ICHABOD, THE GLORY HAS DEPARTED - explores the Age of Apostasy, predicted in 2 Thessalonians 2:3, to attack Objective Faithless Justification, Church Growth Clowns, and their ringmasters. The antidote to these poisons is trusting the efficacious Word in the Means of Grace. John 16:8. Isaiah 55:8ff. Romans 10. Most readers are WELS, LCMS, ELS, or ELCA. This blog also covers the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, and the Left-wing, National Council of Churches denominations.
There is a lot of interest in the nutrition articles, and I keep learning a lot more. I dropped 40 points from my systolic level and 12 pounds of weight, simply from following Joel Fuhrman's nutrition guides.
Today Ranger Bob and I picked up an assembled static bicycle from Lowe's and installed it near Sassy's bed, which she lets me use.
I will return to the gym and use the bike for daily exercise. That makes a big difference in making new habits becoming more beneficial - with general health, strength, and endurance. Eye surgery meant no gym, and my reading vision is a bit tiring. I will not get a reading glasses prescription for my remodeled eyes for another 19 days. So far everything has gone well and my long-distance vision is excellent.
Online classes have calmed down, so I can finish the second edition of The Bible Book. Fortunately I stumbled on the McAfee KJV book that makes an even better case for the KJV than the Harvard essay does. Harvard concluded that they could not discuss the literature of the Bible unless they used the KJV. I admire their way of proving that the ESV-NIV-RSV family is for dummies.
McAfee laid out the reasons in 1912, before Beevis and Butthead did Bible translating. The KJV permeates all of English literature after its creation. The details given are phenomenal.
One reader already asked for a copy of McAfee. I sent one for him and one for someone who would appreciate it. A lot of the work done to promote the efficacy of the Word comes from distributing worthwhile books on the subject. I got a used set of Lenski for $100 at Mordor. Our members created free GIFs of that work - for everyone. The ALC let the Lenski set go public domain but they do not want anyone printing it.
The Bible Book
Two big changes with The Bible Book are:
Better information on the KJV and its value.
The truth - with evidence - about how fraudulent are Aleph and B - Codex Sinaiticus and Codex Vaticanus. Note - the LCMS commentary on Mark uses Codex Vaticanus, proving LCMS is once again in the claws of Seminex. Matt the Fatt Harrison will be known in LCMS history as Matt the Unready.
I am not going to set a date on The Bible Book, but I think February should be enough to exhaust my perfectionistic tendencies in publishing. I am going to use the Amazon method of grouping books by using The Bible Book as the first in a series of Scriptural books. The next will be about Jesus' I AM sermons in the Gospel of John.
“This is the course that matters are wont to take with all heretics: first they get an idea that pleases them, that seems good and right to them.
“After they have conceived their idea, they go to Scripture, there to seek and to accept whatever may give it a good coloring.
“This is a very dangerous undertaking… In a word, they undertake to produce something special, to devise a faith of their own, without God’s Word, and to shape or form a special God for themselves, not as Scripture pictures Him but according to their own notions.”
I have had some heart-warming responses to my classes in education and Old Testament.
The video, which I shoehorned into the masthead, is my experiment with making videos on the front page, instead of linking them elsewhere.
Masthead is the ship lingo used for the standard name and symbol of a newspaper - editor, publisher, location, and slogan. The WELS-LCMS-ELS readers are no longer complaining that a blog about apostasy deals with - how shall I say it? - apostasy. Ichabod does mean "the glory has departed from Israel."
Until recently, the masthead was easy to modify. Blogger decided to make it HTML code only, so I have to figure out the little symbols to make the message show up correctly in the browser.
The test video is Vimeo because I wanted to see whether the mike made a difference (no) and whether I could put the Sunday video on the front page, starting up on schedule (yes).
Every so often I read this on Facebook, "We have been listening to your worship services for years."
One layman says he looks for post three times a day, morning-afternoon-late evening. A lot of times I think of this organ donor as motivation to write one more article. A lot of people are very encouraging and the ankle biters are no longer emailing their wisdom, like, "Why don't you stop?" and "When you finally die, everyone will be so happy." They were encouraging too, and some readers miss the fireworks, even if the opposition only had sparklers.
“On the contrary, where the pure word is not taught, or where there is a weariness and loathing of the word, there the true religion becomes extinguished, and all true worship of God perishes.
