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| http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/2012/07/dp-buchholz-critic-of-gunn-and-changers.html |
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| Gunn, Larry Olson, and Wayne Mueller's kid? Church and Change still runs WELS, under reformers Mark Schroeder and Jon Buchholz. |
presented to the 2012 Arizona California District
Convention
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Arizona Golf Resort
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Mesa, Arizona
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June 11-14, 2012
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Scripture passages used from the
Concordia Triglotta are KJV; the others are from
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THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL
VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by
permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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Every congregation and
pastor in our church body officially states that the only source and norm for
faith and life is the Holy Scriptures.
They also state that they will teach according to the Confessions of
the Evangelical Lutheran Church as stated in the Book of Concord, because
those are faithful expositions of the Scriptures. Any congregation that
professes to be confessional, Lutheran, and evangelical, will make sure that
all of its efforts are carried out in the light of its trust in the power of
the means of grace alone to change sinful hearts into hearts that know, trust
in, and follow Christ.
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What does it mean to be a confessional evangelical Lutheran
pastor and congregation? It means first and foremost that the message of
Christ crucified and risen will be at the center of their entire doctrine and
practice. To be evangelical means
that Christ for us is and ought to be the centerpiece of a
congregation's entire ministry. It is
the focal point of the entire picture.
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1 When I came to you, brothers, I
did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the
testimony about God. For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you
except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 3 I came to you in weakness and
fear, and with much trembling. 4 My message and my preaching were not with wise and
persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, 5 so that your faith might not
rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power. (1 Corinthians 2:1-5) NIV
1984
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There is nothing else to proclaim. We know and believe
this. We believe this with our hearts
and confess this with our lips. We are to proclaim Christ for us
clearly from our pulpits and classrooms; it is to be the centerpiece of all
of our worship, Bible study, and outreach.
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Confessional Lutheran also means something. It means
understanding the difference between law and gospel.
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18 For the message of the cross is
foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is
the power of God.19 For it is written:
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“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I
will frustrate.”
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20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the
philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since in the wisdom of God
the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the
foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. 22 Jews demand miraculous signs
and Greeks look for wisdom, 23but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to
Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is
wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s
strength. (1 Corinthians 1:18-25) NIV 1984
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While both law and gospel
are good and are given for eternal blessing, what each delivers to us is
entirely different. The law only and
always accuses, afflicts, terrifies, forbids, reveals, threatens, damns,
curses, demands, reproves, convicts, guides; the gospel alone saves, acquits,
justifies, imparts grace, gives life, promises, reconciles, forgives,
comforts, nourishes, strengthens, works faith, empowers, motivates. Both are
needed - the one to show what God rightly demands from His creatures, and to
also show the impossibility for the sinner to carry out those holy and
righteous demands; the other to show what God in His grace and mercy promises
to His creatures - the sinners' perfect Substitute, the Savior who alone
fulfilled those righteous demands - the keeping of the law in thought word
and deed, and the eternal punishment that the law pronounces on all who fail
to measure up.
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Confessional Lutheran means something. It means trusting the
efficacy of the means of grace. The
message of Christ crucified and risen alone conveys to the sinner the
forgiveness of sins, the righteousness, life, peace, hope, and joy that
Christ won for us.
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1 Therefore, since through God’s
mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. 2 Rather, we have renounced
secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word
of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend
ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is
veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 The god of this age has blinded
the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of
the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 For we do not preach ourselves,
but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light
shine out of darkness,”[a] made his light shine in our
hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Christ.
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7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this
all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every
side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned;
struck down, but not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our body the death of
Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.11 For we who are alive are always
being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed
in our mortal body.12 So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in
you. (2
Corinthians 4:1-12) NIV 1984
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The Formula of Concord
faithfully echoes that truth:
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"It is not God's will that
any one should be damned, but that all men should be converted to Him and be
saved eternally. Ezekiel 33:11: "As I live, I have no pleasure in the
death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live."
John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten
Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting
life."
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Therefore God, out of His
immense goodness and mercy, has His divine eternal Law and His wonderful plan
concerning our redemption, namely, the holy alone-saving Gospel of His
eternal Son, our only Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, publicly preached;
and by this preaching collects an eternal Church for Himself from the human
race, and works in the hearts of men true
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repentance and knowledge of sins, and true faith in the Son of God,
Jesus Christ. And by this means, and in no other way, namely, through His
holy Word, when men hear it preached or read it, and the holy Sacraments when
they are used according to His Word, God desires to call men to eternal
salvation, draw them to Himself, and convert, regenerate, and sanctify them.
1 Cor. 1:21: "For after that in the wisdom of God the world by its
wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save
them that believe." Acts 10:5-6: Peter "shall tell thee what
thou oughtest to do." Romans 10:17: "Faith cometh by
hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." John 17:17,20: "Sanctify
them by Thy truth; Thy Word is truth, etc. Neither pray I for these alone,
but for them also which shall believe on Me through their Word." Therefore the eternal Father calls down
from heaven concerning His dear Son and concerning all who preach repentance
and forgiveness of sins in His name: "Hear
ye Him," Matthew 17:5.
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Now all who wish to be saved
ought to hear this preaching of God's Word. For the preaching and hearing of
God's Word are instruments of the Holy Ghost, by, with, and through which he
desires to work efficaciously, and to convert men to God, and to work in them
both to will and to do." (Concordia Triglotta. Formula of Concord. Thorough
Declaration. Article 2. Of Free Will, page 901, paragraphs 49-51.)
