On September 25-26 I attended the Lutheran CORE (The COalition for
REnewal) Convocation in Fishers, Indiana. Roy and Rachel Gibbs and Marty
Montgomery accompanied me. During that weekend I joined Lutheran CORE.

First, let me say a few things about CORE. This group came into
existence four years ago as a reform movement within the ELCA. The folks
at CORE have been focused on returning Lutheran Christianity back to the
authority of the Scriptures as our source and norm for life in the
church. They have been working hard to stop the leftward drift of the
ELCA concerning many of the social issues of the day. Human Sexuality
seems to be the hot button issue that has brought the crisis that our
Church is now facing. In fact, these ethical and moral issues on
sexuality have been discussed since the ELCA was formed in 1987. It has
been an issue that hasn’t gone away. During the 2009 ELCA Church Wide
Assembly in Minneapolis, resolutions passed to allow pastors of the ELCA
to bless same sex unions. It also made it possible for persons involved
in publicly accountable lifelong homosexual relationships to be ordained
as pastors in the ELCA.

I will be perfectly honest. I am disappointed with these decisions
because I believe they deviate from the teachings of Scripture.
Proponents of these changes have cited Scripture (yes they used scripture
too) along with human experience, human reason, science and social
psychology to push these changes. Scripture became one of many voices
for the church instead of The Voice God’s Will revealed through the Holy
Scriptures.

I believe that this vote has overturned 2,000 years of Church teaching on
biblical sexual ethics. As for Good Shepherd Lutheran nothing will
change. There will be no same sex unions performed by me as your pastor,
and believe I have the support of the council on this one. But I also
know we have folks that are sympathetic to other side of the issue. I am
your pastor too even if we disagree on this one. While I am on the
traditional side on this issue, I know do not always live out the answer
that God calls me to live. It is at this point I feel the Holy Spirit
driving me to my knees before our Almighty and loving God to repent when
I have gotten it wrong. These times have been very difficult and painful
for me as well as for other pastors that agree with me because I am too a
sinner and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).

Persons who struggle with homosexuality have always been welcomed and
will continue to be welcomed to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. To tell
you the truth, everyone is welcome. We all need to hear God’s promises,
receive the sacrament of Holy Communion and God’s offer of a new and
transformed life in Good News of God in Jesus Christ.

At the Lutheran CORE Convocation 1,200 laity and clergy were in
attendance. 75% of the attendance was laity. To say that
singing “Almighty Fortress is Our God” with all those voices present was
inspiring would be an understatement. We met to discuss life after the
August 2009 Church Wide Assembly decisions. A Constitution was adopted
for the next year or two as CORE begins to seek ways to support
traditional congregations and pastors during this time. There was
excitement and a positive sense of looking forward to what God may be
calling us to in the future. What this future looks like remains to be
seen. When it comes to the way God works I dare not speculate. I signed
up to do what I can to be part of this future. And God willing, He will
give me the courage and gifts to do the work.

For all of us who are part of Good Shepherd Lutheran, this is a time for
prayerful discernment concerning our future as a congregation in the ELCA
or as part of CORE or a member of another Lutheran denomination. We do
not want to make any hasty, knee jerk decisions at this time. Hasty
decisions without prayer end up being the wrong decisions. Hasty
decisions for the right reasons without prayer end up shallow in
commitment.

In the meantime, we have much work to do. People need to hear about what
God has done in Jesus Christ and how His death and resurrection brings us
to new life and salvation. We need to be people who worship our Triune
God deeper. We need to be people who dive deeper into the Scriptures and
prayer. We need to continue to serve our neighbor and encourage one
another as we live out our faith in this faith community. And finally,
we need to listen to God’s Spirit where He might be leading us into the
future.

My next article will deal with some practical aspects of our life
together as a congregation.

In Christ’s Service,

Pastor Dave