The Bible Book - Wescott-Hort Employed Tischendorf - And Now Nestle-Aland.Nida Dynamic Equivalence Paraphrase? Eugene Is Your Man

 Lobegott (Praise God) Friedrich Constantin (von) Tischendorf

V. Wescott-Hort’s Use of Tischendorf Became Nestle-Aland’s Standard Text

 

            Three giant steps took us away from the Traditional Text of the King James Bible, Luther’s German Bible, and the concept of the Holy Scriptures being the inspired Word of God, infallible and inerrant.[1] From the perspective of its discoveries and promotions, the new basis for Greek New Testament had all the authority and supremacy of the Piltdown Man, “discovered” in 1912. The way in which people have become famous by finding and promoting new evidence should give us pause to consider its veracity. My Notre Dame professor in Judaism, Charles Primus, indelibly marked me with the habit of doubting all historical claims. We learn the so-called facts in neat little packages and then express alarm when someone challenges the man-made harmony. He often stated what we “knew” about ancient Judaism and offered examples that overturned the claim.

            Two contradictory views of the Bible are taught at the same time. One views the Bible as the Word of God, the product of Holy Spirit working through men to reveal God’s will. The other is often called the natural view, which means the Bible is a man-made book, just like every other creation of man, and should be studied from that perspective. The 20^th Century denominations replaced the traditional view and text with the natural view and new text.

            The modern Bibles, with very few exceptions and only a fraction of the market, represent the natural view. Their New Testaments eliminate words, verses, and interpretations with unholy glee. The omissions, when too obvious, are given a footnote which deliberately confuses the matter. Changes in translation are footnoted with the same result. For example, the Revised Standard Version, a product of the National Council of Churches, translated the Virgin Birth in Isaiah 7 as “a young woman will conceive.” The ferocious backlash caused them to backpeddle, but only a little. The Virgin Birth was restored but the footnote was added “or young woman.” Readers will find that their modern Bibles remove the Virgin Birth with a footnote – “or young woman.”

            Let us look at the passage in English rather than debate the Hebrew word, almah, which does mean virgin. The Lord offered King Ahaz a great miracle, anything he asked, whether in heaven above or below. But hypocritical Ahaz refused God’s offer, a monumental toke of his arrogance.

Isaiah 7:13 And he said, Hear ye now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will ye weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [God with us].

If we translate these verses in harmony with the modernists, it makes no sense. Ahaz will not ask for a miracle from God, so God will show him a direct miracle no one could ever imagine – a young woman will have a baby. That does not sound like a great miracle from God Himself; the baby’s name is not at all fitting – Immanuel, God with us in Hebrew. The modern, rationalistic translation contradicts the context and the implications of the statement. This is a perfect example of the rationalists imposing their lack of faith on the text and translation. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s first bishop, Herb Chilsrom, did not believe in the Virgin Birth and treated Mary as just another pregnant bride. The same is true of the Braaten-Jenson Dogmatics, so we should not assume that the Bible text, the Biblical translation, and the doctrinal statements are insulated from each other. Apostasy is not atheism – it is far worse, those who once believed turning back from the Truth and worshiping pagan idols, whether Marxist or Marist.

The Piltdown Codices, Sinaiticus and Vaticanus – Nida Dynamic Translator

            Born in 1815, Lobegott[2] Friedrich Constantin (von) Tischendorf made a name for himself by finding the text under the manuscript called Ephraim Rescriptus[3]. His next great find, in 1844, was Codex Sinaiticus, almost as mystical as the Sword in the Stone, and made more powerful with his leverage. He became a famous Greek text editor and named his find Aleph, the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet. He designated Codex Vaticanus as B, so his favorite, personal and highly recommended discoveries were given automatic promotions, since they became the guidestones (like Joseph Smith’s) for knowing the true nature of the original text of the New Testament. The two discoveries were not identical but were advertised as the best, earliest, and most accurate texts, dubious on all three counts.

