By Norma Boeckler
Part 1
J-1001
"We should not consider the slightest error against the Word of God unimportant."
What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 637.
Worship God in the Beauty of His Holiness
KJV 2 Chronicles 20:21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth for ever.
A Lutheran congregation has only one responsibility. It is not to grow numerically, to be successful, to balance the budget, or to have a congregation of happy campers.499 The sole responsibility of the congregation is to worship God in the beauty of His holiness. The marks of the true Church are:
1) Preaching the Word of God in its truth and purity and;
2) Administering the Sacraments according to the Scriptures.
The Sunday School is actually a recent invention and the result of the Sunday School Movement, which was largely non-Lutheran in origin.
Consider this comparison of mission congregations. I started an independent church by having worship services. From that time on we have had worship services and classes. A WELS mission did not have a name (not approved by the board yet) and did not worship for almost a year, because it had to achieve certain goals first. We worship in a converted room and the Wisconsin Synod mission is buying property, pending board approval. I do not have a full-time salary. The mission pastor’s princely salary is subsidized by the synod. Obviously the difference in cost for the two missions is enormous, and the expenses become golden chains that bind people together by the force of law with mission loans, mission goals, and mission board meddling. If someone does not agree with the mission board’s Reformed doctrine, his entire congregation can be dissolved before his eyes and restarted with another name and another pastor.
When pastors cared more about the truth than their salaries and benefits, they had the independence of thought to establish congregations free to unite with or separate from ecclesiastical organizations. American synodical history is complicated because of this freedom, so a chart of Lutheran history looks like a map of the Los Angeles freeway system. In the past, ministers have been free to earn an income from secular work, as the Apostle Paul did, and serve a congregation. Today a trained pastor can obtain certification in Microsoft or Cisco, or learn programming, and then earn a handsome salary with benefits while serving an independent congregation. Anyone who has learned Greek and Hebrew will find computer science easy and interesting.500 Those opportunities do not mean that everyone needs to go out and start an independent congregation, but a pastor today should have the skills needed to support himself if his doctrinal fidelity causes the synod to jettison him. Lacking secular job skills will tend to make a minister timid in the face of synodical disapproval.501 What we lack in the beginning is not job skills, but faith in God. Count me as one who believed that God would provide but wondered if God would provide until He provided. Beyond all hope, in the midst of many disappointments and betrayals, God has proven this passage true, many times over:
KJV Psalm 37:25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. 26 He is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed.
Our Old Adam does not like to weather the blows of evil men, but we need to realize that the Holy Spirit is so powerful that He can use their worst behavior to drive us forward into blessings we would have never realized without their spitefulness. Four different Lutheran presses refused to publish Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant, in spite of promises from three of them, so I had the unique opportunity to self-publish, a burden and blessing at the same time. I would never have entered book publishing on my own. Someone had to force me. Now I hope the lessons I learned will help others as they become established.
One reason for the many delays of this book is the time I have spent on the phone with distraught pastors and laity. Many times I thought, “Yes. Now I have an evening to write, a pot of coffee, and energy to work.” Then the phone would ring and I would listen and talk for several hours, finally exhausted at the end by the latest examples of disgraceful conduct of conservative Lutheran leaders.502 My advice has been and continues to be, “Teach the Word and God will take care of the details.” If the caller is a minister, I often say, “Better men than you have been tossed out of the ministry.” That reply is often good for a laugh. A good friend of mine phoned and suggested a different response for me, when I was fired from the CLC for having a pancake supper. His suggestion was: “I have been thrown out of better synods than this!” The worst aspect of all this turmoil is the crushing disappointment of learning how treacherous so-called friends can be, but it also teaches us to rely on the Word of God alone. Many ministers can be bought with a call or threatened into silence. When they do an about face, they are worse than the synod officials who turned them to the dark side.
