# LCMS Convention Workbook_St. Louis Missouri_2001_S448 # Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration) 448 ADDITIONAL THEOLOGICAL DOCUMENTS AND REPORTS—OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT We can agree with Church Growth experts on such things as the need for plenty of free parking, which is merely an acknowl- edgment of the importance of transportation technology in con- temporary American culture. Teaching is theological. lf there are no moral absolutes, if God’s Word is not objectively true, if religion is no more than a private, interior consolation with no reference to a transcendent, universal reality—as today’s culture tends to believe—then Christianity is completely invalid. The teaching of the church, in this cultural cli- mate, must be more thorough, more intentional, and more wide- ranging than ever. The Great Commission says to “make disciples of al] nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” (Matthew 28: 19) The Greek word for “disciple” includes the sense of being a student; the text is rigorously sacramental, em- phasizing both Baptism and Christ’s real presence in the church; and it stresses the necessity of teaching “everything” in God’s Word, as Jesus said: “If you continue in My Word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free.”(John 8:31-32) The key to how well the church thrives in today’s culture is surely in how well and how thoroughly the church teaches. This is not a time to cut back church membership classes to one Saturday afternoon, as some are doing. This is not a time to turn Bible classes and the Sunday School into “sharing times,” rather than training in God’s Word. This is not a time to minimize doctrine, morality and discernment of error. Rather, the church must pay new attention to catechesis, not only of young people and new members but of the whole congregation struggling to live as Christians in a non-Christian culture. Lutheran Evangelism in American Culture THE CHURCH GROWS IN NUMBERS through evangelism, when unbelievers hear the Good News of Jesus and receive the gift of faith. This is the work of the Holy Spirit operating through the Means of Grace. Calling into question certain fea- tures of the Church Growth Movement should by no means lessen our churches’ commitment to evangelize the lost. The Reformation under the leadership of Martin Luther emphasized how God pro- vides the growth of His church through the Word and the Sacra- ments. “The Holy Spirit does not come without the Word,” he wrote, “but He wants to come through the harp, that is, through meditation on the Word or through the voices of father, mother, or others. Otherwise, the devil comes.” (SL 2, 263) Luther was so convinced of the power of the Spirit working through the Word that he explained the meaning of the Third Arti- cle of the Apostles’ Creed in those terms: “I believe that J cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me with the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.” (Small Catechism) The Lutheran Confessions emphasize what causes true growth. Speaking of the Gospel and the Sacraments, the Augsburg Confes- sion says, “Through these, as through means, He [God] gives the Holy Spirit. who works faith, when and where He pleases, in those who hear the Gospel.” (Article V) In America, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod from the beginning was evangelistically-minded, emphasizing how God pro- vides growth in the church through Word and Sacrament. C. F. W. Walther, one of the key founders and the first president of the LCMS, wrote, “The congregation should join in the work of bring- ing the Gospel to those who still sit in darkness and in the shadow 2001 Convention Workbook of death.” (The Proper Form of an Evangelical Lutheran Congre- gation Independent of the State, Thesis 65) Reflecting upon our Synod’s past and future, a pastor said over forty years ago, “In addition to the responsibility of keeping safe every soul in the church for the Lord Jesus, the church also has the responsibility to conduct an effective soul-winning program.” God has truly blessed The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. as we have used His Word and Sacraments. We now have more than 2.5 million members in more than 6,000 congregations and students in more than |,000 schools—the largest parochial school system of all Protestant churches. We have two seminaries that are preparing men of God who proclaim the clear Word of God. Today our Synodical president, Dr. A. L. Barry, is encouraging our entire church body to “Tell the Good News About Jesus” in the years 2000 to 2010. He put it this way at the Synod’s 1998 con- vention: “As we move into the final years of this present century, and the opening years of the next, we are going. with great zeal, reach out to those around us who do not know Jesus Christ and the Good News of His salvation. And we are going to do it with untir- ing vigor in the Lord.” The Synod in convention wholeheartedly adopted the outreach emphasis of “Tell the Good News About Jesus.” There could not be a better theme and motive for a church body that believes and practices that God causes His growth through the means that He has given us, the Word and Sacraments. These means do, in fact, bring people to faith, as they have for centuries. Dire warnings that churches will “die” unless new and questionable methods are employed cast doubt upon God’s faith- fulness and His active work in bringing sinners to Himself. We do not need anything new or unique to cause growth; God can and will grow His church by the means God has given the church. Conclusion Tell the Good News About Jesus! APOSTLES, PASTORS AND PEOPLE HAVE BEEN doing that ever since Pentecost. When persecution scattered the first be- lievers, “those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.” (Acts 8:4) This has been the consistent pattern also in The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Blessed by God with fidelity to His saving Word and dedication to His mis- sion for more than 150 years, our passion continues to be “Tell the Good News About Jesus!” To be practical, that comes down to you in your daily life within the home and society, and to your local congregation as the church in the world. Pastors and congregation leaders should jointly study this report, seeking to bring their con- gregation’s worship life and outreach into harmony with Scripture and our Lutheran Confessions. Then out of loyalty to Christ and Jove for the lost, each congregation must explore new opportuni- ties to tell the Good News, asking such questions as: * How can we bring the secular world to the church without secu- larizing the church? ¢ What opportunities do we have to “teach (all nations) all things” in our community? ¢ What classes can we offer our community, and in what new loca- tions that will reach the hearts and lives of people with the Gospel? * How can we train members to be sponsors for inquirers, accom- panying them to adult catechetical classes and serving as mentors in Christian faith and life? * What locations in our community lend themselves to distribution of Christian tracts, books and literature? * How can we develop and publicize a web site for our church that is not only attractive, but also informative and invites contact with us?