Tag: confession

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HT Video Shorts

Confession & Absolution in 5 Minutes! (What’s UP Wednesday)

 

 

In today’s video, Pastor Borghardt attempts to zip through a very through explanation of Confession and Absolution in FIVE minutes flat! He uses numerous references from Scripture and the Small Catechisms. AND he even answers some common questions and objections about confession and absolution. Can he make it?? Brevity is NOT his style…

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Sounds used:
Ship’s Bell – Mike Koenig at SoundBible.com

Scripture cited:
John 20:22-23
Matthew 16:19
Matthew 18:18
Luke 10:16

Small Catechism, Confession & Absolution

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Higher History

Concord #11: Augsburg Confession (Baptism, Supper, Confession)

Baptism, Lord's Supper, Confession

Articles 9, 10 & 11: Baptism – Supper – Confession

The ninth, tenth, and eleventh articles of the Augsburg Confession take up Baptism, the Lord’s Supper, and Confession, respectively. Each of these articles is surprisingly short—the longest of them is only two sentences. But the brevity of this confession should not make you think that these are unimportant matters, or that there was relatively little difference with the Roman Church on these instruments of the Holy Spirit.

 

Baptism

“Of Baptism they teach that it is necessary to salvation, and that through Baptism is offered the grace of God, and that children are to be baptized who, being offered to God through Baptism are received into God’s grace. They condemn the Anabaptists, who reject the baptism of children, and say that children are saved without Baptism,” (Augsburg Confession, Article IX). The basic understanding of Baptism is that it is a vehicle of salvation, in agreement with Mark 16:16, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved,” and 1 Peter 3:21, “Baptism…now saves you.” Because children need salvation, they also need Baptism.

 

Lord’s Supper

“Of the Supper of the Lord they teach that the Body and Blood of Christ are truly present, and are distributed to those who eat the Supper of the Lord; and they reject those that teach otherwise,” (Augsburg Confession, Article X). Even more simply stated that Baptism. The Supper distributes the body and blood of Christ, which are truly present, to all who partake of it. This is what the words of Christ declare.

 

Confession

“Of Confession they teach that Private Absolution ought to be retained in the churches, although in confession an enumeration of all sins is not necessary. For it is impossible according to the Psalm: Who can understand his errors? Ps. 19:12” (Augsburg Confession, Article XI). Confession is kept with one caveat—you don’t have to list your sins.

Even though the means of grace are confessed clearly and simply in these three articles of the Augsburg Confession, there are some significant disagreements that are revealed when you go beyond the surface. The theology that underlies the sacraments in the Roman Church leads to a sharp divergence, especially in the practice of the sacraments. These are addressed in the final section of the Augsburg Confession (articles 22-28), as well as in subsequent confessional documents. Stay tuned for more!

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard serves as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #4: Augsburg Confession (Original Sin)

Christian confession Augsburg sin

Article 2: Original Sin

You can’t get too far in a theological discussion before you run into sin. It’s kind of a big deal in the Bible. And it also happens to be the topic of the second article of the Augsburg Confession. Everyone who’s ever gotten into trouble as a kid, or has gotten pulled over by police officer for breaking the speed limit has a pretty good idea of what sin is. It’s when you disobey. It’s when you break the rules.

Although we have a general, intuitive sense of what sin is, we also tend to have a pretty high view of ourselves. Our default assumption is that sins are the occasional misdeeds done by otherwise good people. We want to think that if we can peel enough layers away, we can find a spark of good inside.

If our only problem were occasional sins, we would be able to cancel out our sins with our good works. For every bad thing we did, we could do something good to balance out the divine scales of justice. Sin, however, is much more than a few misdeeds here and there. It’s a problem that goes much deeper than outward behaviors.

 

Concupiscence

“Also they teach that since the fall of Adam all men begotten in the natural way are born with sin, that is, without the fear of God, without trust in God, and with concupiscence; and that this disease, or vice of origin, is truly sin, even now condemning and bringing eternal death upon those not born again through Baptism and the Holy Ghost” (Augsburg Confession II.1-2).