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So what does it mean to be a confessional evangelical Lutheran
congregation and pastor? It means to
believe in God's inspired, inerrant, and infallible Word in its
entirety. It means to trust only the
means of grace to create and sustain saving faith. It also means the gospel
will predominate.
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A working definition of gospel predominance that we've been
using with CrossWalk's leadership as well as the District Presidium, a
definition that CrossWalk's leadership has also publicly agreed with is this:
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As Lutherans, our desire is to
be truly "evangelical," in the sense that the gospel of Jesus
Christ comes through clearly in all that we say and do. This alone
establishes faith on the sure foundation of Christ, so that God is truly
glorified and troubled hearts find peace in Jesus' forgiveness.
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We remember that we are
naturally creatures of the law. Seeking to justify ourselves by the law is
our default setting. The clear proclamation of the gospel is foreign to our
nature. The new life results only from the Spirit's compelling work to forge
us into a new creation. He does this only through the means of grace, the
gospel in Word and Sacraments.
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The gospel of Jesus Christ for
us is and ought to be the focus of our existence as congregations.
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It means the focus must ever be Christocentric, not only in
doctrine, but also in practice. If the gospel focus is off, so the practices
will be off. The ways in which a congregation carries out its ministry will surely
reflect its thoughts and attitudes about the focus.
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There should not be much debate about that for a confessional
evangelical Lutheran congregation.
But what's clearly stated is not always so easily carried out. The
effort on the part of Lutheran pastors and congregations alike to keep the
focus on Christ needs to always be a very concerted and conscious effort. It
must be because it is so easy for us to slip back into
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"default" mode. We
know how easily that focus can be lost because the sinful rebel adheres to
each of us. That sinful nature only and always hates the gospel. The
Christian's constant struggle against the desires and will of the sinful
flesh are real. We know that without
the struggle, without the concerted and conscious effort to keep the proper
focus on Christ for us, we will inevitably begin to be drawn into the
wretched selfish focus with which we are conceived and born.
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The sinful nature focuses on us instead of on Christ. Thus one's
ministry can easily turn into what we do instead of what He has done; into our
work instead of the Spirit's work through Word and Sacrament; the saving of
souls will become about what we must do to convince, grow, change hearts and
lives, etc. The following trap can serve as both example and warning:
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To use a coarse illustration:
Some ministers, in their eagerness to bring the Gospel to the people, resort
to entertainment to attract the crowds, in order to get an opportunity to
preach to them. If you would tell such ministers that they are ashamed of the
Gospel and that by their methods they disgrace it, because they manifest a
lack of trust in its efficacy, they would resent the charge. Are they not
doing all in order to promote the Gospel? The disgrace their methods bring
upon it does not appear on the surface; that is why Paul spoke of the secret
things of shame. The disgrace is nevertheless, very real, as will become
evident in Paul's further remarks...the type of minister to which we referred
above as using entertainment in order to lure the people is employing
"panourgia," and is therefore guilty of committing secret things of
disgrace. The Gospel is the word of Truth. To resort to ruses in proclaiming
it, even though with the best of intentions, is heaping shame on the Truth.
Not only are truth and lures incompatible in their nature, but to use lures
in connection with the Gospel ministry treats the Truth, the eternal Truth of
God, as though it were inefficient, not attractive enough in itself."
(J.P. Meyer, Ministers of Christ, pages 61-62)
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It is not ours to save souls; it is not ours to grow the church;
it is not ours to change hearts. We by nature want what is seen rather than
what is unseen. We yearn for the
tangible. We can easily fall into the
trap of measuring numbers (confirmations, visitors, baptisms, attendance,
etc.) as a standard for a congregation's "effectiveness," even
though they have never been the measure of whether or not a Christian
congregation is being faithful in its use of the divinely appointed
means of grace.
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It is ours to sow the seed. It is ours to be faithful in
utilizing the means that God Himself has promised to use to carry out those
works. If a congregation is faithful in its use of those means of grace, and
still declines by 20, does that mean it is somehow being unfaithful? If the
same congregation does the same and grows by 20, does that mean it is somehow
being more faithful or can take any credit? God has called us to preach His
Word. For it is through the means of
grace alone that the church is built.
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It bears repeating. Unless a
Christian congregation and its leaders consciously and deliberately keep the
focus on the truth, they will slowly but surely begin to drift away from it. When a pastor or congregation loses sight
of that work, for whatever reason, Christian love demands drawing attention
to it, warning against it, calling to repentance where they have strayed, and
announcing forgiveness when penitence is expressed. Often we get too busy in
our own ministries that we think this is none of our business. We think and
sometimes are told that it should be none of our business. We mistakenly
think we cannot or should not hold each other accountable. But such thoughts
do not come from Christian love.
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For the past two years our committee has worked with Pastor Jeff
Gunn, the staff, and the Board of Directors of CrossWalk Lutheran Ministries
in examining several areas of concern primarily about CrossWalk's ministry.
One of the main reasons for such focused attention is that CrossWalk by its practices
has drawn this attention to itself.
We want to express our gratitude to CrossWalk's staff and leadership
for their willingness to work through some of these questions. We also wish
to acknowledge that those of us who visited CrossWalk clearly noticed the
large number of members involved in ministry, and the eagerness of those
involved. The services and education time are evidently the result of many
hours of hard work and planning. In
no way here, do we wish to diminish or discourage the committed, loving
efforts of so many of God's people, and their desire to reach the lost;
rather we want to acknowledge their efforts.
Yet the key issue for us has been this issue of Gospel predominance. And that issue is always a matter of
content, never window-dressing.
