No. 54. >> If the church lives from the audible and visible Word, who then does the preaching and the administering of the sacraments? I'm pretty sure I know the answer to this. But just in case I don't, it seems smart to ask. >>DR. KLAUS DETLEV SCHULZ: Yes, Eric, the question you ask is -- or sounds very simple. But in fact, it demands a long, long explanation. So here we go. The first thing I would like to say is we need to focus on the Augsburg Confession Article V. But that is basically what your question is indicating. And there it says: So that we may obtain this faith, the ministry of teaching the Gospel and administering the sacraments was instituted. For through the Word and the sacraments, as through instruments, the Holy Spirit is given, who effects faith where and when it pleases God in those who hear the Gospel. This statement here being made in Article V of the Augsburg Confession draws attention to the fact that the Lord has introduced Word and sacrament for us to receive the justifying faith. That faith that you have heard of in Article IV of the Augsburg Confession. That which justifies us. So the point is we receive it through the means of grace that God has provided the church. However, these means of grace cannot administer themselves. They need somebody. They need a person to do it for them. And so this article also draws attention to the ministry of teaching the Gospel and administering the sacraments. Ministry, we could say, is a service. A service to some -- something here called Word and sacrament. It needs to be administered to the people so that this faith is given to them. And it says here the ministry was instituted. Now, that is a passive form. And that means that somebody behind this article has instituted the ministry. Who is that? None other than God himself. And who are these people that God has called? Well, we need to go back to Scripture now and ask ourselves: Is there any mention of a ministry that in some way reflects that of our pastors today? Some might say: Well, you know, the apostles status in the New Testament is so unique and so different that the ministry we have today in the church, that of our pastors, is far different to that what they have done then. That question really and that understanding that there is this huge chasm or gap between the ministry of the apostles and that of the pastors needs to be corrected. For I strongly believe that the roots of our ministry today are found in Scripture itself. So let me point you to some texts that indicate first what the apostles had done. And how then that ministry after their death is continued. And there's evidence in Scripture of a continuation, as well. Those apostles that have been called, were what you would say -- were directly introduced into their ministry. This means they were immediately called. Immediately means nobody stepped between them and Jesus Christ. But they came into the context where Jesus Christ's person was present. And there they then were asked by Christ as the example of Peter and Nicodemus and further that they were asked by Christ to follow him. And they followed him almost immediately when asked. And those people that stand in such a ministry of preaching God's Word and administering the sacraments are called in Scripture a number of things. In Ephesians 4:12, they are those understood to build up the body of Christ with their ministry. In I Corinthians 4 Verse 1, we hear of them being servants. And the word that is used there is diakonia, that is the Greek word for ministry, for service. And it's absolutely crucial that this word, diakonia, is explained. Because in one thing it means that those in the ministry do not Lord over other people. But they are there to serve them with the Word that they have been given. And also in I Corinthians 3 Verse 9, they are called co-workers of the ministry that Jesus Christ has begun. And in II Corinthians 5 Verse 20, Paul refers to himself and to those who preach the Gospel and the ambassadors of Christ. Those ambassadors that call out the Gospel and ask people to be reconciled with God. We are reconcilers, those that preach the Gospel. And in I Timothy 2 Verse 7, they are called preachers and teachers. So in Scripture if you go through it, you will find a number of titles explaining what these individuals who have been placed into the ministry are doing. And these titles are very important. And those apostles who have been called by Jesus Christ were not only called immediately. But they were also endowed with miraculous gifts. They could perform certain things that we in the church today cannot perform. And it shows that they were in some ways given that authority to do so by Jesus Christ. They were commanded, for one thing, to preach the Gospel and to baptize. We have evidence of that in Matthew 28 in the Great Commission texts. And we also have the example in I Corinthians 4 Verse 1 that also their ministry included the administrations of the means of grace. For it speaks there of the stewardship of the mysteries of Christ. In John 20 Verse 23, they are given the authority to forgive sins on Christ's behalf. The point is here -- and I want to reiterate it here -- that they were given this authority immediately and directly from the Lord. And they were also witnesses of Jesus Christ. Witnesses of his preaching. So they were special -- specially chosen individuals. And also given the gift to write down that what they had experienced and what they had witnessed with Jesus Christ. The number 12 comes to mind. 12 apostles. And we recall that when Judas fell away from those 12, they were -- he had to be replaced by another one called Matthias. Some say the number 12 is important to reflect the 12 tribes of Israel in the Old Testament. Let us turn now to Ephesians 4 Verse 11 to 13. Because therein I think we are explained a number of important facets or aspects of the ministry of the church as begun by the apostles. There it says in Ephesians 4 Verse 8: When he ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men. And then in Verse 12 it continues -- Verse 11 it continues: It was he who gave some to be apostles. Some to be prophets. Some to be evangelists. And some to be pastors and teachers. To prepare