Not Really Dr. Kelm

According to Zoominfo, Paul Kelm obtained a D.Min. from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.

The D.Min. degree was invented by seminaries as a way of getting ministers back into school. The pastors would not sign up unless they got a degree.

A few years ago the St. Louis WELS pastor was getting his D.Min. in Church Growth at Concordia, St. Louis. Kelm's degree probably focused on the same false doctrine.

The D.Min. is a quickie degree with little in the way of academic requirements or rigor. Try to get a university position with a D.Min. in Church Growth. The mirth will resound for months in the dean's office.

Ichabodians may recall that Lawrence Otto Olson once bragged about Fuller Seminary having more LCMS pastors enrolled than the two Missouri seminaries combined. Why not? Fuller is the path to glory among the so-called conservative synods. Needless to say, Olson was bragging about his own alma mater: Fuller Unionistic and Pentecostal Seminary.

Zoominfo is loaded with information about Paul Kelm, mostly from:

The Means of Grace Website.

Kelm is a favorite author for Church and Change:

Paul Kelm, D.Min., on Worship.

The unintentional humor award goes to these Wisconsin Synod knob-heads:

Church From Scratch - an amusing list of Who's Who in Church Growth in WELS.

Confidential to the webmaster of Church from Scratch - Scratch is a synonym for Satan.

Scratch

Pronunciation: (skrach), [key]
—n.
Old Scratch; Satan.

Actually, the name is quite appropriate. The CGM is the Church from Scratch. Once upon a time, where God built a church, Satan built a chapel (Luther). Now where God builds a chapel, Satan builds a cathedral.

Dr. Paul Kelm?

The Appleton Alliance pastor is pictured on the left.

Managing Change - Dr. Paul Kelm

Understand what drives change, why people resist change, and how they process change. Discover key principles for introducing, leading, and institutionalizing change. Realize that Christianity is all about change. Dr. Paul Kelm serves as the discipleship pastor at St. Mark Lutheran in De Pere, WI and served for over six years as a church consultant.

Dare To Lead - 2006 BREAKOUT SESSIONS

Pastor Bill Lenz
What does it take to be the servant leader of a large church in America (350+ weekend attendance)? What can be learned from the ministry pioneering done by the very large teaching churches, a growing variety of para-church organizations, and scores of entrepreneurial individuals? Discover key principles used by large churches in their approach to ministry. Pastor Bill Lenz serves as the senior pastor of Christ The Rock Community Church in Menasha, WI, a church where more than 3000 gather on a weekend.Strategic Planning -

Dr. Janet Moldstad
Why strategic planning for a church? Because a well-wrought strategic plan helps you set priorities and allocate the Kingdom resources needed to achieve your ministry goals. Strategic planning provides a framework for analyzing circumstances and quickly adapting to future challenges. Dr. Janet Moldstad currently serves as Professor of Business at Bethany Lutheran College in Mankato, MN.

Are you ready for the next turn?

Leading A Turn-Around Church - Pastor Dennis Episcopo -
85% of all churches today are in plateau or decline! If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got. This breakout group will address leadership changes that can be adapted to our ministry, focusing on the dynamics that can contribute to a turn-around strategy. Pastor Dennis Episcopo serves as lead pastor at Appleton Alliance, which has seen its Sunday attendance climb from 600 to 2200 in the last three years.

***

GJ - And people want to argue that WELS is not going to Hell? Holy cow. This confab makes Church and Change look orthodox in comparison.

So where did Paul Kelm earn a doctorate?

Some of you are thinking that Janet Moldstad is the wife of Pope John the Malefactor, but his wife is named Ruth.

***

GJ PS - Rev. A. Nony Mouse has left a new comment on your post "Dr. Paul Kelm?":

The spin and half-truths never stop, do they, Greg? The way you put this article together, you make it look as if Paul Kelm is the guy in the picture, and that he's the pastor of this Alliance church in Appleton.

Mouse is not very sharp. I captioned the picture as the Appleton Alliance pastor, not as Kelm. Google Blogger is limits my ability to place pictures and captions. The rest of the material is verbatim from Kelm's congregational website.

Confidential to Mouse - Why do you need to leave nasty personal attacks every day? I suggest not reading Ichabod for a few years. Or perhaps you could get more fresh air and sunshine. Prunes would probably improve your mood immensely. Nevertheless, I enjoy your personal validation of my blog each day.

***
Michael Schottey has left a new comment on your post "Dr. Paul Kelm?":

It is really Rev. A Nony Mouse? I wish I had someone personally leaving a message on my blog every day!

Anyway...(and I mean this not against you Rev. Jackson) this post has ruined my day. I've heard about such "leadership seminars" before, and the arguement that they aren't ecumenical.

This is apostasy! We have a immutable God but "DR" Kelm would rather believe Christianity is all about change.

We have God's Holy Word made incarnate and the Holy Spirit but no...Pastor Dennis will show us how to grow a church.

Anathemas!

***

GJ - The courageous poster always uses Anonymous, so I have tweaked his favorite name a bit. He reminds me of a mouse, popping out of his dark hole to take a bite and leave a deposit.

And yet he had to post again!

A. Nony Mouse has left a new comment on your post "Dr. Paul Kelm?":

You're right, Greg. I have better things to do than to read and respond to your garbage. I just wish your other 3 or 4 readers would realize that too.

Comment about Church and Change

Pastor Jackson,

I wanted to add a comment to your recent posting, "Church and Change Leading the Sheep". Here is an article taken from a presentation made during the WELS Church Door Symposium in 2004.

http://www.charis.wlc.edu/publications/charis_summer04/wendland.pdf

[GJ - Be sure to read the article by Mrs. Wendland above, especially the ending. You will burn your bra and march against oppression of men after finishing the essay. The illustration is so silly that she destroys any notion she should be taken seriously.]

Paul Kelm and John Parlow were featured speakers from the WELS also. I see from the Charis website that in August of this year they suspended operations. Fortunately most of their information is still online. It details the war they are raging against the Holy Spirit through the promotion of the Church Growth Movement. "Research Update - Effective Evangelistic Churches"

http://www.charis.wlc.edu/research/ResearchUpdate2.pdf

is another example.

Like other WELS groups Charis is involved with political agendas (view their links page) and working with the ELCA and LCMS.
(http://www.lcms.org/pages/internal.asp?NavID=4005) on funding Lutheran World Relief which is a United Nations supporting operation. The same Satan worshiping UN of which the Antichrist is head and through which they are working to create the New World Order.

Most lay people in the WELS shrug when they see doctrines change. Little do they know just how deep the iceberg goes.

New Poll: Which Synod Is the Most Pastor-Friendly?

Acknowledging the supremacy of the Voters' Assembly--as long as they agree with me--I have published a new scientific poll, at the bottom of the page.

I have only four choices available. Later I may do another one for some of the mini-micro sects.

Poll Results

When is clergy adultery allowed?