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Some have objected that no pastor/congregation should have to be
placed under the microscope like CrossWalk has been. Yet as stated above,
CrossWalk has invited the examination by some of its practices. It holds true however, that each of us is
daily under the microscope of God's Word and faithfulness to it. Each of us
ought to be examining every one of our practices daily, weekly, monthly,
annually, to see whether or not our practices line up with the doctrine we
profess. This holds true even more
when the methods we decide to use depart from what would be considered the
norm in our circles. Do our weekly
worship, Bible studies, youth activities, outreach focus on the one thing
needful? Do the methods we use to carry out that work reflect our
understanding of and trust in the efficacy of the means of grace? Do we make
it clear that we trust the Word's power alone to change hearts, or do we
somehow think that the need to change hearts depends on our abilities, gifts,
etc? Do the means we use reflect an
understanding that our rebellious and wicked sinful nature cannot be reformed
or coddled, and only hates God's Word entirely? Are we focusing people on the sure foundation of God's Word or
are we appealing to their emotions, their life circumstances, their
expectations? How does each aspect of
ministry convey the means of grace, the only means through which we say
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souls are won? God's Word by
its very nature and we by our sinful nature will always and only be at odds.
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What follows is a summary of our findings, progress to date on
implementation of our recommendations, and conclusions. The main issue that
came to light for our committee as we carried out our work was the lack of gospel
predominance in various areas of CrossWalk's ministries. At our committee's
meeting with CrossWalk's Board of Directors in January, every one of the
Board members expressed their understanding of, and appreciation for the
committee's observation concerning the lack of Gospel predominance in those
various areas of their ministry. They
expressed repentance not only there, but also at the February open forum for
the leaders of the Phoenix Valley congregations that was held at Arizona
Lutheran Academy. CrossWalk's leaders were comforted with the news of sins
forgiven. They also expressed their desire to refocus their efforts at Gospel
predominance.
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1. Law/Gospel in preaching
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One area that was addressed fairly early on in our work with
CrossWalk was the regular use of non-seminary trained preachers during the worship service. CrossWalk had at least two men (one with
an education degree from DMLC and one with two years of training at MLC) helping with these duties on a
somewhat regular basis, in addition to their called pastor. The Board of Directors understands that
additional training and Biblical background is necessary for someone who
preaches regularly, and they agreed that using a lay preacher should be an
exception, not a regularly scheduled practice for their congregation. They recognize that any sermon not
authored by their pastor would require additional review by their pastor,
placing an additional demand on his time. They changed their practice on this
and now regularly use seminary trained guest preachers.
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At CrossWalk, the sermon itself takes up the bulk of the worship
service, and especially in a non-liturgical setting, carries the main
responsibility of emphasizing the Gospel during the service. As such, our committee reviewed over 30
randomly selected sermons delivered at CrossWalk over the past 18 months and
jointly evaluated them.
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In general the CrossWalk sermon series reflect a chosen theme
rather than following a pericope. The sermons we reviewed made a conscious
effort to put the Word of God as their central focus. The handout that accompanies each sermon
serves a good purpose in helping the listener remain engaged in the subject
at hand. The sermons make use of a
number of additional Bible passages during the course of study, passages that
were chosen for their
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relationship to the chosen theme of the day. The sermons were in
general easy to listen to and managed to hold the listener’s attention
despite their additional length - usually over 40 minutes.
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We recognize that theme-based sermon series in the regular place
of pericope preaching can present a number of challenges for the preacher.
The regular emphases incorporated into the Christian Church year can be
overlooked. Sermon texts can sometimes be used as a pretext for the sermon
theme, rather than being treated as expository. Specific attention needs to be given to ensure that the whole
counsel of God is being preached.
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Of greatest concern to this committee, however, was that in many
of the sermons we reviewed, the message of the Gospel, while present, did not
predominate. Many of these sermons
were designed to be practical in nature, but the practice (i.e. sanctification)
of the believer was not always clearly connected with the motivation (i.e.
justification) of the believer. We
found this observation to be a serious concern, because if the Gospel does
not predominate during the course of the sermon, there are not enough places
in the rest of CrossWalk’s worship format to make up for that deficit. For a congregation that has defined their
target group as the unchurched, this concern was also that much more
magnified.
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One other outside observation from our District Worship
Committee chairman, Pastor Johnold Strey, who was able to personally attend
one of CrossWalk's Sunday morning services:
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The sermon was
part of a topical series on witnessing one's faith. The sermon lasted about 40 minutes and appeared to be the peak
of the service's progression. I
consider the message I heard that morning to be more topical than
exegetical. The gospel was clearly
explained at three different points in the sermon, however in each instance
it was presented as a message for the lost and not as forgiveness for the
person who had come to church that morning.
The explanation of the gospel was clear; the "for you"
application was not so clear. As I
pointed out at the fall pastors' conference in Las Vegas, this is hardly
unique to CrossWalk, and plenty of "traditional" and
"contemporary" preachers in our synod have preached sermons that
lacked gospel content. (A past
"Preach the Word" article by Prof. Gurgel echoes and expands on
this general observation as well).
This ought to be a concern among all of us, regardless of where we
stand on the worship spectrum.
