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November 2019
Dear Friends,
“For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon
angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; 8 But a lover
of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate; 9 Holding
fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound
doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.” Titus 1:7-9
It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Lutheran Reformation was based
on five foundational tenets, also referred to in Latin as the “solas.” The
reformers asserted that we are saved by grace alone (sola gratia), through faith
alone (sola fide), as revealed by the Holy Scriptures alone (sola scriptura). So
since Jesus Christ alone is our Saviour (solus Christus), then God alone
deserves all the glory for the salvation that He has given (soli Deo Gloria).
The emphasis on sola scriptura, is especially vital, because there is always a
strong temptation to seek other sources or revelation from God. The reformers
insisted that God’s Word must always hold the highest priority, referring to the
Holy Scriptures as the norma normans or “the norm above all norms.” The Word is
the highest rule for faith and life for the Christian. It must be regarded in
higher esteem that feelings, reason or tradition, because God’s Word does not
change in the way that other sources of revelation do. “For all flesh is as
grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and
the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever.
And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” I
Peter 1:24-25
For this reason, the Seminary remains dedicated to the teaching and preaching of
the Holy Scriptures. It is God’s Word alone that can bring the gifts of
repentance and faith to sinners in need of God’s grace. It is God’s Word alone
that delivers the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation though the blood and
the finished work of Jesus Christ. It is God’s Word alone that continues to lead
us and guide us by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is God’s Word alone that
brings us life. “Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou
hast the words of eternal life.” John 6:68 May God grant us grace to heed the
words of the Apostle Paul to Titus, so that all of us, both pastors and
parishioners would hold fast to His faithful Word. Thank you for your faithful
support to the Seminary and the work to which God has commissioned us. God bless
you!
“Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word,
then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free.” John 8:31-32
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Chuck Bylkas
DONATIONS RECEIVED...
In memory of Walter Hendrickson
from Verna Ann Hendrickson
In memory of Larry & Harriett Rasaka
from Wayne & Anne Waldal
FOR THE MATCHING FUNDS
We are very happy to announce that the Matching Funds Program was a success! We
have matched the $20,000 that our donor pledged to contribute if we met this
goal. Thanks be to God!
Your continued support of the seminary is deeply appreciated and enables us to
continue to grow as a seminary and carry on the work of teaching and preparing
our students for ministry. God bless you again for your generosity!
ATTENTION: SUPPORTERS
THERE ARE OTHER WAYS TO SUPPORT THE SEMINARY.
Have you ever have used Amazon.com to do your shopping? Now AmazonSmile offers
the same products, same prices and same service and will also donate 0.5% of the
price of your eligible AmazonSmile purchases to Inter-Lutheran Theological
Seminary whenever you shop on AmazonSmile.
Simply log use in by using this link….
http://smile.amazon.com/ch/41-0918317
which will bring you directly to smile.amazon.com in support of our
organization.
The Thrivent Choice® program offers a way members can recommend where Thrivent
Financial distributes some of its charitable outreach funds. As a benefit
member, your ownership of Thrivent Financial products and services help make
this support possible.
Remember….If you are an eligible member 16 and older you can recommend how to
distribute Thrivent Financial charitable grant funds thought Choice Dollars®.
Member eligibility and the Choice Dollars designated are based on:
• Holding a Thrivent Financial volunteer leadership position; or
• Having $750 or more in annual premiums of qualifying
insurance products; or
• Having $20,000 or more in contract value of qualifying products.
For more information about Choice Dollars, visit http://www.Thrivent.com/thriventchoice
or call 800-847-4836 or contact your local Thrivent Financial representative.
INFAITH COMMUNITY FOUNDATION:
Several years ago, the Seminary board of directors established the
Inter-Lutheran Seminary Endowment Fund. Funds contributed to the endowment are
not used for current day to day operations. Only the annual earnings of the
endowment will be used for the seminary’s needs thereby ensuring the continued
existence of this funding source. This is the preferred method used by many
non-profit entities, especially ongoing religiously focused organizations such
as seminaries.
While this is an excellent strategy, it has proven a challenge for us to
actually meet the minimum funding requirements. Until now, the fund has existed
but remained unfunded. By the Lord’s grace we have been blessed with a large
contribution to fund the Inter-Lutheran Seminary Endowment Fund. We would love
to build on this generous contribution to grow our endowment into a major source
of ongoing seminary support.
Although the seminary still needs the financial ongoing regular contributions of
our supporters, please consider the endowment fund for your planned giving
needs. The seminary has chosen the InFaith Community Endowment Fund (the renamed
Lutheran Brotherhood Foundation) to administer our endowment fund. They will
provide experienced legal advice to help guide you with any contribution
questions done through estate planning in addition to lump sum contributions,
IRAs, property and securities. For more additional information, please contact
Kirk Otto, Jr. at (715) 294-4343 or Cheryl Hendrickson at (906)482-3337.
**PLEASE NOTE**
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the mailing list, please complete the form below and mail to: P.O. Box 449,
Hancock, MI 49930.
Or call 906-482-3337 or email: cilseminary@ilseminary.com. Thank you!
Date:_________________
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Inter-Lutheran
Theological Seminary
James Weidner, President
P.O. Box 449
Hancock, MI 49930
administrator@ilseminary.org
Phone: 906-482-3337
FAX: 906-482-0694