The Vatican is now making a prayer room for muslims in the Vatican Library. It’s hard to understand why the alleged “Rock of Christ” is making allowances in what is supposed to be a “theocracy.” I think Steve Skojec sums up the collective Catholic attitude when he ends his twitter post:
“I don’t like it, but it matches the status quo in a very practical way. It is what it is.”
This equates to our responses to the LCMS church body freefall. We’ve spilled a lot of ink complaining about the Synod and pastors. But the truth is, the church is failing because we laypeople are not living our faith in service to God. Instead, our response is and has been, “it is what it is.”
Real Church Growth
“I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase”
1 Cor 6:7-8, NKJV
Now, I know Lutherans. I’ve been one since I was baptized as an infant. If you’re reading this, you’re probably screaming, “CHURCH GROWTH IS THE WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT!” I agree. The Lutheran Confessions are pretty clear on this in Articles VII and VIII of the Apology of the Augsburg Confession.
“...the Church…is originally a fellowship of faith and of the Holy Spirit in hearts…[the] marks are the pure doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments in accordance with the Gospel of Christ.”
Through baptism, we receive the Holy Spirit. Through preaching, teaching, and the Sacraments, we are forgiven and strengthened against the assaults of the world. This is why I’ve written articles focused so heavily on pastoral requirements. One way to slow the bleeding is to enforce pastoral standards so our Churches bear the marks.
But “...faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:20, NKJV). And dead faith is marked by empty churches. Our pastors cannot do all the heavy lifting; they need the help of laypeople, which is sorely lacking. By not showing our faith by our deeds in service to God, we have shown ourselves to be “...stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears! [We] always resist the Holy Spirit; as [our] fathers did, so do [we]” (Acts 7:51, NKJV). How many churches would St. Paul planted had he simply waited for the Holy Spirit to do so? No, the Holy Spirit works through men. And as the true Church, we have the Holy Spirit, and are all soldiers of Christ. But we are letting our pastors fight alone. No one is coming to save us. We have to put in the effort if we are to save the LCMS. But what does that mean? What efforts are beneficial to the future of the LCMS?
The Christian Long Game
Working in this fashion is playing the long game. Our actions today will shape the lives of all generations to come after us. So, start doing the simple things at home. Pray continuously (1 Thess. 5:17). Read your Bible. Read the Lutheran Confessions. Read the Treasury of Daily Prayer. Memorize scripture and the catechism. In doing so you arm yourself with the full armor of God.
If you are blessed with a family, focus on them, so that your children would remain in the one true faith unto life everlasting. Pray as a family. Fill your house with Christian art. Study the Bible, Confessions, and Catechism. Catechize your children, so when they go to Confirmation with your pastor they have a good foundation of the faith. Memorize scripture. Encourage your boys in the faith, towards the pastoral requirements from St. Paul, and towards the seminaries. Raise your daughters to be Godly women, deserving of a Godly man.
Finally, join yourselves in fellowship with your fellow Christians. Volunteer at your church, and tithe generously so your pastors can focus on the marks of the true church. Deepen your friendships in the church to strengthen one another. Play an instrument in church, join choir, be a part of altar guild or the church council. Above all, submit yourselves to the Holy Spirit, who “... has called [us] by the Gospel, enlightened [us] with His gifts, sanctified and kept [us] in the one true faith.” Use those gifts freely for the good of God’s church.
Reject the “it is what it is” mentality. In reality, it is what we made it. Through our own complacency, we’ve lost half of our congregational attendance in 20 years. The Synod cannot save itself. It has a purpose, but it cannot preach the Gospel and administer the sacraments at your church. Your pastor can, but he is most certainly drowning under the burdens we have let him carry. Enough. We, the laypeople, must ensure that our churches are clean, financially secure, and filled with joyous families, catechized in the faith, who meet weekly to receive the bountiful gifts of God. By doing these works, wrought in us by the Holy Spirit, the LCMS will grow. I’ll be working on these things alongside you.
“And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”
Gal. 6:9, NKJV
Dr. Koontz said something in a recent BHOP episode that was very insightful and your article brought it to mind. He said, “Indifference, which is the opposite of love, hate is not.”
A beautiful encouragement from the laity. Amen!