Living in the Word…Serving in the World

Exploring Christ

Growing in Christ

Close to Christ

Christ-Centered

Serve the Church

Weekend Services

Small Groups

Serve others through the church

Adult Educational Classes

In Depth Regular Study of Scripture

Movement from small groups to

mentoring relationships

Movement from a dependence-on-church relationship with Christ to a more personal relationship utilizing spiritual disciplines.

At what point in one’s movement towards Christ-centeredness does greatest rate of faith growth occur?

Activities such as serving others and sharing faith are not simply triggered by increasing faith, but the activities themselves actually

catalyze spiritual growth.

Top Five Catalysts Influencing Movement Toward X-Centeredness

1.Giving away my life.

2.Christ is first.

3. Identity in Christ

4.Authority in the Bible

5.Reflection on Scripture

Pastors typically spend 80% of their time with persons in the early

stages of faith development.

More than 20% of ‘active Christians’ (80,000 people)

described their faith as

“spiritually stalled”.

41% of these were in the

Exploring Christ stage of

development.

Those who “stalled” had significantly lower levels of

dedication to spiritual

disciplines.

41% of these were in the

Exploring Christ stage of

development.

Effort is to encourage members

away from dependence on the

church to a partnership with the

church.

DVD

If someone were to ask you, “So what do Lutherans believe about the Bible?”

how would you respond?

•It’s the “Word of God”?

•Do you Lutherans read the Bible literally?

•Do you believe it is inerrant?

Bible is “the inspired Word of God and authoritative source and norm of our proclamation, faith and life.”

What makes the Word of God authoritative for us is that it tells us

what God wants us to know.

Every verse in every Book in the Bible tells us exactly what God wants us to know.

Lutherans talk about the Bible in a Three-Fold Sense…

1.Word Incarnate

2.Word Proclaimed

3.Word Written

Sola Scriptura

Scripture is the only rule and norm by which doctrine is evaluated.

What were the 3 legs on the stool holding up truth?

Sola Scriptura

What do we do when the Bible seems to contradict reason or experience?

“The cross is foolishness to the Greeks.”

(1 Corinthians 1:18)

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their

life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.

(Mark 8:34)

Some passages in Scripture are pretty clear…

“Do not commit adultery.”

(Exodus 20)

“Be kind to one another.”

(Ephesians 4:32)

Scripture has obviously been misunderstood in the past…

“Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the body and blood of the Lord. Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For all who eat and drink without discerning the body, eat and drink judgment against themselves.”

(1 Corinthians 11)

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

Law & Gospel

Shows forth Christ

• “Second Article” Christians

• “Everything is a means to an end, except Jesus”

Scripture interprets Scripture• Wary of “proof-texting”

• “Yeah, but the Bible also says…”

• What might Colossians 3 have us believe about slavery?

• Proverbs 13 about disciplining children?

• Three uses of the law.

The Plain Meaning of Text

• Creative with the interpretation? Not!

• How would those in “Biblical Days” understand the text?

Public Interpretation

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.

Law & Gospel

(Isaiah 55)

Ho, everyone who thirsts,

come to the waters;and you that have no money,come, buy and eat!Come, buy wine and milkwithout money and without price.Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,and your labor for that which does not satisfy?Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,and delight yourselves in rich food.Incline your ear, and come to me;listen, so that you may live.I will make with you an everlasting covenant,my steadfast, sure love for David.See, I made him a witness to the peoples,a leader and commander for the peoples.See, you shall call nations that you do not know,and nations that do not know you shall run to you, because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.

Law & Gospel

(Isaiah 55)

6Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near;Let the wicked forsake their way, and the unrighteous their thoughts; let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.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.

Literal?Factual?

Metaphorical?

(1 Kings 6)

In the four hundred eightieth year after the Israelites came out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, he began to build the house of the LORD. The house that King Solomon built for the LORD was sixty cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and thirty cubits high. The vestibule in front of the nave of the house was twenty cubits wide, across the width of the house. Its depth was ten cubits in front of the house.

Literal?Factual?

Metaphorical?

(Proverbs 9)

Wisdom has built her house,

she has hewn her seven pillars.She has slaughtered her animals, she has mixed her wine,

she has also set her table.She has sent out her servant-girls, she calls from the highest places in the town,"You that are simple, turn in here!"To those without sense she says,Come, eat of my bread

and drink of the wine I have mixed.Lay aside immaturity,* and live,

and walk in the way of insight."

Literal?Factual?

Metaphorical?

(Revelation 13)

And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads; and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have received a death-blow, but its mortal wound* had been healed. In amazement the whole earth followed the beast. They worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?"

Literal?Factual?

Metaphorical?

(Matthew 1)

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah* took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

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.