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In a couple of face to face meetings with Pastor Gunn, we
discussed "gospel predominance" and its practical impact for the
confessional Lutheran pastor. We acknowledged the sometimes difficult nature
of quantifying/measuring "gospel predominance." However we also
thought it vital to point out the specific sermons where we were convinced
the gospel was not predominating. We greatly appreciate Pastor Gunn's willingness
to listen to those concerns, and to implement the suggestions we offered for
improvement. To that end CrossWalk has begun a formal process of internal
sermon evaluation. Additionally,
Pastor Gunn has expressed his willingness to work together with the brothers in
the Valley circuits in holding each other
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accountable for law/gospel sermon content. Recent sermons that our
committee members have listened to have reflected clearer and more specific
gospel predominance.
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We are convinced that the accountability between brothers in the
area of law/gospel preaching is an issue that needs more focused attention in
our circles. Those charged with such regular oversight of doctrine and
practice (circuit pastor, District Presidium) need to be more proactive in
carrying out such oversight in this area; those charged with faithfully using
the means of grace as overseers of God's flock also need to be willing to be
rightly held accountable. This applies not only to CrossWalk and Pastor Gunn,
but to each of us. We also recommend an ongoing homiletical evaluation and
review by one's peers, such as is already being done in some circuits, as something that would be
greatly beneficial for all of our pastors and congregations.
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2. Law/Gospel in Worship
Practices
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In personal visits from our own committee members, we
concur with the observations of Pastor Strey:
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There was a
professionalism in CrossWalk's efforts that was certainly laudable. As a church without its own building, they
had made quite an effort to make their congregation's gathering place visible
to the community. Pastor Gunn greeted
people in the parking lot. A staffed
welcome booth was located outside the auditorium. The materials distributed to worshippers looked neat, clean,
and professional. In this respect,
CrossWalk's efforts are commendable and exceed many WELS congregations.
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Nevertheless, the issue of Gospel predominance must also
be at the forefront here. It's important to recognize the ongoing debate and
discussion currently taking place in our synod and others surrounding
contemporary worship practices. (e.g., - Can one separate heterodox
methods/forms from their content? Is there an emphasis on style over
substance with these forms? Though it may be permissible to use certain methods,
is it always beneficial? What is the
brotherly responsibility toward those with whom I have pledged to walk
together? If one uses heterodox
materials, how does the vetting process take place and who does it? What happens when someone used to non-liturgical
worship moves to a different town or state?
Will they avoid the liturgical worship that prevails in most WELS
churches in favor of a heterodox church that more closely resembles their
familiar style of worship?)
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The basic format for CrossWalk’s worship is non-liturgical. The service will begin with several songs
by the band. The worship leader will
usually make confession on behalf of the congregation in a prayer format,
followed by a freely-worded absolution.
A confession of faith, including the Apostles Creed, is sometimes
used. The bulk of the service is
spent on the
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sermon. The conclusion of worship will include the offering, perhaps
some corporate prayer, and another song or two by the band before dismissal.
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On the one hand, there are some elements of this format which
have a basic connection to the Christian liturgy. At the same time, we would not describe this format as
liturgical. As a committee, we do not
see a desire on the part of CrossWalk to manipulate the participants emotionally,
although we acknowledge that many churches that use a similar format have
this as a goal. While we did not see anything in CrossWalk's content that
directly contradicted Scripture, we do see weaknesses in the format’s ability
to repeatedly emphasize the Gospel as compared to the liturgy. When
discussing worship format, the distinction between man-centered and
Christ-centered presuppositions is one that must be acknowledged and
addressed. Pastor Strey summarized
this point in this way:
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The order of
worship appeared to be based on the standard Protestant Praise Service, with
some additions that reflected a more Lutheran way of thinking. While we make no laws about the specific
structure in worship, we nonetheless recognize that the gospel ought to be at
the very heart of our worship structures, because gospel proclamation alone
can nourish faith. The Protestant
Praise Service was developed around non-Lutheran, non-Means-of-Grace
presuppositions, and so its structure has inherent weaknesses that must be
overcome.
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At the CrossWalk
service I attended, a confessional prayer was spoken by the band leader after
the first song, and a statement of God's mercy (though not a direct
absolution) was spoken by the band leader after the second song. The Apostles' Creed was read by the
assembly after the third (and final) opening song. While it was good that gospel-oriented content was added to the
praise service structure, this observer believes it would be more advisable
if the structure itself was built around law-and-gospel, Means of Grace
proclamation and assumptions.
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It is important to note, that as our committee talked with the
CrossWalk leadership, their members who did not come from a WELS background
could clearly identify differences in CrossWalk’s format and purpose as compared
to their experiences with community churches which were similar in format to
CrossWalk. These leaders identified a
focus to hear and follow God’s Word as peculiar to CrossWalk, unlike some of
their past experiences with other churches.
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Nevertheless, it is our opinion that overall the evangelical
richness of the liturgy is clearly lost in this format, especially when it
comes to the lack of connected Scripture readings which focus on one Gospel
truth. If someone chooses to replace
the evangelical content and format of the liturgy, the replacement must serve
at least as good of a function, if not better, than the liturgy already does
in clear law/gospel proclamation. In CrossWalk’s format, the sermon attempts
to fulfill this goal.
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Some have also expressed concern over the use of heterodox
source materials which provide many of the lyrics for the CrossWalk band’s
music. The concern is a valid one,
because every song must be carefully reviewed for doctrinal content before
being allowed for use in worship.
CrossWalk's worship team is currently responsible for that review
process. Even though a review of CrossWalk's song list did not find songs
that conflict with Scripture, we recognize the difficulty of consistently
using such materials—not only in the time it takes to review these songs, but
also in the relative lack of solid Scriptural materials from these
sources. Another large difficulty
CrossWalk faces is building up a body of lyrics which reflects the whole
counsel of God, not just bits and pieces which are able to be sanitized. Some of the best examples of solid lyrics
we came across were arrangements of actual Bible passages or original works
co-written by the members of CrossWalk’s band. We believe that this ongoing task will take years to complete
based on the resources that CrossWalk is currently able to devote to this
project.
