July Epistle: Anchored in God's Word

Luther, Concordia Seminary, St Louis, MO

Luther and reformers, Worms, Germany

There is a nine-foot-tall statue of Martin Luther which  stands on a pedestal at Concordia Seminary in St.  Louis, MO. It was completed and dedicated in 1903  at the previous site of the seminary several miles  away from the present campus. It was relocated to  the site of the current campus is 1926.  The statue is an exact replica of  one placed in Worms, Germany,  in 1868 as part of a larger  monument on Lutherplatz. This  monument celebrates the  Reformation begun in 1517  by Luther and the Reformers in Worms, Germany (1868) when Luther nailed his 95 theses (points for discussion) to the door of the Castle  Church in Wittenburg. It also gives honor to Luther’s defense of Scripture at the Diet  of Worms in 1521, and to the Reformation in general. The other statues are of other  reformers and those who defended Martin Luther and the principles of the  Reformation. 

At Concordia in St. Louis, the Martin Luther statue faces the seminary. His fist rests on  a large Bible, as though making a statement to the professors and students of the  seminary to stand firm and honor the Reformation cry, “Sola Scriptura,” “Scripture  Alone!” 

It is good to remind ourselves in this age where truth fluctuates with the whims of  culture that our faith is solidly anchored in the incarnation of the Son of God, His life  of holiness and obedience, the giving of that perfect life for our redemption, Christ’s  resurrection from the dead on the third day, and His ascension to the Father as our  Great High Priest, sitting at His right hand and mediating on our behalf. 

We are reminded of these truths every time we speak the Apostle Creed, which the  Church has confessed for nearly two thousand years. “Creed” comes from the Latin,  “Credo”, which means “I believe.” The Apostles’ Creed delineates who God is in His  tri-unity, one God in three persons. It is called the Apostles’ Creed because it reflects  what the apostles taught about the work of the three persons of the Trinity. The  Creed is taken from and agrees with the teachings of the Old and New Testaments.  “Sola Scriptura,” “Scripture Alone,” is one of the great battle cries of the Reformation. 

Each year Lutheran Valley Retreat hosts a four-day camp called “Catechism Camp.”  Pastors attend with youth from their churches, and during this retreat, some aspect of  Luther’s Small Catechism is taught and reflected on. This year Eva and Caroline  Vanderhyde and James Thomack were able to attend the camp. Daniel Vanderhyde  and I went as chaperoning pastors representing U-Hills. 

This year’s aim was to study the Apostles’ Creed and Luther’s explanations of its three  articles.  

The First Article of the Creed: 

“I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth,”

Luther:  I believe that God has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body  and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still  takes care of them.  He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and  children, land, animals and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I  need to support this body and life. He defends me against all danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit  or worthiness in me. For all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey  Him. This is most certainly true. 

The Second Article of the Creed: 

“And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord. Who was conceived by the Holy  Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died  and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the  dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God, the Father  almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.” 

Luther: I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also  true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord, who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me  from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver,  but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in  everlasting righteousness, innocence and blessedness, just as He is risen from the  dead, lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true. 

The Third Article of the Creed: 

“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints,  the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.  Amen.” 

Luther: I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my  Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened  me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian  Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all  believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and  all believers in Christ. This is most certainly true. 

At Catechism Camp, Eva, James and Caroline had the  opportunity to do some rock climbing and rappelling, all  harnessed safely to a rope.  Climbing up a rock face can be  a little frightening, even with a  rope attached to your harness.  As you look for and test out  footholds and handholds  in the crevices and  bumps in the rock, there  is the feeling that you  might slip and fall. You  have to trust that if you  do fall, the rope will hold you. In rappelling down the face of the rock, that trust  really comes into play. Here you have to lean back  away from the rock and put your entire weight on  the rope. Your feet and hands do not support you. You must fully trust the rope. If it  is attached to some stake pounded into the dirt, it cannot be trusted to hold your  weight. The rope will only hold you if it is securely anchored into the rock above.

The Apostles’ Creed anchors our faith firmly in the  Scriptures. It states what the Scriptures say about the work  of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in our creation,  redemption, and sanctification. It summarizes the story of  our salvation, including the ongoing action of the Spirit as  He works in us as part of the body of Christ on earth (the  Church). And, it speaks of Christ’s return, and our sure and  certain hope of the resurrection of our flesh on the Last Day. 

The Creed is a beautiful part of the history of the Church. It links us to the Scriptures  through the teachings of the Apostles. It is something to be cherished and used in  our daily life and in our corporate worship. It speaks to us the love of God for sinners,  as we confess to one another and to the world what we believe about the Father, the  Son, and the Holy Spirit.  

We pray that the Spirit will keep us mindful of this each time we speak the words of  the Apostles’ Creed. Our faith is anchored in the solid rock of God’s eternal Word. 

God’s peace in Christ Jesus our Lord, 

Pastor