Daffodils Disappear Beneath the Soil

Sassy walked to Pat and John's with me and then guarded the Rose Garden while I buried daffodil bulbs. The more I thought about digging, the more I wanted to write, but the digging won. 

Procrast A. Nation, my constant advisor, whispered, "And then you have to mulch where you planted, and start pruning the roses, and lug water to the Clethra quartet. Forget gardening and write."

I thought about Minnesota bulb planting. I had to rush because the ground was freezing so fast. I put most of the bulbs close to the parsonage, because the soil was not yet frozen. A member said, "We are not supposed to covet, but I sure covet your bulbs." We lived in our own house for a year, and I planted the ideal bulb garden. It was in full bloom when the realtors came to visit - we were moving to Arizona. Our agent was almost comatose from the floral display.

Sassy always adjusts her position according to the possible threat and the person or persons she is guarding. She sat on the sidewalk near me, facing the street, but always watching any movement from people on walks or going to work.

I picked a well watered and rained on-section, expanding the donut we first planted around a new Clethra (Sugar Spice shrub). I found a triple from last year, a daffodil where it grew two new bulbs on its sides. I split them to make three separate bulbs and flowers, destined to double or triple again.

Tulips fade while daffodils multiply. 

The Gradebook Calls, But So Does the Blog

Sassy's modeling fees were too high, so I had to borrow this photo.

I am in the doctrinal phase of the Walther book, but I also have some daffodils to dig into the Rose Garden. True bulbs (flower inside already) are a boon to all gardeners. They do not plant seeds, corms, tubers or any other primitive almost-flower. They plant flowers to absorb the rain of autumn, the snow of winter, and the warming rays of spring. 

Yet so many deny Creation, explicitly or implicitly. The Enthusiasts (Church Growth, Calvinists, Pentecostals, Roman Catholics) separate the Word from the divine energy of the Spirit. Doubting the Word they reject Creation by the Word.

The Rice-mobile delivers food in a time of Philippine shortages and lock-downs.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for the righteousness of faith, for they shall be satisfied.

I have to watch the clock and oven temperature when I cook, but the bulbs watch the time and temperature for me. As one person wrote, even if we concede Creation (and we do not), then how does anyone explain the software?

How does the daffodil know to send out roots when planted, send the flower stalk up near the soil's surface, and then become dormant for the winter, only to bloom in the chill of early spring? Anyone who has burned something in the oven or tried to eat something still half-frozen would ask himself, "How does the bulb know?"

God has removed most of the fretting from gardening. No matter what goes wrong, the wonders remain. This year I had a large package of Borage seed. I think of them as tiny plants with tiny flowers, popping up here and there, re-seeding themselves. They do no harm, which is more than I can say for the bully plants. At the end of this season the Borage are knee-high and blooming like rose wannabees.  The pollen plants are done, but the Borage will produce until a hard frost ends their service.

The mints that I cut back after they bloomed - they are reborn and trying for a second bloom. The crew weed-wacked Cat Mint and now a renewed plant is growing and expanding its borders. The Bee Balm (a mint) has attempted the same thing. Sidewalk supervisors will say to me, "You will not get many blooms in the cold weather." That is true, but the Carbon Cowboys point out the value of roots for improving the soil. Every living root is adding to soil nutrition. If I plan for the roots, the flowers will be that much stronger. 

Roses love cold, rainy weather. Or we love them for it. They bloom much longer because the sun is now making them finish up and go to seed (if we do not prune). They respond to the nitrogen in the rain and push more roots into the soil to support the growth. To get roses, harvest roses. If I take 50 roses off the Easy Does It plants, I will soon have 50 more, only with longer stems.

The Shadow knows - Easy Does It roses love to be pruned.

LCMS-WELS-ELS-ELDONA Reject Inerrancy by Embracing the NIV-ESV Greek Text

The LCMS-WELS-ELS-ELDONA sects reject the ancient truth of Biblical inerrancy by embracing the NIV and ESV translations. 

These apostate factions get along well with ELCA because they share the same foundation - the modernized Greek text butchered by Hort-Wescott and further abused in its new disguise as the Nestle-Aland text. 

The traditional or received text (Textus Receptus for Latin 101 veterans) is not only consistent throughout, but exists in other forms as translations, church father quotations, and lectionaries. A lectionary can be dated one century and yet have a tradition going much earlier. As everyone knows - or should know - the publishing of Scripture is far more rigorous than ordinary books. 

Hort and Tiscendorf really wanted to derail the traditional text, so they took exceptions and made them the new norms. I have some interesting quotes about Hort's attitude and methods. In short, he did not reveal his new text until the English revision came out that matched it, 1881. Blowback was enormous because - suddenly - the Greek New Testament was quite different. 

This is a brief description of how this happened. Hort hated the traditional text and decided that later versions were identified by lots of extra words and verses. He liked the Vatican example (conveniently called Vaticanus) because so many words were missing. 

Here is the thinking - a manuscript gets more verbose over time, so we must find the original, clean copy. But that is nonsense. Apart from the overwhelming evidence behind the traditional text, there is this common sense answer to Hort. When we are writing or copying, what happens when an odious or troublesome term or event comes up? We avoid to edit that out or use circumlocutions. When one Yalie was told he would experience the worst pain in his life during one procedure, he explained, "It was everything they promised."

