Hymn - Oh, For a Faith That Will Not Shrink

 

"Oh, for a Faith That Will Not Shrink"
by William H. Bathhurst, 1796-1877

Tune - St. Peter - linked here

1. Oh, for a faith that will not shrink
Tho' pressed by many a foe;
That will not tremble on the brink
Of poverty or woe;

2. That will not murmur nor complain
Beneath the chast'ning rod,
But in the hour of grief or pain
Can lean upon its God;

3. A faith that shines more bright and clear
When tempests rage without;
That, when in danger, knows no fear,
In darkness feels no doubt;

4. That bears unmoved the world's dread frown
Nor heeds its scornful smile;
That sin's wild ocean cannot drown
Nor Satan's arts beguile;

5. A faith that keeps the narrow way
Till life's last spark is fled
And with a pure and heavenly ray
Lights up the dying bed.

6. Lord give us such a faith as this;
And then, whate'er may come,
We'll taste e'en now the hallowed bliss
Of an eternal home.

Hymn #396
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Luke 17:5
Author: William H. Bathhurst, 1831, alt.
Composer: Alexander R. Reinagle, 1836
Tune: "St. Peter"

 Bathurst also wrote - "Jesus Thy Church with Longing Eyes"

Hymn - Come Ye Disconsolate

"Come, Ye Disconsolate"
by Thomas Moore, 1779-1852; Stanza 1, 2
by Thomas Hastings, 1784-1872; Stanza 3

Tune - Alma Redemptoris mater - linked here

1. Come, ye disconsolate, where'er ye languish,
Come to the Mercy-seat, fervently kneel.
Here bring your wounded hearts, here tell your anguish;
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal.

2. Joy of the desolate, Light of the straying,
Hope of the penitent, fadeless and pure;
Here speaks the Comforter, tenderly saying,
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot cure.

3. Here see the Bread of Life; see waters flowing
Forth from the throne of God, pure from above.
Come to the feast of love; come, ever knowing
Earth has no sorrow but Heaven can remove.

Hymn #531
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Hebrews 4:16
Author: Thomas Moore, 1816, alt.; St. 1, 2
Author: Thomas Hastings, 1832; St. 3
Composer: Samuel Webbe, 1792
Tune: "Alma Redemptoris mater"

The woman at the well, John 4.

Hymn - Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning

"Brightest and Best of the Sons of the Morning"
by Reginald Heber, 1783-1826

Tune - Morning Star - linked here

1. Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid;
Star of the East, the horizon adorning,
Guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.

2. Cold on His cradle the dewdrops are shining;
Low lies His head with the beasts of the stall.
Angels adore Him in slumber reclining,
Maker and Monarch and Savior of all.

3. Shall we not yield Him, In costly devotion
Odors of Edom and offerings divine,
Gems of the mountain and pearls of the ocean,
Myrrh from the forest and gold from the mine?

4. Vainly we offer each ample oblation,
Vainly with gifts would His favor secure.
Richer by far is the heart's adoration;
Dearer to God are the prayers of the poor.

5. Brightest and best of the sons of the morning,
Dawn on our darkness and lend us thine aid;
Star of the East, the horizon adorning,
Guide where our infant Redeemer is laid.

The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #128
Text: Matthew 2:11
Author: Reginald Heber, 1811
Composer: John P. Harding, 1892
Tune: "Morning Star"

Bishop Reginald Heber also wrote Holy, Holy, Holy and the Missionary Hymn.

Hymn - Blessed Savior Who Has Taught Us

"Blessed Savior, Who hast Taught Me"
by John M. Neale, 1818-1866

    Tune - O du Liebe - linked here

1. Blessed Savior, who hast taught me
I should live to Thee alone,
All these years Thy hand hath brought me
Since I first was made Thine own.
At the font my vows were spoken
By my parents in the Lord;
That my vows shall be unbroken
At the altar I record.

