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We are members of The Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod. We are created by the Father, redeemed by Christ and empowered by the Spirit. We worship regularly, use the Sacraments, study and teach God's Word, pray and use our gifts and talents in God's service. Most of all, we care for others and share the good news of God's grace so that Christ may be glorified and all people may know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Through our lives we bring Christ to the heart of Birmingham. First Lutheran Church was founded in October 1887 with C.E. Scheibe installed as pastor of the new Zion Lutheran Church which was later renamed First Lutheran Church. Located in the historic Highland area of the Southside in Birmingham, First Lutheran Church is strategically positioned to fulfill its motto, "Bringing Christ to the heart of Birmingham".
About the Lutheran Church
Being "Lutheran," our congregations accept and teach Bible-based teachings of Martin Luther that inspired the reformation of the Christian Church in the 16th century. The teaching of Luther and the reformers can be summarized in three short phrases: Grace alone, Scripture alone, Faith alone. Grace aloneGod loves the people of the world, even though they are sinful, rebel against Him and do not deserve His love. He sent Jesus, His Son, to love the unlovable and save the ungodly. Faith aloneBy His suffering and death as the substitute for all people of all time, Jesus purchased and won forgiveness and eternal life for them. Those who hear this Good News and believe it have the eternal life that it offers. God creates faith in Christ and gives people forgiveness through Him. Scripture aloneThe Bible is God's inerrant and infallible Word, in which He reveals His Law and His Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. It is the sole rule and norm for Christian doctrine. The word "Synod" in The Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod comes from the Greek words that mean "walking together." It has rich meaning in our church body, because the congregations voluntarily choose to belong to the Synod. Diverse in their service, these congregations hold to a shared confession of Jesus Christ as taught in Holy Scripture and the Lutheran Confessions. The congregations of the Synod are "confessional." They hold to the Lutheran Confessions as the correct interpretation and presentation of Biblical doctrine. Contained in The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, these statements of belief were put into writing by church leaders during the 16th century. (The simplest of these is Luther's Small Catechism. The Augsburg Confession gives more detail on what Lutherans believe.) |
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We, the members of the First Lutheran Church are committed to
proclaim the gospel to each other, our community and the world. The gospel calls
us to be responsible, to care and to serve through education, evangelism and
worship.
With
the universal Christian Church, The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod teaches and
responds to the love of the Triune God: the Father, creator of all that exists;
Jesus Christ, the Son, who became human to suffer and die for the sins of all
human beings and to rise to life again in the ultimate victory over death and
Satan; and the Holy Spirit, who creates faith through God's Word and Sacraments.
The three persons of the Trinity are coequal and coeternal, one God.