A STUDY OF LUTHERANISM LARGE CATECHISM Opening Prayer

A STUDY OF LUTHERANISM: LARGE CATECHISM

Opening Prayer We praise you God, and you we bless; We worship you in humbleness; From day to day we glorify, The everlasting God on high. Of your great glory do we sing, And to your throne our thanks we bring. “All Glory Be to God Alone” ~ Martin Luther

Lutheran Confessions � Confession: Written, formal statements with which a group of Christians, or an individual, declare to the world their faith, their deepest and undaunted convictions. (bookofconcord. org). The Augsburg Confession The Apology (Defense) of Augsburg Confession � The Smalcald Articles � The Small Catechism � The Large Catechism � The Formula of Concord � �

Large Catechism � “Catechism”- An elementary book containing a summary of principles of the Christian religion in the form of questions and answers. � Purpose: Both catechisms served one purpose: to instruct the common man in the truths of the Scriptures, the Large Catechism giving more details to application to everyday life; the Small Catechism to serve as a summary which could by repetition be easily memorized.

Large Catechism: Ten Commandments � Chief Articles of Faith (Apostles’ Creed) � Lord’s Prayer Sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion) � �

Why Study the Large Catechsim? � “To our regret, we notice that many preachers and pastors are very neglectful of the Catechism…In some cases the reason for this is their involvement on lofty heights of learning, but in others it is pure laziness and selfindulgence. ”

� “In addition, we have become infected by a vicious and insidious plague. There are many who are so satisfied with themselves and so bored with God’s truths that they regard the Catechism as such a simple and slight instrument of instruction that they can rapidly read it through once and immediately have it all absorbed and mastered. Having read it through once, they throw it into a corner, as if ashamed to read it again. ”

� “If this is not enough admonition, there is also God’s command…It is certainly not for nothing that God requires and demands this so earnestly. He does so because He knows our danger and need. He knows the devil’s constant and furious charges and attacks. Against these God wants to warn us, and He wants to arm us with good armor against Satan’s ‘flaming darts’ and to protect us with His good antidote against their evil poison. ”

Psalm 1: 1 -3; “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. ” What are three characteristics of the godly according to verses 1 -3?

A STUDY OF LUTHERANISM: LARGE CATECHISM

Large Catechism � “Catechism”- An elementary book containing a summary of principles of the Christian religion in the form of questions and answers. � Purpose: Both catechisms served one purpose: to instruct the common man in the truths of the Scriptures, the Large Catechism giving more details to application to everyday life; the Small Catechism to serve as a summary which could by repetition be easily memorized.

Large Catechism: Ten Commandments � Chief Articles of Faith (Apostles’ Creed) � Lord’s Prayer Sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion) � �

Martin Luther: Driven to Defiance

The Antichrist � Although all the apostles taught the same doctrine, they did not always use the same terminology. The one who John called “Antichrist” was called “the Man of Sin” or “the Man of Lawlessness” by Paul. For some unknown reason it was John’s term “Antichrist” which became the standard term of the church even though it was Paul who had given a more thorough description of this person in 2 Thessalonians 2: 3 -12. ~ Dr. John Brug

2 Thessalonians 2: 3 -10 � 3 Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction. 4 He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshipped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things? 6 And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. 7 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing.

The Antichrist � Although Antichrist is called a man, his power is at work from Paul’s time until the end of the world, so he apparently is a succession of persons. He is above all a religious deceiver who seats himself in God’s Temple, the church. He usurps divine authority to himself, promotes the lie that opposes the Gospel, and supports his delusions with counterfeit miracles. The essence of his work is that he leads souls to destruction. This description alone is enough to justify the conclusion that the Pope of Rome is the Great Antichrist, since he alone fits all the marks in the highest degree. ~ Dr. John Brug

Luther’s Stance � Luther left no doubt where he stood concerning the Papacy when he wrote, “This teaching [of the supremacy of the pope] shows forcefully that the Pope is the very Antichrist, who has exalted himself above, and opposed himself against Christ, because he will not permit Christians to be saved without his power, which, nevertheless, is nothing, and is neither ordained nor commanded by God. This is, properly speaking, to exalt himself above all that is called God. . The Pope, however, prohibits this faith, saying that to be saved a person must obey him” (Smalcald Articles, II, IV, 10 -12).

