Here's "What's Up" With Lutherans: A Response to Kevin DeYoung

Kevin DeYoung of The Gospel Coalition wrote an article five years ago that has just come to my attention. The article is called "What's Up With Lutherans?" The original article can be found here: https://blogs.thegospelcoalition.org/kevindeyoung/2011/06/23/whats-up-with-lutherans/

What follows is my response to the article.

DEYOUNG VIEWS LUTHERANS THE WRONG WAY TO BEGIN WITH

 It is helpful to read DeYoung's article recognizing how he thinks. To put it bluntly, he does not think like a Lutheran. Most would say this is an obvious point that needs no comment, but nonetheless it is vital to understand that his whole article views Lutherans incorrectly. I can understand this, because before I was a Lutheran I thought of Lutherans the same way DeYoung does.

How does he think of Lutherans? One need only go to his "UPDATE" at the end of his article, where he says the following:

"My central question was about the place of Lutherans in the big tent of evangelicalism."

That is precisely where DeYoung goes wrong.

Historic and confessional Lutheranism is simply not in "the big tent of evangelicalism."

This wrong way of viewing Lutherans reminds me of similarly how Roman Catholics view the Eastern Orthodox. Catholics think the Orthodox are just a "sister church" that is "like them" in many ways.

But ask an Orthodox person about how Orthodoxy views herself, and they will tell you that they are nothing like Rome, and most definitely not a "sister church."

Historic and confessional Lutheranism does not view itself as "one option among many."

I'm not speaking of those "Lutheran" churches that have fallen prey to non-denominational and American evangelical thinking.

I'm talking about Lutheran churches that subscribe to the Book of Concord. If you want to know what a Lutheran is, it is simply someone who believes, teaches, and confesses what is written in the Book of Concord. You can read it for free at www.bookofconcord.org as well.

Given the above, DeYoung's whole article goes wrong. It treats Lutherans like we are supposed to act like today's evangelicals or today's reformed.

But we are not.

So what follows now is quick answers to his article that views us Lutherans like we are supposed to act or believe in ways that are not us. DeYoung's questions will be in quotes, with my responses below them.

ANSWERS TO DEYOUNG'S QUESTIONS

"What up with Lutherans?"

Sup.

"where are they?"

Right here.

"I’m genuinely curious to know why the big tent of conservative, confessional evangelicalism doesn’t have more Lutherans."

Because we do not consider ourselves part of the big tent of conservative, confessional evangelicalism. We are our own thing. We are not Protestants in today's sense. We are not evangelical. We are not reformed. We are not Eastern Orthodox. We are not Roman. We are Lutherans.

"Where have all the Lutherans gone?"

You'll find us in our Lutheran parishes. You are welcome to visit. Heck, we'll even commune you if you go through catechesis and become Lutheran. :)

"I just don’t know all the good they are doing and saying."

We have a tremendous presence in the mission field. Especially the LCMS. We are involved in the culture and our communities frequently.

"Lutheranism has always been a little out of place with the sometimes rootless, low church expressions of evangelicalism. They never got on board with evangelicalism after the Great Awakening."

Correct! Not only are we out of place in evangelicalism, it is completely antithetical to who we are. We are Sacramental to the core and we believe the Spirit only acts in the Word and Sacraments, and not apart from them. You can probably now guess what we think about the "Great Awakening". :)

"but evangelicalism has been influenced by many Anglican theologians and preachers, hasn’t it?"

Of course it has. Anglicanism from its inception was always less interested in precise doctrine. I often consider Anglicanism to be liturgical non-denominationalism.

"Lutherans are content to remain in ethnic enclaves."

This is a fair concern for many Lutherans, and it is something Lutherans should indeed repent of.

"The Lutheran view of the sacraments is a bridge too far for many evangelicals, and the faddish nature of evangelicalism is a bridge too far for many Lutherans."

Yes indeed. 100% agreement there.

"The bulk of Lutherans have gone liberal and the rest have gone into bunker mode."

That's like saying that the bulk of Christians have gone unitarian-universalist, etc. There are still plenty of confessional Lutherans around. The LCMS is a huge denomination. The WELS, although smaller, has influence as well. And there are numerous Lutheran church bodies the LCMS is in fellowship with across the globe and on the mission field.

