Samuel Bolton (1606-1654) was an English Churchman of the Puritan variety and also was delegated as a member of the Westminster Assembly. In other words, Bolton was a Calvinist.
Bolton once said, "The law sends us to the Gospel so that we may be justified; the Gospel sends us to the Law again to inquire what is our duty as those who are justified."
As Lutherans, we should have some major problems with statements such as this one. In Lutheranism, we often talk about God's proper work and His alien work. His proper work is the Gospel; what God has done in Christ to save us. His alien work is the Law.
You see clearly from statements such as Bolton's, Reformed Theology reverses this altogether. God's proper work in Calvinist world is the law. The Gospel is never God's proper work. Statements such as this one betray Reformed Theology's ideas about Christ and the Gospel. The Gospel is never God's final yes. It's never God's final word. It's never His proper work. The Gospel is only a means to drive us right back to the same thing that condemns us in the first place. Now why would God do that? Sounds a little silly when you see the statement for what it is. But the truth of the matter is, in Reformed Theology the end goal is always the law, not the Gospel.
Strikingly, this statement by a conservative Puritan is theologically reflective of much of mainstream Christianity now days. The Gospel is just a means, but then we must move beyond the Gospel to bigger and better things. In the case of Bolton and the Puritans (and modern denominations such as the OPC), we have to move right back to the thing that killed us in the first place: God's Law. In the case of much of modern day Christianity, it's a bunch of other cultural norms (or perhaps even counter-cultural norms).
It's hard to label this statement as legalism, since Bolton and the Puritans would never assent to a stance that spiritual life is gained through obedience to the Law, but to use a Lutheran term, it certainly bends heavily to the Pietistic side of things.
On the other hand, statements like this have a way of stripping the believer of all assurance of salvation. Instead of looking objectively to Christ, outside of you, the believer has to look to self, to see how well they are obeying the law that the Gospel drove them to. When you chuck the heterodox doctrine of limited atonement into the mix, this problem is magnified.
Puritans such as this simply will not look objectively to Christ crucified for their sins and the means of grace where Christ has promised to meet us - Word and Sacrament. They can't. Their theology will not allow it. Their rejection of the objectivity of the means of grace forces them to look to self for assurance. In this light, Bolton's statement is just consistent with his theology.
Statements like this get it all wrong. Bolton fails to realize that the entire life of a Christian is one of continual repentance, as Luther pointed out in the first of his famous 95 theses. The Christian life is never a life of continual victory and obedience to the law. It is one of continual repentance and forgiveness of sins. The third use of the law is there for Christians to see what is good and pleasing to God - not for us to be driven back to that law by the Gospel. The Gospel is always God's final word. It's His ultimate yes.
And if this is the case, the Gospel is not a means to an end, it is an end in itself. The Christian needs the law too, but mainly for repentance. We see the law and must admit we have not kept it, even while in Christ. Hence, we can never move beyond the Gospel. We must hear those sweet words of Absolution, of what Christ has done for us in the Word, and receive that body and blood in our mouths for the forgiveness of our sins. We continually need the Gospel. It is truly the last word, not a means to drive us back to the very thing that condemned us in the first place as fanatics like Bolton and the Puritans would have us believe.
+Pax+
Showing posts with label Law. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Law. Show all posts
5/8/16
10/11/15
Keep That Gospel Pure
There is only one Gospel. Scripture makes this explicitly clear.
Galatians 1:6-9: I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
St. Paul writes in his epistle to the Galatians that there is indeed only one Gospel. He goes even further and says that those who pervert it are accursed. In this brief post, we will examine how our friends in two different theological systems - Calvinism and Arminianism - flirt with this line.
Let us use another passage from St. Paul to guide us in our definition of the Gospel. Here it is:
1 Corinthians 15:1-5: Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: 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 by Cephas, then by the twelve.
Notice what St. Paul preached to these people. Notice that this is the Gospel by which they are saved. He preached to them that Christ died for them and rose again for them. He tells them that this is what is saving. Notice also that St. Paul says that the Gospel is all about Christ. In other words, St. Paul refuses to mingle law in with Gospel.
Calvinism messes with the Gospel with its doctrine of limited atonement. Calvinism cannot preach consistently to the sinner that Christ died and rose for them until after they are certain that the person is truly saved. But in Calvinism, how does one know who is truly saved? The only way one can make a judgment on this is by looking for a totally changed life. But then, who is to say that the person is not deceived if they fall away and reject Christ later in life? Calvinism desires to uphold monergism, but due to the doctrine of limited atonement, they rip the heart out of the Gospel. There is no surety of Christ for you no matter what in Calvinism. How do they know that Christ died for them? How can they objectively know this, with 100% certainty, if Christ only died for the elect? Pretty much they have to be certain they are elect. And in Calvinism, without a 100% certainty in Word and Sacrament and the atonement, they must look to their own faith to an extent.
