Theology beacon dictionary of theology

See fruit of the spirit, christlikeness. For Further Reading: Metz, Studies in Biblical Holi­ness, 191-96; Kittel, 4:377. james L. porter

In biblical literature "lord" is a translation of a variety of Hebrew words referring both directly and indirectly to God and Christ. The Hebrew word for God in His essential being is Elohim. The word Yahweh (Jehovah), designating His re­lationship to man, is at once grounded in man's experience and God's Lordship, as in "Thus has Yahweh spoken."

The Greek Kurios is most frequently translated "Lord" but also has other meanings. Many En­glish translations, e.g., KJV, NASB, NIV, RSV, use capital and small capital letters—Lord—for Kur­ios when it is a translation from the Hebrew Ado-nia (which in turn represents Yahweh).

In late Judaism the Lord (Kurios) was perceived

In the NT, Lord (Kurios) is the name for God in quotations and reminiscences of the OT where the Septuagint is usually followed. The same word, Kurios, which is translated "Lord" to refer to God or Christ ("The Lord said unto my Lord" [Luke 20:42]), has also secular meanings vari­ously translated "master," "lord," "owner," and "sir," as a form of polite address.

Jesus addressed God His Father as "Lord of heaven and earth" (Matt. 11:25). Here Jesus rec­ognized His Father as the uncaused divine will while at the same time evincing that His own voluntary subservience to the divine will was in no way either indicative or productive of a lack of willpower.

This attitude of Jesus to His Father gives in­sight into the early confession where the title and name, Lord, was ascribed to Jesus. According to Paul, "Every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord" (Phil. 2:11, nasb). His Lordship is the consequence of His humble obedience freely chosen. "He humbled Himself by becoming obe­dient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (v. 8, nasb).

See JEHOVAH (YAHWEH), CHRIST.

For Further Reading: GMS, 328-32; Kittel, 3:1039-95.

Joseph H. Mayfield

LORD'S DAY. This is Sunday, the first day of the week, the special Christian day of worship.

The term appears in the NT only in Rev. 1:10 where it provides the temporal setting of the rev­elation given John on Patmos. Despite its appear­ance in this apocalyptic context, it is doubtful that the "Lord's day" (Kyriake hemera) refers to the eschatological "Day of the Lord" (always he hem-era [tou] Kyriou). The term in other early Chris­tian literature (e.g., Didache 14.1; Ignatius of Antioch's Letter to the Magnesians 9.1; Justin Mar­tyr's First Apology 67.7; Epistle of Barnabas 15.9; and the Gospel of Peter 9.35; 12.50) always refers to Sunday (and exceptionally more specifically to Easter Sunday).

The pagan term "Sunday" is certainly of later origin than the Jewish "first day of the week" (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:2; Luke 24:1; John 20:1, 19; Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2), and the equivalent "eighth day" (cf. John 20:26 and later Christian usage)—and probably later than the specifically Christian designation, the "Lord's day."

The fact that Christians created a new name for only one day of the week suggests its im­portance, but not necessarily the significance of the specific designation, "Lord's day." The ex­pression may imply that Sunday (1) as a day be­longs to the Lord in some special way; (2) was inaugurated and observed on the Lord's author­ity; (3). weekly anticipates the eschatological Day of the Lord; or, with greater probability (4) serves as a weekly memorial of Jesus' resurrection; and (5) is the special day on which the "Lord's sup­per" (Kyriakon deipnon [1 Cor. 11:20]) was cele­brated.

Scripture nowhere specifically commands the transfer of the day of worship from the Jewish Sabbath to the Lord's day. Nevertheless, proba­bly from the very earliest days of the post-Easter Christian community (cf. references above for "first day") but certainly by no later than a.d. 150 0ustin Martyr's First Apology 67), the Lord's day was the chief day of worship,the climactic focal point of which was the Eucharist. Thus the de­cree of the Roman Emperor Constantine in a.d. 321, making Sunday a public holiday, did not change but merely recognized and officially sanctioned a long-standing Christian customary practice.

See sunday sabbatarianism, law, worship.

In the early centuries of the Church, the Lord's Prayer was a part of the worship service. Cyril tells us that in Jerusalem the prayer was used at the end of the Eucharistic prayers before the Communion. This leads to the conclusion that the privilege of public use of the Lord's Prayer was reserved for the full members of the church. The candidates for believer's baptism learned the Lord's Prayer either shortly before or immedi­ately after baptism. Thereafter they prayed it

The prayer is composed of an address, six peti­tions, and a closing doxology. Although it was not unusual for Jewish prayers to be addressed to God as Father, it is remarkable that in the OT God is addressed as Father only 14 times, all of which were very important. Jesus' instructing His disciples to call God "Father" is the more astounding when we examine the word for "Fa­ther" in Jesus' spoken language, Aramaic. The Early Church fathers Chrysostom, Theodor, and Theodoret, who came from Antioch and had Aramaic-speaking nurses, tell us that abba was the address of the small child to his father. The Talmud confirms it: "The first words for a child when it learns to eat wheat [i.e., when weaned] are: abba, imma = dear father, dear mother." Abba was an intimate family word, and Jesus gives His disciples a share in this privilege of addressing God as Abba. Encompassing the scope of the Good News, Jesus empowers the disciples to speak to their Heavenly Father literally as the small child speaks to his father, in the same con­fident and childlike manner.