Lutheran Worship Principles
KJV Hebrews 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
The Lutheran congregation has only one task, to proclaim God’s grace through worship, with all other activities subordinate to the Means of Grace. Many people have conspired together to ruin Lutheran worship in the name of making it attractive and appealing to the young. The same synods now must face the fact they are completely hollowed out. The vast majority of their worship attendance and financial support comes from those in retirement, meaning that the synods are teetering on collapse in the next two decades. The Church Growth foxes first argued for entertaining hymnals with feminist language and got them, especially with the Lutheran Book of Worship and its Baptist-like clone, Christian Worship. Then, after getting the wretched hymnals they coveted, the WELS Pietists argued for no hymnals and no liturgy at all. They worshiped with the song lyrics of the Enthusiasts projected on the wall, just like the Assemblies of God. The result has been an embarrassing number of Lutheran clergy who have turned Pentecostal-Baptist, taking away or wrecking huge investments in time and money. In my opinion, this trend is only beginning. The Missouri Synod already has its own Pentecostal non-geographical district, Renewal in Missouri, with 200 tongue-speaking, miracle-working pastors, who have swallowed the Holy Ghost, feathers and all. The Barry/Otten/McCain administration took this in stride, just as it accepts and promoted joint religious projects with ELCA.
The best hymnal in use today is The Lutheran Hymnal, printed in 1941. It is not perfect, but it is far better than the “improvements” that followed afterwards. Lutherans should be ashamed that they have had so many years to build a better hymnal than TLH but continue to produce worse versions. However, we know they have made a ton of money forcing their hymnals on their congregations. WELS congregations had no choice, but the Evangelical Lutheran Synod looked at the proposed hymnal and said, “We can do better.”503 Nevertheless, for all their posing, WELS and the ELS both borrow from the Liberal Book of Weirdness, painfully obvious if the copyright notices are studied carefully. Lutheran Worship is a sanitized version of the ELCA LBW, so all the Lutheran hymnals in print are clones of the ELCA project, which represented the peak of ecumenical and activist fervor in the Lutheran synods in its time.
People argue against TLH because of its old English language and lack of feminist sensitivity. Ironically, droves of feminists and youth have not joined the synods who replaced TLH with pious mirth. The tendency for all the clones has been to make their hymnals less Lutheran, more Reformed, more Roman Catholic, and more Pentecostal-Baptist. There was once a movement toward liturgical consistency along confessional Lutheran principles, but now the Church of Rome and Fuller Seminary dictate worship guidelines for 99% of Lutherans, a frightening prospect.
The essential retrograde action supporting do-your-own-thing worship has been accomplished in the Lutheran synods. Whatever works is good, and Lutherans sigh for acceptance by generic Protestant visitors. Gerberding fought against this attitude in the Muhlenberg tradition, disgusted that worship varied from parish to parish, that pastors let out a loud “Haw!” every so often in the sermon in imitation of Reformed preachers. Now Lutherans are caught between the high church (smells and bells) leaders aping the Church of Rome and the Fuller graduates fighting for no worship at all on Sunday, just a Seeker Service.
The following points express my opinion about Lutheran worship, and I believe it rests upon a Scriptural foundation and sound Lutheran practice.
1. The Lutheran Hymnal is the best choice for worship today because it preserves a formal style of English harmonious with dignified praise of the Holy Trinity. The King James Version remains the most precise English translation to use, the best version for reading in a worship service, and the closest to Luther’s translation.504
2. When we lack the vocabulary to understand the words of the liturgy, we should lift up our educational level and not bring worship down to the perspective of Beavis and Butthead, Jane Fonda and Marva Dawn.
3. Latin and Greek names should be preserved and used without blushing. Soon the Collect and Kyrie, Septuagesima and Oculi, as well as the Votum and Nunc dimittis will be forgotten terms among the young.
4. The Sunday worship service should be conducted as worship only. It is not a time to recruit new members by trying to hide our Lutheran identity, to rouse the members to higher levels of institutional glory, or to magnify the synod.
5. The historic pericopes should be used instead of the ELCA/Church of Rome three year cycle. The historic pericopes are exactly what we find in the Lenker Sermons of Luther set, Epistles and Gospels. When that treasure trove is exhausted, send me a letter. Luther found it valuable to preach repeatedly on the same text.
6. Close communion is the only genuine Christian form of the Sacrament of the Altar. If visitors are offended, they belong in an inoffensive congregation.
7. The sermon should reflect Luther’s doctrine. Yes, many ministers claim to be Bible-only, but they usually read Reformed works. The text can be studied in Luther’s sermons, in the Book of Concord, and in many great books becoming available through Repristination Press. The only genuine Lutheran sermon is a proclamation of Law and Gospel.
