# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1962_S6 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS 7 PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS, Isaiah 66:2 President John W. Behnken, D.D. Fettow REDEEMED, CO-woRKERS IN CHRIST’s KINGDOM: Terrific disturbances have been holding the world in their relentless grip. The cold war, the mad arma- ments race, the rise of nationalism, the ever-increasing inroads of atheistic communism, the enslavement of nation upon nation—all these and other alarming occurrences have caused practically unbearable tensions. It is truly pathetic that the church of our day is also affected by the era of tensions through which we are passing. Some of the church leaders of different denominations have felt constrained not merely to rec~- ognize but also to warn against extremism, whether to the left or to the right. Thus one of the men pleaded that Christians avoid the temptation “to arbitrarily classify a brother as an extremist or a reactionary.” Another very conservative leader has stated that it is his belief “that radical rightists have become so irre~- sponsible in their accusations and blanket denunciations that they hurt the whole conservative cause.” Our church is not immune. We definitely must rec- ognize this. Hence permit me, on the basis of the text read to you, under the gracious guidance of the Holy Spirit to answer the question: With What Attitude of Heart Shall We Open the Business Sessions of Our Convention? I. With deep contrition and repentance; II. With renewed genuine loyalty to God’s Word. According to the words immediately preceding our text God directed some very earnest and pertinent ques- tions to the Children of Israel. He said: “The heaven is My throne, and the earth is My footstool; where is the house that ye build unto Me? And where is the place of My rest?” The very questions indicate that one of Israel’s grievous sins was pride and self-glory. They boasted of the temple which they had built and of the sacrifices which they brought. Now the Lord tells them in plain, unmistakable language that they have no right whatso- ever to boast. He says: “For all those things hath Mine hand made, and all those things have been.” There positively is no room for boasting. All this makes it all the more striking and emphatic when God says: “But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit.” Does this mean anything to us? Does God today make us face similar condemning questions? Have we been guilty of boasting and self-glory? Do we read and hear again and again about great growth in numbers? About effective methods and techniques which we have employed? About being leaders in various areas of church work? About the progress in contributions, often comparing ourselves with others? Are we building God’s temple? Surely there is nothing wrong in mentioning num- bers and growth. The Bible does it when speaking of the growth of the church, but it gives the Lord all the credit and glory for the increase. Not we but God builds His church. When we speak of it, may we learn to say “by God’s grace,” “under God’s gracious blessings.” In all of it let us ever remember that we are merely instruments whom God deigns to use. The Lord knows how weak and sinful and unworthy we are. When we review our life and our work, must we not confess that we have often failed most miserably? As people whom Christ redeemed we should not live unto ourselves but unto Him who bought us with His staggering sacrifice on Golgotha. I have reference to the sanctification, the personal godliness, which should characterize our life. Oh, what horrible failures stare at us! Not one of us has been as faithful, eager, consecrated, and aggressive in this service as God has a right to expect of us. In our conversation, yes, in our whole life and conduct, we should be living witnesses unto Christ. The early Christians were such witnesses. The enemies said to the apostles: “Behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine” (Acts 5:28). On another occasion they said: “These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.” (Acts 17:6) What would happen to our communities if every member were a living witness unto Christ? What would happen in our congregations, in our Districts, in our Synod if every member were wholeheartedly interested in the work of the church at home and abroad? The deeper we enter into the matter, the more we shall realize that we have every reason to approach this convention with contrite and penitent hearts: con- trite hearts, that is, hearts stricken with sorrow on account of our sins; penitent because God permits us to approach Him with a prayer for forgiveness and as- sures us that with Christ’s blood He cleanses us from all our sins. Another attitude of heart which should be very apparent today is a renewed and genuine loyalty to God’s Word. God told Israel that He would look to “this man,” even to him that “trembleth at My Word.” The whole context shows that God wanted a people to whom His Word was a matter of supreme importance, a people who respected and revered it above everything else, a people who would cling to it and defend it against all attacks. Friends and co-workers, our beloved Synod was organized 115 years ago. Anyone at all acquainted with the history of that seemingly very lowly event, accom- panied by ridicule on the part of liberal church people who predicted that such an orthodox church body was doomed to dismal failure—I say, anyone acquainted with that history knows that our fathers trembled at God’s Word.