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| Is that Larry Olson, or David Valleskey, or Frosty Bivens, or Jim Huebner, or Joel Gerlach, or Norm Berg or most the LCMS leadership? |
"Everyone has had impure Church Growth thoughts." I confessed that to DP Robert Mueller, who was startled and offended by my joke.
In 1987, I left the LCA - fairly clear about justification by faith, the Church Growth Movement, and modern theology. I had the luxury of years spent studying the Reformation, Schleiermacher, Barth, Tillich, Rahner, the origins of the Synodical Conference (the g-rated myth), and the Social Gospel Movement.
The LCMS, WELS, ELS, and the micro-mini sects insisted that they were the true Lutherans, unlike that nasty bunch forming the New Lutheran Church, aka ELCA.
My first experience was enduring a required week of Church Growth brain-washing at Mequon, followed by a return to Mequon for even more brain-washing in Church Growth. And where was I going for a parish? Columbus, where they had just started the first-ever Church Growth Agency in WELS - LPR! Appropriately, they put an ex-pastor, caught in adultery, in charge of that fiasco - and lied about it to everyone. That packet of Columbus lies just happens to parallel the founding of the Synodical Conference - no surprise since it was fueled with the same false dogma, known as UOJ.
Almost 30 years later, many ELS-LCMS-WELS pastors have made their careers wrinkling their noses about Church Growth while doing nothing about it, except to assassinate critics of the same. Some names immediately come to mind:
- John Seifert
- Jay Webber
- Paul McCain.
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| Do they really want to be allied with Mad Jack? Cascione used to link McCain all the time on LutherQuest (sic). |
The same dogma lies behind the Left-wing dogma of Fuller Seminary and the pan-denominationalism of the mainline groups. All are desperate to look good, to spend the money on themselves, and to cover their shame with noble sounding words like outreach, mission, and reaching the lost.
The Church Growth thugs are the UOJ hoodlums. They may still pretend to be against Fuller's philosophy, at least when talking to certain people, but their dedication is the same.
Double-justification is the fig leaf covering the real message of UOJ - everyone is forgiven and saved, even before birth. The more this idiocy is repeated, the greater the emphasis upon grace - they imagine. Naturally they expend their feeble talents on attacking faith at everyone opportunity while claiming, "We teach justification by faith."
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| Tis a shame that McCain and the Preus boys cannot grasp the Book of Concord, which they use as a rabbit's foot. |
John Seifert replaced Robert Mueller as Michigan DP. Frosty Bivens called Mueller "the second most spineless DP in WELS." Bivens named Nitz as the most spineless. Seifert has distinguished himself by declaring war on the Intrepids and justification by faith while running interference for Church Growth. Bivens confessed his study of Church Growth at Fuller in front of the Midland circuit, but everyone has forgotten that, too - even Bivens. WELS is studiously senile about so many things - to forget and deny.
Jay Webber and the ELS got directly involved with Floyd Stolzenburg, who was kicked out of the LCMS and never became ELS or WELS, in that great gold-mining operation called the Ukraine. A lot of money disappeared before the Russians decided they wanted to run the show, aka, skim the cash flow. Right now Jay is probably on the phone now, directing his UOJ Stormtroopers to mess with ELDONA's theses on justification. I keep hearing a rumor about them but where are they? Of course - one must not take any risks when teaching Biblical, Lutheran doctrine.
Paul McCain - where to start? He had just new/old posts up his tedious blog - on reading the Book of Concord - plus another copy and paste from the Catholic Encyclopedia. He is the perfect Harrison campaign manager - bragging about being Lutheran, attacking Lutheran doctrine, and kissing up to the papalists at every turn. I know ignorant bullies rise to the top in sagging old bureaucracies, but do people have to follow and parrot the same slogans?
The nominal Lutherans are dedicated to their worship of Mammon, so they hate God. Luther taught, there is no alternative to this conclusion, which is taught by the Savior Himself. We cannot serve two masters. If Mammon is adored and used as an excuse for every surrender, compromise, and cover-up, then God is hated and despised.