Galatians 1:6-9: I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.
St. Paul writes in his epistle to the Galatians that there is indeed only one Gospel. He goes even further and says that those who pervert it are accursed. In this brief post, we will examine how our friends in two different theological systems - Calvinism and Arminianism - flirt with this line.
Let us use another passage from St. Paul to guide us in our definition of the Gospel. Here it is:
1 Corinthians 15:1-5: Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: 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 by Cephas, then by the twelve.
Notice what St. Paul preached to these people. Notice that this is the Gospel by which they are saved. He preached to them that Christ died for them and rose again for them. He tells them that this is what is saving. Notice also that St. Paul says that the Gospel is all about Christ. In other words, St. Paul refuses to mingle law in with Gospel.
Calvinism messes with the Gospel with its doctrine of limited atonement. Calvinism cannot preach consistently to the sinner that Christ died and rose for them until after they are certain that the person is truly saved. But in Calvinism, how does one know who is truly saved? The only way one can make a judgment on this is by looking for a totally changed life. But then, who is to say that the person is not deceived if they fall away and reject Christ later in life? Calvinism desires to uphold monergism, but due to the doctrine of limited atonement, they rip the heart out of the Gospel. There is no surety of Christ for you no matter what in Calvinism. How do they know that Christ died for them? How can they objectively know this, with 100% certainty, if Christ only died for the elect? Pretty much they have to be certain they are elect. And in Calvinism, without a 100% certainty in Word and Sacrament and the atonement, they must look to their own faith to an extent.
Arminianism messes with the Gospel by inserting law into the Gospel, thereby diluting it and making it something other than pure grace. They do this by making a person's choice via their own free will the dominant factor in salvation. Christ's work is never enough in Arminianism and the will of the person must be exercised in order to make it effective. Hence, Arminianism adds something we must do to the Gospel. This is a grave error indeed! Arminianism, no matter what cute theological terminology is used, is a form of works salvation due to turning faith into a meritorious work. Not to mention all the off shoots of Arminianism such as Wesleyanism, Open Theism, and free will Baptist theology.
Ironically, these two bitter theological opponents ultimately put the sinner right back in the same place. Neither one can objectively put the sinner at the cross and in the pure grace of the Word and the Sacraments. Calvinism cannot objectively say that Christ is for you. Not at Calvary, and not in word and Sacrament. Reformed Sacramentology does not allow for this. Arminianism says that you must do something in addition to Christ's work and grace freely given.
Ultimately, both theologies put the sinner right back at themselves. Both have the sinner asking themselves if they are really truly saved.
In the end, both theologies have a problem with Christ's objective promises, despite one being monergist and the other synergist.
In Calvinism, Christ is for the elect. Period.
In Arminianism, Christ is for you, but only if you ____.
In Scripture, Christ is for you. Period. End of story. In His death and rising. In the Word. In the Sacraments.
Christ for you. That is pure Gospel.
+Pax+
In Scripture, Christ is for you. Period. End of story. In His death and rising. In the Word. In the Sacraments.
Christ for you. That is pure Gospel.
+Pax+
9/7/15
Running Away from Church
It's quite common for people to abandon the church. We've all seen it; a seemingly well-meaning Christian who simply up and walks away. Sometimes it takes a long period of time for this to happen and sometimes it happens strikingly quickly. It's common for Christians to face doubts. We all have. Sometimes those doubts cross over into a full-blown crisis of faith. It's not abnormal and it doesn't mean that your faith sucks or that you're somehow less of a person. Far from it. It makes you a human.
This post is not going to delve into defenses for the Christian faith, although there are some excellent ones out there. Rather, it's going to focus on something that the Christian church at-large has done a really poor job at, and I think that it contributes to driving people away from the church.
This is going to sound so simple it's almost foolish. The Christian Church at-large has abandoned Christ and the things He did to save us as the central teaching of the church. In other words, the Gospel is not the center of Christian teaching in most churches. Or at the very least, the Gospel is treated as something we already know, but now we're going to move on to bigger and better things.
This guy happens to think that this directly contributes to people leaving the church. It just makes sense that if you relegate the central teaching of Christianity to a sort of secondary status, something else rushes in to replace it and take the place of that central teaching.
