Does doctrine matter?
Depends whom you ask. Doctrine matters to Jesus. ““If you remain in my word, you are really my disciples. You will also know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31,32) “Go and gather disciples from all nations by baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and by teaching them to keep all the instructions I have given you.” (Matthew 28:19,20a)
Nowhere does Jesus say, “Just pick and choose what you like. Go with what feels good. Treat my Word like a smorgasbord buffet and settle for what the culture says is OK.”
Today’s church – including a large segment of today’s Lutheran church – does just that. It proclaims what it thinks and feels, rather than what it knows God says in his Word. Today’s church is afraid to offend people with the Law, to confront people with their sins, to tell them they are children of hell without God.
Today’s church will wet its collective finger and hold it up to see which way the cultural wind is blowing – pick a topic: marriage, sexual identity, the doctrine of salvation itself – Christ alone, or Christ plus something else. Today’s church is often more interested in smooth social graces than spreading the saving grace of God. Today’s church will tell you to find God in your feelings rather than in the foundation of the Scriptures. This is poison to the soul.
This emphasis on feelings fools many. Martin Luther said, “If you are not ready to believe that the Word is worth more than all you see or feel, then reason has blinded faith. So the resurrection of the dead is something that must be believed. I do not feel the resurrection of Christ but the Word affirms it. I feel (guilt) but the Word says that it is forgiven to those who believe. I see that Christians die like other men, but the Word tells me that they shall rise again. So we must not be guided by our own feelings but by the Word.” Doctrine matters.
Three 8th graders will be confirmed at Trinity on Sunday, May 18th. They’ve been instructed in the doctrine of the Bible and are well versed in the Lutheran Catechism after years of study. Lord-willing, they will affirm God’s grace which brought them into God’s kingdom through Holy Baptism and promise lifelong faithfulness to God’s Word. This faithfulness is something only God can bring about through the Gospel in Word and Sacraments – and we pray that these precious young people will remain in Jesus and his Word.
May you and yours remain in the Word all summer long! Personal devotions, Wednesday Bible study (12:15 p.m.), Camp Compassion Weekend (June 20-22) Bible Blitz in mid-July, and of course, weekly worship.
God be with you, and may his Word be in you abundantly.
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand
Depends whom you ask. Doctrine matters to Jesus. ““If you remain in my word, you are really my disciples. You will also know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31,32) “Go and gather disciples from all nations by baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and by teaching them to keep all the instructions I have given you.” (Matthew 28:19,20a)
Nowhere does Jesus say, “Just pick and choose what you like. Go with what feels good. Treat my Word like a smorgasbord buffet and settle for what the culture says is OK.”
Today’s church – including a large segment of today’s Lutheran church – does just that. It proclaims what it thinks and feels, rather than what it knows God says in his Word. Today’s church is afraid to offend people with the Law, to confront people with their sins, to tell them they are children of hell without God.
Today’s church will wet its collective finger and hold it up to see which way the cultural wind is blowing – pick a topic: marriage, sexual identity, the doctrine of salvation itself – Christ alone, or Christ plus something else. Today’s church is often more interested in smooth social graces than spreading the saving grace of God. Today’s church will tell you to find God in your feelings rather than in the foundation of the Scriptures. This is poison to the soul.
This emphasis on feelings fools many. Martin Luther said, “If you are not ready to believe that the Word is worth more than all you see or feel, then reason has blinded faith. So the resurrection of the dead is something that must be believed. I do not feel the resurrection of Christ but the Word affirms it. I feel (guilt) but the Word says that it is forgiven to those who believe. I see that Christians die like other men, but the Word tells me that they shall rise again. So we must not be guided by our own feelings but by the Word.” Doctrine matters.
Three 8th graders will be confirmed at Trinity on Sunday, May 18th. They’ve been instructed in the doctrine of the Bible and are well versed in the Lutheran Catechism after years of study. Lord-willing, they will affirm God’s grace which brought them into God’s kingdom through Holy Baptism and promise lifelong faithfulness to God’s Word. This faithfulness is something only God can bring about through the Gospel in Word and Sacraments – and we pray that these precious young people will remain in Jesus and his Word.
May you and yours remain in the Word all summer long! Personal devotions, Wednesday Bible study (12:15 p.m.), Camp Compassion Weekend (June 20-22) Bible Blitz in mid-July, and of course, weekly worship.
God be with you, and may his Word be in you abundantly.
Pastor Stephen Luchterhand
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