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.
KJV John 2 And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.
Marriage is blessed by Jesus, the disciples too. Mary seems to be there as the host for the couple.
3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.
Ran out of wine, Mary stated the problem. "Woman" twice in this Gospel. John 19:26. Care for Mary, tradition - Ephesus.
5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
Mary, of all people, knew the divinity of her Son.
6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.
Firkin is in Music Man - about 10 gallons per firken. Purification rituals were and are essential.
7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.
This command did not involve Jesus touching the water.
9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.
Very detailed about what happened, abundance and quality of the water turned into wine.
11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
Miracles = signs. ταυτην εποιησεν την αρχην των σημειων. Miracles - believe.
29. The parable stands in bold relief, and pictures us perfectly, what we are and can do with our boasted reason and free will. If the poor wounded man had desired to help himself, it would only have been worse for him, he would only have done harm to himself and irritated his wounds, and only prepared more misery and distress for himself.
Had he remained lying quiet, he would have had as much suffering. Thus it is when we are left to ourselves. We are always lost, we may lay hold where we will. Hitherto man has always acted thus, he has thought out many ways and methods how we might reform our lives and get to heaven.
One found this way, another that, therefore so many kinds of orders arose: in like manner the letters of indulgence and crusades originated; but they have only made evil worse. Such is the world, and it is thus finely portrayed in this wounded man, it lies in sins over head and ears and cannot help itself.
30. But the Samaritan who has fulfilled the law and is perfectly healthy and sound, comes and does more than both priest and Levite. He binds up the sores of the wounded man, pours in oil and wine, lifts him upon his own beast, and brings him into the inn, takes good care of him, and when he departs he carefully commends him to the host, and besides leaves him a sufficient supply of money, while neither the priest nor Levite would do one of these kind acts. The priest signifies the dear sainted fathers before Moses; the Levite the priesthood of the Old Testament. All these however have accomplished nothing by their works, and have passed by on the other side like this priest and Levite.
31. Therefore, if I had for example all the good works of Noah, Abraham and of all the dear fathers, they would still be of no benefit to me. They have indeed beheld the wounded man lying helpless and half dead, but they could not help it. He who lay there half dead, saw it too, but what of it, he could make it no better. The dear sainted fathers saw very well that the people lay in their sins over their ears, and also felt the anguish of sin, but what could they do to remedy it? They could make it only worse, but not better. These were the preachers of the law, and showed what the world was, namely, full of deadly sins, and it lay there half dead, and could not help itself, notwithstanding all its powers, reason and free will. Go then, thou beautifully painted rogue, and boast of thy free will, of thy merits and holiness!
32. But Christ, the true Samaritan, takes the poor man to himself as his own, goes to him and does not require the helpless one to come to him; for here is no merit, but pure grace and mercy; and he binds up his wounds, cares for him and pours in oil and wine, this is the whole Gospel from beginning to end. He pours in oil when grace is preached, as when one says: Behold thou poor man, here is your unbelief, here is your condemnation, here you are wounded and sore. Wait! All this I will cure with the Gospel. Behold, here cling firmly to this Samaritan, to Christ the Savior, he will help you, and nothing else in heaven or on earth will. You know very well that oil softens, thus also the sweet, loving preaching of the Gospel gives me a soft, mild heart toward God and my neighbor, so that I risk my bodily life for the sake of Christ my Lord and his Gospel, if God and necessity require it.
33. But wine is sharp and signifies the holy cross that immediately follows.A Christian need not look for his cross, it is always on his back.For he thinks as St. Paul says, 2 Timothy 3:12: “All that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” This is the court-color in this kingdom. Whoever is ashamed of the color, does not belong to this king.
First of all, the media report that their rental charges are double what it cost at the Republican convention, with half the space allotted! I tell people - that is Chicago - they skim everything and run up the charges. The Chicago theme - "This city is perfect - it is 100% corrupt."
Second - As many disgruntled blog readers should know, it is not wise to irritate the media. At one WELS convention, every laptop had Ichabod on their screens and looked for the updates.