            Wescott and Hort used Aleph and B to whittle down the Greek text of their edition, which they did without including a critical apparatus to show their work, another reason to suspect their motives. The critical apparatus is a way of telling the public what words or phrases were used or omitted. The Revision of the KJV was a failure, but the Wescott Hort text eventually became the norm. Young students of the Greek New Testament bought a red plastic Greek New Testament from the United Bible Societies. The impression given to us was the readings favored by Aleph and B were the best.

            Karl Lachmann (1793-1851) declared his program in 1830 – “Down with the late text of the Textus Receptus, and back to the text of the early-fourth century church.”[4] Tischendorf devoted his work to accomplish this goal.

            The next step was the Nestle Greek New Testament text, which replaced the Textus Receptus printings of the British and Foreign Bible Society, twenty years after the Wescott-Hort edition was published. “This marked the final defeat of the Textus Receptus, nearly four hundred years after it was first printed.”[5] In the 1940s, Kurt Aland became associated with the work of Erwin Nestle, the son of the founder, Eberhard. Aland’s second wife, Barbara, was involved in this Nestle-Aland project and continued after Kurt’s death. Their institute is famous for the Nestle-Aland edition – Novum Testamentum Graece - and the United Bible Societies’ Greek New Testament. Significantly, Eugene Nida, who invented and promoted dynamic equivalence Biblical translating, worked with the Aland institute.

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[1] For the longest time, infallible was enough to describe God’s Word as without any error or contradiction, revealed by the Holy Spirit. In its birth year 1947, Fuller Seminary was already watering down infallible to mean “only in doctrine, not in geography or history.” Later they withdrew that mild, compromising statement to state they did not have time to quarrel over terminology when so much mission work needed to be done. If only the Apostles had been so purpose-driven!

[2] Lobegott means Praise God in German.

[3] The Biblical text was erased to allow Ephraim’s timeless words to be saved. Writing material were difficult to obtain, so some ancient documents became palimpsests, rewrites.

[4] Cited in Kurt Aland and Barbara Aland, The Text of the New Testament, 1981, p. 11.

[5] The Text of the New Testament, p. 19.

 Eugene Nida - dynamic equivalence "translator"

Giving Up on the Heirs of Walther's Lies, Thievery, and False Doctrine

TELL began in 1977 with a written endorsement from the Synod President, Oscar Naumann.

I need to post for the early-birds, who worry about my health - if I fail to write before dawn. I understand. The doctor no longer says, "How do you feel lately?" but "Have you fallen since I last saw you?" 

I just did some copy/paste work on abuse in the broken WELS educational system. But I know nothing will come of it. The abusive bullies will deny everything and support one another with the love that only drunks have for one another. Yes, they encourage out of control alcohol abuse among the students too, but "There is no love greater than the love of one drunk for another," as my father used to say. 

GA buddies take care of each other.

WELS-LCMS will continue their rapid decline - and abuse of members - because they let the radical Left take over with Objective Justification. They claim, as Synod President Mark Schroeder does, that their synod was born in Lutheran Orthodoxy and formed to escape religious persecution, etc. WELS and Missouri once taught Justification by Faith officially but they let the Walther-Pieper OJ faction slowly take over. The next stages were ecumenism (where they love every doctrine but their own) and Church Growth gimmicks. Working with ELCA now, they are almost doctrine-free, which means - as everyone knows - anything goes.

WELS-LCMS fans - it was over about 50 years ago. See the graphics above. 

Does anyone ask, 

1. "What became of all the money and property that the Walther-led riot stole from Bishop Martin Stephan?" 
2. "Why did the Missouri Synod give Walther an enormous cash gift but refused to pay back more than a pittance of the stolen loot to Bishop Stephan?"
3. "Why did Walther use Stephan's chalice for Holy Communion at his St. Louis church?"

 Fellow Church Growth genius David Valleskey (WELS) became seminary president on the strength of his Church Growth Enthusiasm.

Nothing Will Happen To Stop Abuse in WELS Schools - Because "Nothing Happened!" - Their Favorite Response

Guenther brought down this bear cub when he was in Alaska.
Now he is in paradise, New Ulm, Minnesota.

WELS is an abusive sect, proven by the fact that they enjoy handing out the abuse and saying, "Nothing happened!" That is so dominant as a response that one ex-WELS pastor said the same thing to me about a non-WELS situation - "Nothing happened!" I had an eye-witness there when "nothing happened."