God's people for works of service so that the body of Christ may be built up. The first thing here in Verse 8, he says he gave gifts to men. We may say that the gift that God or the Lord Jesus Christ gave to his church is that of the ministry. Namely, the ministry as Augsburg V indicates. That it's there to administer the Word of God so that the faith may be given. And then in Verse 11 and 12, we can see that there are certain names given as to who is doing that ministry. There's mention made of the apostles and then of the prophets, evangelists and pastors and teachers. Today as we look at this text, we, perhaps, may find some people reflected in this -- in these duties. For today we still have pastors and teachers left in the church. The apostles have passed away. And so, also, have the prophets. But we have evangelists. We have pastors. And we have teachers. This raises an important hermeneutical point. For we know that the Augsburg Confession Article V speaks of one ministry. One ministry to Word and sacrament. That is, instead of dividing it up into various ministries, we speak of the one to Word and sacrament. And generally that ministry is identified with that of a missionary who was ordained and sent out to proclaim the Gospel. Or with that of a pastor who finds himself bound to a locality, to a congregation, and doing the preaching and the teaching there. Is there evidence in Scripture then that after the passing of the apostles, after they died, that there are people following in their footsteps in the ministry of Word and sacrament? My answer is yes. The fact is that the apostles wanted to it continue their ministry through calling and choosing individuals who will then take their place once they have died. In Acts 14 Verse 21 to 23, we can see the first indication that the ministry is to continue after the apostles have gone. Let us turn to that text now. I read the text in Acts 14 Verse 21 to 23: They preached the good news in that city in one large number of disciples. And this is talking about the ministry of Paul and Barnabas. Then they return to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the fact. We must go through many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God they said. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church. And with prayer and fasting committed them to the Lord in whom they had put their trust. In this text here we can see that the apostle Paul and Barnabas both stood in the ministry of the church were actually following a clear procedure. First, they abided to what Matthew 28 said. That they were going to preach the Gospel. And make disciples. And then once they have done so and established a church, they will also see to it that once they go away, that within that body of believers that they leave behind, there will also be individuals who will serve those members with the Word. And so in Verse 23 we are told that they appointed elders, presbuteros it is said here, in each of the churches and committed them to the Lord. What were these elders to do? Well, first of all, we know their status is different to that of the apostles. First of all, their call is not immediately placed on them. But they are elected and chosen in the context of a church. They were appointed. They were not called by Jesus Christ directly. But indirectly we might say as all pastors are called today through the church. But nonetheless, also, finding themselves in an office that is especially instituted by the Lord himself. These elders were also not endowed with the miraculous gifts of healing people, of able to resurrect people from the dead. And so many things fall away that the apostles were able to do uniquely with their office. Another point might be made, also, that such elders are not transient like the apostle Paul was. In other words, that they could travel around all over Judea and Samaria and to other parts of the world claiming to be apostles. We know that the apostle Paul was called directly by Jesus Christ in Acts 9 and seems to claim that he is of the same status as those apostles who were in direct relationship to the historic Jesus Christ who walked the earth. What the apostle Paul, however, says is that his ministry was called to become transient. That is to go from one place to the next. These elders that were placed in the context of Antioch, however, were chosen to stay there. At that specific locality. And to serve the members there with the Word and sacraments. Now, who were these presbuteros. The question to that and the answer that we may give can be found in Acts 20. And I would like to turn there and quote to you a text that explains to some degree the duty, the tasks these elders were to do. And now that the apostle Paul stands before the elders, he will give them a job description that is clearly enunciated in Verse 28. For there he says to them: Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the Church of God, which he bought with his own blood. The apostle Paul looks at the elders with a specific task in mind for them. Keep watch over yourselves. That is obviously something that is also a part of ministry. That a pastor needs to look after himself. That he must study God's Word continually. ***Lexio continua we say in Latin, which means that a pastor must devote himself daily to the reading of Scriptures and the Lutheran Confessions. We also know that the pastor must meditate and go through turmoils at times and be tested in his faith. There's a Latin word that Luther said ***oratio and then he added to it ***medatatio and temptatio. These three so-called activities are part of the ministry. Because a pastor needs to go through such things as temptation, he needs to meditate. And he needs to pray. And these are those activities that will enable a minister to watch over himself. We are then also said: Keep watch over the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. You may recall that I referred to the parable of the sheep. And Jesus being the shepherd. Well, here we see that keeping watch over the flock does indicate this imagery of being as shepherds. And today when we use the word pastor, it goes back actually to the Latin word of being pastor, pastoris, that is shepherd over the