Face It, Missouri

First United Lutheran Church, San Francisco Congregation Banned For Gay Pastor, Rejoins Church. ELCA Apes WELS/LCMS in Rewarding the Guilty, Punishing the Innocent

First United Lutheran Church, San Francisco Congregation Banned For Gay Pastor, Rejoins Church:


After nearly two decades of separation sparked by its inclusion of a gay pastor, a San Francisco congregation has finally rejoined the Lutheran Church.

On Sunday, First United Lutheran Church voted to rejoin the church nearly three years after receiving an apology and an invitation to reunite, according to the Examiner.

The reunion follows a 17-year split between the congregation and the Lutheran church after the congregation ordained--and refused to abandon--an openly gay pastor. The congregation was suspended in 1990, and formally expelled in 1995. Another San Francisco congregation, St. Francis Lutheran Church, was also cut loose for its protection of two lesbian pastors in the same year.

Finally in 2009, The Lutheran Church voted to admit gay and lesbian pastors into the clergy, issuing an apology and an invitation to reunite to both of the San Francisco congregations.

"There's been an acknowledgment that these two congregations were forward-thinking and committed to their ministry," said Bishop Mark Holmerud to the San Francisco Chronicle at the time. "They took a stand, paid the consequences, and our church has finally seen the wisdom of our opening the rosters to all committed gay and lesbian couples. And we're all the better for it."

St. Francis Lutheran Church accepted the invitation. But members of First United, still wounded from years of exclusion due to discriminatory practices, didn't immediately embrace the invitation.

"Opinion in the community was divided," wrote First United Reverend Susan M. Strouse in a blog post about the congregation's consideration. "Some asked, 'Well, why wouldn't you?' Others, 'Why would you?'"

But on Sunday, First United finally accepted.

"It's like we've been without a part of our body," said Holmerud's assistant Nancy Nelson to the Examiner. "This is a time to celebrate a painful period in our church coming to a close."

In her blog post, Strouse described the process that eventually led to the church's decision:

"The discussion revealed some fear: of loss of identity, of uniqueness, of forgetting our history," she wrote. "It also revealed awareness: of the need to forgive, of the danger of moral superiority, of the courage of the ELCA to change the policy. And possibilities: of what gifts we could bring to the denomination, of being part of working for change from within the system, of being part of something bigger than ourselves."


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"May the Angels Lead Her to Paradise" - RIP, Lito Cruz' Mother

Angels carry Lazarus to Abraham's bosom, by Norma Boeckler

I learned early this morning that Lito Cruz' mother died. Lito writes Extra Nos, which is an excellent blog about justification by faith.

The New Rome - Brought by the Salesmen of UOJ

Luther, following Paul, makes it clear in his Galatians work that we are justified by faith or by works.

Therefore, the Universal Objective Justification fanatics are not Lutherans but Romanists, teaching salvation through the Law in the name of their legalistic Antinomianism. They teach against justification by faith, so they are really presenting justification by works, in spite of their claims.

Fides Formata - Faith Plus Works
The Roman Catholics teach justification by faith. Doesn't everyone? They all do - until we look at what they mean. The Church of Rome means justification by faith formed by love, fides formata.


In other words, man must add works to faith because faith is inadequate. That makes Purgatory a nice, toasty place, too, because whatever works are not done in this life are performed (or atoned for) in the next. Fortunately, the wealthy can leave behind a large estate for saying Masses in perpetuity. Buying the abomination of the Mass will chip away at the years of Purgatory owed on the account of A. Catholic Sinner. Perhaps, just before the end of time, he will enter Paradise. Mother Mary helps by visiting the suffering souls in Purgatory. We know this is true because the Pope teaches this infallibly. The Holy Spirit would not allow the pope to err in teaching doctrine, even if it was made up last week. That may sound like Wayne Mueller logic, because it is, but Rome thought it up first.

UOJ - Salvation by Works
UOJ is pure Romanism because it denies justification by faith alone, then ties salvation to the visible organization, whether it be WELS, Missouri, or the smaller fragments of Walther's Pietistic kingdom.

Moravian Pietism and UOJ
The Moravian Church exists because of three contributing factors: (1) the revival of Pietism in Germany, (2) the reemergence of an old church, and (3) Count Zinzendorf. Pietism preaches the saving power of the gospel instead of dogmatic principles. This leads one to a more personal faith and away from intellectualism. The positive effects of Pietism lead to Bible reading, prayer, outwardly speaking about one's faith, and a turn from worldly activities. Its weaknesses include subjectivity due to the deemphasis of intellectualism and an attitude of self-righteousness. The Pietist influence developed many traditions in the Moravian Church. The love feast, first celebrated in August, 1727 is unique to the Moravians. This ritual consists of a light meal, singing, and a talk which together comprise an informal service that centers on communion. The Litany is another characteristic found in this tradition. It is a prayer form developed for corporate or private devotions. The Pietist movement also started the idea of small groups of believers meeting together regularly to worship and encourage each other. [GJ - Bishop Stephan belonged to this Pietistic tradition, used land given by Zinzendorf, and took the Walther crew into his cell group ministry in Dresden. Stephan trained at Halle University, the center of Pietism.]

How about that, Missourians? You were founded by a famous Pietist, Bishop Martin Stephan, STD. His  enforcer, CFW Walther, organized a mob, robbed him of all his gold/books/chalices, and kidnapped him over to Illinois. Walther was a Pietist as a college student, as a pastor, and as a Stephan follower.

Paul Calvin Kelm (DMin, Church Growth Pietism, St. Louis) described his dogma as starting with the Gospel and moving to the Law. That is very much like Moravian Pietism. WELS and Missouri did not abandon Luther for Fuller Seminary. They tired of dabbling in Luther and returned to Pietism.

"But," some will say, "the headline is all about Roman Catholicism." That is true, but there is not much difference in substance between Romanism and Pietism. Both produce works-saints and suffer from extreme self-righteousness. It is no surprise that Missouri pastors join Rome as priests, and WELS/ELS  are comfortable with featuring Roman Catholic prelates as their chapel speakers. Sure, WELS/ELS lie about that fact, but they are quite comfortable with lying too.

In Rome the ritual-starved Pietists find everything they imagine they lacked - Holy Mother Church, real bishops, and a certainty based on works.

UOJ Clashes with Justification by Faith. The Word of God Rejects UOJ, Teaches Justification by Faith

Universal Objective Justification, which also goes by the names of Objective Justification and General Justification, consists of one solitary dogma - universal absolution.

There are some slight but trivial variations in UOJ. Some date this unrecorded declaration at the death of Christ. Others at the moment of His resurrection. The Pietists--like Rambach and Walther and Jay Webber--favor Easter.

This universal absolutions is taught by Karl Barth (Fuller's theologian), the Universalists, all the mainline denominations, and the Seventh Day Adventists.

