Monday, June 24, 2024

Tom Fisher - CFW Walther's Universal Absolution

 



Dear Pastor Jackson,

CFW Walther is a great deceiver and liar!!!  WHAT!!! How can you say that?? Walther is the INFALLIBLE Pope of LCMS!!!!  How DARE you subvert his infallible authority!  Oh my!! The LCMS Waltherites have Greta Thunberg leading their throbbing, threatening chant: HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU QUESTION POPE WALTHER!!!!!

 C. F. W. Walther, the first President of LCMS is still their hero and mentor. Walther clearly taught a Universal Justification prior to and without faith, without baptism, without the washing of regeneration, and without the renewing of the Holy Ghost. 


C.F.W. Walther said, "For God has already forgiven you your sins 1800 years ago when He in Christ absolved all men by raising Him after He first had gone into bitter death for them " (The Word of His Grace, CFW Walther, "Christ's Resurrection, The World's Absolution." Cited in The Path To Understanding Justification, Gregory L. Jackson, PhD; pg. 12; ISBN 9781072530428)


C.F.W. Walther clearly teaches everyone is already justified prior to and without faith, without Baptism, without the washing of regeneration, and without the renewing of the Holy Ghost. Note that this is not a permanent or personal justification. It is a temporary justification contingent on you "accepting" Universal Justification as true for you personally. 

Luther warned us that the greatest threat to our Christian faith would come from those adding things you must do to be justified. C.F.W. Walther, the first President of LCMS, added the invented work of "accepting" objective justification in order for God to justify you personally. Notice the deception in the phrase, "Only one thing remains on your part". WHAT!!!! NOTHING should remain on our part to be justified and forgiven by God!! Notice the subtle deception of Walther when he asserts that man's work of "accepting" is faith. WRONG!!!! Man's work of "accepting" is NOT faith!! It is synergism!! It is adding man's work of "accepting" to justification. Walther really tripped when he asserted that man must make justification personal in order for God to personally justify, forgive, and save him. WRONG!! God always personally justifies everyone by faith!! God personally clothes us in the righteousness of Christ in our baptism! Here He calls us by name and gives us forgiveness of sins, eternal life, the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost!!!! C.F.W. Walther erroneously said:

"Only one thing remains on your part so that you also possess the gift.  This one thing is--faith. And this brings me to the second part of today's Easter message, in which I now would show you that every man who wants to be saved must accept by faith the general absolution, pronounced 1800 years ago, as an absolution spoken individually to him."  (The Path To Understanding Justification, Gregory L. Jackson, PhD. ; pg.12; ISBN 9781072530428)

Scripture clearly says no one is justified without faith.

"But without faith it is impossible to please Him;" Hebrews 11:6

Walther rejects this all clear Word of God by teaching that God has already justified the whole world prior to and without faith, baptism, the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. Walther is lying and deceiving by God's name and Word here.

Scripture and Christ our Lord clearly teach we must be born of water and of the Spirit to enter into the kingdom of God.  

 Christ our Lord said:

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3

"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again." John 3:5-7

Christ our Lord is speaking of the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost in our  baptism. 

" Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Titus 3:5-7

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Galatians 3:26,27
Walther rejects this by teaching that the whole world is already justified prior to and without faith, baptism, the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. Walther tears faith, baptism, and the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost away from justification. God's efficacious Word, faith, baptism, and the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost comes before justification. I challenge you to show me one example where these necessary works of God do not come BEFORE justification.  Let's look at some examples.

At Pentecost the multitudes were convicted of sin and asked the apostle Peter what they should do. Peter said, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call." Acts 2:38,39

At Gaza the apostle Philip preached Jesus to the Ethiopian eunuch and then immediately baptized him. Notice the preaching of the Word, faith, and baptism always comes first, before justification. Philip first preached Jesus from Isaiah 53, then the Ethiopian Eunuch believed in Jesus, and then he was baptized. This is the sequence evident in all of Scripture.

"Then Phillip opened his mouth, and began at the same Scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. 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? 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. 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." Acts 8:35-38

Notice Philip preached the true gospel NOT the false "gospel" of universal forgiveness. The true gospel is that Christ took all our sins upon Himself, was crucified, dead, buried, and then rose from the dead, and ascended into heaven for us. 

"Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you, the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; by which also ye are saved, if you keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures; and that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: after that, he was seen of above 500  brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time."
 1 Corinthians 15:1-7

Walther and his minions all preach the false "gospel" of objective justification asserting everyone is already forgiven, justified, and saved prior to and without faith and baptism.  

"I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." Galatians 1:6-9

No one is justified prior to and without God's true gospel, faith, baptism, and the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost. These are all necessary works of God. 

Abraham is the father of our faith. How was Abraham justified? Abraham was justified by faith in Christ while he was still uncircumcised. Christ our Lord testified that Abraham believed in Him.

"Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it and was glad."     John 8:56

Notice Abraham had true faith in Christ. This true faith in Christ justified Abraham.  The objective/ subjective justification lie is no where to be found. 

"For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

"Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ." Galatians 3:16

God has given us true faith in Christ so that we believe the same way Abraham believed. We are the children of Abraham.

"Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham."

" Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life." Titus 3:5-7

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." Galatians 3:26,27

In Christ,

Tom Fisher