Mid-Week Vespers Service, 7 PM Central Time

Mid-Week Advent Vespers Service

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Worship, 7 PM Phoenix Time 

The Hymn # 552                   Abide with Me            
The Order of Vespers                                              p. 41

The Psalmody                       Psalm 92                    p. 143
The Lection                           Isaiah 53
The Sermon Hymn #645             Behold a Branch             

The Sermon – Seven Hundred Years Before - The Suffering Servant

The Prayers

The Lord’s Prayer

The Collect for Grace                                            p. 45
 The Hymn # 558                      All Praise to Thee  

              

Isaiah 52:13 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.

14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:

15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

9 And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.

11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Seven Hundred Years Before - The Suffering Servant

We have a concentration of Messianic prophesies in Isaiah, and this chapter is the most important by itself. Most of it is quoted in the New Testament, and the content is central to the Gospel.

One thing to consider is how long the Jewish people, and those attracted to Judaism, were prepared for the coming of the Messiah. One theme is the Creation, as shown in a previous service. One cannot separate the Creation from the Atonement. What man spoiled in sinfulness was redeemed in the death of Christ.

Isaiah 52:13 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.

14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:

15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

Most readings begin with the ending of Isaiah 52.  This is one of the Suffering Servant passages, and the most important. Children always know this is about Jesus, but that was not so obvious then.

We often see without seeing and hear without understanding. I experience that in stores, where I stare at what I am looking for but do not see it. I am relieved to say that many others do too. And they say - "But I looked there and never saw it."

So the Jewish people read and heard this passage without realizing how it would be fulfilled. Many looked for a King David warrior, not a suffering servant.

14 As many were astonied at thee; his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:

Sprinkling certain calls up the sacrifices carried out in the Temple. But "sprinkle many nations" is strange to read until we know the entire story of the Messiah, from pre-existence to birth to death and resurrection. Verse 15 makes so much sense in everyone longing for a Savior and yet not knowing exactly how they would take place.

15 So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

This was discussed among several pastors because this verse is central to Paul teaching the Means of Grace - faith comes by hearing.

Both elements are present in this verse - believing and the revelation or report.

16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report?

The report is the sermon about the Suffering Servant. As I told the pastor on Facebook, this is best translated as a phrase, because it is not strictly speaking faith from hearing but faith from hearing the report - the sermon about the Suffering Servant.

Nowhere does the Bible even imply that faith comes from having popcorn and cola at the so-called worship service. I can only imagine how important the supplies are for those circus gatherings? Do we have enough popcorn? Soda cups? Soda fountain? Salt? Bags? That seems to diffuse the focus from the cross and make it a food event.

So this chapter predicts that day when people will hear the verses again and understand with faith when the Gospel is preached to them. It is quite a marvel to consider how it was a mystery that had to be reveal in time and yet it was spelled out for centuries before.

The Ethiopian Eunuch was reading this passage when he was converted by the Gospel 

Acts 8:26-40King James Version (KJV)

26 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.

27 And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,

28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet.

29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.

30 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?

31 And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.

32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:

33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

And this was part of the confirmation of everything for the Emmaus disciples - 

Luke 24:25 Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:

26 Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?

27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

53 Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?

2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.

3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Here is clearly the Passion of the Christ clearly expounded, 700 years earlier, so that when it happened, all of the Old Testament became a solid foundation for preaching the Christian Gospel, first to the Jews, then to the Gentiles.

That is why Advent is a season of repentance, to remind all believers that God became flesh to suffering for our sins, die, and rise from the dead.

We can see how it began with His lowly birth and the revelation of this great wonder to the shepherds and to Wise Men from the East. The great and mighty did not know what was happening for all the world when it happened, but the Gospel was brought to them, time after time, and the majesty and power of the Roman Empire was kicked into the dustbin as the Christian Faith arose in the servant and slave class to convert many - not all - up to the Emperor himself.

Mid-Weed Advent Service Tonight - 7 PM

Go Tell It on the Mountain - or - Quick Erase the Facebook Thread?

A WELS student who became an LCMS pastor posted a talk given by someone with a familiar name.

The topic of the talk by Ken Schurb was "Justification by Grace through Faith."

I have seen that awkward phrasing many times, always to plant the banner of Universal Forgiveness and Salvation without Faith, better known as Objective Justification or Universal Objective Justification.

I cautioned the FB friend about this, but he said the talk spoke for itself, as if I were barking up a tree.