Always in WELS. 13 (31%)

Two strikes, you're out. (ELS). 2 (4%)

Not with women (ELCA). 19 (46%)

Everyone is already forgiven (UOJ). 7 (17%)

LCMS Stewardship: Selling at a Loss

I have to admire the genius of the LCMS. They bought the Christian Brothers College a few years ago. Now they are selling it for a $6 million loss. They have to borrow $2 million of that loss to cover the shortfall. The rest of the loss comes from operating funds.

I am still guessing that they had big plans but ran out of money to carry them out. The former owners must have laughed as Missouri borrowed heavily to finance their turkey.

That reminds me of Prairie, the WELS prep school bought in a panic because it failed as a Catholic school. No one knows exactly how much was sunk into that school. It was also sold.

We bought Prairie in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout.
We've been talkin' bout Prairie, ever since the fire went out.
I'm sellin' that prep school, I'm gonna lose some dough,
Yeah, I'm goin' to Prairie,
Look out Prairie du Chien.

Orthodox Anglican News

Here is an elaborate conservative Anglican website:

VirtueOnline.

Have you noticed that the mainline denominations get increasingly Left-wing and image conscious and yet hardly make a dent on the public consciousness? When was the last time anyone thought about the National Council of Churches or the United Church of Christ? Ditto, the Episcopal Church.

One conservative website can do more than an entire organization of highly paid professionals.

Spot the Typo

Robert Wilken's education:

Spertus College of Judaica (Modern Hebrew, 1975-1976)
University of Heidelberg, post-doctoral research New Testament (1963-1964)
Ph.D., University of Chicago, 1963, History of Christianity
M.A., Univeristy of Chicago, 1961
B.D., Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri, 1960
Washington University, St. Louis, 1958-1960 (completed courses for M.A. in Philosophy)
Tulane University, Summer, 1957, 1959 (Philosophy)
B.A., Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Missouri, 1957
Concordia College, Austin, Texas, 1955-1957

I love it when someone else has a funny typo.

Otten: Katharine Jefferts Schori Should Read Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant

Katharine Jefferts Schori was briefly bishop of Nevada before becoming Presiding Bishop of the fading, splintering Episcopal Church, USA. She has done everything possible to accerate the decline of the Episcopalians.

Pastor Herman Otten has recommended that all Episcopalian bishops read Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant rather than join Rome.

For almost 20 years I read The Episcopalian newsletter, sent free of charge to me, wherever I lived. They followed me better than a bill collector. I mentioned that fact to the son of an Episcopalian priest and the free subscription stopped. Perhaps they ran out of money. The denomination had about 3 million members in 1978. Now they have 2.4 million, many of them headed for the exit.

But ELCA stepped in to validate the Episcopalians. Now an ordination in ELCA is not valid unless an Episcopalian bishop is present. Please do not ask me to explain. The new rule is connected to the historic episcopacy, which the Episcopalians seem to have and ELCA covets.

Confidential: I was ordained by an Augustana Synod pastor, and Augustana pastors were ordained by bishops from the Church of Sweden, where the historic episcopacy remains. Thus I could rent my historic episcopacy to interested parties, such as the new sects leaving Missouri and WELS. Look for the offer on eBay.

The historic episcopacy means an unbroken link remains between Christ, the apostles, and all ordained ministers. The concept is heart-warming but hardly Biblical. The historic episcopacy should be given proper respect, like pot-luck suppers and greeters at the door (who only greet their friends).

The heart of the ministry is orthodox doctrine, true to Christ and the revelation of Christ in the Holy Scriptures. As Luther taught, if the teaching is orthodox, the fruits of the Gospel will follow.

A Missouri Synod pastor just wrote: "It was with great enthusiasm I received your recent mailing regarding the book Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant. I have greatly appreciated your previous works in particular I find myself going back to Thy Strong Word again and again."

Slippery Labels

Father Richard J. Neuhaus, a graduate of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, often used the term Evangelical Catholic when he was writing for the Lutheran Forum Letter. The Evangelical label slipped right off and he became Catholic.

Robert Wilken, (pictured above) another graduate of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, a dear friend of Neuhaus, is now a Roman Catholic as well. Wilken was head of the graduate program in theology at Notre Dame when I was there. I never had him as a teacher. He left a distinct, negative impression on me.

The term Evangelical Catholic is still in vogue among Lutherans. Pastor John Berg uses it on his church website. There seems to be an entire ecosystem feeding people into the Church of Rome. Wait, I am not saying Berg is ever going to join Rome. However, with so many Lutheran and Protestant ministers embracing the whole smells, bells, and fancy clothing fad, some are bound to tip over and join Rome, listening to the enchantments emanating from His Holiness, the Antichrist, and all the little antichrists who partake in his murder of souls.

Avoiding the Foundation - Efficacy of the Word

I was directed to the website of the Motley Magpie. I read a fairly good summary of Receptionism in the ELS and WELS. The term Receptionism refers to the odd notion of the elements of Holy Communion being mere bread and wine until they are received by the communicant. That was taught and believed in the Synodical Conference and is still held (dishonestly) by the Little Sect on the Prairie and its big, Reformed Universalistic brother, the Wisconsin Synod.

Pastor John Berg is the editor of the Motley Magpie. District Pope Jahnke defenestrated him, but Berg's congregation left with him. His brother, another WELS pastor, was also pushed out of WELS. The Berg brothers are the sons of Norm Berg, former Michigan District Pope and former head of the synodical mission board. Norm Berg was trained at Fuller Seminary, as he confessed in a threatening letter to me, but his sons de-converted.

Norm Berg constantly promoted the Church Growth Movement, which is the engine running The Love Shack known as WELS headquarters. Not everyone feels the love. Anyone opposed to Church Growth experiences the Left Foot of Fellowship, even if they are well-connected sons of synodical officials.

I have a collection of Eighth Commandment letters from various WELS nabobs: Norm Berg, Paul Kelm, Lawrence Otto Olson, District Pope Nitz, etc. What do they have in common? Oh yes - all thoroughly brainwashed at Fuller Seminary.

Back to the main point - the efficacy of the Word. Berg's essay about Receptionism runs through the normal Book of Concord citations, all valid. The entire debate can be shortened to the foundational doctrine uniting all of the Scriptures - the efficacy of the Word.

The efficacy of the Word has become so strange and new to Lutherans that an older Lutheran layman just phoned me to say he was reading Thy Strong Word over again. He was fascinated by the first chapter. He also donated a copy to his brother, another active Lutheran layman. A WELS layman ordered the book as well. The entire book is linked on the main page of Ichabod, under links.

If God's Word accomplishes His will at all times, then there is nothing to debate about Holy Communion. The Words of Institution are Scripture. Christ is present, in both natures, because the Word has consecrated them.

To say that the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ when they touch the hands of the communicants is hardly worth debating.

Citing the Book of Concord is not a good use of scholarship when the vast majority of clergy and laity are so ignorant of the Biblical, Christian doctrine of the Word. No one was clearer about this than Luther, the greatest of all Biblical expositors. The distinguishing mark of all the favorite Lutheran theologians people respect is that reliance on the Word.