"...must accept by faith the general absolution..."
That is not justification by faith.

The corollary to universal absolution is simple - you must believe in this universal absolution. Walther stated this with great clarity and the SynConference Lutherans have aped it ever since. Therefore, Walther's justification by faith is NOT faith in Christ or in His atonement, but faith in Walther's delusions of universal forgiveness.

Implicit is Pope Walther's "Anathema sit!" If someone denies his Enthusiasm, let him be damned to Hell. As a Pietist, he was very astute at shunning other Pietists, calling them "Pietist" and "false teacher," irony too subtle for the men who followed one cell group guru after another.

Evidence of False Doctrine in Waltherians
There are many lapses in the teaching of the Waltherians, including silence about:

1. The efficacy of the Word.
2. The Means of Grace - except when twisted in the service of UOJ.
3. The Holy Spirit working only through the Word.
4. Justification by faith only found in Luther, Melanchthon, Chemnitz, the Book of Concord, and the next generation of theologians.
5. Samuel Huber, their first UOJ champion.

Symptoms of UOJ Enthusiasm
False doctrine leads to obvious symptoms, just as cancer and gangrene give themselves away with symptoms. Some symptoms are:

1. Enrollment in Fuller Seminary, Trinity Divinity, and Willow Creek programs. Synodical funding.
2. Pentecostalism.
3. Receptionism.
4. Joyfully working with ELCA in Church Growth projects.
5. Subordination to Thrivent funding of any denomination, any religion.
6. Promotion of false teachers and known sex offenders.
7. Discipline reserved for those who question Holy Mother Synod about anything.
8. Laziness and plagiarism in preaching.
9. Non-visitation of members and prospects.
10. Mark Schroeder, Pope John the Malefactor, Matt Harrison.

I expect little to happen in the right direction, but the truth is coming out. The pastors are too wedded to Mama Synod, and the congregations are loyal to their buildings.

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Pastor emeritus Nathan Bickel has left a new comment on your post "UOJ Clashes with Justification by Faith. The Word ...":

Ichabod -

As popular and photogenic, (at the time), as Walther was, he apparently [incorrectly] thought that human souls actually want to be saved from their unconverted state. He says that everyone "who wants to be saved........" That desire, however, can only be implanted by the Holy Spirit. When a human soul comes into contact with the Word of God and [by God's grace, through the Spirit's working] recognizes his fallen, corrupted and hopeless condition, - only then will he have a [genuine] desire to be saved. Apparently, Walther was of the same misconception as modern day universal objective justification enthusiasts that people can capriciously (on their own) muster the wherewithal to believe in Christ.

Again, looking at this Walther quote, I see nothing Biblical. No mention of repentance. Somehow in UOJ fanatical thinking, is the false notion that a general absolution replaces repentance and personal belief [faith] - a grace bestowed by our loving God:

The Grace of Repentance

http://www.thechristianmessage.org/2012/07/grace-of-repentance.html

Nathan M. Bickel

www.thechristianmessage.org

www.moralmatters.org 

Lutherans Today Would Rather Teach Themselves and Their Sect Than Luther's Biblical Doctrine

How many catch the irony of Lutherans officially rejecting Luther's doctrine?

The first responses are - "What does Holy Mother Synod say?" and "Aren't we loyal to Holy Mother Synod most of all?"

The apostates repeat the arguments of the living and the dead, the same ones who delivered vast sums of synod money to Fuller Seminary, Trinity in Deerfield, and Willow Creek Community Church. As long as everyone is ignorant of the facts and resistant to studying the issues, the fraud can continue indefinitely.

The functionaries appoint their political friends to carry out the agenda. It only takes a few votes on a few boards to control everything.

C. F. W. Walther was a college graduate only - nothing more. But the SynConference pretends that the Great Kidnapper is Equal to the Apostles (Constantine's favorite title) and the Exegete of Luther. The Concordists would have laughed at someone so poorly educated as the ultimate authority on everything.

Walther took over Stephan's Pietistic sex cult and appointed his own successors, worried that someone  might write an actual history of the Missouri Synod's founding. There is no record of Walther knowing that Bishop Stephan, STD, kept a whole series of young mistresses, until he "suddenly" found out his boss was adulterous. Walther later blamed the adultery on Mrs. Stephan.

Left unsaid are the obvious symptoms of syphilis in Stephan, his sick wife, and his dying children. Leaving his wife in Dresden and coming across the ocean with his main mistress, Stephan shocked Walther and associates with his adultery? Ha.

Zion on the Mississippi details the role of Walther as a fox, a mob organizer, an unscrupulous power-grabber.

Walther and his minions gradually established a replacement for justification by faith. They were not 100% successful. In teaching Luther they had to reprint Luther. The Missouri Synod produced a magnificent Luther set in German. Like many of their early productions, the set could double as a bunker in case of war.

The German catechism of the Missouri Synod taught justification by faith, not UOJ. Another catechism still being sold by Missouri, their KJV catechism, is also silent about UOJ. Likewise, the original Gausewitz, a catechism for the entire Synodical Conference, taught justification by faith until he was long gone and WELS "fixed" it in 1956.

Claiming to be Lutheran while supplanting Luther is bound to cause problems. All the American Lutheran groups had the same difficulty. Pietism sponsored missions, and Halle was the mother ship for Pietism, the training ground for American Lutheran leaders - from Muhlenberg to Stephan to Hoenecke.

Augustana (Swedish Lutherans) struggled with unionism and Pietism, realizing that their original passions were causing them nothing but trouble in America. The same could be said for the Muhlenberg tradition, which was gradually united by an interest in the Confessions, just as Pietism tore it apart in the first place. But that confessional interest did not last long. The displaced liberals regained the upper hand and made rationalistic Pietism the theme of the ULCA, then the LCA, and finally ELCA.

WELS began as a union sect, Reformed and Lutheran, fell in with the Waltherians, and amalgamated their Pietism with a dash of orthodoxy. Unfortunately, the Walther-trained Pietists were bound to lead the sect in the wrong direction.

The Protest'ant crisis of WELS revealed that they learned their lessons from the Great Kidnapper himself. The WELS leaders said to the Protest'ants - "Shut up and listen while we tell you off." They kicked out everyone who said something was wrong. They got rid of their seminary president, so no one was safe from the gremlins, from that time on. They became easily frightened by anyone with brains, because conformity to the sect became the ruling norm.

The encroachment of UOJ has been gradual ever since. Watchdogs with no academic credibility make sure that no one teaches justification by faith with impunity.

Lenski Is Good at Teaching the New Testament

rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "Hebrews 7 - Bible Study":

This was an astute commentary by Lenski. Many like to make reference to the rectilinear Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament. But, the typological prophecies can help give a more complete picture of the nature of Christ. This example from Hebrews is very fitting.
I am fascinated by what Jesus said in Matthew 16:4:

"A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed."
also at Matthew 12:38-42:

38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law said to Him, “Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you.”

