Someone Asked about Reactions to Compare and Contrast - A Catechism for Universal Forgiveness without Faith - UOJ

 "Who's the dude? Cool hat!"
Concordia St. Louis Seminary students
at the Waldo Werning Evangelism Center.

A reader asked about reactions to Compare and Contrast - A Catechism for Universal Forgiveness without Faith - UOJ.

As stated earlier, and borrowed from a forgotten, wise person - There are three stages of reaction:

1. Loud cheering means the effort was a waste of time, because everyone already agrees.
2. Anger means the ideas have awakened animosity, not because they are wrong, but because they are correct.
3. Silence signifies the most disturbed reaction. That means the ideas are so threatening that a debate is not going to be started, lest others catch on.

Exposing Robert Preus' horrible theology and worse exegesis, 1987, prompted no reactions at all. Likewise, no one deals with his vastly improved position in Justification and Rome. Apparently, the Preus Family Enterprises imagines they own all rights to Robert Preus. But published scholarship - whether sound or toxic - is not like the sacred relics of Elvis Presley. Anyone can and should debate ideas.

Update - I did get some positive responses, from two lay readers who really understand the doctrinal issues. Clergy seldom respond. 

Tis funny how often I have been banned, blacklisted, and silenced. One would think they would welcome the chance to debate someone so misguided, so horrible that cockroaches recoil in horror. Paul McCain made some of his feeble attempts, helped by his alcoholic friends in Fox Valley. Who says WELS and Missouri cannot get along? 

Of course, the Booze Brothers picking up friends like Kudu Don Patterson and Paul McCain is nothing to brag about. Why are UOJ Stormtroopers always so angry and bitter? I have yet to see any spiritual fruits from the lot of them. Rancid Pietism only produces rationalism, Talmudic rules for shunning, and empty seminaries. Those UOJ friendships break up when one can no longer use the other - Otten and McCain, McCain and just about everyone, not to mention the snarling and hissing denizens of LutherQuest (sic) and the CLC (sic). Meanwhile, a few Lutherans annually gather at the Emmaus to have their eyes blinded rather than opened.

We should remember what Luther said about the Holy Spirit. He is so powerful that He can turn the greatest evil into the greatest good, as He did at the crucifixion of Christ. 

The present apostate leaders of the Little Sect, Missouri, and WELS are not the greatest evil. They are simply riding out the landslide as Lutherdom collapses in America. The extremes are so comical that they seem dreamlike. The executives pay themselves like princes and Cardinals, but they starve those who do the work - and I do not mean the seminary professors. The professors do as little work as possible, as few hours as possible, and produce no worthwhile scholarship. The boards, commissions, and ladies aid societies simply march on in obedience, everyone listening for the latest shun orders, the newest fad, the ray of hope in the midst of so much carefully managed mediocrity. ELCA beckons because ELCA has won while losing.

The baton passes from Bohlmann to Barry to Harrison,
and everything only gets worse.
All winning candidates have been certified and approved by Herman Otten.

Buckwheat Wins - But I Will Trim It Back in the Rose Garden

 Buckwheat can be like bagpipe music:
enough is enough.

The main invasion of Japanese beetles is over, and the Buckwheat is at full growth, some of it chest high. On Bethany's birthday I cut a perfect Mr. Lincoln rose and brought it inside.

I was returning from errands with Mrs. Ichabod when we spotted several birds on the ground near the large Crepe Myrtle, which is re-blooming. I was not surprised to see a Mourning Dove on the ground. They work the ground all the time for seeds, and plenty of Buckwheat was going to seed.

But we saw a male Cardinal reach for the Buckwheat and tear the seeds off. He was very aggressive and tore away at the plant. We loved seeing the actual harvesting of the seeds. Because of Buckwheat flour and pancakes, people think of the plant as a grain.

