Short Review of Thy Strong Word from a Former WELS Layman. Long Review from Gerald Parker

 The Kindle eBook Edition of Thy Strong Word can be found here.

This link is for Kindle, Print, and the used, first edition of Thy Strong Word.

Good morning, pastor.  Am working my way thru the above and find it highly readable, informative and interesting.  Most of all:  Faithful to the Word.

---

Another Reader -

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsMagisterial Defense of Truly Confessional Lutheranism

By Gerald Parker on April 14, 2007

Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase

I am a layman, not a theologian, but I have read fairly widely in the literature of Lutheranism, my heritage faith, so I do not hesitate to praise with the highest encomia possible this very fine and much-needed book that refutes the errors of latter-day North American Lutheranism, alike the unbelieving "liberalism" of the E.L.C.A. and E.L.C.i.C. as well as the pseudo-conservatism (which falsely poses as Confessional) of the denominations deriving from the old Synodical Conference (most notably the L.C.M.S., W.E.L.S., E.L.S., and the L.C.M.S.' sister sect, the Lutheran Church Canada), which have betrayed genuine Confessional Lutheranism with their bizarre speculations embodied in the theological paradigm of "Universal Objective Justification and Subjective Justication" (U.O.J.), which Ptr. Dr. Gregory Lee Jackson anathematises and disproves, as well he should do, showing these heinous false speculative ideas to be being neither Scriptural nor Confessional, and, hence, not genuinely Lutheran at all. (Coming back to this review to revise it some, I would point out that Jackson has written and published a separate book, one that handles the matter superbly, on the U.O.J. heresy, titled "Luther versus the U.O.J. Pietists: Justification by Faith".) Jackson also scathingly and realistically savages the venal "Church Growth Movement" tendencies in all forms of this hemisphere's Lutheranism, liberal and pseudo-confessional alike.

There are magnificent defenses of "genesio-Lutheran" Confessional teaching versus the claims of what Ptr. Dr. Jackson calls the "Reformed" (by which he includes all non-Lutheran Protestantism and sectarianism, rather than only, more properly, the teaching of other genuinely Protestant churches that follow the doctrinal teachings of Martin Bucer, especially, and of Jean Calvin, as well as the Three Forms of Unity and Westminster Standards that so principally, soundly, and moderately codify them confessionally). Jackson's defense of the Lutheran and hence Orthodox Christian "Means of Grace" is a stunning refutation of the claims of Baptists, Pentecostals/Charismatics, the loud-mouthed "Fundamentalists" who are so fundamentally wrong, the so-called "Neo-Evangelicals", Campbellites/"Restorationists", and other "cheap white [or black] theological trash") by explicating from the Scriptures (using, wisely, the Authorised "King James" Version, free of the sectarian bias that afflicts to one degree or another the modern versions in English of the Bible) the true Lutheran and biblical teaching about Holy Baptism and the Eucharist (Holy Communion, Mass). For the fine defense of Lutheran sacramental theology alone this book would be worth the purchase, but there is so much more as well!

A fault, a minor but nonetheless somewhat irritating one, is Jackson's intemperately vituperative assaults on other Lutherans and their squabbles and peccadilloes over relatively minor matters of turf, petty corruption, and so forth which, really, are of only passing interest or importance compared to the major issues that this book addresses, something that inevitably will cause this book become a bit dated in that regard. (That said, though, Jackson`s comments on such matters are reasonable and, I believe, true.) Dr. Jackson's book is already a classic of Lutheran exegesis and sound doctrinal teaching.

A note of warning is in store for those who purchase the book second-hand; the earliest printing of this book had some pagination and binding irregularities, but even a copy with these defects is worth having, since they do not affect any of the most important passages of the book.

***

GJ - Note that the new edition is all English in a new binding and very carefully edited by several people.

Recent Successes in the Creation Garden

Sassy is making sure I know the sun is up, 6 AM. I may get a post written before she starts some of her vocal signals, such as muttering and a high pitched "mmmmmm." Additional props are the sad eyes, the leaning off the bed toward the front door, and the impatient "Yip."

Sassy just got Mrs. I to tell me to feed her. My wife is Sassy's closer. Sassy sells and my wife says, "Go ahead and..." short-circuiting my stall. I jump up, outvoted 2 to 1.