WELS and the Little Sect on the Prairie cling to Receptionism because they utterly reject the efficacy of the Word. Rev. Mouse: "That's absurd! You are a bad person for saying that." Am I? WELS excommunicated a fine pastor for emphasizing the efficacy of the Word alone. First they ran Norm Festerling out of his mission congregation. Then they banned him from communion. He was one of three WELS pastors in Toledo pushed out the ministry. But if a pastor is having an affair with his music director at church, hey, who cares?

WELS and the Little Sect are confused about the ministry for two reasons. One is that Fuller Seminary and Willow Creek do all their thinking for them. Another is their rejection of the efficacy of the Word. If they studied the Lutheran doctrine of the Word, a host of problems would be solved. Look for an emphasis on everything except the Gospel in Word and Sacrament. Yes, the words might be used, but the main thrust will be threatening and lashing with the Law.

Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant Sold Out

I ordered 30 copies of Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant, for initial orders. Some people did not want to order from Lulu.com, so I thought the supply would be good for a few weeks.

The first order was for 20 copies. Apparently a congregation wants the book for confirmation classes, adult classes, or both.

My able editor is working on the teacher's guide to go with the book.

Rome Calls and the Protestants Answer "Yes!"

I am not the only one noticing the decline of the mainline denominations. I read in Christian News that three Episcopalian bishops (two retired, one active) have joined the Roman Catholic Church. Considering how tradition-bound the Episcopalians are, that alone should shock the leadership. Bishops are not the type to jump out of their very comfy ship.

Rome is celebrating a number of celebrity conversions. Not without reason is Avery Dulles, SJ, the only cardinal in America without an archdiocese. His ecclesiastical honors are probably due to a chain of conversions, starting with Richard John Neuhaus, who studied at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis - when Otten and Marquart were students there.

At one time the Episcopalians were among the fiercest critics of Rome. Krauth wrote how many Episcopalians in his day wanted to throw themselves, weeping, on the pope's neck, hoping that the terms of reconciliation would not be too harsh.

We had a dear friend at Notre Dame, one of the few conservatives in the doctoral program. He wrote his dissertation on angels, but our advisor would not even read it. Charlie Caldwell was Episcopalian and taught Gaylin Schmeling at Nashotah House, the radical Leftist Episcopalian seminary where the Bethany Seminary president earned a master's degree. Mrs. Ichabod and I were driving in Wisconsin when we saw the sign for Nashotah House. Impulsively, we stopped and looked Charlie up. He spoke longingly about "Reunion with Rome."

I could imagine how a quasi-Roman denomination could want to be Roman Catholic again. I never imagined that Concordia, Ft. Wayne, would invite a convert (Neuhaus) to their seminary to beguile the students and pastors, who nodded in agreement as he seduced them. Or did he? Perhaps the audience was in his lap before he even started. That is truly sad, for those pastors will lead their congregations, in baby steps, back to Rome.

Little Boy on the Phone

A little boy used to call up our house every so often and stay on the line, anonymously. I used a trick that worked once before. I said, "Please stay on the line so the FBI can finish tracing the call." He snickered and said a couple of words, then quickly hung up.

One of the liberals, Rev. A. Nony Mouse, posts almost daily. I would let his comments through if he signed his name, gave his synod affiliation, and listed his congregation's name. The messages are almost the same and remind me of the little boy who just had to phone our house and stay on the line.

The apostates do not like this blog. One the major complaints I have always had is - the Lutheran quotations. Why would Lutherans object to Lutheran quotations? The answer is simple - the Word is efficacious. The Word converts and hardens, always having an effect, never without results.

Sometimes an individual will try to pit Luther against Jesus. Since the Word conveys Jesus to us, we really need to have that confirmed through the greatest Gospel expositor of all time, Martin Luther.

The apostates like to use the terms "lies" and "half-truths." However, they never point out an error or a half-truth. Normally such unwarranted attacks would qualify as slander, but I try to avoid what the apostates have abused.

For examples of lies and half-truths, I commend the readers of Ichabod to any synodical budget. As one wit said about the book of Revelation, they conceal more than they reveal.

Church and Change Leading the Sheep

How Can Church and Change Lead the Sheep?

The spin-doctors of The Love Shack worked overtime to rescue Church and Change, the official WELS Apostasy Lobby, from the ash-heap of fad projects.

The group was so obnoxious that the word went out from the Gurgel administration that C and C was no more, dissolved, gone, scattered like dry autumn leaves. Apostates in WELS were distraught. "Who will feed the sheep to our Father Below? Who will beat them and fleece them?"

Before anyone knew it, Church and Change was grandfathered. Sure, they are iffy at best, but they are old and iffy, hence grandfathered. While people were still claiming that Church and Change was gone, Church and Change was advertising its conference on the offical WELS website.

Looking back in history, we can see how convenient it is to grandfather apostasy.

Augustine against Pelagianism: "Roma locuta est. Causa finita est. Rome has spoken. The case is closed."

Rome: "No, we have grandfathered Pelagianism. We know salvation by works is wrong, but they have been around for some time, several years in fact."

Augustine: "Oh."

Comments on Church and Change Upcoming Debacle

The Antichrist sets himself up in the Temple of God, but there are many little antichrists as well.

From Bailing Water:




John said...
Isn't it odd that Rev. Ash directs you to the church and change website to register. You go there and then you are redirected to the wels.net site to complete your registration.

I will anxiously await a review of the convention. Are any readers out there innovative enough to say that "yes" I am going?

If you do go I will post your unedited thoughts on bailingwater.

October 2, 2007 6:28 PM


Norman Teigen said...
An ELS pastor was going to attend the C & C conference but cancelled when another ELS pastor accused him and the WELS of false doctrine re C & C.

Isn't this a little bit crazy? It seems so to me. I wrote in my blog that I was getting false doctrine fatigue from all of this.

Norman Teigen
ELS layman

October 2, 2007 7:05 PM


John said...
For those of you wishing to purchase the DVD collection of the Church and Change conference, Rev. Ash has announced that for "a variety of reasons we will not be taping the conference."

October 8, 2007 5:46 PM

***

GJ - Church and Change (Official WELS Apostasy Lobby) acted as if the convention resolution was encouraging their efforts to undermine Lutheran doctrine and practice.

President-in-Waiting Wayne Mueller was famous for never providing a written record of his talks. Whenever someone objected to his false doctrine, he said, "You misunderstood me." As I showed before, all the Church Growth false teachers begin with one concept and then write just the opposite. Look for the furtive but.
"We all know that the Word alone is effective, but..."

Those who view the Church and Change propaganda will see a number of husband and wife "ministry teams." They usually look like they inhaled helium too long before posing for their photos. Ministry teams are a way to slip women's ordination in the back door.

WELS is not alone in finessing these issues. I recall a non-worship worship service where Al Barry listened to a husband and wife lead a Bible study. One could almost say it was a woman teaching men, but no, the event was presented by the spin-doctors as something other than worship. The late Al Barry, the ultimate Chameleon Lutheran, did not object. However, when he spoke to the conservatives who fought to elect him, he was wroth. "Some said I should not even meet with you. But I am the president of all the people in the Missouri Synod." How touching to have His Grace speak to our little leper colony!

