# Der Lutheraner_St. Louis Missouri_1848 12 26_S65
# AI translation — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

Der Lutheraner.

"God's Word and Luther's doctrine shall not pass away, now or evermore."

Published by the German Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States.

Edited by C. F. W. Walther.

Volume 5.  St. Louis, Mo., December 26, 1848.  No. 9.

Terms: Der Lutheraner appears once every two weeks at the yearly subscription price of One Dollar for out-of-town subscribers, who are to pay in advance and bear the postage. — In St. Louis each single number is sold for 5 cents.
Only those letters which contain communications for the paper are to be sent to the editor; all others, which contain business matters, orders, cancellations, money, etc., are to be sent here under the address: Mr. F. W. Barthel, care of C. F. W. Walther, St. Louis, Mo.

On the Marks of the True Church

or

by what a simple Christian can recognize what, where, and who the holy Christian Church is, that is, the holy, Christian people of God.

(From Luther's great, precious, and excellent writing: "On the Councils and the Churches," of the year 1539. See Luther's Works, Halle edition, Volume XVI, page 2784 ff.)

The children's creed teaches us that a Christian holy people must be and remain on earth until the end of the world. For it is an article of faith which cannot cease until that comes which it believes, as Christ promises, Matt. 28:20: "Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world." By what then can a poor erring man perceive where such a Christian holy people is in the world? It is indeed to be in this life and upon earth; for it believes, to be sure, that a heavenly state and eternal life will come, but it does not yet have it; therefore it must still be and remain in this life and in this world until the end of the world. For it says: I believe in another life; thereby it confesses that it is not yet in that life, but believes, hopes, and loves it as its true fatherland and life, and must meanwhile remain and wait in exile, as one sings in the hymn of the Holy Ghost: When we depart from this exile, Kyrie eleison. Of this we are to speak.

First, this Christian, holy people is to be recognized by this, that it has the holy Word of God. Although the same goes forward unequally, as St. Paul says, 1 Cor. 3:12, 13. Some have it altogether pure, some not altogether pure. Those who have it pure are called those who build gold, silver, precious stones upon the foundation; those who have it impure are called those who build hay, straw, wood upon the foundation, yet are saved through fire. This is the chief thing and the high chief holy thing, from which the Christian people is called holy. For God's Word is holy and sanctifies everything it touches; yea, it is God's holiness itself, Rom. 1:16: "It is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth"; and 1 Tim. 4:5: "It is sanctified by the word of God and prayer." For the Holy Ghost himself leads it, and anoints and sanctifies the Church, that is, the Christian, holy people, with this, and not with the chrism*) of the pope, with which he anoints or sanctifies fingers, garments, coats, chalice, and stones. For those things never learn to love God, to believe, to praise, to be pious. They may adorn the sack of maggots, which afterward rots and decays, with chrism and holiness, as much as there is of it, together with the sack of maggots.

*) Salböl [anointing oil].

But this holy thing is the true holy thing, the true ointment, which anoints unto eternal life, even though you can have no papal crown nor bishop's hat, but must live and die in bare naked body, just as the little children (and we all) are baptized naked and without any ornament. But we speak of the outward Word, preached orally through men, as through you and me. For this Christ has left behind him as an outward sign, by which one should recognize his churches, or his holy Christian people in the world. We also speak of such an oral Word as is believed in earnest and openly confessed before the world, as he says, Matt. 10:32, 33; Mark 8:9: "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father and his angels." For there are many who know it well in secret, but will not confess it. Many have it, who nevertheless do not believe it or act accordingly. For few are they who believe it and act accordingly. As the parable of the seed, Matt. 13:4, says, that three parts of the field receive and have it indeed, but only the fourth part, the fine good soil, brings forth fruit with patience.

Where, then, you hear or see such Word preached, believed, confessed, and acted upon, there have no doubt that there surely must be a true Ecclesia sancta catholica, and a Christian holy people, 1 Pet. 2:9, even if there be very few of them. For God's Word does not go forth void, Isa. 55:11, but must have at the very least a fourth part or piece of the field. And if there were no other sign than this alone, it would be sufficient to show that there must be a Christian holy people in that place. For God's Word cannot be without God's people. Again, God's people cannot be without God's Word. Who would otherwise preach it or hear it preached, if there were no people of God there? And what could or would God's people believe, if God's Word were not there?

And this is the thing which does all miracles, brings everything to rights, sustains everything, accomplishes everything, does everything, drives out all devils, such as pilgrimage-devils, indulgence-devils, bull-devils, brotherhood-devils, saint-devils, mass-devils, purgatory-devils, cloister-devils, priest-devils, sect-devils, riot-devils, heretic-devils, all pope-devils, also Antinomian-devils,*) yet not without outcry and tearing, as he shows in the poor men, Mark 1:23, 26; ch. 9:5. Nay, he must leave an outcry and rending behind him when he is to go out, as one sees in Emser, Eck, Rotzlöffel, Schmid, Wetzel, Tölpel, Knebel, Filtz, Rültz, Säu, Esel, and the like, his criers and writers, who are all the devil's mouth and members, through which he so cries and rends; but it does them no good, he must out, and cannot bear the power of the Word. For they themselves confess that it is indeed God's Word and the Holy Scripture, but that one can have it better from the Fathers and Councils. Let those go; it is enough that we know how the chief thing, the chief holy thing, keeps, holds, nourishes, strengthens, and protects the Church, as St. Augustine also says: Ecclesia verbo Dei generatur, alitur, nutritur, roboratur.**) But who they are that persecute and condemn it, they name themselves by their own fruits.

*) Antinomians were heretics who rejected the Law.

**) That is, the Church of God is born, nourished, and strengthened by the Word.

Secondly, one recognizes God's people, or the Christian, holy people, by the holy Sacrament of Baptism, where it is rightly taught, believed, and used according to Christ's ordinance.