Prolegomena (Introduction)

Benjamin Baker

The Lutheran Confessions • Sermon • Submitted 5 years ago

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Introduction to a course on the Lutheran Confessions

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Class Setup

Classes will be held weekly on Wednesdays @ 6:30pm and will run about 45 min-1 hour.

Questions and discussion welcome

In this course, classes will cover the content and teaching of the Lutheran Confessions, which is found in the Book of Concord. We will be examining the theology of the Lutheran Church, of which we are a part, and digging into Scripture to see why it is we believe what we do.

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Course Outline

Introduction and Prolegomena

Unit 1: The Ecumenical Creeds

Introduction

The Apostles’ Creed

The Nicene Creed

The Athanasian Creed

Unit 2: The Small Catechism and the Large Catechism

Introduction

The 10 Commandments

The Creed (Apostles’)

The Lord’s Prayer

Holy Baptism

Confession and Absolution

The Sacrament of the Altar/Holy Communion/The Lord’s Supper

Table of Duties (Vocation)

Unit 3: The Augsburg Confession and The Apology of the Augsburg Confession

Introduction

Chief Articles of Faith

Article I: God

Article II: Original Sin

Article III: The Son of God

Article IV: Justification

Article V: The Ministry

Article VI: New Obedience

Article VII: The Church

Article VIII: What the Church Is

Article IX: Holy Baptism

Article X: The Lord’s Supper

Article XI: Confession

Article XII: Repentance

Article XIII: The Use of the Sacraments

Article XIV: Order in the Church

Article XV: Church Ceremonies

Article XVI: Civil Government

Article XVII: Christ’s Return for Judgment

Article XVIII: Free Will

Article XIX: The Cause of Sin

Article XX: Good Works

Article XXI: Worship of the Saints

Specific Abuses that Have Been Corrected

Article XXII: Both Kinds in the Sacrament

Article XXIII: The Marriage of Priests

Article XXIV: The Mass

Article XXV: Confession

Article XXVI: The Distinction of Meats

Article XXVII: Monastic Vows

Article XXVIII: Church Authority

Conclusion

Unit Four: The Smalcald Articles and the Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope

Introduction

The Smalcald Articles

The First Part

The Second Part

Article I: The Chief Article

Article II: The Mass

Article III: Chapters and Cloisters

Article IV: The Papacy

The Third Part

Article I: Sin

Article II: The Law

Article III: Repentance

Article IV: The Gospel

Article V: Holy Baptism

Article VI: The Sacrament of the Altar

Article VII: The Keys

Article VIII: Confession

Article IX: Excommunication

Article X: Ordination and the Call

Article XI: The Marriage of Priests

Article XII: The Church

Article XIII: How One Is Justified before God and Does Good Works

Article XIV: Monastic Vows

Article XV: Human Traditions

The Power and Primacy of the Pope

Introduction

Testimony of Scripture

Testimony of History

Refutation of Roman Arguments

A Contrast between Christ and the Pope

The Marks of Antichrist

The Power and Jurisdiction of Bishops

Conclusion

Unit 5: The Formula of Concord (Epitome and Solid Declaration)

Introduction

Article I: Original Sin

Article II: Free Will, or Human Powers

Article III: The Righteousness of Faith before God

Article IV: Good Works

Article V: The Law and the Gospel

Article VI: The Third Use of the Law

Article VII: The Holy Supper of Christ

Article VIII: The Person of Christ

Article IX: The Descent of Christ into Hell

Article X: Church Practices

Article XI: God’s Eternal Foreknowledge and Election

Article XII: Other Factions and Sects

Conclusion

Why Study the Lutheran Confessions?

One of the reasons we should study the Lutheran Confessions, is, quite simply, because we are Lutheran congregation, which belongs to a Lutheran synod, or church body, which then belongs to the broader Lutheran Church, and Lutheran means something quite specific. It speaks to what we believe the Scriptures teach concerning God and Christ and the Holy Spirit, about humanity and sin and salvation, about the Christian life and the gifts that God has given us in Holy Baptism, Holy Communion, and Holy Absolution–the Sacraments. It speaks to what we believe about the Church and the Holy Ministry, the relationship between the Christian and good works, and many other important doctrines and topics.