Concupiscence is the $200 word. It’s the desire to sin, the inclination to sin. It’s what Jesus means when He says that whoever is angry with another person has committed murder and whoever lusts after a woman has committed adultery (see Matthew 5:21-30). It means that you’re a sinner before you even commit a sin.

Sin is the condition in which we are conceived and born. It’s inescapable. But God has given us a cure in Baptism. Baptism is a washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). All sins, whether original or actual, are drowned in the waters of the font, because that’s the place where Jesus has put His promise of forgiveness.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard serves as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #3: Augsburg Confession (God)

Ceiling art depicting the Christian God

Article 1: God

The Lutheran faith is not an entirely new faith, but is a continuation of the ancient faith of the Christian Church. The beginning of the first Lutheran confession recalls the creedal faith that was articulated in the first several centuries of the New Testament. Many disagreements and false teachings concerning the nature of God and the person of Christ had arisen almost from the time of Pentecost. In the year 325 A.D., pastors and bishops from across the Christian Church assembled a council in the town of Nicaea to hash out what Christians really believe. The result was the Nicene Creed.

“Our Churches, with common consent, do teach that the decree of the Council of Nicaea concerning the Unity of the Divine Essence and concerning the Three Persons, is true and to be believed without any doubting; that is to say, there is one Divine Essence which is called and which is God: eternal, without body, without parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the Maker and Preserver of all things, visible and invisible; and yet there are three Persons, of the same essence and power, who also are coeternal, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. And the term “person” they use as the Fathers have used it, to signify, not a part or quality in another, but that which subsists of itself” (Augsburg Confession I.1-4).

Simply put, the God of the Christian Church is three distinct persons—Father, Son, Spirit—who share the same divine substance. Anything that denies this in whole or in part is contrary to the faith and cannot be called Christian. Some errors include considering Jesus or the Holy Spirit to be creatures or something less than fully God, or considering God to be one person who shows Himself in three different ways.

The Augsburg Confession grounds our confession of God in the Nicene Creed, but that does not mean that it’s a faith that was created by a bunch of men hanging out in Nicaea a few hundred years after Jesus suffered, died, rose, and ascended. The faith of Nicaea is grounded in Scripture, and thus the confession of the Lutheran Church is grounded in Scripture.

God’s nature is revealed very simply in the baptismal formula that Jesus gives in the last chapter of Matthew. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19 ESV). Three distinct persons; one shared name. The ancient creeds, and the Augsburg Confession that follows, are nothing more than an unfolding of what this divine name means—this name that is baptism’s gift for you.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard serves as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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HT Video Shorts

Augustana XI – Confession and Absolution – HT Video Short


Pr. Borghardt continues our Advent tour of the Augsburg Confession. Today we study Article XI – Confession and Absolution.

► Subscribe to our channel to get notifications when we go live: https://dtbl.org/youtube || If you have questions or topics that you’d like discussed on HTV, email them to support@higherthings.org or send text to 936-647-3235.

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Higher History

Concord #31: Augsburg Confession (The Mass Pt. 2)

christian augsburg sacrament mass

Article 24: The Mass, Part 2

Abuses

There were a number of abuses of the Mass, that is, abuses of the Sacrament. In the service itself, there were prayers and ceremonies that presented the Sacrament of the Altar as a sacrifice that the priest made to God on behalf of the people. The canon (order) of the Mass turned the gift of God into the work of men. And the words of life, the words with which Christ instituted the Sacrament, were lost in a jumble of works-righteousness. These errors were corrected in Martin Luther’s revision of the Mass, first in 1523 with a revision in Latin, then again in 1526 in the German language. These revised orders of service preserved what was good and eliminated anything that suggested God’s gift was a sacrifice we offered. Above all, the words of Christ were highlighted as the proclamation of the Gospel, which is received in eating and drinking the Sacrament.

