# Synodical Conference Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1916_S32
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

32 Proceedings of the twenty-sixth convention

congregations were perfect; we know well that in the doctrine and life of our congregations there is still much to lament, at which the Lord has and can have no pleasure, which we seek to improve; but this we may say, that in our congregations God's Word is still a power, that people stand in awe of God's Word, that the congregations still let themselves be led and governed by God's Word and thereby by God's Spirit. So we may say: Thank God, we still have the full, rich inheritance of the Reformation, the pure, clear Gospel in doctrine and practice!

And precisely from this it now follows that our Church in this country is quite especially called to wage an earnest, tireless struggle against the papacy, which wants to rob the Church again of these unspeakable goods. Gratitude toward God already obliges us to it. That we have received these goods, on which life and salvation hang for us human beings, that we still possess them today, we owe to our God alone. He gave them to us, he has preserved them to us down to this day. If it had depended on us, on our strength and willingness to keep the Gospel, we should long since have lost it, long since have given it up for false doctrine or utter unbelief. We all know that. And what moved God to preserve for us these glorious goods, so necessary to us? Perhaps our merit and worthiness? We know it was solely his fatherly, divine goodness and mercy. We have deserved that God should long since have taken his Word from us again. How often have we too held his Word, which is after all the highest treasure, more precious than gold and much fine gold, in low esteem! How often did we feel loathing at this light food, and longingly looked toward the wisdom of this world, which so often goes about so gloriously adorned, and we began to be ashamed of this divine wisdom, which counts as foolishness to the high, scholarly world and yet makes all the wisdom of this world foolishness. How often has the wish also arisen among us, for the sake of a false peace, for the sake of a so-called love, to let go this or that piece of heavenly truth! And above all, how little we have sometimes let this Word enter our life, and have found in its promises, which stand firmer than mountains and rocks, the only and also sure comfort and support in the distress of our sins! How little have we sometimes followed its admonitions and directions, but have rather murmured against them in secret! It need not be demonstrated to us at length that, if God had wanted to deal with us according to our merit, he would long since have had to take his Word from us again. It is his eternal mercy, which surpasses all thought, it is his unfathomable love, his grace in Christ, which