Theology for Ministry

Explore the topics of love and forgiveness. The lyrics of The Ballad of Love and Hate by The Avett Brothers is suggested. God's love for us in Jesus Christ actually does break through our prison of self-love and frees us to actually feel, express, and experience love for God and love for others. As those called to minister, we are called to remain in touch with the wounds and the pain. Wilder stated, "A revival in religion will come about through new persuasive words." Consider Theophilus North by Thornton Wilder. Explore The Angel That Troubled the Waters by Thornton Wilder.

Continue to explore “Where Love Is God Is” by Leo Tolstoy. Forgiveness should be rooted in the forgiveness we have received. Forgiveness and a benediction generated by the love of Christ changes the relationship and the boy. Do you buy this story? Is that where love actually comes from? What actually produces love from us is God's love for us in Jesus Christ. What are the catalysts in the story? Which produces the kind of real change? In ministry, where does love actually come from? It comes not from being thrashed but from being loved. How do we minister to someone like the grandma in the story? What does the concrete form that being loved through the Word have on the grandma? The experiences of the Word produce a kind of freedom that looks like honesty and love for another person. Consider parenting and the Law. Explore the Christian and pastoral struggle.

Is the new life something we get to enjoy later or are there foretastes and forms of that freedom that we can actually feel now? Love is the fulfillment of the Law. In Luke 10:27 we read, “And he answered, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.’” The form of freedom is love for God and love for others. In Galatians 5:1,13 we read, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.” Also in Galatians 6:2 we read, “Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” The form freedom takes is a type of slavery to others that looks like love. A suggested read is “Freedom of a Christian” (1520) by Martin Luther. Explore “Where Love Is God Is” by Leo Tolstoy.

Consider pastoral care. What do we actually say? Consider that the distinctions between the Law and Gospel help us to answer what do we say. Explore the necessity of listening. Pastoral care is discernment. The first thing we learn about speaking is to not speak to soon but to listen. When we start to give advice it prevents us from listening. We also often have a spiritualized alternative to listening. Interrupting is not actually listening to understand but to formulate a response. We stop listening when we find something to resonate to and tell our own story. Before we speak we need to listen long and carefully and actually so we can discern to whom we are speaking.

Explore the topic of ministering the Gospel and 2 Samuel 12. In 2 Samuel 12:13-14 we read, “David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ And Nathan said to David, ‘The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.’” Consider that the ministry of the Gospel does its work principally through declaration- the announcement of the promise. The most precise name for the genre of speech that these Gospel declarations are is promise. Explore the grammar of preaching the Gospel. There are three ways that instead of speaking a promise we could speak something else. We need to: 1. Avoid translating the promise of the Gospel into information or knowledge; 2. Avoid turning the word of the Gospel into a call to action; and 3. Avoid preaching the Gospel in a psychologizing way. The Gospel is a word from someone to someone. It is an address from God to the dead through the preacher. Consider the topic of false assurance. We read in Matthew 7:23, “And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

Explore the topic of ministering the Law and the example of 2 Samuel 12. The Law is a word of diagnosis and death to the Old Adam. The work of the Law principally is done through an honest description of the human condition. In 2 Samuel 12:1 we read, “And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him. . .” This story is the first form the ministry of God's Law takes in this interaction. Consider 2 Samuel 12:1-6. Consider that the main place of the illustration is in the ministry of the Law not in the ministry of the Gospel.

Consider the meaning of Jack Karowac’s writing, “Accept loss forever." "Love your life." “Blow as deep as you want—write as deeply, fish down as far as you want then the reader cannot fail to receive telepathic shock and meaning-excitement by same laws operating in his own mind.” The way we minister the Word of God in the two-fold form of God's Law and God's Gospel to the heart of suffering and sinning human beings is that we minister as a suffering and sinning human being from the heart. The way we speak to the heart is to speak from the heart. Consider the topic of practical preaching.