Peshtigo Fire Anniversary

From Norm Teigen:

Peshtigo WI fire has higher death toll than the Chicago fire

On Sunday, October 8, 1871, fire leveled a broad swath of Michigan and Wisconsin, including the cities of Peshtigo, Holland, Manistee, and Port Huron. At least 1200 people died as a result of the fire. Nearly half the fatalities occurred in Peshtigo, Wisconsin.

That same night, the Great Chicago Fire erupted in nearby Illinois.
Conditions were ripe for major conflagrations that year. Uninterrupted drought plagued the Midwest into early October and winds were strong. Vast tracts of forest burned for a week in parts of Michigan and Wisconsin. When the wind increased and shifted direction, fire fighters were unable to control the flames any longer. Within hours, several Midwestern cities and towns were reduced to charcoal and ash.

{source-The Library of Congress}


More on the Great Peshtigo Fire

GJ - Note: the Church Growth Movment has destroyed more churches that both fires combined.

Walther and UOJ

From a layman:

I've been reading Walther's sermons found in, "The Word Of His Grace" copyright 1978. In the sermon "Righteous Through Faith", page 4 it states, "And behold, on the third day after His death God the Father Himself awoke Him from the dead, confirming the word of victory of the dying Redeemer and calling to all sinners, "Yes, it is fulfilled!" And so he declared the whole world righteous. "I am reconciled! You are redeemed! Your debt is paid; and the righteousness that avails before Me is won for you."

Also, in the sermon " ", page 232 it states, "Are you saying that God has already in Christ absolved all men, including all the ungodly, all slaves of iniquity, all unbelievers, all mockers, all slanderers? Who could believe that? ---And yet it is so, dear friends"

***

GJ - Yes, Walther is the main source for Synodical Conference UOJ. The language they use is plagiarized from his sermons. They run back to Walther's Easter Absolution sermon whenever their UOJ is threatened. They like the man who turned Roman Catholic, too - Ed Preuss.

The Methodists use Wesley's sermons as their doctrinal textbook. That is why Methodists say, "We have no theology."

True, Lutherans used an edited version of Luther's sermons for the Large Catechism. But they also dealt with the doctrinal issues for years before issuing and signing the Formula of Concord and the Book of Concord, 1580. Lutherans do not use all of Luther's works as their confessions. We have plenty of Luther in the Book of Concord, but no one thinks every phrase of Luther must be preserved as official doctrine. Luther was opposed to that kind of treatment.

Did someone issue a set of Walther's sermons and make that the new Book of Concord? The current synodical leaders are being dishonest and slippery in assigning to Walther a primacy in doctrine above that of the Scriptures and the Confessions. If I remember correctly, Walther promoted the European Lutherans. He edited a compend for his classes. In that regard he was not a Waltherian but a Hyper-Euro-Lutheran.

Walther had many fine qualities, but he was messed up about justification by faith. He was converted through Pietism and never lost that foundation, as he confessed. UOJ comes from Pietism, not from the Bible, not from the Book of Concord.

ELCA is Pietistic in its roots. ELCA is also Universalistic, only more obviously and honestly so.

WELS had an evangelism campaign. The motto was, "I am saved, just like you." Did anyone object? The apostates have won.

Some Attributes of Pietism - From Spener

Pietism was a movement that emphasized works rather than doctrine. The Pietists were unionistic from the beginning, compromising with the Reformed. Some attributes of Pietism include:
1. The lay-led cell group, or Bible study group, considered the "real church" within the larger and less active church.
2. Scorn toward doctrinal orthodoxy and those who consider it important.
3. Willingness to give up the sacraments and the efficacy of the Word to work with the Reformed.
4. A holier-than-thou attitude created by the cell groups being the "real church."
5. Love-bombing those coming into the cells while shunning those who leave.
6. Always measuring the church and the individual by works.
7. A tendency to become Unitarian in the next generation.

Walther was converted by Pietism and never gave it up entirely. He could not bring himself to criticize Spener, the founder of Pietism.

ELCA was founded by the earlier Pietist, Muhlenberg. Later migrations of Pietists made up additional elements of ELCA (Augustana Synod - Swedish Pietists).

The foundation of the Wisconsin Synod was Pietistic.

The Little Sect on the Prairie was largely Norwegian and influenced by Pietism.

The attributes of Pietism are the same as the Church Growth Movement and the latest version of CGM: the Purpose-Driven Church.

Prayer Warriors of WELS

Many WELS members and pastors do not realize how Pietistic they are, so they see nothing wrong with Reformed tendencies. As a result, Paul Kelm, David Valleskey, and Waldo Werning have driven through the citadel's gates in a hay wagon.

The Reformed have rejected the Biblical Means of Grace and have made fun of these divinely appointed instruments. To make up for their deficiencies, the Reformed have substituted prayer as their singular means of grace. They actually believe, in many cases, that God cannot act until He is moved by prayers. Yes, you can reform your community just by getting enough prayer wsarriors together.

And they have this advantage: who can be against prayer?

Too many WELS pastors lack discernment. Some have discernment but they would rather play politics to get the coveted job--divine call--they long to hold.

Lutheran Service Book (LCMS)

Lutheran Forum on the new LCMS and ELCA worship books:

Reforming the Daily Office: Examining Two New Lutheran Books
by Philip H. Pfatteicher — August 31, 2007

The creation of Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, as I understand it, was generated by the convergence of two factors. One was the fervent desire on the part of a relative minority in the church to end the use of masculine pronouns (“he,” “him,” “his”) to refer to God. The other was the increasingly serious financial situation of the church’s publishing house, Augsburg Fortress...

The creation of Evangelical Lutheran Worship (ELW) by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, as I understand it, was generated by the convergence of two factors. One was the fervent desire on the part of a relative minority in the church to end the use of masculine pronouns (“he,” “him,” “his”) to refer to God. The other was the increasingly serious financial situation of the church’s publishing house, Augsburg Fortress. A new worship book would make congregations pray and talk about God in ways that the influential minority considered essential and would at the same time be a big seller to bail out the publisher. And so it has happened.

Concordia, the publishing house of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod, also with a keen eye to marketing, could not countenance a book that could possibly draw off some of its own source of income, and so the 2004 convention of that church approved a “new hymnal,” Lutheran Service Book (LSB)...

***

GJ - Someone questioned whether a new hymnal could bail out a Lutheran publishing house. I read elsewhere that ELCA's Augsburg-Fortress finally got out of the red when the new hymnal began selling.

I have experienced the new LSB twice. It is probably the best new Lutheran hymnal. WELS' CW (Charismatic Worship) is doubtless the worst. CW is also the only new hymnal to avoid the word Lutheran. The national magazine of WELS defenestrated Lutheran from its title years ago. Now people see nothing wrong with avoiding almost any connection with Lutheran.

Luther: The False Teacher as a Peacock

"The peacock is an image of heretics and fanatical spirits. For on the order of the peacock they, too, show themselves and strut about in their gifts, which never are outstanding. But if they could see their feet, that is the foundation of their doctrine, they would be stricken with terror, lower their crests, and humble themselves. To be sure, they, too, suffer from jealousy, because they cannot bear honest and true teachers. They want to be the whole show and want to put up with no one next to them. And they are immeasurably envious, as peacocks are. Finally, they have a raucous and unpleasant voice, that is, their doctrine is bitter and sad for afflicted and godly minds; for it casts consciences down more than it lifts them up and strengthens them."
Martin Luther, What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 642.