An expert on justification, Pastor Paul Rydecki, asked, "Isn't that Ken Schurb who wrote about Objective Justification?"

Now I see by googling the name of the essay that I wrote about it five years ago.

Ken Schurb Begging the Question - "Does the Lutheran Confessions' Emphasis on Subjective Justification Mitigate Their Teaching of Objective Justification?"

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Quoting the blog citing the essay - 

One part of the essay is correct -

The Confessions never use the word “justify” unless faith is at least in the immediate context. p. 4.

But the next sentence is dead wrong and misleading, because it makes an unwarranted claim:

And they never explicitly distinguish between objective and subjective justification. (The late Dr. Harry Huth used to point out these two facts to his symbolics classes at Concordia Theological Seminary Ft. Wayne. The present writer took his introductory courses in the summer of 1979, and reports both of these observations on the basis of first-hand experience.) p. 4.

The title of the essay and this clumsy thesis are prime examples of begging the question, a logical fallacy.

When one begs the question, the initial assumption of a statement is treated as already proven without any logic to show why the statement is true in the first place. http://begthequestion.info/

The author begins with the assumption of two justifications in the Book of Concord, conceding there is only one (justification by faith) then claiming via a professor that there really are two justifications. The Book of Concord is just not explicit about this alleged fact.

---

So Rydecki and I had done our homework and identified the rascal Schurb for what he was, a salesman for Universalism disguised as a Missouri Synod Lutheran pastor.

Schurb was an assistant to LCMS President Al Barry, with Paul McCain, during those Camelot years when the conservatives were happy with their non-leader. Matt the Fat has restored that sense of calm and contentment.

The result of the promotion was - erasing the entire thread. It was Kilcreased.

Whenever Jack Kilcrease's strange, poorly spelled, and erroneous comments were called out, he erased them too, causing Ichabodians to use the name as a verb for erasing stupidity so no traces are left.

That is not exactly a Go Tell It on the Mountain approach to the truth. I have seen this so often that my comp dog antennae go up at once. (Comp dog = comparative dogmatics, an area sadly neglected by Lutherans today).

Below is the entire post about Schurb, who earned a doctorate at Ohio State - in history. I have never heard anyone say, "Wow, a doctorate from the Ohio State Buckeyes!"

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The UOJ contingent wanted me to read Ken Schurb's essay, "Does the Lutheran Confessions' Emphasis on Subjective Justification Mitigate Their Teaching of Objective Justification?" Concordia, Ft. Wayne sells the essay, which I read years ago.

I forwarded the PDF to Brett Meyer, who replied with the quotation illustrated above.

One part of the essay is correct -

The Confessions never use the word “justify” unless faith is at least in the immediate context. p. 4.

But the next sentence is dead wrong and misleading, because it makes an unwarranted claim:


And they never explicitly distinguish between objective and subjective justification. (The late Dr. Harry Huth used to point out these two facts to his symbolics classes at Concordia Theological Seminary Ft. Wayne. The present writer took his introductory courses in the summer of 1979, and reports both of these observations on the basis of first-hand experience.) p. 4.

The title of the essay and this clumsy thesis are prime examples of begging the question, a logical fallacy.

When one begs the question, the initial assumption of a statement is treated as already proven without any logic to show why the statement is true in the first place. http://begthequestion.info/

The author begins with the assumption of two justifications in the Book of Concord, conceding there is only one (justification by faith) then claiming via a professor that there really are two justifications. The Book of Concord is just not explicit about this alleged fact.

Let us examine the Biblical basis for the Assumption of Mary, using the same kind of fallacy. The Bible never says that she was assumed into heaven. However, Mary appears in the Book of Acts and her death is never mentioned there or anywhere else in the New Testament, making this a real possibility. Nothing disproves the Assumption of Mary.

Here is another winner from the same essay, page 5:


But the scenario has its problems. Most obvious is the one Edward Preuss reports: “The Wurttemberg superintendent Burk experienced . . . [what] seemed to him like a faulty circle:
I am to believe and thereby become righteous. However, I cannot believe this before it is so. And yet, it is not so, for I am first to become righteous. (The Justification of the Sinner Before God, Edward Preuss, tr. by J.A. Friedrich Reprint. St. Louis, n.d.), 22.) “God be praised,” Preuss continues, “the case is different.” It can only be different, however, if one believes in objective justification. This gives him an object for his trust.
There is a place to join this “circle.”


