We are a Christian church.  We believe that God solved mankind’s problem of sin by sending Jesus Christ into the world to live a perfect life in our place, die on the cross to pay for our sins, and rise from the dead to guarantee eternal life in heaven to all who believe.

We are a Biblical church.  We believe the Bible is the inspired, inerrant Word of God, and thus the only objective source of truth in the world.  The Bible is first and foremost a book of good news, about how God designed and implemented his plan of salvation by sending Jesus to be our Savior.  The Bible is the only place in the world we find this message of grace, and so the Bible is the ultimate authority for everything we believe, teach, and do.

We are a confessional Lutheran Church.  This means we believe that the teachings of the Bible are correctly represented in the Lutheran Confessions (found here.)  These documents were prepared during the Protestant Reformation, a time in church history when God led believers back to his Word and to the historic faith taught by Jesus and the apostles.  While times have changed since the writing of these documents (c. 1580 A.D.), the timeless truths of Scripture have not.  For a clearer and more modern explanation of these same biblical truths, click here.

We are a member of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.  Being part of a larger church body allows us to be part of ministries that extend far beyond our doorstep here in Atlanta.  The ministry of the WELS includes a robust worker training system, humanitarian aid efforts, and extensive mission work, both in North America and around the world.  You can learn more about the work of our church body here.

Lucas Bitter received thorough training on his way to becoming a pastor.  After graduating from Luther Preparatory School in Watertown, WI, Lucas earned a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical Languages (Greek and Hebrew) from Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN, and finally earned his Master of Divinity from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Mequon, WI.

The third year of Lucas’s Seminary training included a 1-year internship at Hope Lutheran Church in inner-city Toronto.  That year in Toronto filled Lucas with a strong passion for urban ministry.  Upon returning to the Seminary, he wrote his senior thesis paper on the topic of “Planting Churches in Global Cities.”

Upon graduation from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in 2013, Lucas was assigned to begin his pastoral ministry at Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Marietta, GA.  After four years of working with this wonderful, supportive congregation, Lucas was given an optional call by the South Atlantic District mission board to move into Atlanta and start a brand-new mission church.  He accepted the call and the Bitters moved to Atlanta in 2017.

Lucas and Meredith have fallen deeply in love with so many things about the city of Atlanta: the weather, the culture, the food – but most importantly, the people.  A huge city like Atlanta provides a great opportunity to build relationships with many, many different types of people and to share the love of Jesus with everyone.

On an average day you might find Lucas working and mingling in his coworking space office, teaching a Bible Study in a local coffee shop, or jogging on the Beltline trail.  You might find Meredith teaching online classes, practicing the piano, or taking 2-year-old Elijah on a playdate to the park.  On the ideal Friday night, you’d find the whole Bitter family grilling out and relaxing with neighbors and friends in their Ormewood Park backyard.

If you’d like to learn more about Intown Lutheran, have a spiritual question, or just want to say hi, feel free to reach out to Pastor Lucas via email: pastorlucas@intownlutheran.com