Also, as a Lutheran congregation that belongs to a Lutheran synod, we have pledged ourselves by our membership in the AALC to teach, preach, and practice according to the Lutheran Confessions. As a Lutheran pastor rostered with and ordained by the AALC and called by you, a Lutheran congregation, to serve as your pastor, I made vows and promises on my ordination day to uphold and teach you the Holy Scriptures and to teach and preach and practice according to the Lutheran Confessions. I gladly did this because I believe that the doctrine and theology contained in the Lutheran Confessions is thoroughly biblical. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be a Lutheran pastor.

It is also important for each of you to know what you believe and why you believe it. Why are you Lutheran? Why do you go to this church? My hope is that, among other reasons, the primary reason is because what you hear taught and proclaimed in this congregation is Biblical truth. There certainly will be other reasons you belong to St. Luke’s, but this is of utmost importance and should rank #1 on anyone’s list as to why they attend the congregation and belong to the church body that they do.

Doctrine Matters

Doctrine matters. What is doctrine? The word “doctrine” comes from the Latin word, doctrina, which means “teaching.” So when we talk about doctrine, we are talking about what the Scriptures teach. Unfortunately, in our day, doctrine has gotten a bad reputation. “Doctrine divides,” we hear. “If we really want to be ‘New Testament’ Christians, we need to move away from doctrine and doctrinal distinctives and just be about what Jesus did and taught: Love God and love people.” We hear that, too. But in that statement is doctrine. That statement confesses that the Scriptures teach us simply to do what Jesus did and to simply love God and other people.

But is that an accurate summary of what Scripture teaches us? How do we do what Jesus did? And are we supposed to do everything that Jesus did? Walk on water? Heal the sick? Die on the cross for the sins of the world? Or are we just supposed to do some of the things Jesus did? If so, which ones? And how do we love God? How do we love other people? What does that look like? These are doctrinal questions.

Who is God? Who is Jesus? What is the significance of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection? Who is the Holy Spirit and what is His work?What is the Church? What is the Church commissioned to be doing? What is a Christian? How does one become a Christian? How do I know that I am a Christian? What does the Christian life look like? What is the relationship between the Law of God in the Old Testament and the Christian life we read about in the New Testament? How is one saved? How can one be right with God? How do I know that my sins are forgiven and what my standing before God is? These are all doctrinal questions.

What the Scriptures teach matters. God spends a lot of time in the Scriptures teaching us about himself, about us, about what Jesus has done for us, what is coming at the end, what the Christian life looks and how one becomes a Christian. The Scriptures are full of doctrine. And if doctrine was important enough to God to fill His Word with doctrine, then it should be important to the Church and the Christian as well.

And what you believe matters. The Scriptures don’t simply speak of a generic “faith.” Faith must have an object, it must be faith in someone or something. And what is that thing or who is that person? Again, a doctrinal question. The Scriptures answer that with Jesus. Faith’s object is Christ. But who is this Jesus? What has He done? How you answer those questions matters. It makes the difference between Christianity and something else. And if what Jesus says is true, and it is, that He alone is the “Way, the Truth, and the Life” and “no one comes to the Father except through Me,” then we should be sure that we know exactly who this Jesus is. And that requires studying the Scriptures doctrine, teaching, concerning Jesus, who He is and what He has done.

And what you believe also affects how you understand salvation, and how you can know that you are saved (assurance).

And, what’s more, God Himself instructs us through His Word to care about doctrine. One example is from the writing of St. Paul in Colossians. He writes,

Colossians 1:9–13 ESV

9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,

Colossians 1:9–15 ESV

Colossians 1:9–14 ESV

St. Paul also writes in that same chapter,

Colossians 1:28–29 ESV

28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

Colossians 1:28

St. Paul says that he was praying for the Christians in Colossae that they would be “filled with the knowledge of his [God] will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God...”

Being filled with the knowledge of God’s will and increasing in the knowledge of God requires knowing what the Scriptures teach, that is, knowing the doctrine of the Scriptures.

And so this is what we are seeking to do in this class. We are seeking to be faithful to God by studying His Word and what it teaches us that we might, as the Apostle prayed for the Christians in Colossae, be filled with the knowledge of God’s will and with spiritual wisdom and understanding and increase in the knowledge of God and of His Christ who has “delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”

St. Paul also writes in Galatians chapter 1,

Galatians 1:6–9 ESV

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Galatians 1:

St. Paul teaches us here that there is only one Gospel. That means that anything other than that one Gospel is a lie. He also tells us that there are those who want to distort the true Gospel. And so there will be those within the broader church who will try to peddle and push a “gospel” that is not the Gospel. So how do we know truth from error? This is a doctrinal question.