Wiki says:
Despite the name, buckwheat is not related to wheat, as it is not a grass. Instead, buckwheat is related to sorrel, knotweed, and rhubarb. Because its seeds are eaten and rich in complex carbohydrates, it is referred to as a pseudocereal.

I have repented of planting so much Buckwheat in the rose garden, because the soil helped it grow taller than the roses. However, the mistake will be erased when cold weather comes. Several gardening friends are also growing it as a cover crop. Buckwheat has a number of excellent qualities:

• Short season crop, rapidly flowering and going to seed.
• Dying off from cold weather, so not a pest.
• Growth and tight root system push out long-term weeds.
• Roots contribute 75% of soil organic matter.

We went from super-dry to 1.5 inches of rain during the Greek lesson on Ustream. When the sun comes up I will use the electric hedge clipper to mow down the Buckwheat in sections, day by day. 

The next task is to place a powder in the soil to promote a disease that will kill the Japanese beetle grubs and other white grubs. This milky spore disease is found naturally in soil and increases there when grubs die from the disease. Since Japanese beetles do not travel far, killing the adults next year and making the soil inhospitable to the grubs should greatly reduce the damage. Our very warm winter probably did as much for the Japanese beetle population as it did for the fleas and ticks. 

I may use a lot more Borage as a cover crop.
The rapidly blooming and seeding flowers attract bees,
and the flowers are good to eat.

My gardens are in a jungle state now, because necessary weeding did not take place before the Inferno weather - 100+ heat factor. I did not want to yank weeds in that weather and the teen helpers were no more willing than I. Next came bursts of rain to leverage the weed growth and Buckwheat, Buckwheat, Buckwheat.

Joe Pye Weed:
read this before sneering at me.

However, in my defense, we have butterflies all over the gardens. I keep adding butterfly plants - dill, parsley, Joe Pye Weed, salvia, etc. 

Creation Gardening means adopting habits that few others have:

• Using as many leaves, newspapers, and wood products as possible.
• Gathering as many organic products as possible, from coffee grounds to manure to neighbor's garden cuttings. Mr. Gardener gave me all of his garden trash, placed right in my compost bin. Later he took my extra chicken wire, which was a in the way for me and free for him.
• Avoiding all toxins, including chemical fertilizers.
• Diversifying the plants so that pollinators always have plenty of food.
• Allowing for trashiness, since many creatures need leaf litter, certain weeds, and rotting matter for food and shelter.
• Providing clean water for several bird baths, shallow pans of water for toads and other beneficial creatures. 
• Placing logs on the ground, which are great perches for birds and squirrels, and they feed the soil.
• Never tilling. If someone appreciates the enormous power of soil fungi, he will sell his tiller to someone and disturb the soil as little as possible.

The Creating Word had this all worked out at the very beginning. Modern farming in America has depleted the soil through plowing and chemical fertilizers. 

Another alarming feature of modern farming is dealing with standing water by draining or tiling fields. This practice has led to excessive flooding downstream, more drainage tile, and bigger levees to push even more water downstream. Cover crops loosen the soil and root systems carrying rain and snowmelt deep into the soil.

A Summary of the Christian Faith by Henry Eyster Jacobs - Chapter 1 Sources and Methods - Comfort for Christians, GJ - Thank You Alec Satin

A Summary of the Christian Faith by Henry Eyster Jacobs - Chapter 1 Sources and Methods - Comfort for Christians:



"A Summary of the Christian Faith by Henry Eyster Jacobs - Chapter 1 Sources and Methods

27 minute read
A Summary of the Christian Faith was published in 1905. Dr. Jacobs intended this to be a Biblical, orthodox, and insofar as it was possible, a non-sectarian treatment of the most important aspects of Christianity. This book was written for everyday Christians. Each chapter of this book contains rich nuggets to strengthen faith.

There is probably too much in this post for one reading. Bookmarks fall by the wayside. One suggestion is to print it out and review it little by little over the next week. Lord willing, a new chapter from Jacobs will be posted regularly.