Third - I finally looked up the Project 2025 scare story, which this convention is brandishing as Donald Trump's autobiography. Here is a description -
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Project 2025 is a historic movement, brought together by over 100 respected organizations from across the conservative movement, to take down the Deep State and return the government to the people. Its Mandate for Leadership: The Conservative Promise, published in April 2023, is a product of more than 400 scholars and policy experts from around the country. The book offers a menu of policy suggestions to meet our country’s deepest challenges and put America back on track, including:
Secure the border, finish building the wall, and deport illegal aliens
De-weaponize the Federal Government by increasing accountability and oversight of the FBI and DOJ
Unleash American energy production to reduce energy prices
Cut the growth of government spending to reduce inflation
Make federal bureaucrats more accountable to the democratically elected President and Congress
Improve education by moving control and funding of education from DC bureaucrats directly to parents and state and local governments
Ban biological males from competing in women's sports
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I listen to as much as I can tolerate, hearing the sounds of despair, clear fallacies, and rotten solutions. If they hired me as a media consultant, I would begin with two concepts.
A. Do not attack the opponent with false accusations. That will always fail.
B. Do not get behind abortion on demand and call it virtue, especially when the open borders are serving as a gigantic money machine for trafficking children and the unborn.
One ECLA to rule them all, and in the darkness BIND THEM! - The World Council of Apostate Churches, the National Council of Gay Churches, and the Confessional Lutherans who deny Justification by Faith.
I enjoy Protestia, because their blog includes many denominations and the apostate ELCA. Of course, ELCA has its own blog machine, just to let the dwindling hoards and The Four Waltherian Cults - LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic) learn from them.
I may be just ahead of Protestia. Lookie here - or as we say in higher education - Nota bene:
(LWI) – Current and past recipients of scholarships from The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) hold a shared conviction. The theology and diakonia study grants are not merely about financial support: they represent experiences that have transformed individuals, shaped the work of churches and local communities.
“The studies opened the world to me in many different ways, including the beauty of the diversity of people around the globe,” said Rev. Eva Guldanova, Secretary for Foreign Relations and Chair of the Ecumenical Committee at the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Slovak Republic.rful way to strengthen the communion across regions and generations
Rev. Eva Guldanova, Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Slovak Republic
Guldanova was among participants in a LWF webinar, 15 August, to launch an alumni network of scholarship holders. Such a group, she said, “could be a fantastic resource of connections and experiences of people who share our Lutheran faith, and who have been enriched in many ways. It can be a wonderful way to strengthen the communion across regions and generations,” she noted.
At the time of her master’s in divinity studies in Slovakia, Guldonova received an LWF scholarship for a non-degree exchange program, 2004-2005 at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC), USA. The New Testament and ecumenism course included classes at Catholic and Presbyterian schools of theology, a Bible and Qur'an course with Muslim students, visiting a Jewish synagogue, celebrating with Muslims, and connecting with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Back to the LSTC under a different program, 2009-2012, she earned a master’s in theology and returned home, where she was ordained in 2012.
Her time in Chicago, she recalled, also “brought a lot of new insights” from Slovaks who have emigrated there and formed Lutheran congregations. “I met a ton of amazing people, who have been shaping my life and journey until today,” Guldonova added.
Connecting people, providing mentorship
Recent master’s in theology graduates, Mr Hans-Christoph Thapelo Lange (South Africa) and Rev. Adrian Lopez (Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia), and PhD holder Kidist Bahru Gemeda (Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus) helped in planning the webinar. All three LWF scholarship holders spoke of the connections and friendships formed around the quarterly “Coming Together” online meetings and other platforms with fellow scholars and LWF staff. A highlight for Lange was hosting a workshop with three other theology scholars at the Thirteenth Assembly in Kraków, Poland. “This is something I could never have dreamed of,” he said.
Therefore it is safer that we go and confess that we all are sinners, than that we have respect to our works and cling to our beautiful, glittering lives.
II. A SERMON ON THE GOSPEL IN A PARABLE.
20. The foregoing is the first part of our Gospel lesson, and it is a sermon on the law. The second part now follows, and it preaches the Gospel, how and whence we are to receive power to fulfill the Law. This the good Samaritan will teach us.
21. How does this lawyer act now after the Lord had thus turned him away? He goes ahead, the Evangelist says, and desires to justify himself and says to the Lord: “And who is my neighbor?”
22. He does not ask: Who is my God? As though he would say: “I owe God nothing, with God I am in good standing. I am also inclined to think that I am under obligations to no man; yet, I would like to know who my neighbor is? The Lord answers and tells him a very beautiful parable, by which he shows that we are all neighbors among one another, both he who does another a kindness, as well as he who is in need of a kindness.
Although the text reads as if Christ said that he is our neighbor who does another a kindness. In this, however, the Scriptures make no difference.