A FINAL WORD

I know DeYoung sincerely was trying to understand Lutherans and the various questions of why. My advice not only for DeYoung, but for anyone--including myself--is that when we research folks that think differently than we ourselves do, it is very important that we try to view the research through the lens of the folks we are researching. I know this is not always easy, but it will help us to understand better.

Thanks go to DeYoung for his honest questions.

NON-LUTHERAN VIEWS OF THE SUPPER ARE BLASPHEMOUS

Now that I have your attention from the title of this post......

I've never been one to beat around the bush, or to read between the lines. I've always preferred to be specific and clear. I don't wish to purposely offend either, yet at the same time I don't mind if the truth offends.

Something that has been vexing me as of lately is how many Lutherans have no problem partaking of the Lord's Supper at non-Lutheran churches.

Not only is this against the historic stand of Lutheranism, but it really makes no sense if you think about it.

What is worse, if you think about it, is this:

*If the Lutheran view of the Supper is right and biblical (and it is!), then by very definition this means all other views are false.*

But the worst of it is this:

**Since the Lutheran Eucharist is pure Gospel and biblical and true, then this means all other "eucharists" or "suppers" are blasphemous. They are simply a mockery of what Christ instituted.**

This bears repeating, so I'll say it again:

**Since the Lutheran Eucharist is pure Gospel and biblical and true, then this means all other "eucharists" or "suppers" are blasphemous. They are simply a mockery of what Christ instituted.**

Think about it.

For Rome (and the East), their eucharist is a sacrifice that we offer to God for the sins of the living and the dead.

Lutherans, is this your Eucharist?

For today's Protestants, evangelicals, and reformed, their supper is simply either a commemoration or reminder or thought exercise, or merely a "spiritual partaking" of Christ.

Lutherans, is that your Eucharist?

Some Lutherans say that all that matters is the Real Presence.

But the Missouri Synod correctly says that unity in all articles of the Gospel is what matters.

The Eucharist is the Sacrament of unity.

Lutherans, do we have unity in the Gospel with Rome? Do we confess justification by faith plus works? By infused righteousness?

Lutherans, do we have unity in the Gospel with the East? Do we confess that cooperate with God on the pathway to God for salvation?

Lutherans, do we have unity in the Gospel with Protestants, evangelicals, and reformed? Do we confess that Christ is not present in the sacraments, and reduce them to mere "ordinances"? Do we confess that Christ atoned only for the sins of some, namely, only the elect?

Do we confess that the only way one can have assurance of salvation is by their fruits?

No.

Many say that if Lutherans partake only with Lutherans, that this is divisive and unloving.

I say, it is more unloving to compromise the Gospel by partaking of the Supper with the heterodox, because it does not give witness to the Gospel by flattening out the Gospel.

Some say "but it's the *Lord's* Supper, not the Missouri Synod's Supper or the WELS' Supper.

I retort, "and it is the Lord's *Gospel*. And we are to bear witness to it.

By partaking with only Lutherans, we do not wish to be divisive, but we acknowledge the sad fact that Christianity is divided.

But in doing so, we give witness to the Good News of the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ in Word and Sacrament.

The only Gospel that gives assurance.

We are simply beggars.

So why do I partake only at Lutheran Altars?

And why is this the historic stance of the Lutheran faith?

Because of the pure Gospel.

If we lose the Gospel, we lose everything.

Here we stand.

Where Christ crucified for us meets us

For us Confessional Lutherans we don't approach church (or as we call it divine) service as foremost what we do for God (meaning worship) but as foremost what God does for us. He gives us His objective word week in week out through the service that our sins are forgiven for Christ's sake when we confess our sins and believe Christ paid for our sins (absolution). We hear the Word proclaimed from the OT, the NT, and gospel. We are given the objective promises of forgiveness via sacrament.

For us, foremost, God gives us His grace not only to join us to Christ but to keep us in Him and His forgiveness won for us at the cross via Word and Sacrament given in the divine service.

And in response, we can worship God and give as well knowing we can't outdo God and out give God.

So for us, divine service is where foremost God is gloried in our salvation and in response we glorified and worshipped Him for what He has done for us. In Christ crucified and resurrected for us.

So the approach for us is different from many Protestants.

When people withhold themselves from the church in our view, they withhold themselves from the gifts God give them in Word and Sacrament to continue to keep them in the forgiveness Christ merited for them and strengthened them.