So - if an anti-Trinitarian does not like to equate Jesus with God, he will omit God and substitute a pronoun. 1 Timothy 3:16 is an example. And, the text may be worn and faded, which can yield the same result. 

Mark 16:9ff is beautifully in harmony with Matthew and Luke. One example of a manuscript dropping the ending has become faux-canonical already in the LCMS. (Seminex won!) In various modern translations, the ending is dropped to the footnote area or marked as dubious. "Some ancient witnesses say..."

There are hundreds of examples of this finessing, always reducing the text and its clarity.

Very few clergy know enough Greek to spot this, to follow the evidence, to care about the results. But the denominations and higher education have simply excluded anything KJV from the list. That is why Attempted Murder will be written to explain this so even a District President can understand.

Two fake doctors say, "And then we will remove the ending of Mark and still make a ton of money!"

KJV Best and TLH Best versus NIV-Only, ESV-Only, Praise Band Only

 

The Fuller Seminary faculty would like to thank LCMS, WELS, and ELS for their financial support.

I am studying the text and translation issues as I finish the Walther book. I noticed a lot of references to "KJV-only," which is always a pejorative term. Any argument for the KJV is reduced to guilt by association - that KJV-only crowd. Ptui.

I have used a lot of translations for various reasons. I am a KJV-best proponent. I appreciate the KJV updates because of their emphasis on the correct text and precise translation principles. However, I like the KJV because it reminds the best of that group and does not change. 

Readers may be somewhat aware that the attitude toward the New Testament text is Nestle-Aland-Only. That Greek text is not much different from the Hort-Wescott Greek, but is vastly different from the traditional text, often called the Textus Receptus. 

The Nestle-Aland even brags about defeating the traditional text. And they have. No college, seminary, or denomination (with a few exceptions) will allow a King James Version to be used. The KJV has been delisted and no longer exists as an option - and that includes all modernized versions - New KJV, KJV21, Modern KJV, etc.

The WELS lazybones bought or leased a translation, changed a few words, and called it the WELS translation (Evangelical Heritage Version). It appears to use the traditional text. They could have picked the KJV or a modernized one to sell, but no - to prove their love of plagiarism, they touched up what was already done and called it theirs. I give papers like that a zero for academic dishonesty.

Showing up with a KJV is like going to a Cubs game wearing Cardinals gear! How could you even think of it? And yet, the KJV is based on the Tyndale, based on Luther's Bible. That is just one more indication that LCMS-WELS-ELS have jettisoned Luther for good. 

If someone has a better translation of the original text, I am in favor, but not if the wording is changed for each edition. 

The same applies to The Lutheran Hymnal, which could be improved in some areas. However, the "conservative" Lutherans keep making their hymnals worse and more Calvinistic.

"Tuition special at Fuller and Willow Creek. Whee! Be sure to ask for Thrivent matching funds."

Bulbs Are Encased Flowers

Grape hyacinths cost about a dime each and they multiply.

Bulbs arrived just before the rain, so we had a chance to plant some and have them watered. The daffodils are primary, because

Critters do not eat daffodils or dig them up to plant elsewhere. I am talking about squirrels. 

In spite of vows, pledges, and promises, I bought a bag of strange purple tulips for the diabetes doctor and a few iris to try out a rainbow collection. Those two are subordinate to the daffodils. I was only going to buy daffodils. Tulips in Springdale? - neve again. Iris? - never bought them before. That comes from swooning over all the photos and not facing the task of digging.

Lest I forget, I bought a bag of grape hyacinths, which are not hyacinths or grapes - but cost 10 cents each. They can be included in a drift or two of daffodils. Like the buttercups, as Ranger Bob calls them, they will multiply over time. Tulips fade.

I watered the initial planting area for two hours, one day before planting. When we began digging the next day, the soil seemed as dry as before. However, the clay soil was dug and the daffodils planted, with fresh mulch on top to mark the planted area. Do not laugh - the mulch is a good cover and a horticultural bookmark.

Last night we were starting to fall asleep when clouds began booming. I said, "Ahhh." Mrs. Ichabod asked anxiously, "What's wrong?" I said, "Nothing. The rain is watering the newly planted bulbs, just what I wanted."

We had the initial threats of the storm during the Military Gardening Group meeting, attended by Ranger Bob, PFC, Sassy and me. We saw a rabbit duck under the Hosta leaves when it started to rain. Bob has the eyes of a hunter, so he spotted the rabbit first. I told him, "My people have eyes that are bad for hunting, good for accounting."

Ranger Bob got his dozen daffodils. I showed Bob and PFC the daffodil box. They could not believe it.

Our vet tech neighbor came by, so we were talking flowers and bulbs. "Need some daffodils?" She said, "I haven't shopped for them yet." That is when people bypass the purchase. Store bulbs are usually not that good. Not everyone is blessed with gardening catalogs and emails arriving daily. I made the purchase months before with that in mind. "I could use a few," she said about the bulbs just inside the door. "You should get a dozen." Her eyes lit up. Bulbs impress with a mass of color.

The idea is to have bulbs and flowers for everyone to enjoy. Unless there is a specific order and a known prices, I give the extras away. The lawn crew got a dozen daffodils to take home, too. 

