LCMS

Grace Lutheran Church is affiliated with The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), a Bible-centered Christian Church dedicated to bringing the good news of God's love to all people, regardless of their circumstances or station in life.

The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod teaches and responds to the love of the Triune God: The Father (creator of all things); Jesus Christ, His Son (who became human to suffer and die for the sins of all human beings and to rise to life again in the one victory over death and Satan); and the Holy Spirit (who creates faith through God's Word and the Sacraments). These three persons of the Trinity are co-equal and co-eternal; they are the one, true God.

Since Grace is a Lutheran congregation, we accept and teach the Bible, God's Holy Word to us.  The voice of the Lutheran church confesses those things we receive in God's Word.  Our “confession” can be summarized in three short phrases:

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 Scriptura (Scripture Alone):  The Bible is God's inspired Word.  The Bible is without error.  Here God reveals His Law and His Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. The Bible is the sole rule for Christian teaching and practice.

Sola Fide (Faith Alone):  By His suffering and death as our substitute, Jesus Christ obtained forgiveness and eternal life for us. Those who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life Christ won for us.  God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness through Him.

A Brief History

The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod traces its origins to immigrants who came to Missouri in 1839 seeking freedom from religious persecution in Germany. The first official meeting was held in Chicago in 1847. The twelve original congregations of 3,000 persons is now a membership of 2.7 million members more than 6,300 congregations.  The Synod also has 10 colleges, two seminaries, 70 high schools, and the nation's largest Protestant elementary school system. The Synod has 8,500 pastors, 10,000 parochial school teachers, and numerous missionaries and workers serving congregations, schools, and mission fields around the world.

The word “synod” means to walk together.  Congregations of the LCMS (Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod) walk together in our beliefs to accomplish mission and ministry goals that would be impossible for one congregation to accomplish alone.

This includes the training of missionaries, pastors, teachers, and other professional church workers and Bible-based Christian publishing.  The LCMS is also recognized as one of the world leaders in World Relief.