The Most Neglected Is the Most Important

 Luther is too cool for the school.
They would rather have Rambach.
Click here for the classic parody:
I'd Rather Have Rambach.

1. I’d rather have Rambach with silver and gold;
   I’d rather be Pietist with riches untold;
   I’d rather have Rambach with houses and lands;
   I’d rather be led by the Halle U. band.
   • Refrain:
     And to be the king of a vast domain
     And be held in sin’s dread sway;
     I’d rather have Rambach than anything
     The Gospel affords today.
2. I’d rather have Spener with men’s applause;
   I’d rather be faithful to UOJ's cause;
   I’d rather have Rambach and worldwide fame;
   I’d rather be true to Halle U's name.
3. They're fairer than roses or sauerkraut;
   They're sweeter than Thrivent grants without doubt;
   They're all that my Old Adam needs;
   I’d rather have Rambach and let him lead.

UOJists like Jay Webber, Larry Olson, Dave Valleskey, and Rolf Preus agree with Rambach.

Franklin D. Fry, son of the ULCA-LCA president, commented on a pastor who was relieved to be "promoted" and out of the parish - "No more catechism classes." To his credit, even as an avowed liberal, Fry was disgusted. He thought teaching, especially catechism for children, was very important.

Lutheran pastors were quick to abandon catechism, moving to various forms of faking it. But why teach what is not believed? The clergy of the various Lutheran denominations are far removed from the Reformation in thought, word, and deed.

My uncle was closely questioning me about various features on the sports page on a Saturday, long ago. He was at the donut shop. I was taking care of the counter. I kept mumbling responses to his responses. Finally, he said, "You don't really care about sports, do you?" I had to admit that I did not. Sure I saw Ernie Banks hit a grand slam at Wrigley Field, and I attended various Moline sports events as a band member. Some of my best friends were athletes, but that did not make me want to read about or discuss the games.

That is the state of the Lutheran clergy today, and the laity play their part in displaying a lack of interest. I always laugh to myself about the most intense council meeting I ever attended - we were buying a lawnmower for the church grounds. 100% attention and focus.

Where does this come from? First of all, the Lutheran colleges and seminaries teach politics and synod-love. That leaves little time for Biblical doctrine - and the ones hired have no capacity to teach it. Doctrine is so divisive.

The seminarians leave school - "they get out" in WELS parlance - and are ill prepared to teach anything except the perfection of their sect, the rules for shunning, and UOJ. I know of one pastor who visited someone regularly to grill him about departing from UOJ.

UOJ gurus come in two flavors at the most. Some of them are angry prosecutors who present their case against the Gospel at every opportunity, especially when not invited. The Preus Family, Inc. is a prime example.

Other UOJ gurus are superficial simpletons who repeat the talking points they learned at seminary. Everyone is forgiven and saved, they mutter. Here are the passages, which are laughably wrong, but no one laughs.

They agree that all others (the ELS, the LCMS, ELCA) are just horribly mixed up because no one does anything about false doctrine. And yet they all repeat the same dogma, which converts the rest of the issues into matters of indifference - adiaphora.

So this is a perfect machine for manufacturing and continuing doctrinal indifference.

The Solutions Are Too Easy
The most basic is one which - shhhhh! - Luther employed: verse by verse explanations of the Epistle or Gospel lesson each Service.

Secondarily, but also important - applying Biblical teaching in adult and children's classes, visitation, and all other work. Regular visitation with the Word of God and with the Sacrament for shut-ins - that is basic to pastoral work.

The pastor's job is not to make sure everything is running smoothly and the bills are paid. If a church activity is important, the members can prove its worth by taking it over completely. One LCA congregation was fretting about its bills and being behind. "What shall we do?" I said, "You are leaders. Lead." I gave them Biblical materials to use in their presentations and that provided a good outcome, which they owned.

CPH - Forget Luther. We have cheap trinkets to help
you - and us! - remember the 500th Anniversary.
And we will sell you expensive Gerhard volumes
you will never read.

Luther's Sermons, Volume III, Almost Ready for Production

 Volume III is almost in production.
Volume II is about to Kindle and
have its economy black and white edition.