Here are various accounts of abuse at WELS prep schools, colleges, and Mequon.

The leaders of WELS are bullies, sadistic bullies. They love being bullies and they enjoy stories of others being physically attacked. The idea is simple - a minority controls everything and gets what it wants. Their people can do nothing wrong and the rest can do nothing right.

Two recent efforts to end the tyranny ended in the groups being disbanded - Issues in WELS and Intrepid Lutheran. The Intrepid Lutheran founder, Steve Spencer, was the first to leave the group. Some might call him a Judas Goat rather than an Intrepid Lutheran. He did not like GA hazing at all (Mequon). 

The bullies who haze endanger lives, but they also break down people. The staffmembers who approve of hazing get their kicks from it. They think they are tough because they support each other. 

This is how it works. A young man was physically assaulted by a student when visiting a campus the first time. He complained to the right person - and he was marked for ejection - not right away, but when something could be rigged. WELS bullies love to do that and call Holy Hell down on their victim, laughing about it. They are furious when the tactic does not work, but they never stop. They can conjure up another event to rage about, and no one will question their honesty (even if they do).

There is precious little Gospel in WELS. The sect is all Law, very special Law. The Law is enforced by the bullies against the rest. But they are so sanctimonious. WELS is so pure, so good, so beyond anyone's comprehension. There is nowhere else to go, except the ELS, which is Purgatory. 

The bullies are 100% Antinomian. They whine about anything they imagine to be a slight and they treat everyone like dirt. WELS is a great place to learn how to be a total hypocrite. 

The stink-eye is their opening shot. Someone who tells a WELS secret, like one of the murders or something even worse, will get the stink-eye from the entire clan. That is why I protect names, because there is no escaping the penalty of telling the truth. Stink-eye is Round 1, and Extending the Left Foot of Fellow is Round 2. 

There have been good WELS pastors, but they keep to themselves and are kept in the boondocks.

As the Columbus WELS circuit proved, there is no problem in the sect with:

• Pastoral adultery
• Pastoral alcoholism
• Pastoral false doctrine

Telling the truth is an unforgiveable sin.

WELS Prep School Abuse - Also at Their Colleges - Especially at the Mequon Seminary

Former WELS Luther Prep President - Mark Schroeder

A Wisconsin Nightmare

To this day I am still coming to grips with what I experienced from the ages of 14-17 as a student living on the campus of Watertown Luther Preparatory School. For this reason I am posting this on a throwaway account. My goal in sharing my experiences is that others may find they are not alone, and that they too can share their stories and continue healing. I do also hope that those who ran the school are held accountable, those currently in charge force changes if they haven't already occurred, and that future parents and students are made aware of what went on in the dormitories, locker rooms and whole campus of Luther Prep in Wisconsin.

In the 2000's I attended Watertown Luther Prep as a student for most of my high school years though I hit a breaking point and left the school to finish elsewhere. 100+ members of my incoming freshman class had done the same before me. I am not sure how many after me broke down and went back home before graduating as well.

For those who are unaware, Luther Preparatory School is a four year Lutheran high school where students live on campus and away from their parents and guardians. The stated goal of the school is to prepare the next generation for a life in the ministry of Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) schools and churches.

My years there were terrible and filled with pain. As an adult I now see many glaring situations that would have been appropriate to call law enforcement, speak to a trusted adult, and likely file lawsuits against the school, the Wisconsin Evangelical Synod, and the individuals charged with the care and well being of the students that boarded and attended there.

However, it was our parents and trusted adults that sent us to live there in the first place. Most were so indoctrinated with the teachings of the WELS that they would not be able to hear our pleas for help anyway. The WELS is a strict Christian group that has its roots in Wisconsin but is now spread widely across the midwest, and even has an international presence. To publicly push against it means a serious threat to ones career, social connections, and if one believes — their eternal life.

As an incoming freshman, school sanctioned hazings were the norm. An event at the start of each year, called the slime line, was held. You were partnered with a senior, and this senior could throw whatever they wanted on you. Eggs, oil, flour, paint, feathers etc. The Dean of Students at the time, oversaw the event and cheered them on. Of course, we were told the event was “optional” but the assigned seniors would make it known that it wasn't.