Large Catechism 1 st Commandment � “One who has money and property has a sense of security and feels as happy and fearless as if he were sitting in the middle of paradise. On the other hand, one who has nothing is as insecure and anxiety-ridden as if he had never heard of God. Very few can be found who keep a cheerful spirit and neither fret nor complain when they are without mammon. The desire for riches sticks glued to our nature right up to the grave. ”

Exodus 20: 3 -5 � 3 “You shall have no other gods before me. � 4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

Dr. John Brug � God threatens to punish all that transgress these commandments. Therefore we should dread His wrath and not act contrary to these commandments. But He promises grace and every blessing to all that keep these commandments. Therefore we should also love and trust in Him, and gladly do [zealously and diligently order our whole life] according to His commandments.

Matthew 6: 25 -34 � � 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat? ’ or ‘What shall we drink? ’ or ‘What shall we wear? ’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Large Catechism 1 st Commandment � “Similarly, one who congratulates himself on his great learning, intelligence, power, special advantages, family connections, and honor and trusts in them also has a god, only not the one true God. The evidence for this appears when people arrogant, secure, and proud because of such possessions, but desperate when they lack them or lose them. I repeat, to have a god means to have something on which one’s heart depends entirely. ”

A STUDY OF LUTHERANISM: LARGE CATECHISM

Martin Luther: Driven to Defiance

Luther’s Stance on the Antichrist � “This teaching [of the supremacy of the pope] shows forcefully that the Pope is the very Antichrist, who has exalted himself above, and opposed himself against Christ, because he will not permit Christians to be saved without his power, which, nevertheless, is nothing, and is neither ordained nor commanded by God. This is, properly speaking, to exalt himself above all that is called God. . The Pope, however, prohibits this faith, saying that to be saved a person must obey him” (Smalcald Articles, II, IV, 10 -12).

2 nd Commandemnt � “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God. ” What does this mean? We should fear and love God that we do not use his name to curse, swear, lie, or deceive, or use witchcraft, but call upon God’s name in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.

James 3: 1 -12 Taming the Tongue 3 Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. 2 We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, 8 but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. 11 Can both fresh water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers, can a fig tree bear and salt� olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

James 3: 3 -12 Taming the Tongue 3 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. 4 Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. 5 Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. 6 The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures of the sea are being tamed and have been tamed by man, 8 but no man can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. 10 Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should water flow from the not be. 11 Can both fresh water and salt� same spring? 12 My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Lord’s Prayer Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever and ever. Amen. �

Question � What does it mean to “hallow” God’s name? � Martin Luther: “God’s name is kept holy when his Word is taught in its truth and purity and we as children of God lead holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But whoever teaches and lives contrary to God’s Word dishonors God’s name among us. Keep us from doing this, dear Father in heaven!” � Psalm 103: 1 “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Witchcraft � 10 “Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, 11 or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. 12 Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD. ”(DEUTERONOMY 18: 1012) � 31 “Do not turn to mediums or seek out spiritists, for you will be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God. ” (Leviticus 19: 31)

A STUDY OF LUTHERANISM: LARGE CATECHISM

Martin Luther: Driven to Defiance

Recap � Large Catechism � 1 st Commandment We should fear and love God above all things. � 2 nd Commandment We should fear and love God that we do not use his name to curse, swear, lie, or deceive, or use witchcraft, but call upon God’s name in every trouble, pray, praise, and give thanks.

2 nd Commandment � Is there ever a time to lie? � 37 Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes, ’ and your ‘No, ’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one. ” (Matthew 5: 37). � Acts 5: 1 -11 (Anannias and Sapphira pretended to be giving a gift in love for God’s name). � 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 8 “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 9 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men. ’� (Matthew 15: 7, 8).