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| Got that? Me neither. |
5. God cannot allow us to have another Lord besides himself. He is a jealous God, as he says, and cannot suffer us to serve him and his enemy.
We find very few, who do not sin against the Gospel. The Lord passes a severe judgment and it is terrible to hear, that he should say this of us; and yet no one will confess, yea, no one will suffer it to be said that we hate and despise God, and that we are his enemies. There is no one, when asked if he loves God and cleaves to him, who would not reply: Dost thou take me to be such a desperate character as to be an enemy of God? But see how the text here closes, that we all hate and despise God, and love and cleave to mammon. For it is impossible that he, who loves gold and riches and cleaves to them, should not hate God. Christ here holds the two opposed to one another and as enemies, and says: If you love one of these two and cleave to the same, then you must hate and despise the other.
However well a man may live here upon the earth, if he clings to riches it cannot be otherwise than that he must hate God. And whoever does not trust in gold and worldly riches, loves God. This is certain. “Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For alter all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.”
37. As I said at the beginning Christ delivered this sermon to his Christians, especially to those in the office of the ministry or to those who otherwise either had nothing or never could acquire and gather for themselves riches and mammon, as the rest of the world does; in order that they might know, from what source they could nourish and support themselves and their families. Yea, they are compelled to live in the danger of being robbed of the little earthly goods God gave them and thus they are without the least doubt compelled to live entirely upon the help that God sends them and they expect from him, since the world gives them nothing.
38. This is indeed painful to flesh and blood, and is very burdensome to them, yea, no one can bear or do it, unless he is a believing Christian. For the world is so disposed that it will not take the least risk in temporal matters for the future; but it must be sure of them, order beforehand and have in store and ready for use whatever it needs, as food, peace, protection and insurance, so that it can live and depend upon neither God nor the people; but as it is evident that the world enriches no one because of his faith and piety, they think they must act and live as others do, in order that they may nevertheless have also something.
39. Against this he herewith comforts and strengthens his Christians, and again repeats: They shall therefore not worry nor doubt nor wriggle in such unbelief, saying: Oh, what is to become of us? Who is going to give us anything? Where in this world are we Christians to get food, protection, peace? But they must know that their heavenly Father provides for this, and will also give it to them, he who for this very reason is called their Father (not the unbelievers’, although he feeds all the world, and gives everything), in order to show that he will also not leave his children, tie leads them into God’s high work of the whole creation, that they may see how he nourishes and supports all things which he creates, after having ordered and regulated each one, — also all the birds in the air, which, as you know, do not fret about their food nor know beforehand whither they shall take it. Aye, especially also the little flowers does he so deck and adorn that such beauty and finery might more fittingly be supplied elsewhere; for does it not seem quite useless, since they only bloom for perchance a day? Must he not therefore much more think and care for his Christians, how they may be fed and clad, and where they might dwell and stay as long as they have to live on earth?
40. This he admonishes them to believe; and to impress them most strongly with it, not by many but by earnest words, he suddenly breaks off after having held up to them the examples from daily life and God’s work among his Creatures; and closes with these words: Shall he not much more do such things for you, O ye of little faith? He wishes to say: Well, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves, if you are Christians and know that you have a Father in heaven, to let me do so much preaching about this! Yes, ashamed you ought to be, and not permit that such things be said of you.
But must I not say it, that ye are so small and have so little faith, and that ye so little confide without doubt and care in the living God, who gives you his Word and promise and has chosen you as his children — that he would nourish and support your body and life? How then Will ye stand without shame and disgrace, not alone before God but before all his creatures, if that is to be said of you, and you yourselves by your own confession must testify that you, having so plentifully God’s word and grace, so little trust him with caring for your miserable maggot-sack and stinking belly?
