. This viewpoint encapsulates the unrelinquishable legacy of the Reformation: God justifies man alone by grace, alone by faith, alone through the merit of Christ.

Pentti Vinnurva | 1996 AALC Outlook Summer Services - Speakers and Elders Meeting -- The subject that I have received for this introduction is interesting and also extremely timely. This subject has already arisen many times in our midst in Finland. The Finnish church’s strong ecumenical efforts toward the church of Rome make the subject timely for us in Finland. One of the objectives in this is to try to undo the doctrinal decrees of the Reformation. In our Christianity we worriedly follow the process that is underway. Another reason for the timeliness of the subject to us are the doubts concerning the reality of first one biblical event and then another that are repeatedly presented in publications by representatives of the so-called critical Bible study. There are also those in the service of the church who do not, in their own words, believe in the existence of God. These statements shatter people’s position on God’s Word and God’s existence. Such positions always bring their own dangers for believers, especially for the young. A third factor which makes the issue important is that even in the life of God’s children there is a danger that the worth and significance of God’s Word decreases in both home and individual life. Everyone of us have reason to ask ourselves, what is the significance of God’s Word in my life. Do I have time to devote to the study of God’s Word? Is the Word of God the power and joy of my faith life? When we have been established in the responsible task of a speaker to bring the Word of God wherever God sees necessary to bring it, it, above all, requires us to have the proper esteem for God’s Word. In this task it is also important that we willingly learn and study God’s Word. I have felt myself to be very ignorant while compiling this introduction about one of the central topics of the Bible. In my introduction I will go through some fundamental ideas about God’s Word, its power and task in the world. I believe that there is much God-given wisdom and ability here to augment my presentation and to bring to it new perspectives and experiences of God’s Word and its significance. In the beginning I will with a few thoughts review God’s speech and His message in the Old Testament. God’s Word What Is God’s Word? The first words that express God’s speech are found in the creation narrative. Amid all the darkness and void are heard God’s words: Let there be light! And so it happened. When God then created man and placed him in paradise to dwell, He gave man one commandment: Eat freely of every tree in paradise, but eat not of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil: for in the day that you eat of it you will surely die (Gen. 2:16, 17). We know the results. Through the enticement of the enemy of souls, Adam and Eve fell into sin and transgressed the word that God had given. We carry the results of the Fall in our flesh and blood. When people multiplied and sin increased, God had to remind man whom He had created that He is Lord and He is to be loved above all. God exhorted man to press this matter into his heart: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up” (Deut. 6:4–7). From the Old Testament we can see that God fed His children with His Word. “And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live” (Deut. 8:3). When the enemy of souls troubled Jesus with the temptation of bread, Jesus rebuffed the temptation with precisely the aforementioned words of the Old Testament. The Old Testament relates that the words of God were so good to Jeremiah that, after he had heard them, he ate them. “Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart,” confirmed Jeremiah, pleased by the Word of God (Jer. 15:16). The Lord Entrusted His Word to His Son God has also given His Word to His Son. The Lord spoke of this already to Moses: “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him” (Deut. 18:18). Jesus often taught of the close fellowship of the Father and Son in His speeches. Jesus even said, “All things that the Father hath are mine” (John 16:15). Jesus also once said to Philip, “Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” (John 14:10). Jesus taught that these words which He spoke will never pass away (Matt. 24:35), but rather they endure forever (1 Pet. 1:25). Jesus himself spoke God’s Word. Jesus rebuffed the temptations of the enemy of souls with God’s Word. But He also taught of himself and God’s kingdom, exhorted people to repent, with parables. When speaking of God’s Word Jesus showed that the Spirit gives life to the Word and that His words are spirit and life (John 6:63). The disciples experienced this, especially Peter. When Jesus asked His disciples: Will you also go away? Peter answered, “Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life. And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:68, 69). Jesus Gave His Word to His Own—to His Disciples At the end of His farewell speech, Jesus turned to the Father and asked that the Father would glorify the Son and the Son the Father. In this prayer Jesus prayed on behalf of His own disciples, praying that the Father would protect them from all evil. In this same connection Jesus said that He gave His word to His own disciples: “For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me” (John 17:8). God’s children have wished, in accord with the will of their sender, to bring these words that speak of grace and reconciliation for people to hear. Paul teaches of this office of reconciliation, “To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:19). The Acts of the Apostles relate how the apostles, even under the persecution of Saul, preached the Word of God (Acts 8:4). The core of that word was the gospel, as Paul [Luke] says of it, “And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans” (Acts 8:25). On the same trip Philip received the task of going to Gaza, where the eunuch of the Ethiopian queen was returning from worshipping in Jerusalem. On his trip he read the Bible but did not understand what the portion of the Bible that was before him meant. By the operation of the Holy Spirit, Philip, as the Acts of the Apostles again relate, opened his mouth and began from this writing to preach the gospel of Jesus to him. When the eunuch believed upon Jesus, Philip baptized him (Acts 8:26–38). New birth occurred “not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” (1 Pet. 1:23). Faith Comes By Hearing Paul writes to the Romans about how man receives faith: “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). A preacher is needed for this, a preacher who has been sent for this task. “And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent?” (Rom. 10:14, 15). When an unbelieving person is in the hearing of God’s Word, God through the Holy Spirit awakens faith in the listener’s heart. Man sees that here is God’s kingdom and its king, Jesus Christ, is present with His own in His Word. In the word of the gospel is offered a grace that can be owned: You can believe all your sins, above all unbelief, forgiven in Jesus name and blood. Faith conceived by the Holy Spirit obtains complete grace for itself. Peace, joy, and love descend upon the heart. New birth has occurred. Man begins to follow the Lord and us, as Paul says of this matter to the Thessalonians: “And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost” (1 Thess. 