Bad News for Apostates - Pageviews Reach 5.5 Million for Ichabod the Glory Has Departed

Not long ago, the pageviews for Ichabod, the Glory Has Departed reached 5 million.

Normally there is a post only for each new million mark, but the synod officials deserve updates more frequently. They are largely responsible. By chasing away readers with their fulminations, they create a forbidden fruit response. Fuller is great, but Ichabod is the blackest sin. What's new on Ichabod?

Secondly, they are always reading the blog, so they add to the views.

The worse things are, the more the apostate Lutheran leaders proclaim the entire world forgiven - without faith, without the Gospel, without the Means of Grace.

 The only requirement for a confessional Lutheran today
is - call yourself a confessional Lutheran.

Remember the late Father Richard John Neuhaus (LCMS, AELC, LCA, ELCA, Church of Rome)? He was trained at the greatest seminary in the world, Concordia in St. Louis - a contemporary of Herman Otten and Kurt Marquart. Neuhaus called himself a confessional Lutheran just before he joined the Church of Rome and became a priest.

The authors of the Braaten-Jenson Christian Dogmatics called themselves confessional Lutherans while rejecting all the articles of faith in the Apostles Creed.

 Father Neuhaus, was connected to Concordia St. Louis,
like Edward Preuss, who also taught Universalism
and became Roman Catholic. LCMS leaders still
adore Edward Preuss on Justification without Faith.

Cowardly Lion: Courage! What makes a king out of a slave? Courage! What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage! What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist, or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage! What makes the sphinx the seventh wonder? Courage! What makes the dawn come up like thunder? Courage! What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the "ape" in apricot? What have they got that I ain't got?
Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Woodsman: Courage! 
From Quotes

J-578

"So, then, we are reconciled; however, not only we, but also Hindus, and Hottentots and Kafirs, yes, the world. 'Reconciled', says our translation; the Greek original says: 'placed in the right relation to God'. Because before the Fall we, together with the whole creation, were in the right relation to God, therefore Scripture teaches that Christ, through His death, restored all things to the former right relation to God." 

F. R. Eduard Preuss, 1834-1904, Die Rechtfertigung der Suender vor Gott. Cited in Rick Nicholas Curia, The Significant History of the Doctrine of Objective or Universal Justification, Alpine, California: California Pastoral Conference, WELS. January 24-25, 1983. p. 24. [GJ - This restoration of all is used by Karl Barth, official theologian for Fuller, to promote Universalism.]

Dr. Robert Preus, Justification and Rome:

"But the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the sinner takes place when the Holy Spirit brings him to faith through Baptism and the Word of the Gospel. Our sins were imputed to Christ at His suffering and death, imputed objectively after He, by His active and passive obedience, fulfilled and procured all righteousness for us. But the imputation of His righteousness to us takes place when we are brought to faith." [procured in italics in text]
Robert D. Preus, Justification and Rome, St. Louis: Concordia Academic Press 1997, p. 72.

Abraham Calov: "Although Christ has acquired for us the remission of sins, justification, and sonship, God just the same does not justify us prior to our faith. Nor do we become God's children in Christ in such a way that justification in the mind of God takes place before we believe." [Apodixis Articulorum Fide, Lueneburg, 1684]
Robert D. Preus, Justification and Rome, St. Louis: Concordia Academic Press 1997, p. 131n. 

Lenski

"Nowhere in the Bible is any man constituted or declared righteous ‘without faith, before faith.’”
R. C. H. Lenski, Romans, Augsburg Publishing House: Minneapolis, 1963, p. 382. Romans 5:19-20.


Basic Errors of UOJ

I want to keep this basic. The UOJ fanatics like to tie up people in terminology while ignoring the catastrophic errors in their own thinking. For instance, Dan and Rolph Preus continue to promote a position contrary to what their father repudiated in his final book - and they edited it. (Old writer's joke - An editor is someone whose belt size is bigger than his IQ.)

There is only one justification - not two.
Justification is used in the Scriptures and the Book of Concord only in the context of justification by faith apart from the works of the Law. Sig Becker admitted that in his essay - UOJ, OJ, and General Justification are new terms. In German, as Kurt Marquart observed, "general" means universal.