39 He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here. 42 The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now one greater than Solomon is here.

Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill Explosion - Primary Selections from Special Collections

Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill Explosion - Primary Selections from Special Collections:


Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill Explosion
Tags: Disasters, Fires, International Multifoods, Local History

History is full of landmark events—world, national, local— which bring people together to compare notes:

Did you see it?  Did you hear it?What were you doing?  Were you there?

Those in downtown Davenport experienced their own landmark event around noon on May 23, 1975, when a massive explosion on the riverfront shook the city.

Doors flew open from the percussion and windows shattered, throwing jagged spears of glass to the sidewalks.  People ran outside to find out what had happened—most thought it was an earthquake, some thought it was a bomb.  Others worried that the Rock Island Arsenal was the source of the blast.

Sirens filled the air and a helicopter flew in and stopped near the Mississippi River.  The curious ran in that direction or headed for high vantage points—the upper floors of the Blackhawk Hotel or the Kahl Building—to get a better view of East River Drive.

After

And what a view there was.

Half of the International Multifoods complex seemed to have lifted up and collapsed onto the other half.  The large profile of Robin Hood on one of the riverside buildings—which had given the place its local nickname, the “Robin Hood Flour Mill”—appeared to have launched itself into the Mississippi.  Pieces of reinforced concrete had been thrown at least a hundred feet in every direction.  A grain barge near the edge of the river had sunk under the debris.

But what could have caused such destruction?

Such a simple thing:  a spark had ignited the dust inside a grain silo—one of the big ones, with a capacity of 1.8 million pounds of wheat —which had exploded with devastating force.

Seven people were trapped on the remaining roofs of the complex and the firefighter’s ladders couldn’t reach two of them—one in an area that was at risk for a second explosion.  A military helicopter came to assist.   Five ambulances, plus one from Arsenal Island, took the seriously injured away to the disaster stations, where all area doctors had been told to report.  Five employees were in critical condition and were later moved to burn centers.

One body had already been found in the wreckage:  Ferrell Cleeton of Davenport. By the time the Quad-City Times came out that evening, his was the only confirmed death, though three people were still reported missing.  It was thought that one man had been blown into the river.

By May 26, cranes were clearing the rubble and an auger was expected to soon clear the still-smoldering grain from the bottom of the silo.  Only one worker was still unaccounted for:  Leon Robinson of Milan, Illinois—the man who had been seen in a control tower on the levee barely a minute before the blast.  His fellow workers protested the machinery, wanting to hand-search the wreckage in case their friend was still alive.

But time was passing, and the next day, a barge from the U.S. Corps of Engineers carried a crane from LeClaire to help lift debris from the sunken barge.  On May 29, the bucket of the crane pulled Mr. Robinson’s body from where it had been trapped underneath the wreckage.  The Scott County medical examiner reported that he had died before he and his tower had hit the water, though this was scant consolation for his family and friends.

Total damages to the complex were estimated to be three to five million dollars.  Although a new grain elevator would take almost a year to build, flour mill operations resumed the week after the disaster, as that part of the complex had been the least damaged.   The plant was able to keep a large number of its employees occupied with cleaning and salvaging work—over 400,000 bushels of grain needed to be removed from the undamaged silos.  Soon, the only evidence of the disaster was the absence of the familiar logo, which was not replaced.

So, where were you when Robin Hood Flour blew up?

   

Views of International Multifoods several years before the explosion.  The barges were tied to the levy for loading.

____

Sources:

“Explosion at Mill!” Quad-City Times, May 23, 1975, p.1

McGrevey, Michael.  “‘No Dust Peril at Mill.’”  Quad-City Times, May 27, 1975, p.1.

McGrevey, Michael.  “Part of Workforce Back on Job at Mill.”  Quad-City Times, May 30, 1975, p.17.

McGrevey, Michael.  “Relatives Keep Riverside Vigil.”  Quad-City Times, May 29,1975, p.1.

Vogel, David M.  “Cranes Clear Wreckage at Mill.”  Quad-City Times, May 26, 1975, p.1.

Wundram, Bill.  “‘Thought it was an Earthquake.’”  Quad-City Times, May 23, 1975, p. 14.

(Posted by Sarah)

7 RESPONSES TO “LIVING MEMORY HISTORY: THE ROBIN HOOD FLOUR MILL EXPLOSION”
9:12am, 25 May, 2010 р.
Amy D. says:
I remember being taken to see the buildings after the explosion. Probably one of my earliest memories. My dad, by chance, saw it happen while standing in an Arsenal parking lot after a lunch meeting.

10:39am, 25 May, 2010 р.
Kay says:
I was working in downtown Davenport and the building shook. My sister worked for another grain company in the area, but knew some of the people who were injured and died.

8:16pm, 5 July, 2010 р.
Nancy says:
I was working for Mast-Keystone in East Village. I was sitting on table in front of a window when the table and window shook.

5:36pm, 23 June, 2011 р.
Bob Shear says:
I was playing “foosball” in a bar & grill across the street from the mill when it exploded. We heard a boom and then the sound of concrete raining outside in the parking lot. A lot of damage to parked cars in the adjacent Eagle Signal lot. It was definitely one of those experiences you never forget.

3:26pm, 31 August, 2011 р.
Alan Booker says:
Not only my first visit to Davenport but, my first day in the USA. On hearing the explosion, the hotel staff told me it was a firing exercise at the arsenal. “Cool”, I thought, grabbed an Arsenal tour brochure and set off.
As I passed the smoking ruin of the mill, I realised that this appeared to be a real disaster and my interest in the arsenal suddenly evaporated. I had been hoping to see big guns beeing tested but suddenly, I was faced with the reality that people must have died in that tragic blast. A very sobering introduction to a country I have come to adore.
OK. It’s not so much the country as the fabulous QC friendships that have endured since that time.
I live in a nice English market town but, given the choice, erm, well I don’t have a green card so I don’t actually have that choice, so I guess I have to stay over here.

3:39pm, 30 October, 2011 р.
Jo says:
I was home from school for lunch (in Bettendorf). We were used to the arsenal testing howitzers. Our house had so many cracks in the plaster that we gave up patching them. This explosion was different in a couple of ways.

First, it was louder and much more intense that the guns, even though they were closer to us. Second, when we found out what had blown up, my whole family breathed a HUGE sigh of relief. It hadn’t been that long before that my dad was working on the roof of the bins, sealing them again the elements. We knew there was a risk to his working so high up, but we weren’t aware that he could have been blown to kingdom come at any moment. As Mom used to say, thank goodness for small favors!

10:40am, 5 March, 2012 р.
Wendy says:
I was gazing out the window of my biology class at Central High School, towards the plant when the explosion occured. I saw a huge flash of light immeadiatly followed by a billowing cloud of black smoke. I heard constant sirens and helicopters after that. I heard when I got home from school that it was the Robin Hood flour plant.