Like I said before, Eduard Preuss is the Bo Derek of UOJ fanatics, an old favorite of Boomers. Preuss left the Lutheran Church for Romanism and used his considerable skills to promote the Immaculate Conception of Mary! Nevertheless, this fact about him is omitted from every UOJ citation. Preuss is introduced instead as a reliable orthodox Lutheran, not an Enthusiast who turned to Rome when he saw a brilliant sunset (see the Fuerbringer book). The Burk mentioned may be the Pietist who wrote an early endorsement of UOJ, recorded by Hoenecke in his Dogmatics.

The LCMS pastors begin with the framework of double-justification, then wedge all their data into that position, as this essay does.

The WELS pastors begin with world absolution. God has declared the entire world, "Not guilty!" Any questioning of that astonishing verdict is considered reason for excommunication. As they say in all the Hitler videos, "The irony will dawn on them later."

Both groups of pastors assume that their synods have taught this truth since the very beginning, whether it was Walther's discovery of the syphilis plague spreading from Bishop Martin Stephan or WELS turning down the loot from the union mission society (no Thrivent, we don't mean you - we love your money).

Both groups contain large numbers of pastors who know that UOJ/double-justification is a crock. Both groups have published materials that teach only justification by faith. Gausewitz and the KJV catechism are two examples easily obtained.

Lutheran Orthodoxy is defined by WELS
as "agreeing with our sect."
Therefore, we see the Book of Concord
is not orthodox by their lofty standards.

The title of this essay was never a sincere question. Instead, it was a feint, a set-up to make the reader think this was really a research topic when it was a polemic for double-justification. We should pity all the seminarians who accepted the professor's deceptive claims. I have seen similar assertions from the early Robert Preus and from Dan Deutschlander.

Relax readers, it is possible for someone to have erred. My own sins are confessed on a daily basis. Three blogs have been set up and dismantled for that onerous and time-consuming task.

UOJ specialists make it personal, writing, "I do not agree with you." In sorrow, I have to reply, "That does not matter. The issue is whether you agree with the Scriptures and the Confessions." I am only a curator of the Lutheran museum. I describe and stir up interest in the musty old exhibits. Admission is free. I do not have the power to silence anyone, to ban their feeble blogs, to cost them money.

A layman observed, "They criticize Luther endlessly, but Walther is never wrong about anything. No one dares to criticize the American Pope." A poorly-trained man with two years in the parish should not be the ruling norm of Lutheran doctrine in America. Did you think I meant Paul McCain? That fits too.

Luther earned a doctorate in theology. It is true that he studied at a Roman Catholic university and read endless amounts of false doctrine. That seemed to be God's way of preparing him for the Reformation. Pastors sometimes think of that when they rouse themselves to outline a Reformation sermon. Luther spent his life debating doctrine with false teachers. That sharpened his knowledge of the Scriptures and church history, as he observed.

Likewise, Chemnitz earned a doctorate in theology. He also debated doctrine with a host of opponents. He wrote a monumental set against the Council of Trent, but also defended Luther's doctrine against the Calvinists. Chemnitz was uniquely qualified to be senior editor of the Book of Concord and the Formula of Concord. Much the same could be said of the others. I was thinking that the lesser known Concordists and men like Hunnius would put all the synod lackey seminary professors to shame. We are in dire straits.

Lutheran pastors are so lazy and ignorant that they cannot acknowledge the growth of Robert Preus in his years of scholarship. He was definitely a UOJ cheerleader when he was also promoting Church Growth at Ft. Wayne. He changed his mind about both. His final book records his thoughts about justification by faith. Do the indolent notice, or are they too afraid to open a book that shreds their dogmatics notes?

PS - The Preuss citations in the Schurb reminded me that he promoted many of the current arguments in favor of UOJ, such as "your faith is in faith" or "I cannot believe unless I already have something to believe in, something already accomplished." They never argue, "As Eduard Preuss, who finished his career promoting Roman dogma used to say..."

That is why your curator has to dust off his old exhibits, bring them out the storage room (your storage, not mine) and display them again.

On This Deception - Matt the Fat, Mark the Undertaker, and Pope John the Circuit Pastor Will Build a New Coaltion, Funded by Thrivent

According to WELS, the ELS, and the LCMS, God became man, born of a Virgin, to tell the world every single atheist, polytheist, pagan, and cannibal is forgiven and saved - without faith.

