Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress and Luther's Galatians commentary are probably the most neglected books among Lutherans, except for the Book of Concord.
Bunyan was an English Dissenter, never a Lutheran, but he was far more influenced by Luther's writings than Lutherans are today.
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Bethany Lutheran Church is now studying Galatians, an epistle tiny in size but major in its impact across the ages. In Galatians, Paul waged his war against adding works to the Gospel. Luther used Galatians to battle the Medieval theology of the Roman Catholics.
Adding works to the Gospel is natural, the result of our Old Adam's fondness for earning merit . Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox openly support "faith plus works" in a variety of ways. In fact, the Council of Trent damns to Hell (see Galatians 1:8) anyone who teaches justification by faith apart from the works of law.
Non-Lutheran Protestants endorse, without admitting it, the concept of requiring works in addition to the Gospel to earn salvation. Strangely enough, their Zwinglian denial of the Sacraments has made many Protestant leaders long for the bosom of the Antichrist, hoping that the terms of reconciliation are softened by the mercy of his Holiness.
The Reformed call the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion "ordinances," meaning they are a law to be obeyed, not Means of Grace. They are horrified by the Means of Grace, God freely offering His grace in a visible form. When Lutherans get in bed with the Reformed, as they have for the last 40 years, they give up the Sacraments first. When Rick Miller was a WELS pastor, he began calling the Sacraments "ordinances" in his promotional literature. In time, the WELS mission turned honest and joined the Evangelical Covenant sect, but copious praise is still offered to Rick Miller, Kelly Voigt, and Mark Freier for their WELSian efforts.
A WELS leader said the Shrinker are hard to pin down, but I continue to disagree. All I do is listen to the "must" and "have to" statements, which are law. Here are some samples:
- The Church has to grow. They mean the visible church, the organization. The Shrinker grasp of church history is shocking. The Lutheran Reformation started with a bang and receded once people experienced the cross. Shrinkers have destroyed their own denominations and yet keep yakking about growth!
- The Church must make disciples. That is her mission - to make them. As one Lutheran observed, they turn a Gospel admonition into law. One Shrinker shouted in rage as he repeated those words which I kelmed from a student.
- Thousands of people are going to Hell each day, so we must save them. I saw that on a banner in a WELS congregation - a Shrinker's. God cannot do it Himself--or do it alone--He must have our efforts and our money most of all.
- We have to reach the younger generation, so we have to provide pop music and entertainment. A coffee bar is another must.
- We have to reach out to everyone, so we have to hide the liturgy, creeds, and hymns.
- Women are unhappy, so we have to make them leaders and teachers in the Church.
