Five Key Lutheran Principles for Dealing with Scripture 1.Law & Gospel

Law & Gospel (Luke 6) Then he looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. "Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. "Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. "Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. "But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. "Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. "Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. "Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

Five Key Lutheran Principles for Dealing with Scripture 1.Law & Gospel 2.Shows forth Christ

“I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord…” Lutherans are accused of being “Second Article Christians” “Everything is a means to an end, except Jesus.”

Five Key Lutheran Principles for Dealing with Scripture 1.Law & Gospel 2.Shows forth Christ 3.Scripture interprets Scripture

“Yeah…but the Bible also says…” “Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, not only while being watched and in order to please them, but wholeheartedly, fearing the Lord.” (Colossians 3:22) “Those who spare the rod hate their children, but those who love them are diligent to discipline them.” (Proverbs 13:24)

How the Commandments work Theology of the Cross Justification by Grace through Faith

Five Key Lutheran Principles for Dealing with Scripture 1.Law & Gospel 2.Shows forth Christ 3.Scripture interprets Scripture 4.The Plain Meaning of the Text

How would Jesus’ hearers hear? (Matthew 4) As Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." Immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

Five Key Lutheran Principles for Dealing with Scripture 1.Law & Gospel 2.Shows forth Christ 3.Scripture interprets Scripture 4.The Plain Meaning of the Text 5.Public Interpretation

Old preacher that opened his Bible every day for a personal message from God. One morning he read, “And Judas went out and hanged himself.” Wondered what God was trying to say to him. So he opened the Bible again and read… “Go thou and do likewise.”

“The Authority and Power of Jesus”

When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress." And he said to him, "I will come and cure him." The centurion answered, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and the slave does it." When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, "Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. (Matthew 8:5-10)

What has AUTHORITY in your life?

Lutherans Speak of the Bible having “authority”. What does this mean?

“ For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11

The Bible has authority because of what the Bible does.

The power and authority of the Bible do not belong to the book itself. It’s power comes from God.

So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:17)

Three-Fold Sense of the WORD 1) Word Incarnate God Speaks to us through Jesus the Christ. “Jesus Christ is the Word of God incarnate, through whom everything was made and through whose life, death and resurrection God fashions a new creation.”

Three-Fold Sense of the WORD 2) Word Proclaimed God Speaks to us through believers who tell the story of God’s love in Jesus. “The proclamation of God’s message to us as bott Law and Gospel is the Word of God, revealing judgment and mercy through word and deed, beginning with the Word in creation, continuing in the history of Israel, and centering in all its fullness in the person and work of Jesus Christ.”

Three-Fold Sense of the WORD 3) Word Written God Speaks to us through Scripture. “The canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the written Word of God. Inspired by God’s Spirit speaking through their authors, they record and announce God’s revelation centering in Jesus Christ. Through them God’s Spirit speaks to us to create and sustain Christian faith and fellowship for service in the world.”

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! (Isaiah 55)

He said to me, O mortal, eat what is offered to you; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. He said to me, Mortal, eat this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it. Then I ate it; and in my mouth it was as sweet as honey. (Ezekiel 3)

Approaches to the Bible that may be Problematic… 1.Reading the Bible without community. 2.Reading the Bible without its context. 3.Reading the Bible without expectancy. 4.Reading the Bible without care and attention to the nature of the Bible. 5.The continuing challenge to the authority of the Bible is neglect.

Reading the Bible Without Community

Reading the Bible without its context

Reading the Bible without expectancy

Reading the Bible… …without care to the Nature of the Bible

Neglect

The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you. So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it. (Jonah 3:1-5; 10)

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near, repent, and believe in the good news.” As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea — for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you fish for people." And immediately they left their nets and followed him. As he went a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in their boat mending the nets. Immediately he called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men, and followed him. (Mark 1:14-20)