LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1977, Page 87

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87

ESSAY AND BIBLE STUDY

Rev. Samuel H. Nafzger presented the essay on “That We May Grow.” Bible studies relating
especially to the essay were conducted from Sunday through Thursday. Discussion leaders were Dr.
Guido Merkens, Rev. DeWitt P. Robinson, Rev. Dale E. Griffin, Dr. Richard J. Schultz. In addition to
the Sunday morning Bible study four morning hours, from 10:00 to 11:00, were set aside for
searching the Scriptures. The basis of the ible study was the First Epistle of St. Peter.

“That We May Grow ...’’

Introduction

“As newborn infants, yearn for the pure milk of the
Word that you may grow unto salvation by it” (1 Peter
2:2).

These words come from the pen of a man who knew
what he was talking about. Peter was the apostle who
must have thought more than once that he had moved
beyond the basic ABCs of the Christian religion. Peter,
you will recall, was the apostle who left his nets to follow
Jesus (Matt. 4:20). So great was his faith that he could
literally walk on water (Matt. 14:29); so keen was his
insight that he could confess to Jesus, “Thou art the
Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16); so great
was his love for his Savior that on the night of his
betrayal he could boast “Even though all may fall away
because of You, I will never fall away” (Matt. 26:33), and,
“Even if I must die with You, I will not deny You” (Matt.
26:35); so fearless was he that on the day of Pentecost he
could say to the face of his enemies: “Men of Israel, listen
to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to
you by God with miracles and wonders and signs... you
nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put
Him to death” (Acts 2:22-23).

But of course we know that this tells only half of the
story of Peter. For the author of these words was the
same man who, when he saw the wind and the waves,
began to sink into the sea (Matt. 14:30), who only
moments after his glorious confession of Christ rejected
the idea of a suffering Savior and had to be rebuked by
Jesus with the words “Get behind Me, Satan! You area
stumbling block to Me” (Matt. 16:23), who denied his
Lord three times before the cock crowed once (Matt.
26:74), and who even after Pentecost had to be opposed
by the apostle Paul because of his willingness to
compromise the freedom of the Gospel out of fear for “the
party of the circumcision” (Gal. 2:12).

Constancy was not Peter’s strong suit. His greatness
lies not in his steadfastness of character but rather in
the One to whom he turned. Peter’s strength lay in the
One who was always waiting to receive him and forgive
him following his failures. As he was sinking into the
waves, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” (Matt. 14:30).
Following the denial of his Savior, we are told that he
“went out and wept bitterly” in genuine repentance for
his sin. And if tradition is to be trusted, it was only
perhaps a few months after he wrote his epistles that he
suffered a martyr’s death, crucified upside down at his
own request since he did not deem himself worthy to die
in the same manner as his Lord.

It is from the words of this man—sinner and saint—
that the theme for this convention comes. St. Peter
writes in his first epistle: “As newborn infants, yearn for

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the pure milk of the Word that you may grow unto
salvation by it” (1 Peter 2:2). So THAT WE MAY GROW,
let us follow the apostle’s inspired advice during these
days of the 52nd regular convention of The Lutheran
Church—Missouri Synod. Just as newborn babies are
greedy for the sustenance of their mother’s milk, the
means of their physical growth and development, let
also us with the same enthusiasm be hungry for the pure
milk of the Word, the source of our growth in Christ
Jesus. .

—so THAT WE who are gathered herein Dallas MAY
GROW in our personal faith in Christ Jesus;

—so That We May Grow in appreciation for God’s
rich blessings to us in our Lutheran heritage;

—so That We May Grow in zeal and enthusiasm for
sharing the life-giving Word of the Gospel;

—so That We May Grow in the ability to identify,
discuss, and resolve the theological issues that
trouble us;

—so That We May Grow in peace and concord in our
own midst.

We are going to take time out each morning from the
deliberation of the resolutions before this convention in
order to study the pure milk of God’s Word. Under the
direction of Bible study leaders we shall examine
selected sections of St. Peter’s First Epistle. You will be
given an opportunity to discuss these portions of God’s
Word with those sitting around you on the basis of
questions printed in your Convention Guide. In coor-
dination with our Bible study we shall also devote a
portion of our time each day to a doctrinal essay. In this
essay we have chosen not to take up a technical
discussion of some esoteric topic, nor do we propose to
attempt to “break new ground” in constructive theology.
Rather we have decided to devote our time to a review of
one of the basics of our Christian faith, a basic which

Rev. Samuel Nafzger, Essayist