The designated repair man came over yesterday to fix a few things. He often has practical and easy answers for annoyances. He always sees his elderly mother after stopping here, so I fixed a vase of roses for her. The Falling in Love roses were blooming everywhere, so he got those and some bonus blooms. I said, "Tell her that these are for the great work you do at our house." We also visited in the garden. As a steward of the property he complimented us on having a "natural front yard" full of roses. I told my wife, "That took a lot of work to make it so natural looking."

Here are some recent successes in the gardens, though lush weeds threaten everywhere:

1. The purple Bee Balm transplanted well in two places, front and back yards.
2. The Bottle Brush (Clethra) shrubs are blooming and attracting many pollinators.
3. Mountain Mint continues to grow and mature. 
4. Spirea - the bushes around the main rose garden - are blooming and growing.
5. Daylilies donated are thriving in the Wild Garden.
6. Rugosa Roses are tiny but growing in the Wild Garden.
7. Willow bushes are established as the ultimate Western Wall, to hide our neighbors' back yards.
8. The main Butterfly Bush, White Profusion, is about nine feet tall and full of birds as they rotate on and off the feeders, the Jackson EZ Bird Swing, The bush also serves as shade and a natural outdoor curtain.
9. The Crepe Mytle is in full bloom.
10.  Butterfly Weed, for Monarch Butterfly babies, is growing in the front.
11.  Borage - aka Bee Bread - just bloomed. The flowers are good to eat and the plant encourages a collection of beneficial insects.
12. The roses are thriving without pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides. The only fertilizing efforts are earthworms and mulch.

Supporting ELCA As Easy As Getting a DMin from Fuller Seminary. All the Ways ELCA Gets Money and Support from WELS-LCMS-ELS

No.
They are ELCA-wannabees.

Facebook makes it easier for everyone to keep track of apostasy, because the ELCA units love to brag about their latest projects. Like the Shrinkers, the Lavender Mafia members love to crow about their dominance. The passive remain in bondage - they must like domination.

I am linking Exposing the ELCA now because they are good at updating their readers about ELCA's latest crimes against the Word of God.

LCMS, WELS, and ELS members/pastors should find their blood boiling, because their overpaid synod presidents willingly work with ELCA on a multitude of projects, from the congregational level to the national level. Of course, national for the ELS is an oxymoron. And WELS is merely a four-state synod: Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Adjoining States (Nebraska).

Nevertheless, the millions wasted pile up, even when the sects are a small part of the pie chart - about 5% for the WELS/ELS.

All four sects work together following the ELCA agenda. Everyone must accept women pastors and ordained women executives. Missouri and WELS were doing that years ago with the The Membership (insurance funded) Initiative. But WELS and LCMS also work with open lesbian and homosexual executives. The lavender leaders of each group know one another, but I am sure that is as far as it goes. I know what you are thinking - but that would be unionism!

WELS/LCMS/ELS oppose unionism with their lips. They are confessional, they say!

The WELS DPs, who are so quick to get rid of justification by faith, are also blind to their constant work with ELCA. If they oppose the Gospel (justification by faith), and support the crimes of ELCA, they must be apostate themselves. Ditto LCMS and ELS.

I know many people of various confessions, who ask about this strange tolerance of abortion and gay activism, "How can stay in the same room with those people, let alone engage in religious projects of any kind?"

The rot spreads from the top. A few boards make sure their apostate buddies get the funds and the coveted positions.

In brief, if you donate to the ELS, WELS, or LCMS, you are supporting the ELCA agenda. If you pay for Thrivent products, you are funding ELCA, the Unitarian-Universalist Church, Habitat for Humanity, and the United Nations.

http://www.southernohiosynod.org/aws/SOS/pt/sp/ministries_lmi

ELCA Malaria Campaign

Lutheran Malaria Initiative is Now ELCA Malaria Campaign

The ELCA, the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and the LWR had been approached by the United Nations Foundation and offered a grant of $5 million to develop a movement to prevent and treat, increase awareness and educate those at risk for malaria.  As part of the grant, the ELCA agreement was to raise $30 million out of a total Lutheran Malaria Initiative goal of $70 million by 2013.