"There is a false, ungodly, carnal zeal that does not come from God and is not produced by the Holy Spirit, but is rooted either in animosity against those who teach a different doctrine or in the selfish thought that a display zeal will bring the minister honor, at least in certain congregations, or in fanaticism. In the days of Christ, what zeal in the discharge of their office do we behold in the high priests, elders, scribes, and Pharisees who opposed Christ!"
C. F. W. Walther, The Proper Distinction between Law and Gospel, trans., W. H. T. Dau, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1928, p. 380.

Bethany College (ELS) and Red China

Mankato Free Press

Published October 04, 2007 12:38 am - A deal signed Wednesday between Bethany Lutheran College and United International College in China will set up an exchange program for faculty and students.

Bethany Lutheran inks exchange deal
Student, faculty exchange program set up with United International College in China

By Robb Murray
Free Press Staff Writer

MANKATO —
Let the learning begin.


For months Bethany Lutheran College and United International College in China officials have been working toward a student and faculty exchange program.

With a few strokes of the pens of Bethany President Dan Bruss and UIC Executive Vice President Kwok Siu Tong, the deal was sealed.

UIC is a college that is trying to launch the first liberal arts college in China since the 1950s. The school, while probably not fully resembling a Minnesota private college, will emphasize education of the “whole person” instead of teaching skills applicable to a specific occupation.

All that’s left now is the learnin’.

That’s where students such as Eric Anderson and Daniel Tyrrell come in.

For the inaugural run of the exchange program, they’ll — most likely — be heading to China in February along with business instructor Janet Moldstad.

Anderson says he’s excited about the trip.

“I’d love to study abroad,” he said. He hopes that spending several months in China in an academic setting will give him the best perspective possible for learning all he can about China and its people.

He also likes the idea of this trip abroad not being in a “safe” place. He’s been to Europe and Mexico, but those trips, especially the Europe trip, don’t exactly offer an experience that’s far beyond what you can find in the U.S.

He says a trip to China, however, will get him out of his “comfort zone” and help him learn and grow as a person.

“I’m a little nervous, of course,” he said. “It’ll take courage and it’ll take faith.”

Tyrrell has also traveled abroad before, and he also says he’s a little nervous about the China trip.

Over the summer he traveled to Ukraine and western Europe. He used some of his time abroad to teach Bible classes to children.

He said he was approached by the college and asked whether he’d be interested in making the trip to China. He said he’s not 100 percent sure he’ll be going, but said it is likely that he’ll be on a plane to China come February.

***

GJ - There may be some things different in moving from the People's Republic of Minnesota to the People's Republic of China: relentless persecution of religion and a savage campaign against the unborn.

The PRC is clever in getting people to come back to America singing the praises of their enlightened land.

I wonder if Marvin Schwan, for all his faults, wanted Bethany College students to have their brains washed in the PRC.

One dividend - Pope John the Malefactor will have another exotic outpost to visit. I never saw a tinier sect with so much world travel. How the natives must marvel when Pope John raises his predestined and predestinating arms in blessing.

Forgiveness in the Concordia Triglotta

Forgiveness in the Book of Concord
Megatron Database


"But Christ was given for this purpose, namely, that for His sake there might be bestowed on us the remission of sins, and the Holy Ghost to bring forth in us new and eternal life, and eternal righteousness [to manifest Christ in our hearts, as it is written John 16:15: He shall take of the things of Mine, and show them unto you. Likewise, He works also other gifts, love, thanksgiving, charity, patience, etc.]. Wherefore the Law cannot be truly kept unless the Holy Ghost is received through faith...Then we learn to know how flesh, in security and indifference, does not fear God, and is not fully certain that we are regarded by God, but imagines that men are born and die by chance. Then we experience that we do not believe that God forgives and hears us. But when, on hearing the Gospel and the remission of sins, we are consoled by faith, we receive the Holy Ghost, so that now we are able to think aright."
Apology Augsburg Confession, III. #11. Love Fulfilling of Law. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 159. Tappert, p. 125. Heiser, p. 42.

"If we call Sacraments rites which have the command of God, and to which the promise of grace has been added, it is easy to decide what are properly Sacraments...Therefore Baptism, the Lord's Supper, and Absolution, which is the Sacrament of Repentance, are truly Sacraments. For these rites have God's command and the promise of grace, which is peculiar to the New Testament. For when we are baptized, when we eat the Lord's body, when we are absolved, our hearts must be firmly assured that God truly forgives us for Christ's sake. And God, at the same time, by the Word and by the rite, moves hearts to believe and conceive faith, just as Paul says, Romans 10:17: 'Faith cometh by hearing.' But just as the Word enters the ear in order to strike our heart, so the rite itself strikes the eye, in order to move the heart. The effect of the Word and of the rite is the same..." [Luther, Bab Captivity, 3 sacraments]
Apology Augsburg Confession, XIII,#3. Number/Use Sacraments. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 309. Tappert, p. 211. Heiser, p. 94.

"Also they teach that men cannot be justified before God by their own strength, merits, or works, but are freely justified for Christ's sake, through faith, when they believe that they are received into favor, and that their sins are forgiven for Christ's sake, who, by His death, has made satisfaction for our sins. This faith God imputes for righteousness is His sight. Romans 3 and 4."
Augsburg Confession, IV. Justification. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 45. Tappert, p. 30. Heiser, p. 12f. Romans 3; Romans 4

"Of Repentance they teach that for those who have fallen after Baptism there is remission of sins whenever they are converted; and that the Church ought to impart absolution to those thus returning to repentance. Now, repentance consists properly of these two parts: One is contrition, that is, terrors smiting the conscience through the knowledge of sin; the other is faith, which is born of the Gospel, or of absolution, and believes that, for Christ's sake, sins are forgiven, comforts the conscience, and delivers it from terrors. Then good works are bound to follow, which are the fruits of repentance."
Augsburg Confession, Article XII. Repentance. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 49. Tappert, p. 34f. Heiser, p. 13.

"But outside of this Christian Church, where the Gospel is not, there is no forgiveness, as also there can be no holiness [sanctification]. Therefore all who seek and wish to merit holiness [sanctification], not through the Gospel and forgiveness of sin, but by their works, have expelled and severed themselves [from this Church]."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III, #56, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 693. Tappert, p. 418. Heiser, p. 195.

"We further believe that in this Christian Church we have forgiveness of sin, which is wrought through the holy Sacraments and Absolution, moreover, through all manner of consolatory promises of the entire Gospel. Therefore, whatever is to be preached, concerning the Sacraments belongs here, and in short, the whole Gospel and all the offices of Christianity, which also must be preached and taught without ceasing. For although the grace of God is secured through Christ, and sanctification is wrought by the Holy Ghost through the Word of God in the unity of the Christian Church, yet on account of our flesh which we bear about with us we are never without sin."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III. #54. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 693. Tappert, p. 417. Heiser, p. 195.

