Core Lutheran Beliefs and How to Join
Belief in Jesus Christ
Jesus is God’s son, sent by God to become human like us. When Jesus died on the cross he abolished our sin and thus restored the relationship of love and trust that God intended to exist between Himself and His children. Jesus was born on earth of a virgin, by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus was at once truly God and truly human.
We believe Jesus is the Messiah chosen by God to show His love for the world. He is God, yet with all the limitations of being human. His relationship to God, however, was not one of sin but rather of perfect obedience to the Father’s will. The man, Jesus of Nazareth, lived and died in Palestine under Roman administrator Pontius Pilate.
For the sake of a sinful world, Jesus was condemned to death on the cross. But death could not contain him. On the third day after his execution, the day we observe as Easter, Jesus appeared among his followers as the risen, living Lord. Jesus Christ lives today wherever there are people who faithfully believe in Him and wherever the Good News of reconciliation is preached and the Sacraments administered.
The Christian Church
The Christian church is made up of those who have been baptized and thus have received Jesus Christ as the Son of God and Savior of the world. Sometimes it is referred to as “the Body of Christ.” Lutherans believe that they are a part of a community of faith that began with the gift of the Holy Spirit, God’s presence with His people, on the day of Pentecost. The church, regardless of its physical form, is the fellowship of those who have been restored to God by Christ. Indeed, to be called into fellowship with Christ is also to be called into community with other believers.
The church is essential to Christian life and growth. Its members are all sinners in need of God’s grace. It has no claim on human perfection. The church exists solely for the hearing and doing of God’s Word. It can justify its existence only when it proclaims the living Word of Christ, administers the Sacraments and gives itself to the world in deeds of service and love.
About Lutheran Christianity
Comedian Dana Carvey recalls when he was growing up how people didn’t understand his family’s religion. Carvey says, “Many people saw the Lutheran religion as Catholic Light!”
Many non-Lutherans continue to perceive little difference between Lutherans and Roman Catholics. Many characteristics of the Lutheran way are also traits of other Christian traditions. Lutherans have no monopoly on certain ways of being Christian, but are part of the “church catholic” (catholic means universal).
The Lutheran Church comes out of Martin Luther’s 16th century protesting of certain Roman Catholic Church teachings for which Luther found no biblical basis. His primary insight into the Gospel was that salvation is never earned by our own effort, but is a free gracious gift of God. Thus, Lutherans have ties to Roman Catholicism (Martin Luther was, after all, an Augustinian monk), as well as to other Protestant churches. Many Lutherans still consider themselves as a reforming movement within the Church catholic, rather than a separatist movement, and Lutherans have engaged in ecumenical dialogue with other church bodies for decades.
In 1999, the Lutheran and Roman Catholic churches drew closer together when on Oct. 31 representatives of the Lutheran World Federation and the Vatican signed the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification. The document brings the two churches together on the question of salvation, declaring that it depends on God’s grace rather than human merit. Differences on justification remain between Roman Catholics and Lutherans, but the declaration says these are compatible.
Martin Luther (1483-1546), Protestant Reformer
Many people confuse Martin Luther with civil rights activist Martin Luther King, Jr. who had nothing to do with the Lutheran Church, other than Rev. King’s parents named their son after the man who was known as the Father of Protestantism.
Martin Luther (1483 – 1546) was a German priest and scholar whose questioning of certain church practices led to the Protestant Reformation. He is one of the pivotal figures of Western civilization, as well as of Christianity.
He studied to become a lawyer before becoming an Augustinian monk in 1505, and was ordained a priest in 1507. While continuing his studies in pursuit of a Doctor of Theology degree, he discovered significant differences between what he read in the Bible and the theology and practices of the church. After a visit to Rome in 1510-11, he was angered by the sale of indulgences. He drew up 95 theses on indulgences and on October 31, 1517, he nailed a challenge on the church door at Wittenberg University to debate these theological issues.
Luther’s hope was that the church would reform its practice and preaching to be more consistent with the Word of God as contained in the Bible. However, violent controversy followed, and Luther boldly attacked the papal system and broke away from the church of Rome. What Luther anticipated would be an academic debate escalated to a religious war, fueled by fiery temperaments and violent language on both sides. As a result, there was not a reformation of the church but a separation.
“Lutheran” was a name applied to Luther and his followers as an insult but adopted as a badge of honor by them instead.
Lutherans still celebrate the Reformation on October 31 and still hold to the basic principles of theology and practice espoused by Luther. It is with music as well as theology that Luther brought about sweeping reforms. Martin Luther’s reform in the German Church also included a new emphasis on music in the church service.
How to Join Trinity Lutheran Church
Trinity Lutheran Church receives new members several times a year. Anyone desiring to become a member should speak with our pastor.
One becomes a member of a Lutheran congregation in one of three ways: by Holy Baptism, by Letter of Transfer from another Lutheran congregation, or by Affirmation of Faith. We encourage all who are going to become members to attend a short series of New Member classes where our basic beliefs and practices are reviewed and one can become acquainted with other new members and our pastor.
Please contact us at your convenience to find out more about becoming a member of Trinity Lutheran Church.
Trinity Lutheran Church and School – “In Kissimmee for Good”
