Received with thanksgiving
Pastor Paul Calnan and Pastor Michael Prenzler with some of those baptised or confirmed on Sunday 19 July.
On Sunday 19 July, Adelaide Northern Suburbs Lutheran Mission (ANSLM) experienced a wonderful event. In that service we admitted two adults into God's family through the rite of holy baptism. We then admitted a family of four, who had worshipped with us for over a year before deciding to join, into membership. Finally, we held the rite of Confirmation for five adults, most of whom had been worshipping in Lutheran churches for years but had not been confirmed in the Lutheran understanding of the faith.
I share this not to boast about our little congregation, but to encourage the rest of the church with what God is doing in LM-A. All credit must go to Him as He draws people to Himself (John 6:44) and gives them the gift of faith (Ephesians 2). At the same time, God gave the people of ANSLM an opportunity to partner in His mission, and I thought it might be helpful to share with you our collective journey. This is not meant to be a ‘formula for evangelism’ (as if there is ever only one way of bringing people into the church) but is simply an example of how opportunities unfold if we keep our spiritual eyes and ears open to the leading of the Holy Spirit.
It all started about 18 months ago when a lady heard about LM-A through YouTube and decided to check us out. When she liked what she saw, she invited her daughter along, who invited her fiancé along. They found the congregation welcoming and enjoyed the structure the liturgy gave worship and soon inquired about baptism. We decided to offer them a year-long study of the Christian faith using the 2017 edition of the Small Catechism with Explanation. When others in the congregation heard about the studies they asked if they could participate too, as many had not had the opportunity to study the Small Catechism previously (or it was a long time since they had). Eventually it just made sense to offer the course to the whole congregation after each Sunday service and a time of fellowship. We included the children by having a time of catechesis with them, then they were given some activities to do in the same room as the adults studied the Catechism in more depth. Invariably our schedule slipped somewhat due to other activities in the congregation or the pastor being away, but nobody minded (as far as I know!). We just enjoyed meeting together, studying God's Word, and particularly having the opportunity to ask questions and discuss how to apply what we were learning to our everyday lives.
The aforementioned family also participated in these studies. The Catechism was particularly helpful for them as they were not yet sure that they belonged in LM-A doctrinally. During this time, they refrained from communing to avoid burdening consciences, but they were otherwise a welcome and well-loved part of our community. Over time, and after many discussions about certain points of our teaching, they finally decided that they do belong in LM-A. It was thus a great joy to finally welcome them fully into communion on Sunday.
To finish, I would like to briefly share three points of learning from this experience that may help you in your own contexts. The first is that evangelism can start as simply as inviting others to ‘come and see’ Jesus (John 1:46). Yes, it can take courage to ask others to come to a Bible study or church, but the good news is that the outcome of the invitation is not up to us. We can invite people, make them feel welcome, but whether they stay we can leave up to Jesus.
Secondly, when it comes to instruction we do not need to rush it. If people stay because they have met Jesus and like what they see, then it is our responsibility to help them to get to know Him fully (Matt 28:16-20). While this is obviously a life-long pursuit, the Small Catechism is a great starting point. The explanations in the 2017 edition are very clear and supported throughout by copious Scripture references, so I can highly recommend it for both group and personal study.
Thirdly, I hope our experience of ‘closed communion’ encourages those of you who are concerned, that it need not automatically be ‘unloving’. When we encouraged our new members not to commune until they were sure they belonged in LM-A, we were sending a message that true Communion (i.e. based on a common understanding of the faith) is a precious gift that deserves to be protected. We assured them that we were not rejecting them but that we wanted to help them eventually commune with us in good conscience. I will not pretend that the journey was easy, but it bore fruit through patient teaching and listening.
May God encourage you with our news as we have been encouraged, and bless you as you invite people into a community that seeks to faithfully receive God's gifts of Word and Sacrament.
Pr Michael Prenzler
for Adelaide Northern Suburbs Lutheran Mission