Weekly Confession – The Augsburg Confession
Article V “The Office of the Ministry”
Ten lepers were cleansed by Jesus. They were instructed to go present themselves to the priests serving at the Temple in Jerusalem (Luke 17:14) in order to obtain a “clean bill of health,” on a certain sense. But one of the lepers, who happened to be a Samaritan (v. 16), instead turned around to present himself to Jesus. Jesus is our Great High Priest. He is accessible not only at certain times and places, but among every tribe and tongue. Wherever Christ’s Church is to be found, the Holy Spirit “works faith, when and where he pleases, in those who hear the Gospel. The Gospel teaches that we have a gracious God, not by our own merits but by the merit of Christ, when we believe this.” (AC V 2-3)
Article VI “The New Obedience”
As believers, our Lord Jesus commands us to do good works. The Pharisees were proud of their supposed obedience, but Jesus points out where they failed to obey God as He had commanded. He asks them: “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?” (Luke 14:3) Jesus then goes on to show the importance of humility. These examples teach us that “faith should produce good fruits and good works and that we must do all such good works as God has commanded, but we should do them for God’s sake and not place our trust in them as if thereby to merit favor before God.” (AC VI 1) We are humbled when we trust not in our good works but in Christ alone for our salvation.
Article XI “Confession”
The perfect measurements and materials with which the heavenly Jerusalem are built are meant to show us one thing: God expects perfection. Touching our earthly life, we will never reach perfection – we are daily entangled by our own unclean thoughts and unloving words and actions. We are warned that “nothing unclean will ever enter” God’s heavenly kingdom (Rev 21:27). He, however, promises to make clean all who confess their sins and believe in His Son Jesus Christ. But does this mean we have to remember and identify all the sins we daily commit? No; “in confession it is not necessary to enumerate all trespasses and sins, for this is impossible.” (AC XI 2) Every time we humbly confess, God forgives us all our sins – thoroughly, perfectly, completely, in Christ Jesus.
Article XXI “The Cult of Saints”
Article XXI of the Augsburg Confession draws inspiration from the eleventh chapter of Hebrews. Although we don’t know who wrote the Epistle to the Hebrews, he knows a lot about the saints who went before him. “For by (faith) the people of old received their commendation.” (Heb 11:1-2) The author proceeds to name such people as Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, King David – all of whom put their faith in God. This diverse group of people lived out their faith in unique ways. The Church commemorates the saints – like St. Nicholas, a church leader; St. Monica, a faithful mother; or St. Elizabeth, who helped the poor – to inspire us, in order that “their good works are to be an example for us, each of us in his own calling.”
Article XXIV “The Mass”
Read Romans 15:4-13. The Augsburg Confession says that “the Mass is observed among us with greater devotion and more earnestness than among our opponents.” Of course, “the Mass” refers not only to the Lord’s Supper but the entire Divine Service. In our Scripture readings we learn God’s will for our lives. As St. Paul writes, “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” (Rom 15:4) In our prayers we render thanks to God with one harmonious voice. We especially give thanks for the saints who have gone before us, who left us their examples of faith and hope. And in the Lord’s Supper, we join “with angels and archangels” and “all the company of heaven”!