The first recorded use of General Justification is from Burk, cited in Hoenecke, long after the Reformation and Book of Concord. Note that Hoenecke was trained at the center of Pietism, Halle University, as a student of Tholuck, a Universalist. Burk was the son-in-law of Bengel, a very strange Pietist indeed. The double-justification scheme came from the Pietist Knapp, who preceded Tholuck at Halle University. Knapp's lectures were widely available in English and German, in America and Europe, before Walther (a Pietist) began promoting it.

Abraham defeats all UOJ claims.

Righteousness was imputed to Abraham through faith. 

KJV Genesis 15:6 And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.

KJV Romans 4:22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead; 25 Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised againfor our justification.

He is the Father of Faith in Romans 4, foundational for justification by faith in Romans 5:1-2. How could he be justified before Christ, then declared justified (with the whole world, Hottentots and Hindoos included), and...?

Grace comes only through the Means of Grace Word and Sacrament.

Those who separate the Holy Spirit from the Word are Enthusiasts (Luther, Book of Concord). Nothing is more ridiculous that saying the entire world is forgiven (including everyone in Hell) but not really forgiven until they "accept" this universal forgiveness without the Word, without Means, without the Spirit, without faith. J. P. Meyer, WELS, in Ministers of Christ: "Will he accept or will he decline?"

UOJ utterly destroys Christian doctrine and worship

1. The Office of the Keys is rendered obsolete because everyone is already forgiven. That is why so many UOJ-CG pastors are Antinomian unionists.
2. All Law/Gospel distinctions are merged, since everyone is forgiven - Gospel Reductionism (Seminex and ELCA) is UOJ in another uniform.
3. Worship is simply a convenient way to get the cell groups together on Sunday, because the real work of the church takes place in conventicles "transforming lives." (See The CORE and all the other clones of Pietism.)

I hope this helps. So ends today's Talking Points Memo. 

Why do the wheels keep falling off our UOJ racer? 

Ecclesia asks judge to toss records suit Lawsuit Filed by Former Ecclesia College Board Member, Instructor

 Nothing to see here. Move on.

Ecclesia asks judge to toss records suit:



"FAYETTEVILLE -- Lawyers for a Christian college at the center of a kickback scheme want a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit against the school thrown out.

Arkansas legislators gave nearly $700,000 in public funds to help the private Ecclesia College buy almost 50 acres in Benton County. The lawsuit seeks information from the college about the state money.

Ecclesia's receipt of the grant money entered the spotlight after former state Rep. Micah Neal, R-Springdale, pleaded guilty in federal court Jan. 4 to taking a pair of kickbacks totaling $38,000 for helping two entities receive grants through the state's General Improvement Fund.

Former state Sen. Jon Woods, R-Springdale, has since been indicted on 11 counts of honest services wire fraud, one count of honest services mail fraud and one count of money laundering in the case.

Also indicted in the kickback scheme are the college's president, Oren Paris III of Springdale, and Randell Shelton Jr. of Alma, a consultant. Each was indicted on nine counts of honest services wire fraud and one count of honest services mail fraud."

...

The lawsuit against the school, filed in Washington County Circuit Court on behalf of Jim Parsons of Bella Vista, contends that private organizations that receive public money, engage in activities that are of public interest, carry on work that is intertwined with that of a government body or receive grants to promote economic development are subject to the requirements of the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

Parsons is chairman of the Benton County chapter of the Transparency in Government Group. He said he's a former Ecclesia board member and faculty member.

'via Blog this'

Mom's on the board, and she supports me.
I've got that going for me.
And we give her a big, fat salary for...for...
being my Mom.

Mayor: City received funds after objection to grants to Ecclesia College dropped | The Tribune

Mayor: City received funds after objection to grants dropped | The Tribune:


"BERRYVILLE, ARK.
The mayor of Berryville says his city received $61,000 in state grants after he dropped objections to other state grants to a private college in Springdale.

Mayor Tim McKinney told the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/2mfTPa3 ) he objected in 2014 to $91,000 in state General Improvement Fund grants to Ecclesia College.

