CALC is
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God's New Creation of Lutheranism in North America for the 21st century.
God has created us, He sustains us and He redeems us. God creates us anew,
through his Word, into the image of Jesus Christ our Savior, by us experiencing the cross in our lives.
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Scripture is
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the authority, not merely authoritative. The Scriptures are the Word of God not
merely words about God but the Word from God. Scripture is clear and there is
an internal clarity to Scripture. Any ambiguity or contradictions that one may
find in Scripture is not the fault of Scripture but is our fault. No one
understands one thing of what is in the Scriptures unless he has the Spirit
of God. All people have a darkened heart. Scripture interprets us.
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The Confessions are
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what defines us as Lutherans. CALC is deeply rooted in the
Book of Concord
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The Word of God
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is an active Word. It does what it says it does. As Paul says in 2 Cor: 3:6 "The
written code kills but the Spirit gives life". The works of God are so deeply
hidden that they only appear under "the opposite form." The Word is expressed as law and Gospel.
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The Word of the Cross, alone, is
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our theology and the wisdom of the cross, alone, is our Doctrine. Jesus is the Truth.
The Holy Spirit, through the Word, reveals the truth to us and creates certainty in our hearts.
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Justification is
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the central message of Scripture. On this article rests all that we teach and practice.
Martin Luther says: "The first and chief article is this, that Jesus Christ, our God and Lord,
"was put to death for our trespasses and raised again for our justification" (Rom. 4:25).
He alone is "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). "God has
laid upon him the iniquities of us all" (Isa. 53:6). Moreover, "all have sinned," and "they
are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, by
his blood" (Rom. 3:23-25).
Inasmuch as this must be believed and cannot be obtained or apprehended by any work,
law, or merit, it is clear and certain that such faith alone justifies us, as St. P
aul says in Romans 3, "For we hold that a man is justified by faith apart from works
of law" (Rom. 3:28), and again, "that he [God] himself is righteous and that he
justifies him who has faith in Jesus" (Rom. 3:26)"
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Faith comes
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by hearing and hearing through the word of the cross being
proclaimed. God gathers us, through word and sacrament, into
community (congregations) and then gathers us into An Assembly
of Hearts in One Faith (CALC). Monitoring doctrine, roll of
pastors, training and church planting is assigned to CALC. The
true Church is hidden and invisible, as faith is the evidence
of things not seen. We belong to the true church only in hope
and prayer.
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All of us are
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the same as to status, irrespective of office, all are sinners and all are justified by faith.
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Free will
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after the fall exists in name only, and as long as it does
what it is able to do, it commits a mortal sin. Christ is the
end, that is, both goal and cessation of the law to those who
have faith, freedom of faith for which Christ has set us free
is the liberation of the conscience from the power of the law,
sin and death. The Gospel is offensive in two ways: it liberates
us who are captives and it creates a new creation and a new
age. Freedom means a life of service. In those matters below
us, our congregations have total freedom over their own affairs:
owning of property, calling and choosing of Pastors, coming
and leaving CALC and selecting delegates to our annual National
Convention.
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Ministry standards means
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a baptized member who confesses Jesus is the Christ. With our election comes the
task of proclaiming Jesus into the world.
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Office of ministry standards means
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quality training for our Pastors. CALC is a designated training
center for the Institute of Lutheran Theology. We are developing
innovative ways of training Priests, future Pastors and leaders
as servants of the Kingdom to start in 2009.
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Office of Pastors is
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subordinated to the Word. The Pastor, on behalf of the congregation,
has the authority to preach the Word and to distribute the Sacraments.
The Pastor has no power/authority over other people. The duties
are to comfort the mourning, to console the depressed, to bring
the promise of redemption to those who seek redemption, and
to carry forth into the world the Word of the merciful God with
its promise of salvation. Also, the duty is through the Word
to equip the Priests for ministry. God calls our Pastors to
a life of service.
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Our lives
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are hidden in Christ, a life of prayer, meditation and suffering.
We boast of the Grace of God. Humility and fear of God are our
"eternal merits". The Holy Spirit instructs us in His own school.
He uses experience to affect the whole person. Faith is not
experience but it is experienced.
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Jesus speaks
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to us "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit".
We do not give lip service to His Great Commission. Each of us is accountable to God.
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