Henry Eyster Jacobs - Quick biography

Henry Eyster Jacobs was born in 1844 in Gettysburg, PA. He served as Principal of Thiel College in Pennsylvania, as Professor of Latin and History at Gettysburg College (1870-1880), and Norton Professor of Systematic Theology and also President of the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. His books include:

The Lutheran Movement in England (1891)
History of the Lutheran Church in America (1893)
Book of Concord (1894)
Martin Luther: Hero of Faith
Lutheran Cyclopedia, with John A. W. Haas (1899)
The Lutheran Commentary
The German Emigration to America, 1709-40 (1899)
Works of Martin Luther, translated by Eyster and Spaeth, (1915)
Lincoln’s Gettysburg World-Message (1920).
Henry Eyster Jacobs died in Philadelphia in 1932.

Here are Jacob’s words, from his Preface:

The book, however, is not a mere compilation, but the matured expression of the convictions of the author, from the time when, as a child he was introduced to many of the problems treated, to the present.

On certain living questions, widely and hotly agitated, greater space and freedom of discussion was allowed, that a candid testimony might be given on every important topic, for which the book may be consulted. It is not offered as the final word of controversy on any point, but as a starting point and suggestion of earnest thought…

Material pertaining to the History of Doctrine has been introduced only to a very limited extent. The scope of this book is one of results. For the process, whereby those results have been attained, we have another book in prospect, if life and strength should be spared to undertake it.

And so, with the hope that it might be a blessing to you and a strengthening of your faith, here is Chapter 1 - Sources and Methods, from Henry Eyster Jacobs’ A Summary of the Christian Faith (1905):

Chapter 1 - Sources And Methods

What is Dogmatic Theology?"



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Compare and Contrast - A Catechism for Universal Forgiveness without Faith

THE SCRIPTURAL SUPPORT

According to all of Scripture Christ made a full atonement for the sins of all mankind. Atonement (at-one-ment) means reconciliation. If God was not reconciled by the saving work of Christ, if His wrath against sin was not appeased by Christ'’ (sic) sacrifice, if God did not respond to the perfect obedience and suffering and death of His Son for the sins of the world by forgiveness, by declaring the sinful world to be righteous in Christ -–if all this were not so, if something remains to be done by us or through us or in us, then there is no finished atonement. But Christ said, "It is finished." And God raised Him from the dead and justified Him, pronounced Him, the sin bearer, righteous (I Timothy 3:16) and thus in Him pronounced the entire world of sinners righteous (Romans 4:25).

Contrast

According to all of Scripture Christ made a full atonement for the sins of all mankind. Atonement (at-one-ment) means reconciliation.

The English origin of a word does not explain the Scriptures. In fact, the Greek origin of a word in the New Testament does not explain its meaning either, apart from context. Kittel's enormous work has caused Kittelitis, an irritation caused by obsessive use of the multi-volume publication. The rule is "Scripture explains Scripture" not "Lexicography explains Scripture."

This is the topical sentence, so we have to return to its implications after the so-called Scriptural support, which is really false paradox fallacy...writ large. 

Conclusion of the False Paradox 

then there is no finished atonement - So, if people do not agree with Objective Justification, then they reject the Atonement. Let's see what the clauses suggest before this marvelous conclusion.

If Clauses

1. If God was not reconciled by the saving work of Christ - These words alone here are not wrong, but the meaning spelled out is alarmingly wrong.

2.  if His wrath against sin was not appeased by Christ' sacrifice, - Already he is begging the question, insisting on his claim being absolute fact. According to John's Gospel - "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him." John 3:36

3. if God did not respond to the perfect obedience and suffering and death of His Son for the sins of the world by forgiveness, by declaring the sinful world to be righteous in Christ-- Now we begin to smell the pot-roast. If God did not declare the sinful world righteous in Christ! He is working up to his precious Objective Justification, with citations - not proof, but actually refuting these toxic claims. Where is this declaration, which is mentioned so often yet never quoted at all?

