LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1977, Page 109

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110 GREETINGS OF THE LCA PRESIDENT

strength really is. It is easy to slip into mistaken notions.
There are forms of strength that are important to earthly
existence but which ought not be allowed to override the
distinctive strength of the church.

The mistake is illustrated in a debate over one of the
hymns for the new hymnal. A very popular hymn, “Rise
Up, O Men of God,” was to be left out. The letters of
protest I received assumed the reason appeared in the
use of the word “men,” which slighted women. That
difficulty was easily remedied by using the word
“saints,” a good word from the New Testament. So the
hymn will begin, “Rise Up, O Saints of God.” But there
was a more fundamental error to be corrected before the
hymn could be accepted, as it eventually was. The care
taken in this instance is a tribute to the theological
seriousness of the Inter-Lutheran Commission on
Worship. The commission took exception to two lines in
the second stanza of the hymn that speak of the church.

Her strength unequal to the task;
Rise up and make her great.

Who can say the church is unequal to her task when the
power of the Holy Spirit of God is working in and
through the church? Who can say that people must rise
up to make the church great? The church is already the
body of Christ and can scarcely become greater than
that. These things can be said only if greatness is
conceived in limited human terms.

There is a more Christian concept of greatness in
another familiar hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our
God.” In the second stanza of that hymn we sing:

Did we in our own strength confide,
Our striving would be losing.

Only because the right man is at our side can we win.
That strength for mission is Jesus Christ Himself.
Without Christ there can be no mission. Without Christ
there can be no church. Without Christ there can be no
strength.

Tom Paine said, “Government grows out of the sins
of people; society grows out of their virtues.” But let us
make no mistake about it, the church grows out of the
grace of God.

So the question is not whether the church will be
great. The question is whether we will be faithful
members of the church and whether we will be God’s
instruments to call others into membership. We may
well remember Christ’s reply on Palm Sunday when
people criticized those who were praising Him. He said,
“If these keep silent, God will raise up from the stones
those to praise.” God could get along without us, but by
His inexplicable grace we are His people.

God relies on a human chain. In the ancient church,
Ignatius in southern France looked back to his teacher
Polycarp in Smyrna. Polycarp looked back to John of
Ephesus, and John looked back to Jesus of Nazareth,
the divine Christ. It is our privilege to be a part of that
chain.

The leader of another denomination put it simply. He
said, “There are only two kinds of people in the world—
those who know God and those who do not.”’ Those who
know must tell those who do not.

The wife of a diplomat from an Asian country,
during a stay in our country, became interested in the
Bible and eventually became a confessing Christian.
She would tell people that she had become a Christian,
and as you might expect, many would reply, “Oh, lam
Christian too.’” She had to say, “Why have you been
keeping it a secret?”

I am pleased that the Missouri Synod has in this
convention an emphasis upon telling the Good News.
We Lutherans have a distinctive responsibility. Our
evangelization is confessionally clear. The Lutheran
Confessions present a true witness to the Scriptures that
exalts their fundamental message. Our use of Luther’s
Small Cathechism is of benefit to young and old.

Our evangelization is congregationally based. We do
not move into a community for a few weeks and then
leave the work to others. The ministry of Word and
sacraments is continuous. As much as we value radio
and television for proclaiming the Gospel—and you in
the Missouri Synod do more than most other
Lutherans—still we know our Lord wants us to enjoy a
face-to-face, personal fellowship in gathered com-
munities. Our congregations are organized so people can
care for each other and care beyond each other. Our
pastors are on the scene available to meet every kind of
need.

Our evangelism is catholic in scope, meant to let the
Gospel penetrate all of life. We work to overcome in our
own personal makeup any dichotomy between worship
and daily life, between church and society, or between
witness and service. There may be several different
social institutions in which we work, but for ourselves
we know there must be an integrity dominated by the
Lordship of the resurrected Christ.

So our evangelization is confessionally clear, con-
gregationally based, and catholic in scope. It is
gratifying to know that you in the Missouri Synod are
dedicated to such evangelization. I pray God’s blessings
upon you and beseech your prayers for your Lutheran
brothers and sisters in the Lutheran Church of America.

Robert J. Marshall, D.D.