1. The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel by CFW Walther
~ The Twenty-Fifth ~
Evening Lecture

2. Review:
Some preachers say, “You gotta believe!!” What’s wrong with that?
What should a preacher do instead?
We do say that faith is required for salvation. What do we not say?
was the first President of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod and its most influential theologian.

3. 1. Walther admits that “proclaiming the pure doctrine of the Gospel of Christ” is a difficult task. But which task does he emphasize is equally difficult? (pg 265 middle.)
“… at the same time exposing, refuting, and rejecting teachings that are contrary to the Gospel.”
The minister who does this will discover by practical experience the truth of the old saying: Veritas odium parit (telling the truth makes enemies).
Athanasius, Luther — easy to keep silent, difficult to come out publicly and refute error!

4. 2. The Christian church may not be built up in peace — why not
2. The Christian church may not be built up in peace — why not? (pg 266 bottom.)
“… it is located within the domain of the devil.”
“Wherever a Church is seen to be, not ecclesia militans, but ecclesia quiescens, a Church at ease, that — you may rely on it! — is a false Church.”
“Of what use, however, is a shepherd who leads the sheep to good pasture-grounds, but flees when he sees the wolf coming?”

5. “… errors are the more harmful, the more they are concealed.”
3. A preacher must not only proclaim the truth, but identify and condemn the error. Which errors does Walther say are the most dangerous? (pg 268 top.)
“… errors are the more harmful, the more they are concealed.”
“It is therefore necessary that they be dragged into the light and fought.”

6. Thesis XIV
In the tenth place, the Word of God is not rightly divided when faith is required as a condition of justification and salvation, as if a person were righteous in the sight of God and saved, not only by faith, but also on account of his faith, for the sake of his faith, and in view of his faith.

7. 4. Is it enough to state: “Man is made righteous in the sight of God and saved by faith alone”? (pg 268 middle.)
No.
“… the proper sense must be connected with these words.”

8. 5. What do the rationalists mean when they say “man is saved by faith alone”? (pg 268 bottom.)
“… by faith in Jesus Christ they understand nothing else than the acceptance of the excellent moral teachings which Christ proclaimed.”
“By accepting these moral teachings, they held, a person becomes a true disciple of the Lord and is made righteous and saved.”

9. 6. What do the Roman Catholics mean when they say “man is saved by faith alone”? (pg 268 bottom.)
“… by faith they understand fides formata, faith that is joined with love.”
“Accordingly, they manage to say many excellent things about faith; but by faith they always mean something different from what Scripture teaches.”

10. 7. What does it really mean when Scripture says that man is saved by faith alone? (pg 269 top.)
“Man is not saved by his own acts, but solely by the doing and dying of his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

11. 8. When does a “present” cease to be a present? (pg 269 bottom.)
“it ceases to be a present when the donor stipulates one condition or another which the grantee must meet.”

12. 9. Paul emphasizes the word dorean (δωρεάν) in Romans 3:24, “being justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” What does that Greek word mean? (pg 270 top.)
“… gratuitously [for free], without anything, even the least thing, being required of us.”
“We honor Him as our faithful Savior by making His Gospel our refuge; but we deny Him if we come to Him offering Him something for what He gives us.”

13. 10. Salvation would not be a “gift” if God attached conditions to it
10. Salvation would not be a “gift” if God attached conditions to it. How does Walther use the analogy of a beggar to illustrate this? (pg 270 middle.)
“Suppose you say to a beggar who approaches you asking alms that you will give him something on one condition, and on his asking you what the condition is, you would tell him the condition is that he accept your gift. Would he not consider your condition a hoax?”

14. 11. Salvation would not be a “gift” if God attached conditions to it
11. Salvation would not be a “gift” if God attached conditions to it. How does Walther use the analogy of a tramp to illustrate this? (pg 270 bottom.)
“It would be no gift if He were to attach a condition, just as little as it is a gift when I ask a tramp to work in my garden if he wants me to give him something to eat.”

15. 12. In the mid-19th century, American Lutheranism struggled through the so-called “predestinarian controversy.” Certain theologians claimed that believers were elected intuitu fidei. What does that Latin phrase mean? Why is it bad? (pg 271 middle.)
“In view of faith.”
“Turn and twist as much as they will, they declare that something which man does is the cause of his salvation.”

16. 13. What is the problem with stating that “faith is a condition which the Gospel stipulates”? (pg 272 top.)
He “…makes the promises of the Gospel conditioned promises like those of the Law and removes the distinction between the Law and the Gospel.”
In short, the promises of grace demand nothing of man. When the Lord says, “Believe,” He does not utter a demand, but issues an urgent invitation to man to take, to apprehend, to appropriate what He is giving.

17. 14. “If faith is obedience,” Walther says, “it is a work of the Law
14. “If faith is obedience,” Walther says, “it is a work of the Law.” But that’s not what faith is. What is it? (pg 272 bottom.)
“Faith is merely a passive instrument, like a hand into which some one places a dollar.”
“The donor is doing the essential part by putting the gift into the hand, not the other party, by holding out the hand.”

18. The fact that “…it is God who prompts the holding out of the hand.”
15. What if someone presses the point and says, “Yes, but by holding out my hand, I do make a motion!” What fact does that not change? (pg 273 middle.)
The fact that “…it is God who prompts the holding out of the hand.”

19. 16. Can faith be viewed, in any way, as “an achievement of ours”
16. Can faith be viewed, in any way, as “an achievement of ours”? (pg 273 bottom.)
“Faith is not an achievement of ours, but is wrought in us by God without our contributing anything towards that end.”

20. “…that man is justified on account of his faith.”
17. Walther points out that we ought to be careful about the language we use in describing faith. It is perfectly proper to say that a person is justified by faith. What is it improper to say? (pg 274 top.)
“…that man is justified on account of his faith.”
“Wherever the relation of faith to justification is spoken of, terms are used which declare faith a means, not a cause.”

21. 18. Reverting to the analogy of a hand receiving a gift, Walther says it would be silly to call faith a condition of salvation… Why? (pg 274 middle.)
Because “the hand is not called the condition, but the organ and instrument, for receiving alms.”