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Lutheran Synod Quarterly, September 1996, Vol 118 LSQ XXXIX, 2 LSQ XXXIX, 2 119 Foreword This issue of the Quarterly begins with an address deliv- Lutheran ered by President David Valleskey of Wisconsin Lutheran Semi- nary during a noon luncheon at the 1999 General Pastoral Con- ference of the ELS. The address is entitled The Ministry is a Splendid Task. The speaker points out that those in the public Synod ministry have a splendid purpose, a splendid message, and a splen- did promise. This presentation was well received by the pastors of the synod. Our readers will appreciate the essay by the Rev. James Quarterly Braun of Klamath Falls, Oregon, on Gnosticism in the Early Church. Gnosticism was a major heresy with which the Early ISBN 0360-9685 Church fought a life and death struggle. The results of the heresy CONTENTS can still be seen today when the Gospel of Thomas is being ad- The Ministry is a Splendid Task . 121 vocated as the fifth Gospel. David J. Valleskey The Rev. Bruce Wilmot Adams of Glenowrie, South Aus- tralia, has written an article concerning Companions of the Gnosticism in the Early Church . 128 James M. Braun Augsburg Confession, giving an overview of early Lutheran his- tory in England. This article is very timely in light of the fact that Companions of the Augsburg Confession . 171 this Whitsunday marked the 450th anniversary of The Book of Bruce Wilmot Adams Common Prayer first published in 1549. It was written by Tho- Maturing the Christian on the Mission Field . 179 mas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury at that time. While David E. Haeuser The Book of Common Prayer is Anglican and not Lutheran, it Book Reviews: was influenced by Lutheran theology and it in turn influenced the English Lutheran liturgy and hymnody in this country. Ernst H. Wendland, Which Way, Lord? . 203 The fourth article in this Quarterly is a paper presented Norman A. Madson by the Rev. David Haeuser at the ELS Missionary Conference in John A. Braun, His Word Our Delight . 206 Plzen, Czech Republic, in September, 1998. This essay, Matur- John A. Moldstad, Jr. ing the Christian on the Mission Field, shows Missionary Harold L. Senkbeil, Where in the World is God? . 209 Haeusers deep care and concern for Christian missions, which Steven P. Petersen should be an encouragement to each of us in our mission goal. This issue concludes with several book reviews. Volume 39, No. 2 June 1999 120 LSQ XXXIX, 2 LSQ XXXIX, 2 121 Contents Address to the ELS Pastoral Conference The Ministry is a Splendid Task . 121 David J. Valleskey by David J. Valleskey Gnosticism in the Early Church . 128 Its a real privilege to be asked to address you, my broth- James M. Braun ers in Christ in the ELS, with whom we in the WELS have shared a blessed fellowship in Christ unity in doctrine Companions of the Augsburg Confession . 171 and practice for some eighty years. The best way to Bruce Wilmot Adams enjoy the fellowship we share is to practice it to come together, to worship together, to work together, to study Maturing the Christian on the Mission Field . 179 together. Thats why I did not hesitate when asked to speak David E. Haeuser to you at this luncheon. I want to talk to you about the joys of the parish minis- Book Reviews: try. That is a subject close to my heart. I must say that the Lord had to almost literally pull me kicking and scream- Ernst H. Wendland, Which Way, Lord? . 203 ing out of the parish ministry to Wisconsin Lutheran Semi- Norman A. Madson nary back in 1984. It was my second call to the Seminary, and the Lord made it clear to me that this was a call He John A. Braun, His Word Our Delight . 206 wanted me to take. But my heart remained, and continues John A. Moldstad, Jr. to remain, in the parish (By the way, next year I am going to take a six-month sabbatical back into the parish, which Harold L. Senkbeil, Where in the World is God? . 