flock of sheep. And that's precisely what's indicated here in the passage. And it says: Of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. That means none other than God himself has put them in the position of pastors over the flock. One final word here is overseers. I think if you look at the word overseer today, you will see that it means episkopos. Episkopos is the word for bishop. A bishop is an overseer. And we might say that a pastor is really a true bishop. Because he's asked to be an overseer of a flock that is entrusted to him. I believe strongly that these job descriptions that are given here to the elders indicate to us what a pastor is to do, as well. It shows that the apostle Paul wants a pastoral ministry to continue after he has -- his apostle has died and has been removed from the life of the church. And after the apostles there will be those that will be called pastors, overseers or bishops. But they all stand in the one office of the church. And are entrusted with the pastoral duties. Those of you who have read the letter to the apostles will know that therein are many nuggets, we may say, that refer to the pastoral ministry. And I know of some passages there that are very helpful to see how the continuation of the ministry was taking place. Take, for example, Titus 1 Verse 5. Where Titus, a servant of the apostle Paul, was encouraged to go to Crete and to install elders in the congregations. In other words, the apostle Paul said to Titus: Please, go ahead, with ensuring that the ministry continues. That ministry that God has instituted is entrusted to such congregations on Crete. And in the letter to Timothy, Chapter 6, for example, we can read therein, also, that Timothy was entrusted with a ministry. The gift was given with him with the laying on of hands. And so Timothy, too, stands in that ministry that the Lord has first begun with that of the apostles. And that ministry in which pastors today stand, as well. In II Timothy 2 Verse 2 you can read therein that Timothy, too, is encouraged to choose reliable men. And that means he has to choose people who are well equipped and who are trained so that they may continue the ministry. Our church today abides to that principle. What it says is that the church wants to encourage individuals to join the ministry of being chosen, selected, by the church. And then trained and then finally called to a congregation and then ordained. Such a procedure was also one that had been given to Timothy by the apostle Paul: Choose reliable men and these may be given the ministry. And then he also -- in one passage Timothy is encouraged not to lay on the hands too quickly. Obviously Paul is concerned that the ministry does not continue in a haphazard way and is given too quickly to someone who has not proven himself. There has always been the tradition in the Lutheran Church that one entrusts the ministry to somebody who has gone through a long process. In other words, that he has shown himself in the congregations as someone who has the gift to teach or the gift of faith and stands strong and firm in it. And then, also, one who has been selected by the District president in an interview and then referred to the seminary. The seminary then continues that selection process by educating that individual. By training him to preach. By visiting congregations. And working as a Vicar. And then finally handing them over to a congregation who requests his presence. And then finally, being ordained to it and installed in the context of that church. This is a long procedure that we have chosen. But it is a good one. Because it encourages us to follow the principle that Timothy was given. Not to lay on the hands too quickly. And of choosing reliable men for the ministry. C.F.W. Walther also wrote a number of theses on the ministry of the church. And I would like to refer you to Thesis No. 1 and No. 2. First, Thesis 1. There he says the holy ministry or pastoral office is an office distinct from the priesthood of all believers. That means that Walther knows that the ministry that is continued after the apostles has a special place that is reserved for in the church that is distinct, he says, from the priesthood of all believers. I will come later on to explain a little bit what it means to be a priest or the priesthood of all believers. In Thesis 2, Walther refers to this: The ministry of the word or the pastoral office is not a human institution. But an office that God himself has established. I would like to point to these two theses because there might be some confusion here about the status of a pastor and the pastoral ministry in the church. We need to know that it's distinctly different from all other activities in the church. There are some churches who try to call everyone into the ministry and say everyone is a minister. Those attempts, however, ignore the fact that this office that Jesus Christ has given the church is distinct and different. And I would like to place its locality in the context of the church. Particularly in the worshiping life of the congregation. For therein we need somebody to read the Scriptures. We need somebody to explain them from the pulpit. And we need somebody to forgive those who are present in front of the altar. And we need, also, those who baptize and administer the means of sacraments. In other words, it's important that we understand that this ministry cannot be distributed to all people who in some way or another teach at school or do any other services. They are what we may call auxiliary services. Those that help the pastor. But the pastor himself has been called into a distinctly different office than that of all other services that are provided in the church. That does not demean these other offices. It does not put them down. It, in fact, elevates them to the status, as I've said, of being auxiliary in their purposes. So that they may help the pastor and edify the church body. When it comes to the Augsburg Confession Article V and when we refer there to the office being instituted, some use the vocabulary of the office being instituted in the abstract sense. Rather than being concretely evident. I believe that there -- this distinction is helpful to a degree. When it says