4. if all this were not so, if something remains to be done by us or through us or in us, then - Now the pot-roast is burning and smoking in the oven. This is a dig at those who teach Justification by Faith. I have heard of the UOJ acolytes saying, snarkily, "So there is something left to do? We have to DO something?" First of all, this if-clause rejects what Jesus teaches throughout John's Gospel. This if-clause suggests some heresy, perhaps decision theology. 

The  crowd was stricken by the apostolic accusation that they killed the Prince of Glory. 

Acts 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

John 6:28 Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. 

The Scriptures Mentioned But Never Explained
So this theologian of Church Growth, teaching UOJ and offering Church  Growth degrees at his seminary, quoted two passages.

And God raised Him from the dead and justified Him, pronounced Him, the sin bearer, righteous (I Timothy 3:16) and thus in Him pronounced the entire world of sinners righteous (Romans 4:25).

1 Timothy 3:16 does not say the entire world was declared righteous when Jesus rose from the dead. The resurrection of Jesus showed that He died an innocent man, without sin.

1 Timothy 3: 16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was 

• manifest in the flesh,
• justified in the Spirit, [He - not the world]
• seen of angels, 
• preached unto the Gentiles, 
• believed on in the world, 
• received up into glory.

Did he even open Paul's letter to the Romans? Romans 4 offers Abraham as the example of Justification by Faith, as Abraham is through the Bible, whether Genesis 15, Romans 4, Galatians, James, or Hebrews.

Romans 4:20 He [Abraham] staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;

21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.

22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.

23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him;

24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;

25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.

But They Do Not Quote Robert Preus Later: They Are Just as Allergic to the Scriptures and Luther

John 12:20ff - The Gospel Itself Is Far More Powerful than Man's Theories

Except a kernel of wheat fall into the ground and die,
it remains alone. But in dying it becomes fruitful.
John 12:24

John 12:20 And there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast:

21 The same came therefore to Philip, which was of Bethsaida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus.

22 Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus.

As Lenski writes in his commentary, there is a lot of fussing on this setting and motives. These Greeks are non-Jews attracted to Judaism and not yet complete converts to Judaism. The Greek Old Testament was a holy book that attracted the interest of those who found pagan religion stale, weird, empty, or revolting. This Septuagint was indirectly the result of Alexander the Great conquering the world of that time and making it Greek in culture, writing, language, and commerce. Alexander reversed the effect of the Tower of Babel and united peoples fragmented by tribal languages.

The details are what we find in eye-witness accounts, while a second-hand report would drop who said what to whom. The historical setting emphasizes the sermon of Jesus, not the disciples, not the Greek-speaking people. 

23 And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.

24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

 The first miracle, changing water into wine,
was followed by cleansing the Temple, John 2.

The tipping point in the Gospel of John is the raising of Lazarus. We can easily see the reasons for the tensions being explosive at this point, because they started early with the Cleansing of the Temple, John 2, which followed a widely viewed and impossible to refute miracle of changing water into wine.

As noted before, Jesus raised Lazarus when the disciples were already anticipating their own deaths from the Jewish opponents. Before, as at the Wedding at Cana, the hour had not yet come. Now the hour has come.

The hour is the atoning death of the Messiah. From Isaiah 53 to this passage to Paul's letters, the central point is the crucifixion of Christ. 

The magicians of modernism want to mis-direct our eyes - the method of all false doctrine - from the Atonement to their universal declaration of forgiveness, grace, absolution without faith - aka Objective Justification.

Jesus is that seed of wheat that dies in the ground, that is, germinating so that the Gospel will be fruitful. Before the death of Christ, the Gospel was the Promise of Atonement, Isaiah 53. The glorification is the death of Jesus in payment for all sin. 

