Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 1973 · 50th Convention › Sheet 479
LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1973, Sheet 479

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

CONTEMPORARY APPROACHES TO BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION 447

wholeheartedly with the Sym-
bols that the Holy Scriptures
are the "final authority"

for theclogy,

Dr. C. F. W. Walther resis-—
ted the idea that the Bible
is the kind of book that
one needs to read "with
constant sharp discrimi-
nation in order not to be
led into error" (Lehre und
Wehre, 1886, p. 76). Echo-
ing the Symbols, he said
"It is written" and added,
"thereby the matter is
settled" (Lutherstunde,
February 12, 1886).

He also wrote: "Our church
has taken for the foundation
on which she stands the Holy
Scriptures, and on it she
stands honestly and squarely;
from this foundation she will
not depart one finger's
breadth. . . . That is her
character, that is her charge,
that makes her a blessing to
all Christendom, that is her
crown, of which she will not
and cannot let herself be
robbed" (Lehre und Wehre,
1871, p. 11).

For Walther, the Holy Scrip-

tures were to be used as the
sole and final authority for
theology.

Dr. F. Pieper said: "The

Church of the Reformation

Stands on the rock of Holy
Scripture, on the Sola

Scriptura’ (Lehre und Wehre,
1928, p. 14).

- Dr. F. Bente warned that

"the entire theological
edifice is undermined and
hollowed out if it is no
longer borne by the inspired,
infallible Word of Serip-
ture... If the Bible is
no longer the infallible
Word of God but a human,
fallible record of the
things of which it treats,
the loci classici and dicta
probantia [i.e. classical
proof passages for a posi-
tion or doctrine] are no
longer of any avail. A
veritable deluge of all
manner of skeptical ques-
tions concerning the ori-
gin and content of Scrip-
ture is unloosed which can-
not be checked and con-
trolled" (Lehre und Wehre,
1902, p. 130).

out that we must not trv to
impose our particular way
of wording the Gospel on
people.

The Bible is a book which
contains the theological
literature of peoples of
various periods of ancient
history who, in the thought
Patterns and literary de-
vices of their time, con-
fessed their faith in the
Promise that God is at work
in human history to bring
blessings to the human
family.

The purpose and intent of
these Sacred Scriptures is
to beget and preserve a
similar confidence in the
hearts of troubled men in
every generation so that
through patience and comfort
of the Scriptures they might
have hope.

The proper use of the Bible,
then, is not as the norm of
the faith (i.e., as the au-
thority which determines the
body of doctrine to be be-
lieved), but as the power
which calls us to trust
God's promise of benevolence
(i.e., as our authority for
daring to trust in God's
kindly intentions toward us).