So for us a large part of why people don't go to church is wrong approach. We see it as heaven meets earth, rather than earth meets heaven. We see it as Christ comes to us in a real way to draw us to Himself and continues to do so over and over again to keep us in the one truth faith.

Here we stand.

"You Lutherans have little in common with Luther theologically"

Every so often, folks from other camps especially the Reformed camp claim Lutherans are hardly in line with Luther theologically.

So let's put that to the test.

Confessional Lutheranism holds to Book of Concord as biblical rule of faith. That book contains three writings by Luther in full, three writings in full in Luther's lifetime that he agreed to and with, and a longer version of Formula of Concord that largely quote or paraphrase Luther (yes including his Bondage which was made binding on the Lutheran faith in it).

So explain again how we- confessional Lutherans- are out of step with Luther theologically again?

Here we stand.

"Free" Will???

The common error that those who believe in "free will" make is that they look at passages with words like "choose" and "come" and "whosoever", and then wrongly *assume* that that must mean that they have the *ability* to choose. The Bible nowhere teaches this.
In fact, it teaches quite the opposite. Jesus says no one *can* (ability) come to Him unless the Father draws him. Jesus says none have life except those to whom the Son has revealed Himself. Romans 8:7-8 says that the sinful mind is hostile God, it does not submit to God's Law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the flesh *cannot* please God. Not to mention that the Bible describes the unregenerate as *dead* in sins and trespasses.

Notice, then, that these passages teach that mankind is *accountable* to choose, although they lack the moral ability to do so.
These folks counter by saying "Well then how can God say we are responsible then?"
Scripture declares we are nonetheless accountable. Jesus also commands us to be *perfect*, although none of us can do that. None of us have the ability. But we are still accountable to do so.
Please notice, then, that the only Perfection we will ever have is Christ Himself. And none of us desire Christ unless the Spirit convicts through the law and shows us Christ in the Gospel.
What many of these folks usually do is they say that God draws everyone, then leaves the rest up to man. This is another fundamental error because not only does the Bible nowhere teach this, but it also separates God's Spirit from His Word and His Sacraments. God is always pleased to *draw* people through His preached Word and His Sacraments administered. The Spirit willingly binds Himself to these.

The Evangelical Lutheran Church is the True Church Because of the Gospel

Many religions compete for which is the true one. And many branches of Christianity claim they are the truest to the Scriptures, or the true church. However, unfortunately, many of these claim such merely for the sake of "being right." They usually base it upon alleged "apostolic succession," or "the successor of Peter," or "truest to the Scriptures."

However, even the last case of "truest to the Scriptures" begs the question of *how*. How should the Scriptures be interpreted?

The Evangelical Lutheran Church, or Evangelical Catholics, believes that what constitutes the true visible Church on earth is the pure preaching of the Gospel and the pure administration of the Sacraments according to the Gospel. We believe that the Gospel is what constitutes the proper interpretation of Scripture. Everything is about Jesus Christ† and His work for us.

This is expressed in our Lutheran Confessions, which we believe to be faithful to the Good News of the Gospel. Apart from the Gospel, there is no church. This is why all false doctrine is dangerous. Anything that waters down the Good News of the Gospel inevitably points us toward our own efforts.

God must always come *down* to us. The Gospel is for us, for us poor, weary sinners.

It is all about the Gospel. Apart from this, there is no good news.

Christ is for us in Word and Sacrament!

Forgiveness, Life, and Salvation

Rome says that the Eucharist forgives only venial sins, but not mortal sins. This is absolutely impossible, for through the Eucharist we are receiving Christ.

Rome says that Holy Baptism only forgives original, past, and present, but not future sins. But this is impossible. For through Holy Baptism, we are brought into union with Christ.

Rome says that Absolution is conditional and dependent upon works of contrition. But this is impossible, because no one's works are perfect, but are always tainted with sin. Further, it is impossible to even know all our sins, for our hearts are that deceitful, even after regeneration. 

The bottom line is that, in Roman theology, Christ recedes into the background and ultimately has to be viewed as a mere tack-on.

If we have been united with Christ in Holy Baptism, partake of His Flesh and Blood in the Holy Eucharist, and hear His gracious Words of forgiveness in Holy Absolution, it is impossible for sin to remain. Although it remains in our heart, we are shielded and clothed with Christ Our Righteousness.

All sins are forgiven.

And where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.