Former state Sen. Jon Woods, Ecclesia College President Oren Paris III and consultant Randell Shelton have been indicted for alleged kickbacks to Woods for the grants. Former Rep. Micah Neal pleaded guilty in January to taking a kickback for helping obtain one grant.

McKinney said he was pressured to drop his objection, and eventually decided not to block the grant. He said Woods then offered to support grants for Berryville and he accepted them because the money went toward local, public projects."

 "David Barton School of Political Science" at Ecclesia College.
Does that mean the library will no longer be one room
in the old octagon building?

'via Blog this'

The Elephant in the Lutheran Room - Everyone Is ELCA Now, Just in Time for the 500th Anniversary

 No one wants to talk about the truth.

The Lavender Synods
Before the earlier mergers, there were two big Lutheran conferences. One was the American Lutheran Conference, and the Augustana Synod took part in that. Another was more liberal, as they like to say, and included the liberal ULCA and the Augustana Synod, named for the Augsburg Confession. 

The American Lutheran Conference became The American Lutheran Church - or TALC. The The matters because that group included the older American Lutheran Church of 1930 (when the Ohio, Iowa, and Buffalo Synod merged). Perhaps saying "the TALC" is a crime against the language, just like saying "the TLH" -  do you use the The Lutheran Hymnal?

Old Blues
The Synodical Conference - LCMS, WELS, ELS - publicly shunned this liberal merger business while working with all these groups and their theological faculties. The Synodical Conference supposedly fell apart but they have been "together" - living in sin with ELCA - for decades.

This recitation aims at pointing out how the so-called liberal or lavender groups  became the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, with various nicknames from the covetous LCMS, ELS, and WELS. The truth is - they were all gorging themselves at the same insurance troughs, and the two insurance companies (AAL and LB) become one - Thrivent.

UOJ and Romanizing United Them
The uniting dogma for all the Lutheran groups is Universal Objective Justification. They celebrated their false dogma at the Emmaus Conference, where Jay Webber displayed his training in UOJ from Ft. Wayne and from the ELCA online school - ILT.

More UOJ will be celebrated at this year's Emmanus orgy of the blind leading the blind. Once again, no one will object and few will attend.

Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
That's how it goes
Everybody knows

Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died
Everybody talking to their pockets
Everybody wants a box of chocolates
And a long-stem rose
Everybody knows - Lyrics by Leonard Cohen.

 Pope Herman, SJ, works with Roman Catholics,
publishes for the Babtists, teaches UOJ,
and shuns the Chief Article of Christianity.

The LCMS never was 100% UOJ - and their catechisms are still based on the Chief Article - Justification by Faith. WELS taught Justification by Faith in the Gausewitz Catechism, but threw that under the bus in favor of Kuske's UOJ catechism. The ELS supposedly began as a UOJ cult. But Jack Preus promoted Martin Chemnitz and Robert Preus reversed himself in his final book. Bob's sons were too dense to notice and listed themselves as editors of that book, Justification and Rome.

I knew Robert Marshall, James Crumley, and Herb Chilstrom (LCA synod presidents), Robert and Jack Preus (LCMS), George Orvick and Pope John the Malefactor (ELS), plus a few others - Kurt Marquart, Herman Otten, Waldo Werning, and the notorious Paul McCain.

Romanizing
Nothing takes over like Roman canon law, smells and bells, and the other attributes of the Whore of Babylon (Revelation). The Lutherans - who once honored and respected the pastoral office and the congregation itself - treated the Ministry of the Word like dirt. The Lutheran leaders trample on pastors, teachers, and congregations alike - because they do not believe the Scriptures.

One cannot turn against the Chief Article and leave the rest of Christian doctrine alone.

One insurance company to rule them all and in the darkness bind them!
How ironic! - to have Thrivent, the ELCA's insurance company, with WELS' own Mark Jeske on the board, as the coordinating power in all this apostasy.

Where Thieves Break Through and Steal

 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal...Matthew 6:19

We had two inches of rain, capped by snow that stayed on the grass overnight. The birds were eating energetically before the storm and during the storm. The weather system turned our area cold again, so the birds continued to eat at the feeders.

I keep changing the configuration to reduce squirrel dominance. My latest  consists of hanging feeders from Lowe's, two side by side, a third hanging near the kitchen window.

