Matthew 22:37-40 … ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Lutherans are followers of Jesus. We have been influenced by Martin Luther, a 16th century theologian, who after struggling with the teaching of the church at the time, found a new way of looking at God. He discovered that we could never earn God’s favor through any efforts of our own.
God loves us unconditionally because that is who God is!
Grace alone
Grace is one of those church words we hear a lot. It simply means that we don’t have to earn belonging. It isn’t about who we are, who we know, how much we have, or any human definition of success. We can’t make ourselves perfect or holy. In fact, we admit we are flawed and will mess up horribly at times.
Nevertheless, God loves us perfectly and unconditionally, not because of who we are, but because of who God is.
Grace is a pure gift from God!
Faith alone
Faith is another church word that is used a lot. Faith is nothing more than coming to trust God’s promises of forgiveness of sin and eternal life.
Faith is also a gift from God. We don’t create our own faith, but it is given to us through the Holy Spirit. When we hear the gospel preached, the Holy Spirit instills faith in us.
Christ alone
It is only through Jesus Christ that we are saved by faith and grace. God sent Jesus Christ to teach us and die for us. His death on the cross provided forgiveness for our sins. His resurrection on the third day provided us with eternal life. His teachings point us to loving God and loving our neighbor.