“For where the true word of God is not taught, there is not any truth of God; there is found a great noise of external holiness, and the form of godliness, and hypocrisy; there, indeed, is psalm-singing, prayer, doctrines, consolation, thanksgiving, and all the varieties of the worship of God, with all interpretations of the scriptures.
I will add, also, that there you may find sufferings and martyrdoms. But all is outside show; all is the form of godliness only; all is false; all is feigned, and nothing but lies; all is full of the poison of the devil. Nor without true faith in the heart, nor without the divine word, nor without the worship of the First Commandment, is there, or can there be, any true and real worship of God.
From: Luther, Martin. A Manual on the Book of Psalms. Translated by Henry Cole. Lutheran Library 1837/2022. LutheranLibrary.org
1. My faith looks up to Thee,
Thou Lamb of Calvary,
Savior divine.
Now hear me while I pray;
Take all my guilt away;
Oh, let me from this day
Be wholly Thine!
2. May Thy rich grace impart
Strength to my fainting heart,
My zeal inspire!
As Thou hast died for me,
Oh, may my love to Thee
Pure, warm, and changeless be,
A living fire!
3. While life's dark maze I tread
And griefs around me spread,
Be Thou my Guide.
Bid darkness turn to day,
Wipe sorrow's tears away,
Nor let me ever stray
From Thee aside.
4. When ends life's transient dream,
When death's cold, sullen stream
Shall o'er me roll,
Blest Savior, then, in love,
Fear and distrust remove;
Oh, bear me safe above,
A ransomed soul!
Hymn #394
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Ephesians 3:12
Author: Ray Palmer, 1830
Composer: Lowell Mason
Tune: "Olivet"
1st Published in: 1831
I ordered 8 of these, free shipping. I will send them to you (no cost, no shipping) due to a gift given for that purpose.
I thought a few people would like this book, which just arrived. I began reading it today and - WOW! - this is a well known classic, a brilliant discussion of the religious impact of the KJV, especially in literature.
Cleland Boyd McAfee was a Presbyterian, so WELS should devour this book. He wrote it for the 1912, 300th anniversary of the KJV. A century later, the job was given to idiots, braggarts, and court fools - because they wanted to sell their ESVs, RSVs, and NIVs - for some extra cash.
+++
Bethany was about 1 year when we propped her up against the couch so she could sit. She could smile, giggle, and laugh. Her eyes were not supposed to work but she had perfect vision and following. They were her main tools.
I was thinking today - as I arranged some favorite photos - that life would be meaningless without the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is why the arts are so obsessed with the meaninglessness of life and the need to use expletives for everything, even the titles of articles in tony magazines. They are fighting against the nihilism of their own vacant minds.
Smile for the camera? Always. Bethany captured everyone's attention with her natural curls and her eyes looking for faces to light up with grins. Who was the perfect mother for Beth and Erin? Christina.
America's nostalgia movies and books are shockingly gross, as if we are little more than beasts foraging for some food, but less choosy in mates. God drops special children into our lives, and we get to see the miniature miracles of being different in many ways, such as being short-changed in one area and astonishing in another. There are two responses - one is to look away and pretend the non-compliant child does not exist. The other response is to enjoy the rare and beautiful nature of a child watched over by special angels, an extra battalion or so, and loved by a motley crew of fans. "I had 10 children and your child taught me the meaning of love."
Erin Joy lacked the curls, the perfect teeth, and the radar eyes, but she lived her middle name and filled her world with laughter - hers and the audience.
1. He that believes and is baptized
Shall see the Lord's salvation;
Baptized into the death of Christ,
He is a new creation.
Through Christ's redemption he shall stand
Among the glorious heavenly band
Of every tribe and nation.
2. With one accord, O God, we pray:
Grant us Thy Holy Spirit;
Look Thou on our infirmity
Through Jesus' blood and merit.
Grant us to grow in grace each day
That by this Sacrament we may
Eternal life inherit.
Hymn #301
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: Mark 16:16
Author: Thomas Kingo, 1689
Translated by: George A.T. Rygh, 1909
Titled: "Enhver som tror og bliver doebt"
Tune: "Es ist das Heil"
Melody: German, c. 1400
1. Hark! the voice of Jesus crying,
"Who will go and work today?
Fields are white and harvests waiting,
Who will bear the sheave away?"
Loud and long the Master calleth,
Rich reward He offers thee;
Who will answer, gladly saying,
"Here am I, send me, send me"?
2. If you cannot speak like angels,
If you cannot preach like Paul,
You can tell the love of Jesus,
You can say He died for all.