Here they call him neighbor who does a kindness, and at other places him who receives the kindness.
23. By means of this parable the Lord concludes with the words, “Go, and do thou likewise,” so that this lawyer did not only sin against God, but also against his neighbor. He not only failed to love God, but he did not love his neighbor, and never did him a favor. By this the poor man falls into such a sweat that he is only deceived from head to foot. How could he be so mistaken, the highly learned and pious man? His mistake came in this way; he led a Pharisaical, feigned and hypocritical life. He did not look down to his neighbor to help him with his life, but only sought thereby his own vain glory and. honor before the eyes of the people, and with this he stared piously toward heaven.
24. Now you have often heard that a Christian life consists in acting before my God in faith and with a pure heart, but toward my neighbor in right living and good works; and not wait until my neighbor seeks a kindness of me, and asks me for something, but approach and meet him with kindness and freely offer it to him. Let us now see what the parable in itself teaches.
25. This Samaritan of course is our Lord Jesus Christ himself, who has shown his love toward God and his neighbor. Toward God, in that he was obedient to him, came down from heaven and became man, and thus fulfilled the will of his Father; toward his neighbor, in that he immediately after his baptism began to preach, to do wonders, to heal the sick. And in short, he did no work that centered in himself alone, but all his acts centered in his neighbor. And this he did with all his powers, and thus he became our servant, who could have well remained in heaven and been equal to God, Philippians 2:6. But all this he did because he knew that this pleased God and was his Father’s will.
26. When he entered upon that high mission to prove that he loved God with all his heart, he laid down his bodily life with all he had, and said:
Father, here you have all, my bodily life, my glory and honor, which I had among the people; all this I give as it is for thy sake, that the world may know how I love thee. My Father, let my wisdom perish, so that the world may look upon me as most foolish. Let me be the most despised, who was heretofore praised by all the world. Now I am the worst murderer, who before was friendly, useful and serviceable to the whole world. Dear Father, all this I despise, only that I may not be disobedient to thee.
27. This is the Samaritan who came uninvited, and fulfilled the law with his whole heart. For only he fulfilled the law, and no one can deprive him of this honor. He alone merits it, and well maintains it all alone. Now this would be no special comfort for us; but that he has compassion on the poor wounded man, takes him under his care, binds his wounds, takes him into the inn and waits on him, this avails for us.
28. The man who here lies half dead, wounded and stripped of his clothing, is Adam and all mankind. The murderers are the devils who robbed and wounded us, and left us lying prostrate half dead. We still struggle a little for life; but there lies horse and man, we cannot help ourselves to our feet, and if we were left thus lying we would have to die by reason of our great anguish and lack of nourishment; maggots would grow in our wounds, followed by great misery and distress.
29. The parable stands in bold relief, and pictures us perfectly, what we are and can do with our boasted reason and free will. If the poor wounded man had desired to help himself, it would only have been worse for him, he would only have done harm to himself and irritated his wounds, and only prepared more misery and distress for himself.
Had he remained lying quiet, he would have had as much suffering. Thus it is when we are left to ourselves. We are always lost, we may lay hold where we will. Hitherto man has always acted thus, he has thought out many ways and methods how we might reform our lives and get to heaven.
One found this way, another that, therefore so many kinds of orders arose: in like manner the letters of indulgence and crusades originated; but they have only made evil worse. Such is the world, and it is thus finely portrayed in this wounded man, it lies in sins over head and ears and cannot help itself.
Everyone got all excited about the new century, known affectionately as Y2K, or 2001 for the young'uns. I was hired to do some work with Cisco, a short-term project because they canned their own product, a home router.
The change introduced me to teaching at Glendale Community College, connecting me with the University of Phoenix and giving me local courses on computers, writing, and the humanities. That led me into online teaching for UOP and then GCU. UOP was eventually merged into the State of Utah system, shrinking faster than wool socks in a dryer. GCU's physical campus grew exponentially and also online.
Our country has gone into the gutter with dishonesty, deception, fraud, and crime. I listened to the speeches last night, a continuous roar of dishonesty and self-destruction. I wondered, "Do they really want to lead with the destruction of human life, as if that was virtue? Evil is good, and whatever is noble must be covered with their slime.
The best we can do is to rely on and absorb the two great treasures which are easily obtained and yet are scorned and vilified by the Great Ones.