1:6 ). God’s Word Is Holy When Peter gives various directions for the endeavor of God’s children, he says of speaking, “If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God” (1 Pet. 4:11) This means that it is important to stick to the teachings of God’s Word in a sermon as well as in teaching. The Bible teaches us to also speak that which belongs to sound doctrine (Tit. 2:1). Love, however, is the gift of heaven with which we should approach people, so that the word could speak and affect. Paul even confirms, “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal” (1 Cor. 13:1). Listening to the Word is important for everyone, also for speakers: “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear,” taught Jesus in His time (Matt. 11:15). But Jesus also had to confirm that not all wished to hear: “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing …. But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear” (Matt.13:15, 16). The Law and the Gospel Paul teaches that God’s Word is living and powerful. It is also sharper than any two-edged sword (Heb. 4:12). In Christianity one edge is often seen to mean grace and the other the law. The task of the law is to drive those in the night of unbelief and the works of darkness to Christ, to grace. There, again, the law is not heard, for grace begins to teach and instruct man to reject the works of darkness. The law is often compared to the light of the moon because the moon obtains its light from the sun. Likewise even the sermon of the law comes from God’s kingdom, from hearts enlightened by the brightness of Christ, to lead those outside into the light. A child of God, too, has an inclination, especially when he has fallen in a fault, to take a place under the law. In the place of grace comes hardness and condemnation. Surely, we remember the case of David and how he was ready to proclaim the death sentence upon another when he himself had fallen in great sins. God Opens the Door of His Word As speakers we have experienced a speaker’s temptations, fears, even successes in the task of a servant of the Word. Sometimes the same text has felt easier to preach on, and at other times it’s like pulling a stone boat. Sometimes, when the word does not seem to have opened, some listener may have come to us and as it were to ask, How did God know to give the brother those words which brought comfort for precisely my sorrows. Some kind of rehashing is probably familiar after one’s own sermon, to some more, to others less. It’s needless, but what can a poor fellow possibly do for himself. We can childlikely believe that God knows the needs of the listeners as well as speakers and grants the door of His Word to open according to these needs. Here is a question of our honor. Of course, the trials and difficulties of life and the sorrows of one’s own heart bring their own pressures to speaking. The most important thing is that the horn has a correct, healthy sound. Sin, an uncared for conscience, lead a speaker into unhealthy teaching. While preparing for our turn of service we have the privilege to ask the Heavenly Father for a blessing and the right words of grace for our speech. It is comforting to remember that if in our speech we are foolish, we are foolish to the Lord. God’s Word Has Its Day of Visitation God in His love draws man to repentance. He has the gospel preached where people have a need to hear and receive it. It, also, is God’s work that an interest in God’s Word awakens in man. In mission work we have been able to experience and see that God has awakened a hunger for the Word even among atheists and many have received the grace of repentance. It has also been seen here in America as well as in Finland that many places, where during the early awakenings God’s fires burned and there were many believers, are now a wilderness that has burned to ashes. The candlestick has been moved elsewhere. There is reason to remember that God’s voice can be silent. Herod received no answer from Jesus, although he had long wanted to see and hear Him. Sometimes we have ourselves been able to experience, when we have visited with someone who has suffered shipwreck in faith, that the revelations of God’s Word end. Neither his sin nor the condition of his heart have opened to the person in question. In this connection there is reason to especially mention that living Christianity does not teach man to dig at consciences, but rather leave them to the spoken word of God and the instructions of grace. In the Bible there are many examples of how the Holy Spirit has led the work of the gospel and how the gospel work has succeeded. But in the Bible there are also found examples of how the Holy Spirit has forbid the proclamation of God’s Word. The Acts of the Apostles relate that when Paul traveled with Timothy through the province of Galatia, among other places, the Holy Spirit forbid them from speaking the Word of God (Acts 16:6). It was said to Jeremiah, in spite of his youth, “Thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak” (Jer. 1:7). Thus only to the place where the Lord sends. As a Listener Under Grace It is always a great moment when one can be listening to God’s Word. It is also a very important matter for a speaker; his own soul can live of the gospel. The Word of God proclaimed with many gifts broadens understanding and gives new perspectives. Above all it refreshes and feeds children weary in the temptations of daily life. In a sermon God nourishes with grace and wisdom (1 Tim. 4:6). According to Isaiah, the Word of God has an effect, as he says, “It shall not return unto me void”(Isa. 55:11). Even as experienced listeners of the Word we are not critiques, but we, preferably, encourage especially young speaker brothers in their task. If we with the ears and eyes of a faultfinder listen to sermons, there is a great danger of swelling into an all knowing and understanding speaker and in the end one’s own faith life dries up. As listeners of the Word, we should pray that the Lord would open His Word and that we would receive in our hearts the portion of heaven’s bread which God sees necessary to give us. It certainly would not do any harm if we would even discuss the teachings of a sermon at home. If as hearers of the word we notice something that is doctrinally wrong concerning matters of justification and endeavor in a speaker’s sermon, we advise our brother of this. Let us not, even then, forget to lift and encourage. When we listen with a correct mind, we can experience what the travelers on the way to Emmaus experienced: “Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?” (Luke 24:32). We Are to Read and Examine God’s Word The Epistle to Timothy tells how Paul valued Timothy’s knowledge of the Bible. He said, “And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:15). In the next verse Paul also shows that the writings of Scripture are necessary: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16). The Acts of the Apostles tell of the believers of Berea, who had gladly received the word: “and [they] searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so” (Acts 17:11). Peter shows in his epistle how the prophets have sought and inquired of salvation and also prophesied of the coming grace (1 Pet. 1:10, 11). These instructions given to Timothy are appropriate advice for us all: “Be thou an example of the believers, in word…. (in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come,) give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine” (1 Tim. 4:12, 13). The Bible says that Apollos was an eloquent man…and mighty in the Scriptures (Acts 18:24). Preach the Word It is not always easy to go to preach God’s Word. There can be many reasons. One’s own poorness burdens. The work has no visible results. The audience is not always favorable. Text temptations are familiar. It has surely always been so. Jonah is a good example for us of how difficult the work of preaching the gospel sometimes is. Jonah was given a text and a place where he was to preach, but he fled from the task. Jonah softened in God’s school and went to preach in Nineveh. After the sermon, temptations came again and Jonah complained to God. Again a lesson on God’s grace and mercy was needed. “And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons ?” (Jon. 4:11). Paul’s instruction to the preacher of God’s Word is clear: “Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” (2 Tim. 4:2). It is good to remember that no prophesy occurs of the will of man, rather men of God have spoken and speak inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:21) In the Beginning Was the Word At the end of my introduction, I want to stop at this Word which we proclaim, speak, and teach. John writes, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.