 I am still looking for a place in Luther's writings where
he endorses Justification without Faith, UOJ, a dogma
totally at war with this sermon passage.
That would be quite a discovery - that Luther
anticipated the influence of Calvin upon Pietism and
began teaching rationalistic Pietism in the midst of the Reformation.

"Does Buckwheat seed itself?" I asked Almost Eden. I found out this year. Deciding the plants were fully mature under the Crepe Myrtle bush, I pulled a bunch of the shallow-rooted plants out and used them as mulch under the bush.

Yesterday I looked at the base of the myrtle and saw scads of new plants - Buckwheat! More and more August rain germinated the the seeds that fell, in spite of Cardinals and Mourning Doves eating them as fast as they could.

Fortunately, winter kill will turn this crop into a big asset for the soil. I am afraid my grandson will say, "Grampy, I remember the summer you grew chest-high Buckwheat in the rose garden." Or roses in Buckwheat field.

Cover crops have two basic functions. One is to invigorate the soil with a large volume of organic matter growing there. A good cover crop will fade in the winter and decompose into the soil. When I bought beans by the pound, I ended the season with leftover bush beans that would do this for me.

A second function of cover crops is to displace weed growth, denying them sunshine and space to grow. Gardeners and farmers pick plants that will drive deep into the soil with their roots, to help rain infiltration, or produce food in the soil - to break it up rather than to feed any creatures.

Weed growth in Lutherdom has taken place because the Means of Grace have been neglected. The business or marketing model has been substituted for being faithful to the Word of God. That is the natural consequence of trusting something so valuable to alcoholics and adulterers. They are more interested in protecting their sinecures than doing anything else.

The so-called conservative Lutherans have recreated the Monty Python show where the Masonic Lodge member is chosen over someone who is competent. The Lutheran Masonic handshake is UOJ, so the fertile fields of spiritual growth have been take over by the lush growth of invasive, persistent, toxic weeds.

Wanna be seminary president? Promote UOJ and get your Church Growth tattoo at Fuller, Willow Creek, or Trinity Divinity. All three would be best. You meet the best people there.

Wanna be synod president? Scowl at Church Growth and wink at its proponents, enabling and funding and protecting them.

Worried about being stuck in a first call? Drop "missional" into conversations with church officials. Sign up for their ridiculous brain-washing gatherings and defend the false teachers with self-righteous fury.

No Greek Class Tonight - Eyes Dilated

No Greek class tonight. I cannot see well enough
after the eye apppointment.

Yesterday's Rain Was Slight. Today - Heavy and Lasting

Yesterday I was awake when the lightning boomed above our home. Our neighbor mentioned it when I walked Sassy. Net result - almost no rain. But we did not need any more. Today I woke up to heavy rain, the radar predicting several more hours of it.

The lawns are lush and overgrown, and so are the weeds. The crab grass has become a bumper crop. Bushes are sagging and weighted down since the branches are softened by so much water.

Roses like the rain, so they are sprouting new blooms after weathering the Japanese beetle invasion.

I plan on clearing weeds out of sections of the rose garden, one area at a time. Since Bermuda grass is having so much fun, I will gather that and place it in the deep shade to decompose.

Morning Glory demonstrated how annoying it could be, by growing past the fence where Mr. Gardener started it, around the roses along the fence, and into the lawn in our yard. Morning Glory is shallow but persistent as it winds around everything and looks for more sun, growing up, around the roses, and across the surface.

Every season is different. Normally, August is almost devoid of rain here. Last year, fall arrived very late. Now the leaves are starting to fall, and more rain is predicted.

Brides Dream set me back $5.

The Rose Catalogues Have Arrived
Three categories of roses dominate my mind:

1. The brand new varieties, which are always "in short supply" and priced high. $30 each.
2. The reliable ones, which are no so numerous that the prices have been cut. $22 each, sometimes less.
3. The left-overs, which are deeply discounted, but sent out very late in the season. $6 each, they are often sent out as "rainbow groups."

The most appealing to me are ones in the middle group. There is no telling if the new ones are going to be as happy in a given climate as they are in the catalogues. Some details are withheld, such as Pope John Paul II being so frail when cut for arrangements.

