Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956, remake 1978, remake 1995) illustrates how aliens can replicate our bodies and take over the planet. The body snatchers look like everyone else, so they grow in number while an ever-decreasing number of alert humans try to point out the danger. At the end of the 1978 version, Donald Sutherland's approach is comforting, until he points and hisses.
When I saw a clip of Stetzer angrily citing the Great Commission (Reformed version), I realized how much the Church Shrinkers are pod people. Babtist Stetzer was a little boy when McGavran began his scam at Fuller Seminary. An earlier but unheralded McGavran effort began in Eugene, Oregon in 1957, when I was still in short pants. An endless parade of Church Shrinking pod people have been mouthing the same platitudes ever since.
The cartoon posted above was shown at a WELS pastors' conference about 15 years ago. The pastor, who despised the Church Shrinkage Movement, was taken aside and sternly admonished by Wally Oelhafen, District Mission Board chair. Yes, Wally is the father of "I Am So Glad Jesus Rode a Hog," that advert for Harleys disguised as a sermon.
Oelhafen routinely dumped Waldo Werning books on the desks of mission pastors. Did anyone ask about Werning's pastoral qualifications? Lutheran qualifications? Years later, Church and Chicanery was inviting a Werning to speak to WELS...posthumously.
What made all the WELS Church Shrinkers excited? "We have to make disciples." Joel Gerlach - make disciples. This aberration even slopped over into the tiny CLC, with Paul Tiefel's and David Koenig's fuminations about making disciples. Valleskey - make disciples. Two Toledo pastors sent a letter around about this error and they were pushed out of WELS. The CG pod people hiss their slogans but they also attack anyone who figures them out.
The most common slogan of all these con artists is - Make disciples. Yet Matthew clearly says - Teach all nations. The object of the verb is "all nations."
KJV Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
The Reformed version suggests man can make disciples.
The original text emphasizes God's work in the Means of Grace - teach all nations, baptizing...
The new/old confidence game argues that church must appeal to people who hate church. The televangelists deliberately set out to mimic the entertainment style of evangelism. At first they all looked like slightly religious versions of The Tonight Show. Now they look like rock concerts for white people with attention deficit synodrome. When Ski and the other WELS pastors worshiped with Andy Stanley in Atlanta, there were nine or so screens across the stage.
Amusing Ourselves to Death, by Neil Postman, described this method in 1984, when it was already hoary with age.
Church and Chicanery tries to convince people they care deeply about the unchurched. So where do they send Ski? Into an area where Wisconsin members are especially dense - with 40 WELS congregations already established. Why not send Ski to a place where almost everyone hates what the Wisconsin Synod stands for? Why not appoint him to The Love Shack? He could drink coffee there.
Aw-right!"
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Anonymous (Joe Krohn?) has left a new comment on your post "Church and Chicanery - Invasion of the Body Snatch...":
The original text says "make disciples." Even Kretzmann translates it that way, and so does your beloved Lenski.
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GJ - The object of the verb is "all nations." The verb means "to teach." The Pietists think disciples are a higher level of believers, ones who reproduce and bring in the big bucks. Lutherans reproduce the normal way and spiritually reproduce through Holy Baptism.
I am not surprised to have the daily Church and Change anonymous rebuttal show up. I have yet to see one that illustrates any knowledge of Biblical, Lutheran doctrine.
Joe Krohn's Rock and Rock Church blog supports UOJ and Church Growth. Boy, I never saw that coming!
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Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Church and Chicanery - Invasion of the Body Snatch...":
Your Greek knowledge is lacking. The verb that is translated as "make disciples" is matheteusate, an imperative aorist active 2nd person plural of mateteuo. If it is used in an intransitive manner, its root meaning is "to be a pupil" with the implication of being an adherent of the teacher: "be or become a pupil/disciple."
If it is used in a transitive manner, its root meaning is "to cause one to be a pupil, or teach."
Now, what is the difference? I don't see one. When you teach, you make disciples; when you make disciples, you do so by teaching. It's like saying you have six of one and half-a-dozen of another.
If a student is studying biology, they sit at the feet of a teacher who teaches biology. You could also correctly say that they are becoming biologists because they are learning about biology.
The same holds true for making Christians/disciples. They are being taught at the feet of Jesus; they are being taught scripture. Yet, you can also correctly say that they are becoming disciples of Jesus because they are learning the teachings of Jesus; they are becoming disciples through the teaching and use of Word and Sacraments, the instruments used to make disciples.
It would appear you are splitting hairs and arguing for arguments sake.
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GJ - I won't take the time to untangle all the logical fallacies above. I am just as dumb as the translators of the KJV. I plead guilty to that. And some would say the KJV is just an edit of Tyndale, who is very close to Luther. Guilty as charged.
Here are some old translations of the passage, from poor deluded souls who never went to Fuller, Willow Creek, or Rock and Roll Lutheran (sic):
KJV Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
YLT Matthew 28:19 having gone, then, disciple all the nations, (baptizing them -- to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
VULGATE Matthew 28:19 euntes ergo docete omnes gentes baptizantes eos in nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti
Luther German Matthew 28:19 Darum gehet hin und lehret alle Völker und taufet sie im Namen des Vaters und des Sohnes und des heiligen Geistes,
The anonymous poster proved what I said - the Church Shrinkers are heavily invested in manufacturing disciples.