2. I would trust in Thy protecting,
Wholly rest upon Thine arm,
Follow wholly Thy directing,
O my only Guard from harm,
Meet me now with Thy salvation
In Thy Church's ordered way;
Let me feel Thy confirmation
In Thy truth and fear today.

3. So that, might and firmness gaining,
Hope in danger, joy in grief,
Now and evermore remaining
In the one and true belief,
Resting in my Savior's merit,
Strengthened with Thy Spirit's strength,
With Thy saints I may inherit
All My Father's joy at length.

Hymn #333
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Ezekiel 16:60
Author: John M. Neale, 1842, cento.
Tune: "O du Liebe"
1st Published in: Musikalischer Christenschatz
Town: Basel, 1745B

The Lutheran Librarian Said This on the Phone Today, In So Many Words

John C. Ryle
A link to his work.

Many people will put up with anything in religion, if they may only have a quiet life. They have a morbid dread of what they call “controversy.” They are filled with a morbid fear of what the style, in a vague way, “party spirit,” though they never define clearly what party spirit is. They are possessed with a morbid desire to keep the peace and make all things smooth and pleasant, even though it be at the expense of truth. So long as they have outward calm, smoothness, stillness, and order, they seem content to give up everything else. 

~The Fallibility of Ministers             J.C. Ryle

Whenever we hear teaching which obscures or contradicts justification by faith, we may be sure there is a screw loose somewhere. We should watch against such teaching, and be upon our guard. Once let a man get wrong about justification, and he will bid a long farewell to comfort, to peace, to a lively hope, to anything like assurance in his Christianity. An error here is like a worm at the root.

~The Fallibility of Ministers             J.C. Ryle

Samuel Johnson

 

 Samuel Johnson was a devout Christian, which is seldom mentioned in literature classes. I longed to get his enormous Dictionary at one time, but I am over that.
He was born today, 1709. He was quite near-sighted.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Samuel-Johnson/Maturity-and-recognition

The Britannica article has a lot of good information. 

Wiki

In 1746, a group of publishers approached Johnson with an idea about creating an authoritative dictionary of the English language.^[67] A contract with William Strahan and associates, worth 1,500 guineas, was signed on the morning of 18 June 1746.^[75] Johnson claimed that he could finish the project in three years. In comparison, the Académie Française had 40 scholars spending 40 years to complete their dictionary, which prompted Johnson to claim, "This is the proportion. Let me see; forty times forty is sixteen hundred. As three to sixteen hundred, so is the proportion of an Englishman to a Frenchman."^[67] Although he did not succeed in completing the work in three years, he did manage to finish it in eight.^[67] Some criticised the dictionary, including Thomas Babington Macaulay, who described Johnson as "a wretched etymologist,"^[76] but according to Bate, the Dictionary "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who laboured under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time."^[4]

When he was a child in petticoats, and had learnt to read, Mrs. Johnson one morning put the common prayer-book into his hands, pointed to the collect for the day, and said, 'Sam, you must get this by heart.' She went up stairs, leaving him to study it: But by the time she had reached the second floor, she heard him following her. 'What's the matter?' said she. 'I can say it,' he replied; and repeated it distinctly, though he could not have read it more than twice.^[17]

Boswell's Life of Johnson

Johnson's biographer, Boswell, was as interesting as his subject.

Tofu Buildings in China - Demolition - Economy a Sham Propped Up by West

 

The Old Man in the Mountain wonders, "When will the People's Republic of China collapse, in the same way as the tofu apartments?"

What a Waste - Article from India with this video

I remember meeting a retired man who talked about his investment in China. The values were way up and collapsed to nothing. Someone talked him into using up his insurance cash value for this great investment in the exploding Chinese economy. Western money is solicited for inventing a booming economy and covering up the truth.

As I have reported before, the Chinese economy is a sham. They routinely build tofu structures, the nickname used because their concrete starts to fail a few years after completion. The Three Gorges Dam is one such project, criticized by a team of engineers for using China biggest products in producing dam concrete - human and animal manure. The Chinese response was to call the team of engineers "racist" and remove them from the country.

