LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 1975, Page 466

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

⤓ Download .txt · copy text

REPORT ON DISSENT

AC, XXVIII, 49), they therefore hotd that the Bible is qualitatively

different from “human being’s writings” (FC. SD. Summary. 9:

Ap. XXIV. 94—95). They do not hesitate to call the Bible the “un-

alterable and ‘infallible’ divine truth (Preface, Book of Concord,

pp. 5 and 12).

2. Confessional Lutheran theology, accordingly. declares that “we
base our position on the Word of God as the eternai truth’ (FC.
SD, Summary, 13), “the Word of God is and should remain the
sole rule and norm of all doctrine’ (FC. SO. Summary. 9}. “the
Holy Scripture remains the only judge. rule, and norm according
to which as the only touchstone all doctrines should and must
be understood and judged as good or evil. right or wrong’ (FC,
Ep, Summary, 7): “the prophetic and apostolic writings of the Old
and New Testaments are the only rule and norm according to
which all doctrines and teachers alike must be appraised and
judged’ (FC, Ep, Summary. 1: FC. SD. Summary. 3)

a. These quotations from the Symbols leave little doubt about
how they use the Bible, namely. as the u/timate and absolute
authority for all that the church teaches in God's name

b. That is why the Symbols repeat over and over again such
formulas as “Scripture teaches” (AC. XXIV. 28: Ap, XXIII. 11:
FC, SD. 1. 46; FC, SD Ill, 30). and “it 1s written” (AC. XXIV. 26;
XXVIII, 51, Ap, WV, 263; SA, IM, vii, 1-2. UIt, xiii, 3: FC SD UI, 20,
57; VI. 12, Vill, 6: X. 8.11. XI. 7}.

c, That is why the Symbols. without concern that some might
accuse them of making a legislative use of Scripture, firmly
insist that ‘wherever the Scriptures give us clear, certain
testimony. we shall (German: solfen wir. 1.e., we must) simply
believe it and not argue’ (FC. SD. Vill, 53)

3. The Sacred Scriptures are to the Lutheran confessors the source
of doctrine
a. (n contrast to merely patristic authority, the Smalcald Articles

(Wu. 15) set up the invariable rule. “The Word of God shall
establish articies of faith and no one else, not even an angel.”
The Augsburg Confession (Preface 8; Epilog to XXI. 2: XxXtI,
4 German) and the Apology (I. 2: Il. 32-43: IV. 5, 166; XII 16:
ef passim) appeal to the Sacred Scriptures as a whole as well
as to individual passages as final authority

b. The ‘summary and generally accepted concept and form’ that
the Formula (SD. Summary. 1) regards as essential for basic and
firm agreement in the Church is to be drawn trom the Word of
Goc. The prophetic and apostolic Scriptures of both testaments
are the pure. limpid fountain of Israel’ (FC. SD Summary. 3)

4. The fathers of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod agreed
wholeneartedly with the Symbols that the Holy Scriptures are the

final authority’ for theology.

a, Or. C F. W. Walther resisted the idea that the Bibie is the kind

ference between these writings and all other literature; “no human
being’s writings dare be put on a par with it [Scripture] (FC SD Rule
and Norm. 9)

— Because they are inspired by God the words of the Scriptures are
inerrant and. in contrast to writings of men who could err and be
deceived the Scriptures are true and wholly reliable.

— The inspired and inerrant Scriptures are the final and sole authority
for ail that the church does and teaches in God's name

4, Other Criticism

Other questions pertaining to Part IV of ''A Statement’ have to do with
the meaning of its reference to the canonical text. with its understanding
of prophecy, with the assertion that all Scripture bears witness to Jesus
Christ, and with the seeming contention that discrepancies in the Scriptures
arise only because of uncertainty over the original text.

a. Prophecy
With respect to the question about the section on Old Testament
Prophecy it must be conceded that in view of the purpose for which "A State-
ment’ was prepared its discussion of prophecy is severely limited and that
the document would be strengthened by a fuller treatment of this subject.
For instance, it ought to be pointed out that the first meaning of the term
Prophecy” in the Old Testament is to speak the Word of God to people.
This ts usually done within the context of God’s covenant relationship with
His people

b. Canonical Text

With respect to the other questions noted above the following is offered
by way of clarification. When “A Statement’ speaks of the canonical text,
this is intended merely as another term for ‘the text as it has come to us,”
that 1s, the only text available to the theologian and the one. therefore. that
1s authoritative for doctrine. This term as used in A Statement” is not to be
understood as designating an official list of a specitic number of Biblical
books which Lutheranism has formally recognized as constituting the limits.
of the canon

c. ‘All Scripture Bears Witness to Jesus Christ”

When “A Statement’ says that ‘all Scripture bears witness to Jesus
Christ,” this does not mean that every isolated passage in the Bible testifies
concerning the Savior, it means that properly understood the whole Bible
is a book about Jesus, and that if you take Christ out of the Scriptures the
heart of the Biblical witness has been compietely jost

a. Discrepancies and Problems
Finally, the wording of the sentence pertaining to discrepancies and