Daffodils will come up in the early spring, flower, and fade before mowing/weed-eating time. Anyone can plant them in the lawn, mowing the first time once the greens are faded. 

Bee balms were cut back, so they began growing again.

Mask Mass? ELDONA.

The Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity, 2020. Luke 7:11-17

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The Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity, 2020

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

Bethany Lutheran Worship

https://video.ibm.com/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Hymn # 16            Blessed Jesus At Thy Word               

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

Lord, we pray Thee that Thy grace may always go before and follow after us and make us continually to be given to all good works; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.

The Epistle and Gradual       

The Gospel              

Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed             p. 22

Sermon Hymn #531       Come Ye Disconsolate

              

Another Look at Disaster

Communion Hymn #  313      O Lord We Praise Thee

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
Hymn #657             Beautiful Savior   

                    Prayers and Announcements

• Randy Anderson, Andrea's father, is cleared for surgical treatment of his leg. Christina Jackson has great blood tests. Pastor Jim Shrader and Kermit Way are continuing medical treatment.
• Ongoing cancer treatment - Christina Jackson, Mary Howell.
• Pastor K and Doc Lito Cruz - dealing with diabetes.
• Jeshra Palangyos is still having seizures.
• Prayers are requested for Gavin, a friend of our church, who had sudden grand mal seizures; Joan Scott, Diane Popp's daughter, who is recovering from a heart attack and stents placed.

 Norma A. Boeckler's artwork

                             

KJV Ephesians 3:13 Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, 16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; 17 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; 19 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, 21 Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.

KJV Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. 12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 17 And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.

SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Lord God, heavenly Father, who didst send Thy Son to be made flesh, that by His death He might atone for our sins and deliver us from eternal death: We pray Thee, confirm in our hearts the hope that our Lord Jesus Christ, who with but a word raised the widow's son, in like manner will raise us on the last day, and grant us eternal life: through Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Background, Gospel Lesson, Luke 7:11-17

Rationalism is not just an old and forgotten philosophy, but lives on as a current, raging one, always reducing God's Creation to a series of normal changes - so no one is offended. I heard a seminary professor in Canada say, "What is disease? It is dis-ease (an emotional difficulty)." So it is all in our heads? This definition comes in handy for those wolves in sheep's clothing who define miracles in the Gospels as examples of people who were so overjoyed that they no longer had this dis-ease. People find many ways to turn miracles into non-miracles. Jesus saw the distress of the widow and raised her son with His powerful Word. Since every element, plant, animal, human, stars and planets came into being only through this Word, it must be very powerful. 

Scholars say the Bible uses mytho-poetic terminology to explain great events or matters beyond our comprehension. I would say, "Yes, but so do the scientists." Astronomers say that in a black hole star, the density is so great that a teaspoon weighs as much as a mountain." No one stops to say, "How many black hole stars have been sampled with a teaspoon?" So there is awe in the description but not awe for the Creator. Many astronomers are believers. Many medical doctors are, too. When I sold a booklet through the mail, about writing for Christian publications. Most responses came from women, but the men who asked for the booklet were MDs. All of them.   

Another Look at Disaster

KJV Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people.

The opening of this miracle names the town where the miracle took place, plus the crowd that followed Him and the disciples. The witnesses were many and the ones who continued as believers were the bedrock of the future Church, eye-witnesses of the power of Jesus' Word. 

There are three examples of Jesus raising someone from the dead, which no one expected - the  widow's son, the young girl, and Lazarus - whose dramatic exit from the grave precipitated the arrest, trial, and crucifixion of Christ. As great as the other examples were, the raising of Lazarus was the most dramatic because of his position and the time spent at his funeral. 

12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.

This woman has met with a double-grief. She lost her husband, which made her life precarious. As Luther noted, she still had a son to protect and house her, a blessing she took for granted. Some will say, "Her attitude is not recorded," and that is true. Luther relied on his experience with many people and his own fallibility, which can be summed up as lack of thankfulness. In general, people are not thankful for how God has blessed them, so they concentrate on what they want but do not have.

This verse is packed with details - and Luke is known for that. She is a widow and this is her only son. That means she will be looked down upon as someone rejected or cursed by God. She might not be alone, having daughters, but she is without a wage-earner and protector now. The city people are there to accompany the coffin, to provide some comfort. But they are also there to witness this miracle. How many were expecting this? None.

Even when Jesus came as a great friend to the departed Lazarus, no one expected that friendship to be expressed as raising the man from the dead. They warned Jesus not to go near the tomb, because "he stinks."

How many times we are just bystanders and God turns disasters into miracles?

Lenski, Luke p. 397

The situation that Jesus encountered is sketched effectively so as to 'let us feel the full pathos of the scene. Jesus, the Prince of Life, here meets death, carrying away his helpless prey. Looked at thus, the scene becomes dramatic in a supreme way. The city was walled and was entered through a great portal in the wall. The aorist means that Jesus drew near, and the following imperfect that the dead man was in the act of being carried out. Jesus and his great following stopped, and the large funeral procession came toward him and then also stopped. The imperfect pictures how the dead man was carried out.

13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.

