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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2026, Page 283

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

NATIONAL WITNESS
Resolved, That the district in convention direct its circuit visitors
to include program time during a minimum of one circuit meeting
each year to discuss outreach; and be it further
Resolved, That the district direct the evangelism executive to
resource a self-assessment tool that will be sent to the evangelism
chair (or equivalent) in each congregation in order to facilitate
congregations taking serious and realistic stock of how often and
how well they employ recurring parish education opportunities
(including, but not limited to, Bible and catechism classes, youth
ministry, retreats, etc.) to teach church members key witnessing
skills (e.g., listening discerningly to unchurched people, beginning
a spiritual conversation, making a simple statement of the Gospel,
defending the resurrection), including the provision of opportunity
to practice such skills; and be it finally
Resolved, That the district in convention memorialize the Synod
to do the same as the above at the 2026 Synod convention.
Oklahoma District
Ov. 1-12

To Confront Increased Idolatry of Our Culture
with Clear Confession of Love of Christ and
Lutheran Resources in Christian Apologetics
WHEREAS, The Ten Commandments as revealed to us in Exodus
20 and Deuteronomy 5 begin with the commandment “You shall
have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3 and Deut. 5:7); and
WHEREAS, The propensity of the sinful nature is to engage in
both self-sufficiency and relativism as described of Israel in Judges
21:25, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes”; and
WHEREAS, Sinful blindness and corruption is beyond the
understanding of human reason as put forth in Jeremiah 17:9, “The
heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can
understand it?”; and
WHEREAS, The heart without Christ accepts idols (false gods) by
making the person who accepts them like them as taught in Psalm
115:8, “Those who make them become like them; so do all who
trust in them”; and
WHEREAS, The Church is commanded by our Lord Jesus Christ
to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19) through holy Baptism
and teaching; and
WHEREAS, The Word of God includes apologetics (true and
rational defense) in the scope of biblical teaching as Saint Paul
described in 2 Corinthians 10:4–6: “For the weapons of our warfare
are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds.
We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the
knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,
being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is
complete”; and
WHEREAS, Saint Paul, who was a prolific teacher of the faith and
the saving Gospel acknowledged, “I am put here for the defense of
the gospel” (Phil. 1:16); and
WHEREAS, God commands us in 1 Peter 3:15: “but in your hearts
honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a
defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in
you; yet do it with gentleness and respect”; and
WHEREAS, God admonishes the Church “to contend for the faith
that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3); and

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WHEREAS, The Small Catechism (SC) instructs us that it is only
the Holy Spirit who calls us by the Gospel and “calls, gathers,
enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and
keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith” (SC II, Third
Article); and we acknowledge the primacy of the Holy Spirit’s work
and His use of the proclamation of the Gospel in conversion, and
we also acknowledge the secondary, but helpful, application of
clear biblical teaching in respect to apologetics in the face of
cultural idolatry; and
WHEREAS, Christian apologetics properly employed by the
Church serves the saving Gospel, especially when it is used to
demonstrate the futility of worldviews contrary to the Gospel and
the importance of rejecting false faiths on the one hand, and when
it supports the historical and empirical (real time and space) status,
objective truth, and urgency of the Gospel itself on the other; and
WHEREAS, The Lutheran Confessions demonstrate the powerful
employment of the ministerial use of reason for refuting falsehood
and presenting the Word of God; and
WHEREAS, The Constitution of the Synod Article III states, “The
Synod, under Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions, shall …
provide a united defense against schism, sectarianism [Rom. 16:17]
and heresy” (Const. Art. III 1); and “Aid congregations by
providing a variety of resources and opportunities for… defending
their confessional unity in the truth faith” (Const. Art. III 6); and
WHEREAS, It is evident that the current cultural tsunami of idols
includes not only false religions (such as Islam, Buddhism,
Hinduism, animism, and paganism, to name a few) and atheistic
philosophies, but also blatant expressions of satanism, demonic
witchcraft, and hedonism; furthermore, there are a host of idols
which have permeated the culture including the use of technology,
the magnification of artificial intelligence, the worldly priority of
career and success, the promotion of addictive states and sloth, the
wholesale affirmation of separating what is created (e.g. the human
body) from the Creator, and the idol of power, especially when it
attempts to nationalize the faith while confusing and melding the
two kingdoms; and
WHEREAS, Because of the permeation of these various forms of
idolatry in the culture, it is important not only to zero in on single
issues, but to have a broader understanding and systematic approach
to cultural idolatry, especially as these have seeped into the fabric
of the three estates: family, congregation, and society; and
WHEREAS, God has graciously provided us with protection from
and empowerment “against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6:11)
and “against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic
powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil
in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12); and
WHEREAS, The Synod has been greatly blessed with broad
resources by the grace of God even in these latter days; therefore be
it
Resolved, That the Synod in convention establish a task force to
survey the details of the forms of idolatry currently extant/common
in the American landscape, identify resources and expertise already
available within our fellowship, and propose next steps to address
this issue; and be it further
Resolved, That we urge all pastors, commissioned ministers, and
congregations of the Synod to pray for the Church as she is
confronted by the cultural idols of our day in such a way that we are
able to specify what these idols are, and more importantly how the

2026 Convention Workbook