Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope – part 61
Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
Scripture Text: 2 Thessalonians 3:14–15
Series: Lessons in the Lutheran Confessions
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From the Confessions: Treatise on the Power and Primacy of the Pope
It is certain that the common authority to excommunicate those guilty of clear offenses belongs to all pastors. The bishops have oppressively transferred this jurisdiction to themselves alone, and have used it for gain. For it is clear that the officials, as they are called, employed intolerable license and, either because of greed or because of other immoral desires, tormented men and excommunicated them without any due process of law. What tyranny it is for civil officials to have the power to arbitrarily condemn and excommunicate men without due process of law!
Pulling It Together
If anyone does not obey the apostolic word, it is the responsibility of pastors to offer a biblical corrective to that sister or brother — even if that correction goes so far as terminating church ties with those who are not faithful. This is often called an unloving thing to do, I think because it is so hard to do. So, pastors must live up to the apostolic bar, even denying Christian fellowship to those who are willfully disobedient. The hope is, that in doing so, that person will repent and be restored to Christian fellowship. If this is the apostolic injunction about laziness, we should be confident it applies to all other clear sins.
Prayer: Help me be faithful, Lord, to you and to your church. Amen
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Author
Rev. Dr. Mark E. Ryman has served as Pastor for St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Salisbury, NC, since 2021. Previously, Pastor Ryman served congregations in North Carolina and Ohio, as well as a call to specialized ministry with Sola Publishing.
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