Justification

Handling the word of truth

Bible Study Leaders Guide

Part Two

In Mission and in Ministry

C. F. W. Walther said, Rightly distinguishing the law and the gospel is the most difficult and the highest art of Christians in general and of theologians in particular. It is taught only by the Holy Spirit in the school of experience. The challenge is not only correctly to identify law and gospel in Scripture and in our speaking, but properly to apply each doctrine in a given circumstance. For each of the statements below, do the following: Evaluate each of the statements below and determine whether it is law or gospel (or includes both). You may wish to refer to Table 1 in the essay Justification in Mission and in Ministry for a comparison of some of the characteristics of law and gospel. Discuss how each statement might be used correctly or incorrectly under differing circumstances.

The purpose of this exercise is to help the participants identify, expound and apply law and gospel. 1. Gospel How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! (1 John 3:1) Consider applications for each of these passages. This passage, for example, fills us with awe and amazement the love God lavishes on us. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth (1 John 1:7). A person who claims to be a Christian but continues to live in sin is selfdeceived. Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48). This passage is often used to illustrate Gods demand of absolute perfection. People will readily admit that they are not perfect, yet this is what God demands. The law exposes our sin. Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing (Luke 23:34). Heres an example of the use of the word forgive applied to people who dont have faith. Gods forgiveness is unilateral. God doesnt forgive because of something in man, but because he is gracious and forgiving. Let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another (Hebrews 10:24,25). This exhortation reminds us of the importance of mutual Christian encouragement and gathering for worship. It also teaches us that our purpose in gathering for worship is not only to meet with God, but also to meet with and encourage our fellow believers. If we deliberately go on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God (Hebrews 10:26). This sobering passage offers no hope to a deliberate sinner. If you love me, you will obey what I command. This is my command: Love each other (John 14:15; 15:17). The passages that speak of love may be confused by some to be gospel. This operative word here is command. These are Jesus instructions to his disciples. Remember, the law instructs, but only the gospel can motivate. I will raise up a righteous Branch, declares the LORD. This is the name by which he will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:5,6). Many have the idea that the Old Testament is all law and the New Testament is all gospel. Of course, thats not at all true. Here the prophet Jeremiah speaks of the righteousness of the gospel, the same righteousness the Apostle Paul spoke of in Romans.

2. Law

3. Law

4. Gospel

5. Law

6. Law

7. Law

8. Gospel

2 9. Gospel He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:5). Isaiah saw the fulfillment of prophecy over 700 years before it happened. Go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). This is the Great Commission. This command instructs us what to do, but it cannot empower us to carry it out. For that we turn to the gospel promises. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong (Psalm 5:5). This passage reveals the sobering reality that God not only hates sin. According to the law he hates sinners! Why do you keep doing the same thing over and over again? Ill forgive you when youre really sorry and stop your destructive behavior. This statement expresses conditional forgiveness which is not really forgiveness at all. This is the kind of conditional acceptance we unfortunately express in our dealings with one another. If God forgave us this way, wed be in trouble! God loves you, and he paid for your sins 2,000 years ago when Jesus said on the cross, It is finished. This is the heart of objective justification. This objective truth stands, whether a person believes it or not, regardless of his feelings or the strength of his faith. This is the comfort that we offer someone who is struggling with a troubled conscience, afraid of death, or uncertain of forgiveness. Christians are free to live to the glory of God. The gospel sets us free. When we know how to die, we can really learn to live! Christians are free to do whatever we want. This statement can easily be misconstrued as a license to sin. However a Christian wants to serve the Lord. The sins that a Christian commits are not the sins that he wants to commit but the sins that he doesnt want to commit. (See Romans 7:15-20.) On balance, we should recognize this as the kind of statement that should be avoided, because of the confusion it can cause.

10. Law

11. Law 12. Law

13. Gospel

14. Gospel 15. Gospel

16. Confusion All sins are the same. Heres another statement that can cause confusion. The statement embraces law, gospel, truth and error all in onedepending upon how its understood. All sins are the same, in that any sinthe smallest sinseparates a person from God (law). All sins are the same, in that every sin has been atoned for by Jesus (gospel). All sins are not the same in other respects, however. One sin is called unforgivable by Jesus (blasphemy against the Holy Spirit). Some sins have more dire temporal consequences than others (murder vs. hatred, for example). Some sins may more easily ensnare a person (addictions). Once again, although its heard not infrequently in our circles, this is a statement we should avoid, unless its accompanied by ample explanation. What are the two causes of mankinds salvation? 1. The grace of God 2. The merits of Christ our substitute, who was born, lived, died and rose again in our place What is the relationship of faith to justification? Faith does not cause us to be justified. Faith receives, apprehends or appropriates the objective justification won for us by Christ on the cross.

Wrestling with tough issues

This section invites open discussion and sharing of personal perspectives. All the questions should be approached from the standpoint of law and gospel. Solutions should focus on our contact with the gospel in word, sacraments and keys. Avoid exploring solutions from a programmatic standpoint. Any suggested methods or strategies should maintain the centrality of the means of grace.

3 Our synod is facing financial challenges which necessitate cutting back administration, curtailing home mission work and recalling missionaries from foreign fields. Apply law and gospel to this present challenge in the following three areas: 1. Your personal role as a Christian. Some thoughts: Personal repentance Increased hunger for word, sacrament and absolution 2. Your local congregation. Some thoughts: Focus on souls, not programs Emphasis on administering the means of grace instead of business administration Trust law and gospel to bring about results Gospel-motivated striving for excellence in all things, to the glory of God 3. The synod as a whole. Some thoughts: Trust law and gospel to bring about results Gospel-motivated striving for excellence in all things, to the glory of God

Describe how the gospel of objective justification empowers and motivates your love for the Lord. Can the doctrine become a crutch or an excuse for laziness, apathy or false comfort? Gospel motivation is the heart of Christian sanctification. Objective justification is the foundation of our Christian comfort, and it drives our lives of love given in service to God and to our neighbor. When the gospel is misunderstood or misapplied, abuses can occur. Many have derived false comfort by appropriating the gospel while they remain unrepentant and secure in their sin. The fault lies not with the gospel but with the abuse of the gospel in the hands of human beings.

We make choices with the resources God gives us. For example, in our church body we spend considerable amounts of time and resources on things other than preaching, teaching, witnessing and outreach. From your perspective, what impact would it have on our church body if we allocated more time, money and other resources on evangelism, witnessing and mission work? Feel free to pick some things that consume resources in our churches and schools. Some examples might be: sports programs, fellowship activities, administration, maintenance, etc. Do we prioritize the wrong things in the church, or are we allocating our resources and applying our efforts wisely and appropriately? The question is not meant to raise criticism of the many important things that take place in our congregations that are not outreach-related. The question is posed only to provoke thought and stimulate discussion about how we allocate our resources of time, manpower and money to things that are truly important to us.

Bible study leaders guide by Pastor Jon D. Buchholz Prepared for the 58th Biennial Convention of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod Meeting at Martin Luther College, New Ulm, Minnesota July 28, 2005