Official Document: WELS A Reformed Sect

"The elephant labored and brought forth a mouse..."

Someone got the idea to have WELS study its horrendous use of "making disciples," which they got from Fuller Seminary. The resolution passed at the 2005 convention, so the study took two years to write.

Whenever a synod studies something, the new false doctrine is already in place. Missouri studied Church Growth and found it good. WELS' Valleskey, who studied at Fuller Seminary, studied Church Growth and found it very good. Then the ELS studied Church Growth and found it bad, but quickly recovered and echoed Valleskey's "spoiling the Egyptians," finding Church Growth very good indeed.

If WELS found something wrong with "making disciples," WELS would be fallible. That is beyond the comprehension of anyone left in the shrinking sect.

The panel involved reveals the difficulties with instructional incest. Hardly anyone in WELS has been educated outside of WELS. Besides, the only way to survive in the educational structure is to go along with the political agenda. Thus a study is going to be a rubber stamp, not unlike ELCA's studies and Missouri's studies.

WELS got it all wrong, as usual, preserving the Church Growth agenda that has served them so badly for 30 years.

The Great Commission, as it is called, does not have Jesus commanding His diciples to manufacture more disciples - Go and make disciples.

The object of the verb is "all nations." The KJV is really the Tyndale translation. As the Mourna Hooker article explains, Tyndale was accused of being a Lutheran. In fact, he was closely associated with Luther.

KJV Matthew 28:19 (1.) Go ye therefore, and (2.) teach all nations, (2.) baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

The two main verbs are "go" and "teach." The word "disciple" in Greek means student, not missionary zealot. The verb form of the noun means to teach, not to make something. Subordinate to going and teaching all nations are the two particles, which I marked with italics - baptizing and instructing.

When WELS adopted the NIV and expelled pastors who objected, the Reformed anti-Means of Grace attitude of the ecumenical NIV took over. Now the members and pastors are too ignorant to object and too scared to quote the KJV.

One objection to the KJV is using teach twice. Gasp! And yet the command is easy to understand. The first part of the disciples' work is to go and teach. When people gather to form a church, they need baptism and instruction.

The Fuller agenda is pure Pietism. Disciples make disciples who make disciples who make disciples. Joel Gerlach, who studied at Fuller, loves repetation which it includes his mantra of disciples.