Wednesday of Lent 4 - Are only Lutherans Going to Heaven?
Read: Isaiah 55:6-13
So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Mevoid, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing forwhich I sent it. (Is. 55:11)
It is worth repeating: the greatest contribution that Lutherans can make to
Christianity today is to hold steadfastly to both justification by grace alone and
the presence of the Lord in His Word and Sacraments. As we'll demonstrate in
coming days, these are hopes that will not disappoint.
Holding to these is a challenge as we enter the 21st century. The past
hundred years featured the growth of the Ecumenical Movement in Christianity.
“Ecumenical” is from a Greek word that means worldwide, and Ecumenism
teaches that different Christian church bodies should lay aside those doctrines
which divide them in order to one, worldwide church. Since “all you have to do
is believe in Jesus,” other doctrines are expendable.
Confessional Lutherans reject the Ecumenical Movement, and with good
reason. If we are to give up those doctrines which make us distinct from other
Protestant church bodies, what must we give up for the sake of unity? For
starters, the doctrines Holy Baptism and Holy Communion. This is simply not
acceptable: the presence of Jesus in His means of grace is fully Scriptural, and
far too great a treasure to give up for superficial unity.
So Lutherans cling to the means of grace, even though it divides them from
others. Unfortunately, that faithfulness has led many to conclude that Lutherans
consider themselves an exclusive club, that “Lutherans believe that only
Lutherans are going to heaven.” It is true? Far from it! In fact, we condemn
such a teaching as a false doctrine.
Consider what we do teach: as we heard yesterday in Romans 10, Jesus is
present where His Word is proclaimed; and as His Sacraments are physical
elements endowed by His Word, He is present in them, too. In Isaiah 55, we
hear the news that the Lord's Word does not return to Him empty: wherever the
Word is proclaimed, Jesus is at work to give forgiveness and life.
Note that. Scripture does not say that Jesus is present when the Word is
proclaimed in a Lutheran Church; the Lord is present wherever His Word is
proclaimed. A church body may be loaded with all sorts of false and misguided
teachings of man; but whenever the Word is read and proclaimed there, the Lord
is still present despite the man-made stuff that is there.
More than one church body has said, “You must belong to us in order to
have the hope of heaven.” Therefore, salvation depends, in part, on your
membership certificate. That's not a teaching of Scripture or the Lutheran
Church. Wherever the Word is, there is Jesus. Wherever in the world Jesus is,
He is at work to save, no matter the name on the church door.
Because Jesus is present in His means of grace wherever in the world, we
don't give them up for the Ecumenical Movement. Ironically, holding to that
miraculous truth of Jesus' presence in His Word and Sacraments makes Lutheran
doctrine, in its true sense, the most ecumenical of all.