"Everything, therefore, in the Christian Church is offered to the end that we shall daily obtain there nothing but the forgiveness of sin through the Word and signs, to comfort and encourage our consciences as long as we live here. Thus, although we have sins, the [grace of the] Holy Ghost does not allow them to injure us, because we are in the Christian Church, where there is nothing but [continuous, uninterrupted] forgiveness of sin, both in that God forgives us, and in that we forgive, bear with, and help each other."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III. #55. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 693. Tappert, p. 418. Heiser, p. 195.

"For now we are only half pure and holy, so that the Holy Ghost has ever [some reason why] to continue His work in us through the Word, and daily to dispense forgiveness, until we attain to that life where there will be no more forgiveness, but only perfectly pure and holy people, full of godliness and righteousness, removed and free from sin, death, and all evil, in a new, immortal, and glorified body."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III. #58. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 693. Tappert, p. 418. Heiser, p. 196.

"Behold, all this is to be the office and work of the Holy Ghost, that He begin and daily increase holiness upon earth by means of these two things, the Christian Church and the forgiveness of sin. But in our dissolution He will accomplish it altogether in an instant, and will forever preserve us therein by the last two parts."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III. #59. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 693f. Tappert, p. 418. Heiser, p. 196.

"Therefore we believe in Him who through the Word daily brings us into the fellowship of this Christian Church, and through the same Word and the forgiveness of sins bestows, increases, and strengthens faith, in order that when He has accomplished it all, and we abide therein, and die to the world and to all evil, He may finally make us perfectly and forever holy; which now we expect in faith through the Word."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III. #62. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 695. Tappert, p. 419. Heiser, p. 196.

"Therefore there is here again great need to call upon God and pray: Dear Father, forgive us our trespasses. Not as though He did not forgive sin without and even before our prayer (for He has given us the Gospel, in which is pure forgiveness before we prayed or ever thought about it). But this is to the intent that we may recognize and accept such forgiveness."
The Large Catechism, The Lord's Prayer, Fifth Petition, #88, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 723. Tappert, p. 432. Heiser, p. 202f. Matthew 6:12

"For this reason let every one esteem his Baptism as a daily dress in which he is to walk constantly, that he may ever be found in the faith and its fruits, that he suppress the old man and grow up in the new. For if we would be Christians, we must practise the work whereby we are Christians. But if any one fall away from it, let him again come into it. For just as Christ, the Mercy-seat, does not recede from us or forbid us to come to Him again, even though we sin, so all His treasure and gifts also remain. If, therefore, we have once in Baptism obtained forgiveness of sin, it will remain every day, as long as we live, that is, as long as we carry the old man about our neck."
The Large Catechism, Part Fourth, Of Baptism. #84-86. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 753. Tappert, p. 446. Heiser, p. 209f.

"Therefore also it is vain talk when they say that the body and blood of Christ are not given and shed for us in the Lord's Supper, hence we could not have forgiveness of sins in the Sacrament. For although the work is accomplished and the forgiveness of sins acquired on the cross, yet it cannot come to us in any other way than through the Word. For what would we otherwise know about it, that such a thing was accomplished or was to be given us if it were not presented by preaching or the oral Word? Whence do they know of it, or how can they apprehend and appropriate to themselves the forgiveness, except they lay hold of and believe the Scriptures and the Gospel? But now the entire Gospel and the article of the Creed: I believe a holy Christian Church, the forgiveness of sin, etc., are by the Word embodied in this Sacrament and presented to us."
The Large Catechism, Sacrament of the Altar. #31-32. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 759. Tappert, p. 450. Heiser, p. 211.

"For here in the Sacrament you are to receive from the lips of Christ forgiveness of sin, which contains and brings with it the grace of God and the Spirit with all His gifts, protection, shelter, and power against death and the devil and all misfortune."
The Large Catechism, Sacrament of the Altar. #70. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 769. Tappert, p. 454. Heiser, p. 214.

"...it has been unanimously taught by the other teachers of the Augsburg Confession that Christ is our righteousness not according to His divine nature alone, nor according to His human nature alone, but according to both natures; for He has redeemed, justified, and saved us from our sins as God and man, through His complete obedience; that therefore the righteousness of faith is the forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, and our adoption as God's children only on account of the obedience of Christ, which through faith alone, out of pure grace, is imputed for righteousness to all true believers, and on account of it they are absolved from all their unrighteousness."
Formula of Concord, SD, III. #4. Righteousness of Faith. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 917. Tappert, p. 539f. Heiser, p. 250.

"These treasures are offered us by the Holy Ghost in the promise of the holy Gospel; and faith alone is the only means by which we lay hold upon, accept, and apply, and appropriate them to ourselves. This faith is a gift of God, by which we truly learn to know Christ, our Redeemer, in the Word of the Gospel, and trust in Him, that for the sake of His obedience alone we have the forgiveness of sins by grace, are regarded as godly and righteous by God the Father, and are eternally saved."
Formula of Concord, SD, III 10, Righteous of Faith before God, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 919. Tappert, p. 541. Heiser, p. 250.

"This righteousness is offered us by the Holy Ghost through the Gospel and in the Sacraments, and is applied, appropriated, and received through faith, whence believers have reconciliation with God, forgiveness of sins, the grace of God, sonship, and heirship of eternal life."
Formula of Concord, SD III. #16. Righteousness of Faith. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 921. Tappert, p. 541. Heiser, p. 251.

"Moreover, neither contrition nor love or any other virtue, but faith alone is the sole means and instrument by which and through which we can receive and accept the grace of God, the merit of Christ, and the forgiveness of sins, which are offered us in the promise of the Gospel."
Formula of Concord, SD, III 31, Righteous of Faith before God, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 925. Tappert, p. 544. Heiser, p. 252.

"The other eating of the body of Christ is oral or sacramental, when the true, essential body and blood of Christ are also orally received and partaken of in the Holy Supper, by all who eat and drink the consecrated bread and wine in the Supper--by the believing as a certain pledge and assurance that their sins are surely forgiven them, and Christ dwells and is efficacious in them, but by the unbelieving for the judgment and condemnation, as the words of the institution by Christ expressly declare...."
Formula of Concord, SD, VII. #63. Holy Supper. Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House 1921, p. 995. Tappert, p. 581. Heiser, p. 270.

Quotations for Trinity 18

"The New Testament is the inerrant record of the revelation of Jesus Christ in word and deed, and of the truths and principles proceeding, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, from that revelation. The Old Testament is in like manner an inerrant record, having the express and often repeated testimony and authority of Christ, of the preparatory and partial revelations made concerning Him before His coming. Hebrews 1:1."
Henry Eyster Jacobs, A Summary of the Christian Faith, Philadelphia: General Council Publication House, 1913, p. 3. Hebrews 1:1.

