Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference

 

How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

Reformation Greetings from Russia

By

                        Worshippers on October 30, 2022

The day of the Reformation is a great feast for the church of God! After apostolic times, the false doctrine of salvation by good works spread more and more in the church. The gospel truth of salvation through faith in the substitutionary work of the Savior was on the verge of extinction. And so, when the time came, the merciful God, through the doctor of theology Martin Luther, freed the church from false teachings and returned the saving message of the Bible to its place. The truth about Christ and salvation through faith alone has triumphed!

Luther expressed this biblical teaching in these words: “At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night, I gave heed to the context of the words, namely, ‘In it the righteousness of God is revealed, as it is written, He who through faith is righteous shall live.’ There I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely by faith…. Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates.”
 
We, the conservative Lutherans of Russia, share this great biblical teaching with Martin Luther. Today and all the days of our lives, we thank and glorify God for his saving Word, for grace, for our faith in Christ as our substitute at the judgment of God!

Submitted by Pastor Arkady Sedelnikov
Chairman of the Council of the Centralized Religious Organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Russia

       

The Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference

The Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference is a worldwide fellowship of Lutheran church bodies, committed to the teachings of the Lutheran Church found in the Book of Concord of 1580. Established in 1993 with thirteen churches, the CELC has grown by God’s grace to include thirty-four church bodies today.

Every three years, representatives from CELC churches gather for fellowship and theological study at an international convention. Regional meetings are held in alternate years. These gatherings provide spiritual encouragement for confessional Lutherans who often find themselves quite isolated. Visitors are always welcome at these gatherings

Joint work of the CELC includes the writing of The Eternal Word: A Lutheran Confession for the Twenty-First Century, which testifies to the unity of doctrine enjoyed by CELC churches. The CELC also has a commission to help coordinate and improve theological training in CELC churches.

Speaking about the heart and core of the CELC, former President Gaylin Schmeling wrote:  “The CELC stands ready to give answer to the confident hope of salvation in Christ that is within us. It is a refuge for those seeking confessional homes and a beacon shining the light of the Gospel in a sin-darkened world. Here the central truth of the Reformation, justification by faith alone, continues to be proclaimed. We are declared righteous by nothing we do or accomplish, but alone on the basis of Christ’s redemptive work which is counted as ours through faith in the Savior. He accomplished salvation for all on the cross and announced it to all by His resurrection, declaring the whole world righteous in Christ. This treasure is brought to us personally through the means of grace and is received by faith alone in the Savior which is worked through those very means of grace.”

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