The last group is fun for discovering new varieties for very little money. They are not going to produce much in the current season because of their late start. My neighbor already put in an order for a rainbow group, and I can easily get those for his wife, who really wants to grow roses. When he asked in July, I said, "No roses are left to sell. Next year I will watch for the offers and get you one." 

 The prolific Easy Does It orange roses
cost me $6 - and they out-produce every other rose.

I can divide some plants now - not roses of course. Perennials  that clump are good to locate among the roses, because they host various beneficial bugs. Here are some ideas for them:

• Bee Balm
• Mountain Mint
• Shasta Daisies.

Plants that seed themselves are often good hosts for beneficial bugs:

• Borage
• Fever Few
• Dill.

 Queen Elizabeth deserves a place in the garden -
tall, graceful, and stunning.

Another Reason WELS Is Failing - WELS Union Work with ELCA

 

The panel discussion, "Congregational Culture Eats Mission for Breakfast," features Rev. Sherrie Lorbeck (ELCA's Cross of Life Lutheran Church, Brookfield, Wis.), Mr. Matt Trotter (WELS Grace Lutheran Church, Milwaukee, Wis.), and Rev. Brian West (LCMS NextGeneration at Trinity Lutheran, Clinton Township, MI).

Cross of Life Lutheran Church, Brookfield, ELCA - Rev. Sherrie Lorbeck


Max Trotter -  WELS

Church Council President at Grace Lutheran Church in Milwaukee, Wis.

Matt Trotter is currently finishing a second stint as President of Grace, in Downtown Milwaukee. Matt has served as president from 2006 to 2010 and again from 2014 to the present. During that time, Grace has continued to present quality traditional liturgical worship, while adding staff, changing operating models, adding programming, and accommodating spirit-led membership growth of 250 souls. The median age of the 47 adults confirmed or baptized at Grace between 2012 and 2014 was 32 years old.   

Matt first attended Grace in 1999, after discovering it on a walk to a neighborhood establishment. Matt was baptized at Grace in September 2000, drawn to the church for its vibrant worship, thorough bible studies, and Monday night services. Matt’s other non-profit work included three years as a reading tutor at Martin Luther King Library in Milwaukee, seven years as a Special Olympics coach and six years on the board of Wisconsin Lutheran College.   

Professionally, Matt has worked at Time of Grace for two years in the field of Fundraising Development, as Chief Development Officer. Time of Grace’s mission is to connect people to God’s Grace, doing so via TV, print, and increasingly social media and the internet.  Prior to coming to Time of Grace, Matt owned a small business providing LED lighting product design, including optical engineering, for three successful Milwaukee Electric Tool LED Lights. Matt is a graduate of Texas A&M and a happy husband of 15+ years to a wonderful woman, Mary Jo. Together Matt and Mary Jo are super-blessed, never bored, parents of maybe the five most awesome daughters ever.

Rev. Brian West - LCMS

Biography

Pastor for the NextGeneration at Trinity Lutheran Church, Clinton Township, MI

Rev. Brian West has served as an overseas missionary in Central Europe, urban house-church planter, worship leader and currently serves as a Pastor for the NextGeneration at Trinity Lutheran Church in Clinton Township, MI. He is learning to embrace inefficiency as he follows Jesus; living passionately in Christ for the sake of the whole world. He and Erin, his wife of 12 years, and their two daughters are engaged in living as a messy family on mission. Rev. West is also an avid cyclist who loves to play and write music and almost never turns down a good cup of fair-trade coffee.

Rev Jason Ewart - Ausgekickung - WELS

Rev. Steve Witte - WELS Church and Change Founder

 Does anyone laugh when they call Steve Witte "Dr."?
All the Fulleroids have drive-by DMins that mock
the Means of Grace. Lawrenz, on the far left, is an exception -
with a real PhD from Judaism.

 Organized by Mark and Avoid Jeske - the buzz will never die.

Witte and other rascals were promoted for this
Church and Change hive gathering.

WELS Says - Trinkets Yes, Justification by Faith - NO!

 News flash - WELSians are more interested in drinking glasses.

Hunnius said this about Huber, a statement equally applicable to Edward Preuss, whose Justification by UnFaith essay is still praised as inspired by the LCMS-WELS-ELS Enthusiasts.