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Another concern addressed with CrossWalk in
the area of worship centered around its communion practice. The Sacrament is
not a part of the general Sunday service, but is held separately for members
after the service. It is vital that
as confessional evangelical Lutherans, we do not give the impression, whether
to those outside the church or those within, that we think the means of grace
in any way is a detriment to our outreach efforts, or something that we are
ashamed of, or something that needs to be hidden or downplayed. In discussing this with CrossWalk’s
leadership, it has been stated that this practice is in place out of concern
for the large number of visitors who attend each service, and not an attempt
to hide the Sacrament of Communion or to downplay its benefits. CrossWalk has indicated that visitors
clearly outnumber members at almost every service. In the examples we have seen, the benefits of the sacrament
have been stated in the sermon and public explanation of their close
communion practice has been given. At
the same time we discussed with CrossWalk's leadership the possibility of
including the sacrament in future worship services, which they indicated a
desire to do.
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To help address these issues and help
CrossWalk continue to work through them, we have recommended to CrossWalk’s
Board of Directors that they work with the AZ-CA District Worship Committee
and enlist their help in evaluating worship practice, vetting song content,
and pointing to additional appropriate resources. We have also informed the Worship Committee of this
recommendation, and initial efforts have already begun. Again we quote Pastor Strey:
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Jon Favorite (CrossWalk staff member) was my main point of contact
to CrossWalk throughout the weekend.
After the service, I offered him some gut reactions to what I had
seen. Among those immediate
reactions, I mentioned some musical resources that could utilize their
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instrumentation but
would incorporate familiar liturgical texts that had stronger
gospel-proclaiming content. Jon was
interested in hearing more, and he recently sent me an email asking for those
leads. I, for my part, have not been
as active as I could have been in the CrossWalk discussion, primarily because
of the adjustment to the new call that I arrived at last summer shortly after
the request to work with CrossWalk was first extended to the district worship
committee. But it should be noted
that Jon was willing to listen to my suggestions and was open to the idea of
working with resources that he had not been previously aware of.
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CrossWalk’s Board of Directors has shown
its willingness to comply with the recommendation to work together with the
District Worship Committee in the manner stated above. The District Presidium
has also endorsed this course of action. We recommend that the Presidium
continue to encourage both groups to develop a healthy working relationship
going forward. We also recommend this
practice for other districts of our Synod and that the Synod’s Commission on
Worship provide leadership in all of these areas as well.
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3.
Law/Gospel in adult and youth study materials
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It is a fact that CrossWalk has used a wide
variety of sources in preparation for its various training and study classes,
including materials from NPH. While
materials from any source need to be used with a critical eye to content,
orthodox sources typically have very few problems, while heterodox sources
require more in-depth review.
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CrossWalk's main desire when putting
together the children’s program at CrossWalk was to find materials available
in a multi-media format. Since this
type of material is not available from our own publishing house, we can
sympathize with the need to look elsewhere for materials to adapt. CrossWalk does make use of several
synodically-trained teachers and one former WELS pastor to review these
materials. That being said, we see the same challenges here that we did
regarding the music of CrossWalk’s worship.
First of all, it is a large task for an individual congregation to
thoroughly review a whole children’s curriculum and correct it as
necessary. Secondly, it is a
difficult task to then go back and review what things may be missing from the
curriculum to fill in any necessary gaps.
At this point, one weakness of the current CrossWalk children’s
program is a relative lack of Bible history due to the theme-based
organization of the lessons. It is
our recommendation that CrossWalk implement more Bible history into its
curriculum. It is not our intent to
disparage the efforts of CrossWalk’s members who have worked on compiling
their curriculum—we do, however, want to recognize the inherent difficulty of
accomplishing this task well at the congregational level.
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Some of the reviewed material was also
quite inadequate when clear law and gospel presentation is concerned. Those
issues were raised with CrossWalk and changes are being implemented. The
district's committee on youth discipleship has reviewed and submitted a
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report on its recent findings
indicating an improvement in CrossWalk's editing. What follows is the
evaluation of Pastor Mathew Pfeifer, chairman of the district's youth
discipleship committee, dated January 26, 2012:
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I
was asked by this committee to look at the children’s ministry materials and
give feedback to CrossWalk Lutheran Church. I began by calling Pastor Gunn
who referred me to Kristi Sebald, the director of the children’s ministry
program. Kristi sent me several sets of recently used Sunday School
lessons.
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The
series is called “Elevate” and uses a DVD to present songs, skits and the
Bible story. It also includes written materials. It drives the main point of
the day home in many ways. It is easy for the volunteer teachers to use and
is engaging for the students.
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The
first lessons I looked at was the “Dojo” set of lessons. Kristi warned me
that it needed lots of editing and she was right. The basic materials had
very little gospel and the Bible story was not usually the main focus of the
DVD. I looked at two more sets of lessons, “Allaso Ranch” and “Roanoke
Jones.” These lessons focused much more on Christ and the Bible stories were
more central to the whole lesson.
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Kristi
and three members of the leadership team edit the materials to remove
doctrinal errors and to focus on the gospel. They do this by editing the
written materials, not showing portions of the DVD, and writing/recording
their own songs if needed. They also share their edits with other WELS
congregations who have used “Elevate.” CrossWalk is currently revisiting
previous edits to continually improve the program. They have been very
willing to work with District Youth Discipleship and are willing to continue.
