Reformed Magazine Goes Belly Up - More Periodicals To Follow

The Reformed Church in America is closing down its magazine. The United Methodists did the same a long time ago. The RCA (Robert Schuller's denomination) had a tiny circulation, down to 20,000 for a denomination of 166,000. The Lutheran (ELCA) said the RCA magazine was prized for its editorial independence. I supposed that means prized by very few.

An interesting note added that some of the magazine's money was diverted for a quarterly Church Growth periodical - RCA Today, the Reformed equivalent of WELS' TELL magazine, started in 1977 by Ron Roth and Paul Calvin Kelm.

Fantasy Satire
A radical departure would have looked like this - a secretive cabal--The Means of Grace Network--diverted some RCA money and started a magazine called The Efficacious Word, Living Sacraments, but called TEWLS to fool the masses.

In spite of a few objections, TEWLS announced its goal of promoting Lutheran doctrine. Editor Paul Luther Vanderkelm used his position to affirm Reformed doctrine while covertly promoting Lutheran doctrine. "We all know the Word of God is not efficacious," wrote Vanderkelm, in an editorial, "but wouldn't it be great if it were?"

Various stooges were trotted out to praise such books as Luther's Commentary on Galatians, and The Large Catechism. David Lutherskey wrote a magazine article called "Just the Word and Ordinances, or God's True Means of Grace?" He cleverly used a question as a title, to avert suspicion. "I've come across some strange books in the church library," said layman Dutch Vanderhooft. Professor Lutherskey said, "Maybe Luther's sermons could help us with our work. His denomination is still the largest Protestant group in the world. We can learn a lot from Luther. He was a Christian too."

More funds were diverted and outside grants requested for sending pastors to conservative Lutheran seminaries. (This is a fantasy folks, so assume the seminaries were still Lutheran and not promoting Deformed Dreck.) RCA ministers came back to write in TEWLS that they could all learn a lot from those Lutheran schools.

TEWLS editors and supporters managed to get their buddies, who studied at the Lutheran seminaries, into positions at their headquarters. Their first real triumph was replacing the evangelism professor at their seminary with a Professor of the External Word. Fortunately, most people did not know what that meant. The Means of Grace Network members winked at each other during the solemn installation of their chosen professor Artful Seelsorger.

When the MOGN met, they worked on good dodges for the accusation they were covert Lutherans.

1. "Didn't you study at both Concordias and Bethany?" Answer - "I am thankful to God that I had the chance to learn firsthand about the errors of the Lutherans. But they do have a lot of useful tips we can use. They are Christians too - we can learn from them."
   
   
2. "Your statements in TEWLS are almost identical to Lutheran doctrine. In fact, you are always quoting Luther, Chemnitz, Gerhard, Gerhardt, Chytraeus." Answer - "We sing Gerhardt's hymns. Does that make us Lutheran? Don't fall for legalism. I am well trained by our seminary. I can separate the wheat from the chaff."
   
   
3. "You seem to be weak on the ordinances. We have to maintain our standards that baptism and the Lord's Supper do nothing and are merely symbolic." Answer - "We are not introducing anything new or changing anything. The Means of Grace are doctrinally neutral. We can call ourselves anything we want, but the Word is still effective. Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater."

***

GJ - But that never seems to happen. The Deformed trash Lutheran doctrine and worship, and the Lutherans pay them tuition money and go to their expensive conferences.

One word about baptismal regeneration, the Real Presence, the Means of Grace, or the efficacious Word and the Reformed will go into epic shunning mode. So who has doctrinal discipline - the Reformed or the Lutherans?

More on Divorced Pastors - Why Pietists Cannot Be Trusted

Someone thought I was being too harsh when I said all divorced pastors should be removed from pastoral work, and that includes being booted upstairs as a consultant, mission counselor, or evangelism expert.

The writer claimed that some pastors are left by their wives, etc. Arguing from an exception is always going to promote weak principles. In fact, that is how so many divorced pastors kept their jobs--and often their mistresses--by making themselves the victims. Wives may be completely at fault at times (I doubt it), but the Bible still says "husband of but one wife," and not "one wife at a time."

What did divorced pastors do for WELS in Columbus? Floyd Luther Stolzenburg was promoted as a Church Growth expert and treated as a WELS pastor, even though he was kicked out as a Missouri pastor and never a member of WELS. The only cause he favored was himself and his false doctrine. Ditto Roger Zehms, another divorced pastor, but friends with Wayne Mueller. So he could promote CG too, even though he had no call, except one "directly from the Holy Spirit," as he said at one LPR meeting - explaining why he and Floyd answered to no one. Marc Schroeder divorced his first wife and married his girlfriend, but they were both children of WELS professors so that made it Scriptural. Marc loved Church Growth, got kicked out of WELS, and joined Missouri with his congregation. The Donor, as he was called, was also divorced. All were "Scriptural" divorces - the most common use of "Scriptural" in Columbus WELS churches.

A WELS member wrote: "I remember Columbus having all these divorced pastors. It seems to me these guys are always the ones that promoted the church growth issues. They talk about love but are unloving."

Marvin Schwan did a lot for WELS and Missouri, showing them how little a ton of money can do. Marvin divorced his wife and married his manager's wife. Marvin's second wife became a Lutheran, apparently proving money is a Means of Grace. But when he died, she became a Roman Catholic again, proving money is not as powerful a means as WELS/ELS once thought.

Christian News has another fine example of what I mean. A group photo shows Herman Otten grinning with David Menton (CLC - sic) and Phil Giessler (ex-LCMS). Giessler was carrying on an affair when he was the overpaid head of God's Word to the Nation Bible Society. What was supposed to be a revision of the Beck Bible turned into a Marvin Schwan funded bonanza for a few people, especially Phil. He was getting staggering sums.

At one point Giessler's long-suffering wife told her LCMS husband to choose between her and the mistress. He chose his mistress and his putative son with that woman. Rev. Phil announced his own ex-communication because he was unrepentant. His Bible empire went on life support.

Giessler was divorced for cause and joined a Pietistic ministerium. They did not allow divorced pastors, so they did not list him. But he served a church on their list. His second wife, who was his former mistress, got tired of living on very little (no Schwan loot) and left him, telling him, "He isn't your son after all."

Rev. Phil got married a third time, rising in Otten's esteem with each marriage. Otten even said on the phone once, "Phil is here with his wife." I said, "His third?" Herman said, "Third? Why do you say third?" I went through the history, as told to me by Otten and recorded somewhat in his tabloid. Herman said, "Oh yes. You are right. She is a nice person."

Otten contended that Phil was such a good teacher of the Bible. Readers can imagine what I said in response.

I wrote before - conservatives have lost credibility in America because they are just as loose as their Leftist counterparts, and conservatives excuse the worst behavior because "he is a nice guy" or something similar. Luther argued that men who abandon their families should be arrested. I doubt whether Luther would address Phil as "Dr." The latest CN article identifies Dr. Phil as a "Bible scholar." That must mean someone who makes a choice living from a book he never reads.

Pietism breeds legalism and antinomianism. A CLC (sic) layman like Menton will denounce people for publishing in CN, because the LCMS is evil and Otten is still in it. However, CLC (sic) pastors can publish in CN if they limit themselves to letters. And Menton can publish in CN because...well, just because. Now Menton is involved in an unionistic Creation museum. And the trouble with the LCMS is - they tolerate unionistic activities!

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "More on Divorced Pastors - Why Pietists Cannot Be ...":

"Floyd Luther Stolzenburg was promoted as a Church Growth expert and treated as a WELS pastor, even though he was kicked out as a Missouri pastor and never a member of WELS."

How many children did Floyd have?

***

GJ - Pro-life pastors Jay Webber and Roger Kovaciny could answer how many children Floyd fathered. They worked with and supported Floyd, taking money from his Masonic church for their projects. Maybe VP Paul Kuske and Doctrinal Pussycat Robert Mueller would offer some facts. Both claimed to know all about Floyd before installing him as a CG guru for WELS without Floyd belonging to WELS - a synod devoted to fellowship principles.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "More on Divorced Pastors - Why Pietists Cannot Be ...":

Hey Dr. Jackson do you agree that this is high tech gossip against your fellow christians (sic). It is not very pastor like.

***

GJ - No I do not agree. A divorce is a public matter, with legal documents filed for anyone to see - unless sealed by the court. WELS/ELS officials have shamed themselves by promoting and defending men who should be in prison instead of a pulpit. The alleged shepherds watching over the flock, the District Pussycats, are wolves in sheep's clothing. They are very harsh - but only with the people who find out the truth.

You will never hear from a WELS DP that one of their own went to the state prison for offenses against children in his own congregation, that two WELS church workers murdered their wives. But oh do they have a creative streak when it comes to making up stories about people who threaten to unfeather their nests. Woe unto those who cross DP Hategood and VP Corruption.

---

Bruce Church has left a new comment on your post "More on Divorced Pastors - Why Pietists Cannot Be ...":

Dr. Jackson,

I know that you've pointed out that antinomianism runs rampant in the UOJ-lovin' synods, but perhaps it never occurred to your readers what antinomianism actually looks like in real life, or that the behavior some commentators engage in is actually various forms of antinomianism. For instance, the guy who wrote that you engage in high tech gossip is really just throwing out a red herring. In other words, he's trying to undercut and silence anyone who would try to apply the law to, or just plain point out, egregious situations in the synods.

