# Lehre und Wehre_St. Louis Missouri_Februar 1858_S45
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

"Luther or Arndt!" 45

...to proceed after the manner of our master, somewhat bluntly and "unsparingly," that is, in Lutheran-blunt fashion. For surely we may be allowed this much: that we cannot acknowledge the bold, grandiose sally against missions "as the conjurer's bag of the pious spirit of the age" (which we, incidentally, in good Lutheran fashion, take the liberty of calling "throwing the baby out with the bathwater") as a sufficient basis for such an accusation. Therefore we still remain, confidently, in doctrine and practice, with our Luther's general proclamation on the connection between faith and works, which he states so clearly, as follows:

Faith made by one's own powers "does nothing, and no improvement follows it. But faith is a divine work in us, which changes us and gives us new birth from God, John 1:13, and puts to death the old Adam, makes us wholly different people in heart, courage, mind, and powers, and brings the Holy Spirit with it. Oh, it is a living, busy, active, mighty thing, this faith, so that it is impossible for it not to be doing good without ceasing. It does not even ask whether good works are to be done; but before one asks, it has already done them, and is always in the doing. But whoever does not do such works is a faithless man, groping and looking about him for faith and good works, and knowing neither what faith nor good works are, though he babbles and chatters many words about faith and good works. Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain that a man would die a thousand times for it. And such trust and knowledge of divine grace makes one joyful, bold, and merry toward God and all creatures — which is what the Holy Spirit does in faith. From this a person becomes, without compulsion, willing and eager to do good to everyone, to serve everyone, to suffer all manner of things, out of love and praise to God, who has shown him such grace. So it is impossible to separate works from faith — every bit as impossible as separating burning and shining from fire." — Should this bulwark later perhaps be assailed somewhat more earnestly and more keenly, then it shall not be for want of trying on our part to defend our banner — not Arndt, but: Only Luther! — more strenuously in this regard as well. For now we would be ashamed to parade forth facts here needlessly.

But so that these words do not become too many, I will, in closing, only point briefly and from a distance to our other bulwarks against Pietism — be it of the Spener or the Arndt variety. Look at our wars, which we wage in the name of the Lord. It is true among us, as Str. says, "under hard struggles the Gospel has made its way." Or shall we tally them up a little? Our struggling and contending has turned upon the chief articles of our precious confession. One need only look a little at the fourteen volumes of "Der Lutheraner" and the three volumes "of Lehre und Wehre." It concerned the article of justification, against the Methodists, the Jesuits, and Grabau; that of the Church and the Ministry