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I
did not observe the Sunday School in action. Therefore, I do not know how the
changes the CrossWalk team makes to the lessons carry through to the teaching
of the lesson. But I am confident that CrossWalk recognizes the weaknesses
and errors in the “Elevate” curriculum and that they work to present the
gospel clearly in each lesson.
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Realizing
the weaknesses of the “Elevate” series, CrossWalk is currently writing their
own lessons for the 4th-5th
grade classes. Instead of following themes, these lessons take the children
through the main stories of the Bible. CrossWalk is already using lessons
they wrote for 2 year olds.
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I
would not use the “Elevate” materials because I do not have the time or the
team to edit them. CrossWalk has qualified members willing to take the time
to do this. I encourage them to continue taking the time to fully edit the
materials so Christ shines in every lesson."
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We realize that other congregations in our
fellowship are looking for similar audio-visual materials. Though we understand the tremendous
commitment of resources for such a task, we urge Northwestern Publishing
House to continue undertaking efforts to produce rightly law/gospel focused
materials in this area as well.
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The adult education program of CrossWalk
Ministries was reviewed by a subcommittee of the CrossWalk Ad hoc
Committee. The scope of the review
included examination of the educational materials used in each of the
classes/study groups as well as review of the processes used to assure
scriptural soundness of educational materials and to select, train and
supervise the lay instructors/group leaders.
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CrossWalk Ministries has an extensive adult education program
which currently consists of eleven different classes or study groups covering
topics such as basic Bible teachings, Christian living, stewardship, marriage
enrichment, financial management, and in-depth studies of books of the Bible,
among others.
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Overall, we found that the materials used
in the various groups are doctrinally sound, most of them coming from WELS
sources. The materials developed
uniquely by CrossWalk, either as complete study guides or as supplements to
purchased study materials, were considered to be exemplary. Three study groups use materials obtained
from non-WELS sources for their basis.
These are:
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· Marriage Enrichment – based on
“Divorce Care” materials from the non-denominational group Church
Initiative. CrossWalk has
discontinued offering this group until the materials can be reviewed with/by
the District Adult Discipleship Committee.
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· Mary & Martha Group – based
on the book “God Chicks – Living Life as a 21st Century Woman” by non-denominational author Holly Wagner. CrossWalk has developed a set of study
guides to supplement the book which do an excellent job of placing the roles,
responsibilities, activities and motivations of the woman in a biblical,
gospel-oriented perspective.
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· Financial Peace University –
based on materials from author Dave Ramsey.
This material is primarily secular in nature and is known to be in use
in other WELS congregations. The
materials contain only a few, easily correctable instances in which Bible
passages are applied to money matters where the context of scripture intends
for them to apply more to spiritual matters.
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Non-WELS study materials are reviewed and
supplementary materials are developed, as needed, primarily by MLC or WLS
graduates (e.g., Kristi Sebald, Tim Grams) with Jeff Gunn taking the ultimate
responsibility for their content. The
congregation plans to call a Discipleship pastor in the near future who will
oversee the process of reviewing and developing materials. The congregation is also developing a
relationship with the Arizona-California District Adult Discipleship
Committee to assist them in this process and to review the materials they are
producing for doctrinal integrity.
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Most of the classes and study groups are
led by lay members of CrossWalk.
There is a well-structured process in place to develop new leaders
which involves several semesters of mentoring before being assigned to a
leader position. All study leaders
participate in formal training sessions which are held every four
months. Meetings are held with
specific group leaders, as needed, prior to the beginning of a semester to
talk about specific challenges that a topic might present, and how to deal
with them.
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A concern that this review uncovered
involved the basic qualifications required to be a growth group leader. CrossWalk requires that growth group
leaders satisfy all the requirements for communicant membership, but does not
explicitly require them to be communicant members of CrossWalk or of a
congregation in our fellowship. The
committee feels that this has the potential of leading to fellowship and/or
doctrinal issues in the future as congregational leadership changes. We have brought this concern to the
attention of the CrossWalk leadership and they have agreed that communicant
membership should be an explicit requirement.
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The study groups are continually monitored
to assure the integrity of their teaching.
The congregation has been divided into “communities” and in each
community the most gifted, skilled and experienced growth group leader is
designated as a growth group leader coach.
This coach and the elder assigned to the community work together as a
team to both proactively and reactively monitor the groups in the
community. If a question needs to be
answered or a problem arises, leaders are trained and directed to go to their
growth group coaches and elders, and then on up to staff and ultimately to
the pastor and the elders team as a whole if the issue is of a serious
nature. There is also a “Growth
Groups Leadership Team” made up of two staff members (one of which is the
pastor) and two elders. This team
meets monthly and reports to the elders at the monthly meeting of the
elders. The key accountability component
is the monthly elders meeting where the Growth Groups Leadership Team and the
elders can converse about what’s going on with all the growth groups,
identify problems, discuss solutions, and solve any issues that arise. Staff members are also generally aware of
all the groups going on (a number of the groups are staff-led) and growth
group issues are discussed at staff meetings as well.
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We recommend that our district’s Adult
Discipleship committee help review and refine CrossWalk’s somewhat unique
system of training its members, help evaluate some of the materials used in
CrossWalk’s growth groups, and encourage ongoing accountability of the
structure, content, and training for this program.
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4.