UOJ makes work with ELCA as easy as a DMin from Fuller.

Just Say No to the Abusive Cult Named WELS - From 2010

Walther took someone to court for slander.
Defamation is defined here.

This takes some time, so I will list matters in chronological order.

1. I received this email from an ELCA pastor named Bruce Foster:

"----- Original Message -----
From: Bruce Foster
To: gregjackson1948@qwest.net
Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 7:46 AM
Subject: orthodox rhetoric

Dear Pastor Jackson


I am writing this letter against the advice of a WELS pastor who claims to know something about you (he says he has a relative who served your WELS church in Ohio after you left). He says that you are unable to see any fault in your opinions or manner of stating them. He is also sure that you are mentally ill.

As I have been reading your blog for the last few months I have not seen those two traits. You think you are right and everybody who disagrees with you is wrong. So what’s new? Everybody thinks that! But you aren’t beyond being corrected. NPH showed you how you misinterpreted their web site and you admitted it. And as to you being crazy, well, being nuts is in the eye of the beholder and being passionate isn’t being nuts even if it is sometimes confused with it.

So here it goes. I’m actually going to give you a constructive admonition, not a “brotherly admonition” since I’m a member of the ELCA and thus out of fellowship with you.

Dr. Jackson, why do you declare your love of Luther so much and never take seriously Luther’s explanation to the 8th commandment? I am not accusing you of lying, but rather of ignoring the second part of the explanation.

but will defend him, say good things about him, and see the best side of everything he does.

or

but defend him, speak well of him, and take his words and actions in the kindest possible way.

or

sondern sollen ihn entschuldigen, Gutes von ihm reden und alles zum besten kehren.

I am willing to believe that all these versions of the last half of the explanation of the 8th commandment are part of some vast Church Growth conspiracy and in your private set of original Luther documents you have a version that says,

but spend a lot of time dreaming up abusive nicknames for your enemies.

Unless however you can produce those documents and have them authenticated, I will have to stick to the version I learned in LCMS catechism class and which is found in the Triglotta."

2. I asked him to verify his source, so ELCA Pastor Bruce Foster wrote:

From: Bruce Foster
To: Gregory L. Jackson
Sent: Tuesday, October 07, 2008 8:09 AM
Subject: Re: orthodox rhetoric

The WELS pastor is Peter Lindemann Jacksonport WI. I didn't name him because it wasn't the point of my email. Love to hear your response to my actual email, email not an essay.

3. I saw that there was a Lindemann in Jacksonport, so I emailed him to see if he said this to the ELCA pastor. He did not respond and the email did not bounce back. I assume this is Jenswold's brother-in-law, the son of Dean Lindemann at the late Northwestern College.

4. WELS SP Schroeder had contacted me more than once when he wanted something corrected, so I wrote him about this. His only response was - contact them. That was late in 2009, when I was moving to Arkansas.

5. I wrote a certified letter in April of 2010, sending it to SP Schroeder, Pastor Jenswold, and Pastor Lindemann, who was in another parish. A copy of all three signed receipts is below. All three are signed May 3, 2010. But no one responded by phone, by email, or by letter.

6. When I pointed a total lack of response, SP Schroeder sent me an email denying this had happened. He said I did not need to issue a correction. He is keen on corrections. When I pointed that he signed the certified letter, so there was no need to change an accurate post, he said, on October 23, 2010:

"Since the certified letter was not addressed to me but sent as a “CC”, and since I had encouraged you to contact these men directly and you were doing so, I did not respond directly to your letter.

Regardless, I apologize if this appeared to be a lack of response. It was not intended to be.

Thanks.

Rev. Mark Schroeder

WELS President"

***

GJ - I have known about this slander campaign for many years. Various friends in WELS have told me about it. As I pointed out to all three WELS pastors, defamation is a crime punishable by the law. WELS is very big on slander. When I was writing about WELS involvement in Church Growth and Fuller, Paul Kelm and Norm Berg and Joel Gerlach all wrote to cry "Slander! Eighth Commandment!"

SP Schroeder is legally responsible for what his underlings do. So is DP John Seifert and other WELS leaders. Ecclesiastical leaders can get away with just about any defamation in their own sect. That is why the leaders, pastors, and members get used to abusive behavior. Nothing is done. But when someone is outside of their organization, defamation is a very serious matter.