Explore the pastoral application. Only iustus answers the fundamental question of "Who am I?" What does God say when He looks at you? Luther stated, "Sin and death persist and the saints feel it." Consider pastorally knowing the true heart. The words of gospel assurance are for those in Christ. If we speak the promise of God and someone believes it applies to them - it applies to them - that is precisely what faith and assurance are. Consider a person's need for the Law. Does assurance ever become tangible? Consider John 1:17-18. 1 John 4:12 states, “No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.” For Luther, the ears are the only essential organ of the Christian. In Ephesians 6:16 we read, “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one . . .” Consider Ephesians 6:13-15. Explore the promises God makes in Scripture. In Psalm 103:12 we read, “. . . as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” Also in Romans 10:17 we read, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Recall the Law and Gospel diptych by Cranach the Elder. Discuss the borders between the Old Age and the New Creation. Does it make sense to talk of maturity, growth, or holiness in the Christian life? Do we obey our way across to the New Creation? Consider that the only way we get out of the Old Age is by death. Can we disobey our way out of Christ? We read in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Consider examples of God speaking through a minister with words that do something to people. All Luther’s sermons were informed and governed by the distinction between the Law and Gospel but only four sermons are about the distinction between Law and Gospel. Consider Moses on Mount Sinai and Acts 2 with Peter at Pentecost. What does it mean to minister the words of the Law and the Gospel? What does it mean to actually minister God's actual words to really help people in pain? Explore the Articles 19ff.: On the Church and the Sacraments in The Thirty-Nine Articles. In Article XIX: Of The Church we read, “The visible Church of Christ is a congregation of faithful men, in the which the pure Word of God is preached, and the sacraments be duly ministered according to Christ's ordinance in all those things that of necessity are requisite to the same.” For Augustine, the Sacrament is a visible word. Consider the topic of preaching. For Luther, sinners should run to Jesus - He is a friend of sinners and He came into the world to save sinners. Consider the example of "Janet's Repentance" by George Eliot and the example of Victor Hugo.

Explore “Janet’s Repentance” by George Eliot. Consider that the preacher has nothing to say if he has not first received. In 1 Corinthians 4:7 we read, “For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive?” There is no sermon to preach if there has not been a sermon preached to us. Every sermon is a sinner speaking to sinners. The difference is that one sinner is lacking and longing for comfort and one sinner has heard the word of hope. The word of hope and comfort is addressed specifically to her. Explore the identification of someone as sinner.

Explore the art of Martin Luther Preaching (1547) by Cranach the Elder. For Oswald Bayer, the challenge of preaching is to always preach the gospel anew without saying anything new. Where does the sermon come from? What do we say? Recall that what the heart desires, the will chooses, and the mind justifies. Love is the fulfillment of the Law. Where does love come from? Consider that the Law cannot produce what it demands. In Romans 14:23 we read, “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.” In Galatians 5:6 we read, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” Love comes from faith. Where does faith come from? Romans 10:17 tells us, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” What do we preach? We preach the Word. How is the one Word ministered so that it brings an end to the old and gives life to the new? According to the Reformers, the way the Word is ministered is in the form of God's two words, Law and Gospel. Where does the ministry of the Law and Gospel need to be aimed? It needs to be aimed at the heart. How do we speak to the human heart? Jack Kerouac’s writing is mentioned as an example. For Gerhard Forde, too much preaching is talking about God and preaching needs to be doing the living and active Word of God. Forde also noted that we should think about the sermon the way we think about the Sacraments. We can also think of the Sacraments as an event of the Word.