If you cannot rouse the wicked
With the Judgement's dread alarms,
You can lead the little children
To the Savior's waiting arms.
3 If you cannot be a watchman,
Standing high on Zion's wall,
Pointing out the path to heaven,
Offering life and peace to all,
With your prayers and with your bounties
You can do what God demands;
You can be like faithful Aaron,
Holding up the prophet's hands.
4. Let none hear you idly saying,
"There is nothing I can do,"
While the souls of men are dying
And the Master calls for you.
Take the task He gives you gladly,
Let His work your pleasure be;
Answer quickly when He calleth,
"Here am I, send me, send me!"
The Lutheran Hymnal
Hymn #496
Text: Isaiah 6:8
Author: Daniel March, 1868, stanzas 1, 2, 4
Author: unknown, stanza 3
Composer: Joseph Barnby, 1883
Tune: "Galilean"
1. Great God, what do I see and hear?
The end of things created;
The Judge of mankind doth appear
On clouds of glory seated.
The trumpet sounds; the graves restore
The dead which they contained before:
Prepare, my soul, to meet Him.
2. The dead in Christ shall first arise
At that last trumpet's sounding,
Caught up to meet Him in the skies,
With joy their Lord surrounding.
No gloomy fears their souls dismay;
His presence sheds eternal day
On those prepared to meet Him.
3. But sinners, filled with guilty fears,
Behold His wrath prevailing,
For they shall rise and find their tears
And sighs are unavailing;
The day of grace is past and gone;
They trembling stand before his throne,
All unprepared to meet Him.
4. O Christ, who diedst and yet dost live,
To me impart Thy merit;
My pardon seal, my sins forgive,
And cleanse me by Thy Spirit.
Beneath Thy cross I view the day
When heav'n and earth shall pass away,
And thus prepare to meet Thee.
Hymn #604
The Lutheran Hymnal
Text: 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17
Author: unknown, 1802; stanza 1
Autho: William B. Collyer, 1812, alt.; stanzas 2-4
Tune: "Es ist gewisslich"
Published in: Geistliche Lieder
Town: Wittenberg, 1535
Cat introduces kitten to the staff, "Dis is my hooman."
I have heard about many kinds of essential nutrition pills to take. I am all for the multi-vitamin, which is like betting that someone will win the World Series - cannot lose there.
However, the big winner and specific magical pill leads me to wonder - "Shouldn't I be eating this rather than swallowing it?"
The pill industry makes me think that we are buying expensive overdoses of a single item rather than enjoying their natural state in delicious, low-cost food.
You read it here first - healthy nutrition-rich weight-loss food is more delicious than restaurant and home-made feasts. The reason is that wise eating sets us up for a special meal rather than craving something and feeling stuffed afterwards.
For example, yesterday's lunch was a huge bowl of fresh spinach, which I love, with milled flaxseed (tasty), walnuts (a favorite), and blueberries. Like a bean meal, this satisfies my hunger while not leaving me stuffed and filled with self-loathing and easily broken vows of "Never again!"
"Officer, we were not speeding. However, there is a sale at Pets-R-Us."
I began looking for a replacement for Vimeo, which I am sure aims at the big budget customer. Their personal service is zilch. I landed on one good place, which is Apple only. OK.
Our two issues are blackouts and music, which comes down to the twirlies, those circles that signal delay or dropped signal. That will be true until fiber optic is 100.00% connected, but it can be overcome with software and hardware.
We don't always see twirlies, but they are part of Internet delays.
That is what RESI claims to do - hold the signal in a buffer and continue feeding it to homes. We have a very wide range of signal in our vast domain. Fortunately we have fiber optic here, so that gives us the speed to produce a good signal.
I have found RESI willing to discuss the problems and solve them. The price is close to our current charges from Vimeo and we may get a refund there. No matter, we need better personal and network service and that is possible. I met with them over the phone - group talk - and I will talk to a staffer tomorrow at 8 am.
God has told the minister to do something big. "Go big or go home" as one WELS pastor put it.
The message is prosperity and success, plus a big dose of bringing friends and giving money.
The minister burns out, breaks down, or comes up with creative explanations for a lot of behavior.
Staff and members begin falling away from the cult as divorce papers are drawn up.
Cue Willow Creek Community Church, where WELS pastors were given the money to learn from the genius Bill Hybels, an adulterer.
Cue Mark Driscoll, whose abuse and threats included piling up the bodies when he was done. WELS grooved on him too.
