LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 196

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196 THEOLOGY AND CHURCH RELATIONS

and that Christ will not soon return to set up some earthly king-
dom; and be it further

Resolved. That the LCMS declares that no man knows when
Jesus Christ will return to judge the world (Mark 13:32; 2 Peter
3:10; Matt. 24:27).

Trinity. New Haven, MO; Washington Circuit, Missouri
District

3-144

To Require LCMS Theologians to Affirm Direct
Messianic Prophecy

WHEREAS, Many today deny that the Bible contains direct recti-
linear prophecies; and

Wuereas, David writes in Ps. 16:8, 10: “I always keep the
Lorb before Me. With Him at My right hand, I can’t fail. That is
why My heart is glad, and My soul is delighted. Also my body rests
securely because You will not leave Me in the grave or let Your
loved One experience decay”: and

WHEREAS, St. Peter, under the inspiration of God the Holy
Spirit, writes that David is here not speaking about himself but only
about Jesus Christ. Peter says in Acts 2:29-34:

Fellow Jews. I can tell you frankly our ancestor David died
and was buried and his grave is here to this day. He was a
prophet and knew God had sworn to him to put one of his de-
scendants on his throne. David saw what was ahead and said the
promised Christ would rise again: He was not deserted when He
was dead. and His body did not experience decay. God has
raised this Jesus—we’re all witnesses of that. Lifted up to God’s
right side and receiving from the Father the promised Holy
Spirit, He has poured out what you see and hear. David didn’t
20 up to heaven, but he says."The Lord says to my Lord: ‘Sit at
My right till I make Your enemies Your footstool’;

and

WHEREAS, The Concordia Self-Study Bible (NIV) says that
David in Ps. 16:8-10 contradicts Peter and says that David in
Psalm 16 as in all other places is first of all speaking about him-
self; and

WHEREAS, LCMS President A. L. Barry in his book To the Ends
of the Earth, in a section titled “Peter Proclaims Prophecy Ful-
filled” (p. 105), supports what Peter says and not what the Concor-
dia Self-Study Bible says; therefore be it

Resolved, That the 1998 convention of the LCMS ask all LCMS
theologians to agree with Peter that in Ps. 16:8-10 David is refer-
ring to Jesus Christ and not to himself.

Trinity. New Haven, MO; Washington Circuit, Missouri
District

3-145

To Prepare Detailed Position Statement
on Church-Growth Movement

Wuereas. The presence of the church-growth movement in the
Synod is a reality today; and

WHEREAS, Fine confessional and scriptural statements on the
church-growth movement have been made by Professor Marquart
and others in the Synod, but the questions raised by the movement
remain among us: and

WHEREAS. The Synod has provided a way in which doctrinal
questions can be resolved; therefore be it

Resolved, That we request Concordia Theological Seminary,
Fort Wayne, to develop a doctrinal statement that sets forth in
greater detail the correct biblical approach on the church-growth
movement to become an official position of The Lutheran
Church-—Missouri Synod according to all appropriate Bylaws.

St. John
Waterbury, CT

3-146

To Oppose Evolution and Commend Creation Research
Society and Dr. Walter Lang

WuHereEasS, The theory of evolution, the notion that man and the
universe gradually evolved from primary substances, is taught as
fact in many schools, publications, and churches; and

Wuereas, The Creation Research Society, an organization of
several hundred scientists with graduate degrees in various fields
of science, says in its statement of belief:

1. The Bible is the written Word of God and because it is in-
spired throughout, all its assertions are historically and scientifi-
cally true in all the original autographs. To the student of nature
this means that the account of origins in Genesis is a factual pre-
sentation of simple historical truths.

2. All basic types of living things, including man, were made
by direct creative acts of God during the creation week described in
Genesis. Whatever biological changes have occurred since the cre-
ation week have accomplished only changes within the original
created kinds.

3. The great Flood described in Genesis, commonly referred to
as the Noachian Flood, was a historic event worldwide in its ex-
tent and effect.

4. We are an organization of Christian men of science who ac-
cept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. The account of the special
creation of Adam and Eve as one man and woman and their subse-
quent fall into sin is the basis for our belief in the necessity of a
Savior for all mankind. Therefore, salvation can come and through
accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior: and

WHEREAS, Such members of Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod congregations as Dr. Walter Lammerts, Dr. John Klotz. Dr.
Paul Zimmerman, Dr. David Kaufmann. Dr. Wilbert Rusch, Dr.
John Grebe, Dr. Raymond Surburg, and others were either instru-
mental in the formation of this statement of belief of the Creation
Research Society or have expressed agreement with it; and

WHEREAS, Almost all major Protestant denominations and the
Roman Catholic Church allow their clergymen and professors to
promote evolution and none have expressed agreement with the
statement of belief of the Creation Research Society; and

WuereaS, Dr. Walter Lang for more than 35 years has vigor-
ously promoted creation and opposed macroevolution; and

Wuereas, Brian Young, an LCMS school teacher, has recently
published Doubts about Creation—Not After This!, a book which
defends the scriptural account of creation and answers the argu-
ments of evolutionists; and

WHEREAS, The Bible (Matt. 19:4; Gen. 1:24—-27; Ex. 20:11: Ps.
33:6, 9: Rom. 5:12-17; 1 Cor. 15:39) affirms the doctrine of cre-
ation and the historicity of the Genesis account of creation: and

WHEREAS, The Lutheran Confessions affirm creation and leave
no room for evolution; and

WHEREAS, The LCMS’s Brief Statement declares:

Of Creation

5. We teach that God has created heaven and earth. and that in
the manner and in the space of time recorded in the Holy Scrip-
tures. especially Gen. | and 2, namely by His almighty creative
word, and in six days. We reject every doctrine which denies or
limits the work of creation as taught in Scripture. In our days it is
denied or limited by those who assert, ostensibly in deference to
science, that the world came into existence through a process of
evolution; that is, that it has. in immense periods of time, devel-
oped more or less out of itself. Since no man was present when it
pleased God to create the world, we must look for a reliable ac-
count of creation to God’s own record, found in God*s own book.
the Bible. We accept God’s own record with full confidence and
confess with Luther’s Catechism: “I believe that God has made me
and all creatures”; therefore be it

Resolved, That the 1998 convention of the LCMS commend the
Creation Research Society and express agreement with its state-