I took away the squirrel stepstool by taking the finch feeder off the pole and placing it on the basket. "Fooled them again!" I said as I looked over the new layout. Why feed squirrels or birds far from me or squirrels nearby?

This morning I saw the seed can lid off and a lot of empty sunflower seed cases on top of the seeds. "Fooled me again!"

I could not determine where the squirrels pried the handle down from the can, which is essentially the lock - or I left the handle down.

 This unrehearsed photo is what I often see in the yard.
They know I am bringing seed, want to check up on me,
but also like a safe escape route.

People have called me St. Francis,
so I created this image,
which deeply offended the Fox Valley AA clergy.

The birds definitely welcome me into the backyard. They flutter up to their roosts, but watch what I am doing. They return to feeding within minutes now, and I enjoy that. I can turn around from the computer and see cardinals, goldfinches, and house finches feeding merrily. At the kitchen sink I saw a grackle swoop up to the feeder and land, with no intention of leaving his meal.

Both of the six-foot wide swings bounce with traffic. Birds love to land on the swing, near the feeder, to line up for food and check for their safety.

Yesterday, one goldfinch stayed on the swing looking into the bedroom. I approached. He did not flinch or fly away. I got the message. The feeder was empty and he wanted it filled.

The birds and squirrels perform all day for us, without needing a ton of food. For one thing, I have a yard where there is an abundance of worms, bugs, spiders, seeds, and fruit for them to enjoy.

Pokeberries and elderberries have something in common. Both harbor beneficial insects when blooming and feed birds when fruiting. They also spread easily.

 Jessical Walliser has more plans for sharing her insights.

Someone suggested using a beer and detergent combination against rose pests. I countered with Attracting Beneficial Bugs, by Jessica Walliser, a Facebook friend.

Our senior proof-reader is finding that giving away copies of Creation Gardening is quite easy. I just sent more, and regular readers are getting their copies fairly soon now.

There is no doctrinal difference between

1. Creation Gardening, 
2. Thy Strong Word, and the upcoming 
3. Lost Dutchman's Goldmine. 

All three books teach the efficacy of God's Word.

Man has all kinds of bad solutions for the yard. Before chemical fertilizers and pesticides, successful farmers used composted manure and natural cures. In one narrative from The Wormhaven Gardening Book, a farmer gathered his animal manure in a pit, mixed it with soil and plant material, and let the earthworms do the work. When he spread this composted material, the birds gathered to pick up the earthworms and other delights of finished compost.

Since the Bible is not a gardening book, does it not make sense that Creation Gardening is another approach to the ministry of the Word?

Let us look at a few man-made cures for congregations:

• Revivals - the idea is to get people all worked up, emotional, fainting, and repenting. The excitement soon wore off.
• Union churches - Why not get the Calvinists and Lutherans to form union congregations, the way they did in Europe? So little to separate the two! Many LCMS and WELS followed suit by joining the Willowcreek Community Churches organization.
• Pentecostal and charismatic fervor. Those stuffy mainlines gave up the Holy Spirit, miracles, and the Son of God for Lent - and then some. So why not act like we just swallowed the Holy Spirit, feathers and all - speak in tongues, dance around? Pentecostal fervor faded - even in the Assemblies of God - and that is like McDonalds going vegan.
• Entertainment! People want to have fun - that will bring them in. Add popcorn, peanuts, and Cracker Jacks. They ate themselves fat and they never came back! The Community of Joy, which sounded like a house of ill repute - and it was - folded faster than a Hillary 2020 sweatshirt factory. Ten thousand members and Joy collapsed.
• Business methods! Management by Objectives. Ya know, Rev, the church should be run just like a business. Fuller Seminary certainly was, and they got this MBO fever injected into ELCA, WELS, Missouri, even the gangrenous CLC. Every sect that adopted Fuller methods began dying on the spot.

Beautyberries are for the birds - only.