Antinomianists undercut critics even though they must realize that someone has to raise a stink or else the situation in the Church would become intolerable in short order. Imagine what it would be like if public ministers knew they could have three or even four wives and no one would say anything
contrariwise.

Antinomianism (anti-law-ism) entails a person, or persons, making a lot of excuses why the law does not apply to him (or them), or to someone he or they like, as well as castigating, name-calling, or even slandering people who publicly object to public behavior that does not conform to the Scriptures, all in order to get critics to back off.

A favorite of antinomianists is to misapply Mat 07:01: "Do not judge, or you too will be judged." However, verse five of that chapter shows that what is meant is hypocritical judging. Notice Jesus does say to eventually take the speck out of the brother's eye, not to ignore it forever, but first tend to one's own sin. Since Dr. Jackson is still married to his first wife, he can fire away at public ministers who've had more than one (1 Tim. 3:2, 12; Tit. 1:6).

Antinominists may resort to other red herrings, like saying a person is not in fellowship with the WELS, or another synod, and therefore it is none of his business. Another red herring is charging a critic with violation of the 8th Commandment, or a violation
of Matthew 18 where one is supposed to go to the brother privately first. Both the 8th Commandment and Matthew 18 pertain to dealing with private sins privately, but the Ministry of the Word is public for the most part, and public sin and
false teaching must be rebuked publicly.

Luther and the Proposed Council of Trent

The Antichrist, affectionately known as B-16.

"... we should take him-the pope, the cardinals, and whatever riffraff belongs to His Idolatrous and Papal Holiness-and (as blasphemers) tear out their tongues from the back, and nail them on the gallows.... Then one could allow them to hold a council, or as many as they wanted, on the gallows, or in hell among all the devils."



Wider das Papsttum in Rom, vom Teufel gestiftet, quoted by Cardinal Ratzinger from A. Lapple, Martin Luther: Leben, Bilder, Dokumente (Munich/Zurich, 1982), pp. 252f. (The above translation is from Luther's Works, vol. 41 [Church and Ministry 1111, Helmut T. Lehmann, general ed. [Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 19661, p. 308.)

Cardinal Ratzinger became the current pope by making a deal with the liberals to appoint one of their own to replace him as head of the Inquisition (the old name for Ratzinger's post), the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith.

Glimpse of the Top Secret Headquarters of the Shrinkers in WELS

Google Maps was recently updated to include a wider view of the Center.


Church and Chicanery leaders Ron Roth and Jeff Davis came up with a novel plan to resupply the depleted coffers of their organization.

They found a homeless man in downtown Milwaukee and drew a sign for him, to make it look original.

Everyone who visits their secret headquarters will get a chance to have fun and leave some loot behind.

The homeless man will get to keep all the money, after Roth and Davis deduct their expenses, fees, commissions, and wages.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Glimpse of the Top Secret Headquarters of the Shri...":

Perhaps Latte Lutheran (WELS, Madison, WI) ought to take note of the reader feedback at the end of the article. WELS is at best so passe!

http://www.indystar.com/article/20090809/LOCAL/908090377/1001/news

Rave Reviews from UOJ-Shrinkers

1. "You are divisive."
   
2. "You are an evil man."
   
3. "You have violated the Eighth Commandment."
   
4. "You have not talked to these people first."
   
5. "Nothing but pure poison."
   
6. "When you finally die, everyone will be relieved."
   
7. "No one reads your blog."
   
8. "You write your own comments."
   
9. "You don't have a friend in the world."
   
10. "You have no credibility."
    
11. "You use too many quotations."
    
12. "You haven't proven anything."
    
13. "You are a gutless coward." - Anonymous
    

***

GJ - These people should be trying to convert me to Pietism through their love, but I do not feel it so far.

Gone in 24 Hours

"WELS clergy is (sic) afrain (sic) to speak their own minds when their views might not sync completely with the party line. Greg Jackson knew this long ago. (Oh NO! I have uttered the un-utterable name!!!!)"

***

GJ - This was posted and erased soon after, on another site.

I don't have to prove this was written by a WELS graduate, do I? I am writing a macro to put (sic) in their messages more efficiently.

More proof that it came from a WELS graduate - as soon as he spoke the truth, he erased it.

Time To Study the Means of Grace

Word and Sacrament by Norma Boeckler

A large collection of quotations on the efficacy of the Word is here.

No better sign of Lutheran apostasy is its silence about the Means of Grace in the last 30 years. In fact, the Missouri battle for the Bible was simply another installment, not a long-term solution. The Missouri Synod laity and pastors opposed the rationalistic and unionistic trends that moved their synod into fellowship with the ALC, LCA, while dabbling with Romanism. Arguing for inerrancy was rather easy, since most people active in the 1960s were raised with the historic conception of the Bible being inerrant or infallible, without contradiction or error. Only those brainwashed in the Historical-Critical Method thought otherwise, but they were the leaders of the LCMS, ALC, LCA, and WELS...among the followers of Gerke and Jungkuntz. A large number of Seminex leaders graduated from Northwestern College, Watertown. Like Missouri, WELS never had the guts to deal completely with the HCM advocates. Ted Hartwig remained in WELS, launching the unisex Creeds in the odious Christian Worship.

Not trusting in the Means of Grace means turning to methods, tricks, gimmicks, techniques, mostly borrowed from business, advertising, and Enthusiasm. For example, the next trend in the Shrinker Movement is to have cuddling parties. That was old a few years ago, among the unwashed hordes of bored and lonely secularists. As the LCA used to say, now someone is going to "baptize the popular trend." Here is the post on CGM cuddling, which is bound to be more popular than snake-handling.

The Means of Grace are God's instruments to bring grace to us. He has provided everything and pledged Himself to give us his pardoning grace in no other way. The Enthusiasts hate the Means of Grace and make fun of this Biblical doctrine. Entire Biblical translations (NIV, RSV, etc) have been given over to erasing such Means of Grace passages as:

1. Baptism now saves you.


2. Is this not communion with the Body of Christ?


3. Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them...

The Word of God is powerful and effective because it is not man's program or method. The Word is like yeast in dough, slowly permeating and affecting every particle.

The Word is like seed sown carelessly and yet producing a bumper crop in the midst of many calamities caused by Satan's wiles and man's carelessness.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Time To Study the Means of Grace":

It is especially the Nicene Creed in Christian Worship: A Lutheran Hymnal that is weak. The words "became fully human" are very weak and could be easily accepted by the neo-orthodox. All three words are open to misunderstanging. "Became" can be a process or a one time event. "Fully" does not clearly carry biblical Christology, since we accept the fact that Jesus did not have two personalities, but that he had only a divine personality, and not a human personality. Also, because of the saying, "To err is human," some may draw the conclusion that Jesus had a sinful nature. "Human" can be used in a variety of ways. Some people say, "Our dog is as human as it can be," just as a woman may say, "That dress is simply divine." Neither "human" or "divine" carry the full clarity needed in a creed.

***

GJ - I can add a few more caveats to the clear and compelling ones above.

1. The same thing was done to the Athanasian Creed, but never addressed.
   
2. WELS lied and said they were forced to do it by the ecumenical commission that wrote this bastardized creed. No other Lutherans had used these Leftie creeds up to that point. So did the unionistic commission hold WELS at gunpoint or threaten to take away their grants?
   
3. Ted Hartwig, heresiarch of WELS, officially presented the feminist creeds in the magazine and the journal. Hartwig was never disciplined for promoting the Historical-Critical (apostate) approach to Isaiah. WELS PR said he was, but he simply became a rallying point for all the apostates in WELS. Meanwhile, WELS charged Missouri with no having doctrinal discipline.
   
4. WELS showed itself to be arrogant and divisive by introducing ambiguous creeds to Lutherans when all Lutherans--indeed all Christians--endorse the clear witness of the Ecumenical Creeds.
   
5. Worst of all, James Tiefel was left in charge of a hymnal.
   

Pietistic Influences Among the Midwestern Lutherans

Shrinkers have increased their quota of liquid lunches.

Read the Efficacy Mother-lode here.

The Synodical Conference was founded on Pietism rather than Lutheran Orthodoxy.

Walther wrote this in 1878:

""My dear God-fearing father had taught me from earliest childhood that the Bible is God’s Word. But I had to leave my father’s house very early, in my eighth year, to live in unbelieving circles. I did not lose the historical faith. Like an angel of God it accompanied me through life. But during those more than eight years of Gymnasium life I was unconverted."

Thus Walther recorded, when he was 67, that he had faith but was unconverted. Therefore, he was still writing as a Pietist at the peak of his career. I have not read the collected works of Walther hagiography, but I do realize he struggled with the Pietism which seemed to rescue him from rationalism while delivering him to Law bondage.

Listening to various members of Christian sects, I have often heard them say, "I was baptized and a regular church member but I was not a real Christian until..." Sometimes the event is the experience of being born-again (as they call it, misusing John 3). For Pentecostals, the conversion is to tongue-speaking and falling on the floor.

Walther himself criticized levels of faith in Law and Gospel, and told how he struggled with the norms of Pietism he learned. The confession quoted above is typical of Pietism, believing and yet being unconverted. Walther described the Bible as having only two categories - believers and unbelievers, but Walther added believers who are converted and believers who are unconverted.

The triumphalism of Walther when crowing about the Missouri Synod is apparent in his published speeches. I heard a recent version when a Missouri writer wrote to me: "The Missouri Synod is the best one because it was least affected by Pietism." Ahem - that response is a good Pietistic statement, emphasizing works and spiritual superiority.

