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LEHRE UND WEHRE
MAGAZIN FUER Ev.-LUTH. HOMILETIK
THEOLOGICAL QUARTERLY· THEOLOGICAL MONTHLY
Vol. XVI August, 1945 No.8
CONTENTS
Paa'.
The Lord's Prayer, the Pastor's Prayer. G. H. Smukal _.____ 505
Christian Fellowship. (Concluded.) c. August Hardt ___........ _ 513
Keeping the Doctrine Pure. J. H. C. Fritz ________._ 533
Ontlines on Gospels Adopted by Synodical Conference ___ _ 54Z
Miscellanea ___.____._......_._ ..___........ ____._....__ 55Z
7heoI0gical Observer _ ...... _._._._._.__._._...... _._ ..._.....___ 558
Book Review .___....... _ .. _ ...__.. __ .._ ... __ ._._____.____ 5'lZ
&In PredI.Ier _ 1I1c:ht aUeln 1Del Ell lat · Itela DID& du die Leute
.... alIo daa er die Scbafe unter melIr bel der Kln:he behaelt deDn
__ wl.e ale rechte ChrlIten aollen dIe gu1e Predqt. - Apolocrte. An. 24
....~ auch clllDebeil den Woe!
feD _"",,,- dau ale dIe Schafe II1cht
IIIIIJNIfeD und mit tal8cher Lebre ver If the trumpet lift an uncertIJn
fuebreD und Irrtum eIJIfuebreD. sound. who Iball prepare ~ to
~ the battle? -1 Cor. 14:'
PuhllsW for the
BY. Lath. S7JIOd of MIsIIoarI, Ohio, uti 0tIIer State. '--11'
CONCORDIA PUBLISHING BOUSE, St.Louis 18, 110.
_IIIV. L&.
'.
Christian Fellowship 513
pious, and that he may not be disqualified as pastor by conditions
in his home. 1 Tim. 3: 5.
Making provision for later years is not a sin. Neglect of pro-
viding for the rainy day is a sin, of which some congregations and
pastors are guilty. Our synodical pension system is a gift of God
and should be received with thanksgiving. After years of tireless
activity in the Naehrstand, Wehrstand, and Lehrstand the pastor
and his wife enter the Ruhestand. The new generation rises. Old
associations pass away. The pastor and his sacrificing service are
almost forgotten. "New leaf, new life, new love." The aged pastor,
yet young in spirit, does not suit the newer day. It is difficult for
him to adapt himelf when he reaches the crossing where God has
placed the sign pointing to the Ruhestand . He is haunted by a
sense of uselessness. "At evening time it shall be light," Zech.14: 7.
Give us this day our daily bread! Sometimes we emphasize too
much the darkness and uncertainty of the future and too little the
brightness of it. The proverb which teaches us not to boast of the
morrow, for we know not what a day may bring for th , does not
deny the element of darkness and ignorance; but it ascribes that
ignorance to us, not to the future.
Our blessed Lord Jesus put a last question to His disciples
before rising to go t o the Mount of Olives, Luke 22: 35. "When
I sent you without purse and scrip and shoes, lacked ye anything?"
And shall we, who in spite of painful economy had at times an
empty purse, a worthless scrip, torn shoes, not gratefully join the
company of the holy Apostles in their answer: "Nothing"?
Los Angeles, Calif. G. H. SMUKAL
~ . ,
Christian Fellowship
(Concluded)
IV
Restrictions upon Manifestations of Christian Fellowship
After having dwelt at some length on the manifestations of
Christian fellowship, we now come to consider restrictions upon
such manifestations. Let us begin by stating the obvious: There
are restrictions; not man-made, originating in the decrees of
church councils or in synodical resolutions, to be sure, but im-
posed by God Himself, the Head of the Church. To us this may
seem self-evident, yet it is not conceded by all who lay claim to
the name "Christian." There are those who aver that Christian
fellowship must be unrestricted. Nothing must be allowed to limit
it, they say, for that would be contrary to the spirit of the Founder
of our faith, who openly consorted with publicans and sinners.
33
514 Christian Fellowship
"Self-withdrawal and exclusiveness belong to the religion of the
Old Testament; the New Testament requires communion of all
who partake of its spirit, even with those in whom the life of
Christ does not yet bear sway." 113) The position which we have
maintained in our Synod for almost one hundred years is branded
as unchristian aloofness, which has no warrant in Holy Writ.
How shall we defend ourselves against such charges? By
appealing our case to the Word of God. It should . be said at the
very outset that all those who criticize us severely because of our
refusal to practice indiscriminate church fellowship are guilty of
the same mistake that so many religionists make; they emphasize
one or several passages of Scripture to support their argument,
but partially or totally disregard others which invalidate their as-
sertions. Excluding believers from Christian fellowship, they say,
is not consonant with the principle of Christian love. They point
to such words as, "Judge not, and ye shall not be judged; condemn
not, and ye shall not be condemned"-114) "Above all things have
fervent charity among yourselves," 115) but ignore all those passages
which bind reproof, correction, separation, and even excommuni-
cation upon the hearts and consciences of believers. When the
Tempter subtly urged Christ to cast Himself down from the pin-
nacle of the Temple, and even quoted Scripture to seduce Him,
our Redeemer did not find the real deceit in this, that Satan omitted
a significant phrase from P salm 91, but that he quoted one verse
of Scripture without taking into account what was said else-
where. For this reason Christ rejected the sinister suggestion of
the evil one by replying: "It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt
the Lord, thy God." 116) "Scriptura per Scripturam interpretanda
et concilianda." (Bengel.) One Biblical truth cannot be incon-
sistent with another. If we have learned of Jesus to see the truth
as revealed in Scripture, and to see it whole, we shall know that
there are definite restrictions upon the manifestations of Christian
fellowship. They result, first, from an ungodly life.
1. Reshictions Resulting from Unholy Living
That there are restrictions upon Christian fellowship we may
gather, first, from 2 Thess. 3, where Paul writes: "Now we com-
mand you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that
ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh dis-
orderly and not after the tradition which he received of us." 117)
Further on he says: "1£ any man obey not our word by this epistle,
note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be
113) John F. Spalding, The Best Mode of Working a Parish, p . 89.
114) Luke 6: 37. 116) Matt. 4: 6, 7.
115) 1 Pet. 4: 8. 117) 2 Thess. 3: 6.
'= ristian Fe 515
ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as
a brother." 118) 'The Apostle is referring to the idlers who, mis-
interpreting his words about the imminence of the Lord's return,
worked not at all, but --.'ere busy'::::::~:::: Obviously, the words
vv ltndraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly,"
(iTEAAHP:Jm u/-tuc; ano mJ.'V"to~ a()EA.cpou en; f EQ1J[(noiivl '''have
no company with him," !-Ll] (iuvuvu/-t(yvlIol}(u utn;