# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1947_S486
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

486 INTERSYNODICAL AND DOCTRINAL MATTERS

30. The Original and True Possessors of All Christian Rights
and Privileges, — Since the Christians are the Church, it is self-
evident that they alone originally possess the spiritual gifts and
rights which Christ has gained for, and given to, His Church. Thus
St. Paul reminds all believers: “Ali things are yours,” 1 Cor.
3, 21, 22, and Christ Himself commits to all believers the keys of
the kingdom of heaven, Matt. 16, 13—19; 18, 17—20; John 20, 22. 23,
and commissions all believers to preach the Gospel and to ad-
minister the Sacraments, Matt. 28, 19. 20; 1 Cor. 11, 23—25.
Accordingly, we reject all doctrines by which this spiritual power
or any part thereof is adjudged as originally vested in certain
individuals or bodies, such as the Pope, or the bishops, or the
order of the ministry, or the secular lords, or councils, or synods,
ete. The officers of the Church publicly administer their offices
only by virtue of delegated powers, conferred on them by the
original possessors of such powers, and such administration remains
under the supervision of the latter, Col. 4, 17. Naturally all Chris-
tians have also the right and the duty to judge and decide matters
of doctrine, not according to their own notions, of course, but
according to the Word of God, 1 John 4,1; 1 Pet. 4, 11.

Of the Public Ministry.

31. By the public ministry we mean the office by which the
Word of God is preached and the Sacraments are administered
by order and in the name of a Christian congregation. Concerning
this office we teach that it is a divine ordinance; that is, the Chris-
tians of a certain locality must ‘apply the means of grace not only
privately and within the circle of their families nor merely in
their common intercourse with fellow-Christians, John 5, 39; Eph.
6, 4; Col. 3, 16, but they are also required, by the divine order,
to make provision that the Word of God be publicly preached in
their midst, and the Sacraments administered according to the
institution of Christ, by persons qualified for such work, whose
qualifications and official functions are exactly defined in Scrip-
ture, Titus 1,5; Acts 14, 23; 20, 28; 2 Tim. 2, 2.

32. Although the office of the ministry is a divine ordinance,
it possesses no other power than the power of the Word of God,

1 Pet. 4, 11; that is to say, it is the duty of Christians to yield .

unconditional obedience to the office of the ministry whenever,
and as long as, the minister proclaims to them the Word of God,
Heb. 13, 17; Luke 10, 16. If, however, the minister, in his teachings
and injunctions, were to go beyond the Word of God, it would be
the duty of Christians not to obey, but to disobey him, so as to
remain faithful to Christ, Matt. 23, 8. Accordingly, we reject the
false doctrine ascribing to the office of the ministry the right