Continue to explore the first movement of God's action through words. Recall J. Gresham Machen’s statement, "A low view of the Law produces legalism. A high view of the Law makes man a seeker after grace." The Law of God is the Word of God which is louder than the serpent's lie. Consider Matthew 5:48, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Luther states on the sinful condition, "We live as unhappy gods." God's truth is the work of God that interrupts the cycle of self-salvation. In Romans 11:32 we read, “For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.” There is a distinction between the two kinds of things God does: He kills and makes alive. God does these two things through His words. Explore the distinction between Law and Gospel. In Romans 11:32 we read, “For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.” How does the Gospel do its work? The Reformers alw21ays talked about the distinction between the Law and Gospel in that order. Consider Karl Barth’s “Gospel and Law” essay. The words of the Gospel are words for the dead. The Gospel is a sermon at the graveside of the old Adam and old Eve. The Gospel is not a movement from us to God. The movement of the Gospel is from God to us. Consider Romans 5:6, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.” In Romans 5:8 we read, “… but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” How is the crucified Christ ministered and given to us? Consider the pastoral application.

Explore a sample of quotations that name the distinction between Law and Gospel as central and important for ministry and reading Scripture. Martin Luther stated, “Virtually the whole of the scriptures and the understanding of the whole of theology – the entire Christian life, even – depends upon the true understanding of the law and the gospel.” Augustine stated, "The usefulness of the law lies in convicting man of his infirmity and moving him to call upon the remedy of grace which is in Christ." For Calvin, "Moses had no other intention than to invite all men to go straight to Christ." Theodore Beza stated, "Ignorance of this distinction between law and gospel is one of the principal sources of the abuses which corrupted and still corrupt Christianity.” For Zacharias Ursinus, "The [Heidelberg] Catechism in its primary and most general sense, may be divided as the doctrine of the church, into the law and the gospel . . . The first treats of the misery of man, the second of his deliverance from misery." In John Foxe's Acts and Monuments we read, “There is nothing more comfortable for troubled consciences than to be instructed in the difference between the law and the gospel. The law shows us our sin; the gospel shows us the remedy for it. The law shows our condemnation; the gospel shows our redemption. The law is a word of ire; the gospel is a word of peace. The law is a word of despair; the gospel is a word of comfort. The law is a word of unrest; the gospel is a word of peace. The law says pay your debt; the gospel says Christ has paid it. The law says you are a sinner, despair you shall be damned. The gospel says your sins are forgiven, be comforted you shall be saved. The law says where is your righteousness? The gospel says Christ is your righteousness." John Bunyan is credited with, "Run John run the law commands, but gives me neither feet nor hands. Far better news the gospel brings, it bids me fly, and gives me wings." Charles Spurgeon stated, "As the sharp needle prepares the way for the thread, so the piercing law makes a way for the bright silver thread of divine grace." Isaac Watts wrote, "My soul, no more attempt to draw thy life and comfort from the Law. Fly to the hope the Gospel gives; the man that trusts the promise lives. Consider a portion of Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. Consider that there are many levels of discernment in pastoral theology.

Explore the distinction between two times. Simul Iustus et peccator is at the same time righteous and sinner. Consider where and when does ministry actually happen? In Christ the forgiveness of sins has been accomplished. There is clearly a sense in which the resurrection has happened. In Ephesians 2:5-6 we read, “. . . by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus . . ." Consider Romans 8:22-23. How did final judgment take place such that the verdict is rendered? Consider the comparison of Mark 13 and Mark 15. Compare Romans 2:4-11 to Romans 3:21-26. In Romans 3:21 we read, “But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.” We also read in Romans 3:22-26, “For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” Consider the motion within our timeline. The life we are living all takes place in the present. Overlapping eschatology is a term to describe the time between Jesus' resurrection and our bodily resurrection.

Consider simul Iustus et peccator as the Reformation way of articulating the eschatology of Christian existence. How can we talk about our life now in the new creation? How is that a reality? In the New Creation we are "in Christ". In 2 Corinthians 5:17 we read, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” In Romans 7:15 we read, “For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” Consider Romans 7:1. Consider that in the Old Age we are "In ourselves". In 1 Thessalonians 4:13 we read, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” Why does this matter for ministry? Is simul iustus et peccator a psychological condition? Consider Galatians 2:20. In ourselves, apart from Christ, we are and will be the old Adam in the Old Age. In Christ, apart from ourselves, we are and will be 100% righteous clothed in the New Adam and in the New Creation. In 1 Corinthians 1:30 we read, “And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption . . .” How righteous is the Christian at the very beginning of the Christian life? How righteous are we at the end of the Christian life? In Galatians 5:22 we read, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control . . .” Consider that the fruits are not the grounds for the basis for our righteousness. We begin, live, and finish our Christian life in the presence and the sight of God (corum Deo) - 0% righteous in ourselves but 100% righteous in Christ.

