Universalism in the LCMS - Chad Bird

 Chad Bird used to teach at Concordia, Ft. Wayne, The Fort,
and is now at Southeastern Freight Lines.

http://www.chadbird.com/blog/2017/1/2/once-saved-always-saved-true-or-not

"The question is not can I lose my salvation, but can salvation lose me?

No, it can’t. All of us were justified, sanctified, and cleansed of all evil in the death and resurrection of Jesus. In other words, we were saved. The whole world. If it is finished for one, it is finished for all."

Like the creation of the world, God’s reconciliation of the world is an irreversible fact. 

We can’t out-sin, undo, or reverse it. Salvation can’t lose us.

Yes, we can refuse to believe it. Or later reject it. If we do, we’re tossing into the trash the invitation to Christ's dinner party. We’re dying of thirst neck deep in a lake of water. We’re rushing into hell, slamming the door, and locking it from the inside.

Our lack of faith does not nullify the reality. It simply denies it.

But God’s grace in Christ remains true. The truest, most beautiful good news in all creation. Jesus has saved you. You are loved. You are forgiven. You are righteous in him. All is right between you and God. In Jesus all God’s promises are Yes.

Salvation cannot lose you. Once finished, always finished. Believe it. It’s yours.

 UOJ is Decision Theology,
but more like deciding on universal absolution without faith.

***

GJ - Perhaps there is only one doctrinal question to graduate from or teach at Concordia Seminary, Ft. Wayne.

Bird writes this with so much assurance, so little support. He needs to work on pronoun abuse, too. First person plural - we, then second person plural - you.

Confidential to SP Mark Schroeder - This Is One Reason Why WELS Attendance Is Cratering. Barf Interrupted

Scott Barefoot posted this video on his Facebook page.

Mordor professor Richard Gurgel seems to borrow a canned sermon, one that can be found all over the Net. Perhaps he added his own little ingredients, but it is the equivalent of biscuits in a can from the freezer section.

I will leave it to readers to find an exact match.

The idea of preaching about Biblical characters - not Christ - is strictly a Reformed gimmick that should be dropped immediately. Copying from the Net, using a cute gimmicky series, that should have been killed long ago.

Leaving the pulpit to gesticulate in the aisles - that was old in the Methodist church 30 years ago. Roman Catholic clerics do that too. I saw a Roman Catholic bishop walk all over a large church - plain silliness - and he thought he was so clever and different.

The idea here is - Gurgel channels Joseph with a long, silly, gaseous exposition on what Joseph was thinking about Mary being with child.

Just be thankful Gurgel did not write any of the Gospels. At his level of prolixity, the New Testament would be thousands of pages long.

If you want to find out who is aping the Church Shrinkers, just look at the sermon titles. If it is a series with a common theme, the pastor is borrowing and perhaps even plagiarizing the entire sermon. I have a license to use Craig Groeschel's endless sermon ideas, outlines, content, graphics, and promotions. However, I have never been moved to open up anything from that swamp of liberal Enthusiasm.

Oddly enough, The CORE in Appleton was using all those without giving any credit, as expected by Rev. Craig. When an attorney correctly identified that as plagiarism, the church member was excommunicated, and the District President followed up with an endorsement of plagiarism.
All of that is typical of WELS Antinomianism.

Drive '08 -
Studying theology. Wink.
They have their own "sign of the cross."

So Little Richard is serving as an example to Mordor seminarians in how to give a pathetic, content free, manipulative Reformed sermonette.

Does anyone wonder why WELS attendance is cratering? Look at the audience in that attractive church? I hear from all over that WELS attendance is pathetic and getting worse all the time.

Perhaps people trained in Reformed gimmicks are either bored with the tactics or off to congregations where the effort is more polished.

 Compare genes and jeans with Groeschel's.
The sermons have the same genetic code.
Why don't these geniuses publish their sermons? -
The verbiage matches up as plagiarism.

Last Year Was Special

One donut to rule the world,
and in the cafe bind them.

One thing I learned in playing chess was this - the opening moves determine the rest of the game.

Early in 2016 my wife and I decided that the extra job at Walmart was counter-productive. Not knowing what was ahead, I decided to trust the shaky teaching business and get more book publishing done.

Teaching was volatile, but the time invested in publishing meant that a lot of titles were published or re-edited for Amazon and Kindle e-books. Three more new titles are on the way:

1. Creation Gardening
2. The Lost Dutchman's Goldmine
3. To Be Announced.

We are grateful to God for the chance to move near our grandchildren and their parents, seven years ago. We are also thankful for the faithful Lutherans who care about sound doctrine and appreciate the Means of Grace.

Toward the end end of 2016, some things were clear -

• My author's page at Amazon had a lot more titles on it.
• Interest in traditional Lutheran doctrine and practice was growing.
• People really wanted more titles to read.
• Almost all my time is spent in teaching theology, which is both fulfilling and enjoyable.

The Grateful Dead, no longer producing - for which I am grateful - taught me one thing. Instead of jealously guarding their so-called music, they gave it away to any and all, assuming the fans would still buy their work. Publishing against apostasy is not the road to riches, but the lure of financial rewards diminishes with age. 

My classmates have said in their Facebook posts, "I don't need one more thing in my house. Do me a favor and take something with you each time." So I do that with books. Most of my library has been given away, including my most favorite titles, so others can enjoy them. In the same spirit, some of the best Lutheran books were given to me to distribute, and they energized the reading of a number of laity who really appreciated them.

As planned, Thy Strong Word serves as a library of Lutheran doctrine for many laity. The errors of Church Growth and Universal Objective Justification are laid out - with a vast collection of sound and foul doctrinal quotations. At the time I thought, "Why not share my explorations of Lutheran theology with a thousand or so of the most informative quotations, listed with the citations, for easy kelming and sharing?" That is exactly what people have enjoyed and used.

I use Kindle Unlimited, which means anyone with a $10 a month subscription can download all the Martin Chemnitz Press titles for free.

"Two things I regret. One - wearing this Presbyterian get-up.
Two - Brett starting that Ustream worship service."

Lutheran laity have been the mainstay of everything. Brett Meyer and his extended family got the Ustream services going, long ago, and we are still far ahead of most congregations. ELDONA asked me about how to set up services in 2016, and I was glad to point out what worked best for us. 

The best insights and questions come from Lutheran laity. I hear positive things from laity all the time, and I answer almost immediately. Many insights and questions are worked into book and blog publishing. 

The jabbering, hostile hordes of UOJ Stormtroopers are silent now. They do not even use my public email address to send their pointless insults, which make such good fodder for posts. I miss the fetid, alcohol-driven ravings of the Fox Valley WELS circuit - really.

I seldom hear from clergy at all. One is in Australia, our dear friend Dr. Lito Cruz. A couple of men are Lutheran pastors in the USA. On Facebook I have about 500 LCMS friends, which suggests they enjoy reading my posts. Opponents have unfriended me (sob) and I have eliminated synod-minders, who think it is their job to toss stink-bombs.

Irony - the former LCMS Synod President is still my Facebook friend, but the great reformer, the current SP, Matt the Fat, unfriended me faster than a New York minute. The bloggers who helped him defeat Kieschnick and get re-elected are now forbidden to write about Lutheran doctrine - lest the LCMS kick them out. 

The threat of expelling pastors for discussing LCMS doctrine and practice - without permission from His Holiness - would have prevented Matthew Harrison Hisself, failed doctoral candidate from ever becoming the Synod President.

God willing, the apostates will keep handing me material to publish, since everyone else is afraid to go beyond correcting each other about the proper colors for a given liturgical season.

The future of Lutherdom in America.

The future is now in Canada.