We Believe...
This is what we believe, teach and confess, as
a campus ministry of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod:
SIN
All of us have the same problem: from the moment we are conceived,
we are enemies of God (Psalm 51:5). We rebel against the love
He has for us, His creation. We do not do what God desires.
We think we know what is best for us. This is called sin. We
are each sinners. That is why all of us physically die. (Romans
6:23)
GRACE
The word grace means “favor.” Though our sin separates
us from our Creator, He is a gracious God. In his grace, He
gives us the gift of a relationship with Him, even though we
don’t deserve it. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
JESUS
Reflecting his gracious nature, our God has a solution for our
sin problem. God himself entered the world, taking on human
form, just like us. But He was still God, too. While He lived
on earth, he laughed, cried, got hungry and tired, was tempted
to sin, just like all human beings. But because He was God,
He never sinned. He led a perfect life. His name is Jesus. (John
1:1-14)
CROSS
Our rebellion against God can’t go unpunished, because
He is holy. Instead of punishing us, as we deserve, God punished
Jesus. This happened on a wooden cross to which Jesus was nailed,
some 2,000 years ago. God punished Jesus for the sins of all
people. Jesus died, physically and spiritually, on the cross
for all of us. (II Cor. 5:21)
RESURRECTION
Jesus did not remain in the grave, however. On the
third day, God raised him from the dead, to show that He has
ultimate power over sin and death. Because Jesus lives, we,
too, have the possibility of eternal life with God in heaven.
(Luke 24:1-12)
FAITH
This eternal life becomes ours when we personally receive Jesus
as our Savior, by faith (John 1:12-13). The Bible says that
faith is a gift of God. Faith is the vehicle that makes God’s
promises ours. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God, the Bible
(Romans 10:17). Faith is the thing that pleases God (Hebrews
11:6).
SCRIPTURE
Scripture, or the Bible, is the inspired Word of God (II Timothy
3:16). It is the only source of spiritual truth for Lutherans.
The Bible contains all that we need to know about and receive
God’s plan of salvation. It is the source and norm for
our teaching and preaching.
Why are we called Lutherans?
Lutherans are named after Dr. Martin Luther. He
lived in the 1500s and taught at the University of Wittenberg
in Germany. As a young theologian, he found that he disagreed
with the teachings of the Roman church about how a person attains
salvation. He discovered that what the church was teaching and
doing was quite different than what the Bible says. Luther addressed
many points of disagreement and nailed them on the local church
door. These 95 Theses, as they came to be known, interested
many who read them. They were widely circulated and debated.
Luther’s ideas inspired and encouraged others throughout
Europe. They began to call themselves “Lutherans,”
though that was never Dr. Luther’s desire. He simply wanted
to reform the Roman church. However, his efforts resulted in
the world-changing Protestant Reformation. As Lutherans, we
hold Dr. Luther in high esteem, but we don’t worship him.
His writings are important to Lutherans, but not as important
as the Bible itself.