"The Old Testament dealt with the promises of God to the chosen people. Thereby God placed Himself in 'covenant' relation to Israel (berith). This relation, like the promises and the gifts of God to Israel, is always onesided. It is always God's covenant, not Israel's, and not a mutual agreement, not a suntheke. This promise and covenant indeed obligates Israel, and Israel assumes these obligations, but the covenant emanates entirely from God."
R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews, Columbus: Lutheran Book Concern, 1938, p. 235. Hebrews 7:22;

"In view of their spiritual meaning the psalms are really lovely and sweet; for they are comforting to all depressed, wretched consciences, who are in fear of sin, the anguish and agony of death, and all sorts of trouble and misery. To such hearts the Book of Psalms is a sweet, comforting, lovely song, because it sings and preaches the Messiah, although one merely reads or recites the words without notes. Nevertheless, the use of notes or music, as a wonderful creation and gift of God, helps greatly to produce this effect, especially when the people sing along and do so with fine devoutness...Thus David, too, often dispelled, or at least checked or weakened, the evil spirit for Saul with his minstrelsy (1 Samuel 16:17ff.). For the evil spirit is not at ease when one sings or preaches God's Word in true faith. He is a spirit of sadness and cannot stay where a heart is spiritually joyful (joyful in God and His Word).
What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed. Ewald M. Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 981. 1 Samuel 16:17ff.

Trinity 18 Sermon

1 Corinthians 1:4 I thank my God always on your behalf, for the grace of God which is given you by Jesus Christ; 5 That in every thing ye are enriched by him, in all utterance, and in all knowledge; 6 Even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you: 7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ: 8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

THANKFUL FOR THE GRACE OF GOD

Whenever we consider the meaning of this verse (4), we should recall that the Corinth church was full of problems. Their use of the Lord’s Supper needed correction. Their irrational tongue-speaking prompted 3 chapters of admonition. They had problems with the role of men and women, meat offered to idols, gross immorality, factions, and so forth. In addition, Paul made the congregation so angry that he was anxious about returning to them. This galaxy of conflicts has given us 1 and 2 Corinthians, important both for doctrinal and practical reasons.

When people try to put down the Bible as a human document, they forget that the Holy Spirit has chosen to reveal divine truth through a fallible person, Paul in this case, and because of sinful human beings, the Corinthian congregation. After dealing with many different congregational histories, I can see how 1 and 2 Corinthians differ from ordinary human documents. No one would ever record in a congregational history what we find in 1 and 2 Corinthians.

I started putting in stories about congregational history in the Ohio Synod paper, about 25 years ago. After I used some of the more interesting anecdotes, some pastors insisted on writing their own stories, which were bland.

So, in spite of all the problems in Corinth, Paul was thankful. He did not praise himself or the individuals. Instead, he wrote that he was thankful to God for the grace given to them in Christ Jesus.

What does this mean? Grace. We use the term all the time. One of the most popular hymns in America is “Amazing Grace.” But what would most people say if they had to define the word grace?

Grace is God’s favor or love, freely given to us without us being deserving.

Too often we think of love or friendship only in terms of a barter arrangement. For instance, one man will build a deck for his friend or relative. The friend or relative will respond by fixing the car.

Or we think in terms of reward. A soldier earns the Medal of Honor, the highest military honor that can be earned in America. There is always a citation, describing what heroic actions made the soldier worthy of the special medal worn around the neck.

God’s grace is appreciated best when we consider the Biblical teaching of original sin, that our nature cannot ever escape the taint of sin. The outwardly exemplary citizen is no better than the prisoner on death row in this regard. In fact, as Luther has often pointed out, the obvious transgressor is more likely to know that he is a sinner in need of a Redeemer. The works-saint is more likely to think he has saved himself through his virtue, hard work, and moral rectitude. If someone is impressed with his own holiness, he will not think he needs forgiveness.

When we worship or study the Bible, God treats our biggest sin, doubting His Word, by exposing it through the Law. Whenever Jesus says, O ye of little faith, or whenever God addresses our doubt, it is the Law making a diagnosis. We react to the Law the way we react to medical tests – with fear and avoidance. Yet we know something is wrong. The Law is the diagnosis but not the prescription.

The Law wilts the pride in our stubborn and hardened hearts. Sometimes outward events will reinforce the message. Waking up face down on concrete, for instance, will magnify the meaning of the Law. The Holy Spirit causes true sorrow for sin, contrition, by showing what God has commanded.

Worldly contrition is being sorry for being caught. Sometimes it turns into sincere sorrow for sin, but only under the influence of the Word. For instance, if a boy throws rocks and breaks windows, it is not wrong because it hurts the family name, but because of the 7th Commandment. We should help preserve our neighbor’s property.

If people are worried about the family name, they will more likely cover up a problem, to save themselves embarrassment. Many parents act as if their children can do no wrong. So it is no wonder that few want to be parochial school teachers today, dealing with an impossible task. One teacher removed two obnoxious students from band class. Soon the father showed up and shouted down the teacher in front of the class.

In contrast, when I was a pastor in Columbus, a little girl stole my teddy bear, which I was showing to her. Her sister later told me that I gave it to her. I said, “Ask her the real story.” The next day the little girl appeared at the door with her dad. She apologized and gave me my teddy bear. I didn’t care about the toy, only about the impulsive behavior. Needless to say, with such a father, those five children were wonderful to have around the neighborhood. They planted my entire garden, demanding pay and treats. The plants came up the way they were sown, randomly. The treats were kool-aid and some cookies.

Sinful behavior is thwarted—-in some cases--by saying, “It is proven that it isn’t good for you.” That seems good at first, but it sounds as if the opposite of sin is taking care of yourself.

Sin is defined through the 10 Commandments, the First Table (1-3) describing our relationship with God; the Second Table describing our relationship with our neighbor.

When an unbeliever in converted to faith in Christ, the Holy Spirit works first through the Law to soften his sinful heart and show him the utter futility of salvation through works, virtue, or turning over a new leaf. Believers also need this continued approach, because we soon lose our sense of our true sinful nature.

People experience the divine power of the Law, because they say, “It was like a knife through my heart.” Or “I felt crushed.” Or “Suddenly I saw myself as God must see me.” Or “I finally saw that all my efforts had been completely in vain. I felt powerless.”

The broken, contrite, sorrowful sinner then hears or reads the Gospel promises.

2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

The Holy Spirit teaches us the meaning of the crucifixion in this passage. This is a Gospel passage. Jesus was without sin and yet was treated as the totality of human sin, dying in agony, abandoned by God. Why? That we might be made the righteousness of God.

When we believe the Gospel promises, we are justified, declared righteous or innocent in the eyes of God. Christ has paid for our sins.

How do we believe? How does this happen? The divine power of the Gospel causes faith.

Ephesians 2:4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

This is the great irony. Man can only sin by treating sin with the Law. God demands faith, but God provides faith by the proclamation of the Gospel. That shows us the grace of God, since we are dead to Him, dead through sin. Yet God in His mercy provides a way to escape the penalty we deserve, placing His Son on the altar, out of love for each and every one of us.

Have you ever stayed at someone’s house and damaged something? And the host didn’t seem to mind at all? That would be a gracious host. Or you did something stupid, really careless, and damaged something of unique value to the host. And the host said, “It never happened. I already forgot.” That would be even more gracious.

Few people are gracious, because it takes such an effort, to stifle rage and the need for revenge and justice. But God is gracious far beyond our ability to comprehend His love and mercy. Before we knew we are sinners, God provided the remedy for our illness, forgiveness in Christ.