THE LUTHERAN EUCHARIST IS FOR THOSE WHO BELIEVE THE LUTHERAN EUCHARIST

Among Lutheran brethren, there are some who are concerned that the historic and confessional view of closed Communion ("Lutheran altars for Lutherans only") comes off as exclusivistic and unloving. Many of these well-meaning Lutheran brethren are concerned that, they believe, it is impossible to come to full agreement in doctrine this side of heaven--yet full agreement in doctrine is required for Altar fellowship in Lutheran churches.

For the sake of these brethren, I would like to take a different approach, which I think may be more helpful when it comes to the nature of the Sacrament of the Altar, and which perhaps, I hope, will help them, as well as others, understand why we believe that the Lutheran Altar is for Lutherans, and why we believe Lutherans should only partake with Lutherans.

THE VERY NATURE OF THE MOST BLESSED SACRAMENT IN LUTHERANISM

As Lutherans, we confess and believe a very unique view of the Supper, that only Lutheranism confesses. We confess that with the bread and wine, we receive the very Body and Blood of Christ, into our mouths and bodies, for the forgiveness of sins.

Do other traditions believe this?

*Our evangelical friends do not believe this. They believe the Supper is simply a remembrance and an action of meditation on Christ's death. They do not believe they receive the Body and Blood of Christ into their mouths. So, why would an evangelical want to come to a Lutheran Altar? And why would a Lutheran want to partake at an evangelical assembly?

*Our reformed friends do not believe this. They believe only those who have faith receive the sacrament, and only in a spiritual sense. Our concern as Lutherans is that this takes away objective assurance, and causes a person to go inward with reflection. Our further concern is that if the sacraments are only gracious for the elect, how do we know God is gracious toward *us*? Our concern is that this is damaging to the Gospel. The Gospel always includes "for *you*."

*Our Roman Catholic friends, although they confess the Real Presence, believe instead that it is a sacrifice that they are offering to God for both the sins of the living and the sins of the dead in purgatory. We Lutherans reject this as sacrilege. We reject purgatory. Why would any Lutheran want to participate in a Roman Catholic Eucharist?

*Our Eastern friends are similar, although their doctrine of purgatory is not as developed as Rome's. Many of them do not like the term "purgatory," but nonetheless they still believe the Eucharist is a sacrifice for the sins of the dead as well.

LUTHERANS TAKE CHRIST'S INSTITUTION VERY SERIOUSLY

We Lutherans take Christ's Words of Institution very seriously. No one has the right to take away the Cup of His Blood, as Rome used to do--and still does in some parishes. No one has the right to skip drinking the Blood.

Christ did not institute a Supper that is offered for sins of the dead; much less is there such a thing as purgatory.

Christ instituted the Sacrament of the Altar for comfort, for the forgiveness of sins.

For you.

Given the above, why would any Lutheran want to partake at any other Altar, given what we confess the Eucharist actually *is*?

And why would any non-Lutheran want to partake at a Lutheran Altar, since they do not believe what we believe about the Eucharist?

Considering the above, closed Communion makes perfect sense.

Word, not just water, makes Baptism

We hold to it isn't the water by itself that makes baptism. It's the Word that makes baptism. The Word by which Christ washes through with water as outward means. It is by which the Holy Spirit calls us to faith that clings to Christ alone given unto us by outward and objective means. And out of the Father's grace, love and mercy, it is by which  to draw us.

Being that the Word makes baptism, it means God can operate outside baptism to send forth His word to us, such as when it is preached.

So we deny one is lost for lack of chances to be baptized. Only unbelief condemns and cuts us off from Christ's Saving work.

It remains true though baptism is objective means we can point back to in regards to when God delivers His promises to us.

And not a one time in the water is baptism.

Our baptism covers our entire Christian life.

We were buried with Christ and in baptism and raised with Him to newness of life.

Daily we are to live out our baptism. Die to old Adam and alive with Christ.

And it is so by the Word and Sacrament giving, nourishing and strengthening our faith/assurance.

Our assurance is never inwards. It is outwards to the objective promises God give us in Word and Sacrament:

In Christ crucified, we are forgiven and our sins washed away.

Faith alone is the instrument in which we are justified. Object of that is Christ crucified for our sins. That is what faith alone receives. Word and Sacrament are means to deliver that to us and give us faith to receive what God gives us.

The Gospel of Christ crucified for our sins.

Here we stand.