The original Wisconsin Synod was created by Pietistic, unionistic mission societies. The Michigan Synod that joined up with Wisconsin (becoming WELS in the fullness of time) was just as anti-confessional and unionistic at first. Due to the influence of Walther, Bading, and Hoenecke, Wisconsin moved away from its Pietistic roots.

All the Scandinavians left the womb of the state church via Pietism, the Norwegians included. Pietism was the supposed answer to spiritual lethargy, alcholism, and apostasy in the state churches. In Sweden, one pastor became a leader in the temperance movement when a drunken fight between two women broke out during the sermon. Alcolism was a major social issue, and the Pietistic Methodists had a cure for everyone - the Law - take a pledge. In addition, Pentecostalism was not unknown.

The anti-confessional basis of Pietism--"doctrine divides, service unites"--contributed greatly to free thinking among the Midwestern Lutherans. The Swedish Lutherans, who eventually created the Augustana (Augsburg Confession) Synod, the struggle meant moving away from their servitude to revivalism, legalism, and Methodism. The Pietists had proven to Augustana how unreliable they could be. Like WELS, Augustana continued its lover's quarrel with Pietism, never quite divorced and yet quick to criticize. After WWII, Augustana debated whether to allow dancing on the college campus - a typical Methodist concern.

Proving and dating a born-again experience was a common requirement for Pietistic Lutherans during this time. That experience was the requirement for full membership in many cases, replacing fidelity to the Book of Concord.

UOJ Confusion

C. F. W. Walther dominated Synodical Conference thinking, especially since many decided to build a hedge around every syllable published by their mentor.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "UOJ Errorists Verbatim":

J-568

I think I actually agree with this quote above, because since you have been blogging about UOJ, I have found myself wondering if I am indeed forgiven. It has caused me confusion.

You are truly at you best when you teach the gospel. Since I cannot seem to grasp the difference of what you are saying: basically that Christ atoned for the sins of all the world, yet didn't forgive them, and then still quoting Walther with J-564 (about having to accept BY FAITH this atonement) and equating it with decision theology, is simply mind boggling. Knowing that even a child can profess true faith in Christ makes me wonder what this pithy discussion is really all about.

Walther's quote, to me is completely different than decision theology. You say it is "close" to it though. This is like saying that because you cannot comprehend how someone could be forgiven, yet not lay hold of that forgiveness, makes you a rationalist and on the very edge of being a Historical Criticism advocate. Followed to it's logical conclusion, does it not? Many things in scripture we do not understand, yet we trust in.

I am not sure about much, but I am sure that according to the Gospel of Mark...."He who believes and is baptized shall be saved, but he who does not believe, stands condemned already."

You have much to write that is good, simple and accurate. You are at your best with the Gospel. I will read what is easily understood and eliminate the UOJ reading for someone with an IQ of 140 + who can actually explain it without obfuscation or confusion.

Thanks,
JLB

***

Here is the entire chapter on UOJ and Justification by Faith, from Thy Strong Word. The fake Ichabod erased the link from one comment, but I am only too happy to show what UOJ really teaches.

I created the J-numbers so I could keep track of my citations, and so the readers could find them again easily.

J-568
"The chief purpose, however, is to keep this article (general justification) before the people for its own sake. It cannot be presented and studied too often. Its vital relation to the subjective, personal justification by faith, cannot be stressed too strongly. It forms the basis of the justification by faith and keeps this article free from the leaven of Pelagianism. Unless the sinner knows that his justification is already an accomplished fact in the forum of God, he will imagine that it is his faith, his good conduct, which moves God to forgive him his sins. And unless he knows that God had him personally in mind in issuing the general pardon on Easter morning, he will have no assurance of his justification."
Theodore Engelder, Concordia Theological Monthly, July/August/September, 1933. Reissued by the seminary print-shop, Ft. Wayne, 1981. Cited by Pastor Vernon Harley, "Synergism—Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511 Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 1f.

The quotation cited does not seem wrong, as a stand-alone statement. But the next statement from the same article, clarifies what Engelder really meant:

J-569
"The entire Pauline doctrine of justification stands and falls with the special article of general justification. This establishes it beyond peradventure that justification is entirely independent of the conduct of man. And only in this way the individual can have the assurance of his justification. For it is the incontrovertible conclusion: Since God has already justified all men in Christ and forgiven them their sins, I, too, have a gracious God in Christ and forgiveness of all my sins."
Quoted with approval by Theodore Engelder, from George Stoeckhardt, Commentary on Romans, p. 264. Cited by Pastor Vernon Harley, "Synergism—Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511 Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 2.

In the Scriptures we have to look at what a word means in its context. Just as in English, some Biblical words are completely different in another context. I defy anyone to give one meaning for draw. For example, drawn butter may be a picture or something to put on lobster. I might say as a pun, when someone has a pencil sketch done of himself, "You look drawn."

However, the Bible, Luther, the Book of Concord, Melanchthon, Chemnitz, and others (Calov, according to R. Preus) use the term justification only in the sense of justification by faith.

The UOJ authors, who wrote subsequent to Burk and Knapp, and came from Pietistic circles, all used this peculiar term general justification to mean that every single person in the world has been declared forgiven, guilt-free. We say general, but the German word is allgemeine, which is all inclusive - Hitler, Mao, Stalin, Charles Manson, and Karl Marx. So universal is a good translation of the German word allgemeine. Allgemeine Wehrpflicht means compulsory military service, which we would call Universal Military Training.

My numerous posts on UOJ have sought to show that Biblical doctrine distinguishes between Christ dying for the sins of the world, an objective truth, and the efficacious Gospel--the message of the Atonement--producing that faith which embraces this truth in each individual who believes, from the baptized baby to the person converted on his deathbed. The Word of the Gospel produces and sustains this faith.

The Atonement is not the "absolution of the entire world," even if the WELS Conference of Pussycats still think so. There are no "guilt-free saints in Hell," even if the author of that blasphemy continued to teach at Mequon until he was fossilized.

I am sympathetic about your confusion. It took me a long time to untangle UOJ and a few of us are still working on the riddle.

I suggest sticking with the clear teachings of the Scriptures and the exposition found in the Book of Concord, the finest (and most neglected) one-volume commentary on the Bible to be found. Here is my favorite clarification of the issue:

J-590

"For neither you nor I could ever know anything of Christ, or believe on Him, and obtain Him for our Lord, unless it were offered to us and granted to our hearts by the Holy Ghost through the preaching of the Gospel. The work is done and accomplished; for Christ has acquired and gained the treasure for us by His suffering, death, resurrection, etc. But if the work remained concealed so that no one knew of it, then it would be in vain and lost. That this treasure, therefore, might not lie buried, but be appropriated and enjoyed, God has caused the Word to go forth and be proclaimed, in which He gives the Holy Ghost to bring this treasure home and appropriate it to us. Therefore sanctifying is nothing else than bringing us to Christ to receive this good, to which we could not attain ourselves."
The Large Catechism, The Creed, Article III, #38, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 689. Tappert, p. 415. Heiser, p. 194.

UOJ Errorists Verbatim

The Shrinkers love UOJ, a form of Enthusiasm custom-made to eliminate doctrinal discernment and Confessional worship.

Thy Strong Word, Justification by Faith

J-564
"For God has already forgiven you your sins 1800 years ago when He in Christ absolved all men by raising Him after He first had gone into bitter death for them. Only one thing remains on your part so that you also possess the gift. This one thing is—faith. And this brings me to the second part of today's Easter message, in which I now would show you that every man who wants to be saved must accept by faith the general absolution, pronounced 1800 years ago, as an absolution spoken individually to him." [GJ - This is very close to Decision Theology, explaining why UOJ advocates feel comfortable with Babtist worship, conferences, and materials.]
C. F. W. Walther, The Word of His Grace, Sermon Selections, "Christ's Resurrection—The World's Absolution" Lake Mills: Graphic Publishing Company, 1978, p. 233. Mark 16:1-8.

J-568
"The chief purpose, however, is to keep this article (general justification) before the people for its own sake. It cannot be presented and studied too often. Its vital relation to the subjective, personal justification by faith, cannot be stressed too strongly. It forms the basis of the justification by faith and keeps this article free from the leaven of Pelagianism. Unless the sinner knows that his justification is already an accomplished fact in the forum of God, he will imagine that it is his faith, his good conduct, which moves God to forgive him his sins. And unless he knows that God had him personally in mind in issuing the general pardon on Easter morning, he will have no assurance of his justification." [GJ - General justification is the term first used by the Pietist Burk, Bengel's son-in-law. It means every single person on earth was declared free of sins without the Word, without faith, without the Means of Grace.]
Theodore Engelder, Concordia Theological Monthly, July/August/September, 1933. Reissued by the seminary print-shop, Ft. Wayne, 1981. Cited by Pastor Vernon Harley, "Synergism—Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511 Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 1f.

J-570
"The resurrection is God's public absolution of the entire world: 'Your sins are forgiven, all sins of all human beings; and there is no exception.' This is the meaning of the technical term 'objective justification.' The objective justification is central to the doctrine of salvation and derives logically from the facts that God's reconciliation, forgiveness, and declaration of 'not guilty' in no wise depend on the attitude or behaviour of human beings. If objective justification is denied, then it must follow that those who are declared righteous in some way have contributed to God's change of heart; justification is then no longer solely the result of God's grace." [GJ - Luther, Melanchthon, Chemnitz, Chytraeus, and Gerhard forgot to include this essential notion in their works. The Holy Spirit omitted it from the Scriptures, too.]
Theodore Mueller, Concordia Theological Quarterly, January, 1982, p. 29. Cited by Pastor Vernon Harley, "Synergism—Its Logical Association with General Justification," 511 Tilden, Fairmont, Minnesota 56031, August, 1984, p. 3.