8. The hymns sung during the worship service should reflect the best of Lutheran worship rather than popular trends. The biographical sketches at the end of this book were gathered to facilitate Lutheran hymn singing. In the worship bulletin, I list Lutheran authors of hymns and discuss their backgrounds during certain services.
9. The worship bulletin should not be oriented toward money, budgets, and being busy, but aimed at the spiritual edification of the members. It is an ideal opportunity to list important Lutheran quotations for the consideration of the members and the pastor.505 I place a different quotation on the back of each bulletin. Pastors need the wisdom of Lutheran authors, too.
10. The Holy Spirit calls the pastor through the congregation. This call is a unique role based upon his responsibility to God for the souls of the congregation. The members should feel free to ask questions about doctrine and practice, but they should also avoid usurping authority, especially when they simply do not like something, like close communion. Members should never allow an outsider to usurp the role of the divinely called pastor by interfering with the congregation.
Lutheran Hymns
No one should be surprised that the same ecclesiastical leaders who want to worship with every denomination—except their own—would also like to sing every hymn that is not Lutheran.506 Whatever is sung in church, including weddings and special services, should be appropriate to read from the pulpit during a sermon. Can anyone imagine a pastor reciting the first Fanny Crosby song ever to appear in a Lutheran hymnal: “Take the World but Give Me Jesus”?507 After decades of “improvement” in the language and style of Lutheran worship, attendance is at an all time low, especially among those younger members whose tender years were offered as the reason for ruining Lutheran worship.
Those who love the doctrines of the Holy Scriptures also appreciate the doctrinal hymns of The Lutheran Hymnal. As Luther said, singing is praying with the soul, so singing a hymn is praying twice over. Hymns are also confessions of faith, often composed during times of doctrinal crisis. False teachers recognize this proclamation of God’s Word by dropping verses that apply to them, fuzzing up clear statements of faith, and favoring cheap sentiment over the objective truths of the Bible.508 In addition, we can memorize something we sing more easily than a statement. Elevator music is fine for bookstores and, well, elevators, but believers would rather have hymns of comfort and faith to hum and sing.
J-1002
"We are not free from blame if we have a wrong faith and follow false teachers. The fact that we did not know will be of no help to us, for we were warned beforehand. Besides God has told us to judge what this or that person teaches and to give an account. If we fail to do this, we are lost. Therefore the soul's salvation of each person depends on his knowing what is God’s Word and what is false teaching."
What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 636.
One person said to me, “Lutheran hymns? What do you mean, Lutheran hymns?” I pointed out that many favorite hymns of Lutherans were Methodist in origin, while those written by Lutherans were ignored. From that time on, I made a point of listing Lutheran authors of hymns and talking about them in the service (when appropriate). When I decided to compare the existing hymnals and list the best doctrinal hymns, I found that many great hymns were by Lutherans I did not know. I judged the hymn first by the words and then discovered that the author was a Lutheran. When I select hymns for the worship service, I try to use two hymns that are very familiar and two that will eventually be favorites. I also try to use every verse of long hymns on a Sunday, singing half the hymn as one hymn selection, then the other half as another selection. Many people have said, “I never sang that hymn before in my life.” I remind them of the old rule, “If you don’t know it at first, you will know it by the eighth verse.”
Attributes of a great Lutheran hymn are worth listing:
1. The hymn is God-centered rather than me-centered, emphasizing what God has done, not what I have felt.
2. The melody is majestic rather than snappy and toe-tapping.
3. The hymn teaches important doctrines of the Bible, clearly and succinctly.
4. It does not hesitate to mention and praise the Word and Sacraments, instead of “making a decision for Christ.”509
5. The hymn teaches the efficacy of the Word. Look up missionary hymns in a non-Lutheran hymnal and you will find them vague about how the Gospel converts unbelievers. The Lutheran Hymnal is quite clear.
6. The words confess that believers must bear the cross, undergo trials, and be refined and strengthened through the Word.
7. A great hymn transcends culture. Apostates would have us believe that great Lutheran chorales are only for Germans, but the following is recorded about Paul Gerhardt’s “O Sacred Head” in the mission field: “When the great Lutheran missionary C. F. W. Schwartz, in 1798, lay dying in India, where he had labored for half a century, his native pupils gathered around him, and sang in their own tongue the last stanzas of this hymn, Schwartz himself joining in until his breath failed in death.”510
J-1003
“My Savior, be Thou near me
When death is at my door;
Then let Thy presence cheer me,
Forsake me nevermore!
