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 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. -- John 1:1, 14 -- ______________________________________________________________________________
 Living Word is an independent Lutheran church. This means we are "non-denominational" in that we are not affiliated with a national church body at this time. We are therefore free to find and use the best teachings and materials each Lutheran group has to offer. We are also free to remain focused on Gospel proclamation rather than spend time and resources discussing the many controversial political issues of our day.
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What We Believe About God - There is only one true God, and yet in this one God there
are three persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ), and the Holy
Spirit, as taught in the three Ecumenical creeds of the church.
-- A creed is simply a statement or confession of what one believes.
About the Bible Jesus said, "The Scriptures testify
about me." (John 5:39) - The main message of the Bible is the good news of God's
work to reconcile the world to Himself through the life, death and resurrection
of Jesus. Throughout Old and New Testaments, the central message of the Scripture
is the account of how God was in the world preparing it to receive His Son and
then what His Son did when He was here.
- The Bible reveals God's perfect holiness and righteousness,
and His expectation of perfection. His Law, summarized best in the Ten Commandments,
reveals our sinful rebellion and our inability to save ourselves. The Gospel
is the joyful news that our Lord Jesus Christ has given us complete forgiveness
from our sins through His life, death and resurrection for us.
- The most important message of the
Bible is not the Law of God. The Bible is not merely a collection of principles
for daily living. The Bible is not a textbook that answers every possible question
we may have. Nor for that matter is the Bible a book that predicts every last
detail about the future. The central and most important teaching in the Bible
is the Gospel, the good news of God's gift of salvation through Jesus Christ.(1)
About Salvation The teaching of Luther and the reformers can be summarized in three short phrases: Grace alone, Faith alone, Scripture alone. - Grace alone: God loves the people of the world, even
though they are sinful, rebel against Him and do not deserve His love.
He sent Jesus, His Son, to love the unlovable and save the ungodly.
- Faith alone: By
His suffering and death as the substitute for all people of all time,
Jesus purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for them. Those
who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life that it
offers. God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness
through Him.
- Scripture alone: The
Bible is God's Word, in which He reveals His Law and His Gospel of
salvation in Jesus Christ. It is the sole rule and norm for Christian
doctrine.
About the Church - We believe in the Priesthood of all Believers. While
some are set aside for formal pastoral ministry, we are all ministers
of the Gospel, called to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
- Article 7 of the Augsburg Confession states: The church exists where "the Gospel is rightly taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered. And to the true unity of the Church it is enough to agree
concerning the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration
of the Sacraments. Nor is it necessary that human traditions,
that is, rites or ceremonies, instituted by men, should be
everywhere alike. As Paul says: One faith, one Baptism, one
God and Father of all, etc. Eph. 4, 5. 6." (emphasis added)
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Links -- online learning for everyone!
Things we support:
Sermon Links
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