No We're Not

Lutheranism is Lutheranism. We do not borrow some from Calvinism and some from Arminianism and some from Rome. We are Evangelical Catholic. We are Lutheran.

It's way too common for Evangelicals who have some amount of learning experience in theology to try to jam Lutheranism into the debate between Calvin and Arminius. This simply does not work, and I will show you why. We ought to give these folks a pass on this, as it is not any sort of malicious attempt against Lutherans in any way. However, we do need to get the word out there about what we believe. Education is paramount in this endeavor. It must be shown, as we on this blog try to do to the best of our abilities, that we simply do not fit within either of these radical reformation traditions.

I was guilty of this too at one time. When I first started digging into theology, I jumped into Calvinism and Arminianism. I was simply being a good evangelical, and after all, evangelicals fall into one of these two categories; or a mixture of the two. Ultimately I cast my lot with Calvin and the Reformed tradition. I saw everything through the lens of the sovereignty of God, predestination, and covenant theology. I thought Lutherans were essentially Arminians, because Lutheranism rejected the P in the famous TULIP.

Then I came across some learned Lutherans online. I didn't listen to them much at first. I thought Lutheranism was a jumbled irrational mess. Little did I know, my world was about to be rocked.

So, why don't Lutherans fit with evangelicals? Simply put, it's the Sacraments. Whereas we can definitely have a scholarly conversation with Calvinists and Arminians regarding election, free will, and other things, we begin in a completely different place. For us, we start and end with Christ crucified for the forgiveness of all of our sins.

Why the Sacraments? Because in Lutheranism, you simply cannot divorce the Sacraments in any way whatsoever from salvation and justification. In Calvinist Covenant Theology, the Covenant of Grace has a substance and an administration. That is to say, there are two aspects to this covenant. One is external and one is internal. The external covenant is the administration of the covenant, where the Word is preached and the Sacraments administered. The internal is the substance, where the Holy Spirit gives that special inward call to the elect alone and no one else. This strips the Sacraments of objectivity. In Arminianism, everything hinges on the free will decision of the individual. Hence, modern American Evangelicalism, which is strongly Arminian and in many cases outright Pelagian, is big on getting people to make a decision for Jesus, ask Him into their hearts, or come forward for an altar call. All of these practices assume a choice is needed to enact salvation. This is the horrendous error of decisional regeneration or decision theology.

We don't fit. In Lutheranism, Christ is right there for us in our baptism. Saving us. We are baptized into the Triune God, objectively. It's not part of an external covenant. It's grace for you, and it saves.

We also need constant forgiveness. How do we know we are receiving constant forgiveness? Well, because some dude in a white dress who is called and ordained stands in the place of Christ (cf. John 20:23) and pronounces "I forgive you all of your sins in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Why do we believe this? Because Christ Himself ordained the Office of the Holy Ministry and gave the Keys to the Kingdom to the Church.

How do I receive forgiveness in other ways? Well, because some dude in a white dress consecrates ordinary bread and wine and Christ feeds us His true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins (cf. Matthew 26:26-28).

How do I know I am forgiven? Because I am baptized into the Name of God. He saved me right there; His Word working through ordinary water. Because I eat the body and blood of Jesus, in my mouth, orally. Now, for any of you Calvinists or Arminians who happen to stumble across this blog post, be honest with yourself. According to your theology, us Lutherans are idolatrous heretics. We know we are forgiven because we eat and drink Jesus in our mouths. Think about that. We know we are forgiven because the guy in the white dress acts on behalf of Christ and forgives us all of our sins. Think about that.

I close with an excellent quote from Gene Veith. He states:

"To understand Lutheranism, it is necessary to recognize that the Lutheran understanding of salvation by grace and justification by faith cannot be separated from the Lutheran teachings of baptismal regeneration and the real presence of Christ in the bread and wine of Holy Communion. These teachings are all intimately connected with each other in Lutheran theology and spirituality. If you play them off against each other, thinking you can have Lutheran soteriology without Lutheran sacramental theology, you might have Calvinists or Baptists or Calvinist Baptists or something else, but you cannot have Lutherans. Nor can you have Lutheran Calvinists or Calvinist Lutherans or Lutheran Baptists or Baptist Lutherans." Gospel Coalition Debate

Exactly. We do not fit.

And no we are not ______. Fill in the blank.

We are Lutheran. Here We Stand.

+Pax+