Here is a song by Cohen:

That's how it goes

Everybody knows.

Everybody knows that the boat is leaking.

Everybody knows that the captain lied.

Everybody got this broken feeling

Like their father or their dog just died.

Cohen was a sensation when I was in college and he recently died. Watch any talent show and someone will warble his Halleluiah. His Everybody Knows is definitely the anthem for our age, where we

1. Traded the classic KJV for a cavalcade of Bibles for Dummies;
2. Burned more churches than the Chicago Fire using Church Growth for kindling;
3. Converted warmed over bar music into expensive "hymns" for the young;
4. Replaced the Gospel of Faith in Christ with trust in demographics;
5. Agreed with Calvinists that the Sacraments were just ordinances;
6. Protected the drunk, adulterous clergy and abhorred the efficacy of the Word;
7. Elected synod presidents with no concept of Biblical doctrine. None.
8. Yapped constantly about grace but spurned the Means of Grace.
9. Turned Universalism - Objective Justification - into the Chief Article of Christianity.
10. Used the teaching of Justification by Faith (the actual Chief Article) as the sufficient cause for excommunication.

 Abused WELS students laugh at "We ran out of Germans" sermon by Jeske,
who ran out of ideas to steal several decades ago. Notice the ties - a photo op staged by attention hog Mark and Avoid Jeske.

United States Constitution - The Most Lasting Constitution in the World.And Most Neglected.

 

Today is US Constitution Day

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

A Famine and a Drought in Our Land

 

KJV Matthew 5:6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

I wonder if the Objective Justification fanatics scratch their heads about this verse, because they claim the entire world has been given the righteous of Christ. Why would anyone hunger and thirst for righteous bequeathed in some mysterious Calvinistic way?

America is suffering from a famine and  a drought.

Every Lutheran Bishop or Synod President or Circuit Pastor or Professor Is a Traitor To the Gospel They Barter and Sell on the Marketplace

 

 Tyndale was a translator and martyr, murdered for translating the Bible from the original languages, which became the King James Version, as much the standard of English people as the Luther Bible for Germans. Significantly, the KJV is precise and uses the Majority Text of the believing Church. The NIV/ESV use the invented, dubious eclectic text of the rationalists.

Matt the Fatt, Mirthless Mark the Bookkeeper, the New Guy at the ELS, Bishop Liz Eaton, His Eminence Bishop Jim Heiser, STM...All Are Apostates Sipping Their Absinthe in Honor of Their Father Below

Wormwood is the key ingredient in absinthe, called the Green Fairy.

They cannot murder the translator and burn the Bibles today, and Henry VII did - a pity, because that would wake up the listless clergy and laity. Instead, they erase the KJV from memory and line up for the profits gained from promoting the NIV and ESV.

Someone might line up at the book store or the denomination's book display and think, "The NIV is really popular, and the ESV too." They are seeing the effect of incentives, giving fat kickbacks to the bookstores and denominations for promoting painfully bad Bibles with sliced and diced texts and paraphrasing instead of translation.

So many professors and church leaders have gladly exchanged the English Luther Bible - the KJV - for the thin gruel of butchered Bibles.  

 The Green Fairy promotes Bibles frequently changed to keep up with the bastardization of the English language and the Chief Article of Christianity - Justification by Faith.

How the Preus Crime Family Weakened the Missouri Synod - From the NonQuest of Luther

 

The barefoot Preus Brothers - the Log Cabin Years.

Someone from LutherQuest posted that Jack Preus seriously damaged the LCMS by allowing Seminex graduates to come back to Holy Mother Missouri by colloquizing. The District Presidents followed up by asking the apostate candidates non-questions, welcoming the lads, and killing the fatted calf.

Other Seminex graduates became ALC/LCA pastors and rose to become district presidents aka bishops in ELCA. 