"Huber will never be able to explain his way out of this nonsense of insoluble contradictions and most prodigious absurdities. Therefore let him enjoy his justification, and let him bless his elect and sanctified people with it -- Turks, Jews and all unbelievers. We, in the meantime, shall restrict justification to believers only, as prescribed by all prophetic and apostolic Scriptures."

-- Theses Opposed to Huberianism

Cowardly Lion: Courage! What makes a king out of a slave? Courage! What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage! What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage! What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage! What makes the dawn come up like thunder? Courage! What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the "ape" in apricot? What have they got that I ain't got?
Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman: Courage! 
From Quotes

J-578

"So, then, we are reconciled; however, not only we, but also Hindus, and Hottentots and Kafirs, yes, the world. 'Reconciled', says our translation; the Greek original says: 'placed in the right relation to God'. Because before the Fall we, together with the whole creation, were in the right relation to God, therefore Scripture teaches that Christ, through His death, restored all things to the former right relation to God." 

F. R. Eduard Preuss, 1834-1904, Die Rechtfertigung der Suender vor Gott. Cited in Rick Nicholas Curia, The Significant History of the Doctrine of Objective or Universal Justification, Alpine, California: California Pastoral Conference, WELS. January 24-25, 1983. p. 24. [GJ - This restoration of all is used by Karl Barth, official theologian for Fuller, to promote Universalism.]

 This is so reassuring for unbelievers, clergy drunks
and adulterers.

Do WELS Parents Have a Synodical Duty To Produce More Children?

 The smoke and mirrors report - new plans from the dunces who promoted the Church Growth Movement for the last 40 years.

The LCMS is also in panic mode, and also blaming parents for not having enough babies to make them feel good about their synodical health.

I am focusing on WELS, because I have the most evidence from them, carefully copied into Megatron with the citations, mostly leaked from their own clergy, who chose to remain in hiding.

Summary - WELS jumped into the Fuller Seminary anti-Lutheran Church Growth Movement 40 years ago. The initial leaders were such apostates as Steve Witte, John Lawrenz, Frost Bivens, David Valleskey, Paul Kelm, Robert Hartman, the Wendland clan, Wayne Mueller, and many more. Three WELS Synod Presidents in a row have promoted the Church Growth Movement, its crafts and assaults. The First Vice President of WELS  is a Fuller alumnus, trained to be a "consultant" with Kelm and Larry Otto Olson, DMin Fuller.

This WELS congregation lost 50% of its average attendance in five years. How does a parish do that with so much Church Growth genius in the sect?

 "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our cradle rolls,
but in ourselves." James Huebner, First VP.

WELS materials--like the LCA stuff I saw and the LCMS propaganda--were entirely devoted to Fuller's idiotic Church Growth Movement. The Michigan District of the LCMS named their Evangelism commission "Evangelism and Church Growth." That is either redundant or a contradiction. Beep. You are correct - it is a contradiction. Church Growth is based on marketing, numbers, and sociology. Church Growth is antagonistic toward Evangelism - the Means of Grace, the efficacy of the Word.

Yes, they are already ordaining women in WELS.

Kudu Don Patterson was not a Church and Change member,
but he attended their "last" conference.

Universalism--marching under the banner of Universal Objective Justification--is the dogma of Halle Pietism, Karl Barth, Fuller Seminary and W/ELS-LCMS-ELCA. The good news for them is that everyone is forgiven and saved - just tell the rabble that message. Wayne Mueller gave a speech to the WELS Youth conference in Columbus braying that same false doctrine. Wayne Mueller hates to admit it, but he was a champion of Church Growth all along. The Adam-apple did not fall far from that corrupt tree.

God is bringing doom, insolvency, and disaster upon the apostate Lutherans who mock the Reformation by trying to make a few bucks from its 500th anniversary.

The end-game for the mainline denominations--including all the Lutheran sects--is money without members. Many mainline congregations and seminaries are massive monuments of brick, marble, and glass -- well-endowed by the saints of the past -- emptied of students, staffed by incompetent, lazy pretenders as professors. Google through the faculties of the Protestant Left for the zaniest examples: Episcopal, UCC, Yale. Some are truly sickening to read, especially since the professors are being awarded the choice positions, felllowships, research grants, and titles. Foundations and insurance companies fund them, too.

 The glory has departed.