Explore the first distinction which is between active and passive righteousness. God's two words are Law and Gospel. The second distinction is the two verbal actions of God. Consider simul justus et peccator. The third distinction is between two times or worlds. Continue to discuss the second distinction of the two verbal actions of God. Recall Cranach the Elder’s “Law and Gospel” diptych. God has chosen to speak His Word that does something through creaturely means. Explore what Mark Rutherford writes in, “The Revolution in Tanner's Lane”. “In those dark three months the gospel according to Tanner's Lane did nothing for him, and he was cast forth to wrestle with his sufferings alone. It is surely a terrible charge to bring against a religious system, that in the conflict which has to be waged by every son of Adam with disease, misfortune, death, the believers in it are provided with neither armour nor weapons. Surely a real religion, handed down from century to century, ought to have accumulated a store of consolatory truths which will be so some help to us in time of need. If it can tell us nothing, if we cannot face a single disaster any the better for it, and if we never dream of turning to it when we are in distress, of what value is it?” Explore Josh Ritter’s “Girl in the War” lyrics. What actually is the Good News and how actually is it good? The Good News is only going to actually be good in the context of a deep diagnosis of the bad news.

Explore the topic of raising the dead. Consider our union with Christ and the pastor's role in real circumstances. What does it mean to pastor In the cultural context?

What is the Law and how does it work? Explore Matthew 5 and The Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 5:1 we read, “Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.” Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:17-22, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” Jesus continues in Matthew 5:29-30, “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” In Matthew 5:48 we read, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” How does this verse actually play out? J. Gresham Machen stated, "A low view of the Law produces legalism. A high view of the Law makes man a seeker after grace."

Explore the Law and Gospel diptych by Cranach the Elder. Consider that God communicates through Word and Spirit. For Luther, God does not give His Spirit apart from the external Word. In Romans 7:11 we read, “For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it killed me.” God does His work through His Word and is only interested in putting the Old Adam in the grave.

Consider the topic of death and resurrection. Justification is how a sinner becomes righteous. Augustine held that we cannot initiate our own salvation. Who is righteous at the end of this process? Inherent righteousness is righteousness in the human being. The Catholic theology holds that God saves the old Adam and Eve from having to die. The Protestant Reformers reacted to this theology because of Scriptural, pastoral, and personal reasons. If it is ultimately the transformed sinner that God will say righteous to then it makes sense to be looking at ourselves to make the journey to the judgment seat. The Law and Gospel diptych by Cranach the Elder is referenced. Justification is what happens in God's work of salvation. It is not that He makes us better, but that He puts the old Adam to death and raises a new creature to life in Christ. Explore Galatians 2:16, 19-21. Paul describes it as a gift of Jesus. At judgment, God will be looking at the righteousness of Christ. For the Reformers, Jesus Christ as the Savior for sinners was lost in the Roman Catholic theology. In Galatians 2:17 we read, “But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners . . .” Paul shows us that God declares us righteous not on the basis of us but on the work done for us by Jesus Christ. Consider the ordo salutis or “order of salvation”. It is the logical way God accomplishes and applies His work of salvation to sinners. We read in Romans 8:30, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”

