IMMANUEL LUTHERAN CHURCH AND SCHOOL
What is a
Lutheran?
WELCOME!
We are thankful that you are here learning more about Immanuel Lutheran Church. Whether you are an eighth-generation Lutheran or simply exploring and not quite sure what brought you here, we trust that this is not by accident.
We are a church body of the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. We believe Christ is truly present among us through His Word and Sacraments, coming to serve, forgive, and strengthen His people. In response to these gifts of grace, we gather to pray, praise, and give thanks, receiving all that He freely gives.
What does it mean to be Lutheran?
Our congregation teaches and confesses the truths of God’s Word as revealed in the Bible. During the Reformation of the Christian church in the 16th century, Martin Luther helped bring renewed clarity to these teachings. The central message recovered at that time is often summarized in three phrases: Grace alone, Faith alone, Scripture alone.
Sola Gratia-Grace Alone
God loves the people of the world, even though they are sinful, rebel against Him and do not deserve His love. He sent Jesus, His Son, to love the unlovable and save the ungodly.
Sola Fide-Faith Alone
By His suffering and death as the substitute for all people of all time, Jesus purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for them. Those who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life that it offers. God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness through Him.
Sola Scriptura-Scripture Alone
The Bible is God’s inerrant and infallible Word, in which He reveals His Law and His Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. It is the sole rule and norm for Christian doctrine.
What do we believe about...
Jesus Christ
We confess that Jesus is true God and true man in one person. He is the Son of God who was crucified and raised from the dead for the salvation of all who trust in Him. Christ is not Jesus’s last name, but identifies Him as the Messiah (Christ is the Greek translation of Messiah), the fulfillment of the Old Testament promises that God saves His people.
This fulfillment and salvation happened in history in real time and in a real place (first century AD in Israel) through a flesh-and-blood person named Jesus.
Jesus physically died on a cross and physically rose from the dead in three days. He physically ascended into heaven, and the Church awaits His second coming when He will judge all people.Those who trust in Jesus as their Savior will rise to eternal life in heaven. Those who deny Jesus and live in their sin will be cast out of His presence to hell.
Trinity
We believe in the Triune God. Scripture reveals that there is only one true God, and He has revealed Himself in three distinct persons in one divine being.
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the Father, creator of all that exists
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Jesus Christ, the Son, who became human to suffer and die for the sins of all human beings and to rise to life again in the ultimate victory over death and Satan
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the Holy Spirit, who creates faith through God’s Word and Sacraments.
The Bible
We believe the Bible is inspired, or “God-breathed,” and wholly true. It is the Book above all books—the true and trustworthy Word of God. Both the Old and New Testaments reveal God’s work of creation, His promises, and His plan of salvation fulfilled in His Son, Jesus Christ. The miracles recorded in the Gospels and the teachings of Jesus are true and reliable.
In Scripture, we also recognize the distinction between Law and Gospel: the Law shows us our sin and our need for a Savior, while the Gospel reveals God’s grace in Christ, proclaiming forgiveness, life, and salvation. Through His Word, God makes Himself known and brings His love to the world.
Baptism
Lutherans believe that Holy Baptism is not merely a symbol, but a gracious work of God through which He gives forgiveness of sins, new life, and faith in Christ. Through Baptism, God places His name on us, joins us to the death and resurrection of Jesus, and gives the gift of the Holy Spirit. Because Baptism is God’s work—one of His “means of grace”—it is a way He delivers the salvation Christ has won for us. For this reason, we baptize infants as well as adults, trusting that God’s promises are for all people, including children.
At the same time, we do not believe Baptism is a human work or a guarantee of salvation apart from faith. The faith given in Baptism is meant to be nurtured through God’s Word throughout a person’s life. Scripture teaches that all people, even infants, are in need of salvation and that God is able to create faith in them. In this way, Baptism reflects the heart of the Gospel: that salvation is God’s free gift of grace in Christ, received by faith, not something we earn or achieve.
Holy Communion
In Holy Communion, we believe that our Lord Jesus Christ truly gives us His body and blood, in, with, and under the bread and wine, for the forgiveness of sins. Instituted by Christ Himself, this Sacrament is a gift of grace where He comes to us personally, strengthening our faith and assuring us of His mercy. From ancient times, the Church has recognized that Holy Communion is for baptized Christians and a confession of unity in faith; when you receive the Lord’s Supper, you are publicly expressing agreement with the teachings of Scripture as confessed in the Book of Concord.
We believe that God delivers His gifts of grace through specific means—His Word and His Sacraments, including Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Through these, He gives forgiveness of sins, strengthens faith for daily life, and provides the sure hope of eternal life. Each time we gather for worship, God comes to serve us with these gifts, and in response, we offer Him our prayers, praise, and thanksgiving.
Abortion
God’s Fifth Commandment is clear,“You shall not murder.” This means, in the words of the Small Catechism, that “we should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, but help and support him in every physical need.” God forbids us to take the life of another person, and this most certainly includes abortion.
God’s Word also says,“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart” (Jer. 1:5). Psalm 139:16 says,“Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.”
Homosexuality
The Lord teaches us through His Word homosexuality is a sin and is distortion of His desire that one man and one woman live together in marriage as husband and wife. God categorically prohibits homosexuality. Just as His Word prohibits premarital sexual relations. It is not an unforgivable sin. Through His Word, God teaches us very clearly that homosexuality is a sin. A person who persists in homosexual behavior stands under the condemnation of God’s Word. This is true for anyone who persists in sin without repentance.