We know it was not by chance that Jesus was there with His disciples, a crowd following, and now a crowd behind the sorrowing funeral procession. This is entirely one-sided. Jesus came to her because of His compassion. 

 

The word for compassion is based upon the name for the internal organs. We use a Latin word (com-passion) for the Greek base (guts). We know the feeling. We see a scene or hear a story and we feel it immediately in our body. We groan from the emotional pain. We may be too stunned to cry, but cry later. We tense up as if fighting something or go slack as if all energy has gone away. My wife laughs at me because seeing a person on a trapeze can make my hands sweat profusely. It is not the falling that strikes me, but the landing.

Her life is all dark and heavy-laden now, but Jesus came to her, not for her worthiness but for her need. Jesus comes to people now in their distress, when the normal blessings seemed ripped away. Jesus comes through the Spirit's divine energy in the Word, teaching and preaching, through the visible Word of Holy Communion. Trouble makes us eager for whatever the Word says.

14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise.

As Lenski observed, Jesus first comforted the widow, then immediately touched the bier (the body wrapped for burial, two poles with bands for carrying the body, Lenski) which stopped the procession. The Son of God said, "Young man, I say, Arise!"

Jesus, the Logos, the Word, raised the young man from the dead with a simple but powerful three-fold command, 

1. Young man,
2. I say,
3. Arise!

Norma A. Boeckler's artwork

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Luther's Beautiful Analogy

23. But the dead will not be raised to life so quickly. The Word of God is of course preached to us, the goodness of God and whatever is given us through Christ; but this is not yet sufficient, this is only first touching the coffin. The voice of Christ in the heart must also be added, that we may believe the Word, that it is really as we preach. The youth does not immediately arise after he is touched, but when the Lord spoke: “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise!” This voice stirred the heart and caused the dead to rise to life. When I in like manner hear the Word, and allow human traditions to move me, men still bear me ever on and I ever remain in distress, it helps me little. I must besides the external sermon also hear this voice in the heart: “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise:” that is, I must believe this sermon, cleave to it with my heart, trust in it, and let neither sin, death, devil, nor hell draw me from it. 

24. Thus we have two sermons. One lays the hand on the bier. This does not yet accomplish anything. But the other, when the hand is laid on the coffin and the voice follows in the heart, this accomplishes all. The first proclaims to us the works of Christ, how they are done for us and given to us. But when the voice is heard in the heart, then the one who was before dead begins to speak and to confess the faith with his mouth which he believes and feels in his heart. That is, when the heart believes, the work of love follows, namely, that you speak, that is, preach to others and thank God for the blessing and faith he has shown and given unto you. 

15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother.

Luke is quite vivid, and we know he was careful with details. The first part of the miracle is the young man sitting up and talking. The second part is important too - Jesus gave the son back to his mother. As Lenski observed, in the same way God gives to us in so many ways.

16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 17 And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.

At first the crowd was sorrowful and quiet because of the solemn occasion. But God was in their midst! The significance of that was beyond description. It was a sign of the Messiah coming with the power of God. And they lifted to a new reality, because the entire world was changing at that point. The Roman Empire seemed to be at its peak but was spiraling down. Christianity consisted of believers scattered here and there in a corner of the Empire.

Luther:

26. This is said on to-day’s Gospel, in which we see how God helps and saves us, moved by pure grace and loving-kindness, without any merit or worthiness whatever on our part, yea, before we seek or request help from him. God grant that we may believe this!

Disasters always look bad at first, because they mean loss of health, loss of life, loss of income, loss of friends and family. For many it is like running into a wall that was not there.

Job's Comforters, scattered all over the planet, are eager to identify the cause and blame the individual. No one knows who is a member of the Job's Comforter clan until the disaster strikes. They are quite sure it was the individual's fault. If he or she would confess the sin, that would be a good start. 

If the difficulty is only viewed as a difficulty, it is indeed a heavy burden, made worse by our thoughts and by the goading of others. But that problem is also a path to God's wisdom. Nothing makes us more appreciative than a serious need. How could this be? 

God teaches us through the Scriptures, and there is no better Teacher than the Holy Spirit at work in the Word. It leads us to say, "God may solve this and take it away, or provide many kinds of help. But this crisis will open my eyes to what is already a blessing delivered to me, just as Jesus gave the son back to his mother."

God lets us be miracle-watchers. We can pray for those people going through a crisis, and the odds are, miracles will develop beyond all hope. If the big one does not happen, the others will.

God is working these miracles all the time, even to unbelievers, even to those who will never comprehend them.

But it is good to remember the basic phase use for miracle - "to perform a sign from God." Miracle is so commonly used, even as a salad dressing, that we can forget the literal meaning - God has stepped into this disaster and has shown that only He can accomplish this.

But God reigns over all the universe. He does not obey orders snapped at him. If we fix the time, manner, and outcome, it is not God at work but God obedient to us. He shows those people, like the Church Growth clowns, that He can do the opposite, even hand over the opposite of the demands as another sign - a sign of His wrath.

The Gospel enters our hearts and fills us with love, joy, peace, and all the fruits of the Spirit. The mammon-worshiper see nothing but misery and glory in their shame. Believers know that the Word will accomplish everything at the end.