Consider passivity and activity. There is not anything inactive about the Christian life. In The Argument of St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians we read, "When I have this righteousness within me, I descend from heaven like the rain that makes the earth fertile. That is, I come forth into another kingdom, and I perform good works whenever the opportunity arises.” Consider the passive relationship seeming to call us to do something. How do we distinguish the Gospel from something that is not the Gospel? Consider the example of Paul in Galatia. Explore Galatians 1:6-9. Paul continues in Galatians 2:12-14 concerning Gentile believers and circumcision. We also read in Galatians 5:3-4, “I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.” Consider what Paul states in Galatians 6:15-16. Explore Romans 10:6-7, 13. Romans 10:9 states, “… because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” For Paul, believing with our heart and confessing with our mouth in the context of Romans 10 and is the form that faith takes. Romans 10:17 states, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Faith is the concrete form of our being saved. What is Abraham's faith in Romans 4? For Paul, there is no human contribution to salvation. Consider that justification can teach us the grammar of the Gospel. Consider the Ordo Salutis.

Why does salvation have to take this form: Rescue, Redemption, and Salvation? Consider Ephesians 2:1,3,4-5. Death and resurrection are the only way to identify in name the form that salvation can take. Why does salvation have to be this extreme? Explore the nature of the human situation. Consider Aristotle on the nature of the human situation. For Aristotle our appetites often drive us and determine us. Aristotle held that through education we are not ruled by our appetites but by the noetic. He believed we rule over the passions through reason. For Aristotle, salvation would mean education. Consider that the heart is what we desire or love, the will is our choosing and the head is the rational. Explore The Thirty – Nine Articles as we read “ X. Of Free-Will." Explore what Philip Melanchthon stated in Loci Communes 1521, "What the heart desires, the will chooses, and the mind justifies." Reason actually perpetuates the problem. This helps us understand what it means when we talk about a free will or a bound will. The will is bound to the desires of the heart. We read in Ezekiel 37:3, “And he said to me, ‘Son of man, can these bones live?’ And I answered, ‘O Lord God, you know.’” In John 12:24 we read, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Romans 2:29 states, “But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter.” Also in Romans 6:4 we read, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

Explore the desire of the heart and addictions. Consider the idea of philosophically fixing the heart problem. Consider James K. Smith’s idea of desire based anthropology.

Continue to explore the distinction between two verbal actions of God. Explore 1 Samuel 2 and Hannah's Song. We read in Romans 11:32, “For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.” For the Reformers, the Word of God which does these two works needs to be described as words distinguished as Law and Gospel. Recall the diptych “Law and Gospel” by Cranach the Elder. Consider Galatians 2:16, 19-21 and 2 Corinthians 3:6-7. Explore the giving of the Law. The whole generation who received and lived under the Law, die under the Law. Paul calls the Law a ministry of death. We read in Galatians 2:19, “For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God.” Explore what Romans 3:19-20 tells us. Consider that the Law does not remove sin, it reveals sin. Romans 4:15 states, “For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression.” A transgression is an actual braking of an explicit commandment. Romans 5:20 tells us, "Now the law came in to increase the trespass . . ." Consider Romans 7:10-13.

Luther's term for passive righteousness is justification. Consider imputed righteousness. For Luther, active righteousness is vocation or "calling". In Galatians 5:6 we read, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” Consider the relationship of Christian community. Explore Luther's view of nations.

Continue to explore Luther’s The Argument St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians. In his opening sentence he states, “This is our theology, by which we teach a precise distinction between these two kinds of righteousness, the active and the passive . . . “ The grounds for God's loving, saving relationship with us is Jesus Christ which God has given as a gift. What theology actually is, is ministry. Just saying it means we have not done theology yet. For Luther, theology is the practical art of making distinctions in difficult life moments. For Luther, we can almost never be our own minister or our own preacher. Consider the view of preaching the gospel to ourselves. Paul tells us the gospel comes as an external word. In Romans 10:17 we read, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” We also read in Galatians 3:1-2, “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?”

