Sola Fide and the Welcoming Church
Sermon Series on “All Are Welcome.”
Lutherans are saved by Grace through Faith. Faith is not an activity. You cannot get good at having faith by believing something. Faith is the work of God. It comes from the outside when you hear the word of God. When the human heart slowly starts to trust that Grace is really a free gift that comes without condition, that state of being is what Lutherans call faith. God has managed to get inside your head and heart.
Through our living out our call to be Agents of Grace we create opportunities so that people can have the same experience. Central part of that call is welcoming all people God puts in our path. “All are Welcome,” is a claim every church makes. Experience teaches many people that this welcome does not include them because they are persons of color, have an accent, are gay, or anything else that makes them different. Consequently many people believe that this statement of welcome is little more than an empty slogan. We have to try to be as welcoming as God is graceful. Grace comes without condition and our welcome should also come without condition.
Rev. Olaf Baumann, sermon, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Port Angeles WA.
Check out our video ministry 1517 Grace Guerrilla
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv2aB-i9zHPqgh3NjUJ5-lg
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