J-572
"The teaching of the Wisconsin Synod [of the old Norwegian Synod] is this, that in and with the universal reconciliation, which has occurred in Christ for the whole world—even Judas; the whole world—even Judas—has been justified and has received the forgiveness of sin. Therefore, according to Luther's clear words ("for where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation"), the whole world (i.e. every person who is a part of the world—even Judas) has become a child of God and an heir of heaven." [GJ - Hitler, Stalin, and Mao are guilt-free saints, too, but those who deny the UOJ heresy are condemned and shunned. 'Tis better to have no faith among UOJ-birds than to have faith in the Gospel Promises.]
Gottfried Fritschel, "Zur Lehre von der Rechtfertigung," Theologische Monatshefte, volume 4, 1871, (1-24), p. 7.[29] Cited in Rick Nicholas Curia, The Significant History of the Doctrine of Objective or Universal Justification, Alpine, California: California Pastoral Conference, WELS. January 24-25, 1983. p. 2.

J-573
“Scripture teaches that God has already declared the whole world to be righteous in Christ, Romans 5:19; 2 Corinthians 5:18-21; Romans 4:25; that therefore not for the sake of their good works, but without the works of the Law, by grace, for Christ’s sake, he justifies, that is, accounts as righteous, all those who believe in Christ, that is, believe, accept, and rely on, the fact that for Christ’s sake their sins are forgiven.” [GJ - Some argue that UOJ must be true because Holy Mother Missouri has said so. But the same people also decry the miserable doctrinal chaos of Missouri, from sex-related evangelism billboards to papalist priests in sheep's clothing, crypto-Babtists and overt Romanists. Where does this Enthusiasm come from? Answer - From the Pietistic founding fathers and their confusion and silence over the efficacy of the Word.]
Brief Statement of the Doctrinal Position of the Missouri Synod, 1932, “Of Justification.”

J-578
"So, then, we are reconciled; however, not only we, but also Hindus, and Hottentots and Kafirs, yes, the world. 'Reconciled', says our translation; the Greek original says: 'placed in the right relation to God'. Because before the Fall we, together with the whole creation, were in the right relation to God, therefore Scripture teaches that Christ, through His death, restored all things to the former right relation to God." [GJ - UOJ Stormtroopers cite E. Preuss every so often - and swoon. They fail to mention this seminary professor saw a red sunset and joined the Church of Rome soon after. Preuss finished his career as a professor of another form of Enthusiasm - Roman Catholicism. He published books supporting the Antichrist's doctrinal opinions.]
F. R. Eduard Preuss, 1834-1904, Die Rechtfertigung der Suender vor Gott. Cited in Rick Nicholas Curia, The Significant History of the Doctrine of Objective or Universal Justification, Alpine, California: California Pastoral Conference, WELS. January 24-25, 1983. p. 24.

J-580 - WELS Kokomo Statements - Accept This Nonsense or Be Damned
I. "Objectively speaking, without any reference to an individual sinner's attitude toward Christ's sacrifice, purely on the basis of God's verdict, every sinner, whether he knows it or not, whether he believes it or not, has received the status of saint."

II. "After Christ's intervention and through Christ's intervention God regards all sinners as guilt-free saints."

III. "When God reconciled the world to Himself through Christ, He individually pronounced forgiveness to each individual sinner whether that sinner ever comes to faith or not."

IV. "At the time of the resurrection of Christ, God looked down in hell and declared Judas, the people destroyed in the flood, and all the ungodly, innocent, not guilty, and forgiven of all sin and gave unto them the status of saints." [GJ - Before believing the official WELS line, or lie, about the Kokomo Statements, talk to the families as I did. The first three statements are from J. P. Meyer's Ministers of Christ, as S. Becker admitted. The families were expelled because they did not bow the knee to this Enthusiasm. The entire seminary faculty and Becker agreed with the defenestration.]

J-584
"The first three statements are taken verbatim from WELS sources."
Siegbert Becker, "Objective Justification," Chicago Pastoral Conference, WELS, Elgin, Illinois, November 9, 1982, Unpaginated. [GJ - Oops. Becker gave away the sources.]

J-585
Letters to the Hartman and Pohlman Families

“Faith Lutheran Church

3215 West Judson Road

Kokomo, Indiana 46901

August 30, 1979

Mr. and Mrs. David Hartman

R. R. #1, Box 90

Kokomo, Indiana 46901

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Hartman,

In response to your letter of August 18, 1979, it is our understanding that your ‘no’ vote on June 20th against supporting the biblical doctrine of the WELS was based at least in part, on your failure to accept the following statement – included in your letter – all of which are in agreement with the teachings of the WELS, namely that:

1. ‘Objectively speaking, without any reference to an individual sinners’ [sic] attitude toward Christs’ [sic] sacrafice [sic], purely on the basis of God’s verdict, every sinner, whether he knows it or not, whether he believes it or not, has received the status of a saint.’
2. ‘After Christs’ [sic] intervention and through Christs’ [sic] intervention, God regards all sinners as guilt-free saints.’
3. ‘When God reconciled the world to Himself through Christ, He individually pronounced forgiveness to each individual sinner whether that sinner ever comes to faith or not.’
4. ‘At the time of the resurrection of Christ God looked down in hell and declared Judas, the people destroyed in the flood, and all the ungodly, innocent, not guilty, and forgiven of all sin and gave unto them the status of saints.’

I trust this is the information you desire.

Sincerely yours in Christian love,

Michael Liebner, Acting Secretary

Faith Lutheran Church Voters’ Assembly” [GJ - Given the boot for not accepting the statements from WELS sources, then publicly denounced for the very statements used to defenestrate them.]

J-589
"Here the panel feels itself compelled to distinguish between form and content. While the form of the Four Statements is inadequate, the doctrine of objective justification it grapples with is Scriptural. The Four Statements have served to show that there is a doctrinal difference between Faith Congregation and the appellants."
Report of the WELS Review Committee, Hartman, Pohlman Appeal, June 30, 1980. Cited in Rick Nicholas Curia, The Significant History of the Doctrine of Objective or Universal Justification, Alpine, California: California Pastoral Conference, WELS. January 24-25, 1983. p. 133. [GJ - The pastor admitted to the families that he never heard of UOJ before attending seminary at Mequon.]

J-581
“When Paul uses the word ‘reconciling’ here, [2 Corinthians 5:19] he clearly means that forgiveness of sins is really imputed to ‘the world.’
John Moldstad, Jr., - Pope John the Malefactor - “I have heard some Lutherans say they do not believe the Bible teaches objective justification. How can they assert this and still call themselves ‘Lutheran’?” Lutheran Sentinel, October, 1996, p. 11. [GJ - A layman asked Moldstad to discuss UOJ and got this public rebuke as an answer. Has Pope John given any Shrinker the Left Foot of Fellowship?]

J-586

I. "Objectively speaking, without any reference to an individual sinner's attitude toward Christ's sacrifice, purely on the basis of God's verdict, every sinner, whether he knows about it or not, whether he believes it or not, has received the status of a saint. What will be his reaction when he is informed about this turn of events? Will he accept, or will he decline?"
J. P. Meyer, Ministers of Christ, A Commentary on the Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, Milwaukee: Northwestern Publishing House, 1963, p. 103f. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21.

II. "Before Christ's intervention took place God regarded him as a guilt-laden, condemned culprit. After Christ's intervention and through Christ's intervention He regards him as a guilt-free saint."
J. P. Meyer, Ministers of Christ, A Commentary on the Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, Milwaukee: Northwestern Publishing House, 1963, p. 107. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21.

III. "This applies to the whole world, to every individual sinner, whether he was living in the days of Christ, or had died centuries before His coming, or had not yet been born, perhaps has not been born to this day. It applies to the world as such, regardless of whether a particular sinner ever comes to faith or not."
J. P. Meyer, Ministers of Christ, A Commentary on the Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, Milwaukee: Northwestern Publishing House, 1963, p. 109. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21.

J-587
“About 300 years earlier Johann Gerhard expressed the same truth in these words: ‘By raising Christ from the dead God absolved Him from our sins, which had been imputed to Him, and accordingly He absolved us also in Him.’ Gerhard was professor of theology in Jena. He did not write a Brief Statement, but he did write a book on Lutheran dogmatics consisting of 20 volumes. He died in 1637.”
J. P. Meyer, “The Holy Spirit Creator,” The Northwestern Lutheran, September 24, 1950, p. 310. [GJ - The Synodical Conference liked to paint the post-Reformation theologians with Enthusiasm, but that tactic has been refuted by the current translations and Robert Preus' last book, Justification and Rome.]

J-588
“The Judge in heaven examines this evidence. He declares His verdict. It is one of acquittal. Man’s debt of sin is no longer charged against him. Sinful man is free!”
WELS Conference of Presidents, “Every Sinner Declared Righteous,” 1954 tract.
[GJ - Does anyone wonder why the Conference of Pussycats has let the Shrinkers roam free in the synod? Kelm, Valleskey, Jim Huebner, and Olson have mocked Lutheran doctrine for decades, all under the cover of UOJ and Wauwatosa.]