Hein shares results of demographic survey – WELS

Over 1,400 people have read this early post about WELS promoting the Fuller Church Growth programs.

Hein shares results of demographic survey – WELS:



"Hein shares results of demographic survey

2017/08/02/in Together
Rev. Jonathan Hein, director of the WELS Commission on Congregational Counseling, has overseen a comprehensive demographic survey of WELS over the past two years, and he shared key findings with delegates on Wednesday afternoon.

After peaking in 1990 at more than 420,000 souls, WELS’ baptized membership has decreased by 14 percent. Communicant membership is down 9 percent. Four items were identified as contributing factors to this decline:

Families today are having fewer children.
The number of WELS members dying and going to heaven is increasing as the overall population ages.
It has grown increasingly difficult to retain members, especially younger members. Since 1986, WELS lost between 240,000-260,000 members through removal/excommunication or from those members joining other Christian churches. These are sometimes referred to as “back door losses.”
Fewer people are living in rural areas, and this is impacting more than 100 churches who now face the “50/60 challenge”—fewer than 50 people worship each week and the average age worshiping is above 60 years old.
As Hein notes, “When you hear numbers like this, it can be easy to grow discouraged. Don’t. Christ is still risen. He still sits on his throne, ruling over everything for the benefit of his church. Through Word and sacrament, he still abides with us.”

Last fall, Hein and the other members of the Congregational Services team met and discussed how to meet these challenges. “Obviously, some of the factors contributing to WELS’ statistical decline are beyond our control—for example, the rising death rate,” says Hein. “However, there are other areas where, by God’s grace and with his aid, we might be able to increase our gospel efforts—evangelism, decreasing back door losses, etc. Congregational Services has put together a five-year strategy that we pray helps congregations as they strive to meet these challenges.”

Highlights of that five-year strategy include:

Creating a present-day mission emphasis—The Commission on Evangelism is developing a comprehensive evangelism curriculum that congregations can use to offer annual evangelism training and encouragement. Hein reminds us, “The results of increased evangelism efforts are entirely up to the Holy Spirit. However, if he would bless those efforts, it could make a substantial impact.”
Better capitalizing on WELS’ historic strengths—WELS maintains one of the largest private school systems in the country. The greatest growth in the past 20 years has been in early childhood ministries, which often attract unchurched families. Only a few congregations have seen these families become members of their churches, though. The common factor among these congregations is a “harvest strategy” that includes regular contact with parents and a process of witnessing. The Commissions on Lutheran Schools and Evangelism have jointly developed a program titled “Telling the Next Generation: Utilizing Our Schools for Outreach” that helps congregations develop a zealous harvest strategy.
Producing resources for Millennial outreach and retention—Several WELS organizations have been studying Millennials and their worldviews. Congregational Services would like to bring those groups together to compile a “best practices” list in reaching this demographic. This task force would develop resources to help congregations retain its young adults and to reach other Millennials within the community.
“This project is a central focus for our synod going forward,” says WELS President Mark Schroeder. “You’ll hear more about specific ideas and overall progress as the plan rolls out. Remember, we have the unchanging gospel . . . and that’s at the core of everything we do.”

 Devoting his meager talents to Church Growth,
Larry Olson has created a cadre of women ministers.
Fuller Seminary disciplines those who oppose the
ordination of women. Co-inky-dink?

Hein agrees. He says, “One of the catch-phrases we use in the Commission on Congregational Counseling goes like this: ‘If we are doing all we can with the gospel, numbers don’t matter.’ The challenges before us provide us with an opportunity to examine if we are indeed ‘doing all we can with the gospel.’ Let us view the challenges facing WELS as an opportunity to recommit ourselves to the mission Christ has given us, to trust in the power of his Word and sacraments, and to rejoice in the privilege that God has given us to play a role in his saving work.”


Read Hein’s full report, titled “A demographic study of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod,” available online. Look for additional details in the November WELS Connection."

New membership booklet - be sure to read this first.

'via Blog this'

Luther's Sermons - 1-2-3. Where Are They Now?

Volume 1 is completely done and available in

1. Full color,
2. The Black and White economy edition, and
3. The Kindle e-book.

Volume 2 is being processed at Amazon for the same treatment.

Volume 3 is edited and getting artwork from Norma Boeckler.