Joint Statement - WELS, ELS, LCMS
Of special note in our discussions was the doctrine of the church, because, to the surprise of ELS and WELS participants, it seemed that we agreed with each other on this doctrine. We also acknowledged agreement in regard to current social issues, such as the sanctity of life, human sexuality, and religious freedom. Last but certainly not least, there was special joy to understand that we all hold to objective justification—that God declared the world righteous through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, and that we all recognize it to be the urgent mission of the church to take this gospel to the entire world.

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"Scripture teaches that God has already declared the whole world to be righteous in Christ, Rom. 5:19; 2 Cor. 5:18-21; Rom. 4:25..." - LCMS Brief Confession, 1932

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This has to bring great joy to the underworked and overpaid synodical staffers, who believe nothing at all and covet everything about ELCA, especially its degenerate behavior and dogma.

Lutherdom is one seamless garment today - Universalism combined with the manners of the Roman Empire during its steepest decline.

They needed a new Bible for this, and they got what they wanted, the New NIV, which added a word  (all) to Romans 3 so that all have sinned and all are declared forgiven.

The New NIV
Romans 3:22 This righteousness is given through faith in[h] Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 
GJ - Note the furtive "all," which is not in the original text, but only in the minds of Universalists.

King James Version

Romans 3:22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

Brug, Wendland, and Bivens wonder,
"Why are our seminary students so stoopid?"
Because anyone with a brain is driven out.

From Another Blogger

This cat photobombed the family picture.
Thank you, auto-focus.

Matthew 18:18King James Version (KJV)

18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

http://alecsatin.com/


Your book (Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant) stood me in good stead yesterday afternoon as a group of us were discussing Matthew 18.18.  These were solid, faithful Reformed (Presbyterians) Protestants, who could not answer clearly what this and the related Scriptures meant.  After listening to the discussion (I did not weigh in for this one) I was left with renewed grave concerns at the state of Protestantism.  One person said, "I have never heard any of these things discussed by a pastor in my 26? years of being a Christian".

It would not surprise me if sometime in the next few decades, if the Lord does not tarry, that Roman Catholicism is again considered the only "acceptable" form of Christianity.

Much work to be done...

Have a very happy Christmas.
Alec

St. Matthew, by El Greco

Given a Week for Editing The Faith of Jesus: Against the Faithless Lutherans

Retail has been keeping me very busy since October, but I get a week off before the Christmas week and it should slow down after Christmas.

I was editing in bits and pieces, but I favor marathon sessions, which are hard to manage with a job in Fayetteville. I have gone through the book two or three times now, and a couple of additional passes should do it. A number of people gave me excellent advice, and I am addressing their insights in the next few efforts.

Years ago I could barely open Catholic, Lutheran, Protestant after going through it about 10 times. Later I did a complete rewrite, which is the current version. Does anyone wonder why I can spot a first draft turned in as homework?

Planning for Spring
We are probably enjoying two inches of rain in this storm. I counted one inch this morning before the storm gained energy. This fake winter has messed up leaf collecting, but we have 1/2 the backyard under cardboard with a thin layer of leaves on top. Various front yard gardens have maple leaves heaped up and holding their places.

The rebellious sycamore leaves blow all over because they are thicker and seem impervious to rot - unless they are mowed. They easily last all winter. Some are in the front yard, even though they came from the fenced backyard.

Solar Collectors - Cheap
The sunny garden will be the tomato garden. Mrs. Ichabod loves tomatoes and I enjoy growing and eating them with dill. The spring is bound to be volatile, and I want an early start.

The answer is collecting solar energy, with gallon jars of water. They absorb heat all day and radiate it to the plants all night. They also ward off frost for the same reason. For $1 each I can place gallon plastic jars of tapwater in various locations and move them around. For a lot more money I can buy a similar gadget from a gardening website. Ha.

Rosette Disease - Rooted Out
Roses are vulnerable to a parasite causing the rosette disease. So far it is fatal and not treatable, except for digging up the plant, roots and all.

I spotted two, then a third with too much growth, a weird looking red growth out of proportion to the nearby plants. All three are dug up and tossed.

Note that roses have a red growth when sprouting and growing, but this looks like roses on steroids, and it is distorted growth as well.

I should watch Sassy more carefully
when she is working on her blog.