Ecclesia College - Oren Paris Family - List of Links. Most Recent at the Top. Covered by Patheos, Local and National Outlets, and Christianity Today

 Oren Paris III has his mother Inez on the governing board,
his sister Angie running the online college,
his brother-in-law Mike Novak raising money,
his sister Twila running the prep school.
Not one of them is qualified to teach or to manage higher education. They call Oren "Dr. Paris" now because
he has an online DMin (not a doctorate) from
Laurel University.
So does "Dr." Phillip Brassfield, chairman of the board.

How Money Helped Ruin Higher Education

Ecclesia College lawyers want Freedom of Information lawsuit dropped.

Berryville got its city grant after its objections to Ecclesia College grant are dropped.

Encyclopedia of Arkansas.

Pat Boone is listed on the Board of Regents, but has never heard of Ecclesia College.

 Twila Paris Official "I am so blessed to have Oren as my brother and so grateful for his faithful service in God's Kingdom. Those who know him well know that he is a man of deep integrity with a long established record of exemplary character. It is very clear that his highest aim is always to please God. 

My family and I are humbled and strengthened by the many people of good will who are believing the best and standing with us in prayer during this season we could never have imagined."

-Twila Paris

Three people listed on the Board of Regents did not know they were on that list.

Phillip Brassfield chairs the operating board of Ecclesia College.

Ecclesia College makes Freedom FROM Religion happy.

Arkansas Christian Politician Pleads Guilty - Ecclesia College Bribes

Paul Snyder - married to Oren's sister - makes demands and threats about Ecclesia College posts.

The family tree - Oren Paris family dominates Ecclesia College and pays itself very well indeed. Paul Snyder hated this post, but offered no rebuttal, only threats.

Federal indictment of Oren Paris III reveals details of kickback scheme for Ecclesia College and the Paris family.

Ecclesia College hired a woman - a friend of Woods - to be Oren Paris' secretary - for a huge salary, especially when compared to the slave wages paid to the academic faculty.

Fired Ecclesia College coach is suing the college.

Former board member and faculty memberJim Parsons sues Ecclesia College to reveal financial details involved in the federal indictments of Oren Paris III.

Arkansas Times - a smell arising from Ecclesia College.

Ecclesia College, Springdale, Arkansas - In Their Own Words

Oren Paris III among those indicted in bribery scandal.

Oren Paris III linked with Jon Woods in federal indictment.

Angie Paris Snyder is in charge of the college website,
which explains the imaginary faculty members
and board members listed - to lend credibility to the school.
A little leaven leavens the whole lump.

----

Inside Higher Education Posts about Oren Paris III

Details of Oren Paris III Indictment

Ecclesia College president Oren Paris III indicted

Indictment involves Ecclesia College in Springdale, Arkansas

---

Patheos Posts

Oren Paris Archives 

Oren Paris New Indictments

Arkansas Bribery Scandals - Will Oren's Denials Be Enough?

Steven Henderson did not know that Oren and Angie
put him on the Board of Regents.

The Lost Dutchman's Goldmine, Movie and Book. Movie Review - - A Fine Addition to Good Westerns - NYTimes.com

 This 1949 movie is a good presentation of
the Lost Dutchman's Goldmine story.

Movie Review - - A Fine Addition to Good Westerns - NYTimes.com:


"Out of fact and fancy, Producer-Director S. Sylvan Simon, his scenarists, the author of the book and a professional cast, have mined a tense, intelligent and often thrilling adventure in "Lust for Gold," which came to the Criterion on Saturday. For the story of man's ill-fated quest for the "Lost Dutchman" cache—a $20,000,000 jackpot in mined, high-grade gold ore secreted somewhere in Arizona's craggy Superstition Mountains and free for the finding—has the attraction of a tall tale plus the conviction of a statistic. And, though its romantic aspects are dross by comparison with the rest of the yarn, the saga makes a neat addition to the roster of good Western dramas which have come our way."



'via Blog this'

The frequent use of treasure in Luther's sermons,
edited as the Large Catechism, inspired the title of the book, especially since we once lived not far from the fabled mine.

Janie Sullivan, our finishing editor, has the Word file for the book. She is an expert at porting books to Amazon and to Kindle e-books.

Norma Boeckler illustrated the book and the covers. She is now such a celebrity on Facebook, deservedly so, that one of my FB friends wrote to me -  "You know Norma Boeckler?!"

