Insist on Gospel basics
"For although we cannot and should not force anyone to believe, yet we should insist and urge the people that they know what is right and wrong." —Martin Luther
"When you preach in the presence of learned and intelligent men, you may… present these parts in as varied and intricate ways… But with the young people stick to one fixed, permanent form and manner, and teach them, first of all, these parts, namely, the Ten Commandments, the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, etc., according to the text, word for word, so that they… commit it to memory. But those who are unwilling to learn it should be told that they deny Christ and are no Christians… For although we cannot and should not force anyone to believe, yet we should insist and urge the people that they know what is right and wrong." - Martin Luther
Reflections by Langdon Palmer, Pastor at Leverington Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, PA
Although Luther may sound somewhat rigid to modern ears, I think he is on to something very important here—actually two somethings! First, what you know really matters. So many times my progressive friends sum up the gospel as “helping the poor and oppressed,” and my conservative friends sum up the gospel as “living a pure moral life.”
Luther emphasized the need for Bible knowledge.
But, these are wonderful responses to the gospel, not the gospel itself. Weren’t there faithful Jewish people fighting for social justice long before Jesus came? Weren’t there faithful Jewish people striving to live pure moral lives long before Jesus came? If they were already doing all these good things, then what did Jesus coming to earth add?
The word “Gospel” means good news, and that good news came to people who were already religious. “News” implies information that is given to you by another—knowledge you did not deduce on your own. This is information that comes from outside of us. It changes us because it changes the way we see ourselves and the world. Therefore knowing Christian doctrine (claims about what is real) really matters.
Second, teaching really matters. As early as Augustine, church leaders were asking “What are the essentials one needs to know, and where should we begin in our teaching? 1 Corinthians 13:13 implores us to pursue “Faith, Hope, and Love” and so the early church decided to teach along these three lines. For an introduction to faith they taught the Apostles Creed, as it declares the basic theological claims of the faith. For love they taught the Ten Commandments, because these are practical ways to show love of God and love of neighbor. For hope they taught the Lord’s Prayer, because it implies that God is real, is at work right here and now, and cares intimately about our lives and our future.
Luther holds onto this three-fold tradition and reforms it. He implies memorization is crucial but so is understanding. We must hold onto the basics as we move towards more nuanced and critical ways of thinking … so that God can reform us. I am thankful to Luther for reminding me that learning and the life of the mind is crucial to my walk as a Christian.
Langdon Palmer is Pastor at Leverington Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, PA
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