We find very few, who do not sin against the Gospel. The Lord passes a severe judgment and it is terrible to hear, that he should say this of us; and yet no one will confess, yea, no one will suffer it to be said that we hate and despise God, and that we are his enemies. There is no one, when asked if he loves God and cleaves to him, who would not reply: Dost thou take me to be such a desperate character as to be an enemy of God? But see how the text here closes, that we all hate and despise God, and love and cleave to mammon. For it is impossible that he, who loves gold and riches and cleaves to them, should not hate God. Christ here holds the two opposed to one another and as enemies, and says: If you love one of these two and cleave to the same, then you must hate and despise the other.
However well a man may live here upon the earth, if he clings to riches it cannot be otherwise than that he must hate God. And whoever does not trust in gold and worldly riches, loves God. This is certain. “Be not therefore anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? For alter all these things do the Gentiles seek; for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.”
37. As I said at the beginning Christ delivered this sermon to his Christians, especially to those in the office of the ministry or to those who otherwise either had nothing or never could acquire and gather for themselves riches and mammon, as the rest of the world does; in order that they might know, from what source they could nourish and support themselves and their families. Yea, they are compelled to live in the danger of being robbed of the little earthly goods God gave them and thus they are without the least doubt compelled to live entirely upon the help that God sends them and they expect from him, since the world gives them nothing.
38. This is indeed painful to flesh and blood, and is very burdensome to them, yea, no one can bear or do it, unless he is a believing Christian. For the world is so disposed that it will not take the least risk in temporal matters for the future; but it must be sure of them, order beforehand and have in store and ready for use whatever it needs, as food, peace, protection and insurance, so that it can live and depend upon neither God nor the people; but as it is evident that the world enriches no one because of his faith and piety, they think they must act and live as others do, in order that they may nevertheless have also something.
39. Against this he herewith comforts and strengthens his Christians, and again repeats: They shall therefore not worry nor doubt nor wriggle in such unbelief, saying: Oh, what is to become of us? Who is going to give us anything? Where in this world are we Christians to get food, protection, peace? But they must know that their heavenly Father provides for this, and will also give it to them, he who for this very reason is called their Father (not the unbelievers’, although he feeds all the world, and gives everything), in order to show that he will also not leave his children, tie leads them into God’s high work of the whole creation, that they may see how he nourishes and supports all things which he creates, after having ordered and regulated each one, — also all the birds in the air, which, as you know, do not fret about their food nor know beforehand whither they shall take it. Aye, especially also the little flowers does he so deck and adorn that such beauty and finery might more fittingly be supplied elsewhere; for does it not seem quite useless, since they only bloom for perchance a day? Must he not therefore much more think and care for his Christians, how they may be fed and clad, and where they might dwell and stay as long as they have to live on earth?
40. This he admonishes them to believe; and to impress them most strongly with it, not by many but by earnest words, he suddenly breaks off after having held up to them the examples from daily life and God’s work among his Creatures; and closes with these words: Shall he not much more do such things for you, O ye of little faith? He wishes to say: Well, you ought to be ashamed of yourselves, if you are Christians and know that you have a Father in heaven, to let me do so much preaching about this! Yes, ashamed you ought to be, and not permit that such things be said of you.
But must I not say it, that ye are so small and have so little faith, and that ye so little confide without doubt and care in the living God, who gives you his Word and promise and has chosen you as his children — that he would nourish and support your body and life? How then Will ye stand without shame and disgrace, not alone before God but before all his creatures, if that is to be said of you, and you yourselves by your own confession must testify that you, having so plentifully God’s word and grace, so little trust him with caring for your miserable maggot-sack and stinking belly?
Lutherans are completely welded to Thrivent, too. I doubt whether any other denominations are controlled, managed, and manipulated by one commercial operation. I will have to create another Photoshop with the bowl of whipped cream (or shaving cream) being Thrivent. Hogs wallowing in mud would be more appropriate, because they do not even look guilty - they look happy and calm, like DPs on their annual vacation in the Caribbean.
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| DP Ed Werner went to the Big House for molesting girls in his parish, but that never happened. |