When soul and body languish,
Oh, leave me not alone,
But take away mine anguish
By virtue of Thine own!
Be Thou my Consolation,
My Shield when I must die;
Remind me of Thy Passion
When my last hour draws nigh.
Mine eyes shall then behold Thee,
Upon Thy cross shall dwell,
My heart by faith enfold Thee,
Who dieth thus dies well!”
Paul Gerhard, “O Sacred Head,” The Lutheran Hymnal, #172, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.
Any congregation can increase the Confessional awareness of the members by introducing Lutheran hymns to the worship service, including brief biographies in the worship bulletin or information about the author during the sermon. The gradual introduction of false doctrine has worked well for Lutheran Pietists, and the Fabian method can also work well for Lutheran doctrine.511 Following is a sketch of how to introduce Lutheran hymns to Lutheran congregations.
Re-Introducing Lutheran Hymns
We need to know who stood up for the Scriptures and what they wrote in their hymns. Martin Luther was one of the great hymn writers, so his lesser known hymns should be used throughout the year. All numbers are for The Lutheran Hymnal. Their biographical sketches can be found at the end of this book.
1. “Flung to the heedless winds,” #259, was the first hymn written by Luther, inspired by the martyrdom of two young Lutherans burned at the stake.
2. “Isaiah mighty seer,” #249, can be substituted for the Gloria in excelsis. It is a powerful hymn of praise.
3. “O Lord, look down from heaven behold,” #260, like many hymns, can be sung to another tune. This bellicose hymn emphasizes the efficacy of the Word and the evil of false teachers. Compare this version of the hymn with other hymnals.
4. “Dear Christians one and all rejoice,” #387, outlines the entire story of salvation, from despair under the Law to conversion through the Gospel, a beautiful portrayal of the work of Christ.
5. “We all believe in one true God,” #251, can be sung as a hymn version of the Creed.
6. “Come, Holy Ghost, God and Lord!” #224, teaches the efficacy of the Word, reminding us that the Bible interchanges the terms Holy Spirit and the Word.
Paul Gerhardt is probably the greatest of all hymn writers, if we judge according to the use of his hymns throughout Christendom. Perhaps Lutherans should embrace him as much as non-Lutherans.
1. “Come, Your Hearts and Voices Raising,” #90, begins one famous Episcopalian Christmas service in England each year. A young boy’s voice rings out with these thrilling words of hope and joy.
2. “A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining Forth,” #142, is based upon John 1:29, telling the Passion story in simple, child-like words that are cloaked somewhat by the translation. One vivid image is that of sitting in the little boat rocking back and forth, with Christ as the anchor, being able to sleep “serenely as on pillows.”
3. “Upon the Cross Extended,” #171, has only 12 of the 16 verses written about the Passion. This hymn may be overlooked in favor of “O Sacred Head,” but it should also be featured during Lent.
4. “Now Rest Beneath Night’s Shadows,” #554, is one of the finest evening hymns ever written.
5. “Why Should Cross and Trial Grieve Me,” #523, reminds us that Christian Worship no longer has the Cross and Comfort category.
6. “If God Himself Be For Me,” #528, is his second great hymn in the Cross and Comfort section. These hymns are good to sing on Sunday and to read as devotions, since they strengthen faith and deal honestly with the problems of life.
7. “Awake, My Heart, with Gladness,” #192, joyfully announces the meaning of Easter in the midst of trials and misfortunes.
J-1004
He brings me to the portal
That leads to bliss untold
Whereon this rime immortal
Is found in script of gold:
Who there My cross hath shared
Finds here a crown prepared;
Who there with Me has died
Shall here be glorified.”
Paul Gerhardt, “Awake, My Heart, with Gladness,”. The Lutheran Hymnal, #192, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.
Nikolaus Selnecker deserves special attention because he was somewhat weak in doctrine as a follower of Melanchthon and then drew strength from Martin Chemnitz, joining him later in writing the Formula of Concord.
1. “O Lord, My God, I Cry to Thee,” #600, is a funeral hymn sung to “Vater unser.”