In reality, Jack and Robert Preus dealt Missouri a mortal blow by making Objective Justification the devil's mouth to kiss (Satanic ritual, you do not want to know what it means). They did this with great confidence and daring, yet ending their careers with movement toward the truth without any contrition or confession.

 David Scaer, who failed his doctoral program in Germany, considers the Maier family a bad influence on the Missouri Synod. Consider the keystone and the cornerstone in Protestantism, according to Dr. Maier.

They focused their scorn on Dr. Walter A. Maier II, often called WAM II. He was the son of Dr. Walter A. Maier, Harvard PhD in Semitics. His father created a radio ministry and preached sermons that are just as good now as they were almost a century ago.

The Preus Brothers used a clever tactic that relied on the adoration of CFW Walther, BA, who was Bishop Stephan's pimp and prosecutor. Walther followed Stephan like a puppy until he found the opportunity to form a riot. Walther and the mob:

1. threatened Stephan with death, 
2. kidnaped him at gunpoint, and 
3. stole his land, gold, books, and personal possessions.

But Stephan taught Walther and his Pietistic circle the beauty of Objective Justification - "everyone in the world has already been absolved of sin by the resurrection of Christ." So Walther and his fellow assassins almost killed their bishop, had him judged by a real estate agent (!) and yet adopted his blasphemous dogma.

Valleskey became president of Mordor by studying at Fuller and teaching Objective Justification.

 There is no faith in Walther's bombastic dogmatics. There is the absolution of the entire world (without faith) and acceptance of this declaration. The LutherQueasies, Missouri Synod, WELS, ELS, CLC (sic), and ELCA all agree.

Although the Objective Justification Stormtroopers control the LCMS now, they cannot erase the long history of Holy Mother Missouri officially teaching Justification by Faith:

• The Schwan Catechism
• The KJV Catechism
• The Gausewitz Catechism.
• The German Luther set

Note this - the Preus Crime Family (including David Scaer) never said, "WAM II loves Justification by Faith and we reject it!" They built up their animosity and treated WAM II like he was dirt under their fingernails, making OJ appear to be the purest Scriptural standard. What would Luther say?

No, Maier opponents said, "WAM II is a false teacher for rejecting Missouri's stance on Justification."

Late in life, Jack Preus finished his biography of Martin Chemnitz, a theologian the LCMS/WELS just happened to ignore until very recently. Robert Preus' book on Justification and Rome had so many anti-OJ quotes in it from orthodox Lutherans that Rolf One-Note Preus (his son) stopped citing the book. 

Twas Jungkuntz, the former WELS professor at Northwestern College in Watertown who promoted Objective Justification and became chair of the lavender Seminex portable seminary. Why would Jack Preus and his DPs object to Seminex grads coming back to Holy Mother Missouri?

Let us not forget how the conflict created by the Preus Crime Family also lined the coffers of Otten's Christian News with gold. His non-profit foundation had $1 million in it at one point. Otten curried the favor of both sides, as he did with Church Growth and Catholicism, but he always stood by Objective Justification, saying his wife Grace was the theologian of the family.

The Internet Door Is Shut to Calvinist News, The Tabloid Devoted to Attacking The Chief Article of Christianity

 

Calvin on the far right says, "Cub editor, you embarrass us."
Halle Pietist Knapp is thinking, "How long will it take for my Pietist pupils to turn my dogma into theirs?" 
Cub editor Hale rejoices in getting paid to put out a dull, Pietistic parish newsletter.

This happened before, so maybe it is temporary. Instead of getting the normal link to the best sleeping medicine since Somo-Nitz teaching at Mordor, I get "Be back soon" instead of Christian News. That tabloid loves every generic book, but not The Book of Concord.

They love every theologian except Luther, Melanchthon, and Chemnitz.

 From Genesis 15:6 to Romans 4. Read both together and try to shoehorn Objective Justification into the clear, plain words of the Sacred Scriptures..

 Most of the ELDONUTs graduated from Ft. Wayne.