Cue Andy Stanley, whose Babtist father Charles Stanley offered to resign if his wife divorced him, yet he stayed on anyway. The perpetually sad-looking son Andy preached in favor of creative marriage arrangements. Pods of WELS pastors go on pilgrimages to learn from Andy.
Cue Trinity Divinity School in Deerfield Wisc, a lesser known Church Growth Center, where Love Shack WELS executives study the same lessons that Fuller offers. Why? Trinity is closer.
WELS and Missouri have been caught in bed with ELCA, time after time.
Amazon Prime offered "free" one of their films, which was based on the memoir The Tender Bar, which was suggested reading when I took journalism classes online. I do not recommend the movie, which is poorly organized and slapped together. The author is working on Prince Harry's autobiography.
J. R. Moehringer is the Prince Harry ghost - you read it here first. I enjoyed the sections of his book where his mother said he had to go to Harvard or Yale, though his father was missing and they lived just above the poverty level.
Some of his bookstore friends said "Harvard is where someone knows everything about something. Yale is where they know something about everything."
The book friends said, "Yale is your biggest fear? Then you must battle that. Your fears ultimately define you."
That is why I always enjoy hanging around compulsive, life-long readers. Ranger Bob is one. All my friends are readers.
The movie skips the part about the JR graduating from a Scottsdale high school, not a run-down ghetto school. However, I understand his Long Island school is in a nest of highly valued public schools with the wealthy seeking houses there to benefit their children's education.
As most know, Scottsdale is one of the rich cities in the Phoenix cluster, so that high school was probably a good place from which to apply for a Yale education.
Nevertheless, JR's mother was the energy and strength behind accomplishing the impossible. He also benefited from his grandfather's stash of fascinating books and his own innate love of books.
I interviewed future Yale undergrads, who were all exceptionally educated and qualified to attend - but not all the qualified would be accepted. I got to write up whether they were future leaders or not. They all graduated from the private schools of St. Louis, so JR was up against tremendous odds in his application. Given his success in attending Yale, he was prepared for a career in writing.
I doubt whether the digital toy generation, which is 100% deployed in schools, will develop adequate thinkers or writers in the future. When I taught in a tiny Christian college, I was the only teacher to forbid all digital toys in class - and I had permission to hand the gadgets to the dean. The cries of pain were not from Juliet's apparent death in Shakespeare, but from the loss of their tweets, photos, and videos in class.
Several students said, "You stuck to your standards. You were the only teacher who did, and we had to listen." My class rosters were filled the moment they were posted, so the Gameboy faction had no power over me.
When the readers and writers of this generation go to their reward, there will be substance left in in literature, science, history, geography, and religious studies. We can see that now, where seminaries reject the Biblical languages and promote fraudulent Biblical texts. The seminaries want to blend Christianity with Eastern religion, just as their heroes Westcott-Hort did.
I thought Hort was the big Quack in that duo. No, Westcott was deep into teach resurrection as faith, not fact, and the Incarnation really being the god in every single person. He adored Hinduism and helped set up an institute in India to promote his ideas.
The ESV-RSV-NRSV-NIV Bibles, sold for profit and promoted by the Lutherans, are all based upon the cobbled together Westcott-Hort Greek New Testament text.
The problem is, there are not enough faithful clergy to learn this, teach this, and fight for the truth.
The Confession of Sins The Absolution The Introit p. 16
The Introit
Worship Him, all ye His angels:
Zion heard and was glad.
The daughters of Judah rejoiced:
because of Thy judgments, O Lord.
Psalm. The Lord reigneth, let the earth rejoice:
let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.
The Gloria Patri The Kyrie p. 17 The Gloria in Excelsis The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities, and in all our dangers and necessities stretch forth the right hand of Thy majesty to help and defend us; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle
The Gradual
The heathen shall fear the name of the Lord:
and all the kings of the earth Thy glory.
V. When the Lord shall build up Zion:
He shall appear in His glory. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice:
let the multitude of isles be glad thereof. Hallelujah!
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord! Praise be to Thee, O Christ! The Nicene Creed p. 22
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 #45Now the Hour of Worship
Prayers and Announcements
The roses are for - January 27th - the anniversary of Gary and Alicia Meyer.
For those suffering from the difficulties of the lockdowns, job threats, anxiety, and depression.
Guy Johnson, retired police officer, Pastor Jackson's friend since grade school, hospitalized, ICU.
Doctor's care - Pastor Shrader, Pastor K, Dr. Lito Cruz.
