THE SHEPHERD’S STAFF July 2012

CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH Platte Woods, Missouri www.christlc.net Volume 55, Number 7

Dear Fellow-citizens of the TWO KINGDOMS,

Did you know we belong to two kingdoms? We call the first the “Kingdom of the left.” This kingdom is where you live on this side of eternity. The citizenship you hold as a United States citizen is a part of this kingdom. We call the second the “Kingdom of the right.” We are citizens of this kingdom by virtue of our faith in Christ Jesus and our membership in the Holy Christian Church. You have dual-citizenship. You are members of two kingdoms.

At this time of year and with the 236th Anniversary of our nation’s independence being celebrated on the 4th of this month, our awareness of our citizenship within this country comes very much to mind. We know how the vast majority of our American citizenry will be celebrating the Fourth: parades, fireworks, parties, picnics, etc. But how do we and other like us, acknowledging our dual-citizenship, life in that “other” kingdom? Our Friday morning men’s Bible study just recently concluded a study on life in two kingdoms. We understand how we are citizens of both and how life is to be lived accordingly. We, of course, depend on God and Him only for what makes us members of the “right-hand” kingdom (heaven – the kingdom we have to come). But, we depend very much on others for our safety and protection in the “left-hand” kingdom.

Those who we elect to protect us… those we depend on to care for us… those who fight for us… those who debate and propose laws for us… need our prayers for the sake of our daily bread. We should heed what Dr. Luther says in the Large Catechism in the fourth petition:

“Probably the greatest need of all is for us to pray for our civil authorities and government. They are chiefly the ones through whom God preserves our daily bread and all the comforts of life. For although we have received from God an abundance of all good gifs, yet we cannot retain any of them or enjoy them in happy security unless God grants us a stable and peaceable government. For where there is strife, wrangling, and war there our daily bread is already taken from us, or at least threatened.”

I would suggest to you, then, that one of the finest ways we, as citizens of the United States of America, can celebrate the Fourth of July is that as citizens of the Holy Christian Church – the kingdom of the right – we would specifically and, by name, remember and name many of our governmental leaders in our prayers. Take time to give thanks and pray, also, for those who serve and protect our freedoms and who guard our laws in the community.

Praying with you,

Pastor Arnold

A Reformation Timeline Last month was the 482nd commemoration of the Augsburg Confession’s presentation on June 25th. This got me thinking about some significant dates regarding Lutherans and our most beloved confessions: 325—The Council of Nicaea 381—The Council of Constantinople 1517—Luther published his 95 Thesis, beginning the Reformation 1529—Luther published his Small and Large catechisms 1530—The Augsburg Confession presented on June 25th 1546—Luther dies 1548—Augsburg and Leipzig Interims 1563—The Council of Trent ends; the Roman Catholic Church is born 1577—The Formula of Concord’s Solid Declaration is published 1580—The Book of Concord is published, on the 50th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession The Reformation teaching of forgiveness and salvation Sola Fide, Sola Gratia, and Sola Scriptura (Latin for “By faith alone, By grace alone, and By Scripture alone”—the banner above our pulpit shows a marvelous depiction of this) was the continuation of the faith first confessed in the early Christian councils and their fruit: the Nicene Creed. Luther’s nailing of the 95 thesis to the castle-church door in Wittenberg is regarded by many as the start of the Reformation. In this document, Luther points out the truly un-catholic practices which the church held: purgatory, indulgences, and prayer to the saints; among other abuses. The Augsburg Confession, written by lay theologian Philip Melanchthon, denounced the church’s errors as well as affirmed the truly catholic faith: the free gift of forgiveness through the incarnate Christ’s gifts. In 1546, the Reformation lost one of her beloved heroes. Martin Luther received the crown of everlasting life in February of that year. Luther was a giant in regard to his prolific writing and his steadfast confession in the face of great adversity. Who would lead the Reformation charge with Luther gone? One obvious candidate was Philip Melanchthon. He was no slouch in regard to writing and theology; after all, he had drafted the Augsburg Confession and its Apology. But what Melanchthon lacked (as time would tell) was the steadfastness of his confession. His proclivity toward reunion with Rome led him to make a great many concessions toward that end. The Augsburg and Leipzig Interims (the latter drafted by Melanchthon) were designed to bring unity between the Reformation and Rome. The logic was as such: The Reformation is allowed to continue in their practices of having their priests marry and distribute both kinds in the mass, but they must acknowledge purgatory, indulgences and the other Roman dogmas. Melanchthon and the Philippists (as his followers became known) bought into this ideology for the sake of unity. However, some theologians in the German city of Magdeburg put up no small resistance to these sell- outs. They published an enormous amount of pamphlets and tracts calling the Interims what they really were: a ploy to subsume the Reformation back into Rome. Titles such as, Against the Worthless Devil who has Disguised Himself as an Angel of Light, That is, Against the Interim, were distributed far and wide in order to save Luther’s Reform. For the illiterate, they produced the Interim Dragon, which became the symbol of deceit spewed forth by the interim documents. This 3-headed beast was printed on posters, stamped on coins, and even etched into beer steins! This godly propaganda likely saved the Reformation. At the completion of the Council of Trent in 1563 (the official response to the Reformation), the Pope’s catholic church officially severed her tie to orthodox and creedal Christianity and the Roman Catholic Church was born. In one canon of these documents the following is stated: “ anyone says that the ungodly is justified by faith alone in such a way that he understands that nothing else is required which cooperates toward obtaining the grace of justification and that it is in no way necessary for him to be prepared and disposed by the movement of his own will; let him be anathema [or condemned].” (Council of Trent 6:10: IX) The ‘Lutherans’ (as they became known), however, made complete their connection to the orthodox and creedal faith by reaffirming (and bringing further clarifying) the Augsburg Confession in the Formula of Concord in 1577, and subsequent publication of the Book of Concord (which includes the Formula, Augsburg Confession, Luther’s Catechisms, and others) in 1580. To learn more of this story, please join us on Tuesday nights at 7pm from now through August. These classes are stand-alone (they don’t necessarily build upon the previous week), so if you can’t make some due to being away on vacation, you’d still benefit from ones that you can attend. In Christ’s Service, Pastor Froiland CELEBRATE/REMEMBER/FIGHT BACK Relay For Life 2012

Christ Lutheran has participated in the Northland Relay For Life, the American Cancer Society’s signature activity, every summer since 2007. 2012 will be our 5th anniversary of participation. Please consider joining with us to commemorate our commitment to eradicate cancer this year. Our 2012 team is registered to participate. You may join the team online at www.relayforlife.org/northlandmo or see Janet Jones for details.

The Relay itself is an awesome