Volume 4 is being edited.

Raining on the Weeds

The trouble with weeding in clay soil, during a drought, is the tight hold of the brick-like base of each weedy plant. The trouble with a rainy August is the opportunistic growth of those weeds, which will not be pulled during downpours.

The fun part of a surprising August rainy season comes from the visits at the feeders. We have baby birds and young squirrels hanging around, not really anxious to fly or run away. Mrs. Ichabod wanted more blue-berries on sale at Walmart and then realized how quickly longing can turn to loathing. I am fine with that since a few dollars in berries will make everyone happy outside.

The strangest thing was tracing the strange odor outside. No, it was not the garbage can fermenting in the heat and high humidity. The aroma reminded me of Waterloo, Ontario, where Seagrams brewed whiskey. Ah, that was it. The copious amounts of cracked corn were sitting on the soil and fermenting a bit from the rain. The birds are so careless at the feeder that the ground feeders cannot keep up. Eating for them often means scraping their beaks across the exit hole of the hanging feeder, scattering corn bits to the ground.

Some corn lands on the window sill, so I am trying to get some photos of birds and squirrels there. I learned that the mother squirrels send them out to find food on their own. In our yard, that means eating several meals a day at the feeders.

I looked through the rose garden to check for new exotic plants or some pollinator plants dug in for the beneficial insects. The dill is going to seed but where is the parsley? Then I remembered how many rabbits I saw in the rose garden.

Joe Pye is blooming, but I am waiting for Hidden Lily to stop hiding and start blooming. Right now they look more like the ugly cousins of  the Cannas.

The roses are coming back from the Japanese beetles invasion. My approach is to promote milky spore disease in the soil and kill the surviving amorous adults next year. That means going out in the dark with a flashlight, finding beetles in the roses, and killing them. That will certainly cement my reputation on the block as being a bit different. But that is OK. Everyone calls me The Professor.

Why care about the Nicene, Apostles’, and Athanasian, Creeds? - Comfort for Christians

WELS and the LCMS (with ELCA) say "Yes!
Our gurus at Fuller, Willow Creek, and Exponential have teached us to avoid displaying our confession of faith. The cross is a big turn-off, too.
Let's use cool names like GracePoint, Time of Grace, and The CORE."

Why care about the Nicene, Apostles’, and Athanasian, Creeds? - Comfort for Christians:



"The Apostles’ Creed, the Athanasian Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Sixteenth Century Confessions of our Church are each and every one of them the product of the greatest upheavals and the most intense crises in the Church of Christ. Creeds are born, not made. They are wrung in the agony and anxiety of a Confession at an epoch fraught with the possibility of perilous consequences to the confessors.

Such creeds, the mighty foundations of our Fathers, do not bind us, but they plant us on solid ground. They do not throttle, but they protect us. They specialize, differentiate and qualify our Church’s activity, render it more effective, and save much experimental waste. They no more hem us in and bind us down than noble old trees, planted by our fathers, hem in, destroy and narrow down the landscape. -Theodore Schmauk. The Confessional Principle. pp. 22-23

The Confessional Principle is now being prepared for publication as an e-book."

'via Blog this'

How To Keep Lutherans Passive and Obedient

James Damore on being fired from Google

"As Noam Chomsky once observed, 'the smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum,'" Damore wrote.

***

"So, Lone Starr, now you see that evil will always triumph,
because good is dumb."

GJ - This applies so well to the UOJ Pseudo-Lutherans. They have endlessly gassy web discussions on:

1. LutherQuest (sic)
2. American Lutheran Publicity Bureau
3. Steadfast (sic) Lutherans (sic)

They never discuss whether the KJV is any good at all, or the principles of translating (except to make fun of precise work). 

They know nothing about New Testament manuscripts, so they accept what the apostate Biblical societies tell them.

Justification by Faith is a joke to them, so they will not answer a direct question - "Do you teach Justification by Faith?"

Crimes in their synods - 

• "I am unaware of that."
• "That is a lie!"
• "Who told you?"

 W/ELS inbreeding - "I am your father's brother's nephew's cousin's former roommate."

