Manchester Lutheran Church

Our Beliefs

Manchester Lutheran Church is a Confessional Lutheran Church.

The CLC are working with international partners to express our beliefs in a succinct and clear way for a British audience.

While that work is underway, please see this interim summary of our confession (ⓒ 2025, Confessional Lutheran Church Ltd):

The Core of our Confession

Essential Bible truths to prepare for Baptism

  1. God’s Word gives and speaks justification through Christ (Matt 4:1-11; John 17:17)
  2. God’s Law shows our need to be justified by Christ (Exod 20:1-17; John 8:34)
  3. God’s Gospel is His free gift of justification through Christ (The Apostles’ Creed; John 3:16)
  4. God’s Church receives justification through faith in Christ
    and lives out this faith through love (Eph 4:1-16; John 20:22-23)

The Summary of our Confession

Essential Bible truths to prepare for the Lord’s Supper (and so communicant membership in the church).

A) God’s Word gives and speaks justification through Christ (Matt 4:1-11; John 17:17)

  1. God’s Word is truth that creates justifying faith (John 17:17)
  2. God’s Word is all about justification by faith (Acts 10:43)
  3. God’s Word rests on the Law and is centred on the Gospel (Matt 22:40; Acts 10:43)

B) God’s Law shows our need to be justified by Christ (Exod 20:1-17; John 8:34)

  1. God’s Law shows we need justification because by nature we don’t love God and others (Luke 10:25-28; Jam 2:10; John 8:34)
  2. God’s Law shows we need justification because by nature we distrust Him (Rom 14:23)
  3. God’s Law shows we cannot justify ourselves, driving us to Christ (Gal 3:23-24)

C) God’s Gospel is His free gift of justification through Christ (The Apostles’ Creed; John 3:16)

  1. God’s Gospel is the unconditional love of Father, Son, and Spirit (John 3:16; Eph 2:8-9)
  2. God the Father created all things so that all people would know the Son (Exod 20:11; Acts 17:26-27)
  3. God the Son became a man to redeem all people (Gal 4:4-5)
  4. God the Son redeemed all people by dying to pay the legal penalty for their sin (1 Pet 2:24)
  5. God the Son redeemed all people by rising again to justify them (Rom 4:24-25)
  6. God the Spirit works through the Gospel to give justifying faith to all who hear it (Eph 1:13)
  7. God the Spirit produces good works as the fruit of faith, the result of justification (Gal 5:22-26)

D) God’s Church receives justification through faithin Christ
and lives out this faith through love (Eph 4:1-16; John 20:22-23)

  1. God’s Church is the gathering of those who receive justifying faith through the marks of Word and Sacrament (John 20:22-23; Acts 2:14, 36-47)
  2. God’s Church receives justifying faith through Baptism (1 Pet 3:21)
  3. God’s Church is sustained in justifying faith through Confession and Absolution (1 John 1:9)
  4. God’s Church is nourished in justifying faith through the Lord’s Supper (Matt 26:28)
  5. God’s Church lives out her faith as priests by sharing the Word (1 Pet 2:9)
  6. God’s Church lives out her faith by calling public ministers of the Word (Tit 1:5)
  7. God’s Church lives out her faith in prayer (Rom 10:13-14)
  8. God’s Church lives out her faith in vocations of love (Eph 2:10)