2 nd Commandment � Two examples of God’s people lying to protect his own. � 15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you help the Hebrew women in childbirth and observe them on the delivery stool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live. ” 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live? ” 19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive. ” 20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own. (Exodus 1: 15 -21)

Question � What reminder do Shiphrah and Puah give us about how we should act over against the government? � “When man’s will conflicts with God’s, we must obey God rather than man. ” (Whole Bible Project)

2 nd Commandment � Examples of God’s people lying to protect his own. � Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land, ” he said, “especially Jericho. ” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look! Some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land. ” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land. ” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, the men left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them. ” 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof. ) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut. (Joshua 2: 1 -7)

Question � Some say that Rahab was wrong in telling a lie to protect the spies. Evaluate that on the basis of Hebrews 11: 31. � 31 “By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. ” � “Rahab acted in faith. It is hard to fault her for lying. She had a choice to make. Either let the spies be killed or protect them through a lie. She made the right choice. ” (Whole Bible Project)

People’s Bible But what about Rahab’s lies that protect the spies? The author of Joshua does not pause to comment on the moral issue of deliberate deception. He neither condemns nor defends her misrepresenting the facts. His purpose is only to report the episode. But questions from readers of this chapter often beg for answers. The following may shed some light on the issue: 1. Rahab’s purpose is to protect the lives of the two men. Her motives are in line with God’s will. Her heart is “in the right place. ” 2. All forms of deception are not necessarily immoral. The spies themselves are acting out an obvious deception in Jericho. In 8: 2 the Lord orders an ambush, a military strategy. In Exodus 1: 15– 21, the midwives deceived Pharaoh to protect the lives of Hebrew baby boys, and God approved of what they did. 3. Rahab had to make a quick decision without batting an eye. She had no benefit of a debate on the ethics of deception. Questions easily answered in the classroom are not always so easily answered on the spot in the real world. 4. Rahab was just emerging from the deep darkness of her old Canaanite beliefs. Her old religion, which practiced prostitution as a part of its liturgy, would probably not question the morality of a useful lie. 5. Our joy as God’s people is not that we have made the right decision in every moral conundrum. Our overriding joy is this: “If anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (l John 2: 1, 2).

People’s Bible But what about Rahab’s lies that protect the spies? The author of Joshua does not pause to comment on the moral issue of deliberate deception. He neither condemns nor defends her misrepresenting the facts. His purpose is only to report the episode. But questions from readers of this chapter often beg for answers. The following may shed some light on the issue: 1. Rahab’s purpose is to protect the lives of the two men. Her motives are in line with God’s will. Her heart is “in the right place. ” 2. All forms of deception are not necessarily immoral. The spies themselves are acting out an obvious deception in Jericho. In 8: 2 the Lord orders an ambush, a military strategy. In Exodus 1: 15– 21, the midwives deceived Pharaoh to protect the lives of Hebrew baby boys, and God approved of what they did. 3. Rahab had to make a quick decision without batting an eye. She had no benefit of a debate on the ethics of deception. Questions easily answered in the classroom are not always so easily answered on the spot in the real world. 4. Rahab was just emerging from the deep darkness of her old Canaanite beliefs. Her old religion, which practiced prostitution as a part of its liturgy, would probably not question the morality of a useful lie. 5. Our joy as God’s people is not that we have made the right decision in every moral challenge. Our overriding joy is this: “If anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins” (l John 2: 1, 2).

3 rd Commandment Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy. What does this mean? We should fear and love God that we do not despise preaching and his Word, but regard it as holy and gladly hear and learn it.

3 rd Commandment “Actually, one should worship daily. But since people for the most part cannot do this, it is necessary to set aside at least one day in the week for it. Since traditionally Sunday has been appointed as the day of worship, we should stay with it, so that there may be a uniform order and so that no one beings about disorder through unnecessary change. ” - Martin Luther

4 th Commandment Honor your father and mother that it may go well with you and you may enjoy long life on the earth. What does this mean? We should fear and love God that we do not dishonor or anger our parents or others in authority, but honor serve and obey them, and give them love and respect.

Question � When you think about the election next year and the world our children are going to grow up in, what is God calling you to do in this commandment? � “If we want able and qualified persons as civil and spiritual leaders, then we really must spare no toil, trouble, or cost in teaching and educating our children to serve God and humanity…The reason he has given children into our charge is that we might train and govern them according to His will, as He has commanded us to do; otherwise God would have had no need of father or mother. ” - Martin Luther