The Brief Statement Canonized UOJ - But Before That - Missouri Did Not Mention UOJ in Their Catechism

J-579

"#305. Why do you say in this article: I believe in the Forgiveness of Sins? Because I hold with certainty that by my own powers or through my own works I cannot be justified before God, but that the forgiveness of sins is given me out of grace through faith in Jesus Christ. For where there is forgiveness of sins, there is also true justification. Psalm 130:3-4; Psalm 143:2; Isaiah 64:6; Job 25:4-6 (Q. 124)."
Kleiner Katechismus, trans. Pastor Vernon Harley, LCMS, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1901, p. 164ff.

"#306. What is justification? Justification is that activity (Handlung) of God by which He out of pure grace and mercy for the sake of Christ's merits forgives the sins of a poor sinner who truly believes in Jesus Christ and receives him to everlasting life."
Kleiner Katechismus, trans. Pastor Vernon Harley, LCMS, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1901, p. 164ff.

WELS Convention Wrap - From the SP

From the office of President Mark Schroeder

Nearly 400 delegates met last week in Saginaw, Mich., for the synod's 60th biennial convention. With "Christ's Love, Our Calling" as the theme and with the cross of Christ as the focus, the delegates spent the week prayerfully determining how the synod can best carry out its dual mission of preserving and proclaiming the gospel.

Beginning with an inspiring worship service at St. Paul's Evangelical Lutheran Church, and continuing with the president's report, two doctrinal essays, and daily devotions, the delegates received guidance and strength from the words and promises of God. Presentations by missionaries highlighted both the blessings and the opportunities in our mission fields. Reports from all areas of synodical work painted a clear picture of the many ways in which we are walking together to serve people with the gospel.

The budget
As expected, the budgetary challenges facing the synod occupied a major segment of the delegates' attention. An open hearing on Monday evening gave delegates the opportunity to discuss the two budget options presented by the Synodical Council. The prevailing sentiment was that neither option was desirable, since either choice would result in additional reductions in ministries that were considered core ministries of the synod. The floor committee dealing with the budget listened to the delegates' input and concluded that a third option should be considered. It recommended a budget that requires no further manpower cuts in Missions or Ministerial Education and instead reduces funding for Technology by $150,000; Financial Services by $100,000; Communications by $50,000; Parish Services by $200,000; mission counselors by $100,000; and travel and meeting costs by $400,000 across all areas of ministry.

This proposal by the floor committee was overwhelmingly adopted by a margin of 80 percent to 20 percent.

The convention also expressed consensus agreement that Congregation Mission Offerings (CMO) are the primary and foundational support of the synod's work. In view of that, all congregations are encouraged to emphasize CMO in their planning and budgeting.

Ad Hoc Commission
For the last two years, a special Ad Hoc Commission worked to identify possible improvements in the way that the synod carries out its mission and ministry. The commission's wide-ranging report and recommendations were addressed by six separate floor committees. In the end, 63 of its 65 recommendations were approved. In a few cases, recommendations were amended slightly but still reflected the original intent of the commission. The convention did not approve the recommendation to study the creation of three new districts and did not approve a recommendation to alter the voting membership of the Synodical Council. All 30 of the commission's endorsements of action already taken were favorably received.

The convention favorably received the preamble to the Ad Hoc Commission report. The preamble contained a summary of the mission and purpose of the synod and encouraged that the section be distributed throughout the synod and that pastors be encouraged to share and study this summary with their congregations.

Parish services reconfigured
In the section of its report addressing the need to strengthen congregations and their members, the Ad Hoc Commission recommended a redeployment of Parish Services. The change involved placing the ministries of Parish Services under the direct responsibility of the Conference of Presidents. It also involved removing the Parish Services board and eliminating the position of administrator. The convention approved this recommendation but made provisions for a Parish Services Council, which will coordinate the work. Policy-setting and calling responsibility for the newly configured Parish Services will rest with the Conference of Presidents. Budget reductions for the ministries of Parish Services will also mean a reduction in administrative and staff positions.

Other significant decisions of the convention

• The convention encouraged Home and World Missions to redirect manpower and funding in order to continue to enter new fields when appropriate and advisable.
• A gift policy will be developed that will decrease the number of special funds, limit the creation of new funds, and better utilize dollars in existing funds.
• The Conference of Presidents will address the issue of congregations that provide little or no support for the synod's work through their Congregation Mission Offerings.
• Areas of Ministry were directed to continually monitor staffing levels and to provide justification for all positions.
• The bylaws were amended to reduce the size of circuits to "normally not more than eight" congregations.
• Ministerial Education schools were encouraged to reduce costs, control tuition, and increase merit-based scholarships, if possible.
• The convention called for the development of a flexible program of continuing education for called workers.
• The Conference of Presidents was directed to initiate a synodwide review of key doctrines and practical issues. This review would also provide materials and guidance for studies at conferences and in congregations. Topics to be studied are the efficacy of the means of grace, Christian vocation and church and ministry, care of souls (evangelical Christian discipline), and the sacramental life.
• The full-time position of vice president for mission and ministry was changed to a part-time first vice president. Pastor James Huebner was elected to this position; Pastor Joel Voss was elected to serve a partial term as the second vice president.
• The convention strongly encouraged congregations to direct the savings from the planned VEBA premium holiday to the WELS operating fund.

God blessed our synod convention last week with a group of delegates who were truly about their Father's business. While not everyone agreed with every decision, the sense of unity in belief and in purpose was clear. We pray that, just as God blessed the work of the convention, he will now bless the work that we continue to do together in his name.

Detailed information about the convention is posted on the convention Web site: www.wels.net/convention

Serving in Christ,
Mark Schroeder

***

GJ - Everyone who keeps his Book of Concord close at hand was impressed with SP Schroeder's leadership of the convention.

The agenda was changed from
Grow the Administration/Shrink the Schools to
Keep the Schools/Shrink the Shrinkers.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WELS Convention Wrap - From the SP":

Anon@5:39

Any actual anecdotal or substantive proof behind what you said. Over a brief skim of the BoRaM, it was pretty decisive that the churches not give CMO are

1) Churches that fall into the "contemporary" category
2) Churches in districts rife with CGM ministers
3) Recent missions.

---

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "WELS Convention Wrap - From the SP":

Hard to say, but I think the Appleton / Green Bay area may be at the top of the list (Northern Wisconsin District I think). It's a really sorry situation in the Fox Valley. You have:

CORE (the Queen Mother of CG "congregations")

St. Mark DePere(Parlow / Kelm)

St. Matthew Appleton (contempo worship / dying congregation / Pastor is close to Ski)

Eternal Love Appleton (contempo worship / children's sermons, etc)

Bethany Appleton (contempo worship, cell groups, projectors, etc)

St. Peter Appleton / Freedom (the church that called Ski and is the "sponsor" of CORE)

Mt. Olive Appleton (may be starting contempo worship)

There may be more, but these are the congregations that I know have, to one extent or another, polluted themselves with CG elements.

Safe (or safer) churches up there would include St. Paul (one block from CORE), Riverview (Appleton), and Immanuel (Oshkosh).

Is Wayne Mueller's Replacement as First Veep a Shrinker?

On Bailing Water:

Anonymous said...

Freddy,

As one who has worshipped now and then at the church served by the first VP, I'm astonished that you'd call him a known CGM advocate.

Your July 26 post on your own blog identifies Ev-Luth congregations. The things you say you're tired of enduring are not found at his church.

August 5, 2009 9:10 AM

---

"'Church growth.' I've seen people cringe when they hear those words. I think I know why. They react negatively because they feel 'church growth' implies an obsessive fixation with numbers and statistics."
Pastor James Huebner, Spiritual Renewal Consultant, Notebook, School of Outreach IV, Seventeen Ways to Keep Your Church from Growing, p. 178.

"We can't do a thing to make his Word more effective. But surely we can detract from its effectiveness by careless errors and poor judgment. It just makes good sense to utilize all of our God-given talents, to scour the field for appropriate ideas, concepts, and material (sic), to implement programs, methods, and techniques so that we do not detract from the effectiveness of the gospel we proclaim. Church growth articles, books, seminars, and conferences can offer such ideas and programs."
Pastor James Huebner, Spiritual Renewal Consultant, Notebook, School of Outreach IV, Seventeen Ways to Keep Your Church from Growing, p 178.

***

GJ - Huebner was trained at Fuller Seminary to be a Church Growth consultant, as he admitted to me. Paul Calvin Kelm ran this so-called Spiritual Renewal Program after getting himself into constant trouble running Evangelism. Kelm was also an early editor of TELL, which the synod began to promote the Church Growth Movement (starting in 1977 with Ron Roth). Kelm and Larry Olson (DMin, Fuller Seminary) ran around WELS retooling the WELS pastors in a massive CG promotion. The same three men were used to brainwash new Sausage Factory grads one year after being ordained (in case the Enthusiasm wore off).

Apart from the activities of the CG trio, there are the actual quotations above, which have not been retracted and repudiated by Huebner.

The CGM trio above has served as the launching pad for Ski, Doebler, Hunter, Stolzenburg, and many others. The rotten apple CORE does not fall far from the tree.

Pietism, UOJ, and Halle University

A little church history lesson - Knapp promoted double justification in his Halle University lectures. His translator used the terms objective justification and subjective justification before the Missouri Synod began.

SceleratissimusLutheranus has left a new comment on your post "Pietism, UOJ, and Halle University":

You can find a picture of Knapp here: http://www.google.com/books?id=cZkRAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&lr=#v=onepage&q=&f=false.

