THE RIGHTEOUSNESS OF FAITH ACCORDING TO LUTHER by Hans Joachim Iwand, p. 16
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Central Solution
“An evangelical church that the views the teaching of the righteousness of faith as self-evident – but about which no one should trouble himself further because other issues are more important – has in principle robbed itself of the central solution by which other questions are illuminated. Such a church will become increasingly more splintered and worn down. If we take the article of justification out of the center very soon we will not know why we are evangelical Christians or should remain so. As a result, we will strive for the unity of the church and will sacrifice the purity of the gospel; we will have more confidence in church organization and church government and will promise more on the basis of the reform of Christian authority and church training than either can deliver. If we lose our center, we will court pietism and listen to other teachings and we will be in danger of being tolerant where we should be radical and radical where we should be tolerant. In short, the standards will be lowered and along with them everything that is necessary and correct in the reforms that we sing about will be incomprehensible”
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5 comments:
That just says it all. I think that very adequately sums up where we are at in 2010 with our Church. Where that central article fails to be the focus of our teaching and preaching, everything else crumbles. I think the Confessions say something to that effect...Thanks for sharing it!
Thank you for posting this Pastor. It's funny how we really work hard to take our eyes off of what truly matters.
Excellent! Just chatted with a pastor whose pulpit was once Walther's and he said to me that the worst sermon he ever preached was when he preached about the success of that parish, he realized that in doing so he took his eyes off the center, Christ Jesus the Savior and he said never again! We talked about how just having your center be off ever so slightly affects how you operate in ripples and waves that soon make the center unrecognizable. Wise words these. Thanks for sharing. May the true God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit keep you centered on the cross of Christ as you lead our church!
"Courting Pietism..." We've been doing it far too long, but, by God's grace, the long engagement may soon be broken. You're in the prayers of thousands, President Harrison, as you lead the synod in walking more closely beside the Bridegroom!
"The doctrine of justification must be learned diligently; it alone can strengthen us against those endless offenses and comfort us in all trials and persecutions. For we see that it cannot be otherwise than that the world should be offended by the teaching of godliness and continually cry that nothing good will come of it.""
Dr Luther, "Lectures of Galatians," AE 26:453
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