ROUGHLY EDITED COPY CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY EDUCATION NETWORK CUENET LUTHERAN CONFESSIONS 2-7 DR. ROBERT KOLB CAPTIONING PROVIDED BY: CAPTION FIRST, INC. P.O. BOX 1024 LOMBARD, IL 60148 800-825-5234 *** THIS TEXT IS BEING PROVIDED IN A ROUGH DRAFT FORMAT. COMMUNICATION ACCESS REALTIME TRANSLATION (CART) IS PROVIDED IN ORDER TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION ACCESSIBILITY AND MAY NOT BE A TOTALLY VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS. *** LC2-7 >> WHAT GOAL IS THE CHURCH ATTEMPTING TO REACH IN ITS CONTINUING USE OF THE SMALL CATECHISM? WHY USE SUCH AN ANTIQUATED DOCUMENT? I KNOW THIS QUESTION SOUNDS A BIT RUDE. BUT I'VE HEARD THAT QUESTION FROM MY OWN CONFIRMANDS. PHRASED A LITTLE DIFFERENTLY, OF COURSE. CAN YOU HELP ME ANSWER IT? >>DR. ROBERT KOLB: ANTIQUATED, INDEED, IF YOU LOOK AT THE 16TH CENTURY GERMAN. MOST GERMANS WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND AT LEAST PARTS OF IT JUST IN THE SAME WAY IT'S DIFFICULT FOR US TO UNDERSTAND THE KING JAMES BIBLE. BUT SOMEHOW LUTHER CAUGHT IN THIS DISTINCTION OF LAW AND GOSPEL AND CHRISTIAN LIFE THAT HE LAYS DOWN THE EST OF WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT OUR LIVES. SO THE CHURCH'S GOAL REMAINS THE SAME: TO CULTIVATE A CHRISTIAN WAY OF LIVING. TO CULTIVATE IT ON THE BASIS OF AN UNDERSTANDING OF GOD'S REVELATION OF HIMSELF. TO HELP PEOPLE LIVE OUT IN THEIR DAILY LIVES THE NEW IDENTITY GOD HAS GIVEN THEM IN JESUS CHRIST AND THE NEW WAY OF LIVING, THE WAY OF PERFORMING THE DEEDS THAT GOD CALLS US TO PERFORM. AND SO OUR GOAL IS IN A SENSE WHAT I MENTIONED A FEW MOMENTS AGO, THAT WE WANT TO LIVE THIS LIFE OF REPENTANCE IN WHICH WE DIE AGAIN TO OUR SINFUL SELVES. IN WHICH WE ARE RAISED AGAIN TO LIVE AS CHRIST'S PEOPLE. THERE ARE MANY PROFOUND MYSTERIES IN SCRIPTURE. ONE OF THE MOST PROFOUND I THINK IS THIS MYSTERY OF WHY EVIL NOT ONLY CAME TO BE IN THE FIRST PLACE, BUT WHY SIN AND EVIL CONTINUE IN THE LIVES OF GOD'S BAPTIZED PEOPLE. NOW, THERE'S SIMPLY NO ANSWER TO THAT. IF YOU AND I HAD BEEN GOD, WE MIGHT HAVE SAID, "ONCE WE BRING THE WORD OF GOD INTO PEOPLE'S LIVES, ONCE WE CREATE THE RELATIONSHIP OF FAITH WITH THEM, THEY WON'T BE SINNING ANYMORE. THEY WILL BE ABLE TO WITHSTAND ALL EVILS." BUT FOR SOME REASON OR OTHER, GOD HAS NOT EXECUTED A PLAN LIKE THAT AT ALL. AND LUTHER RECOGNIZED THAT. HE RECOGNIZED THAT WE LIVE IN THIS TENSION BETWEEN WHAT PAUL CALLS IN ROMANS 7 THE LAW OF SIN AND THE LAW OF CHRIST. THE SINFUL WAY OF LIVING AND CHRIST'S WAY OF LIVING. AND THE SMALL CATECHISM, REENFORCED BY THE EXPLANATIONS IN THE LARGE CATECHISM, ARE DESIGNED TO SET IN PLACE BASIC CHRISTIAN INSTINCTS, BASIC CHRISTIAN UNDERSTANDINGS OF THE WORLD AND REALITY, BASIC CHRISTIAN REACTIONS TO BOTH GOD'S BLESSINGS AND TO THE TEMPTATIONS OF SIN AND EVIL. SO I THINK WE HAVE TO ALWAYS BE TRANSLATING, AS LUTHER WAS TRANSLATING, THE BIBLICAL FAITH INTO NORTHERN EUROPEAN IN THE 16TH CENTURY. SO YOU AND I HAVE TO BE LISTENING TO OUR PEOPLE AND TRANSLATING THAT BIBLICAL FAITH ACCORDING TO LUTHER'S OUTLINE ON LUTHER'S FOUNDATION. BUT WE HAVE TO BE BUILDING STRUCTURES OF INSTRUCTION UPON THOSE FOUNDATIONS THAT ARE VERY MODERN, JUST DESIGNED TO REACH THE PEOPLE THAT GOD HAS CALLED US TO MINISTER TO IN THE RIGHT WAY. *** THIS TEXT IS BEING PROVIDED IN A ROUGH DRAFT FORMAT. COMMUNICATION ACCESS REALTIME TRANSLATION (CART) IS PROVIDED IN ORDER TO FACILITATE COMMUNICATION ACCESSIBILITY AND MAY NOT BE A TOTALLY VERBATIM RECORD OF THE PROCEEDINGS. ***