Evening Republican, Volume 59, Number 112, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 June 1917 — Church Notice. [ARTICLE]

Church Notice.

English Ev. Luth, service will be held in St. John’s Church, northeast xtf Pan? on next Sunday evening at 7:30 p. m. All are welcome. Theme of sermon: “The All-Important Question: What must I do to be saved?” Since this is to be the first entirely English service held here, a brief explanation of the doctrine the Lutheran church stands for may not be superfluous. The T.nthp.ran Church believes and teaches the justification of a sinner by grace, through faith in the merits of the Redeemer, Christ Jesus. That is a cardinal principle of the Lutheran church as it was of the Church of the Apostles. The meaning is this; In view of the vicarious life and death of His incarnate Son, God, the Judge of all the world, has forgiven and still forgives to every penitent believer all his trespasses freely, fully and finally. That is the plain teaching of Paul —“Even the righteousness God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ, nnto all and upon all them that believe; for there is no difference; for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; being justified freely by His grace through the Redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3; 22-24. “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the laiw.” (Bom. 3a28). This principle removes every mediation between God and the sinner, excpt that of Jesus Christ. It acknowledges auo other intercession. “Look unto-Me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God, and there is none else" (Is. 14:22). It denies all justifying virtue to man’s own works. Good works are the fruit of faith, not the cause of salvation. The Lutheran church therefore finds no use for self-elected forms of devotion which aim at the obtaining the divine favor; that is, so far as the power of these things to make the sinner acceptable in the sight of God is concerned. TJX The question “What must, I do to be saved?” the Lutheran church answers by directing the inquirer solely to Christ, as John the Baptist directed his followers to Christ, saying: “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (John 1:29). And John the evangelist testified of Christ, “And He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” (1 John 2:22). “The blood of Jesus Christ, His iSon, cleanseth us from all sin.” (1 John 1, 2 H- And did not our Lord Himself proclaim the purpose of His coming into the flesh ’i: the familiar words ror Go«> 30 loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in—Him should nih-peiish, but have everlasting life. (John J:1b) It is this great truth that distinguishes the Christian religion from every other religion in the world. All other religions make man’s salvation dependent on his own. works, on something that he must do. The Christian religion, recognizing mans inability to save himself by aught that he can do, comes with the Gospel (which means “Good News”) of Christ an 1 assures us that sinners are saved by grace of God (because of what Christ has done for us. This is what the Lutheran church stands for. H. F. Krohn, Pastor.