# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_September 1855_S257
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

How Are Truly Lutheran Congregations Established and Nurtured? 257

Lehre und Wehre.

Volume I. September 1855. No. 9.

(Submitted by Prof. Dr. Sihler.)

How Are Truly Lutheran Congregations Established
and Nurtured?

Second Article.

Thus far we have dealt with genuinely Lutheran—that is, orthodox—church preaching, which is undeniably the most important and foremost means of establishing and building truly Lutheran congregations; for through it, justifying faith is planted, preserved, and increased in the hearts of willing hearers, and from this faith springs true godliness of conduct.

But since not only the congregation as a whole, but also every individual soul, has been entrusted by the Lord to the faithful guardianship and care of the servant of the church, the second most important part of his official duties is this: as a faithful and wise steward, according to the will and ordinance of the heavenly Master of the house in His Word, he must give each member of the household his due portion. That is, directly and indirectly, he must provide him from the inexhaustible and all-sufficient storehouse of bread and treasure, armory, and pharmacy of Holy Scripture with whatever he particularly needs according to his spiritual necessity, whether doctrine or reproof, correction or training in righteousness, or comfort, so that, insofar as it depends on him and his ministry, each of his church members may become complete, equipped for every good work, and finally attain eternal salvation.

In doing so, he must first and always keep before his soul that every sheep and lamb entrusted to his faithful pasturing and guidance is the threefold possession of the triune God: created by the Father, redeemed by the Son, and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. He must especially remember that the Chief Shepherd paid for each individual one, just as fully as for them all, the precious ransom of all His holy divine blood in order to snatch it from the jaws of the hellish wolf, no matter how repellent, crude, and misshapen it may outwardly appear. If he himself has experienced in his own heart the saving shepherd’s love of his Lord and Savior, after penitently recognizing himself in the mirror of the Law as the chief of sinners, indeed as a Barabbas