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Norman Teigen has left a new comment on your post "Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill E...":

Did not know about this tragedy. I am a Minnesota Historical Society volunteer interpreter at the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis. There was a flour dust explosion here in May 1878 and it was widely commemorated then and now. Thanks for sharing this information.

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rlschultz has left a new comment on your post "Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill E...":

Wikipedia talks about the 1878 explosion:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_explosion
The problem with dust explosions is that the presence of dust is usually within an extremely dry environment. This increases the risk of buildup of electrostatic charges. Unless precautions are taken to prevent this buildup, it is possible for a spark to jump and trigger an explosion.

Hebrews 7 - Bible Study

Lenski:

The Fourth Main Part

Jesus, the High Priest after the Order of Melchizedek, chapter 7

Introductory: The Scriptural Data Regarding Melchizedek, v. 1–3.

1) This strange person, who appears suddenly in and disappears as suddenly from the Scripture record (Gen. 14:18–20), who is in a remarkable way unexpectedly referred to by David in a quotation from God himself (Ps. 110:4), has given rise to still stranger speculation as to his identity. Rabbi Ismael, about 135 b. c., thought him to be Shem, Noah’s son; this opinion has been accepted by Luther and by others. Philo saw in him a figure of the human soul, divine reason functioning in a priestly way as the upright word that controlled the passions, delighted the soul and honored God with exalted thought; he did not regard Melchizedek as a historical person. Origen thought him to be an angel being; others specified this angel as Michael. Hierakas, at the end of the third century, made him a temporary incarnation of the Holy Spirit, others a similar incarnation of the Logos. Theodot, 200 b. c., and the sect of the Melchizedekites made him greater than Christ, the original of whom Christ was only a copy, through whom all prayers must be brought to God. There have been still other opinions.

There are three short verses in Genesis, one in the Psalms, nothing more in the rest of the Bible, yet here in Hebrews we have an elaborate exposition concerning Melchizedek and Christ. It is the statement made in the psalm that sheds the divine light on Melchizedek and those three verses of Genesis. Yet already this fact arrests attention, namely that God himself should so long a time after Abraham refer to Melchizedek in Genesis when he was speaking of David’s son who was David’s Lord. It was reserved for our epistle to add the complete light.

There was a call for it now. The readers, former Jews who were now thinking of returning to Judaism, are here confronted with their great forefather Abraham and are shown how he accepted the royal priest Melchizedek long before Levi and Aaron were born and the Aaronitic high priesthood came into existence. The readers want to be true sons of Abraham, yea, are thinking of returning to Judaism for that very reason. Well, let them look at Abraham and at the one priest to whom Abraham bowed. Let them consider what God said through David regarding this royal priest and regarding the Messiah-Christ who is typified by Melchizedek.

The very objection which the readers may raise against Jesus, the fact that he was not a son of Levi but descended from the tribe of Judah, was not in the Aaronic succession and thus not a legitimate priest and high priest, is made the most overwhelming proof for the absolutely exceptional, for the eternal High Priesthood of Jesus, which is, indeed, not according to the order of Aaron but, as God himself had declared by David, “according to the order of Melchizedek.” Our High Priest must also be King eternal who has none to precede and none to succeed him, who is far beyond Aaron by being after the type of Melchizedek. All that God revealed about the significance of Melchizedek in David’s time is thus brought to bear upon the readers of our epistle who need it. Although it appeared to lie dormant in those four Old Testament verses, it is “living and powerful” (4:12) to save the readers from taking a fatal step.

The writer has used the most effective psychological method of approach. He has first prepared his readers. He has repeatedly presented Jesus as our High Priest, in fact, as our Great High Priest (4:14); he has twice quoted God’s own statement in the psalm that Jesus was to be Priest and High Priest after the order of Melchizedek (5:6, 10). He has delayed until now to reveal in detail what this means. He has injected the strongest warnings against sluggishness of mind and the deadliness of unbelief. The preparation is complete; he now proceeds, and his exposition leaves nothing to be desired. The first step presents the main historical facts about Melchizedek. These are the data embodied in Genesis. Γάρ = in order that you may fully understand what God means by saying that Jesus is a High Priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (6:20).

Lenski, R. C. H.: The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews and of the Epistle of James. Columbus, O. : Lutheran book concern, 1938, S. 207.

Lenski:

“This Melchizedek” = the man whom I have (6:20) so significantly brought to your attention for the third time (5:6, 10). There follows a series of appositions and nominative modifiers until the verb μένει is reached (v. 3). “King of Salem” and “priest of God the Most High” are quoted from Gen. 14:18. These are the significant features because this man was both king and priest and was unlike any other Old Testament personage. It is in vain to ask from what line this kingpriest descended; he is “without genealogy” (v. 3), and speculation is useless.

But how could there be “a priest of God the Most High” in this idolatrous country of Canaan? The answer must be that the true religion of Noah had been fully conserved in Melchizedek. “The Most High” is not relative, not polytheistic: the highest of many gods as Zeus was called “the highest”; “Most High” is absolute, monotheistic: High beyond all other things. We now say “God Almighty” to express the same idea. “Most High” appears a number of times in the New Testament, being appropriated from the Old.

Lenski, R. C. H.: The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews and of the Epistle of James. Columbus, O. : Lutheran book concern, 1938, S. 209.

Lenski:

In 2:10 we heard what was becoming to God, namely to make the Author of our salvation complete by means of sufferings. We now hear the counterpart, that it was becoming to us to have such a High Priest, who has all the basic requisites and thus has also been made complete forever. We see at once that τελειῶσαι used in 2:10 and τετελειωμένον correspond, and that thus the τελείωσις that was lacking in what the Levitical priesthood was able to provide (v. 11) is provided to the uttermost in this High Priest of ours. We have the same imperfect “was becoming” that was used in 2:10, but it now has a personal and not, as in 2:10, an impersonal subject. One might say “such a High Priest was necessary for us,” which would also be true.

“Was becoming,” fitting, appropriate, meet, does not put the matter on a lower plane; it deals only with another side, that of providing us with the proper High Priest, one who is this in a way that is complete in every respect, is fully fitted for his task. We may say that stating it thus leaves room for the temporary and incomplete work of the Levitical priests (v. 11), which was also fitting and proper in a way because it was preparatory for Christ and with its incompleteness pointed to the completeness of Christ, with its incompleteness depended on Christ’s completeness and thus achieved its results through him.

The very fact that by means of the Levitical priesthood completeness was not attained (v. 11) together with all that is added in v. 11–25 show how it became us to have a High Priest of a different kind, one who is, indeed, absolutely complete as a High Priest. The imperfect tense is in place, for this propriety existed at all times from the very beginning of the priestly idea and the priestly expiation of our sins—completeness both in the personal qualification and in the work of the Priest who would, of course, be a high priest. If καί is retained, its force would be: was “precisely” becoming for us (R. 1181).