Surprisingly, from what I can see, this thing that comes rushing in is almost always the same thing. When the Church abandons Christ the Savior as the central teaching of their Church and does not preach Christ crucified every time they gather, the thing that almost always rushes in to fill the void is me, myself, and I. It always comes back to that. Sure, the pastor or priest probably is using the Scriptures to deliver their message, but if they are not grounding it in the Gospel and not culminating their message in Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins, the message will ultimately drive people from the church or put them on the road to works righteousness.
Messages centered on victorious Christian living or helping others miss the point. Don't get me wrong, the Scriptures talk about helping others a lot. Yet, it is never the central focus of Christianity. Christ crucified for you is the focus. Messages like this ultimately give the listeners the wrong idea. The idea is that Jesus has died and risen, but that is old news. Now it is up to you to do, do, do. The doctrine of justification extra nos is swallowed up by the doctrine of sanctification, growing in grace, or living victoriously. In short, these sorts of messages put people on a treadmill that never ends.
These sorts of messages drive Christians to continual introspection, navel-gazing, and fruit checking. They do not point to the crucified and risen Lord. And in that regard, they severely miss the point.
How does this drive people away form the Church? Well, all it takes is for something to put their thinking cap on for a minute. When someone thinks about this, questions begin to arise. Am I doing enough to love my neighbor? Am I living victoriously? Am I doing what God wants me to? Am I getting the blessings God has for me? Am I meeting God's requirements and honoring Him in my life?
If the thinking person answers these questions honestly, they must answer them as follows: No, No, No, No, and finally, No.
And herein lies the problem. We have not loved our neighbor as ourselves. And for that we must repent. We do not live a life of constant victory. Christ did that for us. We can never do exactly what God wants of us, because we are sinful. If we're looking for special blessings outside of Christ and the forgiveness of sins, we're out in left field anyways. And we can never meet God's standards and requirements because He is God and He is perfect and we can never be.
In other words, when churches put people on this spiritual treadmill and the people think about this a little bit, they end up in one of two directions. The first and honest direction is to realize that you cannot do enough. The second direction ends up denying the sinfulness still inherent in all of us, even Christians, and ends up denying things like original sin and is ultimately a direct assault on Christ and the Gospel itself.
We end up judging each other by our outward holiness and actions. We refer to people as good Christians, nominal Christians, or bad Christians. All of this is bullcrap. The only thing you're good at is sinning. This is why we confess, as Lutherans, at the beginning of the service;
Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways to the glory of your Holy Name. Amen. (LSB - Divine Service Setting 1)
And the pastor responds:
Almighty God has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. (LSB - Divine Service Setting 1)
In other words, continual repentance and forgiveness is the Christian life. Not victorious living and perfect obedience to Christ. Obedience is good and obedience is important. But even our best obedience falls short. We need forgiveness, and for that, we need the work of Christ on our behalf, given to us objectively via Word and Sacrament.
We must anchor everything in our worship and practice in Christ crucified for the forgiveness of all of our sins. Once we get off of that sure footing, we end up on the never-ending treadmill. People realize this and end up running away from church. They're not dumb. There are a lot of ex-Christians out there who have left the church for this very reason. They get put on the treadmill and they realize they can't do it. Others have left for other reasons, but that is not what this post is about. People think and reason, and that is a good thing used within its proper context and setting. But if we're honest, we just can't stay on that treadmill that well.
Once you get away from Jesus, who He is, what He has done for us, and how we are made right with God completely apart from our insufficient works, you get away from Christianity altogether into a counterfeit of the real thing.
+Pax+
This post is not going to delve into defenses for the Christian faith, although there are some excellent ones out there. Rather, it's going to focus on something that the Christian church at-large has done a really poor job at, and I think that it contributes to driving people away from the church.
This is going to sound so simple it's almost foolish. The Christian Church at-large has abandoned Christ and the things He did to save us as the central teaching of the church. In other words, the Gospel is not the center of Christian teaching in most churches. Or at the very least, the Gospel is treated as something we already know, but now we're going to move on to bigger and better things.
This guy happens to think that this directly contributes to people leaving the church. It just makes sense that if you relegate the central teaching of Christianity to a sort of secondary status, something else rushes in to replace it and take the place of that central teaching.
Surprisingly, from what I can see, this thing that comes rushing in is almost always the same thing. When the Church abandons Christ the Savior as the central teaching of their Church and does not preach Christ crucified every time they gather, the thing that almost always rushes in to fill the void is me, myself, and I. It always comes back to that. Sure, the pastor or priest probably is using the Scriptures to deliver their message, but if they are not grounding it in the Gospel and not culminating their message in Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins, the message will ultimately drive people from the church or put them on the road to works righteousness.