The King James Version
The treasures are first the King James Bible, which used the martyr William Tyndale and 50 great English scholars to produce a clear and precise masterpiece -
The Old Testament, ancient and preserved in infallible Hebrew.
The New Testament, early and precise in Koine Greek.
Martin Luther, Melanchthon, and Chemnitz -
The Reformation
By chance, if there is such a thing, Luther became a Biblical professor, translated the Bible with the help of other genius translators, and battled the Church of Rome. His life was always on the line.
12. Yet the Lord does not serve this lawyer thus, but puts him to shame.
This Christ is an unfriendly, ungracious man, he tells the people the truth, and well deserves that they should hate him. The pious, holy lawyer still does his utmost, and knows nothing but how to harvest great honors and obtain high renown for his precious life; he thinks he has perfectly fulfilled this commandment, and hopes for a favorable answer, that the Lord will say: Dear Sir, you have done it all. But Christ goes to work and first tells him: “Do this!” That is to say in good German: You are a rogue in the hide, you have not done this during your whole life; yea, you have not kept a single letter of the law; and thus shows him his wickedness.The poor fellow thinks he should sit in the first seat, that he is really pure and beautiful, and by rights should sit among the angels, rather than here among the people. What a wonderful Christ is this! The people regard this lawyer as pious and holy; but Christ says he shall first go and begin to fulfill the law. Be consistent with thyself!
13. Now these are the very fellows who most of all sin against the first commandment, and think no further than the words read: I must love God, and think they have fulfilled the law, while it remains hovering on their tongues and over their hearts, but never enters. This, however, is not enough, it must reach much farther, namely, that I so love God that for his sake I can forsake all creatures, and should he require it, also body and life; yea, that I should love him above all things. For God is a jealous God and cannot suffer us to love anything above himself. But to love anything beneath himself, he of course allows. Just as a husband can easily allow his wife to love the maid servants, the house and house utensils, cattle and other things; but to love with the love she should have for him, he will not suffer her to love anyone besides himself; yea, he desires her to forsake all things for his sake; and so again the wife also requires the same from her husband.
Thus God can also allow us to love his creatures; yea, they are created for this purpose and are good. The sun is an excellent creature; gold and silver and all things that are attractive and beautiful by nature cause us to love them. This God indeed permits us to do. But that I should cling to the creature and love it with the same love with which I love God the Creator, this he can and will not allow; yea, his will is that I should deny and forsake all things, should he desire and require it of me, and be satisfied should I nevermore behold the sun, my money and possessions. The love of the creature should stand far, far below our love to him; and as he is the chief good, his will is also to be loved in the highest degree, above all other good. If he will not allow me to love anything as much as I love him, much less will he allow me to love anything more than himself, though it be a creature of his own creation.
14. Now I think you understand what it is to love God with all the heart, with all the soul and with all the mind. To love God with all the heart is to love him above all creatures; that is, although many creatures are quite lovely, as they please me and I love them, nevertheless, I am to despise and forsake all these for God’s sake, whenever God my Lord desires it.
15. To love God with all the soul is to devote your entire bodily life to him that you can say when the love of any creature, or any persecution threatens to overpower you: All this I will give up, before I will forsake my God; let men cast me away, murder or drown me, let what God’s will is happen to me, I will gladly lose all, before I will forsake thee, O Lord! unto thee will I cling more than to all thy creatures, or to anything that is not thyself. I will risk all things together with what I have and am that I may not forsake thee. The soul in the Scriptures signifies the life of the body, which acts through the five senses, eating, drinking, sleeping, waking, seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting and everything that the soul does through the body.
16. To love God with all our strength is to devote all our members and whatever we may be able to do through our bodies to the love of God, and sacrifice all rather than do anything contrary to his will.
17. To love God with all the mind is to take to nothing except that which is pleasing to God. By which is meant the self-conceit which man has that the same be directed to God and that all things be pleasing to him.
18. Thus you see what the commandment requires: “Thou shalt love God.” Thou, thou wholly and fully, not thy hands, not thy lips, not thy knees.
Those who do this, fulfill the commandment in the right sense. But there is not a man On earth who thus fulfils the law; yea, we all do just the opposite. Thus this law here makes us all sinners so that not the least letter of this commandment is fulfilled, even by the most holy persons in the world. For no one clings so firmly to God with all the heart, that he could forsake all things for God’s sake. We have, God be praised, become so competent that we can almost not suffer the least word, yea, we will not let go of a nickel for the sake of God.