The matter is presented in an objective way: this objectivity is more convincing for the readers than if Jesus were actually named in this paragraph. Yet a little thought shows that all that is here said about the kind of High Priest that is proper for us is found in Jesus, in him alone. This form of presentation practically asks the readers to take these objective specifications and to find the High Priest in whom they appear. There is none other than Jesus despite the host of priests and of high priests the Jews have had. What a fatal mistake, then, for the readers to think of forsaking “such a High Priest” and turning back to Judaism, to the Levitical priests whose function had long been superseded as God himself declares in his sworn statement (v. 20–22, 28).

R. A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research, by A. T. Robertson, 4th ed.

Lenski, R. C. H.: The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews and of the Epistle of James. Columbus, O. : Lutheran book concern, 1938, S. 240

Contradictory Belief Systems. Funding Sheep-Stealing within the Sect

Kudu Don Patterson and Ex-SP Gurgle set up a sheep-stealing campus near the WELS mission in Round Rock.
Result? The district voted to upgrade Don to district president.
The district had a special conference to promote justification without faith.
In WELS, Missouri, and the Little Sect, people vote for their own punishment and then pay for it with their offerings.

alf-hislop (https://alf-hislop.myopenid.com/) has left a new comment on your post "Pastor Nathan Bickel on UOJ in WELS. Aaron Frey St...":

Ichabod – Thank You for Illuminating the Confused Belief Systems, Practices and Thinking that Takes Place in Religious Leadership Today!

The symptoms include heretical teachings on UOJ as well as terrible planning and awful stewardship when it comes to using the resources. I sensed that there was something wrong for years, but could not gain a better understanding without details.

With the help of your critiques I now see undercurrents and swirls of varied beliefs, politics, and values dragging down the synods. The leaders all too often behave like they do not know as much as they want their followers to think that they do! Chalk it up to secular motivations; internal fears and lack of faith, twisted thinking, sloth, whatever, and the results are the same: puzzled and weary, and possibly wary, parishioners like myself.

The leaders must get more honest with themselves and their motivations before the confidence of parishioners grows in them and what they teach. All too often we as members listen to pastors and leaders talk about serving the Lord while the action sought really serves the leaders and their interests. For example, how does funding a new, sheep-stealing church serve the Lord? I simply cannot get my mind wrapped around that idea, no matter how hard I try. Surely such action stems from false beliefs and faulty reasoning – not to mention self-centeredness of some kind. I am not looking for a confession from wayward leaders – just clarity of thought founded on Scripture – not mimicry of divergent religions, high-minded clichés, or deceit.

Chad White, Patterson's assistant, and Chad's needy wife.
Patterson, Chad and others went to Exponential's pan-denominational conference together.

---

Pastor emeritus Nathan Bickel has left a new comment on your post "Pastor Nathan Bickel on UOJ in WELS. Aaron Frey St...":

alf-hislop -

Just keep on reading Ichabod. You will get an online earful. WELS bureaucracy can print some snazzy publications, but it cannot mask what it does behind the scenes. That, most always (eventually) floats to the surface and becomes exposed for what it is spiritually, worth.

It is true what you say:

".....All too often we as members listen to pastors and leaders talk about serving the Lord while the action sought really serves the leaders and their interests." [Your choice description]

I was thinking about what you said, after my second time reading your thoughts. I was reminded of how our WELS congregation here in Bay County seems to be evermore dependent upon the synodical bureaucracy. Sometimes I think to myself:
"If Bethel Lutheran did not have the church bureaucracy, could it survive by itself as an independent Lutheran congregation? What ever happened to local church autonomy? Why is it (and it seems apparent) that some pastors churned out by the WELS seminary system, seem to be so devoted and dependent upon (Mother) Synod and endeared to its former seminary alma mater? It's as if all the decisions of local operation are made at the 'top' level and that rank and file congregational WELS members are only needed to (quarterly) rubber stamp the local church councils' closed door decisions?"

Perhaps, I should remind myself of a former comment of mine, here on Ichabod - something to the nature of: "Organizations are soulless; whereas, God deals with individual souls.........."

Finally, I was about to submit my comment when a plausible answer to my (above stated) question, came to mind:
Perhaps, some pastors are so attention deficit directed away from their local congregations and so attuned to Mother Synod and their alma mater seminary, because they are thinking in CEO mode. And, perhaps, these certain pastors (unconsciously or consciously) feel that there is no personal and / or career advancement in WELS, unless they goose step to the whims and wishes of church bureaucracy?

Perhaps, those at the top of WELS should begin to craft a separate educational program which offers synodical bureaucratic degrees? Would that be a way of solving the problem of CEO thinking pastors desiring to treat their congregations as organizational (business) structures rather than not seeing to it that the Scripture reigns supreme at the local congregational level?

Ichabod - What are your thoughts of the aforementioned?

Nathan M. Bickel

www.thechristianmessage.org
www.moralmatters.org 

Can Liberal Christianity Be Saved? - NYTimes.com

Can Liberal Christianity Be Saved? - NYTimes.com:


By ROSS DOUTHAT
Published: July 14, 2012 189 Comments

IN 1998, John Shelby Spong, then the reliably controversial Episcopal bishop of Newark, published a book entitled “Why Christianity Must Change or Die.” Spong was a uniquely radical figure — during his career, he dismissed almost every element of traditional Christian faith as so much superstition — but most recent leaders of the Episcopal Church have shared his premise. Thus their church has spent the last several decades changing and then changing some more, from a sedate pillar of the WASP establishment into one of the most self-consciously progressive Christian bodies in the United States.
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Ross Douthat’s Evaluations
Times Topic: Episcopal Church

As a result, today the Episcopal Church looks roughly how Roman Catholicism would look if Pope Benedict XVI suddenly adopted every reform ever urged on the Vatican by liberal pundits and theologians. It still has priests and bishops, altars and stained-glass windows. But it is flexible to the point of indifference on dogma, friendly to sexual liberation in almost every form, willing to blend Christianity with other faiths, and eager to downplay theology entirely in favor of secular political causes.

Yet instead of attracting a younger, more open-minded demographic with these changes, the Episcopal Church’s dying has proceeded apace. Last week, while the church’s House of Bishops was approving a rite to bless same-sex unions, Episcopalian church attendance figures for 2000-10 circulated in the religion blogosphere. They showed something between a decline and a collapse: In the last decade, average Sunday attendance dropped 23 percent, and not a single Episcopal diocese in the country saw churchgoing increase.

This decline is the latest chapter in a story dating to the 1960s. The trends unleashed in that era — not only the sexual revolution, but also consumerism and materialism, multiculturalism and relativism — threw all of American Christianity into crisis, and ushered in decades of debate over how to keep the nation’s churches relevant and vital.

