The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel by CFW Walther

1. The Proper Distinction Between Law and Gospel by CFW Walther ~ The Eighth ~ Evening Lecture

2. Review: • In Thesis III, Walther says that rightly distinguishing Law from Gospel is “…the most difficult and highest art of Christians. It is taught only_____________ in the school of ______________.” • When only can a pastor – or any Christian – properly apply Law and Gospel to other people? • When speaking Law and Gospel, it is not enough to say things that may be understood correctly. One must speak so that one cannot possibly be _______________.

3. 1. Jewish scholars of the middle ages taught that the Bible had a secret meaning hidden in scriptural numbers (the Cabala). Catholic theology says that the Bible is so difficult that we need church tradition to interpret it correctly. But what did Martin Luther say?(pg 59 ) • “There is not a plainer book on earth than the Holy Scriptures. It is, in comparison with all other books, what the sun is compared with all other luminaries. ”

4. 2. Walther says that, as long as you stick to the clear words of Scripture, it is absolutely impossible to do what? (pg 60) • “…to prove an error or even a contradiction in Scripture.”

5. 3. What is the most important requirement for anyone who wants to understand the teachings of Holy Scripture? (pg 60 bottom) • “…the correct understanding of the distinction between the Law and the Gospel.”

6. Thesis IV • The true knowledge of the distinction between the Law and the Gospel is not only a glorious light, affording the correct understanding of the entire Holy Scriptures, but without this knowledge Scripture is and remains a sealed book.

7. 4. If you don’t understand the distinction between Law and Gospel, what does the Bible appear to be full of? (pg 61 top) • “…a person receives the impression that a great number of contradictions are contained in the Scriptures; in fact, the entire Scripture seem to be made up of contradictions, worse than the Koran.” • When the rich youth asked the Lord: “What good things shall I do that I may have eternal life?” the Lord replied: “If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.” When the jailer at Philippi addressed the identical question to Paul and Silas, he received this answer: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.”

8. 5. Some think that the Old Testament of the Bible is about the Law, and the New Testament is about the Gospel. Is this true? (pg 62 top) • “No; we find both teachings in the Old as well as in the New Testament. ”

9. 6. Walther says that the writings of the early church fathers show a good understanding of Law and Gospel up to about the 500s A.D. What happened after that? (pg 62) • “From that time on we notice that this light is growing dim and that the distinction is gradually forgotten.”

10. 7. What problem did even Martin Luther suffer from in the early part of his career? (pg 62 bottom) • “…he had acquired a great deal of knowledge at the beginning of his career, but he did not know how to distinguish the Law from the Gospel. Oh, the toil and torments he had to undergo!”

11. 8. Walther shows how distinguishing Law and Gospel among his parishioners is absolutely vital in the work of a pastor. But what is of paramount importance? (pg 63 bottom) • “The matter of paramount importance, of course, will always be this, that you have experienced this distinction upon yourself. ”

12. 9. How far apart should Law and Gospel be separated? What answer does the Apology of the Augsburg Confession give? (pg 64 top) • “For rightly to understand the benefit of Christ and the great treasure of the Gospel (which Paul extols so greatly), we must separate as far as the heavens are from the earth the promise of God and the grace that is offered, on the one hand, from the Law, on the other.”

13. 10. According to Walther, who alone can “lie down and die in peace,” and why? (pg 64 bottom) • “He [who] has received an indelible impression of the distinction between the Law and the Gospel. Only he can lie down and die in peace.” • “The devil may whisper all manner of insinuations to him, but he will say to him: ‘Your charges against me are quite correct; but I have another doctrine, which tells me something altogether different. I am glad that the Law has put me in such a woeful plight; for now I can relish the Gospel all the more.’”

14. 11. Some preachers are considered very effective because their sermons are terrifying. But what is often the reason for this?(pg 65 middle) • “They terrify, to be sure, but their incisiveness is due to the fact that they confound the Law with the Gospel.”

15. 12. Sadly, many churchgoers end up on their deathbed still uncertain about whether they are really saved. Whose fault is this? (pg 65) • “Many a one among them dies with the thoughts in his heart: ‘I’ll see whether God will receive me.’ Anyone dying in such uncertainty does not depart in saving faith. Now, whose fault is it, at least in many instances? The preacher’s.”

16. 13. The Law prepares the ground for the Gospel. What is the first step on the road to salvation? (pg 65 bottom) • “We are on the right way to salvation the moment we are convinced that we are ungodly.”

17. 14. Martin Chemnitz was the most important theologian of the 17th century. What did he say is the “principal matter” in correctly understanding justification? (pg 66 top) • “The principal matter in this inquiry regarding justification is that the true and proper distinction between the Law and the Gospel be fixed and carefully maintained.”

18. 15. Was Luther the first person to recognize the corruption of the Christian church and try to reform it?(pg 66 middle) • No. “Great councils of the Church wanted to make an attempt at reforming the Church; mighty emperors had undertaken this task. What did they accomplish? Nothing. Matters went from bad to worse”

19. 16. What critical warning does Walther issue to the young seminarians in his audience? (pg 66 bottom) • “May God, then, who has kindled this light for us, preserve it unto us! …We, who are old, will soon be in our graves. The light began to shine once more in our time. See to it that it is not put out again.”