 |
| Abraham's justification by faith is a foundational argument in Romans 4 and in Galatians. |
Gary Hall -- Bridgeton, NJ has left a new comment on your post "Brett Meyer Asks - What Is the Object?":
Can someone explain to me why UOJ thinks that a proper Christology requires justification to be located in the cross and resurrection of Jesus?
***
GJ - The UOJ Stormtroopers oppose faith and teach against it, except by tacking on faith at the end of their rants and saying, "You have to believe it." That little postscript does not mean they teach justification by faith - they only pretend.
UOJ Enthusiasts require acceptance of their universal forgiveness and salvation dogma. That crypto-Universalism is the object of their perverted faith. The entire world is forgiven, justified, saved, period, end of sentence, as DP Buchholz solemnly declared.
There is only one, universal salvation, and Jon-Boy is its prophet.
Brett Meyer and I were discussing this last night. Calvinism and Pietism both fail in the efficacy of the Word and the Means of Grace.
Calvin separated the work of the Holy Spirit from the Word. So he wrote that a sermon may accomplish nothing if the Holy Spirit chooses to be absent. The same is true of Holy Communion (which Calvin mocked) and Holy Baptism - they are effective only when the sovereign Holy Spirit elects to visit.
I have read a fair amount of Calvin, but I have not experienced Calvinism, as Dr. Lito Cruz has. Most would say that there are many types of Calvinism because of their many confessions, which do not harmonize.
There is only one presentation of Lutheran teaching, the Book of Concord, but the nominal Lutherans do not know their Confessions and thus consider them "boring and irrelevant," as the Sausage Factory in Mequon teaches.
Calvinism came to dwell among the Lutherans through Pietism. Spener adopted aspects of Calvinism and promoted the cell group, also called the conventicle or lay-led Bible study group. The rationalistic element in Calvinism, making religion reasonable, also blossomed in Pietism.
When the Means of Grace are absent, all kinds of foul errors take their place. Pietists gave people certainty in their emotional experiences in the cell group. The real church for them is the conventicle, so the congregation is simply a place to recruit for the cell group.
Bishop Martin Stephan conducted his ministry this way. His clergy following came from another cell group leader, who died after moving away from his cell-slaves. And yet his loyal follower and enforcer, CFW Walther, said later that Stephan had a little bit of a problem with Pietism. That comment (Servant of the Word) reveals how deceitful Walther was about his own past and beliefs.
Knapp lectured on UOJ at Halle University, the center of Pietism and rationalism in Europe. Pietistic missions and works emanated from Halle. So did the destructive, rationalistic methods of Biblical criticism and modern theology. Embrace UOJ, embrace rationalism.
Bishop Stephan attended Halle and taught his version of justification to Walther, who never departed from the broad and crooked path of UOJ.
UOJ was not unique to Knapp. The Pietist Rambach also taught the Easter absolution of the world.
Many decades ago, the Augsburg Press Lutheran Encyclopedia argued that Pietism destroys preaching. In fact, Pietism destroys the entire work of the Christian Church, first reducing the Gospel to experience, and then paring down the Scriptures with rationalism.
The Big Four of Lutherdom in America (ELCA, WELS, LCMS, ELS) combine the experience-gospel of Pietism with the marketing approach of rationalism.
Look at how many "conservative" Lutheran congregations have small, cell, Bible, share, care, or koinonia groups. Or Bible Babes?
They claim to teach the Bible. Oh, they are so serious about the Word of God - except the Holy Spirit working through the Means of Grace. And so the bottom falls out of their rotting barge of Pietistic garbage.
