Third Article: The Holy Spirit

Third Article: The Holy Spirit

The way that Luther ordered his Small Catechism was an ordering that went from Law to Gospel to how to live as he moved from the Ten Commandments to the Creed and on to the Lord’s Prayer.  The Creed is the part of the catechism that tells believers what they ought to believe and believing begins with the Holy Spirit.  Luther makes this crystal clear:

I believe that by my own understanding or strength I cannot believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to him, but instead the Holy Spirit has called me through the gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, made me holy and kept me in the true faith, just as he calls, gathers, enlightens, and makes holy the whole Christian church on earth. . . 

The Holy Spirit is what calls believers to faith.  The fact that we have any faith whatsoever is not because of our own desire or will but is a gift of the Holy Spirit within us.  Thus faith can never be a good work that we perform or perfect.  It is given to us, stirred within us through the Word and Spirit of God.  Not only that, but also through the Holy Spirit we are given daily the forgiveness of our sin and eternal life.

This journey of being made holy before God is the Spirit’s work.  It begins at our baptism (or perhaps even before our baptism if we are adults who by the Spirit’s gracious work has led us to the local parish) and it is a life long path that we travel.  Luther describes the process of the Spirit’s work in our lives, “He first leads us into his holy community, placing us in the church’s lap, where he preaches to us and brings us to Christ.”

  This comment shows just how important the community of faith is in bringing people into a life of discipleship.  The Spirit works through the community, through the preacher and the sermon, and through the fellowship and constant care and attention that believers offer to one another via the Holy Spirit.  Without the Spirit’s work we could never know anything about Jesus, salvation, or this new life that is offered to us through the Gospel.  Through this process, which is an ongoing series of events, we are made holy and we come to a deeper understanding of what God is doing in, with and among us.  

This does not mean that we will never experience conflict or pain within the community of believers.  On the contrary, we will at some point or other have a difficult experience with our fellow Christians.  Those difficulties, conflicts or arguments do not in any way negate what God is doing!  It is simply that sin enters in and distorts communal life, therefore we have to learn to be understanding and forgiving of one another recognizing that we are all in the process of becoming holy in Christ.  But it all starts in that wonderful, Spirit filled place called the local congregation!  Each week we are brought closer to Christ as we hear the Spirit’s preaching and respond to the grace that is showered upon through Word and Sacrament.  Each day the community grows in faith and demonstrates the fruits of the Spirit in the wider community.  Luther would go so far as to say that outside of this Holy Spirit-created-community there is no holiness or forgiveness.

  What is important for us to remember as we work at being community is that we are called to be together; and that is by no mere accident!  The Holy Spirit has a plan for us and paying attention to the Spirit’s moving in our collective life can help us as we are drawn into a deeper relationship with God.  We do it together, never alone, because God created us for community and desires that we would use our Spirit-donned-gifts to share the good news of Christ with everyone we meet so that they might experience faith and a transformed life.