Minutia like hair, dress, jewelry, food, drink, and ceremony can become the focus for some, but for Christians, Christ and his gospel must be the focus.
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Ceremonial laws are Jewish, not Christian, and so often entrap consciences, which Jesus came to liberate and give peace and certainty of forgiveness.
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We gather together on the Lord's day, yet no day is any better than another in terms of salvation, for days do not save; the Lord of day is the Savior.
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Bishops or pastors may make ordinances so that there is order in the church but these may not be said to merit grace or make satisfaction for sins.
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The gospel prohibits making ordinances necessary for meriting grace, so it follows that it is not lawful for any bishop to institute such things.
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Bishops have no right to burden the church with obligations of false righteousness, for these do not help us trust in the merit of Christ alone.
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There is one thing that settles the matter of sin, or our righteousness before God, and that one thing is faith in the saving work of Christ Jesus alone.
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It is against Scripture to establish or require any tradition, if the observance is to make satisfaction for sins, or to earn grace and righteousness.
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Church and State must be kept separate, leaving it to God to work his left-hand kingdom for the good of the right-hand, and vice-versa.
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More good in the world is accomplished by the church faithfully and sincerely praying our Lord's prayer than we can possibly imagine.
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God's Word is the true power of God on earth, so why would a bishop wish to water down the church's authority with civil governance?
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The Church has power in spiritual matters, the State dealing with all else. Each overreaches when they enter into the affairs of the other.
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Once monastic vows are understood to be human inventions, they are null and void; one is freed to live a normal life as God has commanded.
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Anyone in any calling of life, may be a servant of Christ, without taking special orders in the church, for all vocations are holy orders when done for God.
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To say that one may do something — anything at all — that could earn God's grace is an insult to the gospel of our Lord and to Christ himself.
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The Lutherans believed that marriages could not be annulled by monastic vows, the opposite being the case: marriage vows annul monastic obligations.
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Lutherans teach that vows of celibacy are not sacramental, nor are they binding in cases where one did not understand what was being promised.
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Some promises must be broken, for example, when God's Word and order are at stake, promises should be reconsidered in the light of God's love.
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Because of the temptation to immorality, the commandment of God is that each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband.
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Paul admits that he is not perfect, but struggling against his flesh, he presses on toward the goal of completeness, in spite of his imperfect state.
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Lutherans do not believe that "holy orders" such as monastic vows are sacraments, means of receiving grace, let alone earning God's grace.
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Having certain kinds of traditions and services, even those that are correct and in good order, or not having them, does not make us righteous with God.
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Discipline your body, yes, with exercise and diet, and spiritual disciplines also like fasting and vigils, but not think these are the things that save you.
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The kingdom God is neither regulated nor guarded by religious customs, works, or laws, but by the sheer grace of God received through faith alone.
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Grace and the righteousness of faith cannot be understood in the churches if people think that they earn grace by observances of their own choice.
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Will a burnt offering or performing religious rituals according to tradition bring you peace of mind, or will the grace of God believed in the heart?
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Religious traditions can obscure the way of God, especially when those traditions are said to earn God's favor which is gifted by grace alone.
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We should eschew human rituals and rules said to earn grace, as grace is not something earned but instead, the free gift of God for Christ's sake.
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Praise God for his mercy instead of worrying that you have forgotten some other sin for which an imaginary, angry god would hold you accountable.
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