A reader asks...

In an email, Beth from Arizona asks,

“Is the Holy Spirit within all people including non believers? If not, then how does God communicate with or guide us before we are baptized? Isn’t something leading us to the desire to be baptized?"

Blessings, Beth

Thank you for your email and your questions, Beth. The answers, happily, can be clearly drawn from the Scriptures.

The Scriptures indicate in a number of places that there are those who are in the Spirit and those who are not.

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:5-8

Forthe one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:8

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. Romans 8:13

Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says “Jesus is accursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12:3

Just as a distinction was made between the Isrealites - God's chosen people - and the Gentiles, so too is there a distinction between those who have been regenerated by the Spirit and those who have not. All are God's creatures, but not all are His children.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 1 John 3:1

Believers have been adopted into the family of God and are heirs to the Kingdom. Believers hear and understand the that which is of the Spirit, while unbelievers do not - indeed cannot.

For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 1 Corinthians 1:18

But God does not speak to us exclusively through his indwelt Spirit - he uses ordinary physical means to communicate with us as well. Scripture teaches that God's grace is conveyed to us through the Gospel (that is: God's saving word about His love for us in Jesus).

When we hear the Gospel preached - which comes to us by sound waves carried across space to our ears - we hear God's very own Word spoken. When we read the Scriptures - paper and ink bound in a book - we are seeing the the Word that God wanted to preserve for us so that we may know about the Saviour. God uses all these physical means to convey his Word to us.

Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. Romans 10:17

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. Romans 1:16

The Holy Spirit creates faith in us by the Gospel, and all who receive this Word in faith are saved. If we desire to be baptized, it is solely by the work of the Holy Spirit in us. (1 Cor. 12:3 again: "no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except in the Holy Spirit".)

I hope this is helpful to you Beth. Anybody else care to chime in?

A quote...

The Gospel doesn't say "Do", it says "Done".

Credit

Updated: To answer Sara's question of What Does This Mean?

I think it refers to our human tendency to try to make the Gospel into Law. We say and think things like, "If you want to be saved, all you have to do is..." and "If a person is truly saved then he will not do..." etc.

When Lutherans are concerned about the mixing of law and Gospel, they are concerned with the loss of the promise-nature of the Gospel - and it is the promise nature which is the Holy Spirit's way of calling forth faith *and of sustaining faith*. "For the Word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who ARE BEING SAVED it is the power of God." [1 Cor. 1:18] And this mixing invariably means speaking "Gospel" (or what we think of as Gospel) in such a way that it is not experienced by the hearers as promise. The dread of uniting law and Gospel together for Lutherans is that if there is a pathway from the one to the other, then the Gospel has ceased to be pure promise and has become instead something due, owed to our fulfilment of some condition. It is immediately rendered doubtful and uncertain.

People ask: Well, isn't faith a condition? No, faith is what appropriates, takes the promise, holds it, the trusting of it, and rejoicing in it - but such faith is never a condition for a Gospel promise. Rather than say: If you believe, your sins are forgiven you. Better to say: Your sins are forgiven you, blotted out by the blood of the Son of God. Believe it, for it is true.

"If the word becomes an appeal, faith becomes its performance in action. If the word becomes a demonstration, faith becomes insight; if it becomes a statement, faith becomes knowledge. Finally, if the word becomes an expression, faith becomes a ground of experience given with human being as such. Only if the word is promise (promissio) is faith really faith." [Oswald Bayer, Theology the Lutheran Way, p. 139]

More credit

Will I ever blog again?

Sheesh. Been almost 2 weeks since I last posted.

I'm seeing these "Blogging without obligation" buttons around on some blogs. You know what? I feel absolutely NO obligation whatsoever about where/when/how I blog. Seriously. I don't even feel obligated to TELL people that I don't feel obligated. I guess I just did. Tell, I mean. But I didn't feel obligated to do so, *grin*.

Sara and Sue and I have been going back and forth about what people blog about and what motivates them to do so. I have come to the realization that I mentally make assumptions about what motivates people to blog about what they blog about. Sometimes the motivation is obvious - the blogger states up front what they blog about and why. Other times they don't say and I'm left to fill in the blanks. Probably shouldn't be doing that though.

I suppose people probably wonder why I call my blog "Ask a Lutheran" and then I blog about my husband going fishing, or me doing laundry at the laundromat or just about anything that is NOT specifically related to being Lutheran. I really couldn't tell you why either. I just blog what I feel like.

Some of the blogs I read are so well written I wonder why they aren't writing professionally. But to be honest with you, I much prefer the blogs that are written by the everday writers who write about their everyday lives. Sometimes what they blog about is mundane. Sometimes it is profound.

Posts about "Lutheran stuff" take me the longest. I want to be sure that I precisely relate the confessional Lutheran position. Often I have to stop and pull out the Bible, my catechism and the Book of Concord to make sure that what I'm writing is accurate. Sometimes I draft, and edit and agonize over the choice of a single word. I really do take it seriously - but it is a lot of work.

