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| http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Nevsky_Cathedral,_Sofia |
13] Therefore, if we wish to think or speak correctly and profitably concerning eternal election, or the predestination and ordination of the children of God to eternal life, we should accustom ourselves not to speculate concerning the bare, secret, concealed, inscrutable foreknowledge of God, but how the counsel, purpose, and ordination of God in Christ Jesus, who is the true Book of Life, is revealed to us through the Word, 14] namely, that the entire doctrine concerning the purpose, counsel, will, and ordination of God pertaining to our redemption, call, justification, and salvation should be taken together; as Paul treats and has explained this article Rom. 8:29f ; Eph. 1:4f , as also Christ in the parable, Matt. 22:1ff , namely, that God in His purpose and counsel ordained [decreed]:
15] 1. That the human race is truly redeemed and reconciled with God through Christ, who, by His faultless [innocency] obedience, suffering, and death, has merited for us the righteousness which avails before God, and eternal life.
16] 2. That such merit and benefits of Christ shall be presented, offered, and distributed to us through His Word and Sacraments.
17] 3. That by His Holy Ghost, through the Word, when it is preached, heard, and pondered, He will be efficacious and active in us, convert hearts to true repentance, and preserve them in the true faith.
18] 4. That He will justify all those who in true repentance receive Christ by a true faith, and will receive them into grace, the adoption of sons, and the inheritance of eternal life.
19] 5. That He will also sanctify in love those who are thus justified, as St. Paul says, Eph. 1:4.
20] 6. That He also will protect them in their great weakness against the devil, the world, and the flesh, and rule and lead them in His ways, raise them again [place His hand beneath them], when they stumble, comfort them under the cross and in temptation, and preserve them [for life eternal].
21] 7. That He will also strengthen, increase, and support to the end the good work which He has begun in them, if they adhere to God's Word, pray diligently, abide in God's goodness [grace], and faithfully use the gifts received.
22] 8. That finally He will eternally save and glorify in life eternal those whom He has elected, called, and justified.
23] And [indeed] in this His counsel, purpose, and ordination God has prepared salvation not only in general, but has in grace considered and chosen to salvation each and every person of the elect who are to be saved through Christ, also ordained that in the way just mentioned He will, by His grace, gifts, and efficacy, bring them thereto [make them participants of eternal salvation], aid, promote, strengthen, and preserve them.
24] All this, according to the Scriptures, is comprised in the doctrine concerning the eternal election of God to adoption and eternal salvation, and is to be understood by it, and never excluded nor omitted, when we speak of God's purpose, predestination, election, and ordination to salvation. And when our thoughts concerning this article are thus formed according to the Scriptures, we can by God's grace simply [and correctly] adapt ourselves to it [and advantageously treat of it].
25] This also belongs to the further explanation and salutary use of the doctrine concerning God's foreknowledge [predestination] to salvation: Since only the elect, whose names are written in the book of life, are saved, how, we can know, whence and whereby we can perceive who are the elect that can and should receive this doctrine for comfort.
26] And of this we should not judge according to our reason, nor according to the Law or from any external appearance. Neither should we attempt to investigate the secret, concealed abyss of divine predestination, but should give heed to the revealed will of God. For He has made known unto us the mystery of His will, and made it manifest through Christ that it might be preached, Eph. 1:9ff ; 2 Tim. 1:9f.
http://ichabodthegloryhasdeparted.blogspot.com/2012/05/formula-of-concord-xi-election-solid.html
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| Martin Chemnitz, served as the senior editor of the Book of Concord. http://www.studiumexcitare.com/content/73 |
2 comments:
I find paragraph 14 crucial it says namely, that the entire doctrine concerning the purpose, counsel, will, and ordination of God pertaining to our redemption, call, justification, and salvation should be taken together; as Paul treats and has explained this article Rom. 8:29f ; Eph. 1:4f , as also Christ in the parable, Matt. 22:1ff , namely, that God in His purpose and counsel ordained
In my Tappert version it says This means that we must always take as one unit the entire doctrine of God's purpose, counsel, will and ordinance ...
This is exactly what Walther and his disciples did not do, to take the entire 8 articles as ONE UNIT, not shredded nor compartmentalised. Consequently, their belief is tantamount to Unconditional Election.
The authors of Errors of Missouri are not mere amateurs on this issue. Like the Wittenberg Faculty which drove off Huber knew, ones Unconditional Election is accepted, one now goes down the devil's territory of also accepting the other letter of TULIP, the I, which stands for Irresistible Grace.
TULIP is an interlocking chain, once you add U to T, and by virtue of it, you must then add I, then L then P.
Clearly the BoC denies that God's grace is irresistible, it is resistible indeed. Acts 7:51
Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye
In Calvinism, if we be honest, faith is just an after thought of God. Faith is not the real issue, the real issue is that God is Sovereign, which is also the Islamic theme.
Calvinism does not have the 8 Axioms of Election found in the BoC. It has only one Axiom, the Sovereignty of God.
Election was never a problem in Lutheranism. It only became an issue when Huber and Walther came on the scene.
LPC
I would not doubt that UOJ enthusiasts cannot bear Scriptures such as 1 John 1:9. Here, following, it is, in its context:
1Jn 1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.
1Jn 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
1Jn 1:8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
This 1 John 1:5-10 Scripture is anathema to UOJ enthusiasts. Why? Because it is (in harmony) as Luther says:
".....In which Christian church He daily and richly forgives sins to me an all believers....."
Furthermore, UOJ enthusiasts cannot bear Luther and Luther's understanding of the Holy Spirit's role in the continued (ongoing) maintenance of faith in the believer's heart.
"LPC" rightly pointed out - the affinity of the UOJ mentality with that of Calvinism - not being able to resist God's grace. Then, if that is so, - why the need to confess our sins (1 John 1:9) and have to depend upon the Holy Spirit for His forgiveness cleansing and continued infusion and maintenance of [personal] faith?
Finally, I think that UOJ (universal objective justification) enthusiasts have a very difficult time "connecting the (spiritual) dots," because they treat with over emphasis (and imbalance) the second person of the Trinity at the expense (diminishing) of the 3rd Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.
In short, their error initiates and stems from a basic and unhealthy disrespect for the Holy Spirit. I think it could then be generally stated that the UOJ theory has replaced the Holy Spirit. Hence, UOJ enthusiasts perpetually sin against the First Commandment - "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." But, that does not matter to them, because of their (self conceived) all encompassing blanket absolution that is claimed by them to have been wrought by the Second Person of the Trinity.
Nathan M. Bickel
www.thechristianmessage.org
www.moralmatters.org
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