How is it possible for us to love God, as long as his will displeases us? For if I love God I love also his will. Now, when God sends us sickness, poverty, shame and disgrace, that is his will. But what do we do under such circumstances? We thunder, scold and growl, and bear it with great impatience. And this is the least part, for what would we do if we had to forsake body and life for God and Christ’s sake? Then we would act quite differently. Yet in the meantime I act like this Pharisee and lawyer does, I lead a fine outward life, honor and serve God, fast, pray, and appear very pious and holy. But God does not want this. He wants us to accept his will with joy and love, and this we are too tardy in doing.
19. Therefore, what the Lord here says to this lawyer, he says to us all, namely, that we have not yet fulfilled the law, and still he requires us to do it. On this account all men are guilty of death, and are the devil’s own property. “All men are liars,” Psalm 116:11, vain and offensive. What they pretend does not avail before God. In our own affairs we are shrewd; how to scrape together money and goods, how to speak well of God before the people, and how to push ourselves ahead in a masterly manner.
But what does God care for this? His will is that we should love him with all our hearts. This no man can do, and the conclusion is that we are all sinners, and especially those who walk in a beautiful outward show. Therefore it is safer that we go and confess that we all are sinners, than that we have respect to our works and cling to our beautiful, glittering lives.
II. A SERMON ON THE GOSPEL IN A PARABLE.
20. The foregoing is the first part of our Gospel lesson, and it is a sermon on the law. The second part now follows, and it preaches the Gospel, how and whence we are to receive power to fulfill the Law. This the good Samaritan will teach us.
I bought a book on photographic analysis, long ago. The author pointed out the meaning of some photographs, often overlooked. Some people always look sour or angry. Others are prone to smile and laugh. Governor Walz can smile, but he seems to be unusually sad. I wonder why.
Time of Grace - Mark Jeske's gift to ELCA's gay ministries, via Pastor Mike.
The remodeling started a week ago. Today, the tiling crew came and did a great job. The tiles finish tomorrow. Perhaps the final steps will also be completed tomorrow.
The Faithless Five - ELCA-LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic) - cannot comprehend the Parable of the Good Samaritan because they are functional illiterates. They may plead to others that their LutherSermons are worn out from constant study, but all they do is circle the drain of their fetid Objective Justification.
The Waltherian Four - LCMS-WELS-ELS-CLC (sic) - boast and bray about their inerrancy of the Bible. Nota bene - the word inerrancy is not in the Bible. Their inerrancy claim is nothing more than a smokescreen. "We hold to the infallible inerrancy of the Scriptures!" they say, laughing up their sleeves. How can anyone deny their purity when they show so much authority? They promote safe sects, which allow them to do whatever they want.
The gaseous Waltherian Four love the worst Bible paraphrase, the fruit of Eugene Nida's Dynamic Equivalence - The NIV.The man and the plan made it possible to invent a New Testament that never existed, always changing, erasing the original text and adding obvious errors.
Has anyone told the Waltherian Four that the traditional Hebrew text of the Old Testament is welded into place by the strictest rules of text scholarship? No? - of course not, because the Jewish scholars maintained that text, which Christians (excluding the Church of Rome) kept pure.
Matt the Fatt and Mirthless Mark Schroeder will soon be gone from their synods, a chance to see how much worse their sects are becoming under the tender, loving care of ELCA.
And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: 24 For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? 27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. 29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
I. A SERMON ON THE LAW.
1. I hope you thoroughly understand this Gospel lesson, inasmuch as it recurs every year. And since it annually returns in the Pericopes we are required to consider it; and this we will now gladly and briefly do. In the first place, the Evangelist relates how Christ our Lord led his disciples aside, and being alone with them rejoiced in his spirit, and earnestly and directly said to them: “Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see; for I say unto you, that many prophets and kings desired to see the things that ye see, and saw them not: and to hear the things which ye hear, and heard them not.”
2. This hearing and seeing must be understood simply and plainly as external seeing and hearing, namely, that they saw Christ and his office, heard his preaching, and witnessed the miracles he performed among the Jews. The Jews also beheld these things with their natural eyes and some of them indeed experienced them in part in their hearts. But in fact they did not recognize him as the Christ, like the Apostles did, and like Peter, who representing all the others, confessed and said in Matthew 16:16: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” We indeed admit, that even some of the Jews like the Apostles recognized him as the Christ; but since they were but few who did, Christ therefore takes his Apostles here to himself apart.