The fluffy stuff that I write is so much simpler. I sit down and type. It comes out. Does anybody care about this stuff? Is the blogosphere a better place because of it? I struggle with this. I feel like if I am not writing something deep and profound (or at least informative) then it's just so much wasted bandwidth.

Today I was listening to an episode of Issues, Etc. It was an older episode about "Vocation: God's Will For Your Life" and as I listened to them talk about vocation being that which God has given us to do, for the good of our Neighbour, in service to Him, I made a connection to blogging. They used the phrase "ordinary life, for ordinary saints". The premise is that we serve our Lord when we go about our daily lives; we don't have to be doing "super-holy" works to be serving Him. Ack. I'm not explaining this well at all. Listen to the episode here if you like. (In fact, listen to any of the episodes. Its realy good stuff.)

Anyways, I've concluded that this is can be an ordinary blog about ordinary things. And there's nothing wrong with that. If I happen to blog about something explicitly Lutheran, I'm doing it because I AM Lutheran. Not because I have a special call to write super-holy stuff about Lutheranism.

Huh. I guess maybe I do feel a little bit obligated after all.

I'm no theologian, but...

Beth has a question for Beth:

Anita - I didn't want to post to Beth because I don't know her well and don't want her to take offense but I have a Q about her post.


My understanding is that God is always present and always "there" and that He has given us freewill. He never "steps away" from us but unfortunately we can choose not to follow Him. Thus, while our Salvation has nothing to do with us and is entirely due to His grace, we still have to make the choice to come back into relationship with Him for it to occur.


I understand what she's saying about the gift of faith but my impression has been that the progression isn't gift-realization-relationship but realization-gift-relationship.


Does that make sense?

Beth - this is a really good question and I'm sure that Beth wouldn't be offended at all!

What you have described is a fairly common understanding of the "coming-to-faith" process. This understanding of the salvation process is known as "synergism" - that is, God's grace + man's choice = salvation. Both participate in the process; both "do" something.

To be fair, there is some language in Scripture that seems to imply that a choice is involved. Some of the ones that come to mind are:

"Choose this day whom you will serve...but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" Joshua 24:15

"Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him..." Rev. 3:20

"That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9

While it's true that God gave us free will at Creation, our will has been in bondage to sin ever since the fall. What's more, Scripture clearly indicates that man can't choose to come to God:

"You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you." John 15:16

"Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God." John 1:12

In fact, the Scriptures describe our natural condition as being spiritually dead, an enemy of God.

"As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins," Ephesians 2:1

Just as a corpse cannot restore itself to physical life, unregenerate man cannot restore himself to spiritual life. Rather, we must be regenerated by the power of the Holy Spirit. We contribute nothing; God does it all. This view is known as "mongergism" and Scripture describes this passive reception of faith and salvation in a number of places:

"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life." John 6:63

"But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved." Ephesians 2:4

"I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." John 3:5-8


So if the Scriptures teach that we don't - in fact can't - come to him by our own strength or will, how do we reconcile that with the Scriptures that seem to imply that a choice is involved? If you look at the verses that I used as examples, it sure sounds like there's a choice, doesn't it?

Steve Newell (a Christian apologist) says: "So if we cannot make a decision, then why do we see people "making a decision" for Christ in the Bible? What gives life in God’s word? In Romans 10:14-15, Paul writes that it is the hearing of Gospel that gives one the ability to call on the name of the Lord. Through the book of Acts, people’s ability to respond to the Gospel is always preceded by the proclamation of the Gospel. What they take for "making decision" is actually their responding to what God has already done. In Peter's proclamation of the Gospel to Cornelius' household, the Holy Spirit came down on those who heard the message (Acts 10:44)Later, the Apostles stated that it was God who gave the Gentiles that ability to repent (Acts 11:18). Even our ability to repent is a gift of God."

Look at those "Choice" verses again: If you look at them in context you'll notice that they aren't written to unbelievers, but to believers. The first two are exhortations to believers to choose to remain faithful/return to faithfulness; the last is not a "formula" for salvation, but a description of what (by the power of the Spirit) has already occurred.

Trust me Beth, I know this one is a toughie. My husband struggled with this for years. He told me how, when when he was younger, he "walked the aisle" dozens of times to "dedicate" and "rededicate" his life to Christ because he was never sure that he was really saved. I could never understand this. I asked him: Didn't he believe God's promise? His response: He trusted God's part, but he didn't trust his own part - he could never be sure about his decision, whether is was sincere enough.


I think that's just heartbreaking, but I get where he's coming from and I understand how he could be so terrified. Because the reality is, as sinful human beings, we never ARE sincere enough - and we never will be. Not on this side of heaven anyways.


Thankfully, God has not made our salvation provisional. It's not "grace + my works". It's not "grace + my choice". It's grace + nothing. That's the only equation that works, because the moment you introduce a human element, the equation becomes tainted. Only God has the power to save us and we must not usurp that power for ourselves. To do so is to reject the completed work of Christ on the Cross.


"For it is by grace you have been saved through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is a gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8


It may sound as if I am judging the faith of "decision makers" as false. I'm not. The understanding of how they came to faith may be imperfect, but the faith itself- given as a gift of God - is not.


