The down arrow is primary!
This week’s devotions are based on the Week 8 “Explore God” – What is a Lutheran? (WATCH HERE)
The down arrow.
What makes Lutheran unique is the down arrow…always.
This statement isn’t to say that the down arrow isn’t taught in other churches, but a confessional Lutheran, a biblical Christian can’t exist without the down arrow being primary in all aspects of faith and life.
What is the down arrow?
God for us.
God’s activity for us and on behalf of us is always primary and the prime mover.
We recognize that any activity of a person toward God is always predicated by God’s activity on behalf of that person. To think or act otherwise overturns, disrupts and leaves out the comfort of God for us…the down arrow.
All other world religions and even Christian denominations can mix up the emphasis of these arrows. World religions promote the activity and performance of people to somehow be right with or reach out to God. The up arrow comes before the down arrow.
Biblical Christianity emphasizes the down arrow, God for us, is what initiates all activity of the Christian.
- Down arrow: God created us. We can’t take credit for our existence. God initiated the creation of the world and knit us together in our mother’s womb. Down arrow.
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 2:7 … the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Psalm 139: 13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
- Down arrow: God saves us. The certainty of our right relationship with God 100% rests on the gracious goodness of God shown to us in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. To take credit through our effort or personal decision reverses the arrow and makes my effort cause God’s response. God’s activity alone makes us spiritually alive and able to express trust in Jesus as our Savior.
Ephesians 2:3-5 Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
- Down arrow: Baptism saves and forgives. Baptism for many Christians is their activity to show the sincerity of their commitment to Jesus. The up arrow becomes the focal point and one loses the very clear promises of forgiveness and salvation God gives to us in baptism when HE puts his name on us and calls us his child.
Titus 3:4-7 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
- Down arrow: The Lord’s Supper forgives our sins. Participating in the Lord’s Supper is not to earn a salvation credit (up arrow), but rather to receive the forgiveness Jesus promised through his body and blood. It is not just a remembrance (up arrow), but a giving of forgiveness earned by Jesus on the cross. The comfort is knowing what Jesus is giving to us in his holy Supper.
Matthew 26:26-28 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
27 Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
- Down arrow: Even our life of Christian living is orchestrated and enabled by God and must be 100% God’s credit. Our Christian life isn’t to earn more forgiveness or to offer proof that we are really Christian. Our Christian life is simply living out our God given purpose and engaging in the good works he himself orchestrated for us to do.
Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
2 Corinthians 5:14 For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
Enjoy the reality and certainty of the down arrow. God’s love FOR you. God’s work FOR you. God’s promises FOR you. They are God’s gift. They are our assurance. The down arrow is the central message of the Scripture. Let everything in your life flow to God FROM what he has done FOR you!
Apply: What changes when the “down arrow” becomes the primary focus and certainty in your life?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for taking the initiative in all things for our life by acting on our behalf to secure us in your grace, promise us eternal life, and guide us in living for you each day. AMEN.
What is grace?
This week’s devotions are based on the Week 8 “Explore God” – What is a Lutheran? (WATCH HERE)
We are coming into a season where grace is ruined. Because grace is a gift.
What do I mean?
The whole premise of the Santa Claus story is that if a child is “naughty” they receive a lump of coal and if they are “nice” they receive gifts. I have heard parents during this time try to discipline their children with phrases like, “If you don’t behave, Santa won’t bring you any presents at Christmas.” I cringe not primarily for the story of Santa, but for the attachment of effort to gifts.
A “Gift” by definition is given regardless of the person’s performance. A gift is merely the expression of love one wants to give to another simply because of their love for them and in no way connected to what they have done to seemingly earn it.
I will grant, even giving a gift can be skewed because inside we have a silent evaluation at times of if a person deserves a gift.
With God there is no question that his gift of Jesus was given without any deference to the performance of people. People didn’t deserve the gift of Jesus. I don’t. You don’t. But God gave.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
God loved…so he gave.
This is grace. Grace is God’s undeserved love for sinners that drove him to do for us what we could not do for ourselves. As we looked at yesterday, our performance would never meet the perfect standard God demands. But Jesus’ perfection did. And it’s this perfection we are given.
But it’s even hard to receive a gift.
A common response to receiving a gift from an individual is, “Oh, you shouldn’t have.” Perhaps I am misreading this statement, but what I hear (because I hear it in myself) is this, “I didn’t do anything to earn your gift so you shouldn’t have given it.” Again, skewing the definition of a gift. If receiving gifts was based on our performance and we “should” be given a gift…then it’s no longer a gift. It’s a wage.
