I Confess…
Daniel M. Head
Preamble:
Everyone has their own confession of faith. Some don’t know or understand what their confession is, and some keep their confession secret, but do not be fooled, everyone believes something. The Church has always been based upon Christ, and those who are of the Church were... are... of one accord; of one faith. As I declare my confession publicly, I invite correction. If my confession is to be found in error, I pray that God suppress my sinful nature that is so often expressed as pride, so that I may admit my error, repent, and confess only the Truth.
I believe that the Historic, Confessional Doctrines of the Evangelical Lutheran Church to be the truest reflection of Christian Truth, therefore, let the following be my public confession.
Holy Scripture
Holy Scripture is the inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word of God; the only norm and source for faith andteaching. All that is taught therein is necessary to a true understanding of doctrine and saving faith. Holy Scripture is to be interpreted literally; as per the literature form (prose as prose, poetry as poetry, apocalyptic as apocalyptic). Either to take allegorically what is written as literal (ex. Genesis/Creation story), or to take literally what is written as allegory (The thousand years of the millennium), is to do violence to Holy Scripture, and cannot be condoned.
Holy Baptism
Through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, we are regenerated through the water by God’s Word and reborn as children of God through the Saving Faith given by the Holy Ghost. Children are to be baptized who, being offered to God through Baptism are received into God's Grace. The teaching that Baptism is other than the very Salvific Grace of God in the water by the Word, and the teaching that children are not to be Baptized until some unscriptural “age of accountability” are false and reprehensible. The True Church cannot be in fellowship with any “church” which teaches falsely concerning the Holy Sacrament.
The Lord's Supper
The true Body and Blood of Christ is present, in, with, and under the bread and wine. In this Holy meal, we are assured of the forgiveness of sin. The reception of Holy Communion is an act of fellowship with the Triune God, wherein we gather with other believers who are one in faith and doctrine. Only those who are one in faith and accept the doctrine of faith as set forth in the Holy Scriptures and the Confessions should commune together (close communion). The practice of open communion is a recent innovation that has no place in the life of the Church, and endangers those who would partake without recognizing the body. The True Church cannot be in fellowship with any “church” or individual who teaches falsly regarding this Holy Sacrament.
Private Confession
As stated in the Augsburg Confession, the Smalcald Articles, and explained in the Small Catechism, private confession should be retained, and should not be neglected, but greatly and highly esteemed in the church.
Sanctity of Life
Scripture clearly and consistently upholds the sanctity of human life. The taking of human life beyond that which is authorized by God is an act of evil. All human life has intrinsic value, and God calls upon us to protect the helpless. Because abortion results in the death of a helpless unborn person, it is never justified except in those rare and tragic circumstances when the continuation of the pregnancy would clearly threaten the life of the mother. Any other attempt to end the life of another (or of self) is equally evil, such as suicide, euthanasia, or the withholding of primary needs (food, water, basic medical care).
Creeds & Confessions
As an evangelical catholic, orthodox/confessional Lutheran, I accept the Lutheran Confessions contained in the Book of Concord, because (quia) they are a faithful and accurate summary of Biblical doctrine. These symbols are not a rule of faith beyond or supplementary to Scripture, but a summary of Scripture and the doctrines of the church catholic.
Marks of the Church
The true Church exists where the Holy Gospel is taught and preached in its truth and purity, and where the Holy Sacraments are rightly administered. Where the Sacraments are not, there the church is not. Where the Word of God is corrupted, the church is absent.
The Mass
The Mass should be retained. In its truest form, the Mass is as old as the Church Herself. Indeed, in the words of the Augsburg Confession, “the Mass is retained among us, and celebrated with the highest reverence.”
Knowledge of the Truth
It is possible to both know and to profess the truth of God's Word, and this is exactly what God requires us to do. Taking a confessional stand on the Word in matters of doctrine, after diligent study of Scriptures, is an act not of human pride but of humble submission to God.
Human Sexuality and Marriage
The Divine institution of marriage is described in the Bible as between a man and a woman. The only sexual relationships that are consistent with Scripture occur lovingly within this Holy bond. Anything that falls outside of this order is sinful.
Roles of men and women in the home and in Church
God created man and woman in his own image. In 1 Corinthians 15:28, the Son is said to be subject to the Father, this is not a state of inferiority, but of order. Neither is the order of family life a statement of superiority and inferiority, with the woman submitting to the husband, and the husband loving and serving his wife as Christ loves and serves the Church. The same order is present in God’s plan for the Church, God has stated through His servants, roles of man and woman in His Church. This is not a statement of ability or of superiority/inferiority, but of order. The Church stops being the Church when it discounts God’s Word and implements its own order contrary to that Word.
Tradition:
Only those “traditions” which are in contradiction to Scripture should be eliminated from the Church. All traditions that can be kept should be kept. Those traditions that are adiaphora should always be kept in preference over novel practices, unless doing so would be sinful or extremely burdensome. "Inasmuch, then, as our churches dissent in no article of the faith from the Church Catholic, but only omit some abuses which are new, and which have been erroneously accepted by the corruption of the times, contrary to the intent of the Canons..." - AC, and “...without a reasonable cause nothing in customary rites be changed, but that, in order to cherish harmony, such old customs be observed as can be observed without sin or without great inconvenience.” – Apology
Conclusion:
No longer may I, in good conscience, knowingly associate with any church that teaches contrary to correct doctrine, for by doing so I make myself a liar, and bring guilt upon myself. It is neither loving God or neighbor to accommodate the teaching of false doctrine. Let this be my confession in life, and God willing, May I one day stand before the Throne of the Lamb and confess the same. Amen!