For me this meant being woken up in my bed around midnight the night before. Four senior boys stood over my bed and pulled me up. They stripped my down to my underwear and inserted a pole through each leg. They then twisted the pole until my testicles were crushed. As I cried and begged for them to stop, they lifted me up and held the pole in the air until my underwear ripped clean through and I fell to the floor. This was called a “pole bender” and was used widely that night throughout the male dormitories by seniors to ensure that their freshman would show up the next day for the slime line. I reported this to the male staff in charge of my floor, but he was a 25 year old fresh out of seminary. He simply laughed at the ordeal we were put through. I was told it was normal and we would get our chance in four years to do the same.

Throughout that year I learned the freshman class was simply going to be abused like this until the end of the year. An overweight friend of mine had sausages and Bologna thrown at him many times walking across campus, constant tauntings, and much more. He too made a few timid attempts to reach out to the staff person in our dorm, but eventually had a mental break and left the school to return home out of state. In fact many people had mental breaks and left the school over the four years I attended.

Football should be a time to learn teamwork, sportsmanship, and persistence. The lessons I learned on the football team at Prep were that if you didn't show up to urinate on the visiting bleachers after chapel the evening before a game night, the team would punch and urinate on you in the locker room. At least a few of the coaches were aware of this practice and thought it funny. I refused to participate in this and was then urinated on by teammates while I attempted to shower. After that I left the team. You should probably bring a seat pad when vising games at Luther Preparatory School.

This was not a rare occurrence though. In the dorms the showers were open and had no stalls. Many times older students found it funny to urinate on us or in our shampoo when we weren't looking. They would slap our testicles and “jokingly” commit other sexual assaults. I sincerely wonder how many hundreds of people were victimized while at this school. It breaks my heart to even think about the magnitude of what went on.

As a whole, LPS was quite unsavory. Very few minority students attended and I'm sure they fared far worse than I. Ethnic names were mocked by students and staff alike. I would hear the N word daily and black students were certainly disciplined and expelled far more often for the same offenses that the white students would commit.

With students living on the campus and many being from the midwest, there were some that were hunters. I recall instances of long guns, compound bows, and hunting knives being kept in dorm rooms by students that were related to the staff. I cannot fathom how this was allowed, but I remember our Tutor at the time (the 20 something in charge of the dorms) holding and admiring the guns of a classmate that he planned to take out hunting on the weekend. Rather than take the extra trip home before hunting, he simply brought it along to his dorm the prior weekend. He was related to a few very high ranking WELS members as well as the school president, so he was told just to keep them in his closet and not talk about them much. Seeing as this kid had punched out a window in an attempt to attack and beat me and my friends the year before, I was terrified!

In the classroom or on the field the decorum of the staff wasn't much better. I'm sure some were good people, but many would purposely enjoy jumbling up names of students that were asian, african american, latin or otherwise not German sounding. I remember an asian classmate that was clearly disturbed every time his name was purposely turned into something else by staff.. he would just stare at the ground as they laughed. Additionally with the WELS being staunchly anti-LGBTQ, many kids were mocked using gay slurs. “Well that sounds gay.” was a phrase used by more than one instructor and professor during class. The sports teams heard that and worse regularly from the coaches if their efforts were deemed unmanly.

Homophobia and hate are ingrained in the culture of the WELS and it permeated the school during my time there. To any of my classmates that had to struggle with their identity while in the WELS, I honor you as you are, and am so sorry for what you must have gone through. I truly hope a life of healing has found you. You are wonderful and beautiful just as you are. Love is love!

I could go on and on about the culture of Luther Prep School, the WELS, their many other schools and churches but I will end with this. I sincerely believe large scale abuse occurred at Luther Prep School and was consistently perpetuated or simply ignored by staff. It is likely still going on. I am now far removed from this sect though and don't know if reforms have happened. I am sure many hundreds of students of this school and other WELS schools have stories the same and likely far worse. My hope is that the discussion can open up and we all find healing and justice.

My ultimate wishes are:

The WELS is investigated and publicly held accountable for its past.