Continue to explore the discussion in The Brother’s Karamazov, Martin Luther stated that to have faith in something is to have a god. What or who is your god? Do you believe God? Who is God? How is this question answered? Where can we go when someone asks, "What is God like?" Augustine held that there is evil in the world because of what God's human creatures have done with the original freedom they were given. In John 1:1-2, 14 we read, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Consider that the "what" is actually a "who" and is Jesus. Explore The 39 Articles and “II. Of the Word or Son of God, which was made very Man." The one Christ exists from and in two natures. The two natures exist in an indivisible but unconfused unity in the one Jesus. This one Jesus came, suffered, died, was buried in order that he might reconcile us to his Father and die for sin both original and actual. In order to save human beings, he must become a human being. In order to save human beings he must be God.

What is the Christian answer to "What is God like?" How do we know God is like Jesus? We know because of the Trinity. Explore John 1:18, “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.” Who is God and what is he like? Consider that looking to history to find out who God is gives us an answer ambiguously terrifying. Looking to nature to find out who God is gives us an answer also ambiguously terrifying. Consider that in the state of sin the answer is dangerously and terrifyingly ambiguous. In the state of sin, the answer to who God is, is dangerously and terrifyingly ambiguous. In Hebrews 1:1-2 we read, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son . . .” The only way we can look at Jesus and know what God is like is if we look at Jesus and who we see is God. The work of the Triune God focuses on the Incarnate Jesus and is the place in which the invisible God is exegeted. Explore Alyosha’s answer in The Brother’s Karamazov, "'No, I do not find that acceptable,’ Alyosha said and his eyes suddenly flared up. ‘But a moment ago you asked whether there was in the world a “single creature who could forgive.” Well, there is. And He can forgive everyone for everything, because He Himself gave His innocent blood for everyone’s sins and for everyone’s sake. You forgot to mention Him although it is upon Him that the edifice must be founded.'" In Scripture, the Father and the Spirit focus their attention on the person and work of the Son. The Father's glory is the worship of the Son. The doctrine of the Trinity allows us to give a Christological answer to the question, "What is God like?" Consider that pastoral ministry is difficult precisely because of the need to find out who we are talking to.

Explore Luther’s The Argument St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians. Luther uses the terms active and passive righteousness and calls passive righteousness true Christian righteousness. Luther describes a sinner as incurvatus in se or "curved in on the self". Consider the nature of the two relationships. What is the difference between a person being saved by Jesus and a person not being saved by Jesus? The difference is a kind of receiving. In Galatians 2:16 we read, “. . . yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ . . .” The form passive righteousness takes is faith while active righteousness takes the form of love. What actually justifies us is the decisive difference maker of the love we have for God and others. Luther also states, "Then do we do nothing and work nothing in order to obtain this righteousness? I reply: Nothing at all.”

In this lecture the course reading material is reviewed. Why was there not a single united Protestant Church? How is Christ present or not present in the Lord's Supper? Consider the importance of Thomas Bilney at Trinity Hall in 1519. Erasmus was a humanist who worked to get a critical edition of the Greek New Testament. We read in 1 Timothy 1:15, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.” In 1525, Robert Barnes preached the first openly evangelical Protestant sermon on Christmas Eve at St. Edward King and Martyr. Explore Henry VIII and his dispute with the Pope. In 1533, Henry VIII was declared head of the Church of England. He divorced his first wife and married Anne Boleyn, who was Protestant. Thomas Cromwell was also a committed Protestant. Thomas Cranmer became the Archbishop of Canterbury. Protestants believed that the monastery system was corrupting English Christianity and the monasteries were closed down. There was a gradual ending of the old form of Christianity. Henry VIII put Anne Boleyn and Thomas Cromwell to death. His last wife, Catherine Parr, was Protestant. Upon Henry VIII's death, he allowed his son Edward to be surrounded by Protestants. A Book of Homilies was produced for clergy to learn and proclaim the Protestant faith. In 1549, a Book of Common Prayer was produced in English and the people were invited to participate in the worship. The 42 Articles were produced at this time. Mary Tudor came to the throne as a Catholic and sought to return England to Catholicism. She burned the Protestants working for reform at the stake. In 1559, Elizabeth took the throne and it was a time of somewhat stable form of Protestant Christianity. The revised 42 Articles were brought back as The 39 Articles.

