Dear brothers,
In the face of another radical cultural shift — a denial of God and
His creation, a rejection of Christ, the Ten Commandments and God-given
natural law (Romans 1) — a great Lutheran responded with truths that are
also true for our times:
The lie is the death of man, his
temporal and his eternal death. The lie kills nations. The most powerful
nations of the world have been laid waste because of their lies.
History knows of no more unsettling sight than the judgment rendered
upon the people of an advanced culture who have rejected the truth and
are swallowed upon in a sea of lies. Where this happens, as in the case
of declining pagan antiquity, religion and law, poetry and philosophy,
life in marriage and family, in the state and society — in short, one
sphere of life after another falls sacrifice to the power and curse of
the lie. Where man can no longer bear the truth, he cannot live without
the lie. Where man denies that he and others are dying, the terrible
dissolution [of his culture] is held up as a glorious ascent, and
decline is viewed as an advance, the likes of which has never been
experienced. (Hermann Sasse, Union and Confession, 1936)
In just a few weeks, the Supreme Court is expected to rule on the
legality of same-sex marriage in America and roll out the implications
of that ruling for individual states. I expect the ruling to create an
alleged constitutional right to same-sex marriage, contrary to God’s
created orders, natural law and the inerrant Scriptures. This will be
the earnest beginning of a very long struggle for faithful Christians
who will, more and more, be driven from participation in the culture. We
shall come to know and understand parts of the Word of God like never
before. “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a
Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ” (Phil. 3:20).
Brothers, the battle has already been won. Our Lord, Jesus Christ,
has already defeated the foe. Satan surrendered at Golgotha. It is
finished.
But what do we do? If the Supreme Court rules that same-sex marriage
is legal in every state or must be recognized in every state, what is
our response?
We stand fast (2 Thess. 2:15). We live in and by our Savior, who
calls us to stay the course, to repent of our sin, to be in the Word of
God and in prayer. We redouble our teaching on God’s gift of marriage.
And we show love and mercy to those harmed by the dissolution of God’s
ordering of marriage and family, intended for protection for all. We
take legal action where absolutely necessary. “Public remedy, made
through the office of the public official, is not condemned, but is
commanded and is God’s work, according to Paul (Romans 13)” (Apology XVI
59).
The plan fits the nature of the Church: she is enduring and eternal.
She speaks Christ’s forgiveness and peace to men and women struggling
with same-sex attraction and heterosexual attraction alike, in and out
of season. She doesn’t do flash-in-the-pan or drive-by ministry. She
works in the world for the long haul. She doesn’t change her tune or
stop her singing. She keeps telling real people about a real Jesus, from
black-robed Supreme Court justices to the protestors on the steps of
that building to the young people in college watching the ruling unfold
to those of us who never imagined we would see this seismic shift in our
lifetime. And she lives to demonstrate the mercy and love of Christ (1
John 3:15ff).
Most importantly, she speaks of the One who came for sinners — all
sinners — and of the One who showed His love for us by dying for us. She
simply stays the course.
That’s why you, dear brothers in the Office, will need our prayers in
the days ahead. And you will have them. Legal marriage may be
redefined, and outcomes we never imagined will occur. But these don’t
surprise or alarm us. The crumbling culture merely proves that what
began in the Garden of Eden is still prevalent today, that we are
sinners among sinners, that we are all in need of Christ’s mercy and
grace. This world is wending its way toward the end (Matthew 25). The
story ends well (Revelation 7). That is what those in the pew and those
disenchanted by the people in the pew need to hear, and will always need
to hear, the most.
Beyond the theological consequences of this ruling, however, there
are also practical implications, and I urge you to consider the
following:
(1) The Synod’s legal team is carefully examining the potential
ramifications of this case. It will likely be a messy ruling that will
require time to unpack. We may discover that there is ultimately no
constitutional protection for the Synod, its institutions, you or your
congregation. We don’t know, but we will be reporting back to you with
our findings.
(2) Your congregation should give serious thought to obtaining counsel from your own attorney. Also consider utilizing the Synod’s document on marriage policies for member congregations,
which offers sample provisions limiting the use of church property to
marriages that are consistent with LCMS beliefs. The day may come when
even this legal protection will not be enough, but it may assist you and
your congregational leadership in forestalling issues as long as
possible.
(3) Be prepared to discuss what marriage will look like in the
future. Will LCMS pastors eventually be forced, as agents of the state,
to perform same-sex marriages? If that happens, will we be prepared to
let the state perform the legal marriage ceremony, while we as pastors
provide a religious ceremony for those marriages that are in keeping
with our confession of faith as Lutheran Christians? We must have these
discussions as pastors and as a Synod, and we may even need to make
decisions at the next Synod convention in the summer of 2016.
(4) Know that I, as Synod president, stand with you. What protections
will the Synod or even the Constitution offer you? I don’t know. But
here is what I am personally sure of: The Gospel is enduring. It never
changes. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. We as
pastors are called to repent and to be faithful to Him — and to His
Gospel — alone. Will we be fined for not performing same-sex marriages?
Potentially. Will we be thrown in jail? Maybe. A recently deceased
Catholic bishop (Cardinal George) described what I believe we shall now
begin to face: “I expect to die in bed, my successor will die in prison
and his successor will die a martyr in the public square. His successor
will pick up the shards of a ruined society and slowly help rebuild
civilization, as the church has done so often in human history.”
Make no mistake, the battle has been won. The devil has been
defeated. The Victor reigns triumphant in mercy, love and truth. The
Gospel knows no limits, but proclaims the gracious kingdom of our Lord
to all, through Christ’s Word and Sacraments.
The temptation will be to run out into the melee, to abandon the home
front or to give up all together. But we are called instead to repent,
to be ready, to move confidently into the future, come what may. We
speak the truth in love to all. We share Christ’s forgiveness with each
person He sets in our path.
And the Lord will work all things for good, even these trying times. He is faithful, brothers. He will do it.
In Christ,
Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison
President, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod |
I am not a pastor, but as a member of an LCMS congregation, I read Rev Harrison's letter with great interest. I have been following this issue closely, and have often commented against same gender marriage on Internet blogs and in news forums over the past few years. As Rev Harrison indicated, our culture is crumbling morally, faithful believers will be sorely tested in the future, and I might add that persecution is coming. The progressive movement and the radical homosexual agenda is about to unleash a ruthless assault directly on faithful Christian churches, while the liberal churches which already adhere to carnal and cultural values will be unaffected. In fact, they will be praised and rewarded with continued tax exempt status by the state for their enlightened approach to sexuality and contemporary values. What of the faithful churches? Expect that homosexual activists will deliberately seek to be married in these churches, even though liberal churches are available. The tactic of the left is to force a confrontation, confident that litigation and intimidation, and the heavy boot of government anti-discrimination laws will put churches into compliance. I seriously wonder if some churches will relent, and allow their facilities to be used for same gender ceremonies....but it could be far worse than even that.....pastors may face fines and imprisonment for not conducting such weddings. I have never felt so ashamed of my country as I do now, but perhaps this had to happen as a wake up call. God is purging His church, and we will all realize soon that we are in the world, but not of the world.....strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
ReplyDeleteJohn, while I have no "crystal ball" with which I can peer into the future, I can say that many share your concerns. No matter what happens, though, we are to remain faithful to the word (both upper-case and lower-case).
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