Messages centered on victorious Christian living or helping others miss the point. Don't get me wrong, the Scriptures talk about helping others a lot. Yet, it is never the central focus of Christianity. Christ crucified for you is the focus. Messages like this ultimately give the listeners the wrong idea. The idea is that Jesus has died and risen, but that is old news. Now it is up to you to do, do, do. The doctrine of justification extra nos is swallowed up by the doctrine of sanctification, growing in grace, or living victoriously. In short, these sorts of messages put people on a treadmill that never ends.
These sorts of messages drive Christians to continual introspection, navel-gazing, and fruit checking. They do not point to the crucified and risen Lord. And in that regard, they severely miss the point.
How does this drive people away form the Church? Well, all it takes is for something to put their thinking cap on for a minute. When someone thinks about this, questions begin to arise. Am I doing enough to love my neighbor? Am I living victoriously? Am I doing what God wants me to? Am I getting the blessings God has for me? Am I meeting God's requirements and honoring Him in my life?
If the thinking person answers these questions honestly, they must answer them as follows: No, No, No, No, and finally, No.
And herein lies the problem. We have not loved our neighbor as ourselves. And for that we must repent. We do not live a life of constant victory. Christ did that for us. We can never do exactly what God wants of us, because we are sinful. If we're looking for special blessings outside of Christ and the forgiveness of sins, we're out in left field anyways. And we can never meet God's standards and requirements because He is God and He is perfect and we can never be.
In other words, when churches put people on this spiritual treadmill and the people think about this a little bit, they end up in one of two directions. The first and honest direction is to realize that you cannot do enough. The second direction ends up denying the sinfulness still inherent in all of us, even Christians, and ends up denying things like original sin and is ultimately a direct assault on Christ and the Gospel itself.
We end up judging each other by our outward holiness and actions. We refer to people as good Christians, nominal Christians, or bad Christians. All of this is bullcrap. The only thing you're good at is sinning. This is why we confess, as Lutherans, at the beginning of the service;
Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in your will and walk in your ways to the glory of your Holy Name. Amen. (LSB - Divine Service Setting 1)
And the pastor responds:
Almighty God has given His Son to die for you and for His sake forgives you all your sins. As a called and ordained servant of Christ, and by His authority, I therefore forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. (LSB - Divine Service Setting 1)
In other words, continual repentance and forgiveness is the Christian life. Not victorious living and perfect obedience to Christ. Obedience is good and obedience is important. But even our best obedience falls short. We need forgiveness, and for that, we need the work of Christ on our behalf, given to us objectively via Word and Sacrament.
We must anchor everything in our worship and practice in Christ crucified for the forgiveness of all of our sins. Once we get off of that sure footing, we end up on the never-ending treadmill. People realize this and end up running away from church. They're not dumb. There are a lot of ex-Christians out there who have left the church for this very reason. They get put on the treadmill and they realize they can't do it. Others have left for other reasons, but that is not what this post is about. People think and reason, and that is a good thing used within its proper context and setting. But if we're honest, we just can't stay on that treadmill that well.
Once you get away from Jesus, who He is, what He has done for us, and how we are made right with God completely apart from our insufficient works, you get away from Christianity altogether into a counterfeit of the real thing.
+Pax+
8/1/15
Gospel, Law, and Glawspel
St. Matthew 22:34-40: But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the prophets."
It is quite common in recent church history, especially in more liberal theologies, to see this passage as the Gospel in a nutshell. In other words, love God and love others is the Gospel.
Certainly, being a statement and command of Christ, loving God and loving others is of supreme importance. No Christian would dispute that. However, loving God and loving your neighbor is not the Gospel. The Gospel, or good news, is never a command, nor is the Gospel our actions, however loving they may be.
To be even more clear, those who claim that this passage in St. Matthew is a concise statement of the Gospel have actually missed the Gospel altogether.
Just read the passage. The Pharisee asked Christ, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" Jesus answered the Pharisee that the greatest commandment is to love God with all of your being. And the second one is to love your neighbor as if they were yourself.
In very plain language, these are commandments. In broad terms, anything that is a commandment is law, not Gospel. Gospel promises. It does not command. That is the office of the law. This is why, in our Lutheran Confessions of faith, we have excerpts in the Epitome and the Solid Declaration regarding the third use of the law. There is no third use of the Gospel or anything like that. The new obedience of the Christian is dealt with in terms of both law and Gospel, but it is always the law that makes the demands and tells us what should be done, never the Gospel. It is always the law that shows us what we ought to do and what we have not done. It is always the law that shows us our need to repent because it is precisely that law that shows us how short we really fall.