The Third Sunday in Advent, 2015. 1 Corinthians 4:1-5. Stewards of the Mysteries of God

The Third Sunday in Advent, 2015

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time

First Anniversary - Corey and Abby Fagan - December 18th.

Mid-Week Advent Service - 7 PM Central Standard Time.

The Hymn #8                          Father Who the Light            

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 #76                        A Great and Mighty Wonder               

Faithful Stewards

The Hymn # 77:1-8  - Gerhardt              All My Heart               

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 # 77:9-15 - Gerhardt                 All My Heart               

KJV 1 Corinthians 4:1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. 4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

KJV Matthew 11:2 Now when John had heard in the prison the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples,3 And said unto him, Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another? 4 Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: 5 The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. 6 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me. 7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind? 8 But what went ye out for to see? A man clothed in soft raiment? behold, they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses. 9 But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. 10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.

Third Sunday In Advent

Lord God, heavenly Father, who didst suffer Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to become man, and to come into the world, that He might destroy the works of the devil, deliver us poor offenders from sin and death, and give us everlasting life: We beseech Thee so to rule and govern our hearts by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may seek no other refuge than His word, and thus avoid all offense to which, by nature, we are inclined, in order that we may always be found among the faithful followers of Thy Son, Jesus Christ, and by faith in Him obtain eternal salvation, through the same, Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Faithful Stewards of the Mysteries of God

KJV 1 Corinthians 4:1 Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. 

St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians to settle problems and define his work. They were polarized among various human leaders and factions. Luther expressed this beautifully in his sermon:

Luther:

1. This epistle selection illustrates the Gospel lesson for the first Sunday in Advent, wherein we learned the disciples did not themselves ride on the colt, but led it to Christ and set him thereon. That is what the apostle does here. The Corinthians had come to divisions among themselves and to boasting of certain apostles as their leaders. With one party it was Peter, with another Paul, and with yet another Apollos. Each one exalted the apostle by whom he was baptized or was taught, or the one he regarded most eminent. Now comes Paul and interposes, permitting no one to boast of any apostle, and teaching them to laud Christ alone. He tells them it matters not by whom they were baptized and taught, but it is of the utmost importance that they all hold to Christ together and own allegiance to him alone. Paul beautifully teaches how the apostles are to be regarded. The whole passage is a fierce thrust at Popery and the clerical government, as we shall see. “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.”

Reckoned, Counted, Measured

The first verb is the one for counting one righteous - used in Romans 4 - Abraham was counted righteous because of his faith in God. That should be a major emphasis in today's culture of counting, statistics. Everything we do is counted and measured. I have blog statistics measured. I have hours worked measured. Every day and every retail store has its figures measured, counted, and considered. So Paul said - this is how each one of you should measure me - as a minister of Christ and a steward of the mysteries of God. 

Minister of Christ

So the first definition is "ministers of Christ," which really means - servants of Christ. That means the apostle is not a minister of the congregation, belonging to them, or a minister to any human. Nor is he important by himself. His only duty is to be a servant of Christ. One can easily see how that is distorted today. Minister is defined as a servant to the synod, which is bad enough by itself, very Romish, or the one in charge of the congregation. Many pastors imagine they are dictators and can violate whatever Commandment they wish. They often do that as a servant of their denomination.

Man's imagination is unlimited it seems, although people settle for the usual heresies over time, thinking each one is new and different. Christ can only have One Word, One Gospel, so departures from that truth is always an error - not just a perspective or opinion - and bound to lead to other departures. We have a clearly defined message from God's Word - that is our ruling norm.

We can see clear variations because of man's imagination. The moderns apostates attacked John's Gospel as being written centuries later and not faithful to the truth. In fact, John's Gospel is hated for emphasizing faith in Jesus, for teaching His miracles, and for preserving the major sermons of Jesus not found in the other three Gospels. The Fourth Gospel shows its own value, simply by reading it and seeing how it supplements the other three so miraculously. Historical facts are good in showing this to be a valid conclusion, because John's language is most like the Aramaic of the time (thinking in Hebrew, one might say) and the geographical and other notes are so precise. 

Obviously, setting aside the Fourth Gospel is the same as eliminating the Holy Spirit's witness to the truth. Ministers and laity must read the whole Gospel and know it as integrated with the first three. Otherwise, the fanatics pick up phrases and teach what they want as servants of their synods or servants of their own egos.