Explore John 5:26, “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.” Consider that the Father has life in himself. He is uncreated being. What does it mean to be given life in yourself? What does it mean to be eternal? Consider that the only way to receive life in yourself is if that act of reception was an eternal act of reception. The doctrine of the Trinity is not an explanation of the mystery of God's being or essence. The doctrine of the Trinity is a confession of the God who is revealed in Scripture and in Jesus. We read in John 1:1-2, 14, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Consider the terms “with” and “was”. “With” is a preposition that differentiates and relates. “Was” points to identification. How can something "be" something and be "distinguished from" something? God is identified - one with- the Son and the Spirit. There is also a distinction, and a relationship between the Father, and the Son, and the Spirit. In Philippians 2:5, 8-11 we read, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant . . . he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” What does it mean to talk twice about Trinitarian theology? The Doctrine of the Trinity helps us read Scripture. In Trinitarian theology God is one and three, but is not what we confess as an explanation of the character and essence of God. It is a confession of that mystery. Simply saying God is Triune is not an answer to the pastoral and personal question.

Explore the Law and Gospel diptych by Cranach the Elder. Consider that our encounters with the living God are not all the same. Old Adam's experience of God's Word is an encounter with something that God has said. We have a pastoral necessity in preaching to discern which Adam we are talking to. Do they need to hear the Word of God that takes sinners to their grave or the Word of God that raises the dead to new life? For Luther, to the hard-hearted you minister God's Law; to the brokenhearted you minister God's gospel. What does it mean to minister the Law? The truth that the Law of God ministers is who we are in ourselves apart from Christ and in our sin.

Explore the Reformation theologies of sin and salvation. The Reformers held to three distinctions translating a theology of sin and salvation into a theology of ministry. Consider: 1. Distinction between two kinds of relationships. 2. Distinction between two verbal actions of God. 3. Distinction between two times. Explore The 39 Articles and IX. Of Original or Birth-sin and X. Of Free-Will. Consider what we read in XI. Of the Justification of Man. and continue to explore XXXI. Of the one Oblation of Christ finished upon the Cross.

Explore the topic of sin and salvation through The Argument St. Paul's Epistle to the Galatians by Luther. Consider justification. When Luther talks about who Jesus Christ is as the Savior of sinners it is always some encounter with Paul in justification. In Romans 1:17 we read, “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” Explore Romans 1:16-17, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith . . .” And in Habakkuk 2:4 we read, “. . . but the righteous shall live by his faith." Galatians 2:16 tells us, “... yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. . .” Luther relates that when he found out the Law was one thing and the Gospel was another, he broke through and was free.

What does it mean for the church to be a place we can go with troubles? Consider the pastoral response to and aftermath of the First Great Awakening. John Wesley, Charles Wesley and George Whitefield are associated with the First Great Awakening. The First Great Awakening was a genuine, meaningful, and important movement of the Spirit to raise the dead. The pastoral question is how do we know if a real conversion occurred? How do we distinguish true conversion from false conversion? Consider the work of Jonathan Edwards. John Calvin gives us three forms of assurance: 1)Word, 2)Faith, and 3) Fruit. In Romans 10:17 we read, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” In Galatians 5:6 we read, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.” For Calvin, the Word creates faith which produces fruit. Consider that the focus of Christianity has shifted from the promises of God in Christ to the life of the Christian. We read in John 1:29, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” Practical Syllogism is that the Word creates faith which produces fruit. Consider George Whitefield and Practical Syllogism.