Bethany Lutheran Media Ministries - The Funeral of Christina Elizabeth Jackson

 

Pan-Lutheran Association of Non-Believers: How To Wreck Congregations

 

Biblical text criticism is called Lower Criticism. Attacking the truth of the Bible is called Higher Criticism, which is based on the assumption of the Scriptures being one more man-made book about religion. The modern Bibles are an homage to Bultmann, Tillich, and Holy Father in Rome. Yes, all the Bible societies of note work with the Church of Rome, careful 

How To Wreck the Congregations

They began with Lower Criticism, telling everyone that their academic bigotry against the Bible was scientific, up to date, and approved by the best scholars. That gave the professors a license to distribute and make canonical (note the irony) of Higher Criticism, where each and every book of the Bible was sliced, diced, and smothered with the insights of German Rationalism, the center being Halle University.

Everyone selling, distributing, and promoting the NIV, ESV, and similar disasters can boast of foundational work in destroying the Christian Faith. 

The NIV, loved by WELS and LCMS alike, has erased the Sacraments and injected Objective Justification into Romans 3. There are so many paraphrases out there than any pastor can say in his or her most solemn voice - "Scholars are divided." 

Who hates the King James Version? 

1. LCMS
2. WELS
3. ELS
4. CLC (sic)
5. ELDONUTs

That is the most important part of the apostates' work. Next - the hymnals.

Notice how the  hymnals have gone downhill, with nice print, poor quality, and bloated prices! Speaking unity with their forked tongues, the ophidian leaders have divided their failing little sects with nasty, fat hymnals filled with leaden prose and worse music. 

The result has been anything goes worship, balding boomers strumming their instruments to be cool, modern, and anti-Lutheran.

The Results Are the Same

Pastors and members are encouraged to think in terms of marketing, not the Means of Grace. With the Sacraments gone from their precious NIVs, it is easy to suppress Holy Communion and infant Baptism, whispering low in Jerusalem lest she be heard on the streets of Gath.

No More Cable TV or Streaming Shows

 

 More time for farming!

I called up our fiber optic co-op and canceled TV service. The lady asked, "Will you be using Internet streaming services?" 

I said, "Maybe, but why are you asking?"

She said, "A lot of customers are dropping TV, so we are asking to see if we can make our services more appealing."

I said, "TV News is 100% garbage and the new TV shows are manure. The only things left are Turner Classic Movies and Law and Order. We were at the point reciting Columbus dialogue." She laughed in agreement about news and the new TV shows.

We tried Hulu on the computer once, a great chance to watch even more commercials with low quality shows. We went through the Netflix historical features about Britain. The lack of good selections canceled that one too.

 "We were speeding, officer? Grrr, we heard that Kudu Don Patterson was hunting in this neck of the woods, so we wanted to leave as soon as possible."

Giving Up Four Legs for Sassy's Bed

 

Sassy was quite a jumper after I trained her to grab the orange ball out of a long, slow lob.

She is no longer such a jumper. When Atlas and Alaska, super-sized puppies, arrive at our house, they are just like young Sassy was - jumping, loping in big circles, leaping to the side to start a tag game. 

Ten years ago, Sassy would tear out of the front door, run halfway to Bob's and coming back full speed. She reached the point where she needed help to jump onto the bed. We played various games. One consisted of being petted several times - and praised - before she would attempt a jump onto the bed. That always ended with triumphant barks, even though she expected help to reach the top with her entire body.

Today we screwed four legs off the bed and lowered it to the floor. Sassy discovered she could hop into bed. She does not need help, so she will continue as landlord, leasing my part of the bed (33%) at a reasonable price.

She keeps her back toward me and barks with a cracked, melancholy cry. That means she needs some petting and praise. After her quota is met, she takes up her guard position and goes back to sleep.

The Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, 2021. Galatians 5:25 - 6:10

 

The Fifteenth Sunday after Trinity, 2021

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Daylight Time

The Hymn #376                         Rock of Ages                                                            

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 #396                           O For a Faith                                

Sowing to the Spirit, Reaping Life Everlasting

The Communion Hymn #467           Built on the Rock - Grundvig

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 #309                O Jesus Blessed Lord - Kingo

                         

Announcements and Prayers

• The Veterans Honor flowers are in memory of Gary Meyer, Air Force veteran, who died on September 17, 2014.
• Medical concerns - Pastor Jim Shrader, Kermit Way.
• Norma A. Boeckler received honors from India for her Christian graphics.

People ask about our Holy Communion.

Roman Catholics put an emphasis on the ordained priest. The presence of the priest validates the communion service. The forgiveness is partial; the elements become only the body and blood of Christ. The priest and his ordination make it effective.

Calvinists reject Baptism and Communion as sacraments. The elements remain bread and wine and do not convey forgiveness. Calvin mocked the Real Presence.

Lutheran Biblical teaching shows what 1 Corinthians 10:16 reveals. The Body of Christ is with the bread through the Consecrating Word; the Blood is with the wine through the consecrating Word. The Word is always effective.

Distance does not attenuate or weaken the power of the Word, which is always divine. When Jesus multiplied the loaves and fish through His Word, the 5,000 families were stretched across the grassy oasis. Nevertheless, these miracles showed Jesus could create this miracle for the entire crowd. If the liturgy, hymns, creed, readings, and sermon are effective, then how could the Words of Consecration be ineffective? Those who agree with the Augsburg Confession are one with us and are welcome to join the distribution - after God's Word has consecrated the elements for those who hear and believe.

KJV Galatians 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. 6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.  2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 3 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.  4 But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.  5 For every man shall bear his own burden.  6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.  7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.  9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.  10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

KJV Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. 25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? 26 Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? 27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? 28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: 29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? 31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? 32 (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. 34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

FIFTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank Thee for all Thy benefits: that Thou hast given us life and graciously sustained us unto this day: We beseech Thee, take not Thy blessing from us; preserve us from covetousness, that we may serve Thee only, love and abide in Thee, and not defile ourselves by idolatrous love of mammon, but hope and trust only in Thy grace, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Sowing to the Spirit, Reaping Life Everlasting

KJV Galatians 5:25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Twenty-plus years ago, I was given a severe adjustment in all my attitudes. Although I was familiar with the basics of Biblical doctrine, trying to show everyone what went wrong also showed me our neglect of the Holy Spirit.

One reason was the Pentecostal-charismatic emphasis on the Spirit and tongues, promoting people to apostles, and forming cell groups. But the main reason was the neglect of Lutherans for the Biblical doctrine of the Spirit always at work in the Word and never apart from the Word. We could call it a recipe, simple but often neglected.

When I made a pumpkin pie yesterday, I followed all the directions. The pie was perfect and had an extra participant - Sassy. Not long ago I made one that was a complete mess and called Schwan's experts. "You have to put the pan on the cooking sheet, and not the cooking sheet below the pan. That blocks the heat." Everything was fine except the application of the directions.

The Biblical recipe for the Word and Spirit is simple - one is never without the other. When people separate the two, it is called Enthusiasm - the root of all false religions and false doctrine.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Translating with the recipe - If we live in the Word of God, let us also march in line with the Word of God. (Lenski, Galatians, p. 295) So we use familiar words, such as rule and guide for the Scriptures, but Paul used the easy to remember verb - march in line. Another word for walking is used today - peripatetic - for moving around, which does not equate with disciplined or ordered walking.

So Paul is putting a little twist in this inspired letter. It is not just talking about or acknowledging the Spirit - it is acting in line with the Spirit in the teaching of the Scriptures.

If a church features soft drinks and snacks during worship, is that in line with the Word of God? If they trust in entertainment to bring in the right people, is that what the Word teaches? One denomination will pick high traffic locations while another emphasizes membership in the biggest denomination - Holy Mother Rome.