Large scale reforms for the future of LPS and the WELS. (Nail em' to the doors Martin Luther Style?)

Public apologies are issued to all students past and present for the abuse they incurred while at LPS.

Refunds of all tuition money for those past and present that were abused.

If you have an experience with LPS, other WELS school, or WELS in general please speak up now! Sects like this must not be allowed to abuse and destroy another generation.

*edited to remove names of individuals

At Northwestern College, Watertown, hazing meant pretending to have sex with the Springer statue, from the back.

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Hello everyone. 

Recently something very serious came to my attention and it needs to be publicly addressed. I attended Luther Prep, one of our synod prep boarding schools and had some rather unacceptable encounters while attending. When I noted any of these to staff in charge, I was told ‘Don’t worry, it used to be worse’ instead of addressing the problem. I had no proof and no corroborating evidence, and my name isn’t a WELS name so I didn’t think any further action would be useful. 

Until the other day a friend of mine shared a Reddit exposé on an anonymous author’s experiences at LPS in the early 2000s. My heart broke. THIS is what our synod out our young people through?? This is the history of how we got to ‘well at least it’s better around here than it used to be’? Because it is NOT better. It’s still not acceptable even in 2021. I truthfully don’t know where to go with this but something needs to happen. I know countless individuals with similar stories, myself included, and many of said individuals are minorities or people who ended up turning away from the WELS because of their experience at prep. I know some of the content below is not doctrinal but I ask you to disregard that and focus on the fact that this person was a brother in Christ who was humiliated for no reason. And that needs to be rectified. Thank you.

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The President of Luther Prep at that time was President Schroeder, the now WELS president. I know a lot of people who feel that if guy couldn't watch over me at a school, why do I want to be a part of church body that he is now responsible for?

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A former boss of mine attended Northwestern Prep during the 1970s and said the hazing was absolutely horrible then, and the professors turned a blind eye. Unfortunately it turned him off from the WELS because he wouldn't have anything to do with called workers who were complicit in that behavior.

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John Lawrenz, on the far left, laughed about the MLS boy who was dangled out the winder. They let go and the boy had one or more bone breaks. They called Paul Kuske's time as dean there - The Reign of Terror. John Brenner was no better at MLS or at Mequon. Two seminarians who complained about hazing at Mequon were hated out of the school.

The rules are selectively enforced, no doubt about that. Family connections are a real thing.

Can confirm the "hazing". I think during my time there was a transition to get rid of a lot of the older hazing rituals. Lots of freshmen parents started complaining. So that was the last year the freshmen were forced to run naked on the soccer field.

I know a WELS pastor who refused to send his kids to LPS due to the hazing he received back in the 80s.

I could talk for a while on this subject (including selective punishment). I was at MLS and LPS (even MLC for just a year). I have to say, MLS was a lot less cultish.

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The WELS Thought Police warn once, only. They get even forever.

I went to LPS for one year. I still think about the things I saw and was forced to watch/participate in even after talking to the tutors AND the Dean . The tutors would take part.

I too, have had the thought of, "should I call the police?" This is still a thought that haunts me today. It's not just the hazing (which went beyond the staff sanctioned hazing week) or the showers. The teachers weren't above using slurs for disabilities and other things as the Reddit poster states. There was also so much deprivation of normal rights on a day to day basis such as punishments and simple living dorm comforts.

There's so much I could write, but I was just having this talk the other day with my husband (also an LPS grad). We're stuck with public school where we live for our children. For reasons listed, Prep is not an option unless things have truly changed. We're looking into GPLS. Hopefully this isn't something that's bled into the "culture" of other WELS prep schools.

So yes, it's as bad as the poster makes it sound, and I'd say even worse. The staff knew, allowed it, and some participated.

Sexagesima Sunday 2021, Luke 8:4-15

Video of this service is linked here.

Sexagesima Sunday, 2021

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

https://video.ibm.com/channel/bethany-lutheran-worship

Bethany Lutheran Worship and Education Videos

The Hymn #318               Before Thee God, Who Knowest All                      

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

O God, who seest that we put not our trust in anything that we do, mercifully grant that by Thy power we may be defended against all adversity; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, who liveth, etc.