1520-1560 was a time of internal Lutheran debates. The main focus at this time was the establishment of a core Protestantism. How do you write a confession to make it clear you are a Protestant Church and not a Catholic Church that is broad enough for other forms of Protestantism? The English Reformation was a middle way between Lutherans and Reformed. In The 39 Articles we read, “XXII Of Purgatory. The Romish Doctrine concerning Purgatory, Pardons, Worshipping and Adoration, as well of Images as of Reliques, and also invocation of Saints, is a fond thing vainly invented, and grounded upon no warranty of Scripture, but rather repugnant to the Word of God.” We also read, “II. Of the Word or Son of God, which was made very Man. The Son, which is the Word of the Father, begotten from everlasting of the Father, the very and eternal God, and of one substance with the Father, took Man's nature in the womb of the blessed Virgin, of her substance: so that two whole and perfect Natures, that is to say, the Godhead and Manhood, were joined together in one Person, never to be divided, whereof is one Christ, very God, and very Man; who truly suffered, was crucified, dead and buried, to reconcile his Father to us, and to be a sacrifice, not only for original guilt, but also for all actual sins of men.” How are The 39 Articles "ecumenical"? Consider the current Anglican situation.

Explore the pastoral aspect of the confessional document. In The 39 Articles, consider “XI. Of the Justification of Man." Consider that the first Reformation text was from Luther entitled, "A Disputation into the Truth of Comforting Terrified Consciences." Also read in The 39 Articles, “XVII. Of Predestination and Election." The pastoral focus permeates and characterizes the whole English Reformation. Reflected in The 39 Articles is also a time of pastoral reform. It was pastoral in that public access to the English Bible was preserved and The Book of Homilies was used to communicate the theology by connecting it to real people and life. Consider why The 39 Articles have no Scripture references. To be pastoral you have to minister to the whole person. The Reformers tried to re-educate and enliven. They used the order of service to move through an encounter with God in his majesty, holiness, and perfection as expressed in his Law to a time of repentance and humility but then a time of hearing God's Word of good news and forgiveness in Jesus and how to respond in gratitude and praise. The point and purpose of theology is not simply just to say things that are true. It is to get God's promises to sinners and sufferers. When God speaks to sinners and sufferers, the dead are raised and sinners are set free. What does it look like to minister Jesus? Explore Revelation 4:8-11 and Revelation 5:3-14. Consider, what does it mean to point to the Lamb?

Consider that good honest fiction gets us in touch with reality through fiction. How does Christian theology actually help us to minister to others? Explore a conversation in The Brother's Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Who is God? What would you say? The classic question concerns the goodness of God in the face of the clear hell that the world can be. What do we say to the suffering person who says why and who? In The 39 Articles “I. Of Faith in the Holy Trinity. There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body, parts or passions; of infinite power, wisdom and goodness; the Maker, and Preserver of all things both visible and invisible. And in unity of this Godhead there be three Persons, of one substance, power, and eternity; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.” Where in Scripture does this come from? Consider The Shema, "Hear O Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” In 1 Corinthians 8:6 we read, “ . . . for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist." We also read in Philippians 2:6-11, “. . . who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Consider that theology is an ever-recurring movement from God speaking to God speaking again. Theology is the movement from hearing the Gospel to speaking the Gospel again. God speaks through ordinary ministry. Why do Theology of Ministry? Walker Percy described humanity as "waiting for news." Explore a section from William Inge’s, My Son is a Splendid Driver. “Every morning on the front porch we would see Mrs. Holt leave her house and start for the Catholic church, on her way to mass. ‘She doesn’t miss a day,’ Mother observed. There was a dedication about the woman that always gave us pause. ‘I wish I had a God to pray to now,’ Mother sometimes said, ‘but I don’t seem able to find Him.’ Mother had stopped going to church. ‘Church isn’t the place to go with your troubles. Church is just a place to go when you’re feeling good and have a new hat to wear.’ There was a little bitterness in what she said, a little self-pity, but there was also truth. Our minister would have been the last person in the world she could have talked to, to have lifted the curse she felt upon her and save her from feeling damned. She would have embarrassed the man into speechlessness had she gone to him with her story. He would have been unable to look at her or my father without coloring. Most of our morality, I was beginning to think, was based on a refusal to recognize sin. Our entire religious heritage, it seemed to me, was one of refusal to deal with it.”