John 5

24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

Luther's First Sermon on the Widow's Son, Luke 7:11-17

Luke 7:11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. 12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people. 17 And this rumour of him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the region round about.

SUMMARY OF THIS GOSPEL Love is of such a nature that it forgets itself, and takes upon itself the distress and need of its neighbor. Thus Christ also does here, he winds himself into the distress of the widow and looks upon her misery as his own. 

THE SPIRITUAL INTERPRETATION. 

The lust we have inherited from Adam carries us on hour by hour to the grave and constantly holds us in the grip of death. There is no help or counsel for us, except in the mercy of Christ. When he, however, stirs our hearts the violence of lust is allayed. For by his voice, that is, by the preaching of his Word, which moves the heart so powerfully, we who were dead are made alive again to his praise and glory. 

I. THE MIRACLE ITSELF. 

1. In this Gospel you see how the Evangelist again presents to us a divine miracle, by which he desires to move us to lift our hearts to God, in which is the same state of things as at the time existed in this woman; for to-day’s lesson was not written for the sake of this widow, but for the instruction and help of all who should hear this Gospel until the end of the world, among whom we also have been reckoned. 

2. In the first place notice what lovingkindness and grace were shown to this woman by Christ. We must truly confess she did not merit them; for she is going out of the city with her friends, where there is nothing but crying and weeping. The good woman thought of nothing as little as that she should again lead back her son into the city alive, and for this reason she does not desire it, nor does she ask it, much less has she deserved it. She never thought of such a thing that Christ should come hither; yea, she did not at the time know Christ nor did she know anything of his helping the people. Here all merit and preparations for meeting him are out of the question. 

3. Now all this has been written to the end that just as here this deed of mercy befell this widow freely and entirely of grace, only because it solicited Christ’s sympathy, so from this we can draw the general rule that applies to all the merciful deeds of God, that they all overtake us without our merits, even before we seek them. He lays the foundation and makes the beginning. But why does he pity us? In this way it continues to be the grace of God. Otherwise, if we deserved it, it would not be grace. And if it be of grace, then we can say to him: Thou art a gracious God, thou doest good also to them who deserve it not.

4. This sermon seems easy to us, but where are they who mean it with their heart? If we believed that everything comes to us from God’s grace and mercy, we would daily run and rejoice, our hearts would continually rise and dwell in heaven. When we once get to heaven we will see that this is true. Now no one believes it. The god of this world, the devil, has such great power on earth that we do not see the work of God nor know it. 2 Corinthians 4:4 Therefore we do not appreciate it, we misuse God’s mercies, and are entirely unthankful to him. 

5. If I only kept in mind that he gave me eyes, truly a very great treasure, it would be no wonder if shame caused my death, because of my ingratitude in that I never yet thanked him for the blessing of sight. But we do not see his noble treasures and gifts; they are too common. But when a blind babe happens to be born, then we see what a painful thing the lack of sight is, and what a precious thing even one eye is, and what a divine blessing a healthy, bright countenance is: it serves us during our whole life, and without it one would rather be dead; and yet no one thanks God for it. Examine the entire body, and you will everywhere see traces of God’s grace and goodness. Hence Psalm 33: says: “The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.” He had pure eyes and could see far, that the whole world was full of the goodness and loving-kindness of God. From whom, however, has this goodness come? Have we deserved it? No, but it pleased God to cast his gifts thus promiscuously into the world, which the unthankful receive almost as freely as the thankful. We are grieved when we are obliged to throw away one or two dollars, or less, or even to give them to the poor; how much does God daily cast away of his goods into the world and no one thanks him for anything? Yes, who even acknowledges their receipt? 

6. Thus we may observe all creatures and become convinced of God’s goodness in them. Christ says in Matthew 5:5: “He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” As though he would say: I give it to the whole crowd; but who thanks me a single time for it? He enlightens my and your eyes, but no one acknowledges that it is God’s blessing. If some morning the sun should not rise, or rise three hours late, what distress and loss would that cause? How we would open our mouths and eyes? Then everyone would say: God be praised and thanked, who has given us such a light! But since it occurs daily, that the sun rises and shines at the appointed time, no one considers it a blessing. So it is with the rain from heaven, with the grain in the field and with all God’s creatures. They exist in such abundance, and we are daily so overwhelmed by their abundance that we fail to see them. 

7. At times God permits some man to fall into anxiety and need, into pain and distress, so that the world seems as though it had no God, and it makes a person blind, lame, dropsical, and lets anyone die, as here the widow’s son; for they are his creatures, he can do with them what he will. Now, why does he do this? He does it in such an abundance only that we may continually experience his lovingkindness. Therefore as the disciples in John 9: asked the Lord concerning the man blind from his birth, whether he or his parents sinned, the Lord answered and said: “Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents; but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.” As though he would say: God desires to be praised in this blind person, for he sees that the treasures of the whole world do not move us, wherefore he floods us with his goodness out of pure grace, that he may present a blind person before our eyes, for us to see what a costly treasure we have in the blessing of our sight, although we cannot recognize his grace and kindness in our fortune, that we at least might know and identify them then in our misfortune. Therefore this man had to be blind in order that the others might know themselves, and say: Alas thou good God, what a precious gift I have, what a good thing a healthy body is and a bright countenance! But no one takes it to heart! Yea, it is true we say: have not the cows eyes also! Now, if you were blind you would of course feel the loss, which you do not now feel, because you are well and overshowered with God’s blessings. 