Our elected President and his supporters, our military justice system.
KJV Romans 12:16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. 17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. 20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head. 21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
KJV Matthew 8:1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4 And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
Third Sunday After Epiphany
O almighty and everlasting God, mercifully look upon our infirmities, and in all dangers and necessities stretch forth Thy mighty hand, to defend us against our enemies; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
This mint is called Bee Balm for some reason.
The Word Creates and Builds Faith
KJV Matthew 8:1 When he was come down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.
Here is an example of the Word creating faith. This leper was present to hear the Sermon on the Mount, and the words of Jesus filled this tortured man with faith in Jesus as divine. The leper's faith is revealed in his struggle to reach Jesus and to worship Him as God. As an outcast having nothing but rejection and avoidance, the leper understood more than modern Biblical critics, who deny this is a an actual sermon. But this disabled and tormented man believed in the Savior and said in humility - "If you will, you can cleanse me from this disease."
This is far from the modern fad of "name it and claim it," where people are instructed that they can have anything they want if they just tell God what they want and when they want it, like ordering from a menu. This shows lack of faith, not faith in Him. It sets people up for disappointment and unbelief.
It is far better to trust God's will than our own, because God can see the future far in advance and knows what lies ahead.
3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
People fuss about the ways in which Jesus healed the sick and raised the dead. Details matter. Jesus touched someone who was untouchable and utterly shunned and avoided, for fear of the disease. What better lesson than to stop for this leper, with crowds surging around as they left, after the Sermon, Jesus touching the very man who repulsed them
We can imagine a wide expanse around Jesus and the leper as they pressed to move as far as possible away from the untouchable. Even more people witnessed this because of the stage they set for fear of leprosy. A similar effect works today, if a child covers his mouth and a parent says "Let us through - he is sick to his stomach." Crowds will part and space will open up instantly.
The miraculous cure was immediately visible. The worst kind of disfigurement or weakness or disability changed into health. Jesus cured the leper with assurance - I will - and with the Word - Be clean.
Is this different from the Confession of Sin and Absolution? Not at all. In humility we confess our sins and Christ Himself - delegating to the worship leader - speaks the Gospel Word of forgiveness.
4 And Jesus saith unto him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
People miss the connection between the healing and going to the Temple. The temptation for the healed man is to stop along the way, go to friends, talk about the healing, and so forth. Who could resist? The leper was commanded to head to the Temple as a witness to the divinity of Jesus Christ and give the leaders an opportunity to believe in Him. Many different clear Gospel messages and warning were aimed at official Judaism, to give them the chance to know the Promises of the Old Testament were being fulfilled in their time.
5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented.
I know how this feels. A best friend, from all the way back to grade school, is in the ICU on a ventilator. The centurion is a Roman officer, there because the country is now a part of the Roman Empire. He addressed Jesus as Lord, even though he has great power as a Roman officer in control of professional soldiers .
7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him.
Jesus, knowing the mind of the centurion, offered to come to the man's villa and heal the servant. Thus the Promise is already given, and sincere faith is the response given.
8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
Once again, the humble attitude is expressed first. He is not worthy to have Jesus inside of his house, which is just the opposite of using his house as a symbol of power and wealth. Jesus does not need to be nearby, because the officer knows the meaning of command. The word of the centurion is law. No matter what he orders, it will be done by the men under his command. That is still true today. Unlike any other organization, the military operates by command, from the top down. Knowing Jesus is divine, the officer trusts the power of the divine command, the Word which so many neglect or despise today.
10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.
Like the Canaanite woman, this officer serves as a contrast, total trust in Jesus when Pharisaical Judaism rejected Him. The most likely ones to honor the Gospel Promises were resistant, but the outsiders were sincere believers.
That is true today, where the official, ruling Lutheran officials are the most likely to gather at Fuller Seminary, Purpose-Driven Drive, Willow Creek, and Andy Stanley's Babtist Church- and yet they are the least likely to know or like or read Luther.
The Biblical and text scholars of today, if gathered in a great conference, would be mostly Unitarian at best, and very likely to favor Hinduism over Christianity.
11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
This passage isthe truth of that era and ours. Those expected to follow the Scriptures are the most allergic to them, now that Christianity is established everywhere. Those who suffer real persecution value the Gospel the most.
13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.
We cannot measure God's actions by the latest reports, news, predictions, experiences. We can carry out the divine plan, honoring what He has created in us (our special offices, duties) and for us - the basics of Scripture, worship, prayer, and healthy living.