The Lutheran Confessions are accurate summaries and expositions of Scripture

St. Paul also answers for us this question as to what the true Gospel is. He tells us in what is probably the most succinct summary of what the Gospel is in . He writes,

1 Corinthians 15:1–8 ESV

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

1 Corinthians 15:

The one true Gospel is that “Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas [Peter], then to the twelve.” And Jesus also appeared to more than 500 hundred brothers at one time, most of whom were still living when St. Paul wrote this epistle to the Church in Corinth. He appeared also to James and all the apostles and then also to St. Paul.

And so what St. Paul writes here about the Gospel comes directly from Jesus Himself. That’s St. Paul’s authority. And so doctrine matters. What you believe, what your church teaches, matters. St. Paul certainly thought so. So did all of the apostles and Jesus Himself. So we cannot say that it doesn’t. Do we know more than the apostles and more than Christ Himself?

Again, there is in vogue an idea that it is arrogant to make assertions as to what is truth and as to what the Scriptures teach. We are told that it is a mark of humility to not know what the truth is. Now, when it comes to things that we know from our own thinking and study, it is good not to speak too strongly about things we think we know. We are not all-knowing. However, it is something else to claim that it is humility that says, “I can’t be sure what God says.” Especially because God Himself has written down for us His Word. He has told us. It is not arrogance to make assertions as to what is true and what isn’t when God Himself has told us what is true and what isn’t.

Martin Luther captured this so well when he was writing his famous work The Bondage of the Will against Erasmus of Rotterdam, who was arguing for the freedom of the will (something we will get into in the course of our study). Erasmus didn’t want to make assertions; he wanted to leave things vague and basically say that the Scriptures aren’t clear on this doctrine. Luther responds and says,

“The Holy Spirit is no Sceptic [skeptic], and the things He has written in our hearts are not doubts or opinions, but assertions–surer and more certain than sense and life itself.” (The Bondage of the Will, p. 70)

There is one other thing we should consider in thinking about why doctrine matters. And that is, simply, that the devil–Satan–is real. And he is the enemy of God, of all creation, and that includes the human race. And he is your enemy, too, in a special way since you were baptized into Christ and came to be His own. Satan hates Christians more than the rest of humanity, and he hates us because we belong to the One whom he hates most of all: the one true God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

There is one other thing

Because Satan hates God and hates God’s people, and people in general, he also hates God’s Word. And this is especially so because he knows that the Word of God is truth, even though Satan doesn’t believe it, that is, he doesn’t trust God’s Word, but he knows that it is Truth. And he knows the power of that Word to take sinners from his domain and grasp and rescue them out of the darkness and bondage of sin, in which Satan also participates, and bring them into the glorious truth and freedom of the forgiveness of sins and life eternal with Christ and the Father and Holy Spirit forever. Satan hates this.

And so, knowing the power of the Word of God, and hating you and all humanity enough to want them damned forever with him, Satan seeks to do all that he can to keep you and any human being from believing the Word of God. He wants you to be confused as to what the Scriptures say and teach, especially about salvation and the Person and Work of Jesus Christ for sinners.

If he can keep human beings from the truth of Scripture regarding their sin and their need for Jesus and His forgiveness, he can keep people in their sins and at the same time keep them thinking that they are righteous and that all roads lead to heaven. Satan knows there is only one way of salvation, but he so hates you and all humanity that he would have you believe that every religious thought and practice human beings can dream up are just as valid as Jesus on the cross for sinners.

As Jesus says of him in John chapter 8, Satan has been a murderer from the beginning and that when he lies, he speaks from his own nature, because he is a liar and the father of lies. And his desire is to deceive all peoples with his lies so that they do not believe the truth of the Scriptures and so be saved. ()

And so from the beginning Satan has been waging war against God and His Word. He did this with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and deceived them into abandoning their trust in God’s Word and instead to believe the word of Satan instead. And ever since, Satan has been waging war against God by attacking, subverting, twisting God’s Word and lying to people, to the end that they trust themselves, or are crushed into despair and fail to trust that Christ’s forgiveness is for them. He will do whatever he can to take the Word of God from human beings so that they suffer the righteous wrath of God along with him.