3. However, in spirit, many prophets and kings saw Christ, as Christ himself says to the Jews concerning Abraham in John 8:56: “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it, and was glad.” Then the Jews thought he spoke of natural seeing, but Christ spoke of spiritual seeing, as all pious Christian hearts saw him before he was born, and still daily see him. For if Abraham saw him, without doubt many more prophets in whom the Holy Spirit dwelt saw him. And although this seeing made the holy fathers and prophets blessed, yet they had a real heartfelt longing and desire to behold Christ the Lord in the flesh, as is intimated time and again in the prophets.
4. Therefore the Lord here says to his disciples who saw both with their natural and their spiritual eyes: “Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see.” As though he would say: This is a blessed time, an acceptable year, a special season of grace. That which is now at hand is so precious that the eyes which see it are truly called blessed. For in the past ages the Gospel was never preached so publicly and clearly unto all men as at present; the Holy Spirit was not yet publicly poured out: but was still concealed, and had as yet accomplished little. But Christ began the office of the Holy Spirit, and afterwards the Apostles continued it in full earnest.
Therefore he calls all those blessed, who see and hear such grace. Now when the Lord said this and was rejoicing in spirit, one presents himself, a lawyer, who acting as though he also amounted to something, tempted the Lord and said: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
5. This lawyer was perhaps a wise man and well acquainted with the Scriptures, as his answer also suggests; yet here he becomes a fool, and must first begin to learn from the Lord, when he is put to shame and disgrace. For Christ teaches him a good lesson, and with one word takes out of him all his self-conceit. For he was in the delusion that he had kept the law wholly and perfectly, and was therefore something extra, above others, which undoubtedly he was, and imagined, because he was so pious and learned, that he was of course worthy to talk with the Lord. But now what does the Lord do to ensnare him in a masterly manner? He does this: he permits him to judge himself. For the Evangelist proceeds thus: “And he said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.”
6. I think the Lord gave this pious man a good lecture. Alas, it was not right, he should have spared him a little, he puts him to shame before all the world. For what good does it do him? Christ shows him that he has as yet done nothing, when he allowed himself to think he had done everything.
He asks what he should do. I contend that he has enough to do now, if he is only able to do great things.
7. Now much might be said on these two commandments, and it is also really needed, had we the time, for these are the highest and greatest themes on which Moses wrote; yea, on these hang all the law and the prophets, as Christ himself says in Matthew 22:40. Nevertheless, we will briefly consider some phases of them.
8. When we examine the laws of Moses, we find they all treat of love. For the commandment: “Thou shalt have no other Gods before me,” I cannot explain or interpret otherwise than: Thou shalt love God alone. Thus Moses himself interprets it in Deuteronomy 6:4-5, where he says: “Hear, O Israel; Jehovah our God is one Jehovah; and thou shalt love Jehovah thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” From this passage the lawyer has taken his answer. But the Jews understand this law to mean no more than that they should not set up idols and images to worship, and when they could say and confess with their lips that they have only one God and honor no other gods, they think they have kept this commandment. Thus this lawyer also understood it, but it was a false, erroneous knowledge of the law.
9. Now we must have high regard for the law. It says: “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Thou, thou, it says, thou, and everything thou art; and especially does it mean the heart, the soul and all thy powers. It does not speak of the tongue, or the hands, or the knees; but it speaks of the whole body, and of all thou hast and art. If I am to have no other God, then I must surely possess the only true God with my heart, that is, I must in my heart be affectionate to him, evermore cleave to him, depend upon him, trust him, have my desire, love and joy in him, and always think of him. Just as we say at other times when we delight in something, that it tastes good in our very heart. And when one speaks or laughs and is not in earnest, and does not mean it from his heart, we say: You laugh, and your heart is not in it. The heart is quite a different thing than the lips. Therefore in the Scriptures the heart signifies the great and ardent love we should have for God. Those who serve God only with their lips, with their hands or with their knees, are hypocrites, and God cares nothing for them. For God does not want only a part, on the contrary he wants the whole man.
10. The Jews abstained outwardly from idolatry, and served God only with their lips; but their hearts were far from him, full of mistrust and unbelief.
Outwardly they appeared beautiful, as though they meant it in all sincerity, but within they were full of idolatry. Therefore the Lord said unto them in Matthew 23:27-28: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye tithe mint and anise and cummin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law, justice, mercy, and faith. For ye are like unto whited sepulchers, which outwardly appear beautiful, but inwardly are full of dead men’s bones and of all uncleanness. Even as ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but inwardly ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.”