Law/Gospel in outreach efforts
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For a confessional evangelical Lutheran,
there is daily trust only in the efficacy of the divinely appointed means of
grace in Word and Sacrament to create and then strengthen saving faith in
Christ. The methods that we use to
reach people with the gospel flow from this conviction (Romans 10:17). We
place our confidence in the powerful word of God to produce the results that
God himself desires (Isaiah 55:10, 11).
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Some of CrossWalk's early advertising
efforts and marketing techniques caused a great deal of confusion, questions,
and mistrust with sister Valley congregations regarding the rationale for
such efforts. It left the impression, whether directly or indirectly,
intentionally or unintentionally, of disparaging other churches as perhaps being
unreal, irrelevant, boring, or unentertaining. It also left some wondering
about whether or not the focus of these efforts gave the impression that the
means of grace was somehow inefficient on its own. At February's meeting with
other Valley congregational leaders, CrossWalk's leadership publicly
expressed repentance for these impressions; they were joyfully absolved; they
expressed their desire to approach their outreach efforts differently now and
in the future. They do not want to give the impression that they disparage
the means of grace; they want to communicate more clearly and upfront with
Valley sister congregations prior to future campaigns to get feedback and
advice; they have already begun doing just that with their circuit pastor and
circuit.
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Another area of
outreach/advertising that has been raised is the apparent avoidance of the
public use of the Lutheran name. We recognize that the name “Lutheran” in the
news is often associated with the false doctrine and unbiblical practice of
America’s largest Lutheran church body (ELCA). Yet this also gives the
opportunity to confess clearly and boldly what confessional Lutheranism
really is, to set forth the truth plainly. Some have asked why a confessional
evangelical Lutheran congregation would want to leave out the name Lutheran,
or whether or not leaving it out gives the appearance of wanting to appear
non-Lutheran or even nondenominational. CrossWalk does introduce confessional
Lutheran teachings in membership classes, in public explanations of Baptism
and the Lord’s Supper, and on their website, which has clear statements of
belief available a click beyond the front page. In all of our discussions
with the Board of Directors, they have expressed great appreciation for their
Lutheran heritage. Whether or not
there will be specific changes in the Lutheran identification is an area
still being discussed internally by CrossWalk's leadership. In so doing, we
urge them to be mindful of their brothers and sisters in the Valley, and to
keep them updated on the progress of these discussions and decisions.
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5.
Law/Gospel when fitting into a Larger Fellowship
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As members of our synodical fellowship, it
is important to remember our responsibility not only to our Savior and to
those we serve, but also to the other brothers and sisters of the
congregations which belong to the wider fellowship.
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As CrossWalk has sometimes been the victim of unbrotherly and
unsubstantiated attacks, so also CrossWalk by some of its practices (e.g.
advertising efforts, member recruitment from sister WELS churches) has caused
fires for other pastors and congregations to put out. For example, early on
in CrossWalk's history, member recruitment from other WELS congregations was
an issue that caused mistrust and confusion. It had been CrossWalk’s
practice to recruit visitors, regardless of their church home, to participate
in various aspects of CrossWalk’s ministry (Sunday morning setup, serving
refreshments, helping with children’s ministry, etc.). Instead of urging
members of other churches to “stay and do their duty,” they were encouraged
to “get involved” with CrossWalk’s ministry. Pastor Gunn and CrossWalk staff
members have become much more sensitive to these concerns, and have been
proactive in stopping such activity. They have also expressed the need to
better communicate with area pastors and congregations regarding membership
issues.
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We would expect that as we move forward,
repentance and forgiveness would be expressed in both directions as
circumstances require. While this is
a painstaking process, we believe it will be necessary in order for Gospel
reconciliation to take place in a God-pleasing way. CrossWalk has already
publicly acknowledged that it has caused problems for some of the sister
congregations in the valley. At the same time, some of the leaders of those
sister congregations have also acknowledged their roles in some of the
unbrotherly ways in which they've expressed their concerns.
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Such repentance was expressed by both
"sides" of these issues at the joint meeting held in February.
Forgiveness was also proclaimed. We understand that the fruits of repentance
include avoiding those things which caused the problems in the first place,
something both sides agreed they were willing to work through. For this we
give thanks.
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Yet there remains a mutual lack of trust in
some cases. Trust is not always easily built up. How it is built, rather than torn down, largely hinges on
CrossWalk's approach to the areas of concerns raised and whether or not they
continue with some of the controversial practices that led to the problems in
the first place. How it is built, rather than torn down, also hinges on
pastors and congregational leaders bringing up their concerns in the proper
forum with CrossWalk's leaders and proceeding accordingly. CrossWalk has an
extra obligation to be especially sensitive to how their practices will
affect not only the people they are serving but also their brothers and
sisters at fellow WELS congregations.
This will probably require additional patience and time on their part
as they endeavor to make clear why they have adopted a particular practice
and how it fits into their ministry.
We would like CrossWalk to be increasingly proactive in their dialogue
and communication with other sister churches in order to prevent additional
misunderstandings. Our committee has
continued to emphasize this
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point with the CrossWalk Board of
Directors, asking them to take into consideration the larger fellowship as
they make specific plans for their own ministry. This is something they've
begun to do.
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Proactive steps need to continue to be
taken to heal rifts between individual pastors, and/or between
representatives of CrossWalk and other congregations in the Phoenix
Valley. This is also one of the
reasons why we have given the encouragement for CrossWalk to work closely
with one of our District’s standing committees. We believe this interaction and mutual cooperation will help to
foster an awareness on the part of CrossWalk as to their membership in a
larger group, as well as allow other pastors of our district to have some
input on CrossWalk’s plans and activities.