Let's push this a little further. Jesus' statements are a summation of the Ten Commandments. Love the Lord your God is a summary of the first table of the Law; commandments 1-3. Love your neighbor as yourself is a summary of the second table of the Law; commandments 4-10. In other words, if we hash this out to its conclusion, a theology that claims that Matthew 22:37-40 is the Gospel is ultimately doing the same exact thing as saying that the Ten Commandments are the Gospel. This is, ironically, a form of "Pharisaical Christianity." It's Gospel-less. Ultimately, this sort of theology teaches salvation by keeping the Law. How is this any different than the Pharisees? Hence, liberal theology that claims this is the Gospel is teaching a false Gospel.
Far from evicting obedience from the Christian faith, the Gospel - the real one - provides for the only sort of obedience that is genuine. Obedience done from love because our obedience does not contribute to our justification. We can never be declared righteous before God by that, because God's standards in this arena are perfection. Hence the work of Christ for us (the Gospel). Even so, our obedience in this life is never perfect. We are still simultaneously sinner and saint, after all. We need a righteousness that is above anything we could ever obtain through our love and obedience to commandments. We need a righteousness that is perfect. Only Jesus obtained that, and only Jesus can give us that.
That is why in the Divine Service we confess: "Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not love You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your Holy Name. Amen." (LSB - Divine Service I)
+Pax+
It is quite common in recent church history, especially in more liberal theologies, to see this passage as the Gospel in a nutshell. In other words, love God and love others is the Gospel.
Certainly, being a statement and command of Christ, loving God and loving others is of supreme importance. No Christian would dispute that. However, loving God and loving your neighbor is not the Gospel. The Gospel, or good news, is never a command, nor is the Gospel our actions, however loving they may be.
To be even more clear, those who claim that this passage in St. Matthew is a concise statement of the Gospel have actually missed the Gospel altogether.
Just read the passage. The Pharisee asked Christ, "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" Jesus answered the Pharisee that the greatest commandment is to love God with all of your being. And the second one is to love your neighbor as if they were yourself.
In very plain language, these are commandments. In broad terms, anything that is a commandment is law, not Gospel. Gospel promises. It does not command. That is the office of the law. This is why, in our Lutheran Confessions of faith, we have excerpts in the Epitome and the Solid Declaration regarding the third use of the law. There is no third use of the Gospel or anything like that. The new obedience of the Christian is dealt with in terms of both law and Gospel, but it is always the law that makes the demands and tells us what should be done, never the Gospel. It is always the law that shows us what we ought to do and what we have not done. It is always the law that shows us our need to repent because it is precisely that law that shows us how short we really fall.
Let's push this a little further. Jesus' statements are a summation of the Ten Commandments. Love the Lord your God is a summary of the first table of the Law; commandments 1-3. Love your neighbor as yourself is a summary of the second table of the Law; commandments 4-10. In other words, if we hash this out to its conclusion, a theology that claims that Matthew 22:37-40 is the Gospel is ultimately doing the same exact thing as saying that the Ten Commandments are the Gospel. This is, ironically, a form of "Pharisaical Christianity." It's Gospel-less. Ultimately, this sort of theology teaches salvation by keeping the Law. How is this any different than the Pharisees? Hence, liberal theology that claims this is the Gospel is teaching a false Gospel.
Far from evicting obedience from the Christian faith, the Gospel - the real one - provides for the only sort of obedience that is genuine. Obedience done from love because our obedience does not contribute to our justification. We can never be declared righteous before God by that, because God's standards in this arena are perfection. Hence the work of Christ for us (the Gospel). Even so, our obedience in this life is never perfect. We are still simultaneously sinner and saint, after all. We need a righteousness that is above anything we could ever obtain through our love and obedience to commandments. We need a righteousness that is perfect. Only Jesus obtained that, and only Jesus can give us that.
That is why in the Divine Service we confess: "Most merciful God, we confess that we are by nature sinful and unclean. We have sinned against You in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done and by what we have left undone. We have not love You with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We justly deserve Your present and eternal punishment. For the sake of Your Son, Jesus Christ, have mercy on us. Forgive us, renew us, and lead us, so that we may delight in Your will and walk in Your ways to the glory of Your Holy Name. Amen." (LSB - Divine Service I)
+Pax+
3/23/15
Contemporary Worship, and Law & Gospel
Debates about contemporary worship are plethora these days, both in evangelical, fundamentalist, and Reformed circles. The fundamentalist and evangelicalism have still not dealt with it beyond the ubiquitous "preference" argument. It is all a matter of preference, they claim. The Reformed have dealt with it by creating a "new law" - the regulative principle of worship - that essentially says that if it is not commanded, it is forbidden.