11. They are really wicked people who become proud in external things, who desire to justify and make themselves pious by their works, as this lawyer here does. Behold, what a proud character he is, he presents himself in his own name, and thinks Christ will not rebuke him; yea, he allows himself to think that the Lord will extol and praise his life in the presence of all the people, and does not think of learning anything from the Lord, but only seeks his own praise. The ignorant pretender would have gladly heard a psalm of praise from the man whom the people esteemed, and at whom all men wondered. Thus all hypocrites do, who outwardly parade their excellent, great and noble works. They well say that they do not seek honor and praise, but inwardly in their hearts they are frill of ambition, and desire all the world to know of their holiness, and smile very nicely when they hear men speak of it.
12. Yet the Lord does not serve this lawyer thus, but puts him to shame.
The Confession of Sins The Absolution The Introit p. 16
Introit
Make haste, O God, to deliver me:
make haste to help me, O Lord.
Let them be ashamed and confounded:
that seek after my soul.
Psalm. Let them be turned backward and put to confusion:
that desire my hurt.
The Gloria Patri The Kyrie p. 17 The Gloria in Excelsis The Salutation and Collect p. 19
Collect
Almighty and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that Thy faithful people do unto Thee true and laudable service, grant, we beseech Thee, that we may so faithfully serve Thee in this life that we fail not finally to attain Thy heavenly promises; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.
The Epistle and Gradual
Gradual
I will bless the Lord at all times:
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
V. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord:
the humble shall hear thereof and be glad.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
V. Sing aloud unto God, our Strength:
make a joyful noise unto the God of Jacob. 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 Closing Hymn #283God's Word Is Our Great Heritage
Medical Treatment - Maria Way - stents, Alicia Meyer, Norma Boeckler, Dr. Lito Cruz' family, Sarah Buck, Lori Howell, Pastor Jim Shrader and Chris Shrader.
August 22 is the third anniversary of Christina Jackson's transition to Heaven.
Bathroom renovation will continue on Monday.
KJV 2 Corinthians 3:4 And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward: 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God; 6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life. 7 But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away: 8 How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious? 9 For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory. 10 For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. 11 For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.
Covenant or Testament
Lenski 2 Corinthians 3:3
p. 921
The Revised Versions’s translation “3. new covenant” (“testament” in the margin) is not an advance on the A. V.’s “a new testament.” Commentators also waver. See the author’s exposition of I Cor. 11:25, from which we repeat only the main point: the Hebrew berith is “covenant,” which is rendered diatheke, “testament,” by the LXX which thus conserves the main idea of one-sidedness: this covenant is like every testament that is made by God to Israel and is not a mutual agreement between equals. Its substance was promise, Christ fulfilled the promise, and this fulfillment is now laid down in a testament. All believers are named as the heirs who're to be paid out with all the gospel blessings. We may call the ministers of God the administrators (I Cor. 4:1), yet they themselves are heirs. So in the New Testament diatheke = “testament.” And we should render, not “ministers of a new testament,” but as one concept: “new testament ministers.” The newness lies in the fulfillment of the former covenant promises by Christ.
KJV Mark 7:31 And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. 32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. 33 And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; 34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. 35 And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. 36 And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; 37 And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.
Twelfth Sunday After Trinity
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast created all things: We thank Thee that Thou hast given us sound bodies, and hast graciously preserved our tongues and other members from the power of the adversary: We beseech Thee, grant us Thy grace, that we may rightly use our ears and tongues; help us to hear Thy word diligently and devoutly, and with our tongues so to praise and magnify Thy grace, that no one shall be offended by our words, but that all may be edified thereby, 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.
Miracles Happen - All the Time
KJV Mark 7:31 And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.
We know from the second verse that this is a miracle, and Mark's Gospel is packed with miracles from the Savior. People may wonder why so many miracles are revealed in a relatively short Gospel, one after another, bunches of them. Already in Mark 1, Jesus is described as wanting to be alone to pray and His hurried disciples said, "Come on, we have work to do!"
KJV Mark 1:35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed. 36 And Simon and they that were with him followed after him. 37 And when they had found him, they said unto him, All men seek for thee.
There are two basic responses to miracles from our skeptical generation of Bible scholars.
1) Doubt that this ever happened.