Steward of the Mysteries of God

Steward is the term used for the manager of an estate.  Jesus' unrighteous steward parable illustrates how we should be as clever as that steward. That could be defined today as the clever minister, who realizes that by being faithful to the Word, he will accomplish God's will, which is no different from His Word. The outcome is blessed, especially when accompanied by the cross, because God is doing His work, not ours, through His Word.

For example, I was quoting Luther and - even Walther - to a Missouri Synod congregation years ago. One person stood up shouting in anger at me. I said, "The Law bears no fruit." That is true in Luther, in Walther quoting Luther, and in the Bible. The Law condemns and shows us our true selves. It serves as a way to keep society relatively calm and orderly. But the Law itself bears no fruit - only the Gospel does. Others were riled up too. I was startled, but that was no reason to placate them.

Mysteries of God

The mysteries of God are those articles of faith revealed by the Holy Spirit in the Word and not by human reason or logic. These are some mysteries of God, which we believe because the Word teaches them:

1. Creation of the universe by the Word in six 24-hour days.
2. The Holy Trinity, the Unity of the Three Persons, the Threeness of the One God.
3. The Virgin Birth.
4. The Incarnation.
5. The miracles of Christ.
6. The Sacraments.
7. The Real Presence in Holy Communion.
8. Eternal life.
9. The atoning death of Christ.
10. The resurrection, ascension, and future return of Christ.

Steward is defined by its use in the New Testament - as a manager. The faithful estate manage does not own anything but only executes the will of the owner honestly and diligently.

A steward of the mysteries of God is obligated to teach the revealed articles of faith as God's Word teaches them. He must know as much as he can, trust in the Word, and pursue all avenues for additional understanding. Besides that, he must guard against errors that erase the mysteries, which are always under attack, one way or another. 

Modernists reveal their agenda by promoting bad, error-filled translations. Not only that, they mock and excommunicate those who prefer the faithful translations. I was aware of "being justified by faith of Christ" in Romans, KJV.

Romans 3:21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;

22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

I soon realized that translations almost universally avoid "faith of Christ" and make it "faith in Christ." Is that important? One UOJ mocked me for emphasizing what the original text says. The changes are subtle, but they add up.

Once ministers/stewards were active in guarding the Word. When that stops, errors add up and distort the one, true message of the Word.

Luther:

13. The same is the meaning of the phrase “stewards of the mysteries of God.” The word “steward” here signifies one who has charge of his lord’s domestics; one whose office is the same as that of stewards in monasteries at the present day, or provosts in nunneries, or governors, managers and overseers of the sort. For “oekonomus” is Greek and signifies in English a steward, or one capable of providing for a house and ruling the domestics.

Christ in Matthew 24:45 calls such a one simply a servant: “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath set over his household, to give them their food in due season?” Such a servant was Eliezer, the steward of Abram’s house. Genesis 15.

14. Now, God’s household is the Christian Church ourselves. It includes pastors and bishops, overseers and stewards, whose office is to have charge of the household, to provide nourishment for it and to direct its members, but in a spiritual sense. Paul puts a distinction between the stewards of God and temporal stewards. The latter provide material nourishment, and exercise control of the physical person; but the former provide spiritual food and exercise control over souls. Paul calls the spiritual food “mysteries.” The practice of providing it has so long been discontinued we do not now know what a steward is nor what is meant by “mysteries.” Church officials imagine that when they baptize, celebrate mass and administer other sacraments, they exercise the mysteries, and that now there is no proper mystery but the mass. At the same time they know not the meaning of the term in this connection.

Notice that today's churches often adopt a business model and only measure things the way a retail store would. And the denominational officials are just as bad, even though they are driving their own denominations into the ground. The same statistics are not used by the officials for themselves.

2 Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

This verse is crucial, because Paul does not allow for excuses - he is a good guy, he is my friend, we were classmates, he is the son of important people. Nevertheless, the other measurements are used all the time. If someone wants to read the history of decline in various denominations, note how well known officials of the past have sons who are complete apostates and yet rule because of their father's reputation. One good example divided a denomination. Ludwig Fuerbringer was the nephew of CFW Walther, a pastor who devoted himself to studying the Bible in Hebrew and Greek, and to reading Luther all the time. He became a professor and president of the St. Louis Concordia Seminary.

Ludwig's son Fibby was the president of the same seminary who hired all the liberal professors and backed them up. When Rehwinkel taught the Flood and other ancient truths, Rehwinkel was shipped all over the world to keep him from influencing students. Rehwinkel asked his own faculty members why they did not speak out against the changes. They said nothing in response.