Schroeder could have asked Lindemann and Jenswold to apologize, since neither one denied this happened. Both pastors could have apologized, but they did not. That is because WELS pastors cannot admit ever being wrong. They are so thin-skinned that they believe themselves entitled to slime anyone who disagrees with anything.

Schroeder himself could have apologized for the criminal behavior of his underlings, but he did not. WELS never admits wrong.

ELS Pastor John Shep (now ELCA) was caught doing the same thing via email. In an email to a generous donor to Thoughts of Faith, he praised me. In an email sent to another contact, he questioned whether I was normal or balanced. When the donor confronted him with a copy of his negative email, he did not respond at all. Shep, by the way, had never met me or talked to me, but he wrote, "How well do you know him?"

What I am reporting here is only the tip of the iceberg in WELS/ELS abusive behavior. They treat their members and pastors like trash, if it suits their immediate purpose.

I could detail many other items from my own experience with WELS, to show how pathetic their leadership is. When my wife was disabled with a life-threatening illness, they told others that she was not sick at all. As anyone can tell from the original report from Lindemann and Jenswold, they imagine they are medical experts too. Nothing is too low for them.

I showed up on the NWC campus one day, in the midst of Dean Lindemann being a tyrannical jerk with a group of students. He was being quite threatening with them about "a letter." I followed WELS procedure and invited him for a face-to-face meeting in his office. I asked about "the letter," which magically no longer existed. I told him how I defended WELS all the time, perhaps mentioning the whining the ELS Pastor Jay Webber, who wanted to break fellowship with WELS. (He is a born-again Intrepid now, Defender of the Unfaith.)

Later, students said Lindemann had a look on his face no one had seen before. They were all quite pleased. I am not saying the Lindemann clan nursed a grudge. Oh no. The entire sect nurses a grudge against anyone who does not fall down and praise them with glazed eyes.

I know from a dust-up between Paul McCain and Larry Darby that publishing a letter neutralizes it as evidence. Long ago, McCain sent one of his ugly letters around, which blamed Darby and me because a Missouri pastor failed to support UOJ. I did not even know the pastor named, so I wondered about McCain's omniscience and ethics. Darby would not give me the letter because the attorneys were dealing with it. He was not allowed to share it, even though I was named.

I discussed this matter with an attorney. I know church officials (who are often in court, due to criminal behavior) get all huffy about this. Dan Preus wrote about Walther's parallel experience.

"Walther himself initiated a lawsuit in the state of Indiana against a
fellow Lutheran of the Ohio Synod who had been guilty of slandering him. Through
his lawyer he even sought monetary damages from the man guilty of slander,
although stating that any damages awarded would not be used for his personal
benefit. Walther dropped his lawsuit only when the two individuals primarily

responsible for slandering him had retracted their slander and apologized in

writing, submitting their apologies for publication in 'Der Lutheraner.' (Der

Lutheraner, July, 1884, p. 109)
Daniel Preus,
"Christians, Lawsuits and 1 Corinthians 6,"
Affirm, June, 1991, p. 5-6.

In the last two years, Jenswold, Lindemann, and Schroeder have had many chances to man up.

Jenswold does not even know me. I visited Shepherd of Peace once. He was rude to me and my wife, which is typical of WELS clergy. That Sunday he talked about what an expert he was in Greek, so no one could question the new feminist Creed promoted by Christian Worship. I said nothing. There is an old saying, "Have regard for the pastor before you and the pastor who follows you." WELS is not aware of that saying. They are crippled in ethics.

I told the congregation when I resigned from WELS, "Don't bother to call a pastor if you cannot back him up." They remembered that during the last 17 years. The statement still comes up.

Over 8,000 Total Views in Two Days. Luther's Three Gospel Sermons on False Teachers - Leads the New Stories. Matthew 7:15-21

This is how Lindsay Lohan conquered her cocaine addiction.
I told her, "Give up the cigs and I will introduce you to Ski."

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I have some newspaper reports coming - about a major cover-up. I stick to news that can be proven rather than the malicious slander that runs the LCMS, ELS, and WELS.

Stay tuned and buckle your seatbelts - it's going to be a bumpy ride.