… All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:1). In the Epistle to the Hebrews we may read of how God has spoken to the fathers through the prophets and in the last days through His Son, through whom the world has been made. A little later the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews confirms that He carries all with the power of His Word. The entire world, life and everything that takes place, depends on it (Heb. 1:1, 3). But just like the world’s beginning and preservation has occurred and occurs by the Word of God, likewise this world’s end. Peter writes in his epistle, “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men” (2 Pet. 3:5–7). Once this Word will be taken away and thus the foundation of this world will shatter. When the last chosen one enters the house of God this world is not needed. Ahead is judgment and the resurrection of the righteous. Then it will be good to stand before the Judge, when the judge is familiar and an advocate who says: Lord, here are the children which you gave me. Let us watch, dear brothers, in faith keeping faith in a conscience cared for by God’s Word. Let us speak the sweet words of grace to the oppressed, those troubled by sin. Now there is still a time of work, a day of visitation. Truly God’s fields turn white and mature for the day of harvest. There is better ahead. We remain to believe all sins forgiven in Jesus name and blood. We can hold even this meeting with a secure and joyful mind. Discussion Questions 1. When we speak, let us speak the words of God. 2. Why is it also important for speaker brothers to listen to sermons? 3. What does the fact that God’s Word is holy mean to a speaker? 4. The difficulties and temptations of the speaker’s task. 5. How should we approach the unbelieving in sermons and discussion? 6. What does it mean that a speaker also lives of the gospel? 7. How can we encourage you servants of the Word and laborers? 8. What should the whole/comprehensive sermon of the gospel contain? 9. What has the Word of God given me? 10. How do I teach the Word of God to children and young?

Russell Roiko | 1997 LLC Cokato Summer Services - Speakers and Elders Meeting -- Scriptural Basis First of all, examining the scriptural basis for the title of this presentation, we find that it is a common theme in both the Old and the New Testament. Joshua told the children of Israel, "And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." (Josh 24:15) Jesus healed the son of a noble man by His word and he believed. "So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house." (John 4:53) Throughout the Acts of the apostles Luke records many instances of how entire households received the grace of repentance. The centurion Cornelius received the grace of repentance along with all those people in his house. "And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter; Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved." (Acts H: 13 & 14) Paul wrote to Philemon, "And to our beloved Apphia, and Archippus our fellowsoldier, and to the church in thy house." (Philem. 1:2) As is evident throughout the scriptures, the kingdom of God has remained the same. The core of the teaching starts in the congregation that is in the home. From the lives of the Old Testament saints through to the New Testament time, the spirit has taught the same. God blesses through the work done in the congregation that is within one's own house. God's Establishment of the Family God created a helpmate for man because it was not good for him to be alone. Moses recorded in Gen 2: 18, "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him." As God created the family, so He also set the positions and roles in it. It is not by chance that each of us is in the station of life that we are in. God established the family to bless it and bless the work done through it. Each family member has an important role to play in the work of the family. And I would add here, to those who do not have a personal family, you are still members of the larger family of God. Your role in the congregation is critical to the work and the progress of the gospel. You serve in the local congregation, in Sunday schools, Bible classes and at camps. God blesses your efforts. Roles in the Family Are Based on the Example of Jesus Each of us finds ourselves to be corrupt and sinful. That is why we need the guidance of the Spirit of God to help us to humble ourselves to serve. We need to serve as congregation members, as parents and as children. We need to serve in many ways both temporal and spiritual. For example, in our modern society, the idea of sacrifice and service for the good of the family often is lacking. It has become all too common a news item to see children neglected by their own mother. A parent may become so entangled in sin either through alcoholism, drugs or the addiction of gambling, among other things, that they do not provide the basic necessities for their children. Also, we have all seen the increase in desires for the goods of this world that leads to living beyond one's means or to laziness in doing the basic chores required of a parent at home. Such temporal neglect may even cause a parent to have to answer to a court of law for their negligence. There are very serious consequences that result from neglecting the temporal needs of children. Such neglect is an indication of spiritual neglect. It is a much more serious issue. Spiritual responsibility is the duty given by God. If a parent falls into spiritual neglect it has eternal consequences. In the same way that it is difficult to get the children to participate in the work at home, if mother and father are not also pitching in, so also the spiritual example of mother and father are very powerful teachers. For such teaching we turn to our Savior and His example of love. As the example of Christ is the best teacher for all of us, so also the best teacher for the children is the example of the parents. It is important to remember the reason the family has been established. The household is not set up for fulfilling the wants of the parents, rather everything is done for the good of the growing generation. God blessed the family. "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth..." (Gen 1:27-28) God blessed the family for a purpose. It is His blessing for bringing souls to heaven. It is a holy and difficult duty. It requires a life of service and self-sacrifice. Paul wrote to the Philippians, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." (Phil. 2:5-8) Jesus taught His own disciples, "So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do." (Luke 17:10) The family is founded on the word of God and rooted in love. It requires love, humility, sacrifice and much effort. The Spirit of God teaches that the best foundation for the family is one based on love. Paul writes, "Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another." (Rom 12:9 & 10) As Paul teaches, the best of competitions is to compete in seeing who can show the greater respect for the other. When this is the spirit in the home, then there is not a battle of wills or a wrong competition to see who can avoid the most work. The Apostle Paul describes the relationship between husband and wife: "Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it." (Eph. 5:21-25) Just as the congregation of God is a level headed flock, so also it is at home. There the example of Christ is brought forth as the best home teacher. Both mother and father are responsible for the upbringing of their children. Both are responsible for the welfare of the home and the family. As members of the royal priesthood of the Holy Spirit, both husband and wife are responsible for teaching and preaching the gospel. The