What's a Lutheran? (8) The Church Is Defined by Word and Sacrament

According to article 7 of the Augsburg Confession, the church – the body of Christ present in the world – exists wherever “the Gospel is rightly taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered.”  Submission to the pope or any other hierarchical authority is not necessary for church unity, nor is uniformity of rites, ceremonies, or practices.  We therefore recognize that the Spirit is at work wherever the Gospel and the sacraments are found, even in communities that are not Lutheran and among people with whom we otherwise disagree.

Church structures, including the ordained ministry, are clearly important for good order within the Christian community and we therefore receive these as gifts from God.  However, we do not accept that any particular form of hierarchy or church order is mandated by Scripture or strictly necessary for the church to be recognized as present.

Likewise, styles of worship or particular Christian practices or forms of prayer may be very meaningful to some people – and therefore are to be encouraged – but can never be required or imposed by anyone.  For example, many people find that occasional fasting can be a very helpful spiritual practice and, if so, they should embrace it – but if anyone tries to tell you that fasting on a particular day is required and it’s a sin not to do it, don’t listen to them.  You might even want to eat a double cheeseburger on that day, just to make the point.

Because all church structures are relative to God’s promises to be present in Word and Sacrament, the church is therefore always in need of reform.  As much as we celebrate the work of Reformation launched by Martin Luther and others in the 16th century, we can never be content to rest on our laurels but must always be looking ahead to the new things that God is doing to reform the church in every age.