In raising children one of the most frustrating things is that being absolutely fierce with them and extremely strict will not bring about the desired results. Often parents will see just the opposite from the use of the Law alone. That is why parents need to understand forgiveness and to practice it daily, often in a series of lessons. Wrong must be addressed according to God’s Word. But forgiveness must also be promised and experienced. Because children are so open to teaching and sensitive, they will become overly alarmed with the Law alone, just as they will become monsters if they get away with everything.

Paul’s tenderness toward the Corinthian congregation is a good example of this approach. He certainly denounced some bad and sinful behavior, but he also thanked God for them and for the power of the Gospel in their midst. Wherever the Gospel is proclaimed, forgiveness and salvation will be found.

In forgiveness, not the Law, we find the power to defeat temptation, little by little, and chase away Satan with the Word. When we see the meaning of forgiveness, justification by faith, then we can look at the 10 Commandments in terms of loving what God commands.

Third Commandment – Honor the Sabbath and keep it holy. The Gospel message makes us enjoy what God commands. When people love the Word of Truth, they show the fruit of the Spirit promised in Galatians 5. That loves comes from God not from man. It is the power both to will and to do.

Christ is nothing but forgiveness. One example is often used against God. He has provided so many ways to receive forgiveness. We may say the Word and the Sacraments of baptism and communion. But we may also say through absolution and the mutual consolation of the brothers (as Luther does). Or absolution is called a sacrament, in the Apology of the Augsburg Confession.

God’s grace can be seen in this superabundance of methods to grant forgiveness and to strengthen faith. Sometimes a minister will speak consoling words to a member. Sometimes members to one another. Other times a member to a pastor. God’s Word is so powerful that man cannot stop what God has begun. When one man is forgiven, he will be forgiving toward others and teach forgiveness. Those who have been completely wiped out by the follies of life will be the most thankful for God’s riches. The greatest sinners will have the greatest joy in being forgiven.

The Pharisees did not run to Jerusalem with good news. They ran back to plot the death of Jesus. Ordinary men and women, great sinners and small sinners, foundation salvation in Jesus, who converted them through the preached Word.

As sinners, we value the sacrament of Holy Communion. People ask when they will receive the Lord’s Supper. Why is it so special for Lutherans? It is the visible Gospel. Not just bread and wine, but also the body and blood of Christ.

Where is the power of communion? In the Gospel word of consecration and distribution: Given and shed for the forgiveness of sin.

We are weak. We need the visible reality united with the invisible promise of the Gospel. We need to receive as individuals when the sermon gives to the whole group assembled. We need communion on a regular basis.

Sound Like Your Synod?

Scandal Brewing at Oral Roberts U.
By JUSTIN JUOZAPAVICIUS – 1 day ago

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Twenty years ago, televangelist Oral Roberts said he was reading a spy novel when God appeared to him and told him to raise $8 million for Roberts' university, or else he would be "called home."

Now, his son, Oral Roberts University President Richard Roberts, says God is speaking again, telling him to deny lurid allegations in a lawsuit that threatens to engulf this 44-year-old Bible Belt college in scandal.

Richard Roberts is accused of illegal involvement in a local political campaign and lavish spending at donors' expense, including numerous home remodeling projects, use of the university jet for his daughter's senior trip to the Bahamas, and a red Mercedes convertible and a Lexus SUV for his wife, Lindsay.

She is accused of dropping tens of thousands of dollars on clothes, awarding nonacademic scholarships to friends of her children and sending scores of text messages on university-issued cell phones to people described in the lawsuit as "underage males."

At a chapel service this week on the 5,300-student campus known for its 60-foot-tall bronze sculpture of praying hands, Roberts said God told him: "We live in a litigious society. Anyone can get mad and file a lawsuit against another person whether they have a legitimate case or not. This lawsuit ... is about intimidation, blackmail and extortion."

San Antonio televangelist John Hagee, a member of the ORU board of regents, said the university's executive board "is conducting a full and thorough investigation."

Colleagues fear for the reputation of the university and the future of the Roberts' ministry, which grew from Southern tent revivals to one of the most successful evangelical empires in the country, hauling in tens of millions of dollars in contributions a year. The university reported nearly $76 million in revenue in 2005, according to the IRS.

Oral Roberts is 89 and lives in California. He holds the title of chancellor, but the university describes him as semi-retired, and his son presides over day-to-day operations on the campus, which had a modern, space-age design when it was built in the early 1960s but now looks dated, like Disney's Tomorrowland.

Cornell Cross II, a senior from Burlington, Vt., said he is looking to transfer to another school because the scandal has "severely devalued and hurt the reputation of my degree."

"We have asked and asked and asked to see the finances of our school and what they're doing with our money, and we've been told no," said, Cross who is majoring in government. "Now we know why. As a student, I'm not going to stand for it any longer."

The allegations are contained in a lawsuit filed Tuesday by three former professors. They sued ORU and Roberts, alleging they were wrongfully dismissed after reporting the school's involvement in a local political race.

Richard Roberts, according to the suit, asked a professor in 2005 to use his students and university resources to aid a county commissioner's bid for Tulsa mayor. Such involvement would violate state and federal law because of the university's nonprofit status. Up to 50 students are alleged to have worked on the campaign.

The professors also said their dismissals came after they turned over to the board of regents a copy of a report documenting moral and ethical lapses on the part of Roberts and his family. The internal document was prepared by Stephanie Cantese, Richard Roberts' sister-in-law, according to the lawsuit.

An ORU student repairing Cantese's laptop discovered the document and later provided a copy to one of the professors.

It details dozens of alleged instances of misconduct. Among them:

_ A longtime maintenance employee was fired so that an underage male friend of Mrs. Roberts could have his position.

_ Mrs. Roberts — who is a member of the board of regents and is referred to as ORU's "first lady" on the university's Web site — frequently had cell-phone bills of more than $800 per month, with hundreds of text messages sent between 1 a.m. to 3 a.m. to "underage males who had been provided phones at university expense."

_ The university jet was used to take one daughter and several friends on a senior trip to Orlando, Fla., and the Bahamas. The $29,411 trip was billed to the ministry as an "evangelistic function of the president."

_ Mrs. Roberts spent more than $39,000 at one Chico's clothing store alone in less than a year, and had other accounts in Texas and California. She also repeatedly said, "As long as I wear it once on TV, we can charge it off." The document cites inconsistencies in clothing purchases and actual usage on TV.

_ Mrs. Roberts was given a white Lexus SUV and a red Mercedes convertible by ministry donors.

_ University and ministry employees are regularly summoned to the Roberts' home to do the daughters' homework.

_ The university and ministry maintain a stable of horses for exclusive use by the Roberts' children.

_ The Roberts' home has been remodeled 11 times in the past 14 years.

Tim Brooker, one of the professors who sued, said he fears for the university's survival if certain changes aren't made.

"All over that campus, there are signs up that say, `And God said, build me a university, build it on my authority, and build it on the Holy Spirit,'" Brooker said. "Unfortunately, ownership has shifted."