What We Believe

Services

Sundays - 9:00 AM

Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church Core Beliefs


Bible

A cradle that holds the infant Jesus. Baby blankets that clothe the newborn Christ.

Lutherans often use these well-known metaphors from Martin Luther to describe the Christian Scriptures and their importance. These simple metaphors clearly and profoundly describe both what the Scriptures are and what is their purpose.

Simply stated, the Scriptures tell about Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit uses the Scriptures to present Jesus to all who listen to or read them. That is why Lutheran Christians say that the Scriptures are the “source and norm” of their teaching and practice. As the writer of the Gospel of John wrote, “these things are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31).

Obviously, the Scriptures that are collected into a book or Bible describe and speak about many other things — everything from the creation of the world to the world’s end. Because these writings originate from a time period that spans about a thousand years and come to us in a variety of handwritten manuscripts and fragments, they have been studied carefully with all the tools of research that are available. This research continues to enrich understanding of the Scriptures and their message. The ELCA constitution states: "This church accepts the canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the inspired Word of God and the authoritative source and norm of its proclamation, faith, and life."

Despite the diversity of viewpoints and the complexity of the many narratives contained in the Scriptures, Lutheran Christians believe that the story of God’s steadfast love and mercy in Jesus is the heart and center of what the Scriptures have to say.

God

"We believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth"

We believe that God made humanity and all creatures; that God has given us our body and soul, our reason and all our senses, and still takes care of them. God richly and daily provides us with all that we need to support our body and life. God defends us against all danger and guards and protects us from all evil. All this God does out of parental care, divine goodness, and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in us.

Jesus Christ

"We believe in Jesus Christ, God's only son, our Lord"

We believe that Jesus Christ is truly God and also truly human, He was a human born in what is now Israel/Palestine who's human mother was called Mary, who conceived him by the power of the Holy Spirit. We believe that Jesus is Lord and has redeemed us with his holy, precious blood and with his innocent suffering and death. We believe that Jesus rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven where he lives and reigns for all eternity. We believe that at an unknown time and date, Jesus will come again to our known world to redeem and transform it.

The Holy Spirit

"We believe in the Holy Spirit"

We believe that we cannot by our own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, but the Holy Spirit calls us by the Gospel, enlightens us with God's gifts, and sanctifies and keeps us in the true faith. We believe that the Holy Spirit inspires us and guides us in faithful lives that reflect the glory of God. At the same time, we recognize the Holy Spirit as a divine mystery whose actions cannot be explained or predicted. "The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." - John 3:8

Humanity

We believe that humanity was made in God's image and that God called us "very good." (Genesis 1:31) Humans, however, are separated from God by sin and must be reconciled with God and receive God's free gift of grace and forgiveness. We receive God's grace not because of our own actions, but because of the action of Christ on the cross that has reconciled us with God and opened the way for us to everlasting life.

Salvation

God forgives daily and richly all sins of all believers, and on the last day will raise us up, and will give to all believers in Christ everlasting life. This is not an action of our own doing, but a gift from God through the action of Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.