Trinity is a Lutheran church, a member congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The ELCA motto is “God’s work; Our hands,” and at Trinity we are always trying to live that out, using our hands (and feet and voices and resources) to accomplish the work that God is calling us to in the world.
A core Lutheran belief is that all people are made acceptable to God BY God; there is nothing that we do or can do to make it happen. Nothing we can say, nothing we can do… God’s love and favor and mercy are a gift, given by God to us, and no one can take that gift away or withhold it from us. God loves us, full stop. You will often hear this gift called “grace.”
“But now, irrespective of law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
– Romans 3:21-24
“I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”
– Martin Luther, explanation of the third petition of the Apostles’ Creed, Small Catechism.
For more information about the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, please refer to their website at www.elca.org.
ELCA faith statements and teaching resources are available here. ELCA social statements addressing issues of universal concern from our faith perspective can be found by clicking here.