"I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith." Romans 12:3


I know that in my husband's case, the realization that his salvation was a 100% God-done thing was literally life-changing. I guess that's part of why I get so passionate about it. I hope that helps you understand where Beth and I are comig from when we say No Choice!

Question from a reader

I guess if one calls her blog "Ask a Lutheran" then one should expect to be asked questions from time to time. *smile* Most of the time the questions are from Sara, (lol) but yesterday I received a question by email from Mick in Afghanistan. It's a really good question and I'd like to share it with you:

Hello.... Greetings from Afghanistan! Lovely people....dreadful place. I found you on the Web. I'm a British Royal Marine "stationed" here - actually we move around a lot - with a question about the nature of the Trinity. I've noticed that many Muslims think that the Christian concept of the Trinity is polytheistic in nature. Three separate Gods in one as it were. And, frankly, I've always been a bit mystified about it myself...three Persons but One God...the nature of that Divine relationship, etc. I asked a Catholic priest (a nice if humourless fellow) and he said that it was simple: there is only one divine nature. Ummm, yes, I understand, I think....but then...well, it's getting all mixed up in me empty head. If you can shed any light on the matter it would be appreciated. Thanks!

Mick

I checked the FAQ section on the LCMS website (a great resource by the way) where a similar question had been posed. The response was as follows:

A. In response, let me first emphasize that we human beings, with our limited power of reason (which is also corrupted by sin), cannot understand or fathom the mystery of the divine Trinity. What we know about God He has revealed to us, which we must accept on faith. One of our official Lutheran confessional documents succinctly summarizes the doctrine of the Trinity as follows: There is one divine essence, which is called and which is truly God, and...there are three persons in the one divine essence, equal in power and alike eternal: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. All three are one divine essence, eternal, without division, without end, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, one creator and preserver of all things visible and invisible." (Augsburg Confession I, 1-3)

All human analogies break down at some point, but the Trinity is often compared to water, an "essence" that is liquid, solid, and gas at the same time. But again, illustrations of this kind cannot probe the mystery of God. He can only be believed in, not fully understood.

Mick, my own response would be similar: God Himself has revealed to us who He is and what He is like through His Word which has been faithfully recorded in the Holy Bible. Throughout both the Old Testament and the New Testament, God speaks of Himself as being God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, but He is also very clear that He is One (Deut. 6:4). To a Muslim, for whom obedience to Allah is very important, I would emphasize that in obedience to God and the Word he has given us, we accept and confess that He is Three in One, though in this life we do not fully understand how this can be so.

I hope that's helpful to you Mick. Beth, you live among Muslims - want to chime in here? Anybody else have any thoughts?

Because Sara asked...

Ok, listen up now. A vicar is kind of like a "pastor in training".

To be a pastor in the Lutheran church you have to meet the following criteria:

1. You have to be called by the Spirit to the pastoral ministry.
2. You have to be a man**. Yes, really. And you have to be the kind of man that is described in Titus chapter one.
3. You have to subscribe to the Lutheran Confessions unconditionally (quia).
4. You have to be properly trained. For most pastors, this means earning a Masters of Divinity degree from a recognized Lutheran seminary.

There might be more qualifications - these are the ones I'm aware of. Anyway, during seminary, students attend classes and then do "field work" at a local congregation. They will spend most of their time studying though. Then, during the third year of seminary, each seminarian is placed with a congregation for a year of "vicarage". During this year, they do "on-the-job training" and work under the direct supervision of an experienced pastor. They often have to relocate for that year only to have to move back the following year to finish their last year of seminary. Once they receive their M. Div. they may be ordained and receive their first call.

Not all congregations are in a position to take on a vicar. It requires a tremendous commitment on the part of the congregation. The vicar is paid a full salary for the year he is vicaring, so there is a financial component. But there is a - I don't know exactly how to describe it - a spiritual maturity component as well. Not all congregations would make for a good vicarage experience. The congregation needs to be spiritually healthy and mature enough to teach the vicar along the way. As well, the pastor needs to be experienced and a good teacher/trainer/mentor.

We are blessed to have such a pastor at our church. (Truth be told, being placed at Redeemer, Waterloo for vicarage is considered a bit of a "plum" assignment among the seminarians!) Our congregation requests a vicar from the seminary every year - this congregation is VERY committed to training men for the pastoral ministry. Over the years, money was set aside to purchase the house next door to the church as the vicarage residence. We LOVE our vicars and it is a blessing to be a part of their training.

Our current vicar, Galen Purpura, will be with us until August and then he will return to St. Catherines for his final year of seminary. Then our new vicar will come. We don't know who it is yet - we will actually find out tomorrow at the Call Service. (A service where candidates are given their first pastoral calls or vicarage assignments.) The service will be in St. Catharines and my husband and I will be attending. We are very excited to find out who our new vicar will be!

**I know this raises a lot of eyebrows. All I can say is that it is our sincere belief that that is what Scripture teaches. Obviously, not everyone - including other Lutheran bodies - have that understanding. But I assure you, it's not an attempt to perpetuate misongyny.