I can find no picture of Knapp, so this is the book from which Google took its scans. Note that the Universalist Historical Society donated the book. Universalsim teaches that everyone is saved. ELCA's Gospel reductionism and UOJ are flavors of Universalism.

The first union theologian, Spener, encouraged and worked with Francke, who became the central figure of Halle University, which was founded to promote Pietism. Francke's son-in-law, Freylinghausen, edited the Pietist hymnal, and served as director of the Francke charities. Knapp became a supervisor of the Francke charitable institutions when Freylinghausen died in 1785.

From the English translation of Knapp's Christian Theology, which was widely read in German and English, in America and Europe, before the Missouri Synod began and throughout the 19th century -

§ 113. UNIVERSALITY OP JUSTIFICATION. 817

It is universal as the atonement itself; vid. § 111, II. If the atonement extends to the whole human race, justification must also be universal; i. e. all must be able to obtain the actual forgiveness of their sins and blessedness, on account of the atonement of Christ. But in order to obviate mistakes, some points may require explanation. Justification, then, is universal,

(1) In respect to the persons to be pardoned.

All men, according to the Bible, may partake of this benefit. It was designed for all; vid. especially Rom. 3: 23. 5: 15 (§ 111),

318 ART. X. § 113. UNIVERSALITY OP JUSTIFICATION

in opposition to Jewish exclusiveness. It is bestowed however conditionally ; certain conditions are prescribed which are indispensable. Those who do not comply with these conditions, are excluded from the enjoyment of the benefit. Justification and forgiveness are not, therefore, universal in effect (actu); and this solely through the fault of men.*

Another conclusion from the universality of justification is, that every one may be sure of his forgiveness. This certainty, however, must not be founded upon inward/ee/ing-s, which are frequently deceptive ; but upon an actual compliance with the conditions on which God will forgive sins. If any one finds in himself the signs of true faith, of sincere love to God and Christ, of a renewed heart, and of a virtuous Christian disposition, he is justified. Rom. 8: 16, " The holy, Christian temper wrought in us by God, gives us the clearest and surest proof, that we are the children of God." 1 John 3: 7. 2 Pet. 1: 9, 10. This certainty is in the highest degree necessary to our tranquility and happiness. 1 Tim. 1: 16. ICor. 6: 11. 1 John 5: 18—20.

(2) In respect to sins and the punishment of sin.

(a) As to sins; the position that all sins, without exception, are forgiven for Christ's sake, is proved partly from the power and efficacy of the atonement of Christ, which is extended to all sins (vid. § 111, and the texts there cited) ; and partly from the texts which promise forgiveness of all sins, even the greatest and blackest, to those who comply with the prescribed conditions of pardon. Ezek. 18: 21, 22. Ps. 103: 3. 1 Cor. 6: 11. Ephes. 2: 5. 1 Tim. I: 15. The sin against the Holy Ghost cannot be regarded as an exception ; vid. § 84.

(6) As to the punishment of sin ; the answer to the question whether the pardoned are exempt from all the punishments of sin, whether therefore justification is plena et perfecta, may be learned from § 111, II. The natural and physical evils which result from past sins, indeed, remain ; but they are mitigated and rendered more tolerable, and are divested of the terror of punishment, by the ces-

* [Translator - This is very conveniently expressed by the terms objective and subjective justification. Objective justification is the act of God, by which he proffers pardon to all through Christ; subjective, is the act of man, by which he accepts the pardon freely offered in the Gospel. The former is universal, the latter not.]



Wikipedia on Knapp - What WELSians should know:

Georg Christian Knapp (September 17, 1753 - October 14, 1825) was a German Protestant theologian who was born in Glaucha, located near Halle. He was father-in-law to theologian Johann Karl Thilo (1794-1853).

He studied theology at the Universities of Halle and Göttingen. In 1777 he was an associate professor at Halle, where in 1782 he became a full professor of theology. In 1785 he was appointed kondirektor of the Franckesche Stiftungen (Francke Foundations), an educational and cultural institution that was founded in 1698 by August Hermann Francke [GJ - Pietist].

Knapp was a prominent member of the Pietist movement, and a representative of Biblical Supranaturalism. He was the author of Die Psalmen Übersetzt und mit Anmerkungen (The Psalms, Translation with Annotations) (1777), and Vorlesungen über die christliche Glaubenslehre, which was later translated into English as "Lectures on Christian Theology".

Schleiermacher, the father of modern Protestantism, remains a favorite of apostates. He influenced Karl Barth, who is Fuller Seminary's favorite theologian, according to a WELS pastor who studied there.
F. D. E. Schleiermacher, 1768 - 1834:

Early life and formation
Schleiermacher was born in Breslau in Silesia, the son of a Prussian army chaplain in the Reformed church. He was educated in a Moravian school at Niesky in Upper Lusatia, and at Barby near Halle. However, pietistic Moravian theology failed to satisfy his increasing doubts, and his father reluctantly gave him permission to enter the University of Halle, which had already abandoned pietism and adopted the rationalist spirit of Friedrich August Wolf and Johann Salomo Semler. As a theology student Schleiermacher pursued an independent course of reading and neglected the study of the Old Testament and Oriental languages. However, he did attend the lectures of Semler, where he became acquainted with the techniques of historical criticism of the New Testament, and of Johann Augustus Eberhard, from whom he acquired a love of the philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. At the same time he studied the writings of Immanuel Kant and Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi, and began to apply ideas from the Greek philosophers to a reconstruction of Kant's system.

Tholuck was considered the last of the Pietists at Halle, and he was influenced by rationalism. He called himself a Universalist. The Wisconsin Synod's Hoenecke studied at Halle University under Tholuck but also continued his studies in the Confessions.

Friedrich Tholuck, 1799 - 1877:

His lifelong battle was on behalf of personal religious experience, in opposition to the externality of rationalism, orthodoxy or sacramentarianism. Karl Schwarz happily remarks that, as the English apologists of the 18th century were themselves infected with the poison of the deists whom they endeavoured to refute, so Tholuck absorbed some of the heresies of the rationalists whom he tried to overthrow. He was also one of the prominent members of the Evangelical Alliance, and few men were more widely known or more beloved throughout the Protestant churches of Europe and America than him. He died at Halle. As a preacher, Tholuck ranked among the foremost of his time. As a teacher, he showed remarkable sympathy and won great success. As a thinker he can hardly be said to have been endowed with great creative power.

***

GJ - Knapp is the missing link, explaining how Calvinistic concepts invaded the Lutheran Church through Pietism. So far, my only sources for UOJ are Burk, the son-in-law of Bengel - the leader of the Württemberg Pietists, and Knapp - one of the last Halle Pietists. Someone else found the Knapp connection, so more will come out about that in the next year.

Knapp is the missing link in confusing Atonement with Justification, yet he was far more careful in his language than the Synodical Conference UOJ Stormtroopers (J. P. Meyer, the early Robert Preus, the Brief Statement, F. Pieper, Franzmann, S. Becker, Pope John the Malefactor, Rolph Preus on UOJ days when he is not a JBF pastor).

The essence of Lutheran UOJ is God declaring the entire world forgiven, apart from faith, apart from the Means of Grace. Strangely, John Brenner began his convention essay on the Means of Grace with UOJ statements which repudiate the Means of Grace. Separating the work of the Holy Spirit from the Word is Enthusiam.

Observer Predicts Chicanery Conference Will Lay an Egg: Homegrown Heretics Have No Crowd Appeal

One observer--so deep undercover that I cannot use his nickname--thinks the November Chicanery conference will bomb. Who wants to listen to the WELS Homegrown Heretics?

Being on the speakers' list for the November conference is like having a POSH suite on the Titanic. (POSH stands for Port Out, Starboard Home, the best cabins.)

The Chicanery listserve is so leaky that no one posts anything worthy copying to Ichabod. Who monitors that listserve? Oh yes - Jim Aderman, frequent FIC author, contributing FIC editor, and flounder of Church and Chicanery. As Diablo said, "The guy with all the frog kisses on his face." Aderman must have kissed a lot of amphibians, because he was fired for not doing his job, retired, and hired back by the remnant. The Aderman school closed. One thing I will praise the Chicaneries for - they know how to close schools. If they are good at anything, besides copy and paste, it is school closing.

I am awaiting additional details on the Damage Control Meeting for Church and Change. Of course they have their prayer meeting at The Sausage Factory in August, but that is too open.

So far security about the alleged meeting is tighter than the last OPEC cartel meeting. Not that they have anything to hide.

Will the Patterson Shrinker Network Regroup at His Place?

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Best One-Liner about the WELS Convention":

I have heard that the Shrinkers are pulling together their forces and meeting at Patterson and Gurgel's church down south.

Nothing like some Rock and Roll and the hopes of a safari to boast the morale.

***

GJ - If this is true, it makes sense. Apostates are 100% political. If they get their way at a convention, they say, "This is the highest level of synodical authority. We must follow what the convention says." Thus they maneuvered the Church Shrinkage Mission Vision Statement into a vote and built a bureaucracy (Perish Services, Mission Counselors, Staff Ministry) around it, while denying the Church Growth Movement existed in WELS.

But the Shrinkers were well and truly clobbered by the entire convention, so they have to meet to see how they can overturn the vote in some underhanded way. They spent the last two years opposing the elected Synod President, so why would they bow to the convention this time? There is a lot to sweep under the rug...and grants to be had.

WELS AnswerMan Addresses Enthusiam at Mequon and The CORE

How many mistakes are in this photo? These are the false teachers being promoted openly and shamelessly by Church and Change, The Sausage Factory, and the late, great Perish Services
at The Love Shack.