position of the husband is not one of special privileges or authority but rather one of looking after the spiritual needs of the family. Just as Christ came, not to be served, but to serve. So also, a father must serve his family in word, deed and especially by example in both a temporal and spiritual sense. He carries the responsibility to God to be the shepherd of the flock that God has given to him. Parental Responsibility Dear parents, Luther has stated this issue very straight forwardly, saying that God has commanded you to control your child. He continues on, saying that parents possess great but limited authority. For it is the duty of father and mother – nay, for this very purpose they were made father and mother by God – to teach children and lead them to God, not according to their own notion and their own religious persuasion but according to the command of God. Religious Training of Children is a Sacred Duty He has given and entrusted children to us that we should train and govern them according to His will; otherwise he would have no need of father and mother. Let everyone know, therefore, that it is his duty, on peril of losing the divine favor, to bring up his children above all things in the fear and knowledge of God and, if they are talented, to let them learn and study so that they may be of service wherever they are needed. Dear parents, teach your children the fear of God. Teach children that the word of God is the highest authority for life and values. The Apostle James writes, "But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world." (James 1:25-27) Dear fathers and mothers, it is important that the faith of the heart brings forth the fruits that testify of it. If there is incongruence between the confession of the lips and the deeds of our children, we must deal with it straight forwardly and not let the gospel be used as a cover for sin. This does not mean we rush to proclaim a child out of faith when he has fallen or is under heavy doubts. Rather we hasten with the fire of the gospel to heal, strengthen and forgive. Role Of Children Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. (Eph 6:1-4) Luther expounds at length on the differences between loving and honoring. He especially teaches children the necessity of honoring their parents. Do more than Love Parents; Honor Them To this estate of fatherhood and motherhood God has given the distinction above all lower estates that He commands us not only to love our parents but also to honor them. For concerning brothers, sisters and our neighbors in general He commands nothing higher than that we love them. In this way He sets father and mother apart, distinguishes them above all other persons on earth, and places them at His side. For to honor a person is a far higher matter than to love him; because honor does not comprise love alone but also deference, humility and awe, as if we were in the presence of majesty there hidden. Nor does honor require that we merely address parents kindly and reverently, but also both in our hearts and in our actions, we show and make it clear that we esteem them highly and next to God, consider them supreme. For one whom we are sincerely to honor we must truly consider exalted and important. Therefore we must train young people to look upon their parents as God's representatives and to remember that even though they are lowly, poor, frail and peculiar, they are still the father and mother whom God gave them. They are not to be robbed of their honor because of their conduct and failings. Therefore we are not to look at the kind of persons they are but at God's will, which has made and ordained it so. In other respects we are, of course, all alike in the eyes of God. (Luther) Rearing Our Children Luther says to use Evangelical Discipline. The entire gospel is required in the work of rearing. Paul wrote to Timothy, "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works." (2 Tim 3:16 -17) Evangelical Discipline means we need to discipline with a great amount of forgiveness. It means we must teach, rebuke, correct and forgive. Each of us is responsible for setting the priorities in our own homes. What is the most important in our families? Is Jesus the Lord of our homes? There where the spirit and mind of Christ rules, there the gospel is readily used. Nevertheless, as a result of our own sin corruption, it is very easy for the raising of our children to begin to go awry. Authoritarian If the discipline approach is authoritarian, it is dictatorial. This can lead to eye service by the children. It may cause service and obeisance out of fear instead of honor and respect. The bond of love and trust between parent and child is not established. The control of the child is based on absolute rule. It may lead to a heart estranged from his parents because of the lack of understanding and empathy. Do not crush a child. The apostle does not mean to say that children are not to be rebuked or disciplined, but that they are to be chastised in love. Lenient leads to permissiveness of sin "Do not coddle children. The first destroyers of their own children are those who neglect them and knowingly permit them to grow up without the training and admonition of the Lord. Even if they do not harm them by a bad example, they still destroy them by yielding to them. ... These parents will, therefore, bear the sins of their children because they make these sins their own." This is how Luther stated this issue and he continued, What is it but to sacrifice and burn one's own child in honor of an idol, when parents train their children more for the sake of the world than for the sake of God? They let them go their own way and be burned up by worldly pleasure, love, happiness, possessions, and honor, while the love and honor of God and the desire for eternal blessing are extinguished in them. The example of the high priest Eli from the Old Testament is a strikingly warning example of the results of leniency. "For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever." (1 Sam 3:13&14) A Conflicting Environment Results If the Parents Have a Differing Approach to Raising Their Children. This is very injurious to the spiritual and psychological health of the children. It is very important that parents have a common approach and understanding on setting rules, boundaries and discipline. If they do not, it creates conflict in the children and they will grow up with a confused view of the world and values for life. Also they will use one parent against the other. Not Overly Spiritual As believers, we travel here with our hearts in heaven but our feet on the earth. The purpose of all of these teachings is not to create some perfect model that no one can accomplish. We are all of the earth and earthly. We cannot make this body of ours holy. The children of God travel with their feet firmly planted on the earth but their hearts are in heaven. God only requires of each of us a willing heart and mind. We attempt our best according to the measure of faith and gifts He has given us. If we open our mouths, He has promised to fill it with His goodness. Proper Balance There is a proper balance between the authoritarian and lenient approach. It is called authoritative. The parents take the role and responsibility that God has placed them in with all seriousness. It means you will need to differentiate between being decisive without being dictatorial. You will need to be in control without being autocratic. You must, dear mothers and fathers, establish the boundaries and rules of your own households. You must be disciplined and at the same time flexible. Seek for advice from the more experienced parents in Zion. They have much good advice for many everyday problems as well as for the more difficult situations. God provides the pattern (Luther) In the same way as we experience the care of God, so we should care for our children. God may suffer affliction to surround us and chastise us but He also consoles, strengthens, confirms, nourishes and favors us. And, of