West Koshkonong Lutheran Church,

Dane County, Cottage Grove, Wisconsin

May 30 - June 5, 1878

Dear brethren! Grace be with you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ! I greet you all sincerely with this apostolic greeting as we are gathered for the general convention of the Synod. I believe our hearts are singularly moved in this hour. There is so much which has to awaken in us an earnest festive anticipation by our coming together, but more than anything else, our hearts fill with laud and praise of him who has brought us so graciously thus far and let the lines fall for us in pleasant places.

Since the synod was divided into districts according to the new constitution, we are now gathered for the first time for a joint synod meeting. We sense the importance of it. It is also going to help hold together and intimately to knit together for general cooperation what otherwise can so easily fragment itself through special interests.

But we are gathered this time also for a Jubilee Festival. It is twenty-five years since some few congregational representatives and pastors came together in this congregation, deliberated, and in the name of God adopted a synodical constitution and formed the Norwegian Lutheran Synod in America.²¹ Now when after the passage of almost a generation we can greet the old colleagues and companions-in-arms, and see them, together with so many new, fresh faces who have joined in the course of time, again, in the name of God, tirelessly to go to work and to continue the same work which was begun then - the establishment of the Lutheran Church among us here in America, should it not fill our hearts with true joy? And even if this is mixed with sadness at the loss of this or that dear brother and faithful warrior from the old days whom the Lord called “from strife in the world to peace” at the end of a day’s work, should our joy possibly be interrupted by that when we consider the perfect bliss they now enjoy in the heavenly assembly above, and that exactly the work to which they first applied themselves with us twenty-five years ago in great weakness, through the blessing of God, became for them, as for thousands of other blessed people, an instrument in his hand to help them in obtaining so perfect a joy?

In great weakness, this we confess, that meager beginning occurred. And in great weakness on our part, this we also humbly confess, the work has continued. To us belongs confusion of face but our joy will be the more pure, our thanks to the Lord and Ruler of the Church will be the more perfect when we see that also here the Lord himself has preserved his Word, that his strength is revealed in our weakness. And his power has revealed itself mightily. His grace has been rich toward our synod in these twenty-five years. Yes, he has done great things for us and therefore we are glad.

Even if I could, it is not my intention to enumerate here the blessings of God upon our synod. We can easily see the outward growth: twenty-eight congregations with twelve thousand souls it was who with their seven pastors and forty-two representatives founded this synod and now after the passage of twenty-five years it numbers over one hundred forty pastors with four hundred ninety-three congregations with about one hundred twenty-five thousand souls. At that time none of our pastors and only a few congregations were outside Wisconsin, and that synod meeting consisted of fifty members who gathered over in the East church. Now the Lord has extended the boundaries of our synod so that they stretch out even beyond the United States and today we see almost as many pastors and representatives gathering for this meeting from the farthest regions of the country. Whereas the president of the synod at that time, our dear Pastor A.C. Preus, reported to us in his report to the synod, to our pleasant surprise, that two new churches had been built and three were under construction, two of stone and one of logs, today our district presidents could report that no less than a score of new churches were constructed in the most recent year, and we could travel thousands of miles and rejoice everywhere at the sight of large crowds who gather in hundreds of houses of God for our edifying services, and at seeing hundreds of them here, trained at our synod’s institutions to be servants of the Word, breaking the Bread of Life for their countrymen.

Yet all of this, though, is, of course, important only as a testimony, and that, only to a certain degree, of the synod’s inner spiritual growth when the Means of Grace through which the Spirit works are present unimpaired. But it is precisely the greatest proof of grace from God toward our synod that he has preserved his Word pure and the Sacraments unadulterated, yes, through many kinds of tests and struggles helped it to obtain not only a clearer knowledge and a more perfect confession, but we dare to hope also a more sincere appropriation of the saving truth of the Gospel. The streams of the rivers of waters have flowed uninterrupted and every thirsty soul has been able to come and drink of the waters, has been able to buy without money and without price. How many of us there are who honestly have used the good opportunity God has thus given us in our synod to hear his Word, to accept it by faith and be saved from this wicked generation, only he knows who knows the hearts and who is going to reveal also this on that Great Day. May God grant that they be many! The Word of God says to us, however, “Many are called but few are chosen.” But whether many or few in our synod are able to say with Paul, “the grace of God has not been in vain,” and, “I know in whom I believe,” yet we cannot sufficiently thank the Lord that he has borne with us and has not become tired of us so that he removed the candlestick from its place, but thus far has let his light shine upon us and made him who is the way, the truth and the life, known to us.

Just as he is accustomed to doing, the evil foe has certainly not stopped trying to sow the evil seed of error among us since our synod was founded. But his efforts have not succeeded. We have God’s unmerited grace to praise for it that they have much rather served to the victory and confirmation of the truth in our synod.