8. So it was in the case of this widow, in whom God lets himself be known, as to what kind of a God he is, what he thinks of us, and what we must think of him. This woman has two misfortunes around her neck. First, she is a widow. This is misfortune enough for one woman, that she is forsaken and alone, and has no one to whom she dare look for comfort. And therefore God in the Scriptures is often mentioned as the Father of the widow and orphans, as in Psalm 68:6 and Psalm 146:9: “God setteth the solitary in families. The Lord preserveth the strangers and orphans, he delivers the widow.” Again: she has an only son about to die, who should have been her comfort. Now, God comes and takes away her husband and 1 son. She had much better have lost house and home, yes, her own life, than her son and husband. But the Lord turns it around. While the husband lived the woman did not appreciate what a blessing a husband was; but when he died she first became aware of it. When he lived, she thought: O, other women have husbands, too! And thought her husband was like other husbands. But afterwards when he was dead, she became aware what kind of a man she had lost. So, too, when her son was bright and well, she did not appreciate the blessing of God, but as soon as he died, she then first saw what a treasure she had lost. Before she did not desire to spend on him; but now, since he is dead, she spends all she has and even herself upon him. And thus it is also with us. There are many of you who do not expend ten dollars that your child may be reared better; if the child dies the parents wish and say: O would to God he were alive, I would give many hundred dollars! Why did you not give something before that he might have learned a little? What is the reason you do not appreciate the grace and blessings of God? In short, the world remains world, and it will not change into anything else. 

9. Now, the woman went ahead and did not know what God had given her; but she was soon obliged to experience it. For before she turns around, and she thinks she is the safest, God comes, tries the wife a little and teaches her certain things, takes her husband and her son. This all has been written for us that we might have an example and learn to acknowledge God when he blesses us with a healthy body, a bright countenance, and bestows upon us other blessings. He does not give them to the end that you should rejoice in them; but that you may know what to think of him. When he takes a member out of your family, permits your wife to die, or destroys one of your eyes, all this is done that you may see what you have enjoyed from him. 

10. And this is now the common teaching through all the Gospels, that we may see what kind of a God we have. It is also shown us here in this Gospel that God will forsake no one; therefore he permits the wife to see in a new light what kind of a God she has. For when she was forsaken and had neither son nor husband, then Christ manifests himself to her and says: Learn to believe, trust God, know him to whom death and life are alike: have a good heart, be of good courage, weep not, there is no need of it. He then goes and awakens the dead, and gives him again to his mother.  

11. This and like miracles God does that the heart may learn how it should be disposed to him and what it may expect from him. As now this wife was fully convinced that there was no hope for her son, that it was impossible for her to receive him back alive again; yea, if one had said to her: Before an hour your son will be alive again, she would have regarded it as impossible and said: It is more possible for the heavens to fall than for my son to live again. Behold, here comes God before she looks around, and does what she never dared to ask of him, as it is impossible, and he restores her son alive to her again. But why does God do this? He permits man to fall so deeply into danger and anxiety, until no help or advice is within reach, and still he desires that we should not doubt, but trust in him who out of an impossible thing can make something possible, and make something out of nothing. If you are so deep in sin that your heart denies you all grace and the mercy of God and makes you think there is no hope for you, as many consciences are ensnared by such anxiety and distress; then turn about and look here how friendly and graciously God allows himself to be pictured by Christ in this Gospel; that you may observe that he means it well with you from his heart; and that he is not here either to condemn or excommunicate you, but to preserve your soul forever. For this purpose such miracles and wonderful works are held before our eyes, and they also serve to the end, that we may see. As God here helps this widow in a temporal way through Christ, so he will help us not only bodily, but much more spiritually, and our soul forever, if we only put our hope in him. 

12. But all miracles and works of God are considered impossible in our eyes, and they are also impossible for the natural man to grasp; and this is to the end that God may be confessed to be an almighty Creator, who from something impossible can create something possible, and can make something out of nothing. It is impossible after I am dead that I should live again; and even if I should pray to all the angels and all the saints for it; nothing will result from such prayers; what then can the free will accomplish? Nevertheless in death I should say: I shall live, not through myself, but because I know that my God is so skillful that he can make something, not out of wood that lies before my eyes, but it is his nature and way to make a thing possible here from something impossible; and create something out of nothing; otherwise he were not the true and real God. 

13. Therefore, if death be present and I can no longer live, I must still know enough to say: Yet I live, and will live; so that death, that is all about me, is like a spark of fire, and life is as great as the sea. Now reason cannot grasp how this takes place. But whoever believes, knows for a certainty that to him death will be like a spark of fire in the midst of the ocean, that is extinguished in a moment. God is almighty, he who believes is in God, therefore he is in life, and though he were in the midst of death. So too a poor person who believes, thinks like this one here in death: O! poverty is a spark of fire, and wealth is as abundant as water in the sea; now a moment only is needed for poverty to sink, and I will be rich; for by faith God has entirely changed him who now has all things in his power. So also with shame; when one’s good name and reputation go down, people think they will never again be regained; if you believe and hold to God, it is a matter only of a moment, and you are again in great honor. For our God knows the art that from invincible poverty he can create great riches, from great shame inexpressable honor. So it is also with sin, if you believe. Thus sin compared with righteousness, is as a spark of fire compared with the whole sea of water. 