We do understand that the role of providing some oversight and
assisting with accountability is a role that our district committees have
generally not performed. That presents its own set of challenges. It is also not our desire to meddle in the
affairs of a congregation to which we hold no call; it rather is our desire
to foster a better walking together in the future than has been present in
the past. The areas identified have been and need to continue to be directly
addressed with the leadership of CrossWalk. If there are concerns in the
future, those need to be similarly addressed.
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The current Board of Directors has
repeatedly demonstrated its willingness to listen to our concerns. There have
been some very difficult discussions along the way. To show a congregation
and its leaders that there has been a general lack of Gospel predominance in
its ministry is not always the easiest task for the one delivering the
message, but it's also not the easiest for the one hearing such an
evaluation. Yet the Word of God rightly applied does its work as God intends.
Thus far with these leaders that applied Word has worked repentance and given
forgiveness. It is guiding, but also empowering the Spirit's new life. The
resulting fruits of repentance call for changes in practice, but also great
patience and careful instruction as some of the questions are wrestled with
and answers implemented.
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Final
remarks
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It goes without saying that the questions
surrounding CrossWalk have drawn a lot of attention to the situation, both
inside and outside of our district.
Our committee is not ignorant of the fact that faction-like groups
have formed, with some who believe CrossWalk is not part of our fellowship;
others might say let's wait another two, 10, 20 years and see how it plays
out; still others believe that CrossWalk has been excluded for far too long
(it's already been over four years).
We believe we are foolish to ignore the current and future
divisiveness of this issue—it is part of the background under which our
committee has labored.
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On the one hand we see a clear need to distinguish which issues
fall into the realm of Christian freedom.
The law is not a means of salvation, nor is it a method for solving
problems. Where God gives freedom,
there also the Gospel must reign in shaping the actions of that freedom. But
we must also be quick to point out that not every exercise of Christian
freedom is beneficial. Some practices
may be difficult to understand without patient instruction; others may cause
too great an offense to consider implementing. This is true for an individual congregation which seeks to
exercise its freedom as well as for other congregations, districts or synods
which seek to limit an individual congregation’s exercise of its
freedom. Any request we make to
someone else to change course in a matter of freedom must also be done so
under the Gospel, so that changes in practice may be voluntary and not
forced.
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On the other hand, the issues of gospel
predominance, law/gospel preaching and teaching, and trust in the efficacy of
the means of grace for a confessional evangelical Lutheran congregation and
pastor are ones that can never be considered optional or dismissed as matters
of freedom. Souls are at stake.
Turning a blind eye or sugarcoating the concerns does not serve the kingdom
but our own bellies. Every one of our leaders and congregations ought to be
looking into the mirror daily and examining whether or not they are
faithfully using the means of grace in every aspect of its ministry.
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We acknowledge that not everyone's concerns
with CrossWalk's ministry and these issues will have been put to rest with
this report. We also acknowledge that this painstaking work of building
trust, making changes in practice, communicating more openly with one
another, is only a beginning. Our
committee's work is done, but the "work" of reminding one another
of the absolute necessity of the proper distinction between law and gospel,
gospel predominance, and trust in the means of grace, is a work that will
never be done.
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CrossWalk's leadership has shown a
willingness to be rebuked and instructed, to listen to and implement changes
in practice. As CrossWalk has shown a humble and loving attitude, along with
the realization that much of the difficult work of rebuilding shattered trust
depends largely on how they move forward from here, the walking and working
together will continue to be built. Our district's leadership has shown a
willingness to patiently yet firmly admonish, to not sweep matters of
doctrine or practice under the rug, to accept admonition when it has been called
for, and to work together with CrossWalk's pastor and leadership to rightly
address and resolve these matters. As that humble and loving attitude
remains, the walking and working together will continue to be built. God's Word works. But if that resolve is not there for all
involved, trust will not be built and fellowship will not exist, no matter
what the outward affiliation says.
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These efforts must continue.
Those called to oversee such matters and hold others accountable must
function accordingly. Those called to
account must be willing to answer on the basis of God's Word. Without such
oversight and accountability, the time of the judges where everyone does what
is right in his own eyes quickly commences.
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Final
recommendation
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Mindful of the Lord's great patience and
mercy, and trusting that His good and gracious will is always working for the
good of His people, we recommend CrossWalk for district membership with the
earnest prayer that those involved in moving forward remain humble before His
Word. God grant such humility to us all.
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In
Christ,
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The
AZ-CA CrossWalk Ad Hoc Committee
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Pastor
Ross Else, chairman, Emmaus Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
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Pastor
Fred Casmer, Paradise Valley Lutheran Church, Phoenix, AZ
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Mr.
James Drexler, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, Los Angeles, CA
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Teacher
Andrew Mildebrandt, Saint Peter's Lutheran School, Fond du Lac, WI (formerly
at
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Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran School,
La Mesa, CA)
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Pastor
Jeffrey Smith, Living Word Lutheran Church, Petaluma, CA
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Pastor
Joshua Stahmann, Salem Lutheran Church, Scottsdale, AZ
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Pastor
Matthew Vogt, Water of Life Lutheran Church, Las Vegas, NV
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---
Joel Lillo has left
a new comment on your post "WELS
DP Jon Buchholz Drops the Hammer on Gunn - Lu...":
Well, finally...
I'm glad that the AZ/CA District made the right decision about Crosswalk!
Well, finally...
I'm glad that the AZ/CA District made the right decision about Crosswalk!