WELS AnswerMan

Q:
Please provide your view of the organization known as Lifechurchtv. It appears that the church does research on movies and then draws Christian conclusions. Maybe this is a platform to reach out to many unchurched, but I would like to know what you think.

A:
We also rejoice whenever and wherever God's Word is faithfully and accurately proclaimed, and we believe God will use that Word to serve souls as he promised. Not having any personal exposure to or experience with lifechurchtv we must appraise their convictions and ministry based on what they publicly confess on their website.

Their statement of beliefs is limited to what they call "essential" beliefs, which are for the most part solidly Christian. The statements are weak on the nature of sinful mankind (they say we are all "marred" but fail to speak of us as spiritually dead and incapable of doing anything God-pleasing on our own). The statements are also weak on clarifying how a sinner obtains saving faith in Christ. Their language smacks of synergism, but whether this is their theological stance or whether they simply use culturally popular terminology on this is not so clear.

They are affiliated with the Evangelical Covenant Church. And in their own words, "What makes the Covenant unique from other denominations is the fact that while it strongly affirms the clear teaching of the Word of God, it allows believers the personal freedom to have varying interpretations on theological issues that are not clearly presented in Scripture." While this approach to Scripture as stated is a fully acceptable one, it appears that they classify many Bible teachings as "not clearly presented in the Bible" when, in fact, they are clearly presented but contested by false teachers. I sense that Bible teaching regarding conversion (monergism vs. synergism or semi-pelagianism), the sacraments (baptism and the Lord's Supper), and End Time theology (amillennialism vs. millennialism and dispensationalism) would be among subjects that are declared off limits regarding a definitive stance.

Solidly Christian in many respects and sadly compromising in other respects is my initial appraisal based on their website information. But they appear to be in tune with culture, ultra-contemporary in methodology, not hesitant to toot their own horn regarding growth and perceived success, and lavish in their use of praiseworthy adjectives to describe themselves -- so they will likely do just fine as an external organization. And that takes us back to where we started. We trust the Lord to use their preaching of his Word and limit the negative impact of their failure to preach that Word fully.

***

GJ - Somebody has been reading Ichabod - or the Book of Concord. WELS AnswerMan has progressed from bad spelling and worse theology to sensible, Lutheran answers.



---

The Core

So, our mention of The Core church in Appleton made me want to find out more about just what the core is, so I went to their WEBSITE and found out some interesting things. The mission of the Core is to "transform lives for Christ through faith that is real, relevant, and relational." However, it does not come across as the upbeat, modern, contemporary church that I thought it would be. True, they do claim to have modern music, and their website's design resembles that of a rock band or TV show (such as Supernatural), but what was said regarding the church did not really address any other modern features such as cupholders, popcorn, or layout. Instead, they focused on somewhat traditional aspects, such as spreading the word and focusing in on Jesus' importance. While I am not saying that there is anything wrong with that, I was just surprised that there was not more of a new-agey vibe. I think perhaps it would be interesting to learn more about how this particular community that seems so focused on past events (aka Jesus) actually views and deals with the very modern aspects of their church. I have actually sent them an e-mail, asking something to the effect of how do they address this modernism and I hope to get a response soon! But in the meantime I can speculate and then compare my speculations to whatever response I get (if I receive one).
Perhaps, this church is not 'bringing the modern into their religion' (seeing a cupholder and somehow fitting it into their way of thinking), but it appears to be fitting their religion to the modern, by finding contemporary songs that express their religion and attempting to appeal to the younger generation by using modern website techniques to express themselves.This modernization would probably benefit them in the long run, as religions need to change and adapt with the times, but I am not sure how they are doing it. I look forward to learning more later, and will have a more clear idea of just what The Core is then.

Best One-Liner about the WELS Convention

"The Shrinkers have been shrunk."

Diablo

Some Cool Cats Have a Case of Rabies Now

Look up the passage - Matthew 25:12.

Some comments on the Photoshops (contributed by various people)

1. Keep them coming.
2. I like the tomkitteh chasing the C and C chicken.
3. They were highlights of the WELS convention.

WELS Mod Worship Gurus Network

http://sjbrown58.wordpress.com/tag/john-kehl/

"There is a new BLOG by a fellow WELS guitarist and on-line friend of mine named John Kehl. John plays in a band known as “Joyful Noise” at Mt. Olive Lutheran Church in Appleton, WI and has been a dedicated reader, subscriber and commenter at my BLOG. If you like the content of this BLOG, you will also enjoy what John is doing at “Blended Worship Resource.” You can find his BLOG at this link:

http://blendedworshipresource.wordpress.com

God’s blessings on your website John!"

The Eighth Sunday after Trinity

Figs, by Norma Boeckler

The Eighth Sunday after Trinity

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Bethany Lutheran Worship, 8 AM Phoenix Time


The Hymn #528:1-7 If God Himself Be for Me 4.49
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual Romans 8:12-17
The Gospel Matthew 7:15-21
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #528:8-15 If God Himself Be for Me 4.49

Good Fruit from Sound Doctrine

The Hymn #378 The Saints on Earth 4.8
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn #659 Feed Thy Children 4.23

The flowers are in memory of Bethany Joan Marie Jackson, who would have been 35 today.

KJV Romans 8:12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. 13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. 15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. 16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: 17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

KJV Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? 17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. 21 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Eighth Sunday After Trinity
Lord God, heavenly Father, we most heartily thank Thee that Thou hast caused us to come to the knowledge of Thy word. We pray Thee: graciously keep us steadfast in this knowledge unto death, that we may obtain eternal life; send us now and ever pious pastors, who faithfully preach Thy word, without offense or false doctrine, and grant them long life. Defend us from all false teachings, and frustrate Thou the counsels of all such as pervert Thy word, who come to us in sheep's clothing, but are inwardly ravening wolves, that Thy true Church may evermore be established among us, and be defended and preserved from such false teachers, through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Good Fruit from Sound Doctrine

Matthew 7:17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

This Gospel lesson reminds us that Christ spoke harsh words against false teachers. In fact, the harshest words in the New Testament are spoken by Jesus.

So why have Christians absorbed the idea that their religion does not allow for anything critical to be said about another confession? Lutherans got this idea from Pietism, because Spener copied his ideas from the Reformed and also agreed to a certain extent with their doctrine. To work together for charity, the Lutherans dropped their opposition to Reformed doctrine, although the Reformed never dropped their key difference with Lutherans – chiefly the efficacy of the Word in the Means of Grace. That is not a minor difference but the foundation of all Christian doctrine.

Wolves in sheep’s clothing – that image is not exactly gentle, but it is meant to convey the proper warning. Even today people hear – he is a nice guy. Jesus did not warn about sheep in wolves’ clothing but wolves in sheep’s clothing. Identifying the key attribute of false teachers (he is a nice guy, everyone likes him) is not a defense against the charge of opposing God’s Word. No one has ever opposed God’s Word while appearing evil, starting with Satan in the Garden of Eden. He spoke softly, appeared fair, and seemed logical in his discourse. He looked for openings and exploited them – Did God really say – do not touch the fruit? What a great way to move from touching the fruit (no rules there) to eating it (and be like God Himself).

Ravening (ferocious or ravenous) wolves tear up the flock. They come from within the flock and outside of the flock, as Paul warned in his farewell speech to the Ephesians.

KJV Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. 31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

Sometimes the Scriptures emphasize doctrine and other times works. In this passage, Jesus said we should measure false teachers by their works, which is just the opposite of man’s inclination. People excuse the horrible histories of false teachers and make excuses for them. But Jesus taught and still teaches:

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Nothing good can come from teaching contrary to God’s Word, and nothing bad can come from teaching in harmony with God’s Word.

Thanks to the Church Growth Movement from Fuller Seminary, I have heard conservative Lutheran ministers say, “Yes they are false teachers, but we can learn a lot from them. We cannot forego their great insights just because they belong to another denomination.”

I have called the Growthers “Shrinkers” because of their fruit. They have done nothing for the Christian faith in America, and their great leader, C. Peter Wagner, has admitted as much.

Another aspect of false doctrine is its ability to bewitch people. The more they get involved with it, the more immune they are to any suggestion it is wrong. I see that with people hypnotized by Roman Catholicism, which is a clever imitation of the Christian faith, but a complete repudiation of God’s Word. And I see the same enchantment with the version of Church Growth called The Emergent Church, where new extremes are the norm.

The agricultural comparisons in this lesson should make sense to anyone with a slight acquaintance with gardening. You will know them by their fruits.

16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

The Shrinkers say they are “spoiling the Egyptians,” stealing the great treasures of Fuller Seminary (which repudiated inerrancy a long time ago, but—no surprise—ferociously supports women’s ordination). Using the language of Jesus, they are gathering grapes from thornbushes. I once had to cut down 9 foot thorn bushes. I found no grapes there, but I did come in with a lot of thorns all over me.

The Comfort of This Lesson

17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

This lesson does not simply teach against false teachers, making it clear that a bad tree (false doctrine) only produces bad fruit.

Jesus also teaches us that a good tree only produces good fruit. The “sound” in sound doctrine can be read as “healthy” doctrine. This is in perfect harmony with the natural law concept of the Scriptures. God commands what is good for us.
The pure Word of God is healthy and brings forth only good fruit.

I used to grow a lot of roses. Before I needed more sun. Now I need less sun and more soil. But I learned a lot from growing dozens of roses in Columbus and New Ulm.