We Lutherans are not immune to these issues, and it has become a real problem in some Lutheran circles. Even congregations that are fully confessional have decided to abandon or water down the liturgy in favor or "CoWo". Adherents usually say that it would be legalism to forbid it, and claim that it is needed to keep the congregation from dying, or to liven up. Many Pastors, not wanting to be accused of legalism, have simply capitulated and have made the change-over. Or, they have been convinced of the CoWo advocate's arguments that we need to worship in the context of our culture (which is code for basically adjusting the worship to meet sinful man's desires).
I propose that this issue be best approached from a different angle: law and Gospel. "But" you say "we have already tried that. We cannot create a new law to forbid it." This is true. If we really admit it, it may run counter to what we have always done, but we cannot point to Scripture and deny based on "thus sayeth the Lord."
But Law and Gospel is how this thorny issue will finally be resolved. And here is why.
Contemporary worship advocates are basically saying, when all is said and done, "you must lift up your hands and hearts toward heaven and praise the Lord. After all, the Savior died for you. Don't you want to do that? You do want to please God, don't you? You do want to tell him how you feel about him, and that you love him. Right?"
Contemporary worship advocates are basically saying, when all is said and done, "you must lift up your hands and hearts toward heaven and praise the Lord. After all, the Savior died for you. Don't you want to do that? You do want to please God, don't you? You do want to tell him how you feel about him, and that you love him. Right?"
Therein lies the problem: CoWo is law.
What the CoWo advocate won't tell you is that CoWo is a basic denial of total depravity. They posit that you MUST lift yourself - and your voices - toward heaven, rather than, as in the liturgy, passively and quietly place ourselves before God, asking for His forgiveness in Word and Sacrament. Why must we? Can we? This is eerily similar to the Arminian argument that we can simply choose God as our Savior, which, similarly, is a complete denial of total depravity. What if we don't "feel" like praising Him in that way? What if we are depressed and cannot fulfill this "new law" worship requirement?
What the CoWo advocate won't tell you is that CoWo is a basic denial of total depravity. They posit that you MUST lift yourself - and your voices - toward heaven, rather than, as in the liturgy, passively and quietly place ourselves before God, asking for His forgiveness in Word and Sacrament. Why must we? Can we? This is eerily similar to the Arminian argument that we can simply choose God as our Savior, which, similarly, is a complete denial of total depravity. What if we don't "feel" like praising Him in that way? What if we are depressed and cannot fulfill this "new law" worship requirement?
It is rather ironic that CoWo advocates are the real legalists in this debate. They are pushing a law-based worship. Yet, they are the first ones to accuse the liturgist of legalism. The CoWo advocate needs to be reminded that we are totally-depraved, poor, and lost sinners in desperate need of forgiveness. We are not cheerleaders for God, nor can we be. The next time a CoWo advocate, however well-meaning they may be, tries to convince you of including CoWo in your worship, tell them "That is a new law. I cannot even fulfill God's requirements in Scripture, and I am unable to do so. I am only a poor, miserable sinner that needs His forgiveness. I don't need any additional laws. No thanks."
CoWo is law. Liturgy is Gospel.
CoWo is law. Liturgy is Gospel.
12/5/14
Continual Christian Exhortation To Do Better?
Do Christians need continual exhortation to be spurred on to better works and love of God and neighbor?
That's a big question, and one that I think has a clear answer. I answer this with an emphatic: NO! Of course, there are plenty of examples of exhortation in the Scriptures, so there is a time and place for it.
This is, properly put, a Law and Gospel issue. The Law exhorts and commands, whilst the Gospel promises and forgives.
I think, when we consider the options, some clear answers emerge. I posit that there are two types of people who need to be bashed over the head with the Holy Law of God on a continual basis.
First and foremost, the Law shows us our sin. Thus, those who are unrepentant need to be preached the Law for the main reason that it indeed does reveal that we have not kept it and therefore must repent. Hence, St. Paul can write such passages like this:
Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ~Galatians 5:19-21
St. Paul here is clearly referring to unrepentant folks who engage in these things with no sorrow for their sin.
Those who are unrepentant need the harshness of the Law. No doubt about that.
The second type of person is the person that thinks they have made it and think they are doing such a wonderful job of living the Christian life that their works are better than other folks' works; even to the point of not sinning. They need the Law too, because in essence, they're unrepentant as well by way of denying their sin.
Those who claim they are in Christ and claim they do not sin need the Law preached to them continually. Why? They're liars. They do sin, and they're unrepentant of it.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. ~1 John 1:8-10
Those who are repentant and have a Godly sorrow for their sin, however, need the Gospel preached to them in all of its glory and sweetness. They need that one-sided divine promise that says that they belong to Christ.