The first three petitions of this prayer (two, in Luke) have a very similar meaning. To hallow God's name, to pray for the Kingdom, and for the doing of God's will, all reflect the living hope of the Church that God as Sovereign will prevail.

In the remaining three petitions, the verbs move from the passive to the active voice. In the context of the eschatological hope expressed in the first three petitions, it is not unlikely that the request for "daily bread" suggested a share in the Messianic banquet. However, a closer, more prac­tical reference is quite probable. The example of the manna in the OT suggests that the bread for the new day would be sufficient for that day only. It is quite possible that this is a reflection of Jesus' concern for the every-day needs of His dis­ciples and means simply "the day's ration."

The fifth petition, a request for forgiveness of debts/sins, is difficult to interpret in the context of the prayer alone. Yet the tenor of the entirety of Jesus' teaching suggests that any person who is not willing to forgive others, is not ready to be forgiven.

Many explanations of the final petition are strained attempts at exonerating God from lead­ing the believer into sinning. The simple truth is that peirasmos primarily means a testing, not en­ticement to sin. The biblical idea is one of putting men to proof, and such trials are to be expected. The meaning is: "Do not allow us to be overcome in our testing."

The final doxology is a liturgical addition which returns to the eschatological theme of the first three petitions, thus rounding out the prayer; but it is not in the oldest Greek NT manuscript.

It would be well for the contemporary Church to recapture the use of this prayer in its liturgical practice, especially the sense of privilege at being allowed to pray, "Our Father."

See PRAYER, FATHERHOOD OF GOD, ADOPTION.

For Further Reading: 7DB, 3:154-58; "The Lord's Prayer in Modem Research," Expository Times, vol. 71, no. 5 (Feb., 1960): 141-46. W. STEPHEN GUNTER
LORD'S SUPPER. See holy communion.

LOST, LOST SOUL. In the present tense a lost soul refers to an unregenerate person who is deprived of the presence of God. In an eternal perspective a lost soul is one who has been judged sinful and sentenced to eternal punishment.

Biblical Terms. Both OT and NT terms, abad and apollumi (or apollud), literally mean "To de­stroy, kill, or lose oneself." The implication is strong. Being "lost" is the result of one's own actions. The NT word apollud is the basis for Apollyon (Rev. 9:11, Thayer), a name for Satan, meaning Destroyer. Hence, Satan is the de­stroyer, and a "lost soul" has taken action to permit himself to be destroyed by Satan. Figura­tively, the biblical use of "lost" depicts the strug­gle between life and death for a soul. The prodigal son (Luke 15:11 ff) and Lazarus in Abra­ham's bosom (16:19 ff) are examples of the figu­rative conflict which is related to lostness in the NT.

As Spiritual Death. The lost soul experiences a spiritual death during this life. Spiritual death is a loss of God's presence, the separation of the sinner from God. Spiritual death is caused by the withdrawal of the Holy Spirit, as David indicated by his prayer of repentance, "Do not cast me away from Thy presence, and do not take Thy Holy Spirit from Me" (Ps. 51:11, nasb). The lost soul not only experiences the loss of God in spir­itual death, but the lost soul also experiences the loss of the present pleasures of spiritual life: love, joy, and peace.

As Eternal Death. The ultimate experience of the lost soul is eternal death, i.e., to be lost eter­nally. At the final Judgment the willful sepa­ration of spiritual death is pronounced fixed and unalterable. Jesus declared that the lost soul would depart into an everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels, and that



LOVE

323

ley used the biblical phrase "perfect love" so of­ten in describing the holy life. See agape, great commandments, perfect love.

heart purity, fruit of the spirit.

For Further Reading: Cranfield, A Theological Word

Book of the Bible; Johnston, "Love in the NT," IDB; Lewis,
The Four Loves; Wiener, "Love," Dictionary of Biblical
Theology; Nygren, Agape and Eros; Wesley, A Plain Ac-
count of Christian Perfection. KENT BROWER

LOVE AND LAW. The summary of Paul's dis­cussion of law and love in Rom. 13:8-10 by "It [Love] is the only law you need" in TLB, not only goes beyond what Paul says, but betrays a grave misunderstanding, which leads straight to situ­ational ethics, if not to antinomianism. What Paul is saying is that love alone can fulfill the moral law from the heart—fulfilling the law's spirit and intention, not just the letter—because it is in the very nature of love to desire to do good and not harm. What Paul is not saying is that therefore all laws are superfluous, since love is wise enough always to infallibly know what will be harmful. This would be a non sequitur. The impulse to seek another's welfare is not in itself knowledge as to what constitutes that welfare, or how it is to be secured. Love does not auto­matically provide information nor assure sound judgment. The guidance of law is needed to in­form the mind in order that love may be directed into modes of self-expression which God has al­ready declared to be proper for the achievement of love's objective. What love will not do—as long as love for persons is governed by love for God—is to despise law or set it aside.

