LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 2004, Page 119

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RESOLUTIONS
1. Missions
To Affirm Mission 21st Century Response
to Great Commission
RESOLUTION 1-01A
R1-8-01 (CW, pp. 17−22); Overtures 1-15−19 (CW, pp.
136−138)
WHEREAS, God’s desire is that all be saved (1 Tim. 2:4)
only under the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12); and
WHEREAS, Our Lord has given to all who are baptized
the opportunity and responsibility to spread the Gospel
(2 Cor. 3:2–3) as part of the priesthood of all believers, declaring the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness into His wonderful light (1 Pet. 2:9); and
WHEREAS, The apostle Paul demonstrated both boldness
and compassion for those without Christ in a foreign culture (Acts 17:16ff); and
WHEREAS, From the time of the Reformation, Lutherans
have understood that the Lord’s mission is to make disciples
of all nations (Matt. 28:18–20), and, as such, the Lutheran
faith has been a confessional faith in mission; and
WHEREAS, Our Lutheran forebears in coming to the
United States followed the example of Paul on Mars Hill
(Acts 17:16ff) and embraced the opportunity to be faithful
in mission in a new culture; and
WHEREAS, We in the LCMS “believe, teach, and confess
that the primary mission of the church is to make disciples
of every nation by bearing witness to Jesus Christ”
(A Statement of Scriptural and Confessional Principles, p.
2), as demonstrated not only in the 72 countries in which
we have been involved in mission outreach but also in the
recent outreach efforts of Pentecost 2000 resulting in 1,000plus new cross-cultural ministries in North America; and
WHEREAS, Just as Paul and our Lutheran forebears saw
and responded to the culture of their day through faithfulness to God and His mission, we too are presented today
with opportunities to continue in faithfulness by witnessing in new cultures, among diverse people groups, and to a
society that does not recognize that there is no hope of eternal salvation apart from Jesus Christ; and
WHEREAS, Our convention theme, One Mission—Ablaze!,
sets before us God’s deep desire and passion to bring salvation to all people (Is. 49:6b) calling us to act urgently in
sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ “in Jerusalem, and
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth”
(Acts 1:8); therefore be it
Resolved, That the LCMS, acting in convention, boldly
affirms that, in faithful response to the Great Commission
and understanding our Lord’s unchanging promise to always be with us (Matt. 28:20), we must be confessional and
mission-minded in a world that continues to change; and
be it further
Resolved, That the Synod, acting in convention, affirms
the historical Lutheran understanding of the priesthood of
all believers that God, through the work of His Son by the
power of the Holy Spirit, has made all believers “a royal

Committee 1 Chairman Paul Sieveking

priesthood” to “declare the praises of Him who called you
out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1 Pet. 2:9); and
be it further
Resolved, That each congregation and school within our
Synod, seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance through prayer
and a determined study of the Scriptures, understands that
it is a mission outpost to all of the unchurched “in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends
of the earth” (Acts 1:8); and be it further
Resolved, That fulfilling God’s mission today requires
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod to expand the work
we have been doing in numerous cultures and among various people groups, to witness in various languages, and to
engage the unchurched society with a clear confession of
Jesus; and be it finally
Resolved, That fulfilling God’s mission today requires all
entities of the church to prepare individuals to learn the
cultures and languages around us in order to equip all the
saints (Eph. 4:12) for mission and discipleship in our current age, so that all honor and glory is afforded our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ who grows His church (1 Cor. 3:6)
as souls lost, are won by knowing that there is only one
name under heaven by which one may be saved and that is
the name of Jesus Christ (Phil. 2:9–11).
Action: Adopted (2)
(During discussion, a motion to amend the resolution by replacing the words be confessional and mission-minded with the
words continue to be in the first resolve failed. The resolution was
adopted as presented by the committee [Yes: 947; No: 280].)

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2004 Convention Proceedings