Traditional believers, both Protestant and Catholic, have not necessarily thrived in this environment. The most successful Christian bodies have often been politically conservative but theologically shallow, preaching a gospel of health and wealth rather than the full New Testament message.

But if conservative Christianity has often been compromised, liberal Christianity has simply collapsed. Practically every denomination — Methodist, Lutheran, Presbyterian — that has tried to adapt itself to contemporary liberal values has seen an Episcopal-style plunge in church attendance. Within the Catholic Church, too, the most progressive-minded religious orders have often failed to generate the vocations necessary to sustain themselves.

Both religious and secular liberals have been loath to recognize this crisis. Leaders of liberal churches have alternated between a Monty Python-esque “it’s just a flesh wound!” bravado and a weird self-righteousness about their looming extinction. (In a 2005 interview, the Episcopal Church’s presiding bishop explained that her communion’s members valued “the stewardship of the earth” too highly to reproduce themselves.)

Liberal commentators, meanwhile, consistently hail these forms of Christianity as a model for the future without reckoning with their decline. Few of the outraged critiques of the Vatican’s investigation of progressive nuns mentioned the fact that Rome had intervened because otherwise the orders in question were likely to disappear in a generation. Fewer still noted the consequences of this eclipse: Because progressive Catholicism has failed to inspire a new generation of sisters, Catholic hospitals across the country are passing into the hands of more bottom-line-focused administrators, with inevitable consequences for how they serve the poor.

But if liberals need to come to terms with these failures, religious conservatives should not be smug about them. The defining idea of liberal Christianity — that faith should spur social reform as well as personal conversion — has been an immensely positive force in our national life. No one should wish for its extinction, or for a world where Christianity becomes the exclusive property of the political right.

What should be wished for, instead, is that liberal Christianity recovers a religious reason for its own existence. As the liberal Protestant scholar Gary Dorrien has pointed out, the Christianity that animated causes such as the Social Gospel and the civil rights movement was much more dogmatic than present-day liberal faith. Its leaders had a “deep grounding in Bible study, family devotions, personal prayer and worship.” They argued for progressive reform in the context of “a personal transcendent God ... the divinity of Christ, the need of personal redemption and the importance of Christian missions.”

Today, by contrast, the leaders of the Episcopal Church and similar bodies often don’t seem to be offering anything you can’t already get from a purely secular liberalism. Which suggests that per haps they should pause, amid their frantic renovations, and consider not just what they would change about historic Christianity, but what they would defend and offer uncompromisingly to the world.

Absent such a reconsideration, their fate is nearly certain: they will change, and change, and die.


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Atheist Women Feel Uncomfortable Among Their Men. Would Be Safe at Believers' Conference

(Left to right) Sikivu Hutchinson, Rebecca Watson, Ophelia Benson and Jennifer McCreight speak on a panel about feminism and atheism at the Women in Secularism Conference in May 2012. Credit: RNS photo by Brian D. Engler / courtesy Center for Inquiry

Religion News Service | Culture | Gender & Sexuality | Do atheists have a sexual harassment problem?:


Do atheists have a sexual harassment problem?

Kimberly Winston | Jul 12, 2012 | Comments (159)

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(RNS) As skeptics, atheists and humanists prepare to gather for their largest meeting in Las Vegas this weekend, attendance by women is expected to be down significantly.

Officials for The Amazing Meeting, or TAM, said Wednesday (July 11) that women would make up 31 percent of the 1,200 conference attendees, down from 40 percent the year before. A month before the conference, pre-registration was only 18 percent women, organizers said.

The explanations are many -- the bad economy, that women, as caregivers, are less able to get away, and that more men than women identify as skeptics, whose worldview rejects the supernatural and focuses on science and rationality.

But in the weeks preceding TAM, another possible explanation has roiled the nontheist community. Online forums have crackled with charges of sexism in TAM’s leadership and calls for the ouster of D.J. Grothe, the male president of the James Randi Educational Foundation, TAM’s organizer. In June, Rebecca Watson, a skeptic blogger and speaker, canceled her TAM appearance because, she said on her blog, she does “not feel welcome or safe.”

Other nontheists -- both male and female -- have shared stories of unwanted sexual attention at nontheist gatherings, including propositions for sex and unwelcome touching. Chatter has ranged from calls for more women to attend nontheist events to personal attacks on prominent female skeptics for discussing harassment. Meanwhile, two more skeptic/feminist bloggers announced they will not attend TAM.

The debate has had two major impacts -- a call for cooler tempers and the immediate implementation of sexual harassment policies by all of the major nontheist organizations, both national and regional.

No one is suggesting that all nontheist events are unsafe for women. But the controversy has members of the nontheist community, which prides itself on its embrace of rational thinking, asking whether they have a sexual harassment problem. And if so, what should be done?

“We are a small movement, so it might be very important for some men and women to find a partner who shares their beliefs,” said Maggie Ardiente, director of development for the American Humanist Association, which recently adopted a sexual harassment policy. “That does not mean sexual attention, when it is clearly rejected, is allowed. We need to be clear that these events are a great way to meet people, but there are appropriate ways to conduct yourselves. There are common-sense ways to address this for both men and women.”

This is not the first time the skeptic community has struggled with sexual harassment charges.

Last year, at another skeptic conference, Watson said she was approached late at night in an elevator by a man she believed was seeking sex. When she blogged about it, the “atheosphere” erupted in comments, both supportive and negative. British biologist Richard Dawkins, the best-selling author of “The God Delusion,” wrote that Watson should “stop whining” and “grow a thicker skin.”

The current hullabaloo can be traced to May’s Women in Secularism Conference, a first-of-its-kind gathering about nontheist women. On a panel examining feminism and nontheism, Jennifer McCreight, an atheist blogger, said women speakers at nontheist events warn each other privately about male speakers who make unwanted sexual advances.


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(Left to right) Sikivu Hutchinson, Rebecca Watson, Ophelia Benson and Jennifer McCreight speak on a panel about feminism and atheism at the Women in Secularism Conference in May 2012. Credit: RNS photo by Brian D. Engler / courtesy Center for Inquiry
“They brought up a concern about harassment at conferences and I was not aware of that problem,” said Ron Lindsay, president of the Center for Inquiry, a humanist-skeptic group that organized the women’s conference. “Maybe I should have been. But once I became aware of that concern it wasn’t that difficult to come to a decision that we should have a policy in place to deal with that.”

CFI unveiled its policy earlier this month. American Atheists, American Humanist Association, and several large regional groups have also announced policies in the last few weeks. Most organizations had sexual harassment policies covering their employees and workplaces, but the new policies are aimed at non-employee attendees at special events.

As these groups and others unveiled their policies, members of the skeptic community asked whether TAM had one in place.

LCMS feminist.