about the office being instituted in the abstract, I believe that Walther in Thesis 1 has adequately described it. Namely, by saying it is given to the church as a distinct office that they are then asked to employ a reliable person in that office. The abstract means that it is always provided to the church and given. And as long as the church exists, it will be there in the midst of all believers. Abstract can also be interpreted in this way: That the office has been given to the church. And that before it is handed over to an individual, the church claims to be in possession of it. That, too, can be understood. And is also helpful to say that this office is mediated and not given directly as the office of the apostles to the individual. When we talk about the office being concrete, we mean, thereby, that the office is given then to an individual who then stands in it concretely. And as a person administers it in forms of all the duties to which he has been asked to do. In terms of seeing the ministry of being with the church for always, I quote, also, the Thesis 3 that Walther has written on the ministry. For there he says: The ministry isn't an arbitrary office. But one whose establishment has been commanded to the church. And to which the church is ordinarily bound until the end of time. Ordinarily bound I think is an important word, which means that the church in general is bound to establish that office. It cannot get away from it. It cannot get rid of it in circumstances where it thinks it is not fit to be used. In other words, where there's a congregation, there must also be the office. Where there are believers, there must also be the preaching going on. Both form a symbiosis we may say. Both live off of each other. And where the preaching goes on, there will also be members who will hear God's Word and come to faith. You may read Romans 10, 14 Verse 17 (sic) which tells us clearly that the church relies on the Word being preached in order that faith may be given. Well, the apostle Paul asks that very important question: How can they hear? And how can they come to faith? Unless they are given somebody who can preach the Gospel. There was a time during C.F.W. Walther when he wrote his thesis of also some dispute over the status of teachers in schools. I believe that Walther chose to understand the office of teachers as one as being auxiliary to that of the pastors. In other words, Walther did not go along with some propositions made by individuals such as ***Lindeman who told him he would rather see the office of a teacher as one evolving out of that of parents. In other words, that the teachers in the school stand not on behalf of the ministry to the Word. But rather, on behalf of the parents who endow the teacher with the authority to teach their children. Walther dismissed that thought and said: There's more to the ministry of teaching at schools than one that is to be associated only with the Fourth Commandment of being in the state of the parents at school. Walther understood that teachers also served the church in a very special and important way. That there are those who will preach and teach God's Word in the forum of a classroom. There where the pastor cannot be present. I want to make sure, however, that we do not understand the church working in terms of a very important hierarchy where the pastors works and functions as kind of after overarching supervisor over the life of the congregation. The pastor, too, is in the service of the office. That means he must do something. The functions are given to him. And by functions we mean those that go along with the office of preaching, of forgiving sins. These must be actively pursued by every pastor. The pastor, however, also has an authority over the life of the church. He has a jurisdiction, if we may call it this way, over the school, as well. And if he is given a school, he will have authority over that what the teachers tell the children and also what they explain Scripture to say. In other words, the authority extends to the school. However, one important point here is to be made. That the call extended to the pastoral ministry is one that is distinctly different to the call that is extended to a teacher. The call that Jesus Christ gave the church for a minister continues today. And is one that is important in order for the Word to continue in the midst of the worshiping life. Nonetheless, however, the congregation also realizes that a call is needed for those who can continue the teaching in its private school. And it also wants that the word there is endowed to the individual's children in all its purity. And therefore, teachers play a very important role in the life of the church. And of building up this body as Ephesians 12 -- 4 Verse 12 would say. Walther in one of his thesis stated then that the pastoral office is the highest office in the church. I might add to that that the office of the ministry in the church is a very important one in the sense of when it is lost, the church -- the life of the church will also be lost. The status, the central status of the office, is, therefore, as Walther would say the highest that the church needs it to be in place and that it needs for its continuation. What then about the other officers in the church? What about that of a District president? What about those churches who have bishops? I think we can say that the offices in the church such as District president are those that have been delegated to individuals by the church. It is an office of choice, of polity. We use the term here ***diura humano in distinction to ***diura divino. Diura divino means it's by God's intent, it's by God's law and institution. And that God wants that office to continue. We see the ministry of Word and sacrament as one established diura divino. However, those offices such as district president, as bishops, are one of the ***euro humano. That is that the church decides for a particular way of arranging its life to establish offices that will have polity in place that will engage individuals and offices such as district president and other purposes such as regulating the life of various congregations. And we may include in that offices, also, that -- of a circuit counselor.