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 #339   All Hail the Power              

Keeping the Word of God

The Hymn #312          Lord Jesus Christ, Thou Living Bread                             

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 #46       On What Has Now Been Sown        

 Norma A. Boeckler

Prayers and Announcements

• Treatment and recovery - Rush Limbaugh, Christina Jackson, Mary Howell.
• Pray for our country and our elected President as major trials continue.
• Thanksgiving - Glen Kotten is doing well.
•  Ash Wednesday begins the Galatians study. On Sundays, the Luke Bible study will be followed by Genesis.

SEXAGESIMA SUNDAY

Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank Thee, that through Thy Son Jesus Christ Thou hast sown Thy holy word among us: We pray that Thou wilt prepare our hearts by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may diligently and reverently hear Thy word, keep it in good hearts, and bring forth fruit with patience; and that we may not incline to sin, but subdue it by Thy power, and in all persecutions comfort ourselves with Thy grace and continual help, through Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

2 Corinthians 11:19 For ye suffer fools gladly, seeing ye yourselves are wise. 20 For ye suffer, if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take of you, if a man exalt himself, if a man smite you on the face.  21 I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, (I speak foolishly,) I am bold also.  22 Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I.  23 Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool ) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.  24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.  25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;  26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;  27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.  28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.  29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?  30 If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities.  31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not.  32 In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me:  33 And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands. 12:1 It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.  2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.  3 And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)  4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.  5 Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.  6 For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.  7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. 8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.  9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

By Norma A. Boeckler

KJV Luke 8:4 And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable:  5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.  6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture.  7 And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it.  8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 9 And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be?  10 And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. 11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. 14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. 15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.

Keeping the Word of God

Introduction to Luke 8:4ff

The parables of Jesus are fictional short stories, designed to convey a message within a picture (like this one, sowing seed) or a plot (the Prodigal Son, the Good Samaritan). They are introduced as parables in some cases and in other cases, they are parables without the title. We take them for granted, but we should not, because they are intended to stick to our memories and to increase in importance as we dwell on their meaning. We can never exhaust the meaning of a given passage, because the Word of God is always energized by the Spirit, always powerful and effective. They are for believers only. Those without faith or who have lost faith will hear them and not grasp the meaning. They will see the words but be blinded by the Word. However, those with sincere hearts who listen to the Word of God will be fruitful from the Spirit at work. We are fickle and easily distracted, so God employs many tools to keep us in His flock. The parables are very powerful in doing that.

KJV Luke 8:4 And when much people were gathered together, and were come to him out of every city, he spake by a parable: 5 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it.

If people read one passage or another, they miss the impact of so many crowds gathering to meet Jesus. John the Baptist continued what the Star of Bethlehem promised, announcing the Messiah and His message of repentance and faith in Him.

In each and every case, the crowds alarmed the Roman government and the priestly class. This built up animosity and fear, because a movement so popular was difficult to suppress.

Jesus began with a parable, one which many know by heart. The opening is very much in the Old Testament Hebrew style of using a word to serve as noun and verb, but this is in Greek, which had become the main language. "The seeder went out to seed the seed, and in seeding..." is relatively close to the Greek play on words. 

εξηλθεν ο σπειρων του σπειραι τον σπορον αυτου και εν τω σπειρειν

This repetition of the same word in various forms emphasizes seed, which we know is the Word of God. The first example is seed that falls onto the pathways, is stepped on into the soil, and is eaten by birds. They are very keen about digging up food in shallow soil, so they are a perfect example of the Word being taught but tramped down in various ways and taken by Satan.

The parables are not for everyone to know and believe. That seems to be a contradiction when we first learn it, and that is not an interpretation but the message from Jesus Himself. Those who idly listen or pay attention out of curiosity lose the Word. There might be a beginning of interest, but one of Satan's Little Helpers will come along and trample the Word so his Father Below can keep his kingdom strong. It works like this. There is the Word first, which is God's program to gather and keep His flock. An unbeliever is alerted to this interest in a person and dashes faith with various tools - ridicule, astonishment, pointing out bad experiences:

1. You can't possibly fall for that!
2. You pay attention to him?
3. Remember that church you left 20 years ago? They are all the same.