The modernists want to change the Atonement into universal grace, because that is the easy, lazy, and contrary way to make Christianity into a philosophy for Satan's earthly realm. Nothing really matters because everyone is forgiven, they say, ever so slyly. As one thick-headed pastor said about confession of sin and absolution, "You were forgiven before you came here." That means giving someone a powerful opioid to take away the pain but not the disease.

Lenski:

"The death of Christ was the death of the most fertile grain of wheat." Augustine. In the petition of these Greeks Jesus sees the great harvest that will go on and on as the product of the great Grain of Wheat (himself) which fell in the earth.

 Cleansing the Temple took place early in the public ministry of Jesus, so the hostility and fear continued to build among the Jewish and Roman officials as thousands came to Him.

25 He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

26 If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

From the fact of the glorification Jesus draws the lesson for these seekers of salvation. Being forgiven and saved means following Him on the way of the cross. Serving and following go together - not as titles like Bishop Jackson and Deacon Brett - but as the servant serving (text word play, servant as noun and as a verb). That means being where Christ is, which Luther described being among those weak and poor who needed this spiritual medicine. Not to be missed - the Father honors those who serve the Son.

27 Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.

28 Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.

Jesus was deeply troubled, shaking and weeping at the grave of Lazarus. I interpret this as a special emphasis on allowing His friend Lazarus to die in order to complete the details for His own death and resurrection. In this age of grief for a few days, we overlook the powerful and lasting emotions of losing a loved one, so we also pass over Jesus' human reaction to the tomb of Lazarus. The sisters were correct - He could have rushed there to heal His friend. In fact, He could have commanded the healing from afar, as He did with the centurion's son.

If we look for the answers why, Jesus supplies them many times over - the Father commands and the Son works in complete harmony with Him. All the Old Testament Scriptures had to be addressed, because they are the foundation of the Promises fulfilled. If we take away those Promises from the Old Testament, as the rationalists do in their blind glee, the Old Testament makes no sense at all.

29 The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him.

30 Jesus answered and said, This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes.

The popcorn-and-soda crackpots of today, bragging about the numbers who come to be entertained and fed, do not want to hear about bearing the cross. Yet Jesus identified His glorification with the cross. As I understand the reaction. those sincerely seeking the truth were certain an angel spoke (the verb used for Jesus' solemn declarations - laleo). However, the bystanders dismissed it as thunder.

Likewise, when I ask Lutheran pastors if they teach Justification by Faith, they say, like smart-alecs, "Universally" and "Objectively!" - to make fun of the Chief Article they clearly reject. It is just distant thunder to them, old and irrelevant compared to their special sauce with the secret ingredients.

31 Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.

32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

33 This he said, signifying what death he should die.

34 The people answered him, We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever: and how sayest thou, The Son of man must be lifted up? who is this Son of man?

John's Gospel is the Doctrinal Gospel because Jesus' sermons and teaching clarify any issues in advance. We can view the Fourth Gospel as a commentary on the Books of Moses, fulfilling everything promised or implied, such as the healing figured raised up to cure the Israelites of the toxic bites of the serpents.

From the bronze serpent to John 3:16 to John 12, it is one coherent and unified message. The Son must be lifted up on the cross to show the cost of sin and the payment made.

The class clowns of Lutherdom - and mainline apostasy - fail to see that the Bible has many synonyms for Jesus' Atonement - redemption, propitiation, ransom, etc. But - justification is not a synonym for the Atonement, but the result of preaching and teaching the Atonement. The Atonement shows our sin and Jesus' payment, and this Gospel Word implants and nourishes faith in the Promises.

Jesus did not directly answer "Who is this Son of Man?" but if He had offered an entire chapter on the topic, the rationalists would have dismissed it as well. When they are done paring away those passages that do not appeal to them, hardly anything is left. The Jefferson Bible is the OED in comparison. Yet we are supposed to gasp and coo when we hear the precious names of Barth, Bonhoeffer, Gerhard Forde, Tillich, Carl Braaten, and a tribe of lesser frauds. After all, Barth is the official theologian of Fuller Seminary, we should never forgive the Commie adulterer for that explosion of Dreck. 