There are plenty of bargain roses and mishandled roses. They grow most of the time but they never produce beautiful flowers because their stock does not allow for that. My all-time favorite remains Double Delight, for its color and perfume. It bloomed generously and everyone loved the flowers. For that reason it was also rare. If I did not order it months in advance, the suppliers were sold out.

Likewise, to grow giant sunflowers, I bought the more expensive Russian sunflower seeds. We had contests (based on Mark 4) to see which child could grow the biggest sunflower heads. The sunflower family is quite large, so many varieties are rather small and inconspicuous in their blooms. It was always impressive to see a small child with a sunflower disk bigger than a dinner plate, with hundreds of striped seeds in beautiful spirals (which reveal the Fibonacci numbers).

Because we carry the Old Adam with us, we do not like the cross that accompanies the teaching of the pure Word of God. But Jesus teaches that only good can come from the pure Word of God. How can suffering and rebuke be the good fruit of the healthy plant.

First of all, unchallenged doctrine makes us lazy and apathetic about the Scriptures. Whenever people praise themselves for being in a perfect church, they are starting to neglect the Word of God. Just recently, a Missouri pastor said he was in the best church because it was least influenced by Pietism. I thought, “Now there is a Pietistic claim.” First of all, Walther began as a Pietist, although he tried to break away from it. Secondly, the primary errors of the Synodical Conference (UOJ and consecration) come from the Reformed view of the Word, denying its efficacy. And those false views entered through Pietism, that is, through Walther the primary political and doctrinal leader. Instead of dealing with the error as it grew, the saint-worshipers encircled their statue of Walther and made his voluminous writings the norm for all doctrine, preferring him to the Book of Concord and Luther.

Secondly, God may want us somewhere else. Like Jonah, we can set our own plans, but that express whale to Ninevah is going to pick us up anyway, whether we like it or not. The only way to evade the trip is to adopt false doctrine and make peace with the Synagogue of Satan. Many religious leaders have chosen that route, which may be why the New Testament uses the term – making shipwrecks of their faith.

KJV 1 Timothy 1:19 Holding faith, and a good conscience; which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwreck:

Third, God may want us where we are, even though we cast longing eyes on another place. Luther and Gerhardt both emphasized that carrying out our duties properly is God-pleasing. We should ask for no more. Some people destroy their lives by aiming for glamour and excitement when the best of life is a series of little events, with family and friends, or seeing what God can do over time in a congregation.

I can tell who reads Luther, the Book of Concord, and the Scriptures. They will allow that they may not see any results at all, but they trust God will accomplish His will through faithfulness to His Word. Like WWII heroes I know, they avoid calling attention to themselves.

Luther himself (Paul Gerhardt, even more) was a failure when looking at his imaginary resume. Luther’s Reformation went backwards during his own lifetime. His associates did more harm to sound doctrine than the pope and Turk put together. People fell away from the Reformation as soon as the going got tough. When Luther died, the Roman Catholic emperor died and did his best to destroy the remainder of the Reformation. However, it was just that crisis that created the Book of Concord, which we should see as our best one-volume sermon helper, Bible commentary, and devotional guide.

The hymn writer Paul Gerhardt had a lifetime of horrible experiences (loss of spouse and most of his children, defenestration for going against Reformed doctrine, living on charity, etc), but he turned them into poetry that created Christian hymnody – some say even more influential than Luther.

In both cases, sound doctrine produce good fruit – to the glory of God.

Trinity Eight Quotations
Matthew 7:15-23

"Just as true doctrine is the greatest gift we can enjoy, so false doctrine is the most baneful evil that can beset us. False doctrine is sin, it is the invention of Satan, and it imperils and destroys salvation. False doctrine is every teaching contrary to the Word of God. Scripture enjoins upon us to proclaim only the truth."
W. A. Baepler, "Doctrine, True and False," The Abiding Word, ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1946, II, p. 501.

"No false dogma has ever been spread in the church which was not put forth with some plausible show, for sheep's clothing is the show of false religion (says Chrysostom). Indeed, the weaker and more ruinous the cause is, the more arguments it needs, sought everywhere and in every way possible, as though to cover it over with paint or to swathe it with medicine. For Pindar [famous Greek lyric poet, 518-438 B.C.] says, 'For a just cause three words are sufficient.' Therefore the papalists have gathered very many and varied arguments in order to establish purgatory."
Martin Chemnitz, Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, III, p. 325.

"Paul calls all false spirits bold and proud. Yes, in their filth with their protectors they are proud and impudent, otherwise they are the most cowardly villains that can be found. When they are to appear and answer for their conduct, they cannot produce a single answer. Among themselves they are bold, and venture to catch God in His own Word; but when it comes to the test, they simply despair."
Sermons of Martin Luther, 1983, V, p. 204.

"For every sect has always had one or more particular hobbies and articles which are manifestly wrong and can easily be discerned to be of the devil, who publicly teach, urge and defend them as right certain and necessary to believe or to keep For the spirit of lies cannot so conceal himself, but that he must at last put forth his claws, by which you can discern and observe the ravenous wolf."
Sermons of Martin Luther, IV, p. 282f.

"For this reason one should not be too credulous when a preacher comes softly like an angel of God, recommends himself very highly, and swears that his sole aim is to save souls, and says: 'Pax vobis!' For those are the very fellows the devil employs to honey people's mouths. Through them he gains an entrance to preach and to teach, in order that he may afterward inflict his injuries, and that though he accomplish nothing more for the present, he may, at least, confound the people's consciences and finally lead them into misery and despair."
Sermons of Martin Luther, II, p. 322.

"It is not enough that we preach correctly, which the hireling can also do; but we must watch over the sheep, that the wolves, false teachers, may not break in, and we must contend for the sheep against the wolves, with the Word of God, even to the sacrifice of our lives. Such are good shepherds, of whom few are found."
Sermons of Martin Luthe,r III, p. 34.

"There are other wolves, however, who come to us in sheep's clothing. They are the false prophets, who under the form of pious and religious instruction feed pure poison to the sheep of Christ. Against these Christ warns us, that we may be constantly on our guard, lest with sugar-coated words and flattering religious expressions they mislead us, deceive us, by their cunning, and draw us to themselves, as He says in Matthew 7:15: 'Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves.'"
Sermons of Martin Luther, III, p. 35.

"The world desires such wolf preaching, and is not worthy of anything better since it will not hear nor respect Christ. Hence it is that there are so few true Christians and faithful preachers, always outnumbered by the members of the false church."
Sermons of Martin Luther, III, p. 385.
"For nothing can feed or give life to the soul, which is not the doctrine of Christ. Although the hireling does not himself slay and destroy he does not restrain the wolf. Therefore, because you neither point out nor teach this shepherd, you shall not and ought not to be heard, but you shall be shunned as a wolf."
Sermons of Martin Luther, III, p. 58f.

"Thus too, if our confidence is to begin, and we become strengthened and comforted, we must well learn the voice of our Shepherd, and let all other voices go, who only lead us astray, and chase and drive us hither and thither. We must hear and grasp only that article which presents Christ to us in the most friendly and comforting manner possible. So that we can say with all confidence: My Lord Jesus Christ is truly the only Shepherd, and I, alas, the lost sheep, which has strayed into the wilderness, and I am anxious and fearful, and would gladly be good, and have a gracious God and peace of conscience, but here I am told that He is as anxious for me as I am for Him."
Sermons of Martin Luther, IV, p. 86.

"No work is so evil that it can damn a man, and no work is so good that it can save a man; but faith alone saves us, and unbelief damns us. The fact that someone falls into adultery does not damn him. Rather the adultery indicates that he has fallen from faith. This damns him; otherwise adultery would be impossible for him. So, then, nothing makes a good tree except faith."
What Luther Says, An Anthology, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, I, p. 475. Matthew 7:15-23.

"They [the false teachers] fared like a man who looks through a colored glass. Put before such a man whatever color you please, he sees no other color than that of the glass. The fault is not that the right color is not put before him but that his glass is colored differently, as the word of Is. 6:9 puts it: You will see, he says, and yet you will not see it."
Martin Luther, What Luther Says, 1959, II, p. 644.

"You cannot of a truth be for true doctrine without being unalterably opposed to false doctrine. There can be no 'positive theology' where the God-given negatives have been eliminated from the Decalog."
Norman A. Madson, Preaching to Preachers, Mankato: Lutheran Synod Book Company, 1952 Preface.

"Every departure from God's Word, every error, is dangerous to the soul. There is a fearful, diabolical power in error; for every error is the devil's work, and through fellowship with error a person puts himself under the influence of the devil. Here human reason is helpless."
Francis Pieper, The Difference between Orthodox and Heterodox Churches, and Supplement, Coos Bay, Oregon: St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 1981, p. 42.

"Even the history of the world shows how great is the power of the devil's kingdom. The world is full of blasphemies against God and of wicked opinions, and the devil keeps entangled in these bands those who are wise and righteous [many hypocrites who appear holy] in the sight of the world. In other persons grosser vices manifest themselves. But since Christ was given to us to remove both these sins and these punishments, and to destroy the kingdom of the devil, sin and death,it will not be possible to recognize the benefits of Christ unless we understand our evils. For this reason our preachers have diligently taught concerning these subjects, and have delivered nothing that is new, but have set forth Holy Scriptures and the judgments of the holy Fathers."
Apology Augsburg Confession, Article II: Of Original Sin, Concordia Triglotta, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1921, p. 119. Tappert, p.