One widespread abuse of the Mass was the practice of private Masses. In a private mass, a priest would conduct an entire communion service by himself in a private chapel. No one would be present to eat or to drink except the priest. These were thought to merit God’s favor on behalf of people simply by the execution of the ceremonies. They didn’t even have to be there. People could even have a priest say a Mass on behalf of someone else (either living or dead!) for a fee. Not only was God’s gift turned into a work of man, but they had put a price on what God gives freely.

 

Lutheran Changes

The practical changes that the Lutheran reformers made to the Mass were grounded in theological convictions. They didn’t change worship on a whim, or because it had become stale and outdated. Their revisions of worship were for the sake of the clear proclamation of the Gospel.

But Christ commands us, Luke 22:19: This do in remembrance of Me; therefore the Mass was instituted that the faith of those who use the Sacrament should remember what benefits it receives through Christ, and cheer and comfort the anxious conscience. For to remember Christ is to remember His benefits, and to realize that they are truly offered unto us. Nor is it enough only to remember the history; for this also the Jews and the ungodly can remember. Wherefore the Mass is to be used to this end, that there the Sacrament [Communion] may be administered to them that have need of consolation; as Ambrose says: Because I always sin, I am always bound to take the medicine. [Therefore this Sacrament requires faith, and is used in vain without faith.] (Augsburg Confession XXIV.30-33)

The Mass, or the Sacrament of the Altar, was instituted for faith, and so it requires faith to be used properly. The worship of faith isn’t that we offer works to God, but rather that we receive gifts from God. The Sacrament is a gift that bestows the benefits of Christ’s death—forgiveness of sins—which cheer and comfort anxious consciences.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #30: Augsburg Confession (The Mass, pt. 1)

christian augsburg ceremonies mass

Article 24: The Mass, Part 1

What is The Mass?

The article on the Mass is an article on worship. Before getting to the teaching on the Mass, it’s necessary to define our terms. The Lutheran Confessions use the term “Mass” in two different ways. The first way is simply to refer to the distribution of the body and blood of Jesus. “…The Mass is such a giving of the Sacrament…” (Augsburg Confession XXIV.34). In other words, “the Mass” is simply the worship service of Holy Communion. The second way in which the word is used refers to the abuses of the medieval Church. Whenever the word is used in this way, it’s usually modified by another phrase, such as “the canon of the mass,” or, “the sacrifice of the mass.”

With the simple understanding of the Mass as a distribution of the body and blood of Christ, the confession begins:

Falsely are our churches accused of abolishing the Mass; for the Mass is retained among us, and celebrated with the highest reverence. Nearly all the usual ceremonies are also preserved, save that the parts sung in Latin are interspersed here and there with German hymns, which have been added to teach the people. For ceremonies are needed to this end alone that the unlearned be taught [what they need to know of Christ]. And not only has Paul commanded to use in the church a language understood by the people 1 Cor. 14:2-9, but it has also been so ordained by man’s law. The people are accustomed to partake of the Sacrament together, if any be fit for it, and this also increases the reverence and devotion of public worship. For none are admitted except they be first examined. The people are also advised concerning the dignity and use of the Sacrament, how great consolation it brings anxious consciences, that they may learn to believe God, and to expect and ask of Him all that is good. [In this connection they are also instructed regarding other and false teachings on the Sacrament.] This worship pleases God; such use of the Sacrament nourishes true devotion toward God. It does not, therefore, appear that the Mass is more devoutly celebrated among our adversaries than among us. (Augsburg Confession XXIV.1-9)

 

Worship Traditions

Churches that confess the Augsburg Confession confess that the service of the Sacrament holds a central place in worship. Traditional ceremonies from the Mass are kept where they do not conflict with the Gospel. Ceremonies are necessary for teaching. Those who come to the Sacrament are not admitted until they have been examined and absolved. These practices are not only for reverence, but so that consciences that are weighed down with sin would be consoled by the Gospel of forgiveness. This is the point of worship and the Sacrament, not to glorify our works, but to glorify God and the work He has done and continues to do in the Sacrament of the Altar.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #29: Augsburg Confession (Marriage of Priests pt. 2)