Yes, Virginia (famous, old newspaper column) - Karl Barth was known as a Communist and as a flagrant adulterer, who - like Bishop Martin Stephan - moved a young woman into his home.

35 Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.

36 While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them.

If we look for a passage that says "Everyone is forgiven and saved, whether they ever believe or not" - disappointment follows for the cultists.

Instead, the entire Gospel emphasizes the importance of faith in Christ, a faith so complete that people followed Him to death, as they did then and still do today.

37 But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him:

38 That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed?

39 Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again,

40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

41 These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.

42 Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:

43 For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

This explains the false teachers perfectly. I take doxa in verse 43 as glory, because that contrasts with "I have glorified it and I will glorify it again." Compare as contrast - the glory of God and loving (agape) the glory of men.

44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.

45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.

46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.

47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

Jesus proclaimed faith in Him, so why should be teach unFaith? 

48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words [divine utterances - rhema], hath one that judgeth him: the Word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

To this day, the Word of God condemns those who reject, mock, and supplant Justification by Faith. The Gospel makes them bitter and hateful, so they seek refuge in their little essays and favorite false teachers.

49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak [solemnly declare - laleo].

King James Version (KJV)

Righteousness Comes From Faith | Steadfast Lutherans

Righteousness Comes From Faith | Steadfast Lutherans:

"Righteousness Comes From Faith

Posted on August 2, 2017 by Dr. Matthew Phillips

While Martin Luther had formulated the theology of justification from 1515 to 1519, his theological opponents within the papal court called for an ecclesiastical trial for his “false teaching.”  Political circumstances in Europe had distracted his theological enemies and the papacy from Luther’s growing popularity.  In 1520, Pope Leo X condemned many of Luther’s teachings and threatened him with excommunication.  During that year, Luther wrote against papal authority and called upon the German princes to reform their own territories.   [Martin Brecht, Martin Luther: His Road to Reformation, 1483-1521, trans. James L. Schaaf (Minneapolis 1985) 369-379.]

Additionally, in 1520 he began to explain the proper relationship between justification by faith in Christ and the daily life of the Christian.  His Treatise on Good Works explained how genuine good works flow from someone justified by faith alone.  As he had done since 1516, Dr. Luther also explicitly rejected the scholastic theologians’ notions of the disposition (habitus) to form a perfect faith. [Luther on Scholastic Theologians ] He particularly sought to distinguish those who practiced outwardly religious works toward justifying themselves before God with those who trusted in God’s promises. Someone may only fulfill the First Commandment by faith in Christ. [Martin Luther, Treatise on Good Works, Luther’s Works, vol. 44, 23-31.]   He summarized this idea in the following manner:

If righteousness consists of faith, it is clear that faith fulfils [sic] all commandments and makes all its works righteous, since no one is justified unless he does all the commandments of God.  Or again, works can justify no man before God without faith.  So utterly and roundly does the holy Apostle reject works and praise faith that some have taken offense at his words and said, ‘Well then, we shall do no more good works.’ He condemns such men as erring and foolish. [LW 44: 31-32.]
In The Freedom of the Christian (a devotional work dedicated to Pope Leo X in 1520) Luther described the origin and nature of faith in Christ and its effects on the believer.  First, the Word of God saves those who receive it by faith alone.  In this manner, God justifies the sinner and unites the Christian to Christ.  Second, true faith in the Gospel liberates the Christian from seeking after outwardly pious acts in order to earn divine favor.  Finally, this freedom from sin and self-justification allowed the Christian to serve his or her neighbor through genuine good works based on faith because “Christian liberty…does not induce us to live in idleness or wickedness but makes the law and works unnecessary for any man’s righteousness and salvation.” [Luther, The Freedom of a Christian, LW 31:343-350, quote on pp. 349-50.]