The Apostle Paul clarifies this for us
Romans 11:6 And if by grace, then it cannot be based on works; if it were, grace would no longer be grace.
When our salvation rests in God’s grace alone, my heart is not settled by “I did enough” but it is settled by the fact that God gave it to me. The objective reality of God’s gift of Christ’s life, death and resurrection far surpasses and subjective evaluation of my performance before God. Grace alone is a key focus of a confessional Lutheran church. We teach and focus on it because it is the Bible’s focus. Why? Because God in his love wants us to find certainty in our eternity with him because of his gift of grace, not our effort or performance. In God’s grace there is always certainty.
Apply: What makes it hard to truly give a gift or receive a gift? How does that challenge affect your perception of God’s gift of grace he gives to you?
Prayer: Lord, we praise you for your heart of love that was willing to give the greatest gift to us so we might have eternal life with you. AMEN.
Are you perfect?
This week’s devotions are based on the Week 8 “Explore God” – What is a Lutheran? (WATCH HERE)
Romans 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
Years ago I was asked to do a word study on the Hebrew word that is translated, “righteous” and the word that is translated “justice.” The discovery of this study led me to appreciate both terms more and their impact on our relationship with God. “Righteous” or “Righteousness” is the “right adherence to the law” and “justice” is the “right application of the law.” Why is that significant?
God demands perfect righteousness to earn eternal life. This means that every law the Lord has given must always be adhered to. There are no exceptions or excuses. The essence of God’s justice is that he has every obligation to rightly apply the law and its consequences if the law is broken. Thus the conclusion of every individual is a) “I’m not righteous” and as a result b) I fall under God’s judgment. This is not just a logical or linguistic conclusion, it is biblical truth. The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 3:23, “…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,…”
Most, if not all flavors of religion, try to bridge this gap. The imperfect individual spends time energy and effort to achieve the glory of God. The Muslim performs the Five Pillars. The Buddhist engages in right meditation and material escape. The Hindu lives to align with the many gods they profess. But it is not just world religions. Martin Luther spent the early part of his life under the umbrella of the Catholic Church trying to do enough to achieve the glory of God. He performed penance. He entered the monastery. He went on pilgrimages. All to no avail as his conscience found no rest.
He and we must conclude: I cannot achieve righteousness on my own.
So then who can be saved?
The disciples themselves asked Jesus this and Jesus answered, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26).
As Luther was able to have access to the Bible, he discovered how one was able to have the righteousness that God demanded, “The righteous will live by his faith.”
The Apostle Paul expands around the verse shared earlier in Romans 3:21-26
21 But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22 This righteousness is given through faith in[h] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26 he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.
The amazing truth of the Bible’s teaching is that righteousness is not earned, it is given through faith in Jesus Christ, the one who was righteous for us…as well as the one that God carried out his justice on by punishing Jesus for our sins.
The result for us? We are righteous before God because we have been given the righteousness of Christ.
How? By faith alone…not personal effort or performance…simply as a gift of faith (which is also a gift!).
Apply: What happens spiritually for you when you give up trying to earn perfection and simply receive Christ’s perfection by faith?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for doing what we never could and giving us the perfection, the righteousness you demanded through the perfect life and innocent death of Jesus FOR us! AMEN.
Is Scripture your authority?
This week’s devotions are based on the Week 8 “Explore God” – What is a Lutheran? (WATCH HERE)
Scripture Alone…
We live in an era of unprecedented access to the Bible. Yet we live in an era of biblical ignorance. One can find copies of the Bible for very little money or free electronic versions on their phones or devices. In seconds all the content of the Bible is available for one to read and use.
Yet, without any research, the issues of 1517 are the same as 2023. The difference of 1517 was that people did not have access to the Bible and had to rely on whatever someone told them was in the Bible. Bible’s were hand copied and translations in local languages were not existent. People have Bible’s readily available today, but rely on what others say about the Bible and so remain ignorant of what the Bible says. To be fair, this is my perception based on personal experience and not reliant on any scientific research or study.
But the outcome is the same. When people do not read the BIble for themselves, they rely on and believe those that talk about the Bible…clergy, college professors, or social media reels. In 1517 in Martin Luther’s day they relied on the leaders of the church and the local priest to tell them about spiritual things.
In both settings, people were spiritually misled and confused.
