Ascension Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod)

What We Believe

We believe in one God, the Father almighty, who created Heaven and earth (Genesis 1). We consider God the First Person of the Trinity.

We believe in Jesus Christ, God's Son and the Second Person of the Trinity, who was born of a woman - but not just any woman - a virgin (Matthew 1:18-21). He came to earth, giving up His deity, to live a perfect, sinless life, something no one has been able to do since the Fall of Man into sin (Genesis 3). We believe He came to earth because of His unconditional love for us (John 3:16); that He lived among His people, being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11); that he spent much time teaching and healing (Matthew 4:12-24); that He was betrayed by one of His own disciples and denied by another (Matthew 26); that He was crucified on the cross, a most horrible way to die (Matthew 27); and that He rose again three days after being pronounced

We believe in Jesus Christ, God's Son and the Second Person of the Trinity, who was born of a woman - but not just any woman - a virgin (Matthew 1:18-21). He came to earth, giving up His deity, to live a perfect, sinless life, something no one has been able to do since the Fall of Man into sin (Genesis 3). We believe He came to earth because of His unconditional love for us (John 3:16); that He lived among His people, being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11); that he spent much time teaching and healing (Matthew 4:12-24); that He was betrayed by one of His own disciples and denied by another (Matthew 26); that He was crucified on the cross, a most horrible way to die (Matthew 27); and that He rose again three days after being pronounced dead (Matthew 18:1-15). We believe that He ascended into Heaven to prepare a place for those who believe these things (John 14:1-14); and we believe that these events and sayings are true and inspired, written down by men of God's choosing and inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:10-17).

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Third Person of the Trinity, who came to live within us, to be our Comforter, our Sanctifier, our "Keeper." We believe the Holy Spirit is poured out on us at our Baptism, that through the water and the Word we are covered with God's grace and our sins are washed away. We believe we become part of the family of God and that Baptism is for all people, no matter what their age (Mark 1:1-11).

We believe that all three Persons of the Trinity were present in the beginning, before time began, before the world was created (Genesis 1:1-2) and (John 1:1-5) and we believe that while there are three persons in the Trinity, there is only one God. 

We believe that we are sinners and are unable to attain our own salvation (Romans 3:9-31); and that it is by grace we are saved, a gift given freely by our Creator, although at great cost to Him. We believe that God would have all men (all humankind) to be saved and we believe that it is our purpose to spread the news of our salvation to all people (Matthew 28:18-20). 

The Sacrament of Baptism

As "Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod" (LCMS) Lutherans, we totally believe in the words of Jesus when He said in Matthew 28:18-20: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”We believe in infant baptism, which means that as soon as a child is born, baptism is a good thing to have on the "to-do" list as soon as possible.We do not believe only in infant baptism, however. Any person of any age, all the way to their dying breath, can be baptized and will receive the gifts of Baptism.

 We also believe that baptism is necessary only once - it doesn't have to be "re-done" - because the miracle of baptism is that through the water that is sprinkled on the head of the baptized person, along with the Words from Scripture, "In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost," the person has been washed clean of the original sin with which he/she was born and has been made a child of the Kingdom of Heaven. This is not to say that the person will never sin after baptism (it would be nice, but not happening), but the person has been cleansed from that original sin and can be in communion with God. The separation between the Holy God and the sinner has been broken down and we are free to come to God as a forgiven, holy child. 

If you have ever seen a baptism down South (and other places, obviously, but this is where Ascension is - down South), you will know that there are churches which do total immersion in a tank or in another body of water, and some churches which only do baptisms on older, "of age" children/adults. Jesus was baptized as an adult, in the Jordan River, at the beginning of HIs ministry here on earth.  Why was He even baptized since He had no sin and was already holy? (Matthew 3:13-17) Why do we Lutherans not follow this example and only baptize adults? Does the Bible stipulate an age limit on baptism? Do we need to immerse in a tank or a body of water to make the baptism "legitimate"? 

For answers to these questions, and for answers to any other questions you may have concerning baptism, click here. This will connect you to a link on our LCMS denomination's website that has in-depth information on our beliefs and doctrine. If you are interested in being baptized, yourself, or some member of your family, please "Contact Us" from the menu item above.

The Lord's Supper

The Lord's Supper is celebrated in the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. 

Some churches celebrate it often in a month, some not so often during the year, but no matter how often or how seldom the Lord's Supper is offered, we believe that there are four elements that we receive when we eat the wafer/bread and drink the wine. The words used by way of explanation are that "in, with and under the bread, we receive the body of the Lord"; and that "in, with and under the wine, we receive the blood of the Lord." These are not symbolic of the body and blood, but they are the body and blood - and the bread and wine. We don't understand it, but we accept by faith the words that Jesus spoke on the night He instituted this meal. (Matthew 26:26-28). In the Lutheran Church, the pastor speaks the Words of Institution - which is what the passage from Matthew 26 is known as - and during the speaking of the words and the blessing of the wafers and wine, the miracle occurs.

The Lord's Supper is known as a "sacrament." The definition of that word from dictionary.com is: "A visible sign of an inward grace, especially one of the solemn Christian rites considered to have been instituted by Jesus Christ to symbolize or confer grace: the sacraments of the Protestant churches are baptism and the Lord's Supper."

At Ascension Lutheran, we celebrate the Lord's Supper every Sunday at both morning worship services, and also on Monday evening at the 6:00 PM worship service. The Lord's Supper is also celebrated at other special worship services throughout the year.

For more information of this sacrament, please go to the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod website.