So, I answer thus: Does a repentant Christian with a Godly sorrow for their sin need to be hammered continually with the Law and with exhortation to do more works? No way. This will accomplish nothing but leading them to despair. They are already repentant of their sins, and all that continual exhortation will do is serve to show them more and more sinfulness within themselves.
Give them, that group or repentant people, that good old sweet savor of the Gospel.
Grace and Peace
That's a big question, and one that I think has a clear answer. I answer this with an emphatic: NO! Of course, there are plenty of examples of exhortation in the Scriptures, so there is a time and place for it.
This is, properly put, a Law and Gospel issue. The Law exhorts and commands, whilst the Gospel promises and forgives.
I think, when we consider the options, some clear answers emerge. I posit that there are two types of people who need to be bashed over the head with the Holy Law of God on a continual basis.
First and foremost, the Law shows us our sin. Thus, those who are unrepentant need to be preached the Law for the main reason that it indeed does reveal that we have not kept it and therefore must repent. Hence, St. Paul can write such passages like this:
Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ~Galatians 5:19-21
St. Paul here is clearly referring to unrepentant folks who engage in these things with no sorrow for their sin.
Those who are unrepentant need the harshness of the Law. No doubt about that.
The second type of person is the person that thinks they have made it and think they are doing such a wonderful job of living the Christian life that their works are better than other folks' works; even to the point of not sinning. They need the Law too, because in essence, they're unrepentant as well by way of denying their sin.
Those who claim they are in Christ and claim they do not sin need the Law preached to them continually. Why? They're liars. They do sin, and they're unrepentant of it.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. ~1 John 1:8-10
Those who are repentant and have a Godly sorrow for their sin, however, need the Gospel preached to them in all of its glory and sweetness. They need that one-sided divine promise that says that they belong to Christ.
So, I answer thus: Does a repentant Christian with a Godly sorrow for their sin need to be hammered continually with the Law and with exhortation to do more works? No way. This will accomplish nothing but leading them to despair. They are already repentant of their sins, and all that continual exhortation will do is serve to show them more and more sinfulness within themselves.
Give them, that group or repentant people, that good old sweet savor of the Gospel.
Grace and Peace
12/4/14
We Need The Gospel Too, Ya Know
The Gospel is the sweet savor of salvation for all those who believe. It's the verdict rendered in the work of Christ alone that says 'not guilty!' It is not milk for the babes, nor is it simply something we need to tell unbelievers. It's not something we can move beyond or move past. It's not something we can brush aside as we move on to bigger and better things, or deeper Christian concepts.
It's our lifeblood. It's Jesus.
As I see it, having been through numerous churches in my years, the Confessional Lutheran churches seem to be the only ones who practice this. Now, hear me out. I do not mean to say that there is no Gospel in Evangelical churches, or Reformed Churches, or Orthodox churches, or Roman Catholic churches. Because, you know what, there is. Wherever God's Word is proclaimed and Christ crucified is preached, there is some Gospel there.
But, we need the Gospel continually. The pastor, priest, or whoever is giving the homily or sermon is quite simply put not doing their job if they do not preach Christ crucified for the forgiveness of all of our sins. Every sermon. And if they do not, they have just done the congregation a huge disservice.
We can never relegate the Gospel to secondary status. All too many churches and Christian believers categorize the Gospel as something they already know, so they think they do not need to hear it. What they really need, they surmise, are commands and instructions on how to live a holier life. Now, I grant you, Scripture is replete with commands on how to live. The Decalogue (10 commandments) is the prime example of this.
But...that pesky Law of God always accuses us and shows us that we have not loved the Lord our God with our whole heart, nor have we loved our neighbors as ourselves. We need the Law. The Law is good! (Rom 7) And even more than that, we need the Christ who kept it perfectly on our behalf.
This is why, when we enter the Divine Service, we not only invoke the Triune Name of God by beginning our liturgy in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; but also why the next thing we do is confess our sins and receive a one-sided divine forgiveness through the office of the pastor. As surely as Christ has forgiven our sins, our sins are forgiven by those who stand in the stead of Christ in the office of the ministry. This is why Confessional Lutheranism retains private Confession and Absolution. Yet, this is also why Confessional Lutheranism retains private Confession and Absolution apart from works of satisfaction (aka the Sacrament of Penance in the RCC). The works of satisfaction bit in essence turns the Gospel right back into the Law, as the Roman parishioners are required to do works of satisfaction after Confession, and so on.