Christian marriage helps prevent some sin

Article 23: Marriage of Priests, Part 2

The Purpose of Marriage

Marriage has a number of purposes. In the beginning, God created man and woman and gave them to each other in marriage for mutual companionship and help, and for the procreation of children (Genesis 2:18-25; Genesis 1:28). It should be noted that marriage was instituted before the fall into sin, and so these were its original purposes. But after the fall into sin, the estate of marriage takes on an additional dimension. But before we discuss marriage as a help for human weakness, we must take a look at sin.

 

Marriage and Sin

The original sin was the desire to be like God in knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:4-5). When Eve and then Adam took the fruit, they rejected the likeness that God had given them. They wanted to be like God in knowing good and evil, and they got their wish. They knew evil and they were the evil. Their sin was not just their disobedient act; it was simultaneously a corruption of their entire self. This is what theologians have traditionally called Original Sin. Original sin is not just a small defect on an otherwise good nature, but it is a total corruption of human nature. It is inherited and birth. It is the sin before we sin.

This doesn’t mean that humans are helpless to do nothing good. We can do some manner of good works in a civil sense (these are not good works before God). But at the same time, original sin means that we are always inclined to sin. And this includes sexuality. What God created as good—the estate of marriage and the gift of sex—sin has corrupted. Because of the weakness of human nature, marriage has also become after the fall into sin a help against human weakness by giving us a good outlet for sexuality.

 

Marriage as a Help against Human Weakness

“Seeing also that, as the world is aging, man’s nature is gradually growing weaker, it is well to guard that no more vices steal into Germany. Furthermore, God ordained marriage to be a help against human infirmity,” (Augsburg Confession XXIII.14-15). What was true in 16th century German is also true in 21st century America. Human nature is getting weaker from sin, and marriage is a help against human weakness. So marriage guards against lust because in marriage, sexuality is not about fulfilling your own desires (corrupted by original sin), but about giving of yourself for the sake of another.

It is good for a man not to marry, writes St. Paul, but if he cannot keep himself from sinning, he should get married (1 Corinthians 7). Forbidding marriage does not eliminate the natural sexual desire in humans. And because of the weakness of sin, forbidding marriage also leads to more sin. Marriage is good, and it is good for sinners. Therefore, we should seek to honor marriage as God’s good gift.

Marriage is a help for sinful people, but it doesn’t provide the solution for sin. That is only found in Jesus’ suffering and sacrificial death. It is found in the forgiveness of sins—and that even counts for sins committed within marriage.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #28: Augsburg Confession (Marriage of Priests pt. 1)

Christian priest marriage Augsburg

Article 23: Marriage of Priests, Part 1

An issue facing the Church at the time of the Reformation is whether priests, or pastors, could be married. The tradition that had been received in the medieval Church was that priests and monks were required to take a vow of celibacy and to forsake marriage. Priestly celibacy had a long history, but it was not always so. St. Paul gives instructions that ministers should have one wife (1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Tit. 1:6). While he does not command ministers to get married, it is certainly allowed and even expected as the norm.

The historical circumstances of forbidding priests to marry probably has more to do with keeping church property from being inherited by a pastor’s children than it has to do with a sexual ethic. But regardless of how it started, it had become a big problem by the time of the Reformation. Forbidding marriage doesn’t eliminate the nature human desire for intimacy, and there were notorious cases of fornication and adultery by priests. As St. Paul writes, the Law also has the function of increasing sin (Rom. 5:20), and the forbidding of marriage in particular is a teaching of demons (1 Tim. 4:1-3).

 

The Goodness of Marriage

In answer to the question of whether priests can marry, the Augsburg Confession first points to the goodness of marriage. It is good because God created humans as man and woman in order to be fruitful and multiply (Gen 1:28). This is part of human nature. Marriage is good because God instituted it as the proper place for this procreation to take place. There is no inherent sin in sexual desire and activity; it’s only a sin when it becomes disordered.