The proof-readers did a  great job of identifying those little glitches that get by the original author, such as missing words, misspelled words, and format errors. One reader found lines changing from single spacing to 1.5, which was so obvious once he pointed it out.

Our German speaking senior proof-reader spotted vor spelled as ver. Most people would miss that. I overlooked it myself.

Little Ichabod showed me how to fix the sub-headings, which are picked up by the Word software for the table of contents. I used them extensively because they are so handy in Kindle e-books. The table of contents links take the mobile reader right to the item.

Another advantage of Kindle e-books is Kindle Unlimited, which means getting each new Martin Chemnitz Press book for the monthly fee of $10. One reader said ELDONA's Repristination Press should offer everything as a Kindle Unlimited book - if they wanted to spread the Word of God.

One appendix turned into five, because readers tell me they appreciate the quotations, footnotes, and citations. Thy Strong Word is a favorite book for one Lutheran congregation, and it could be called the printed edition of Megatron, the Database.

Upcoming Projects

1. The complete sermons of Luther in the 8-volume Lenker series.
2. The two Luther catechisms.
3. Another Luther book.
4. A new Lutheran dictionary.

Ecclesia College - Encyclopedia of Arkansas

Ecclesia College - Encyclopedia of Arkansas: "t was announced in February 2016 that classes would be offered in the school's new David Barton College of Political Science in fall 2016.

On March 2, 2017, federal charges were filed against President Oren Paris III, as well as state Senator Jon Woods of Springdale and Randell Shelton Jr. According to the indictment, from 2013 to 2015, Woods and state Representative Micah Neal, also of Springdale, directed hundreds of thousands of dollars in state money from the General Improvement Fund (GIF) to Ecclesia College in order to enrich Paris, who paid bribes back to the legislators through a company set up by Shelton. Rep. Neal had already pleaded guilty by the time of the indictment and was cooperating with government investigators."

So appropriate!

'via Blog this'

Reminiscere - The Second Sunday in Lent, 2017. Matthew 15:21-28. The Faith of the Canaanite Woman

 The famous Emmaus appearance of Jesus, after the Resurrection,
reminds us about understanding the Scriptures,
not merely knowing the content in a superficial way.

Reminiscere Sunday, The Second Sunday in Lent, 2016

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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

Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Time

The Hymn #652   I Lay My Sins on Jesus               

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 #142    A Lamb Goes Uncomplaining - Gerhardt  

Comfort Revealed in a Hard Passage

The Hymn #454            Prayer Is the Soul's Sincere Desire                

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 # 374                 Grace Tis a Charming Sound  

KJV 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more. 2 For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God,even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication: 4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour; 5 Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God: 6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified. 7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.

KJV Matthew 15:21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. 23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. 24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. 27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. 28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

Second Sunday In Lent

Lord God, heavenly Father, grant us, we beseech Thee, by Thy Holy Spirit, that He may strengthen our hearts and confirm our faith and hope in Thy grace and mercy, so that, although we have reason to fear because of our conscience, our sin, and our unworthiness, we may nevertheless, with the woman of Canaan, hold fast to Thy grace, and in every trial and temptation find Thee a very present help and refuge, 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.

Comfort Revealed in a Hard Passage

KJV Matthew 15:21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.

The miracle stories of the New Testament always have two lessons, perhaps more. The first lesson is the miracle itself. That may surprise some, but the vast majority of mainline clergy do not believe in the miracles, so they have to talk around them. The modern Christian theologians simply treat the Bible as a foundation for their plush incomes. The Evangelicals and Pentecostals decry the apostasy of their liberal counterparts, but their own lack of faith is revealed by their promotion of entertainment church services, sales gimmicks, and other signs of being embarrassed by the Gospel Word.

We should not overlook the fact that Jesus healed the daughter without even suggesting a visit to see her. That emphasizes the power of the divine Word, which did not require a physical visit during his earthly ministry. This item supports other passages that place a greater emphasis on that reality, such as the Healing of the Centurion's Servant. Matthew 8:5-13.