---

As I was saying - Someone promoting UOJ wrote on Facebook about lightning hitting during their Lutheran church service. I said it was God telling them to repudiate UOJ. Not the original pastor, but another ELS pastor, James Dale Wilson, said something like - "It is the Spirit of the air rebuking you." And something about my father (implying Satan). It is good to know the ELS imagines that Justification by Faith is Satanic. That might influence people attending their churches and schools before the Schwan song.

Various people were posting, so I went back later - no thread. No links to comments, because that happens when someone erases the thread on Facebook.

'the smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow very lively debate within that spectrum,'

 I said, "This is your professor of UOJ, a Halle Pietist,
translated and interpreted by a Calvinist. OJ and SJ?
Woods, the Calvinist translator, 
was an Evangelical celebrity at the time.

Schmauk on the two kinds of anti-Christian tyranny - Comfort for Christians

Schmauk on the two kinds of anti-Christian tyranny - Comfort for Christians:



"Schmauk on the two kinds of anti-Christian tyranny

1 minute read
In this passage from great Christian teacher Theodore Schmauk, we see a large part of the underlying conflict going on around us in America. The false choice between authoritarianism or romanticism is no choice at all.

Without authority – for direction, appeal, and decision, – no step of intellectual, spiritual or social activity is possible. The question is not really as to authority, but as to its proper seat and location. The motto of the ancient pre-Christian, of the medieval, and of modern Roman, civilization, is “Society above the individual.” This ancient tyranny repeats itself today in scientific form in the motto, “The race above the individual”; in sociological form, when the State assumes to encroach upon the rights of the individual, and passes laws which propose to regulate the personal life, health, education, acts, interests, and happiness of the individual; and in political form, when the axiom of authority, “The majority rules”, is pressed ruthlessly against the minority. The same tyranny is found or imported into nature as the seat of authority, when its laws are interpreted as reducible to the axiom that “Might makes right”, or “The strongest survive.”

The reaction against this tyranny over the individual, so characteristic of the ancient world, and manifesting itself in modern sociology and science, is the extreme Romantic, or revolutionary, position, well expressed in the motto of Rousseau : “The individual above society.” If the absolute enforcement of authority upon the individual is Romanism, this elevation of the individual to the supreme seat is Protestantism gone to seed. It was already inherent in the humanism of the Reformation, and occasioned the controversies with Fanaticism in theology, and the Peasants’ War in sociology, in Luther’s day.

Theodore E. Schmauk. “The Confessional Principle”, 1911.
The Confessional Principle is now being prepared for publication as an e-book.

Originally published at: Comfort for Christians"



'via Blog this'

The Ninth Sunday after Trinity, 2017. Luke 16:1-9. The Unrighteous Steward

The Ninth Sunday after Trinity, 2017

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10AM Central Daylight Time

The melodies are linked in the hymn title. 

The lyrics are linked in the hymn number.

• The melody site is linked here.
• TLH Lyrics site is linked here.

The Hymn # 249           Isaiah Mighty Seer

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 #283    God’s Word Is Our Great Heritage 

        

Practical Wisdom

The Communion Hymn #312        Lord Jesus Christ Thou Living Bread               

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 # 54              Guide Me Thou, O Great Jehovah                    

KJV 1 Corinthians 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. 5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

KJV Luke 16:1 And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. 2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. 3 Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. 4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. 5 So he called every one of his lord's debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? 6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. 7 Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore. 8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. 9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

Ninth Sunday After Trinity

Lord God, heavenly Father, who hast bountifully given us Thy blessing and our daily bread: We beseech Thee, preserve us from covetousness, and so quicken our hearts that we willingly share Thy blessed gifts with our needy brethren; that we may be found faithful stewards of Thy gifts, and abide in Thy grace when we shall be removed from our stewardship, and shall come before Thy judgment, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

The Sower - by Norma Boeckler

Practical Wisdom

KJV Luke 16:1 And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.

Mankind thinks in terms of the law and works, so even the most Christ-centered parable - the Good Samaritan - is almost universally taught as a do-gooder lesson. Many parts of the Scriptures are so clear that no one can get past their lessons without completely ignoring them - which the false teachers do, with a vengeance. But still, people remember what those passages teach and should not let them go. 

I heard of a comical situation where a WELS pastor tried to lead a layman into confessing forgiveness without faith. No matter how much manipulation was used, the layman still replied according to justification by faith. 

