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| Our new neighbor on Joye Street is a veteran, and so is his neighbor, John. Ranger Bob, a veteran, fixed this veteran's water pump on his Nitro. |
When I was finishing The Path to Justification, this true story emerged.
An older couple and their daughter moved into the house on Joye, next to where John and Patricia have lived for 25 years. Sassy loves to meet new people, so we talked to the new neighbors when they began using their attached garage for morning coffee.
John and Pat asked me, once the warm weather arrived, "Have you seen Dan digging?" I said I noticed the work, but I did not inspect it. Sassy usually turns around after checking John's yard for animal scents and food scraps. She is the Inspector General of Springdale, looking over every worksite we pass.
"He found a hidden path! We never knew. We lived here 25 years and never noticed. The previous owners didn't. The postman had no idea."
Sassy and I - who passed by or near that property for the last 8 years - least among the witnesses, had no clue.
Scholars are divided, but Springdalologists figure the path was fashioned from the brick driveway when it was converted to cement. Debris covered the bricks in time, and grassroots crept over the top. The view with Google Maps, about 8 years old, does not show anything more than general patchiness in the front lawn.
Is This the Ebeneezer of Justification?
This stone of help, this brick path, is a good representation of the Justification question.
Justification by Faith is clear in the Bible, Luther's Sermons, the Book of Concord, Chemnitz' work, Gerhard, and many other sources until the growth of Pietism and its Calvinistic content.
Those Lutherans who were moved to travel to America were largely influenced by Pietistic organizations. Pastor Martin Stephan came from Pietism and was partially educated at Halle University, established by Pietism but rapidly turning rationalistic. CFW Walther's circle of friends were Pietistic and sought out Stephan's leadership when their first guru of Pietism left and inconveniently died.
Although Justification by Faith remained as the main teaching in the LCMS and WELS, the debris of Pietism and Objective Justification gradually covered the clearly outline path of the Chief Article.
Now the growth hiding Justification by Faith is so complete that the majority in the Walther-Stephan tradition are completely hoodwinked and baffled by the clever two step of letting people imagine:
- "Objective Justification is the Atonement." False - it declares that the entire world is forgiven and saved without faith - Universalism.
- "Subjective Justification is Justification by Faith." False - it means making a decision in favor of universal forgiveness without faith.
The Path Remains - Even When Hidden by Satan's Disciples
The Scriptures remain and a faithful translation (not ESV or NIV) makes that clear. But it takes some digging to disclose the truths hidden by neglect, poor teaching, bad translations, and the fanatical spirits who serve their Father Below, though ordained for a different kind of service.
Faithful clergy and laity can bring out the truth again.