I looked at Methodism and read a similar story, the son mocking the Virgin Birth of Christ.

The old General Synod, pre-LCA, pre-ULCA, had a reverse apostasy story, which also happens. The confessional son (Beale M. Schmucker) of S. S. Schmucker was alienated from his unionistic father.

One can be alienated for being faithful - and that is good - time will tell. Or one can be alienated by departing from the truth. S. S. Schmucker denied the Real Presence to help facilitate union with the Reformed. If the Real Presence does not matter, denying it is no problem. But it does matter, and those weak on the Real Presence are soon weak about the Two Natures of Christ, then about the Trinity itself.

3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self. 4 For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.

Here is a statement of ultimate trust in the Word. Paul is obliged to be a faithful manager of the mysteries of God, so he cannot be judged as a success or failure by others or even by himself. So much for the self-esteem movement. He can only be judged by God; he cannot justify himself.

Luther:

Paul says relative to the matter, speaking on how men should behave themselves in the house of God: “Without controversy great is the mystery of godliness; he who was manifested in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, received up in glory.” 1 Timothy 3:16. This is spoken of Christ, who was manifest in the flesh. He dwelt among men who had flesh and blood like himself, yet he was still a mystery. That he was Christ, the Son of God, the life, the way, the truth and all good, was hidden.

19. Yet he was “justified in the Spirit;” that is, through the Spirit’s influence believers received, acknowledged and retained him as all we have mentioned. “To justify” means simply to pronounce just, or at least to admit as just; as we have in Luke 7:29: “All the people when they heard, and the publicans, justified God.” Again, in Psalm 51:4: “That thou mayest be justified when thou speakest.” This is equivalent to saying:

The believer in Christ justifies him, and acknowledges the truth that Christ alone is our life and righteousness and wisdom, and that we are sinners, condemned and perishing. For such Christ is, and such is his claim. He who acknowledges this his claim justifies him in the Spirit; but he who does not justify him relies upon his own works; he does not see himself condemned but contends against and condemns Christ. [This justification of Christ is effected by no one unless he possesses the Holy Spirit, whose work alone it is. Flesh and blood cannot do it, even if it be publicly presented to our eyes and preached into our ears.]

5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.

In all of Creation, only man can reflect upon his own life and work. That is a blessing and a curse. If animals did that, they would say, "Why should I work my entire life so these humans can have wheat, or apples, or milk? I want to kick up my hooves and live it up."

The blessing is that we can reflect upon our lives in Christ and see how He gives us purpose and energy to serve Him. Many may feel outwardly unsuccessful, because the world frowns at them. They have relatively little money. They may live in a rented house, which others mock. They may be tent-makers, which sounds good in talking about Paul, who was one, but not when ministers brag about salaries and housing allowances. Not preaching must be a good job, because it means it means less work, more help, and an enormous increase in salary and benefits - all hidden from the people who give the money.

As Luther said, this lesson is a contrast between man's view and God's view of the ministry. Man's view is perpetually messed up, since emotions and the opinions of others distort what is so clearly said here. That is why Paul addresses the erroneous view. Luther saw an actual Reformation, but he saw it slipping away. Many terrible retreats from the truth have taken place among Lutherans alone, since then, but we still have Luther's sermons gladly read all over the Net, even if only by relatively few. I see no success with justification by faith, except a few more people see the problem and address it openly - but -

• No Lutheran professor - anywhere - will teach justification by faith and refute errors.
• No synod official among the established groups will.
• Very few pastors will. Almost no Lutheran pastor will stand up for a fellow pastor kicked out for teaching justification by faith.
• One very small group (ELDONA) teaches justification by faith, while the established "conservative" apostates and ELCA are pledged to justification without faith.

We cannot judge this or become discouraged at the lack of progress. The Word is efficacious in converting and in sustaining faith. The Word is also efficacious in condemning unbelief, in hardening and blinding those who willfully reject what they believed (if only for a short time).

Those who grew up on the Gausewitz simple, easy, plain catechism knew and believed justification by faith. They belonged to the LCMS, WELS, ELS, and micro-mini groups. But that has been swept away. God has warned His people many times. The Pastoral Epistles, Romans 1, and 2 Thessalonians 2 are being fulfilled before our eyes.