course, in spite of the multitude of our sins, He does not condemn us, but rather, when we are repentant, He forgives us all our sins. Finally, some characteristics we all would like to see in our homes. Boundaries Father and mother must be the ones who are setting the boundaries. Our children need love and boundaries. This creates a secure environment for growth and development. "These things write I unto thee...that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth." (1 Tim 3:14&15) Love, Honor, Respect Everyone needs appreciation. Everyone needs to grow with a positive feeling of self worth. If everyone in the world grew up being loved, honored and respected would we have the measure of problems with broken families, violence and sin that we have today? Service The example of Christ sets the measure for each of us. It creates a mind and a desire to deny oneself, to sacrifice, to help and to serve. Forgiveness Parents set the environment which encourages open communications. It permits the expression of varying opinions. It creates the expectation that each has the right to discuss any and all issues in an atmosphere of honesty and respect. Criticism, correction and even rebuke are often necessary but are done concentrating on the deed without denigrating the individual. It encourages the use of confession and the application of the gospel freely for the correction of errors and faults. It gives strength for the endeavor as a child of God. As the children grow, they develop their own opinions. Parents need to keep the lines of communication open to foster a spirit of openness and trust so that even difficult issues can discussed. Home Services "Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls." (Jer 6:16) In spite of all manner of doctrines and philosophies from the wise of our time, the word of God has not changed. It still instructs, leads and guides in the one, the only and the best way. It is the narrow way which leads to life eternal. Dear parents, preach the gospel. Ask for the gospel from each other and from your children. When errors come, when you find yourself reacting in the flesh instead of in the spirit, set up the altar of grace. There poor parents and children can find mercy and forgiveness. There each of us receives new strength to continue on as a child of God. The gospel is the power of God onto salvation for all who believe. (Rom 1:16) The Old Testament prophet Zechariah was assured that the blessing of God would come. God will lead the way to victory. God will bless the work. It will not succeed because of our own labors but only because of the blessing of the spirit of God. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." (Zech. 4:6) God Himself Must Bless the Up-bringing

Lauri Hakso | 1998 LLC Seattle Summer Services - Speakers and Elders Meeting -- What Is Prayer? Prayer is a humble and sincere speech with God. James instructs to ask in faith without doubting. The opening words of the Lord’s Prayer already teach us to securely trust our Heavenly Father in faith. A natural child trusts his father and relates to other children what he has promised. We can pray and speak much more in faith. The apostle said, as I believe so also I speak. Jesus said: “God is a spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24). The child of God can pray in “the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.” (Rom. 8:15). It is a plea of a meritless child of God, together with other believers, or alone whenever one feels the need. It is not in the manner of the Pharisees listing their own accomplishments. As believers we need to pray in many states of mind: Sometimes with thanksgiving that God would allow his blessing to rest upon us; sometimes as David to cry from the depths when heavy trials and temptations surround us, “Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice: let thine ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.” (Ps. 130:1-2). In the great distress of the people of Israel, on the shore of the Red Sea, where the sea was in front of them and the Egyptian army behind them, the “Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore criest unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.” (2 Moses 14:15). What Should We Pray For? First for a humble heart. God said He gives grace unto the humble and the rich he hath sent away empty. God threatens much worse to the proud and pious that he shall take them away from the midst of his people, that only the poor and lowly people remain. Jesus teaches us in the Lord’s Prayer to request spiritual and temporal gifts. In everyday bread we ask for all temporal needs, as Luther explains in the catechism. We ask that his kingdom would come, in which kingdom there is the forgiveness of sins to them who pray for God’s pardon and the forgiveness of sins. We ask for strength to avoid temptations and if we fall into sin then strength unto repentance. Also we ask for strength to put away from our conscience those sins which trouble our conscience that they would not weigh us down and begin to dry our life of faith. Sometimes such a condition of conscience where sin troubles has been compared to a pebble which has gone unnoticed into our shoe and there it rubs the foot and makes the travel difficult. I have sometimes thought, why someone endeavoring on the way of faith has let such a pebble of sin be on the conscience for years, even decades, to slow one’s travel. Someone may have put them away on their death bed. That’s good even then. Our experience, nevertheless, is that although we do not know of anything special on the conscience, our journey is often slow and troublesome. The most important matter in our personal prayer is, that God would protect us in faith, in which would be seen fruits flowing from faith. Then once when our brief endeavor ends, a testimony would be left in the congregation that our soul was acceptable to God. Praying in Behalf of Others The love of Christ exhorts us to pray also in behalf of others. The Apostle Paul left us a precious example of this as he relates having prayed in behalf of the Ephesians. “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.” Believing parents often feel urgent need to pray in behalf of beloved children, that they would remain in faith. Or if some of them have already gone into the world, that they would receive grace of repentance from the ways of the prodigal son. But it is also important to pray in behalf of our dear home congregation and the entire Zion, that God could care for them through his Word and spirit protecting in true doctrine and grace, and that He would give faithful teachers who correctly divide the Word of Life and also that God would open to them the door of his Word. “Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds.” (Col. 4:3). Paul asks for intercessions, that he who had preached to others would not be a castaway. Throughout all times there have been those whom God has not been able to help in spite of prayers. Being disobedient they have lost their faith. Then they have established fleshly spiritless heresies. During such storms the prayers of watching souls have risen as cries to the ears of God: Enlighten, dear father, where the kingdom of God is. God has promised through Zechariah: “And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried.” God hears the cries of his children: “They shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, the Lord is my God.” (Zech. 13:9). In chapter 12 of the Acts of the Apostles is related how the disciples earnestly prayed in behalf of Peter whom Herod had taken into custody. God soon heard those prayers and sent an angel to free him. Peter went to knock at the door of the house where the disciples were. The damsel Rhoda goes to the door, hears Peter’s voice and in gladness runs to relate that Peter is knocking at the door. They did not believe at once but said unto her: “Thou art mad.” James said, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” But he teaches to be content with