This is a warning from Jesus. Some think "keeping the Word" can be a casual acquaintance with God's Word. The word for "keep" is used for guarding someone or some precious object. The eternal Word is not sent out by God as something to be dismissed, ignored, or opposed.

"But I thought the Word was always effective!" So the Word is, but that means effective in converting or hardening, effective in enlightening or blinding. A powerline is effective in lighting up part of a city, but also in exploding and starting fires. We watched the Midland flood grow, years ago, and as the water rose, transformers blew up - impressive fireworks - suddenly useless transformers.

Modern rejective of the English Bible began in 1881, when the Revision of the KJV was published. At the same time, the team of Wescott and Hort published their new Greek New Testament, which was designed to set aside the KJV and replace it with the The Revised Version. Never heard of it? That was a total flop, but the anti-KJV (anti-traditional text) gradually took over. All the major modern Bibles - NIV, ESV, Good News, NASB, New Living, etc partake in this travesty. One example is the relatively "conservative" NASB, which includes the story of the adulterous woman in John 7 - but lo - there is a footnote - "

1. John 7:53 Later manuscripts add the story of the adulterous woman, numbering it as John 7:53-8:11. NASB

So this NASB is saying, like the rest, but less boldly - "This does not belong in the Gospel of John or in the Bible. Don't be fooled by the KJV."

Wescott and Hort delighted in removing words and verses from the New Testament, and this really set the stage early for rejecting the divinity of Christ, His Virgin Birth, and His Resurrection. 

6 And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. 

This follows the example of seed growing and withering away from lack of moisture. I had a birdfeeder in New Ulm where the seed fell onto roofing with fine soil and dead leaves, an ideal place for sprouting. Sunflowers germinated quickly in the sun, but that stopped with the steady rains. The power of the sun dried them up and they blew away in the wind.

This happens among temporary believers when they hear the saving Truth of the Gospel, faith in Jesus Christ, and are overjoyed. If someone has never known forgiveness, complete and full and free, from faith in the Savior - it is a great moment. It may last for a while, but when trials come along, people say, "This is not for me. My life is worse than before and I have no friends."

This is what Jesus calls trials, temptations, the way of the Cross. Faithfulness to Christ will always be met by blessings but also by hard knocks on the head. If a minister wants to be comfortable, popular, and wealthy, he has to avoid antagonizing the somewhat faithful with the Gospel. The negative side seems overwhelming because the Kingdom opposite God's - The Kingdom of Satan - is unwilling to give up a single adherent, and they always recruit more. 

Shallow pastors are a great boon to the Kingdom of Satan. They give the impression of Christianity, but they only want the good parts, never the cross.

 8 And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. 9 And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be? 

As many have experienced, when seed falls on good (productive) ground, the fruitfulness is so great that it more than makes up for the losses. "15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it [guard it], and bring forth fruit with patience."

So this is not only a parable about the power of the efficacious Word, but also about those who appreciate the Gospel, guard it with their hearts and minds, and patiently bear fruit over all the years, though many years may seem like a fruitless battle.

The scattering of the Word should mean to us that we have such a precious commodity from God that it should be shared in various ways. I know Audio Gutenberg is posted on every possible spot on Facebook.

So is Norma Boeckler's Christian artwork.

Likewise, I separate the introduction to the sermon and post that - and 35 or so people respond to it. There is no waste is sharing broadly.

One person questioned our online services - a mode he does not care for. I pointed the origin of them, among a few scattered families. Now the total is 30,000 views. Not per year, but from the beginning. He was startled by that. So was I. 

I thought we had a good bunch of books to offer free, dozens of free PDFs. Now the total from the Lutheran Library Publishing Ministry is 270+. We can say that free library is an enviable total for any student, pastor, or layman to have on hand. I buy books and obtain free books for projects so I have to send them on. I explained to Christina, "If I kept them all, we would have to pitch a tent in the backyard for sleeping."

The power and efficacy of the Word is shown in our growth in understanding the Scriptures and then our ability to communicate the Word.

 Norma A. Boeckler designed the Bethany altar
and created this photograph of it.