By 1521 the pope had excommunicated Luther. Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, summoned Martin Luther to testify before the Imperial Diet in Worms in his own defense against the decree of excommunication.  On April 18, he gave his famous speech before this gathering in which he refused to recant his writings and affirmed his teaching of justification before God by faith alone.  During his journey to Worms, he preached at Erfurt on the first Sunday after Easter.  In this sermon, he emphasized the significance of Christ’s redemptive act through his death and resurrection.  Clearly, he wanted to emphasize faith in Christ as the means by which God grants his righteousness to sinners when he proclaimed:

Our Lord Christ says: I am your justification.  I have destroyed the sins you have upon you.  Therefore, only believe in me; believe that I am he who has done this; then you will be justified…righteousness is identical with faith and comes through faith. [Martin Luther, Sermons at Leipzig and Erfurt, LW 51:63.]

In the same sermon, Luther repeated his refutation of the scholastic teaching of justification and emphasized that true good works follow faith.   When Martin Luther departed from Worms as a condemned heretic (a crime in the sixteenth century), his future seemed quite precarious.  However, Dr. Luther had articulated his teaching on justification by faith in Christ clearly before the most powerful secular rulers and church officials of his time."

http://www.cune.edu/directory/people/phillips-cmatthew/

C. Matthew Phillips, Concordia University, Nebraska

About Dr. Matthew Phillips

My name is C. Matthew Phillips and I am an Associate Professor of History at Concordia University, Nebraska. I completed my Ph.D. in medieval European history at Saint Louis University in 2006. My research has focused on medieval monasticism, preaching, devotion to the True Cross, and the Crusades. Additionally, I have interests in medieval and early modern European education and the writings and life of Martin Luther.

At Concordia I teach World Civilization I, World Civilization II, Europe Since 1914, Early and Medieval Christianity, Renaissance and Reformation, The Medieval Crusades, The History of Imperial Russia and the Soviet Union, and The Modern Middle East.

View all posts by Dr. Matthew Phillips

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These Words Must Burn Their Hearts - Justified by Faith Faux-Lutherans say, "Name it not!"

The almost complete blackout of the term Justification by Faith is the most notable characteristic of the Objective Justification fanatics. True, fanatic is redundant because those who begin saying OJ are 100% in the bag for God's unrecorded Universal Forgiveness without Faith.

That data should puzzle us, because Justification by Faith is constantly expressed in the Bible, from Genesis 15 on, frequently in Paul, endlessly in Luther. The Book of Concord and Chemnitz - there too.

What is missing in this eloquent statement?
U - O - J!

Justification by Faith is the

1. Chief Article of the Christian Religion, 
2. The Master and Prince, the lord and ruler,
3. The judge over all other articles of the Faith. 

OJ is not described as any of those things or even named, even though Zarling and Bivens would have us share their Kokomo song. They want us to believe UOJ is the Chief Article, etc etc. Their probable hymn -

Milwaukee, Peewaukee, Oh I want to stalk ye
Eau Clairee, De Peree, come on Doctor Larry,
Kenosha, Peshtigo, baby why can't we go to Kokomo?

 The new LCMS dogmatics book actually names
Justification by Faith in the Table of Contents.

The doctrinally bankrupt leaders of the Little Sect on the Prairie, the Wisconsin Sect, and the Missouri Sect got together and joyfully proclaimed their allegiance to ELCA's UOJ, which all four groups learned from Halle University, Pietism, and Calvinism. Since they all agree against Luther and the Scriptures, they should formally announce their not-so-secret morganatic marriage to ELCA, brokered by Thrivent, with the Siebert Foundation as the ring bearer.

Even the New NIV teaches Justification by Faith, so clearly that when I pointed out the fake "all" in Romans 3, my writing class said, as a group,"But the chapter still teaches Justification by Faith!"

