LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1973, Page 7

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7. PARISH SERVICES AND YOUTH

7-01
Report of Board of Parish Education

The Commitment: “Ever, Only, All for Thee!”

“Ever, Only, All for Thee.” —A commitment present in bap-
tism, a goal for all of life, a reality in the death of a Christian.

“Ever, Only, All for Thee” —the goal of Christian education.

“Ever, Only, All for Thee” —the atmosphere in which Chris-
tian teachers and learners interact.

“Ever, Only, All for Thee” —the context in which the Board
of Parish Education has viewed its work since the 1971 conven-
tion.

At baptism every Christian is commissioned a missionary —
a witness to the Christian faith. The task of Christian education
is to equip the Christian for this high calling. The individual,
the calling, the commitment have been the focal point of another
2 years of work by the members and staff of the Board of Parish
Education. Conscious that God’s judgment and grace intersect
with every aspect of existence, and conscious of the basic com-
mitment ‘Ever, Only, All for Thee,” the Board of Parish Educa-
tion has built its work around the 10 specific commitments articu-
lated in this report.

I. THE BOARD OF PARISH EDUCATION IS
COMMITTED TO EDUCATION THAT IS CHRISTIAN

The Context

All education has a religious dimension in that the learner
is directed either toward or away from God. He is equipped for
service which will either honor God’s name or profane it. Ulti-
mately all education seeks salvation—either by works or by
grace. And so the education that takes place all around us has
eternal dimensions. In this context the church is called to teach
—to provide an education that is Christian.

The Gospel Orientation

Christian education is rooted in the Gospel. Every other type
of education is Law-oriented, while Christian education centers
in the good news of the forgiveness of God through His Son
Jesus Christ. Where there is no Gospel, Christian education
doesn’t happen. Where Law and Gospel are properly under-
stood and used, with due emphasis on the Gospel, Christian
education can take place.

The Teacher

The Gospel influence goes beyond words. It is evident in
the love, the warmth, the acceptance, the forgiveness expressed
by the teacher—and by the learners one for another. That is
why relationships are so important in Christian education.
While the Word of Reconciliation has power within itself, this
Word is communicated by the Spirit through the words, actions,
attitude, and touch of the Christian teacher. Modern emphasis
on the person of the Christian teacher finds its model in the
Master Teacher, who was both the medium and the message of
God’s great plan for mankind.

The Process

Beyond the teacher, yet largely dependent on the teacher,
is the process. Christian education is a basic process in renewal
of the church. This process requires more than just active teach-
ers and passive learners, much more than just passively accept-
ing a body of knowledge into one’s consciousness. Where Chris-
tian education is really taking place, one will find a process of
mutual sharing, of dialogue, of discovery, of questions and an-
swers, of individual and group activity, of laughter and tears,
of confessing sins and of hearing absolution. Because the Spirit
of God is always present in true Christian education, the process
is alive, vibrant, powerful not only in the content but also in the
process.

The Content

Christian education is rooted in the Word. It is dependent
on the Word. This Word is the inspired Holy Scriptures. This
Word is the Word made flesh, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
This content is wide, is deep, is complex, is simple. All of God’s
truth forms the content of the curriculum. And since in Christ

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are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, Christ
himself is the central content of all education that is worthy of
the name Christian. The Board of Parish Education is deeply
concerned that the Word be the content.

That kind of education—Gospel centered, Christian in word
and in person, experienced in Spirit-directed processes, and
rooted in the Word—is the education to which the Board of
Parish Education is committed.

Il. THE BOARD OF PARISH EDUCATION IS
COMMITTED TO CHRISTIAN EDUCATION FOR ALL
PEOPLE OF ALL AGES

Jesus Invites Everyone

In the Scriptural account of Jesus’ life and work, nothing is
more apparent than Jesus’ love for all people, children and
adults, church leaders and followers. The woman taken in
adultery was as important to Him as Nicodemus, the law-abiding
member of the Jewish Council. In feeding the five thousand, He
fed them all, adults and children. The children whom He took
into His arms for a special personal blessing were equally im-
portant with the adults whom He taught individually or in
groups. In the Great Commission He included young and old.
After His resurrection, in reinstating Peter, Jesus commanded
him ‘Feed My lambs,” “Feed My sheep,” young and old.

Our Lord Jesus is still sending out His invitation “Come to
Me, all of you” (Matt. 11:28) through His church. His concern
continues for all people. No one is to be left out. His promise of
rest and forgiveness is for all. He knows the needs of each of us
and in the good word of His Father's grace He speaks to those
needs.

As Jesus’ love is all-inclusive, so our love is to be all-inclusive,
motivated by our love for Him.

The Objective of Christian Education Includes Everyone

As we listen to the Word of Christ and trust Him for the for-
giveness of our sins and eternal life, our role becomes obvious.
Our task is to proclaim His invitation so that people in every cir-
cumstance and condition of life may listen and understand His
message. He reveals the Father’s anger over our sin. He shows
the Father’s love that alone redeems and restores us to life
eternal. He is our hope now and always. All things become
possible to us when we live through faith in Christ Jesus.

The Synod’s Board of Parish Education participates in
Christ’s work through its ministry of God’s Word among all
people, as does the entire Synod. We are committed to excellence
in Christian education for all adults. youth. and children, always
mindful of their needs and interests as individuals. We have
tried to say this in our goal:

that, through the Word and Spirit of God, the
individual may know God, especially His
seeking and forgiving love in Christ,
may respond in faith
and grow up into Christian maturity;

and that as the individual sees himself a reconciled
redeemed child of God and member of Christ’s
body, the church, he may live happily in peace
with God, himself, and his fellowmen,

and may express his joy in worship of God
and in loving service to others:

and that in love of God he may value all of God’s
creative work in His world and church,
may participate actively in God’s mission
to the church and the world,

and live in the Christian hope.

“Something for everyone!” Sound like an advertising gim-
mick for an amusement park or a discount department store?
Not this time. Rather, a brief description of the process by which
the church selects priorities for its ministries. Our task is to plan
how best to devote our God-bestowed gifts to serving the needs
of people that they may see and believe and share their faith
with others.

The "Everyone Whom We Serve Is Really EVERYONE

In the worship services, in the average schoolroom or re-
ligion class, the “everyone” is largely the normal, responsive