This verse is another clear message that the Christian Church is primarily a preaching and teaching institution, that everything is Word-centric, that is - based upon the Faith of Jesus and our faith in Jesus.

A careful study of congregations in America will reveal that the old ways were preach, teach, and visit. Congregations grew. Now it is entertain, keep them busy, and aim at the right demographic - congregations are all shrinking.

Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Vain glory is gathering praise from others when that is not earned or needed. If one person claims something good he has done, others will boast about their part in it, causing conflict and envy. All accomplishments are from the Spirit in the Word.

Luther observed that bearing the cross eliminates vainglory. 

6:1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.

This shows the kindly nature of Paul, who is promoted as mean and tough by those who rely on their liberal seminary professors. What does spiritual mean? - If you are bound to the Word of God and not to the whims of man.

Fault here means - something plainly wrong (Lenski). The word is always used for serious errors, not for failing to bow before the District President or Circuit Pastor.

Walther and his circle of pastors protected Bishop Stephan from all of his crimes until they had a set up where only the opponents would riot, steal all the bishop's land and money, and kidnap him - gunpoint - to Illinois. Yes, they had a trial, which was headed by the real estate agent, who was not clergy or a member.

2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 3 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.  4 But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. 

This is so important in the Christian Church, and it is widely practiced but also widely ignored. Grief is a burden, and people help with that experience, which never goes away completely. Serious illness is also a burden, which is why visits and phone calls and prayers are so important. Every time this comes up on Facebook, in emails, etc, I write down a prayer and send it in the Name of Jesus. The Savior helps in a thousand ways. 

The law of Christ is "Love one another, as I have loved you." That is a powerful and all-encompassing law, because Jesus loved the disciples, who were "men of little faith" who "denied Jesus three times." And even - who actively persecuted His followers and sent them to prison. That was Paul. The risen Christ confronted Paul with his blasphemies - "Why do you persecute Me?"

KJV Acts 9:3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5 And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest:

Because Paul was the greatest sinner, even worse than Peter, he was also the apostle who preached the most about Justification by Faith and the overwhelming grace of God. 

Vainglory is a terrible and dangerous sin, because the person who basks in praise and glory will find himself inventing a persona that brings everything down to dust, usually with many innocent or trusting people damaged. 

We can have disciple-like moments of regret, when we realize that we doubted and feared, but God showed us His power and mercy, in His time, in His way. That is why God's greatest troubadours are those who endured impossible difficulties and remained faithful though on the edge of breaking. 

5 For every man shall bear his own burden.

Lenski has a great translation - Each man will carry his own cargo.

That means the work each person does is that God-given responsibility. One family has a child in seizures, who has never been cured but is helped immensely through the extreme patience and faith of her parent. 

6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things. 

Lenski says clearly that this is not payment of the clergy but realizing that the teacher of the Gospel is rich in spiritual treasures, which he shares with the recipients. That is the sharing. The right attitude is "I will learn as much as I can about the Gospel."

7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.  9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

Yes, the Buckwheat has started to bloom throughout our yard. I was sowing it before we had some rain. Now the tiny white flowers are feeding bees and forming seeds. Bare spots are filling in, and weeds can find no purchase where the tiny Buckwheats are taking all the sun and water.

The same could have been done with a wide variety of weeds, which can be sown as a cover crop. Buckwheat provides real food. Sowing weeds will create a thrill for a short time. So it is with the vanity of material gain. If that is first and foremost, the results will not be that which matters most. Sowing to the Spirit means reaping everlasting life.

In many various ways we end up with a certain responsibility, our cargo. That gives us the joint effort of spreading the Gospel, and no one can do it alone. I realized that could never be done within the boundaries of apostate synods. They simply could not tolerate it, so they gave me another path, which has worked well. 

Whatever we do, we should not grow discouraged because we will see the reward in the appointed time.

10 As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

That is the Gospel charge - where the opportunity presents itself, let us do what is good for all people - and especially for those who are Christians.

 Rambach was a false teacher, still loved today by false teachers.