What We Believe

Zion Lutheran believes that:

The One True God has revealed Himself in three persons: the Father Almighty, His Only Son - Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit - Who proceeds from the Father and the Son. The deity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is one - equal in glory, coequal in majesty.
The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the sole atonement for the sins of all creation.
One is saved from sin, Satan, and death by the grace of God the Father, through faith in Jesus, which is given by the Holy Spirit alone.
Faith in Jesus Christ is a work of God given through both being baptized into His Name and through hearing the proclamation of His Word.
The Church is the community of saints in which the Gospel is purely taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered. The Church strives to walk together until our Lord returns. The simplest summary of our faith is contained in Dr. Luther's Small Catechism.
We subscribe that these teachings are clearest as contained in the Book of Concord.

God's Word and Sacrament:

As a confessional congregation of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod, we believe that we cannot be justified before God by our own powers, merits, or works. We are justified as a gift on account of Christ by grace through faith in Him alone. We are adopted and received into God's family by either hearing the proclamation of this gospel or being baptized into His name. With Martin Luther and the church fathers, we believe that God deals with us by means of His external Word and Sacrament.

We will now return to the Gospel, which does not give us counsel and aid against sin in only one way. God is superabundantly generous in His grace: First, through the spoken Word, by which the forgiveness of sins is preached in the whole world [Luke 24:45-47]. This is the particular office of the Gospel. Second, through Baptism. Third, through the holy Sacrament of the Altar. Fourth, through the Power of the Keys. Also through the mutual conversation and consolation of the brethren, "Where two or three are gathered" (Matthew 18:20) and other such verses [especially Romans 1:12]. - SA:III:IV

Holy Baptism:

Holy Baptism is a miracle where a sinner is moved from death to life. It is simply the moment when a spiritually dead infant, child, adolescent, or adult is brought to life, delivered from sin, Satan, and death, and is delivered into the Reign and Rule of the Father. All of this is done by God the Father, who connects the individual to His Son Jesus Christ under the mystery of and by means of the Holy Spirit. It is the greatest of comforts to know that Baptism is solely God's work and, in it, He chooses you.

Concerning Baptism, our churches teach that Baptism is necessary for salvation [Mark 16:16] and that God's grace is offered through Baptism [Titus 3:4-7]. They teach that children are to be baptized [Acts 2:38-39]. Being offered to God through Baptism, they are received into God's grace. Our churches condemn the Anabaptists, who reject the Baptism of children, and say that children are saved without Baptism. -AC:IX

Holy Absolution:

Absolution is God's forgiveness. God truly provides His Church the power to proclaim this forgiveness to the world. Through the pastor's proclamation of Jesus, a sinner truly becomes a saint. Through a parent's forgiveness in Jesus' name, a child truly is forgiven as by God Himself. Thus, the visible element in Absolution is the Christian himself. Absolution is dispensed by the entire Church to anyone who feels condemned by their sin. It has been given above and beyond the other sacraments and has been instituted precisely so that we can use and practice it every hour, keeping it with us at all times. Absolution is the mutual conversation and consolation of Christian brothers and sisters.

The Keys are an office and power given by Christ to the Church for binding and loosing sin [Matthew 16:19]. This applies not only to gross and well-known sins, but also to subtle, hidden sins that are known only to God. As it is written, "Who can discern his errors?" (Psalm 19:12). And St. Paul himself complains that "with my flesh I serve the law of sin" (Romans 7:25). It is not our power to judge which, how great, and how many the sins are. This belongs to God alone. As it is written, "Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you" (Psalm 143:2). Paul says, "I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted" (1 Corinthians 4:4). - SA:III:VII

Holy Communion:

The Lord's Supper is a miracle where the very Body and Blood of Jesus are present: in this meal, with the bread and wine, under the mystery of the Holy Spirit. The Lord's Supper gives forgiveness, strengthens faith, and is a foretaste of the feast to come on the Last Day. The Christian should participate in the Lord's Supper as often as they are able, which is why we make it available several times in a month, both publicly and privately. That being said, if you are not a member of Zion we would encourage you to talk to an elder or pastor before you participate in this sacred meal. We admit those who believe in the real presence of Christ, have discerned and repented of their sin, and are members in good standing of a sister congregation of the LC-MS.

Our churches teach that the body and blood of Christ are truly present and distributed to those who eat the Lord's Supper [1 Corinthians 10:16]. They reject those who teach otherwise. - AC:X

Of the Sacrament of the Altar, we hold that the bread and wine in the Supper are Christ's true body and blood. These are given and received not only by the godly but also by wicked Christians [1 Corinthians 11:29-30]. - SA:III:VI