See law, law and grace, love. new morality, antinomianism, law of liberty freedom.

For Further Reading: GMS, 532-41; Ladd, A Theology of the New Testament, 509 ff. RICHARD S. TAYLOR

LOVE FEAST. The Gospels make reference to Jesus' participation in fellowship at a meal on several occasions. Luke and John especially high­light the theme of table fellowship in their ac­counts of the appearances of the resurrected Jesus. The memory of such moments was most likely the motivation for the Early Church's prac­tice of regularly sharing a common meal. The de­sire to celebrate their religious fellowship, and their commitment to care for the poor among them, prompted the Jerusalem Church to eat their meals together (cf. Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35; 6:1-6). Most probably their common meals in­cluded the observance of the Lord's Supper. This latter practice seems to have been carried on in at least one of Paul's Gentile congregations (cf. 1 Cor. 11:17-34). The observance of the love feast was widespread until the time of Augustine. The Eastern Orthodox church persisted in the prac­tice, which was taken up by the Moravians, from whom John Wesley borrowed it for his Meth­odists.

See church, koinonia. feet washing, eucharist. For Further Reading: Baker's DT, 333-35; IDB, 1:53-54; Wesley, Works, 8:258-59. hal A. cauthron

LUST. See desire.

LUTHERANISM. Lutheran was originally a nick­name used derisively of the followers of Martin Luther. It later came to distinguish these from Protestants of the Reformed branch which was led by John Calvin, and Protestants of the "radi­cal reformation" or Anabaptists. Lutheran, in time, lost its derisive tone, and Lutheranism be­came the proper designation for the structural spiritual heritage of Martin Luther.

The doctrinal basis for Lutheranism is broadly the pivotal doctrines of Protestantism: justifi­cation by faith, the universal priesthood of be­lievers, and the authority of Scripture. More particularly, Lutherans are informed and influ­enced in their doctrine by a series of traditional documents. These include Luther's Longer and Short Catechisms, both produced in 1529; the Augsburg Confession, written by Philip Mel-anchthon (1530-31); The Schmalkald Articles, written by Luther for a general council in 1537; and the Formula of Concord, published in 1577 in the interests of Lutheran unity.

Lutherans recognize two sacraments. The Lord's Supper involves the "real presence" of Christ but does so without philosophical specu­lation about a physical change in the bread and wine. The Lord's Supper and baptism are means or channels of grace and thus not just memorials or signs. Baptism is for infants and adults alike and marks the reception of the grace of regen­eration through the Holy Spirit.

Worship is liturgical and centers on the altar. Lutherans observe festivals and seasons of the historic church year. In some Lutheran churches certain Catholic forms of worship have been retained but in a simplified form and with an al­tered understanding of their significance. Me­dieval traditions of art and beauty were not rejected by Lutheran worshippers as they some­times were in Reformed Protestantism. In fact, where Luther's influence spread, the place of re­ligious music in worship was firmly established, and European Lutheran churches are often re­splendent with works of art.

The local congregation is the basic unit of gov-



MACEDONIANS—MAJESTY

325

ernment in the Lutheran church. While the church rejects the hierarchy of espiscopacy (al­though bishops are not unknown in European Lutheranism), it also rejects the looseness of de­nominational bonds as in Congregationalism. Congregations unite in synods, territorial dis­tricts, or conferences. General unions are na­tional or international and serve either as legislative or consultative bodies.

Lutheranism began with Martin Luther's at­tempt to reform the Roman Catholic church. Un­der the political protection of the elector of Saxony, Luther protested against the usurpation of authority over conscience by the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic church. What had begun as an attempt to reform proceeded to become out­right rebellion, taking sometimes a secular form as in the Peasant Wars and Peasant Rebellion. From Germany, Lutheranism spread throughout Europe and the Baltic States. Its influence came to be especially strong in Scandinavia.

Lutheranism in America is accounted for chiefly by immigration from Scandinavia and Germany. The first permanent Lutheran resi­dents to arrive in the United States came from Holland and landed on Manhattan Island in 1623. Present membership in Lutheran churches is nearly 12 million in more than 17,000 congre­gations.

See protestantism, consubstantiation, justifi­cation, priesthood of believers, biblical author­ity

For Further Reading: Our Church and Others (Concor­dia); The Lutheran Catechism. DANIEL N. BERG

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