5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

I recall one minister trying to take the position in this lesson - that Jesus was testing the woman by appearing to be so mean and hard-hearted. But that denies the divine nature of Christ. He already knew what was in her heart, so "testing her" is like saying His divine nature was limited by His human nature (non-reciprocity of the second genus) - a Calvinist error. I give tests in my Old Testament class - or at least the server does - because no one knows what is in the hearts and minds of the students. Sometimes they think exactly like websites that deal with the same issues - verbatim. Total agreement. Then we have a little talk.

The Nature of Faith

This is definitely a lesson on the nature of faith. The lesson is not about Jesus or the woman herself, but the meaning of faith and how faith responds to difficulties, even the most trying circumstance.

Luther is a great guide in this regard, because his only concern was the actual message of God's Word, its unified Truth. If people read enough Luther they find that he was relaxed about tossing aside the great Doctors of the Church if they were light on the Gospel or even more - if they bypassed the Gospel altogether. Jerome and Aquinas were easily kicked to the curb by Luther, which is instructive.

Theology students are trained to gasp in amazement at the mention of the great theologians - or at least at the mention of famous theologians. Since no one was great before Fuller Seminary began, that is a fairly small number. And it must include the locals who bark with approval at Fuller nonsense, like trained seals who pretend to sing and even honk horns. Loud applause follows.

The stages in this miracle are lessons about faith. Matthew was more of a textbook for the Christian Church, well organized with careful citations. Virtually all books entitled The Life of Christ begin with Matthew as the basic outline.

22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.

This woman was born and raised a pagan, so she did not have the advantages of those born to Judaism and trained in the Old Testament promises. Jesus traveled into non-Jewish areas to establish believers in those areas, who would be trained and formed into congregations after the Resurrection. At some point she heard the reputation of Jesus and had faith that this divine Teacher could heal her daughter.

In the great Means of Grace chapter of the New Testament, Romans 10, Paul teaches that "faith comes by hearing," but that is a limited expression of what he says in the original. "Who has believed our report?" is from Isaiah 53, about the Suffering Servant. 16 αλλ ου παντες υπηκουσαν τω ευαγγελιω ησαιας γαρ λεγει κυριε τις επιστευσεν τη ακοη (akoue) ημων. Romans 10:16

The word for report is akoue in Greek, hearing, related to the English acoustics. The report is clearly the preached Word about Christ, so faith comes from the preached Word (akoue). Faith comes from the Report (hearing the Gospel) through the Word of God. Romans 10:17

Luther compares this to catching the sweet aroma of the Gospel and being attracted to it. One Methodist woman came to our church in Columbus by mistake and phoned her mother - "I went to church all my life and never heard such things." The Methodist Church, formed by the Gospel, left that behind for the Law of social reform, the Social Gospel Movement.

Luther:

2. But how is it that many more have heard this good news concerning Christ, who have not followed him, and did not esteem it as good news?

Answer: The physician is helpful and welcome to the sick; the healthy have no use for him. But this woman felt her need, hence she followed the sweet scent, as is written in the Song of Solomon 1:3. In like manner Moses must precede and teach people to feel their sins in order that grace may be sweet and welcome to them. Therefore all is in vain, however friendly and lovely Christ may be pictured, if man is not first humbled by a knowledge of himself and he possesses no longing for Christ, as Mary’s Song says, “The hungry he hath filled with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away,” Luke 1:53. All this is spoken and written for the comfort of the distressed, the poor, the needy, the sinful, the despised, so that they may know in all times of need to whom to flee and where to seek comfort and help.

The woman heard the Gospel report and was attracted to Jesus. He knew the ones who followed just to get a meal or to witness and miracle (only to expect even more). They did not believe anything except their bellies, which they served.

This is the beginning of faith, and the woman goes to Jesus trusting that He will comfort her in this great hour of need, to heal her daughter. One of my students has a daughter who is the victim of seizures, even after the placing of a device in her brain to stop them. They come upon her at the strangest times and take over the girl's body. It is like having the brain hacked, and no medicine can overwhelm the bad signals.

So the daughter suffers and the mother suffers even more, feeling helping and experiencing her daughter's affliction night and day.

Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. 23 But he answered her not a word.

This is instructive for all Christians, because she prays for a cure for her daughter and receives nothing but silence.