209 I am eagerly looking forward to). Steven P. Petersen The Apostle Paul expresses well my feelings about the ministry, the parish ministry in particular, when in 1 Timo- thy 3 he writes, Here is a trustworthy saying [one of five such trustworthy, faithful sayings in the Pastoral Epistles]: If anyone sets his heart on being an evpiskoph/j, an over- seer [Beck translates this pastor], he desires a kalou/ e;rgou, a good work. A noble task, the NIV translates it. Another translation aptly calls it a splendid task. 122 LSQ XXXIX, 2 LSQ XXXIX, 2 123 The Ministry is a Splendid Task Rome even his friends forsake him. Only Luke is with him. And finally he is martyred under Nero. Writing to the Corinthians at the close of his Third Mis- To whom? Certainly not to the world. Viewed from the sionary Journey, Paul looks back on his experiences during eyes of the world, splendid hardly seems to be the word his years of ministry: I have been in prison...been with which to describe Pauls ministry. A person looking back flogged...and been exposed to death again and again. Five over what transpired during Pauls years of ministry might be times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. inclined to say, If anyone sets his heart on being a pastor, he Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three is asking for a heap of trouble; or even, If anyone sets his times I was shipwrecked...I have been in danger from rivers, heart on being a pastor, he must be out of his mind. in danger from bandits, in danger from my own countrymen, Think back with me to some of Pauls experiences. Hes in danger from Gentiles, in danger at sea; and in danger from converted to Christianity on the Damascus Road and is now false brothers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone anxious to bring the gospel to his fellow Jews in Damascus. without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often What is their response? They try to kill him. He has to be gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides ev- ignominiously smuggled out of the city by being lowered in a erything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all basket through a window in the city wall. the churches. He embarks on what we today call his First Missionary And this is the Paul who says, If anyone sets his heart on Journey. In Antioch he is expelled from the city; in Iconium being a pastor, he desires a splendid task! To which the world there is a plot to stone him to death; in Lystra they actually might be inclined to say, Paul, you have to be kidding. If do stone him, leaving him for dead. what you went through can be described as splendid, On his Second Journey he doesnt fare much better. In noble, good, then what in all the world would you call Philippi he is stripped, beaten, chained, and thrown into a bad? dungeon; in Thessalonica he is forced out of town; in Berea Its not hard to come up with a list of similar negatives likewise he is compelled to flee his enemies; in Athens he is about the ministry today. Weve all experienced them: ridiculed for preaching the resurrection; in Corinth he is so 1. Your standard of living. It is not commensurate with vehemently opposed by the Jews that he has to leave the syna- the training you have received and the responsibilities you gogue and devote himself to ministry to the Gentiles. have been given, certainly not compared with the income level On his Third Journey, in Ephesus, where he spent the bulk of other professionals doctors, lawyers, etc. of his time, the silversmith Demetrius incites a riot against 2. The long hours you put in. Ive been there. The con- him, a riot that could easily have resulted in Pauls death if stant juggling of time-trying to give enough time to your con- cooler heads had not prevailed. gregation, to outreach to the community, to your own per- After his missionary journeys, things didnt get any bet- sonal spiritual growth, to your wife and family. Never enough ter. Paul sets sail to Jerusalem, where he is arrested; he spends hours to get everything done. two years as a prisoner in Caesarea, followed by a two-year 3. The frustrations of marriages falling apart in spite imprisonment in Rome. During his second imprisonment in of all your efforts to hold them together; of new converts 124 LSQ XXXIX, 2 LSQ XXXIX, 2 125 quickly falling away; of straying sheep displaying a ho hum, I wasnt I but the Holy Spirit]. We always thought that if we had dont care attitude toward Word and Sacrament; of congrega- any chance at all of getting to heaven, it would have to be through tional members adopting the worlds way of looking at moral is- what we did. Now we see that Jesus has done it all. We can never sues such as pre-marital sex, live-in situations, divorce, and re- thank you enough. On that day he and his wife began their spiri- marriage; the list goes on. tual life. 4. The ridicule you face on the part of the world (like What a joy it is to be the Lords instrument in bringing Paul at Athens) and even by other churches.
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