LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1986, Sheet 117

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116 OTHER PRESENTATIONS

Second, I wish to express appreciation to friends who
supported me in the election, and to my friends who did
not.

Third, I recall those immortal words of Casey Stengel,
perhaps a lay delegate from the Atlantic District: “It ain't
over ’til it’s over.” On the one hand, by God’s grace and
patience, Christians still have time to tell of the one thing
needful to the unchurched. On the other hand, for me, my
service to the Synod is now “over.” I thank God for these
opportunities to serve in so many ways.

Finally, for all of you, beloved in Christ, “The Lord
watch between thee and me when we are absent one from
another.” For my wife, Joyce, and myself, with no plans
for the immediate future, the verse given me at Confir-
mation means more than ever, as, I am sure, your’s does,
too, as time goes by: “Commit thy way unto the Lord, trust
also in Him, and He will bring it to pass.”

Thank you and good-bye.

Robert Sauer, D.D.

13. Remarks of the Chairman of the Council of Presidents

The matters to which President Bohimann referred are
matters of deep concern also to the Council of Presidents—
the group elected by the Synod to perform a pastoral func-
tion and to be concerned, together with the President of
the Synod, with the supervision of doctrine and practice
in the church. The council met briefly last evening, to talk
about how we might strengthen our walking together, es-
pecially in the way we speak about one another, and in
the way we make decisions which affect how the Synod
functions in carrying out its God-given mission.

The council is well aware of the deep feelings and the
sensitivities prevalent among so many at this convention
and indeed throughout the Synod. I want you to know that
we prayed about it together and agreed that it must receive
careful and serious attention. And because of that, we
agreed that we should not try to make any kind of “off the
cuff” statement. We did agree that we will give this whole
matter thorough discussion and prayer at our September
meeting, and we pray that we will be able to speak a helpful
and edifying word to the Synod at that time. And I believe
we have a right to ask every brother and sister in this hall
to pray for us as we attempt to do that.

For now, let me speak this word of concern and love on
behalf of the council.

Brothers and sisters, we have such a great God, who
has loved us with such a great love, who has laid upon us
such a great privilege, who has called us into such a great
fellowship, and who has promised us such a great blessing.
Each of us, in response to that great God, can only search
his or her own heart of hearts, and, laying aside every
impure or unkind thought or desire, only pray, “Lord, what

wilt Thou have me to do?” We would urge and plead by
the mercies of God that we address this serious problem
together, not as sides seeking victory or control, but as
members of one body—in Christ, concerned only about how
we can best serve one another and the loving Father, to
whom we belong.

The Scriptures remind us that there is a time for a
variety of things. We believe that this is the time—for the
sake of our response to the mercies of God, for the sake of
expressing the oneness to which God has called us, and
for the sake of our witness to the world, to commit our-
selves to a number of things.

It’s a time to search our own hearts without struggling
to gouge out the speck in our brother’s eye, and without
playing games of comparing one man’s sin with the sin of
another; to simply and humbly bow and lay bare our hearts
before the Father and plead: God be merciful to me, the
chief of sinners.

It’s a time to start from strength, recognizing that we
have strength only in the forgiveness of sins, and claiming
that strength to learn how to trust one another.

It’s a time to commit ourselves—everyone of us, starting
with the one who speaks these words, to build up one an-
other, to speak well of one another, to encourage one an-
other, to support and edify one another, because only then
can the body grow into a holy temple for the Lord.

It’s a time to agree that if we feel that a brother or sister
needs correction, that we will talk—in love—to that
brother or sister, not about them.

It’s a time to remind ourselves that the enemy with
whom we do battle is Satan, not brothers or sisters with