Her experience corresponds to everyone who asks for healing for another person or any other kind of blessing from God, and sees nothing as the response.  That person may wait weeks, months, and the crisis continues. Others make it worse by mocking, "Why do the Christians have the worst problems? And the clergy families are even worse." 

What could be more unfriendly than this? Nothing is quite so bad as silence. She could easily conclude that what she heard was false. Here is a cold and uncaring Teacher, who does not care about her daughter at all. 

At first nothing else can be concluded about Jesus, so that is why people take offense at this miracle and wish it were worded differently. But these are the same people who need to have their faith become unshakable - like the Canaanite woman's. The message from Luther is that God's Word belongs to Him alone. Therefore, when He reveals His wisdom, we do not explain away or sugar-coat it, but receive it with complete trust.

And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. 24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 

The mother did not lose faith but continued her cries for her daughter's healing. This seems strange because many are portrayed in the Gospels as having a single request and having that answered at once with healing. But the Scriptures do not question the power of God to heal, so each healing miracle is also a lesson of one kind or another. 

The so-called Prosperity Gospel is no Gospel at all. Those snake-oil salesmen promise prosperity for believers, often for a fee, and equate faith with receiving all good material things in abundance. That kind of faith should be  called the July Frost Gospel, because it only lasts as long as a frost in July. Such faith melts away in sun of affliction, want, and persecution. All the pagan religions offer the same, so why should Christians who are forgiven through faith in the cross be against the cross for themselves?

Jesus' answer is perfectly logical. The strange thing is that many Protestant leaders are embarrassed by Jewish Evangelism, even though it continues to this day. How could Jews become Christians with so much resistance built into their system? So the Christian leaders give up on what Paul called "to the Jews first and then to the Gentiles."

We could call this Jesus' logical answer. There is nothing wrong with what He says to the mother when He finally responds. Logic speaks to us all the time, saying such things as "This cannot be cured" and "This cannot be done" and "You are not deserving of this miracle."

Jesus used the last response for the mother.

 25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs. 

Silence, apparent coldness, and logic do not make a dent on her faith in Jesus. She bowed or knelt at His feet, which was the ancient way of acknowledging God. Alexander the Great insisted on it among his fellow Macedonians, and it caused a great rift in his soldiers.

Jesus answered her utter debasement with logic and with a humiliating reference. Dog is still an insult and there it was especially, because dogs were seen as unclean scavengers. 

Luther:

8. Thirdly, she follows Christ into the house, as Mark 7:24-25 informs us, perseveres, falls down at his feet, and says: “Lord, help me!” There she received her last mortal blow, in that Christ said in her face, as the words tell, that she was a dog, and not worthy to partake of the children’s bread.

What will she say to this! Here he presents her in a bad light, she is a condemned and an outcast person, who is not to be reckoned among God’s chosen ones.

9. That is an eternally unanswerable reply, to which no one can give a satisfactory answer. 

27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table. 

As Luther says, she takes the word and uses a play on words, which most translations miss. Literally - "even the little dogs" eat from the crumbs which fall from the Master's table.

The seeming harshness is also the answer. Many demand from God, as if they were lords doing Him a favor. "Prove to me all the blessings and help me boast about Your power." 

God helps the poor and distressed, the humbled and needy.

Isaiah 66:2King James Version (KJV)

2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my Word.

She asks in humble contrition, which answers the question about worthiness. No one is worthy to ask anything from God, but in faith we cast all our cares upon him, because He cares for us.

That is a great play on words, because care and anxiety are synonyms that can be used both ways in English. God says, "I am just as anxious for you as you are for Me." Luther expressed that well in my of my favorite graphics. Luke 15 fits so well with this miracle.

 Jesus is the Good Shepherd in John 10, Luke 15,
Psalm 22, Psalm 23, Isaiah 40, et al.

The Canaanite woman is an example for us in never letting go of faith when God seems silence, when logic tells her no miracle is possible, when she feels utterly unworthy and yet still asks, completely trusting in His grace and mercy, never failing in that dependence upon Him. He did not tell her she was forgiven and saved before she was born, as the Universalist UOJists do. Instead, He praised her faith in Him.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.