20

of book that one needs to read “with constant sharp discrimina-
tion in order not to be led into error’ (Lehre und Wehre, 1886,
p. 76). Echoing 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 fingers breadth That is her character, that is her
charge. that makes her a blessing to aii Christendom, that is
her crown. of which she will not and cannot let herseif be
robbed” (Lehre und Wehre. 1871. p. 11)

For Walther, the Holy Scriptures were to be used as the sole
and final authority for theology.

b. Dr. F. Pieper said’ “The Church of the Reformation stands on
the rock of Holy Scripture. on the So/a Scriptura’ (Lehre und
Wehre. 1928. p. 14)

c. Dr. F Bente warned that ‘the entire theological edifice is un-
dermined and hollowed out if it is no jonger borne by the in-
spired. infallible Word of Scripture \f the Bible is no longer
the infallible Word of God but a human. fallible record of the
things of which it treats. the /oc: classic: and dicta probantia
[.e classical proof passages for a position or doctrine} are no
longer of any avail. A veritable deluge of all manner of skeptical
questions concerning the origin and content of Scripture is
unloosed which cannot be checked and controlled’ (Lehre und
Wehre. 1902. p. 130).

5. Lutherans think it is ‘rash’ to teach something that passages
of Scripture do not teach (Ap. Xt. 138), and that it is “extreme
impudence’ to teach anything that is contrary to testimonies of
Scripture (Ap. XXIII. 63)

a. Lutherans. therefore. hold ‘that it is only from the Word of God
that judgments on articles of faith are to be pronounced” (FC,
SD. Il. 8). They accept without reservation the Scriptures
of the Oid and New Testaments as the written Word of God and
the only rule and norm of faith and of practice’ (Lutheran
Church— Missouri Synod Constitution, Art. Il, 1)

b. Lutherans appeal to and use the Sacred Scriptures as a whole,
as well as individual passages of Scripture. as the sole and final
authority in the Church

What the foregoing quotations from earlier Commission on Theology
and Church Relations documents say on the basis of the Scriptures and
the Symbols relative to the inspiration. inerrancy, and authority of the
Scriptures may be summarized as follows

—The sacred Scriptures. having been inspired by the Spirit of God,

‘are not [merety] of this world’; there is therefore a qualitative dif-

19

problems must be carefully examined. This sentence makes two assertions:
1) there are apparent (seeming) contradictions or discrepancies in the Bible;
2) there are problems in the Bible that arise because of uncertainty over the
Original text. It is a misreading of this sentence to hold that it attributes all
apparent contradictions or discrepancies to uncertainty over the original
text: it attributes certain probiems to this factor and nothing else

In closing this section of this report, attention should be drawn to the
fact that the Commission on Theology and Church Retations recognizes the
great complexity of many of the subjects treated only briefly in “A Statement”
and is aware that not all concern can be adequately dealt with in a report
of this nature. The CTCR therefore assures the Synod that it pians to en-
courage fraternal discussion of doctrinal issues by continuing to prepare
study documents which address themselves to topics about which there
have been disagreements and misunderstandings with a view to promoting
the unity of the faith in the bond of peace.

E. Criticisms of Part V

Part V of A Statement’ has been criticized as follows: By insisting that
Adam and Eve were historical persons “A Statement’ leads people to focus
Primarily on the two original sinners rather than on what the Fall account
reveals about our sinfulness. Besides. when we think of Adam and Eve as
real. historical persons, then our confession of innate sinfulness results
merely from a “deduction” we make about ourselves based on our descent
from sinful stock rather than from our own confrontation with the truth about
us revealed in the Fail narrative. Thus we actually “underuse’ the Fail
account by focusing on the sin of people who lived long ago instead of
permitting it to strike us with the full impact of our sin

From Romans 5.12 #. it is clear that the apostle Paul regarded the man
through whom sin and death came into the worid to be as rea! as the Man
who brought righteousness and life. In 1 Tim. 2:11 ff. St. Paul bases his teach-
Ing about the relationship between man and woman on the actual existence
of the first human beings who were created and who fell into sin just as the
book of Genesis reports.

From Article | of the Formula of Concord it is obvious that the Lutheran
Confessions. too. regard Adam and Eve as actual! people, the parents of the
human race, whose creation and fall occurred precisely as the Scriptures
recount and because of whose transgression we are in sin and death. (FC
SD 1. 9)

Both Paul and the Contessions bring home to all who truly hear what
they say not only the magnitude of the sin of Adam and Eve but also the
depth of the corruption of all the children of Adam. Understanding the Fail
narrative as a literal account of how the first human beings brought sin into
the world, both Paul and the Confessions are able on the basis of that ac-
count to confront sinners to this day with the crushing burden of their own
guilt as they are brought to see the wickedness of their own rebellion against
God

21