In the case of this parable, Luther complains that the Church of Rome uses it to prove the necessity of good works and that good works take us to eternal life. And if we stick to human reason, which always eviscerates the Word, then that is truly so. The unjust steward is an example, but of what?

First Luther affirms what is clearly taught in the Bible, and almost every Protestant knows this.

4. The foundation must be maintained without wavering, that faith without any works, without any merit, reconciles man to God and makes him good, as Paul says to the Romans 3:21-22: “But now apart from the law a righteousness of God hath been manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ unto all them that believe.” Paul at another place, Romans 4:9, says: “To Abraham, his faith was reckoned for righteousness;” so also with us.

Again, 5: “Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Again, 10:10: “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” These, and many more similar passages, we must firmly hold and trust in them immovably, so that to faith alone without any assistance of works, is attributed the forgiveness of sins and our justification.

5. Take for an illustration the parable of Christ in Matthew 7:17: “Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but the corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.” Here you see that the fruit does not make the tree good, but without any fruit and before any fruit the tree must be first good, or made good, before it can bear good fruit. As he also says, Matthew 12:33-34: “Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree corrupt, and its fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by its fruit. Ye offspring of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things?”

To deny these truths - stated by Luther - is no different from the person who says, "But the Bible never uses the term Trinity," or even - "See here, only the Father and Son are mentioned, so this is the Brotherhood of Man and the Fatherhood of God." (BOMFOG - mainline liberal apostasy). 

The parable is easily condensed. The proud but wasteful estate manager was called before the owner and told to get out. 

 2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. 3 Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. 4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. 

There is no repentance, only a plan to get hired as a manager of another estate. That is how this parable earned the name - The Unjust Steward, which is what Jesus called him.

This is even more disgusting. Now that he is being kicked out, he is making friends with the peers of his master, so he can be hired by them. After all, he is too weak to dig and too proud to beg. (Is this not a humorous statement. We can picture an accountant with soft hands and muscles, well known for his specialized work. Digging is impossible and he does not want to be the accountant shaking a tin cup.

8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. 9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.

This seems to present an even greater puzzle, because the master of the estate should be even more furious, not eager to commend the manager. 

I see two things emphasized here - for this generation. One is that many Enthusiasts are led to believe that foolish behavior is "spiritual" and good, like the woman who gave away all her possessions to a church's Junk for Jesus sale, to help the youth. 

Or the Assemblies of God pastor who would not let the workmen shore up a wall just before a windstorm, because it meant working on the Sabbath. Many bragged that this cost them $100,000 to fix. So noble! But he was unfaithful with the Word and with his marriage, which became known even better.

And we can see many foolish efforts made by denominations and congregations, which are power plays to show how powerful the leaders are. And they will say, "That's the way we are."

One pastor had to have a much larger building because his fellow pastor had an expansion. Later that much larger building, useless, was shut down 66% for heating in the winter. So a new pastor turned on all the heat so he could have a completely warm, empty building. 

A lot foolishness empties congregations and scandalizes them so that they identify the worst excesses with the cross and Christianity.

The second emphasis is Jesus teaching the connection between faith and good works, that the works are the fruit of faith. This is quite important from several sides of the issue. Many of my graduate students only think of the Law and never talk of any other issue except the Law and punishment. "If we don't help others, we lose justification by faith." I try to point out the good tree and good fruit example taught by Jesus.

Luther:

Therefore, riches are unrighteous, because the people misuse and abuse them. For we know that wherever riches are the saying holds good: money rules the world, men creep for it, they lie for it, they act the hypocrite for it, and do all manner of wickedness against their neighbor to obtain it, to keep it, and increase it to possess the friendship of the rich.

When people simply accumulate riches and do nothing worthwhile with it, except to show off their excess, it is mammon of unrighteousness.

The opposite is taking pleasure in helping others and doing good with the Gospel, which varies in many different ways. I just wrote about wasted efforts with one person, and addict, but this addict called me to tell me how he was doing. I urged him to prove to his shattered  family that he was becoming a different person. 

Jesus is teaching us that these people will welcome us into heaven when we pass into eternal life. Thus the Christian Faith has been a blessing for so many people.