2. “Let Me Be Thine Forever,” #334, is a confirmation hymn, with the first verse written by Selnecker.
3. “Lord Jesus Christ, With Us Abide,” #292, is an exceptional hymn about the pure Word of God and the rage of Satan against it.512 TLH has nine verses, but Christian Worship has only seven. Compare them and see what is missing. Answer: verse 8 on the efficacy of the Word alone and verse 6–
J-1005
“The haughty spirits, Lord, restrain
Who o’er Thy Church with might would reign
And always set forth something new,
Devised to change Thy doctrine true.”
Nikolaus Selnecker, “Lord Jesus Christ, With Us Abide,” The Lutheran Hymnal, #292, verse 6, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.513
Matthias Loy contributed in many ways to the Lutheran Church as a church leader, writer, and journalist. He also translated ten and wrote three hymns.
1. “The Law of God Is Good and Wise,” #295, distinguishes between Law and Gospel clearly, showing the limitations of the Law and the blessings of the Gospel.
2. “The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace,” #297, emphasizes the efficacy of the Gospel. It is no wonder that Concordia Seminary in St. Louis gave him a call to teach.
J-1006
“It is the power of God to save
From sin and Satan and the grave;
It works the faith, which firmly clings
To all the treasures which it brings.”
Matthias Loy, “The Gospel Shows the Father’s Grace, The Lutheran Hymnal, #297, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.
Thomas Hansen Kingo wrote many fine hymns extolling the Means of Grace, and he remains a favorite among Scandinavians.
1. “Like the Golden Sun Ascending,” #207, is a jubilant Easter hymn that should be sung throughout the year, since every Sunday marks the resurrection of Christ. The last verse expresses thanks: “For Thy holy, precious Word; For Thy Baptism, which doth save me, For Thy blest Communion board…”
2. “He That Believes And Is Baptized,” #301, is a fine Baptism hymn appropriate for many Sundays, since it describes the Sacrament and not the act of baptizing infants.
3. “O Jesus, Blessed Lord, To Thee,” #309, serves well as a post-communion hymn.
Ulrik Koren was a pioneering pastor among the Norwegians in Iowa and Minnesota. He has one hymn in The Lutheran Hymnal, “Ye Lands, to the Lord Make a Jubilant Noise, #44, a glorious hymn for any worship service, proving that we do not need to run to the Pentecostals for a bone-rattling hymn of praise.
J-1007
“Ye lands, to the Lord make a jubilant noise;
Glory be to God!
Oh, serve Him with joy, in His presence now rejoice;
Sing praise unto God out of Zion!”
Ulrik V. Koren, “Ye Lands, to the Lord Make a Jubilant Noise,” The Lutheran Hymnal, #44, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.
Hans Brorson wrote two of the best hymns of all time.
1. “I Walk in Danger All the Way,” #413, begins with three verses describing the trials and mortality of this earthly life in terms of danger, Satan, sin, and the cross. The mood shifts in the last three verses. Verse 4–I walk with angels all the way. Verse 5–I walk with Jesus all the way. Verse 6–My walk is heavenward all the way.
2. “Behold a Host Arrayed in White,” #656, extols the triumph of eternal life over sin, death, and Satan. The ethereal beauty of this hymn and its captivating melody combine to make it comforting, inspiring, and uplifting.
J-1008
“Behold a host, arrayed in white, Like thousand snow-clad mountains bright,
With palms they stand. Who is this band, Before the throne of light.
Lo, these are they of glorious fame Who from the great affliction came
And in the flood of Jesus’ blood Are cleansed from guilt and blame.
Now gathered in the holy place, Their voices they in worship raise,
Their anthems swell where God doth dwell, Mid angels’ songs of praise.”
Hans A. Brorson, “Behold a Host, Arrayed in White,” The Lutheran Hymnal, #656, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1941.
J-1009
"Observe, God and men proceed in contrary ways. Men set on first that which is best, afterward that which is worse. God first gives the cross and affliction, then honor and blessedness. This is because men seek to preserve the old man; on which account they instruct us to keep the Law by works, and offer promises great and sweet... But God first of all terrifies the conscience, sets on miserable wine, in fact nothing but water; then, however, He consoles us with the promises of the Gospel which endure forever."
Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols., ed., John Nicholaus Lenker, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983, II, p. 69. John 2:1-11.