Not that he has failed completely, so that hardly anyone has been misled, no rift has appeared. Even now we think with sadness of those who were with us in the beginning but who have left us. Even if we say of those who were misled, “they were not of us, therefore they departed from us,” we still extend our arms to them that they should return and build the walls of Zion with us, except, however, that we will not cover up the rift falsely. But thus has it happened that through the temptations of the evil foe and through the accompanying trials and struggles, God has taught us to take heed to the Word and to base our faith on it and it alone, and he has helped our synod more and more to obtain unity in knowledge and a certainty and firmness in the confession which in any case was not the distinguishing feature of our synod in its first days. And here we say again, not in this way that there is no more unclearness within our synod nor often disunity concerning the doctrines of faith also. Alas! We must lament our great deficiency in such respects. But in this way, that errors do not hold equality with the truth within our synod, and just as little do all kinds of trends and opinions have homestead rights in it. In this way the truth has become a power within our synod and it is generally acknowledged as such a power, to which the synod as well as its pastors and other members have to submit. Also in this way, that this truth is confessed and defended harmoniously and the trumpet is giving a clear sound throughout our camp. In other words, the Lord has helped our synod to obtain a purity, and a purity in doctrine which is its best adornment as well as its most precious treasure. And it shall not be suppressed here what we owe the Missouri Synod for the guidance, encouragement and strengthening which as God’s instrument it has rendered us in this matter as in so many others.

But if the unity of the Spirit is a gift of grace over which we can justifiably rejoice at this Jubilee Festival of our synod and of which our synod has become partaker more and more through the development and struggle God has let it go through, then surely the Word of the Lord applies to us, “Hold fast what you have, so that no one shall take your crown!” Yes, brethren, if the work of our synod is going to succeed in the coming days, then let us take to heart and earnestly lay upon one another’s heart the apostle Paul’s admonition to the congregation in Ephesus, “Endeavor to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace”! The apostle knows that the congregation’s success, yes, existence, depends on its being zealous in following this admonition. He knows that if it is disregarded, then disunity, dissension and partisanship will soon hinder the growth and development of the congregation, cause disturbance, yes, divisions, and ultimately the ruin of the congregation.

Neither do we have any reason to rest on our laurels and think that we shall remain undisturbed in the possession of the good thing which, unmerited, God has bestowed upon us. Our enemy shows that he does not sleep. Unity in faith and doctrine is always a thorn in his eye and has long been the object of our adversaries’ hatred and scorn. Yet neither do we fear that in the future the cry of intolerance, spiritual tyranny, etc., shall be able to accomplish very much if the willing submission to the Word and resignation to the Spirit’s discipline, which in connection with true humility and brotherly love, are requisites for unity of the Spirit and its distinctive feature, did not have a bitter adversary in our own flesh and blood. Pride is the innermost spiritual nature of the old Adam. When he is in control he is generally indifferent toward the truth. False unionism therefore has constantly been his favorite thought, even if only political.

Our synod does well to guard itself against him. “Let him who thinks he is standing, take heed lest he fall!” But “if you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples,” says Christ. Surely, the more genuinely we appropriate the divine truth in the Word to ourselves in believing hearts, and surely the sweeter grace in Christ tastes to our heart, and surely the more earnestly it lies upon our hearts to bear fruit to the glory of God and to the salvation and blessedness of our souls, the more firmly will we “continue in the Word of the Lord and continue in that which we have learned and which is entrusted to us because we know of whom we have learned them.” The more will we then also “hold fast to the correct form of the sound words of faith and love in Christ Jesus, not quarreling about words, which is of no benefit, but to the leading astray of those who hear,” and “avoid questions and disputes from which come pride, quarrels,” and the like. Therefore Paul also says, “But I admonish you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you should speak the same thing, and that there might be no division among you, but that you should be firmly united in the same mind and the same opinion.”

On the other hand, the pride of the natural heart will reveal itself in a self-importance and obstinacy which regards its own as the best, and stubbornly holds to it partly from spite, partly out of contempt for the true welfare of others. If we allow these evil passions, which the enemy is constantly fanning, to have free sway among us, the hatred and bitterness can soon come to separate us and to rend the hearts asunder which were bound together in the unity of the Spirit. They will become a consuming fire which destroys what the fire of love should warm and promote. There is never a lack of combustible material, not even now. Our flesh can also take many occasions for temptation from the dividing of our synod into districts which has taken place according to the new constitution and from the special interests which it can so easily produce. Therefore, brethren, it certainly applies to us all that we be at our post against the enemy we bear in our own bosom, as well as against those who are without, and that we “strive to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Let us seek after peace, and pursue it! The peacemakers surely have the promise that they shall inherit the earth. Let us give ourselves to one another sincerely in brotherly love and come before each other with respect, and every one submit ourselves the one to the other in love and in the fear of God! He opposes the proud but he gives grace to the humble. Neither let us be stirred up or led astray by a hostile, unscrupulous daily press, or by such who interfere in our affairs without any interest in God and the business of the church in order to sow weeds in our church’s fields, who just want to talk big and set the tone also in religious matters although they lack spiritual discernment for judging spiritual things, who most often are revealed as those who are only serving the belly.

Much rather let us keep away from such leaders, but hold together sincerely in faith, humility and brotherly love! What the devil wants to use to kindle division and dissension, you see, that shall God in grace let become for us a stimulus to outdo each other in deeds of love, more genuinely joined together and united through the mutual help the members thus render one another, then shall the growth of the whole body of the synod increase to its edification in love. May God grant it to us by his grace and to that end let also the discussions of this meeting and this our Jubilee Festival be blessed in Jesus’ name!

21 The fact is that after a preparatory meeting in Muskego on February 2, 1852, a motion for a synodical constitution was adopted. It was reviewed and adopted at a meeting in Koshkonong’s East Church on February 5, 1853. Then after having received the approval of the congregations it was adopted as the binding synodical constitution for the 28 congregations and 7 pastors who thus organized as the Norwegian Lutheran Synod in America at the meeting held in Luther Valley on the first Monday in October, 1853. (This footnote appears in the 1878 report of the convention.)