LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2004, Page 138

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138 MISSIONS

you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the
truth will set you free”; and

WHEREAS, St. Paul writes of the importance of pure doctrine in
2 Tim. 1: “Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have
heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the
Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted
to you”; and

WHEREAS, St. Paul in Romans 10 writes that faith comes
through Christ’s doctrine: “So faith comes from hearing, and hear-
ing through the word of Christ”; and

WrereAS, Art. VII of the Augsburg Confession states that “The
Church is the congregation of saints, in which the Gospel is rightly
taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered”; and

WHEREAS, The synodical Handbook affirms that both pure doc-
trine and mission work are reasons for joining together as Synod:
“The Synod and its component parts are designed to assist the con-
gregations and their members in conserving and promoting the
unity of the faith and in carrying out their mission and ministry”
(Bylaw 1.05 c); and

WHEREAS, Some voices in Synod hold that Lutheran doctrine
and practice must be compromised in the mission field in order to
ensure success; and

WHEREAS, Some voices in Synod want to pit pure doctrine and
evangelism or pure doctrine and mission work against one another;
therefore be it

Resolved, That the Synod, in convention, affirm the unity of
pure doctrine and true mission work; and be it further

Resolved, That the Synod affirm that the church is the congre-
gation of saints at home and in the mission field where the Gospel
is rightly taught and the Sacraments rightly administered accord-
ing to our Lutheran Confessions.

Zion
Ft. Wayne, IN

1-19

To Be Missional and Confessional
in Postmodern World

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 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 Peter 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 the Lord’s mission to “go,” “baptize” and “teach” all
nations (Matt. 28:18—20) and as such the Lutheran faith has been a
confessional faith in mission; and

WuereasS, Our Lutheran forbearers, 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 na-
tion by bearing witness to Jesus Christ” (Statement of Scriptural
and Confessional Principles, LCMS 50th Regular Convention, July
6-13, 1973) 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 900-plus new
cross-cultural ministries in North America; and

WHEREAS, Just as Paul and our Lutheran forbearers saw and re-
sponded to the culture of their day through faithfulness to God and
His mission, we, too, are presented today with opportunities to con-
tinue in faithfulness by witnessing in new cultures, among diverse

people groups, and to a generation that embraces postmodern
thought; and

WHEREAS, Our convention theme, One Mission—Ablaze!/, sets
before us God’s deep desire and passion to bring salvation to all
people (Isaiah 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 affirm
that, in faithful response to the Great Commission and understand-
ing that our Lord has promised to always be with us (Matt. 28:20),
we must be confessional and missional in a world that continues to
change; and be it further

Resolved, That the Synod, acting in convention, affirms the his-
torical 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 priesthood to declare the
praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful
light” (1 Peter 2:5, 2:9); and be it further

Resolved, That each congregation and school within our Synod,
being led by the Holy Spirit through a determined study of the
Scriptures and prayer, understand that it is a mission outpost to all
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 postmodern cul-
ture; and be it finally

Resolved, That fulfilling God’s mission today requires all enti-
ties 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 a postmodern age, so that all honor and
glory is afforded our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who grows His
church (1 Cor. 3:6) as lost souls are won 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).

Board of Directors
Southeastern District

1-20

To Put High Priority on Missionary Deployment
WHEREAS, Budget reductions have caused the scaling back of
both staff and missionary personnel; and

WHEREAS, As a Synod we recognize the importance of people
who serve the needs of individual souls in mission work at home
and abroad by bringing the Word of God directly to souls that those
people might hear the efficacious and living Word of God unto sal-
vation; therefore be it

Resolved, That the Iowa District East meeting in convention
memorialize the Synod at its next convention to place top and fore-
most priority to funding the work of missionaries first, prior to con-
sideration of adding staff and other administrative support person-
nel who do not have direct contact with those souls that need to
hear the Gospel in a missionary setting both at home and abroad.

Iowa District East

1-21

To Support Mission Outreach

WHEREAS, The Lord of the church has commanded Christians
to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28: 18-20); and

WHEREAS, It is the Lord’s plan that each Christian be a mis-
sionary, and every congregation be a mission congregation; and

WHEREAS, We, as members of The Lutheran Church—Missouri
Synod, celebrate that the Holy Spirit has given His Word and
Sacraments as vehicles by which all people can be called, gathered,
and enlightened in the true faith; and