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The Sixth Sunday after Trinity. Matthew 5:20-26

The Sixth Sunday after Trinity, 2012

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time

The Hymn # 331:1-4            Yea, As I live                                               3:70

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       

The Gospel              

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed             p. 22

The Sermon Hymn # 331:5-8            Yea, As I live                                   3:70

Better Than Willow Creek

The Communion Hymn # 387             Dear Christians                   3:41

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 #  209     Who is This                                                     3:33

Sixth Sunday After Trinity

Lord God, heavenly Father, we confess that we are poor, wretched sinners, and that there is no good in us, our hearts, flesh and blood being so corrupted by sin, that we never in this life can be without sinful lust and concupiscence; therefore we beseech Thee, dear Father, forgive us these sins, and let Thy Holy Spirit so cleanse our hearts that we may desire and love Thy word, abide by it, and thus by Thy grace be forever saved; through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

KJV Romans 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: 6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. 7 For he that is dead is freed from sin. 8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: 9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

KJV Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. 21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 22 But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. 23 Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; 24 Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. 26 Verily I say unto thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.

Better Than Willow Creek

I remember going to Willow Creek Community Church and hearing Bill Hybels preach on this text. He started out well, on the Law side, but he never got to the Gospel. That is the problem with Pietism. Their answer to uncovering sin with the Law is to apply more Law as the solution.

In this case, it was “You should be a servant. You should be humble. You should be like this Chicago Bears player who vacuums the carpet at the church, to show everyone how humble he is, what a servant he is.” The audience got a tongue-lashing for not coming to church on Wednesday, only to the Seeker Service on Sunday. “Wednesday is communion. That is where we really worship,” Hybels said. There was no real congregational singing – it reminded me of the Washington Cathedral – whispering hymns.

We went to their overpriced food court afterwards. Little Ichabod found himself arguing against his WELS college professor who was defending Willow Creek. The professor’s rebuttal was, “Have you been there?” Apparently only those who went there could discuss the famous congregation. When LI said, “Yes, last Sunday,” the professor changed the subject.

KJV Matthew 5:20 For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

This statement by Jesus is a frightening example of the Law. To have the righteousness of a Pharisee means never seeing eternal life, never being forgiven.

Then, as now, those who paraded their holiness and works were considered excellent citizens and prime examples of living saints. Pharisee as a title means separated. They were better than everyone else.

Although this description is fair for that era, it also applies to those within the church who share the same attitude. Luther called the “works-saints” and “works-salesmen.”

Anyone who proposes that the real Gospel is full of should, must, and ought to is a works salesman. There are many variations but the same poison. Your life must be transformed. First the burden of sin is laid down, but next the burden of being a works-saint is added. For those raised in Pietism, this is a great message, because they are used to Law commands and Law solutions. I have to join a cell group and look down on those who don’t? I can do that.

The Gospel is absent because faith is also absent. They preach Jesus but take away the bridge to Jesus, the Means of Grace. The Lutheran leaders today prove that because they can only talk about evangelism and missions in terms of the Law. You really ought to witness to your neighbor. That is how to make our sect grow. You must do that as a Christian – it is a duty. (ought to, have to, must)

This is the only way for our righteousness to exceed that of the Pharisees – faith.

The chief article or teaching of Christianity is faith in Christ. That means to utterly rely on Him for forgiveness and all the blessings of life.

A Means of Grace service will consistently emphasis the Word of God as His instrument to bring grace to us, to bring Christ to us.

The hymns teach this, especially Lutheran hymns and the pre-Reformation classics (Of the Father’s Love Begotten).

The liturgy teaches grace coming to us through the Word. We begin with the confession of sin and absolution. Every day we repent of our sins and receive forgiveness through faith.

As a child I thought “the righteousness” were the perfect ones, and my parents assured me I was not in that group. My conscience said, “If you only knew who broke that plate, hid it in the dishes, and denied knowing how it got broken…” but I digress.

The righteous in the Bible are those justified by faith. The saints are the believers, the living believers, justified by faith. Yes, they are holy, but Christ makes them holy through the Means of Grace.

Each and every day believers are forgiven through faith in Christ, as the catechism clearly teaches, in harmony with the entire Bible.

Every single person forgiven in the Bible was forgiven through faith in Christ.

Those who believed in the future atoning work of the promised Messiah – were forgiven. Abraham is our chief example. The prophets and David taught this in their works. The disciples, for all their faults, had this atonement preached to them by Jesus Himself. They believed in Him but were still weak, just as we believe and are still weak. But the Gospel is powerful in forgiving our sins and giving us power against temptation and sin.

Those who witnessed the atonement were forgiven – the repentant thief on the cross, but not the one who railed against Jesus.

Those who came to faith from the preaching and teaching of the Word were also forgiven.

Holy Baptism and Holy Communion are Instruments (Means) of Grace. Likewise, when we say to one another, “You are forgiven.” Luther calls this the “mutual consolation of the brothers,” which would include spouses, parents, children, siblings, and co-workers.

Many lines of attack work against this. Some object to so many Means of Grace. So let’s cut down on the Gospels too. Why four? Why not one short one, just Mark? Why have 150 Psalms when we only know 10 reasonably well?

God’s grace is abundant and He never tires of pursuing us, as Psalm 23 says. When I walk through the house, Sassy Sue bumps me every few steps, as a shepherding dog, to say, “I am here to watch you and take care of you at all times.” That warm paws are pressed gently against one or both of us most of the day.

KJV Psalm 23:1

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

Righeousness of the Law, or of Faith

Luther saw with great clarity that Paul’s predictions were just as valid for the Middle Ages as they were for the Roman Empire.

Paul found false teachers working against justification by faith among the Galatians. They were willing to concede that faith in Christ was good, but these other requirements were added as well – circumcision and various human traditions.

So forgiveness can only be through faith or through works of the Law. Only obliterates the other. Mixing the two means righteousness through the Law, more dangerous as an amalgamation, a false and supplanting Gospel.

Luther and the Book of Concord teach exactly what the Bible reveals – we are declared righteous, free of sin, forgiven, through faith in Christ. Our faith is in all His work for us, chiefly in dying for our sins. As Luther said, Jesus let the Law condemn Him as a sinner so He might defeat and swallow up the Law.

Naturally, the Antinomians (the Law is obsolete, everyone is forgiven) love this expression but fail to grasp it. Jesus defeated Law salvation because He only taught Gospel salvation, His righteousness, not man’s righteousness.

Result of Law Salesmen versus Gospel Teaching

The Law salesmen make people braggarts - or crushed and atheistic. All the cults and false teacher say, “Look at our marble temples, our great numbers, our wealth and influence.” Because they are Law salesmen, they only look at externals and they need that visual support to feel good about their crowing and squawking.

When their visual and material evidence begins to disappear, as it must, they are filled with despair and anger. No one can live on Law alone, anymore than someone can eat Dream Whip 3 times a day, shunning real food. The Law has its place, but it

• does not nourish,
• does not comfort,
• does not grant inner peace, and
• does not motivate us in a God-pleasing way.