the will of God and says, “If the Lord will, we shall live and do this, or that.” (James 4 and 5). Paul instructs to pray “for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Tim. 2:2). Jesus taught to pray even in behalf of our enemies. Many times it has happened that those prayers have been heard. Former persecutors and mockers have received the grace of repentance, as did Saul of Tarsus. All Prayers Are Not Acceptable to God David says, “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” (Ps. 66:18). “He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law [that is, from God’s Word], even his prayer shall be abomination.” (Prov. 28:9). The Bible says of Esau that he did not find a place for repentance, though he sought it with tears. The Pharisee’s prayer was not acceptable to God for he was one of whom Paul says: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness” (Rom. 10:3). John also speaks of such sins which have led to spiritual death. He says not to pray in behalf of those who have fallen in this way. He obviously means blasphemy against the Holy Spirit which is not forgiven, or if the time of visitation has gone by for someone as with the king of Israel, Saul. God hears the unbelievers’ prayers, especially if they are seeking God’s kingdom, seeking for the true grace of repentance. Cornelius and the eunuch of Candace, the queen of Ethiopia, are good examples of this, among many others. When I have sometimes encouraged unbelievers unto repentance they have said they cannot repent for they have no distress of conscience. I have agreed that it is the truth but have encouraged them at the same time to pray to God that He would awaken their conscience and grant the grace of penitence and faith. Also, a child of God, as the result of being unwatchful, is in danger of losing true self-knowledge. Even the effects of self-righteousness or some other darkening of our life of faith are not far from us. That is why it is necessary to pray as we pray in the communion prayer: Grant me Thy holy grace that with Peter I would weep over my sins, and also have strength to believe them forgiven so that, as the sinful woman, I could comprehend sincere love toward the Lord Jesus, who forgives sins. John also writes, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The confession of our own unsuccessful endeavor of faith and begging for grace, which we often hear among God’s children, is wholesome for our life of faith. How Often Ought We to Pray? We can pray regardless of the time or place, alone or aloud together with others, or quietly in our hearts. However, the saints of the Bible also had special times of prayer. The psalmists relate of praying twice or three times a day (Ps. 88:1; 55:17). It is also said of Daniel, he gave thanks and prayed three times a day. Remember Also to Give Thanks For the Gifts One Has Received Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving, Paul writes to the Colossians. In the same way also to the Thessalonians: “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit.” (1 Thes. 5:16-19). When everything seems to be going well with a believer, one has good health and temporal matters succeed, it can happen that one doesn’t even pray very often. That is why the apostle instructs unto thanksgiving and prayer and warns not to quench the Spirit. God in His love can that which is more needful for us.” We as children of God can also feel such poverty that it seems we cannot find words with which to pray. The apostle comforts: Even then the Spirit makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. God’s Word also assures us that the Lord Jesus is our perfect intercessor at the right hand of the Father. Therefore we can always be of good cheer.

John Stewart | 1999 LLC Phoenix Winter Services - Congregation Evening - February 26 -- The Gospel Of Christ – The Power Of God For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. (Rom 1:16-17) God's Word - The Law and the Gospel The Bible teaches that God's word has two parts. Apostle Paul wrote to the Hebrews referring to God's word in this way: "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart" (Heb. 4:12). These two parts of God's word, visualized by the two-edged sword, are the Law an d the Gospel. As we begin our discussion on the Gospel, perhaps it would be beneficial to contrast these two parts of God's word, based on scripture. Briefly consider what the Bible teaches to be the purpose of each: a. The purpose of the Law is to reveal to man his sinful condition, and to drive man to repent. The Bible says, "Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Rom. 3:20). b. The Gospel, on the other hand, is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. In other words, it is through that part of his word -the Gospel, that he offers eternal life to believers. Although the Law is associated with the Old Covenant and the Gospel with the New Covenant, the Old Testament believers were saved by faith, not by works of the Law or by sacrifices. They believed in the promise that God would send a redeemer. Luther states that all the Old Testament promises "from the beginning were founded on Christ", and that "there is no book in the Bible in which both the Law and the Gospel are not found". Examples of the gospel in the Old Testament are found, for instance, in Psalm 103:8-12, where it is written: "The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us." Consider also Isaiah's familiar but ever comforting Gospel words: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (Isa 9:6). The English word that we use (Gospel) comes from an old Anglo-Saxon word that meant "the story concerning God". The original New Testament word was, of course, Greek. It was a word (euaggelion) that meant "good message". Sometimes in English we say "evangel"; those who speak Finn will probably recognize "evankeliumi" as being very similar to the Greek word from which it came. But aside from the technicality of the words, what is the Gospel? We've already quoted Apostle Paul who characterizes the Gospel as that power of God unto salvation to everyone that believes. Luther says, "The Gospel is the message concerning Christ, the Son of God, who was first humbled and then glorified through the Holy Spirit." Luther further elaborates on the Gospel in this way: "∑ the Gospel is such doctrine of the word of God that neither requires our works nor commands us to do anything, but announces the offered grace of the forgiveness of sin and eternal salvation. Here we do nothing, but only receive what is offered through the word." The Bible says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph 2:8-9). God Proclaims the Gospel Through His Children From our main scriptural heading where Paul cites the Gospel as the power of God unto salvation, he follows up by further clarifying how the Gospel word is spread. Speaking specifically of the Gospel, he writes, "For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith" (Rom 1:17). Luther quoted the teaching of "blessed Augustine" (as he referred to him in this connection) regarding this phrase "from faith to faith". Augustine says: "From the faith of those who confess with their mouth to the faith of those who are obedient." The Gospel word does pass from the mouth of a child of God to the listener. Those who believe it are saved. When one has received the Gospel, that person also becomes a preacher of God's word. Paul reminded the Corinthians, "And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us" (2 Cor 5:18, 20). An older brother recently wrote about the Gospel in this way, "The path of life into fellowship with Christ is opened only if the conscience awakens and man can receive the Gospel's message of grace and believe it for his salvation." Gospel work continues here on this earth. We want to preach that Gospel as we've been called to do. In this time and visitation we hold the same heart as Paul when he addressed the Christians in Ephesus. He asked them to remember him in this way: "that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery of the Gospel" (Eph 6: 19). We yet preach the Gospel to those on the outside of God's kingdom. Only One Gospel Can it happen that someone would be able to become a Christian or believer in some other way than through hearing and believing the Gospel preached from God's kingdom? Not according to God's word. Paul writes: "How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!" (Rom 10:14-15). Nonetheless, man in his own wisdom continues to believe that there could be some other way to become righteous or heaven-acceptable than by the way God's word teaches. Jesus himself said, "He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber" (John 10:1). Man yet attempts to build other ways -- whether it's from ancient days such as occurred with the Tower of Babel, or from current times. For example, not so many years ago a young teenage boy received the grace of repentance. His parents were religious, but not believing. They were members of the local Lutheran church where the boy had been attending Sunday school in his confirmation year. The parents naturally became concerned when their son changed religion, so to speak. It was a healthy parental concern. They requested a meeting with their own Pastor, their son and several believing people. The parents' concerns were somewhat appeased at the meeting. They were not able to comprehend God's grace for themselves, but at least they knew their son wasn't mixed up in a dangerous cult or some such thing. The Pastor however, felt it would be good to institute into the local Lutheran church's confirmation exercise a spoken assurance to the students that their sins were forgiven. Sad to say, the Holy Spirit was not present to give the words life. The power of the Gospel is not in man's own words, but is by and through the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63). Acts chapter 9 provides an account of some men who attempted, without the presence of the Holy Spirit, to drive out evil spirits in the name of Jesus. The Bible describes how "the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, and overcame them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded" (Acts 19:13-16). Not only in days past but also in our time it is the Holy Spirit that gives life. God has established his grace kingdom here on this earth. He has according to his will separated the dwellers of that kingdom from all others. Even from antiquity he has done this. Consider these words from one of the Old Testament books of Moses: "And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the LORD am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine" (Lev 20:26). This separation is a spiritual separation. We certainly mingle with unbelievers in our everyday life at work, school and so forth. Jesus did not pray that his own would be taken out of the world, but that they would be kept from evil (see John 17:15). But he gave to his followers alone, the keys to the kingdom. He said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained" (John 20:22-23). It is therefore only from His kingdom that the freeing Gospel is preached. The Bible relates of an occurrence during early New Testament times in the area of Galatia (modern day Turkey) where some men tried to preach another Gospel, a different Gospel. Can it be that there is a different Gospel? Here's what Apostle Paul said of this matter, "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another Gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the Gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other Gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed" (Gal 1:6-8). The Gospel Begets New Life and New Obedience The effect of believing the Gospel is new life and new obedience through faith. The Bible says, "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor 5:17). Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not; But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God" (2 Cor 4:1-2). The Bible illustrates in many connections how believing the Gospel effects new life and obedience. For example, one time when Jesus passed through Jericho, there was a certain man who sought to see Jesus. His name was Zacchaeus and he was a chief tax collector -- a profession that presented lots of opportunity to exact more from taxpayers than was due. After Zacchaeus was able to believe the Gospel he vowed to give half of his goods to the poor, and to make fourfold restitution where he had wrongfully exacted. The Gospel word performs its work in those who believe. The Holy Spirit governs the believer's heart. Paul told the newly converted in Thessalonica, "For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe" (1 Thes 2:13). The Gospel - Our Strength Once heard and believed, the Gospel remains the source of strength in a believer's faith life. Our Lord Jesus spoke of living water -the Gospel, which flows freely from the grace fountain. The sojourner longs for fellowship with other believers, whether in the smallest Zion at home for example, or at some other gathering where the words of life are heard. We are well acquainted with Christ's words: "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt 18:20). How well it's known to the faith traveler that because of our weak flesh, we experience sin and as a result the conscience suffers. A dear brother who was recently called away to the peaceful sleep of the blessed (Eino Kimpimaki) had thus conveyed the sojourner's experience: "What grace brings, sin consumes". The Psalm writer lamented: "When I kept silence, my bones waxed old through my roaring all the day long. For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me: my moisture is turned into the drought of summer (Ps 32:3-4). The living water, the comforting Gospel word, has been that life-giving moisture and has reassured us again and again. What a comfort it has been to the child of God that the grace privilege of private confession also exists. Over 30 years ago Erkki Reinikainen wrote concerning private confession, which is closely tied to the Gospel word: "Confession is not a condition for salvation, but an especially precious grace gift from God". Luther says: "For when we've laid bare our conscience to our brother and privately made known to him the evil that lurked within, we receive from our brother's lips the word of comfort spoken by God himself". The child of God young or old endeavors to travel as Paul encouraged Timothy, keeping faith and a good conscience. God's word assures us that "if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (I Jn 1:7, 9). With its freeing power, the Gospel provides the believer with strength to battle against sin. Paul relates: "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world" (Titus 2:11-12). Hence, the gospel is not a cloak for sin. Paul asks the Roman: "What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness" (Rom 6:15-16). The gospel is the sustaining source of strength in the life of the child of God. Isaiah encourages the believers this way: "Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments" (Is. 52:1). That garment of righteousness is the forgiveness of sins - the very essence of the Gospel. We can conclude by stating again the Gospel word preached from God's kingdom: In the name and through the shed blood of the Messiah, Jesus, the sinner can believe sins forgiven. Faith in that promise leads to eternal life. Discussion Questions 1. What affect does the gospel have in those that both hear and believe it? 2. What is the role of the gospel in the caretaking of conscience? 3. Why does a child of God need the gospel throughout his or her lifetime? 4. Many gospels are preached in this world. How can someone recognize the gospel of Christ? 5. How does the power of the gospel appear in a Christian's daily life? 6. The gospel frees man from sin. Does it grant him the freedom to sin? 7. Who is and who is not authorized to forgive men's sins on earth and in heaven according to the Scripture?