This basic goodness of marriage is affirmed in the New Testament, where Jesus blesses marriage with a miracle at Cana, and St. Paul recommends it. Although he also says that it is good for a person not to marry, he admits that this is difficult and can only be done with a special gift from God (see 1 Cor. 7).

To impose a law where God has not is an offense to God. To impose a law that goes against what God has instituted and built into creation is disastrous. “For no man’s law, no vow, can annul the commandment and ordinance of God. For these reasons the priests teach that it is lawful for them to marry wives,” (AC XXIII.8-9). Priests, pastors, and ministers can make use of marriage because marriage is good.

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

 

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.

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Higher History

Concord #27: Augsburg Confession (Both Kinds)

bread and wine for christian communion

Article 22: Both Kinds in the Sacrament

The first 21 articles of the Augsburg Confession dealt with various topics of doctrine. The final 7 are about abuses that have been corrected in the churches of the Lutheran Reformation. While these concluding topics are concerning practical issues, that doesn’t mean that they have nothing to say to us today. The abuses may have been corrected, but the theological arguments that underlie them still speak to us. And we must also be on guard so that these abuses—or ones like them—do not creep back into the Church.

 

Concomitance

The first abuse that is considered is both kinds in the Sacrament. This refers to both of the elements in the Lord’s Supper—the bread and the wine. In the medieval Roman Church, the blood of Christ in the chalice was withheld from the laity. Only the priests would partake of the wine. The laity were only offered Christ’s body in the bread. The theological reason for this practice is something known as concomitance. Concomitance is the teaching that Christ’s whole self is present in both the bread and the wine. That means that it was only necessary to receive one element to receive Jesus’ body and blood.

 

Eat AND Drink

However, the Lord’s Words say, “Take, eat, this [bread] is My body…Drink of it all of you, this [wine] cup is the New Testament in My blood.” The Lord’s command is to eat and to drink. But there’s also much more than His command in the Lord’s Supper. He also gives His body specifically with the bread and His blood specifically with the cup. It’s not up to us to divide or combine what Jesus has neither divided nor combined. If we do something other than what Jesus has given us to do, we cannot be sure that we are doing it for our good.

 

Reintroduction of Both Kinds

There’s an interesting historical note with respect to how this change was introduced. While Luther was in hiding for fear of being executed for his teaching, one of his colleagues decided to reintroduce the chalice of wine to the laity along with the bread. The story goes that he shoved the chalice in their faces and said “Das Blut Christi!” (The blood of Christ—imagine it said with an angry German accent). The people were so frightened of this new practice, they didn’t know what to think. Luther returned to the parish for a short time and returned to their old practice so that there was time to teach the people concerning the true nature of the Sacrament.

 

Today

So what about today? There probably exists no Lutheran Church today that gives only the bread and not the wine. In fact, many Roman Catholic churches today also offer both kinds to the laity (though not as often). But also of concern is that, at the time of the Reformation, many people weren’t even receiving the bread! They didn’t go to communion at all. They might go to church and watch other people commune, but they did not themselves participate at all. Today there are many people who do not make use of the Sacrament frequently. It’s not that the Church removes the cup, but that the people removes themselves from both bread and wine, body and blood of Christ.

The same thing that eventually returned both kinds to the Church is also what draws you to frequently commune—the Lord’s words. “Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” “This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”

You can read the Book of Concord at http://www.bookofconcord.org

 

“Concord” is a weekly study of the Lutheran Confessions, where we will take up a topic from the Book of Concord and reflect on what we believe, teach, and confess in the Lutheran Church. The purpose of this series is to deepen readers’ knowledge and appreciation for the confessions of the Lutheran Church, and to unite them “with one heart” to confess the teachings of Holy Scripture.

Rev. Jacob Ehrhard is pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church in New Haven, MO.