Satan is subtle. He doesn’t often come out with a frontal attack. That happens more among those who have very little or no knowledge of the Word of God. But even among the Church, who has the Word of God and should know it well, Satan works to subtly and cunningly twist God’s Word and insert his own words instead. This can come from something as simple as diverting attention and proper emphasis on the Word of God and the Gospel of Christ to something else: tactics for getting more people in the pews, social justice issues or hot-button political issues of the day, focusing on gimmicks and “sermons” that focus more on the Christian and improving one’s life now to the neglect and replacement of the Gospel of Christ crucified for sinners.

It can even come in the form of focusing on the Christian life (which sounds and looks good) to the extent that one’s eyes remain on the Christian and what the Christian is doing and Jesus and what He has done for sinners gets neglected. This bears the ugly fruit of doubt and despair, lack of assurance of salvation and being deprived of the comfort of Christ crucified for sinners that God wants you to have.

There are countless examples that could be given. The point is that we cannot take truth for granted and that we have an enemy who seeks to undermine the truth as much as he can and in any way that he can and the way that we guard against his attacks is to be continual students and disciples of God’s Word and to study the Word and know sound doctrine, which simply confesses what Scripture teaches, so that we can be strengthened in our faith and so extinguish the flaming darts of the evil one. And we can then take up the Word of God which is the sword of the Spirit and so defend ourselves and our brothers and sisters against the attacks of the evil one and his lies. And we can also know clearly the truth and bring that clear confession of the truth of God’s Word and the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ into a world that is enslaved by sin and in bondage to the devil’s lies and through that Word of Truth, that saving Gospel, set people free from bondage to sin, death, and the devil.

The goal, or end, to which we are working through this study is not just the accumulation of knowledge. Learning is good. I certainly hope you accumulate new knowledge through this course. But not only do I hope that you will learn more about what the Scriptures teach, but the goal is also that you be confirmed in your faith in Christ and that you are comforted with the forgiveness of sins that Jesus won for you on the cross by shedding His blood and dying, which He then delivers to you through the preaching of His Word, the hearing of Holy Absolution, in Holy Baptism, which though occuring once, continues on effectually throughout your entire life, and in Holy Communion.

My hope and desire for you is that through this study you will have the full assurance of salvation and comfort of the Gospel that your sins are indeed forgiven and you have the righteousness of Christ and the hope of eternal life that God wants you to have.

The Lutheran Confessions are accurate summaries and expositions of Scripture

The doctrine and theology contained in the Lutheran Confessions, or the Book of Concord, accurately reflects what the Scriptures teach. Each of the documents that make up the Lutheran Confessions are accurate summaries and explanations of what the Scriptures teach, and as such they are able to guide and help us navigate our way through the myriad claims and doctrines that are out there that claim to teach what Scripture teaches.

My hope is that throughout and by the end of this study on the Lutheran Confessions you will be convinced of the thoroughly biblical nature and content of what is taught in the Book of Concord. To that end, we will spend a lot of time digging into the Scriptures to find out why we believe and confess the doctrine and theology that we do as Lutherans. My hope is also that you will come to the same conclusion that I have: that the theology and doctrine contained in the documents that make up the Lutheran Confessions is not only Lutheran theology, but, because of its biblical teaching, it is thoroughly Christian and Biblical theology.

Introduction to the Book of Concord

The Apostles’ Creed

The Nicene Creed

The Athanasian Creed

The Augsburg Confession

The Apology to the Augsburg Confession

The Smalcald Articles

The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope

The Small Catechism

The Large Catechism

The Formula of Concord: Epitome (abridged/summary) and Solid Declaration (unabridged/full text)

The Book of Concord was published in 1580. It contains 10 documents: 1) The Apostles’ Creed, 2) The Nicene Creed, 3) The Athanasian Creed, 4) The Augsburg Confession, 5) The Apology (Defense) of the Augsburg Confession, 6) The Smalcald Articles, 7) The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, 8) The Small Catechism, 9) The Large Catechism, and 10) The Formula of Concord, which has two parts: the Epitome or Summary, and the Solid Declaration or full statement.

We will have fuller introductions to each document as we get to them, but we can give a brief overview here.

The Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds

The Apostles’, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds are called “ecumenical” because they are, by and large, accepted by the universal Church. They are brief summaries of the basic teachings of Scripture. They are included in the Book of Concord, because the Lutheran Confessors wanted to demonstrate that they were not teaching anything new, but rather confessed the faith that the Church has confessed since its earliest days.

The Augsburg Confession

The Augsburg Confession was written up by Philip Melancthon, a colleague of and fellow reformer with Martin Luther. It was presented at the Imperial Diet (meeting) in Augsburg, Germany on June 25, 1530. It is the primary “Lutheran” document in the Lutheran Confessions. It defines in succinct and summary form what it is that Lutherans believe the Bible teaches. It seeks to show that what we teach concerning the Scriptures is both biblical and taught among the Church Fathers and on through the ages of the Church.

The Apology of the Augsburg Confession

The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, also written by Philip Melancthon, is not apologizing for the Augsburg Confession, but rather is used in the sense of the Greek word ἀπολογία (apologia), which means, “to give a defense.” And so Melancthon wrote a defense of the Augsburg Confession in response to the Roman Confutation, which was written against the Augsburg Confession. The first edition of the Apology was published in April 1531 and a second edition published September 1531. It is the longest document in the Book of Concord.

The Smalcald Articles

The Smalcald Articles were published in 1538. Luther was commissioned by his elector, John Frederick, to write out a formal confession of faith that could be presented at the general council called by Pope Paul III to be held at Mantua, Italy in 1536. At the time of writing the Articles, Luther was ill and he believed he was near death. Thus, the Smalcald Articles function as a kind of “last will and testament” of Martin Luther and express in succinct form the faith he confessed. Though not formally adopted by the Smalcaldic League, these Articles were recognized as soundly biblical and a faithful confession of the truths of Scripture, and so they were accepted by the Lutheran Church as a part of their formal confession of faith and included in the Book of Concord, which was published in 1580.

The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope

The Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope, written by Philip Melancthon, was published in 1540. The Treatise is an extension of the Augsburg Confession and the Apology and deals with the issue of authority in the Church. The Roman Church claimed, and claims, that the pope is the divinely appointed head of the Church. The Treatise demonstrates from Scripture that the pope can only be thought of as the head of the Church by human right, not divine right. That is, church structure and governance is a matter of human freedom and the Church can choose for herself those to govern their particular church bodies, as long as those leaders themselves submit to the authority of the Scriptures. The only divinely appointed head of the Church is Christ Himself and all human authority in the Church must be in submission to Christ and His Word, the pope included.

The Small Catechism

The Small Catechism was written by Martin Luther and published in May 1529. The Small Catechism was written in response to Luther’s observation among the Lutheran churches that the pastors were not well educated in the Scriptures and lacked even a basic understanding of the Word of God. It is a summary of the basic teachings of Scripture. Luther designed the Small Catechism as a handbook for the Christian life, not so much a textbook that one masters and then moves on from. He also designed it in such a way that parents could use it in their homes for themselves and their children to teach them the basic truths of the Christian faith. Because of its widespread use it provided a common way of speaking of the Christian faith and life among Lutherans.

The Large Catechism

The Large Catechism was also written by Martin Luther and published in April 1529. The Large Catechism is really a series of sermons preached by Martin Luther and covers in more detail the content covered in the Small Catechism. Often neglected because of the simplicity and briefness of the Small Catechism, the Large Catechism should be read and used alongside the Small.

The Formula of Concord: Epitome and Solid Declaration

The Formula of Concord: Epitome and Solid Declaration was written by a number of Lutheran theologians, foremost among them Martin Chemnitz. It was presented to Elector Augustus in 1577, who accepted it. It was published with the Book of Concord in 1580. The Formula deals with controversies that erupted among German Lutheran churches after the death of Martin Luther in 1546. Among those controversies were issues of Free Will, Election, the Lord’s Supper, Christ’s Descent into Hell, the Law and the Gospel, and others. The Epitome is basically the abridged form or summary of the full-text Solid Declaration.

Conclusion

Together these documents were accepted by the Lutheran Church as soundly biblical and were recognized as true summaries and expositions of the Word of God, and as such were accepted as the doctrinal authority in the Lutheran Church, to which all Lutheran congregations and church bodies should gladly and voluntarily submit to. The Book of Concord has remained since then the doctrinal standard of the Lutheran Church.

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