But still, these apostate groups will continue to work together against the Scriptures, against the Gospel of Christ, against Justification by Faith.

Did Jesus say, "When the Son of Man returns, will He find faith?"

or 

"When the Son of Man returns, will He find OJ?"

John 12:1-19 - The Key to the Crucifixion

12 Then Jesus six days before the passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.

2 There they made him a supper; and Martha served: but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.

GJ - The raising of Lazarus is well known, but the drama does not end with his emergence from the tomb, which foreshadowed Jesus' resurrection. Jesus was buried in a rich man's grave, carved from stone, so we know Lazarus was a prominent man, a man of means. 

Lazarus had a lengthy funeral, where friends and family gathered for days. Nearby in Jerusalem, people knew he died and the mourners spread the news.

Jesus raised two others from the dead, but Lazarus was a significant person and tensions were very high when this happened. The disciples had resisted going toward Jerusalem when they headed toward Bethany and Thomas allowed they could all die together there. 

Lazarus' illness and death was a topic debated among the believers and the opponents. His friend Jesus had opened the eyes of the blind. Why could he not heal His close friend? Thus a miracle became a weapon against Jesus.

In a few overlooked verses below, the Evangelist shows how people came to see Jesus and Lazarus. Moreover, the Jewish opponents, who had already decided to kill Jesus, planned to murder Lazarus, who was a prominent and irrefutable proof of Jesus' divinity, His role as Messiah - the anointed King, a threat to Rome and to the religious leaders: 

John 11:48 If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation. 49 And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, 50 Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.

The entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday meant the funeral crowd was following, rejoicing, from Bethany. And the people who knew or heard of the raising of Lazarus came out of Jerusalem (verse 18) to see the celebrity and hail Jesus as the Son of David.

Before that momentous event, Mary anointed the feet of Jesus (Christ means - anointed with oil in Greek; Messiah - anointed with oil, Hebrew). She wiped his feet with her hair, and the room was filled with the fragrance of a pound of very expensive aromatic oil. This offended the unbelieving Judas, who pretended to care about the poor, but he was just a peculator, like the Church Growthers of the W/ELS and LCMS.

The anointing shows the devotion of Mary and the imminent death of Jesus. Thus the extreme emotion of Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus is even clearer. Jesus was seeing His own horrible torture and death in the future, and feeling compassion for what had happened in the death of His friend, the sorrow of Lazarus' family included.

In this chapter, as we have seen so often in this Doctrinal Gospel, the message is faith in Jesus, the absolutely essential character of this faith, and the dangers from blind and hard-hearted unbelief.

3 Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.

4 Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him,

5 Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?

6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein.

7 Then said Jesus, Let her alone: against the day of my burying hath she kept this.

8 For the poor always ye have with you; but me ye have not always.

9 Much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was there: and they came not for Jesus' sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead.

10 But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death;

11 Because that by reason of him many of the Jews went away, and believed on Jesus.

12 On the next day much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem,

13 Took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.

14 And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon; as it is written,

15 Fear not, daughter of Sion: behold, thy King cometh, sitting on an ass's colt.

16 These things understood not his disciples at the first: but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him.

17 The people therefore that was with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the dead, bare record.

18 For this cause the people also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle.

19 The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing? behold, the world is gone after him.

Much more could be said about this brief passage, but verse 17 reminds us once again that the raising of Lazarus, the crucifixion of Jesus, and the rising of the Savior are themes woven together, commanded by the Father, obeyed by the Son, witnessed to us by the Holy Spirit.

How could people turn the Fourth Gospel into a textbook on universal salvation founded on unbelief? The second part of this chapter explains - those who walk in darkness do not know what they are doing.

John 12:38 That the saying of Esaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed?39 Therefore they could not believe, because that Esaias said again,40 He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.41 These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.