Martin Luther as a monk and a professor of theology was given access to the Bible. He started to read it for himself and what he discovered is that the teachings of the Catholic Church were not in agreement with the teachings of Scripture. The church was selling forgiveness through indulgences and promoting personal effort to obtain the right relationship with God. The church was leaving consciences troubled. The Gospel was working on Luther’s heart to bring peace in the righteousness that Jesus had obtained for him. Romans 1:16-17 captures this key teaching:
16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”
Now there was a tension…would the authority of the church prevail over the Scripture as it had done for years or would the authority of the Scripture prevail over the church? Luthers’ desires was the latter, but the reality was the Pope and leaders of the church would not change the traditions and teachings of the church to align with the authority of Scripture.
Perhaps the same is true today. Cultural pressures, academic philosophy, and personal feelings carry more weight in the realm of religion than the authority of Scripture. As a result one seeks to make the BIble say what they want it to say and ignore the parts that would challenge their way of thinking. The Bible is let go of as the authority and one’s reason and feelings become the primary guide for faith and life.
But not so for confessional Lutherans. For confessional Lutherans, the authority of Scripture is the ultimate authority. If the teaching of the church contradicts Scripture, Scripture wins. If reason, culture or feelings pull against the teaching of Scripture, Scripture wins. Every time. For when the authority of Scripture plays second to tradition or reason, all authority is lost. That is what we don’t want to ever lose!
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 TImothy 3:16-17)
Apply: What blessing is it to always default to the authority of Scripture?
Prayer: Lord, keep us steadfast in your Word;
curb those who by deceit or sword
would seek to overthrow your Son
and to destroy what he has done. AMEN
Why all the different Christian churches?
This week’s devotions are based on the Week 8 “Explore God” – What is a Lutheran? (WATCH HERE)
Over the past weeks we have looked at seven key questions about the Christian faith. Perhaps after all these questions are answered, the confusion of sorting through the many Christian denominations becomes the real challenge. In any given community there is a Catholic Church, Baptist, Presbyterian, Church of Christ, Anglican, Methodist, Calvary Church, non-denominational and more.
So how does one sort out and find a church that will support and grow their faith and their relationship with God? What is the difference between all the different Christian churches? If you google this question, you may find a summary chart that is helpful, but what I find helpful in answering this question is to trace the history of all the denominations back to their origins in the “family tree of denominations.” When you see the major breaks in the lineage, one can ask, “What happened there?” By understanding the issues behind the reason for the breaks in the line, I can find it helpful to understand the basic differences between Christian denominations. Today’s devotion isn’t going to answer every detail, but this week, let’s touch on some of the major issues and understand the Lutheran position on them.
Disclaimer: These devotions are not to negate the possibility of true believers in other Christian churches, but to highlight very important differences that have potential to mislead people away from Christ.
1517 is the year marked as the “Protestant Reformation.” Since it was initiated by Martin Luther, we as Lutherans call it the “Lutheran Reformation.” 🙂 As one can see most of mainline protestant churches were offshoots of the initial work done by Martin Luther.
Martin Luther was raised in a Catholic home. He grew up in the Catholic Church and was well aware of the tenets of that theology. The Pope was the ultimate head. The works of penance must be done to achieve satisfaction for sin. The Church was the authority and to question that authority was tantamount to entering the fires of hell. As a young man, he was caught in a thunderstorm and made a vow that if he survived, he would enter a monastery and become a monk. Monasticism was viewed as the ultimate work of faith as one put off the material temptations to simply focus on the spiritual life. However, as Luther engaged in the full effort of being a monk, he found his conscience more troubled and his relationship with God more filled with fear. The harder he worked to appease God the more guilty he felt. He found no rest for his soul in the works of his life.
How is one right with God became a key question Luther wrestled with. Fortunately, as a monk, he had access to a Bible and was also invited to teach theology in the University of Wittenberg. As he read the Scripture, he discovered a righteousness that is by faith in Jesus Christ. But what does one do when the authority of the Pope, the decrees of the church and the utterances of the Councils contradict the Scripture? What is the ultimate authority for the faith and life of a believer?
This was a second question that Luther wrestled with, “What or who is the ultimate authority for faith and life?” Perhaps a third question that was present was “How do the works of Christ become mine personally” – i.e. the matter of faith.
Still to this day these key questions of 1517 are questions that must be asked today. As we delve into these questions this week, we will also see they are still important questions to have answered as we look for a Christian Church. The answers that Luther discovered have become not just the Lutheran answer, but the biblical answer. After all, Luther settled his heart in the amazing truths of Scripture.
John 17: 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
Apply: What has helped you find a church to support you in your spiritual growth and confidence of faith in Jesus?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for faithful servants like Martin Luther who were willing to risk their lives for the sake of the Gospel and the truth of your Word. Help us to have the same boldness and courage in our generation. AMEN.