Anyone can threaten, but the lash only gets the minimum effort. Believers, moved by the Gospel, in thankfulness, do their utmost. A life of forgiveness means experiencing God’s grace in the Gospel and expressing it in daily communications with everyone. Those who are forgiven much are more grateful for God’s grace. Paul and Augustine were examples of works-sinners who realized they were notable figures but all the more in need of forgiveness for not exceeding the righteousness of the Pharisees.

I tried to make my granddaughter act important at the motel, when she was very young. The script was – pound the desk and yell, “Do you know who I am?” She collapsed laughing instead, and the manager loved it. The counter had been pounded by self-important people before.

Jesus’ description of anger, stages of anger, is an example of self-righteousness tearing people apart. It is based on a style of outward goodness defining one’s sainthood, works instead of faith.

Therefore, someone who does not do or say the right thing is shunned – not for false doctrine or unbelief, but for not conforming. Hutterites tell boys to stay out of high school, so they utterly shun families that allow boys to graduate from high school instead of going to the farm at age 15 or 16.

All cults love-bomb people into the cult and shun them when they question the cult.

This creates an abusive atmosphere of works-saints who know by outward, material criteria who the holy saints are. The rest are shunned, given the silent treatment, and talked down among the elite, who decide the people who are accepted or denounced. That leaves everyone insecure because the cult can turn against them in a moment.

In contrast, the forgiven believer knows that this grace comes from God through Christ alone, not through the believer’s works or merit. That makes this section from Romans so important:

KJV Romans 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Forgiveness means peace – no longer accused, but declared righteous through faith in the Savior. By faith we have constant access to the grace of God –

1. Where we stand
2. Where we rejoice
3. Where we hope.

QUOTATIONS

"In this epistle lesson Paul gives Christians instruction concerning the Christian life on earth, and connects with it the hope of the future and eternal life, in view of which they have been baptized and become Christians. He makes of our earthly life a death--a grave--with the understanding, however, that henceforth the risen man and the newness of life should be found in us."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols., ed., John Lenker, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1983, VIII, p. 141. Rom. 6:3-11.

"He [Paul] says: It is not the intention of the Gospel to teach sin or to allow it; it teaches the very opposite--how we may escape from sin and from he awful wrath of God which it incurs. Escape is not effected by any doings of our own, but by the fact that God, out of pure grace, forgives us our sins for His

Son's sake; for God finds in us nothing but sin and condemnation."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VIII, p. 142. Rom. 6:3-11.

"Paul does not teach that grace is acquired through sin, nor that sin brings grace; he says quite the opposite--that 'the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men,' Romans 1:18. But because the sins of men which are taken away are so grievous and numerous, the grace which drowns and destroys them must be mighty and abundant also. Where there is a great thirst, a great draft is needed to quench it. Where there is a mighty conflagration, powerful streams of water are necessary to extinguish it...But these facts do not give us authority to say:...Let us injure ourselves and make ourselves ill that medicine may do us more good. Still less does it follow that we may heap us and multiply sins for the purpose of receiving more abundance grace."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, 8 vols.,VIII, p. 142f. Romans 6:3-11; Romans 1:18

"On the other hand, we are outwardly oppressed with the cross and sufferings, and with the persecution and torments of the world and the devil, as with the weight of heavy stone upon us, subduing our old sinful nature and checking us against antagonizing the Spirit and committing other sins."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VIII, p. 145. Romans 6:6.

"But the fact is, all Christian doctrines and works, all Christian living, is briefly, clearly and completely comprehended in these two principles, faith and love. They place man as a medium between God and his neighbor, to receive from above and distribute below. thus the Christian becomes a vessel, or rather a channel, through which the fountain of divine blessings continuously flows to other individuals."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VIII, p. 145. Rom. 6:3-11.

"But if you possess faith, your heart cannot do otherwise than laugh for joy in God, and grow free, confident and courageous. For how can the heart remain sorrowful and dejected when it entertains no doubt of God's kindness to it, and of his attitude as a good friend with whom it may unreservedly and freely enjoy all things? Such joy and pleasure must follow faith; if they are not ours, certainly something is wrong with our faith."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 146. Titus 3:4-8

"Your first desire will be that all men may obtain the same knowledge of divine grace. Hence your love will not be restrained from serving all to the fullest extent, preaching and proclaiming the divine truth wherever possible, and rejection all doctrine and life not in harmony with this teaching. But take

note, the devil and the world, unwilling that their devices be rejected, cannot endure the knowledge of what you do. They will oppose you with everything great, learned, wealthy and powerful, and represent you as a heretic and insane."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 147. Titus 3:4-8

"Since the Word of God is this weapon [sword], it behooves us to make use of it at all times and to this end become acquainted with it both by means of public preaching and by earnest Bible study at home. Cursory reading must be supplemented by careful memorizing of proof-texts and strong passages. Only in this way shall we be able to make the proper use of the Word of God as a true weapon of offense at all times."

Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the New Testament, 2 vols., St. Louis:  CPH, II, p. 292. Ephesians 6:17.

"The reference [the Votum] is simply to a disposition to trust and love God sincerely, and a willingness of heart and mind to serve God and man to the utmost. The devil seeks to prevent this state by terror, by revealing death and by every sort of misfortune; and by setting up human devices to induce the heart to seek comfort and help in its own counsels and in man. Thus led astray, the heart falls from trust in God to a dependence upon itself."

Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 111. Philippians 4:7.

"Take heed, then, to embrace the message of these words presenting the love and kindness of God to all men. Daily exercise your faith therein, entertaining no doubt of God's love and kindness toward you, and you shall realize His blessings. Then you may with perfect confidence ask what you will, what your heart desires, and whatever is necessary for the good of yourself and your fellow-men. But if you do not so believe, it were far better you had never heard the message. For by unbelief you make false these precious, comforting, gracious words. You conduct yourself as if you regarded them untrue, which attitude is extreme dishonor to God; no more enormous sin could be committed."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 146. Titus 3:4-8.

"Good works are to be performed without any thought of merit, simply for the benefit of one's neighbor and for the honor of God; until the body, too, shall be released from sin, death and hell."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 151. Titus 3:4-8

"This is the situation with him: the greater his external restraint from evil, the greater his inward hatred of him who restrains. His character is in the scales; when one side goes up, the other goes down. While outward sin decreases, inward sin increases. We know from experience that those youths most strictly reared are, when given liberty, more wicked than young men less rigidly brought up. So impossible it is to improve human nature with commandments and punishments; something else is necessary."

            Sermons of Martin Luther, VI, p. 268. Gal. 3:23-29

The altar of Historic St. John Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, emphasizes the Means of Grace:
the atonement as the object of faith, Holy Communion as the visible Word of grace.