14. This you see beautifully illustrated in the case of this woman. She is overwhelmed by exceedingly great pain and anguish, so that she thinks God, heaven, earth and all things are opposed to her. And since she looks into this with the eyes of sense, sees it as it is before her natural eyes, she must conclude it is impossible for her to be delivered from her great anxiety. But when her son was raised from the dead for her, she was as though the whole heaven and earth, wood and stone, and everything laughed and rejoiced with her; then she forgot all pain and suffering, this wholly disappeared just like a spark of fire is extinguished when it falls into the sea. Therefore it is written in the prophet Isaiah 54:6-8: “For Jehovah hath called thee as a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, even a wife of youth when she is cast off, saith thy God. For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee. In overflowing wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting lovingkindness will I have mercy on thee, saith Jehovah thy Redeemer.” But this I do not see, I think this moment is an eternal something before God; but it is in truth only a moment; and much joy follows as Psalm 8:5 also says: “For thou hast made him but little lower than God, and crownest him with glory and honor.” But this is still all hid from us, and we do not see it as this wife does. Her departed son is in the midst of life, for God has him in his bosom, and intends to wake him. There is a spark of death there that surrounds him, which no one saw. But now when he became alive that was revealed which before was hidden from the whole world. 

15. Thus God certainly deals also with us. Here we should learn the kind of God we have, namely, he who surrounds us and is about us in our very greatest dangers and troubles. Therefore, if one is poor, sticks deep in sin, lies in death, is in sorrows and other afflictions, he thinks: it is a transition state, it is a drop and a spark; for God has surrounded him on all sides with pure wealth, righteousness, life and joy, only he does not permit him to see it. But it is a matter of only a little time when we shall see and enjoy it. Thus you have here an example, not of faith, but of the pure grace and lovingkindness of God. Now we must also say a little on the spiritual understanding or the allegorical interpretation of to-day’s Gospel. 

II. THE SPIRITUAL INTERPRETATION OF THIS MIRACLE. 

16. All works and miracles that Christ does visibly and publicly should be interpreted to the end that they may show forth the works which he does among men unseen and spiritually or within them. Therefore this bodily death signifies the spiritual death of the soul, which man must believe. For no one can see into the soul of another while we live; but when we are dead, we then have other eyes, then we see that the whole world is dead. Therefore the Lord spoke to a Pharisee, Matthew 8:22, who first wanted to go and bury his father: “Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.” 

17. This youth who is here being borne to his grave is bodily dead. But there are also some inwardly dead before God who still live here in the body. The soul is dead that does not believe in God and cleave to him. And even though he be in the midst of death, yet he lives, as I said above. 

18. This spiritual death occurs in a twofold manner: some are dead in their soul, but no one sees that death as we see bodily death, and this woman herself neither sees nor feels it. So the whole world is dead, but it realizes it not. Therefore some are also spiritually dead, who feel it well enough, as those whom the law has terribly punished. We do not here speak of those who care nothing for spiritual death; but of those who feel that they are dead and that their heart trembles, and who feel in their conscience that they have an unbelieving heart. He is dead quite otherwise than he who does not feel it, and yet always lives in wantonness. Now the one who does not experience their unbelief cannot be helped, for he does not know his sickness, and lives on, cares nothing for God nor the world. But he who feels this death, suffers misery and distress, there is struggling and despair, the world becomes too confined for him, he seeks assistance and advice, he despises neither stone nor wood, when they can afford him counsel, not to say that he should hear anything of man, even of the most insignificant person. 

19. Who now gives him this feeling. The law does it, in that it reveals sin. The law says: “Thou shalt have no other gods.” When I hear this, I must and should do it, but I cannot. Then I quickly conclude that I am condemned. When I act thus, death comes immediately and there is such a struggle in my heart, that if I should receive no help I would have to remain forever in this death and struggle. This then is the death of the only son, who lies in the bier, the pallbearers are continually carrying him into hell. 

20. The pallbearers are the preachers of the law, who do nothing else than plunge mankind ever deeper and deeper into death; as those here hasten to the grave with the dead they are the more terrified and driven the deeper into perdition. It never becomes better with mankind, yea, it is ever growing worse. 

21. This we have thoroughly experienced under the Pope, in our confession of and in our making satisfaction for sin. We allowed ourselves to think we would atone for our sins by good works; but it was only an anxiety of the conscience. Thus we ever sank deeper toward hell. Hence, when you have people, who fear sin and condemnation, they are already dead, you dare not preach to these much more of the law, you must show them the way of salvation and preach to them the Gospel. When our Papists meet such troubled souls, they refer them to rosaries, to pilgrimages, to this and that work; but one helps like the other. 