Society truths have to be measured against Scriptural truths. Many times the official claims of the moment are little more than crowd control, the management rather than the truth of the news. We have that truth before us in the traditional Scriptures, translation (singular), text (singular), hymns, worship, and supplemental books.
I attended a demo yesterday and spoke with one of their technical people about our set up. It seems that we can benefit from a hardware encoder, and we have the gifts for that already. The regular fee is a bit higher, but we are on the Vimeo cheaper slot.
I discussed our problems with Vimeo, which Vimeo did not address - the blackouts and the music. Resi says they provide for those lapses with their software and hardware, since delays happen in all computer networks. I remember from Cisco CCNA training "and then it goes into the bit bucket" (loss of data).
The key here is that their people will talk about the issues and not just say, "Really? Humm."
Tomorrow we will have the best camera (so far) linked up, the separate mike which is matched to it, and two computers, one to handle the organ music separately.
Guy Johnson, MHS 68, and I - MHS66 - posed outside of Lagomarcino's in downtown Moline, not far from the historic location of Melo Cream.
I see Jeff Hall in the top row, first guy on the left. I told Christina I wanted to go back in a time machine and say to Jane, next to Jeff, "You are going to marry the Boston Chief of Police!" - and similar improbable predictions that would happen.
Today I learned from Facebook that Guy was in the hospital on a respirator. And I heard from Patty Puck Hall, about how much she missed Jeff - both of them from Garfield Grade School, where my mother taught.
The walk to Garfield went by Guy's home, and we often went to school together, and read stacks of comics on Saturdays. My mother was a celebrity teacher, still talked about today, and my father was a famous donut shop owner. When he added peanut brittle and fudge, they were the best, too.
Friends ask me to come back to Moline and re-start Melo Cream. I can understand. Today's donuts make me sick, they are so poorly made. My father made donuts from the best ingredients, which made him the quality expert before W. Edward Deming.
One Moline reunion met at Lago's, and I was ambushed for never taking Christina there on a date. I said, "Lago's came to US, to Melo Cream! I did not need to walk a few blocks for candy and treats."
I started this blog for family in 2010, because I did not know very much about how and where my parents grew up. I figured the scattered Jacksons might want to know.
I doubt whether any relatives care about what has been recorded here in the last 11 years or so. Almost 400,000 views mean that quite a few others have stopped by. I enjoy or am saddened by the posts that appear on the left column for having more reads for the week. Obituaries appear again on the left column, but so do fun and famous moments and people I have known.
I especially enjoy lining up the Golden Wedding Anniversaries separately as they developed - united on one page. I still do that when I know it is happening. Maybe a Jackson will notice one day.
The star of that page is Bonnie Bartlett, married to William Daniels in 1951. They are both alive and married 60 years! I used go by the Bartlett Insurance Agency when I was a young lad, never knowing it fostered a future star and record-setting celebrity marriage.
Mary Gail is our acrobatic and dance princess, who made it to Broadway. We saw her trying out her early performances at Garfield.
On our last trip to Moline, we had two priorities - seeing Guy Johnson and Tobie McGriff. We also had the pleasure of dining with good friends at the reunion dinner, until the aging rock band began jamming and ruined all conversation. Everyone left the moment we were reminded - what the word cacophony means.
The newly lit bridge looks spectacular, but the John Baker Bridge honors the soldier who earned the Medal of Honor. We were in high school gym together. Yes, I would love to go back in time and say, "You will earn the Medal of Honor, the highest and rarest distinction."
In all their discourses and writings, therefore, the prophets and apostles allude and refer to the Decalogue or Ten Commandments. From these Ten Commandments flow all the doctrines, and all the godly living of the saints: for there is no holiness or godliness of life or true religion, apart from the Ten Commandments: because they are the never-failing inexhaustible fountain of all wisdom, righteousness, and of all perfection in the saints. Nor is there any of the complaints uttered by the Prophets or Apostles, nor will you find any other in all their discourses, but that against false prophets, hypocrites and false teachers, who, disregarding, nay, totally despising and spitting upon, the true and highest worship of God, (which is that of the first Commandment, that requires faith and the fear of God,) teach their own human dreams, which have nothing whatever to do with the Decalogue, and do not at all belong to it.
From: Luther, Martin. A Manual on the Book of Psalms. Translated by Henry Cole. Lutheran Library 1837/2022. LutheranLibrary.org
WELS had a better idea, endorsed by Missouri and ELCA.