2) This came from other sources, such as the claims of that pagan era, filled with improbable stories. One of the great Halle University professors published a book where he called them "Fish stories." He did not put his name on the book. Pietism shifts into rationalism quickly, just as Calvinism does. But the real message is faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus made this clear in John's Gospel, 10:38 - "If you do not believe in My Word, at least pay attention to My miracles."
John 10:37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.
When we put these two passages together, as edited and established by the Holy Spirit, it is clear that the Fourth Gospel makes the Gospel of Mark clear. And the Second Gospel lists one miracle after another to remind us of the Savior's compassion and our trust in Him. Almost every "scholar" in the last 200 years has mocked the Gospels, and many of the books have become best-sellers. Those efforts have established skepticism and Anything Goes interpretations, leading to lack of faith in the general population.
32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.
This double problem left the man helpless in his society, so his friends/relatives brought him to Jesus to take him out of his health straight-jacket, where he could not talk and could not hear. Luther's point in his sermon on this text is the faith of those who brought him. They knew enough about Jesus to bring the man to Christ. They trusted in His saving Word. They could not make their friend believe because, as Luther says, the Christian Church is a mouth and an ear church. The Word is spoken and it is heard, the work of the Holy Spirit. People understand it because the Bible is so clear and forceful in its effect. Romans 10 explains what the Fourth Waltherian sects deny -
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? [Isaiah 53 - the Report is the sacrifice of Jesus, crucified for the sins of the world.] 17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
33 And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; 34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.
Starting with the thesis that the Son of God can do anything, why these strange things laid upon the deaf-mute person?
Took him aside from the multitude - The press of the crowd was likely a roar because they could see Jesus beginning a miracle. That was like trying to speak to a friend at an Alabama football championship (whether for or against). This let the man become calm and also provided his own spoken witness when Jesus cured him.
Fingers in his ears - Jesus did not try yelling at him, but began with compassion, revealing the healing of the man's hearing.
Spit and touched the man's tongue - Jesus indicated for the man and the crowd, that He was going to heal that hopeless tongue.
Looked to heaven and said Be Opened - Jesus indicated His Father above, which showed the man and the crowd the miracle from above.
These actions benefited the man, his friends, and the crowd. We have watered down "a sign" so much that people say a color, a number, or anything hopeful is "a sign." A better translation, that is derived from the text is - a miracle, something only God can do. That does not apply to someone passing a calculus exam or a driving test.
35 And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.
Three miraculous events came together, the ultimate gain being his ability to speak plainly when it was impossible before. This brought great joy to the man, his friends, and the crowd. One can only imagine how quickly each event took place. Why not today? The issues today are:
1. Faulty fake "Bibles" as money machines for denominations.
2. Inventing and preserving false doctrine, leading people - even ordained pastors - astray.
3. Ignoring the effectiveness of the Gospel Word and the Instruments (Means) of Grace.
36 And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; 37 And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.
The effect - from hoping to healing - was so great that Jesus could not keep them all from sharing this miracle to more and more people. Jesus knew that faith was spreading but also that people would turn away and mock Him when He was in the grips of soldiers and priests.
Let the Miracles Continue
The spiritual blessings come directly from the Bible, from the beginning until end of time. Our biggest weakness is worrying about the present, and worrying affects everyone. That is our normal attitude, and it should be suppressed, but it is difficult. One can be flattened by all kinds of trouble, small and large. Luther's formula is very clear in one sermon.
1. Our job is not to worry but to do God's work in whatever we do - jobs, parenting, helping others.
2. God's job is to take away our fears, anxieties, and burdens. Faith in the Savior means erasing the past. I have a number of students who write about how they have messed up their lives and deeply regret those things, but they are establishing lives of faith in the Good Shepherd. I encourage them to remember that faith in Jesus Christ means God's grace - drowning our sins in the ocean of God's love (ending of Micah) - not flagellating themselves.
3. We have a treasure chest that has great potential for the future - honoring parents and grandparents, laying it on thick, as they deserve. We have their DNA and the enormous memory of all they learned and taught and accomplished. We do not appreciate them fully until they are gone to their reward - and then they inhabit our minds. I went over the favorite teacher list of my grade school, Garfield in Moline, now a condo (really!). At least 100 Garfielders listed favorite teachers from 70 years ago. We remembered those teachers more vividly than all the teachers afterwards.
4. The mundane things in life are greater treasures than we imagine. God is behind all of it and gives us a path to follow.
KJV Psalm 119:105 - 105 Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