22. The pallbearers would have still moved on and laid the deceased in his grave and buried him, had Christ not come, so Christ must come also here with his Word and grace. And this now is that other office of the Gospel, which does not teach what you are to do; but whence you are to receive help, that you may do it; as Christ does here. He asks not, what is here? or how do you do this? do you wish to have the youth restored to life again, and the like? He asks none of these things; but he has mercy on the mother, goes to her, touches the bier, and the bearers soon stand still. That is, when  man preaches the goodness of God, and when Christ presents us with his merits and works, then the hand is laid upon the coffin, and the bearers stand still, that is, you no longer hear the preachers of the law, you no longer believe them; but you say: preach works here, preach works there, we have a different sermon. While our hands are on the coffin they accomplished nothing; the dead does not come to life again; but when Christ’s hand touches the coffin the mighty work is done. For when men hear that Christ’s work does it, and that his works are presented to us, he says: What need we to do beside? For here our doing is useless and in vain. 

23. But the dead will not be raised to life so quickly. The Word of God is of course preached to us, the goodness of God and whatever is given us through Christ; but this is not yet sufficient, this is only first touching the coffin. The voice of Christ in the heart must also be added, that we may believe the Word, that it is really as we preach. The youth does not immediately arise after he is touched, but when the Lord spoke: “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise!” This voice stirred the heart and caused the dead to rise to life. When I in like manner hear the Word, and allow human traditions to move me, men still bear me ever on and I ever remain in distress, it helps me little. I must besides the external sermon also hear this voice in the heart: “Young man, I say unto thee, Arise:” that is, I must believe this sermon, cleave to it with my heart, trust in it, and let neither sin, death, devil, nor hell draw me from it. 

24. Thus we have two sermons. One lays the hand on the bier. This does not yet accomplish anything. But the other, when the hand is laid on the coffin and the voice follows in the heart, this accomplishes all. The first proclaims to us the works of Christ, how they are done for us and given to us. But when the voice is heard in the heart, then the one who was before dead begins to speak and to confess the faith with his mouth which he believes and feels in his heart. That is, when the heart believes, the work of love follows, namely, that you speak, that is, preach to others and thank God for the blessing and faith he has shown and given unto you. 

25. From this follows great joy and thanksgiving, by which God is praised and exalted; just as here a great report about Christ went over the entire land of the Jews and into all the neighboring countries. Thus a Christian can lead many unto faith. Therefore man should not make a work of jugglery out of miracles and wonders, as the Papists have done.

26. This is said on to-day’s Gospel, in which we see how God helps and saves us, moved by pure grace and loving-kindness, without any merit or worthiness whatever on our part, yea, before we seek or request help from him. God grant that we may believe this!

Walther - The Odious Effects of the Walther Errors

 

Resist the Beginnings – The Walther Effect

Lenski or Pfotenhauer wrote, “Resist the beginnings.” Lutherans can now see what developed from the cagey methods of CFW Walther. Each denomination goes down wrong paths, but these are distinctive to the LCMS-WELS-ELS and mini-micro groups that left the main body.

1.      Pietism – Stephan and Walther brought over Pietism, because that was all they knew. That was the fatal flaw that led the groups back into cell groups, rejection of the Means of Grace, and ignorance of the Word’s efficacy.

2.      The extremes of Pietism have made these groups experts in their false sacraments – the stink-eye and shunning. Anyone who questions their holiness is given the stink-eye at the start and shunned with Amish tenacity.

3.      This extreme Pietism does not mean the Ten Commandments count for much. They protect their criminals and wink at their apostasy while pretending to be different from and superior to ELCA.

4.      Law-breaking is condoned among the officials while dissent is punished with excommunication, root and branch.

5.      If someone has contracted a dread disease, “nobody knows” even though many know – very much like Stephan’s rashes and megalomania.

6.      If someone has been apprehended by the FBI or police, the officials feign shock and say, “We never knew.”

7.      Like signing the bishop’s enthronement paper, the officials deny what is publicly known or provable, even to the point of saying, “He is not in our synod.”

8.      Peculiar arrangements are overlooked, if the individual comes from the right family tree.

9.      Millions of dollars are wasted on pet projects and the decisions are not subject to examination by those who contribute their offerings.

10.  They have a cover story for every scandal, an alibi that takes the place of the truth and makes the curious totally evil for even asking.

11.  Like Walther’s mob, group actions are rigged from the start, so the outcome is known before anything happens. Appeals are just as worthless.

12.  No matter how stories and decisions are rigged, people put the facts together and quietly leave. That is why LCMS-WELS-ELS are fading away as they covertly emulate and work with ELCA, but overtly act superior to ELCA.

13.  They use law firms to protect themselves from the truth. “If this goes to court, we will pay $10 million. There goes the Russian mission!”

14.  Their cruelty toward faithful pastors – while protecting criminals – is the mark of a true LCMS-WELS-ELS official.

15.  Everything belongs to them – these heirs of Walther. They have control of the property, pensions, endowments, and congregational property. They will kick the Mother Church out, if they choose, and steal it back with the cash, if they wish.

16.  Like Walther’s treatment of young Stephan, the vindictiveness of the officials is a marvel. They will undercut and eject someone for a long-remembered slight, or plain old jealousy, and gloat over their imaginary victory.

17.  Their manufacture of myths out of history is a continuation of the Walther fables: the LCMS-WELS-ELS were born orthodox, conceived without sin, and conducted their ecclesiastical missions with their eyes focused only on the Heavenly City.