Curtis Simonson | The Voice of Zion February 2022 -- I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. – Psalms 18:1–6 When we reflect on our past, we can see the course we have traveled and what we have experienced. We see through eyes of faith how our experiences have directed us to where we are today. By faith, we can also look forward to the future with confidence. This, however, is not a confidence that comes through one’s own will or merits, but as trust in the omnipotent God. In our Psalm text, David in the eve of his life reflects on his experiences in battles and in struggles as a king and as a believer. He saw the will and promises of God to be unshakeable and sure, and all that that came from carnal strength and desire he saw to be of little value. David could have promoted himself and all he accomplished as king. Instead, he turns his attention to what God was able to do through him when he desired to seek strength and wisdom from God. Trust in God’s Will This 18th Psalm is also recorded in the second book of Samuel, chapter 22. Samuel records many challenging and difficult situations in David’s life in which David could have acted in a way that pleased his pride, but instead he desired to travel and lead God’s chosen nation according to God’s Word. If we are writing to others of facing an uncertain future, would we have the same confidence to write of how we should proceed? We see that David writes in our text very assuredly of who his rock is. His confidence and assuredness have been tested and tempered by life experiences. When God directed Samuel to the house of Jesse to choose a king from Jesse’s eight sons, David was not even considered to be brought before the prophet because of his young age. Yet to the surprise of his own father Jesse and his seven brothers, David was chosen by God to be the second king of Israel. As a shepherd, David was led to understand that it was God who gave strength and power to kill a lion and a bear. He had the same trust when he went to fight Goliath, though as King Saul said, “thou art but a youth” (1 Sam. 17:33). Endeavor to Be Obedient When David was anointed king of Israel, King Saul continued to direct the chosen nation of Israel for some years. By faith David understood that he was chosen to reign in Saul’s place, but he was also given wisdom to understand to wait until it was God’s time for David to lead God’s people. He would have had opportunity to take things into his own hands and fight against Saul. He was even encouraged by some close to him to take Saul’s life when Saul came to rest from war in a cave, not knowing David was deeper in the same cave (1 Sam. 24). David went as far as cutting a piece from the king’s skirt as Saul slept, after which the Bible says his “heart smote him,” (v. 5) for doing this was against the Lord’s anointed. It shows us that the conscience of David was bothered by wrong actions. So there were times in David’s life when he had done wrong and those deeds did not end well. But when he was able to confess his sins and hear absolution, he could continue to put his trust in God. David also realizes that when he endeavored to be obedient, God was able to do His work through him and those efforts were blessed by God. It is not boasting to recognize that if we through faith put our trust in God, we cannot be defeated; God is our rock and our fortress. Let Us Submit Our Will to God In the eve of life, David writes with the same conviction as Apostle Paul wrote as his end drew nigh: “For I am now ready to be offered, and my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness” (2 Tim. 4:6–8). Our Psalm text reminds us that no matter what we face, if we submit our will to that of God, we cannot fail, but will make it to heaven. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. It does not come to us through our merit, but from heaven in the name and blood of Jesus. David did not choose to be a king, nor did he choose when he would be king. He did not choose any of the things that are of God. David realizes the order of God’s grace: God chose him to do God’s work and it is David’s duty and calling to endeavor by faith to be obedient to the order and will of God. David realizes that God expects him to do that which he is called to do. Jesus reminds us, “When you have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable Servants: we have done that which was our duty to do” (Luke 17:10). If we can be so fortunate to see this grace order, we too can say in the midst of blessings or under tribulations: I will love you, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer.

Eric Jurmu | The Voice of Zion June/July 2020 - News and Notes -- The impact of COVID-19 is being felt around the world. It continues to create challenges and hurdles that young and old alike need to navigate. I wish to offer congratulations to all 2020 high school, college and university graduates. Even though many of you haven’t been able to celebrate with friends and family as you otherwise might have, you still have achieved a milestone in life! Every June we celebrate Father’s Day. May the Heavenly Father bless and protect you dear fathers for the love and care you show your families and loved ones. In these times and always your children need clear, loving instruction. May God also bless this year’s confirmation school students. Due to current circumstances, confirmation school may be a bit different than originally planned. We understand that it is an important time in the life of a young believer! Dear youth, remember that your parents send you to camp with many prayers, hoping that you will have a rewarding experience and make lasting friendships, but above all that your faith will be strengthened. Updates on LLC Activities Notice was sent to LLC congregations informing them that Aimo Koskelo’s (SRK) and Timo Löppönen’s (SFC) summer mission trips to North America are canceled. We are still hoping that the fall SRK trip can take place as scheduled. All other foreign mission trips are on hold indefinitely with the situation being closely monitored. Trips will resume when it is deemed safe to do so. Despite trip cancelations, online services are broadcast regularly into many of the foreign mission fields. We continue to monitor how the COVID-19 pandemic affects LLC camp activities. States and provinces have differing schedules and guidelines as they reopen for various activities. Camp boards will continue to monitor the regional situation with the goal of opening camp facilities and holding camps when the situation allows. LLC confirmation schools will be the primary focus as facilities are opened and will take precedence over all other camp activities. It may mean that confirmation school is shortened a bit to allow additional camps with fewer students. Any proposed changes will be communicated to students and families with ample time to make necessary adjustments. The 2020 LLC Annual Meeting will be an online meeting on Saturday, July 4 and originate from the Rockford Laestadian Lutheran Church. The meeting agenda and draft 2021 LLC Operating Plan and video was sent to help congregations prepare their delegates for the meeting. We will continue to communicate meeting details as they are finalized. We continue to prepare for 2020 LLC Online Summer Services, July 2–5, which will originate from a studio set up at the LLC office in Loretto, Minn. Noteworthy items include: ~ Although physical services are canceled, we can still gather around God’s Word and take part in that most important part of services. ~ The services motto, “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God” (Isa. 40:1) was selected to remind us that even during these times God continues to care and comfort His own. ~ The services schedule can be found on the LLC website, and essential service information will be available to download. ~ Sermons will be broadcast live on LLC’s website, LLC YouTube channel and SRK Summer Service Radio. ~ Facebook users can find services information at “Laestadian Lutheran Church” ~ Instagram users can find information @laestadianlutheran ~ In place of a Ministers and Board Members meeting on Friday evening, a congregation presentation, “The Kingdom of God – Our Home,” will be broadcast online. ~ A youth presentation, “He shall feed his flock like a shepherd” (Isa. 40:11), will also be broadcast Friday evening. ~ Several new publications will be available around the time of services. These will be announced during the services on the services radio as well as on social media. There will also be more information on these new publications in the August Voice of Zion. Applications for the 2021–21 opisto year were due May 1. There are still openings, however, so if you’re interested in applying, do so as soon as possible. Helen Hillukka will retire from the LLC office on July 31. We thank Helen for her time working for the LLC and wish her and her husband Elmer God’s abundant blessings in retirement. I ask for your continued prayers during these times of uncertainty, and I wish each of you a blessed summer!