But I am not intending to make this a discourse about Roman Catholic Sacraments. Rome has written plenty on that topic, and we will allow Rome to speak for herself in this matter.
Back to the Divine Service. As we enter we are absolved. This is an entrance or introduction of sorts, as we prepare for the Real Presence of Christ in the reading of the Holy Scriptures. Lutherans sometimes relegate the Real Presence to the Eucharist, but in reality, we would be remiss to mention that Christ is present in the Divine Service through the reading of the Word as well. The climax of the Liturgy of the Word in the Divine Service is the reading of the Holy Gospel; the very words of Christ Himself.
Yet, after the reading of the Word, we move on to the sermon (or homily). Here is a bridge from the liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Sacrament, and the pastor has a simple, but also very difficult, task to accomplish here. The pastor's job in the sermon, every Sunday, is to deliver us the Law of God that kills us and shows us that we are by nature sinful and unclean and stand condemned before God. However, he is also bound to deliver us the Gospel. After preaching that Law, He is to preach Christ crucified for the forgiveness of our sins. The Gospel is not a crutch to bring us back to the Law. The Gospel stands by itself, proclaiming the forgiveness of sins because of Christ's merit, not ours. And done. That is a sermon.
Far from being some sort of "radical" Lutheranism, this is simply the pattern we see over and over in Scripture when the Apostles are preaching.
We need that forgiveness proclaimed every time we gather in the Divine Service in the presence of Christ Himself, angels, archangels, and the whole company of heaven.
Here is where, as I see it, only the Confessional Lutheran churches stand tall and faithful. Most churches will offer not a proclamation of the Gospel in a sermon, but a guide on what God wants us to do, how to live, or how to do this or that. Most pastors will offer suggestions (from Scripture, in their defense) on how to better follow Jesus by loving God and your neighbor. If the Gospel is mentioned and preached (praise be to God when it is!), it generally is used to move us on to 'bigger and better' things. Like following the Law (commands).
But, that puts us right back where we started. In despair. We hear that Word of God in the Law. We hear those commandments on how to love one another and love God. And once again, we realize that we are in deep trouble. We try to do them. We do our best to honor God. But if we're being honest, we fall completely and utterly short.
Proper distinction and proper usage of the Law and the Gospel seems simple, but in reality, it's not easy. Our pastors have a difficult task of moving us from the Law that condemns us to the forgiveness of sins in Christ that saves us, apart from the Law.
We need the Gospel just as much as every non-Christian in the world today. We need forgiveness just as much as them too. The Gospel does this. It is the power of God unto salvation (Rom 1:16). The Law is not.
Nor should we revert to a sermon format of Law-Gospel-Law (in essence this is what Reformed Theology does). Nor is it just to preach the Law by either preaching strictly on works and holy living or even turning the Gospel into a command to be followed (this is essentially what Rome does). We need Law to accuse and kill, and Gospel to save and forgive. I am not denying the third use of the Law, and our Confessions uphold it in strong language as well. The Divine Service, however, is to give to us the forgiveness of sins, something which the Law, nor our living, can ever possibly do.
The Gospel. It's everything. And you, Christian, need it continually. Just like every other person in this world.
The Gospel is everything because Christ and what He has done is everything.
Grace and Peace
It's our lifeblood. It's Jesus.
As I see it, having been through numerous churches in my years, the Confessional Lutheran churches seem to be the only ones who practice this. Now, hear me out. I do not mean to say that there is no Gospel in Evangelical churches, or Reformed Churches, or Orthodox churches, or Roman Catholic churches. Because, you know what, there is. Wherever God's Word is proclaimed and Christ crucified is preached, there is some Gospel there.
But, we need the Gospel continually. The pastor, priest, or whoever is giving the homily or sermon is quite simply put not doing their job if they do not preach Christ crucified for the forgiveness of all of our sins. Every sermon. And if they do not, they have just done the congregation a huge disservice.
We can never relegate the Gospel to secondary status. All too many churches and Christian believers categorize the Gospel as something they already know, so they think they do not need to hear it. What they really need, they surmise, are commands and instructions on how to live a holier life. Now, I grant you, Scripture is replete with commands on how to live. The Decalogue (10 commandments) is the prime example of this.
But...that pesky Law of God always accuses us and shows us that we have not loved the Lord our God with our whole heart, nor have we loved our neighbors as ourselves. We need the Law. The Law is good! (Rom 7) And even more than that, we need the Christ who kept it perfectly on our behalf.
This is why, when we enter the Divine Service, we not only invoke the Triune Name of God by beginning our liturgy in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; but also why the next thing we do is confess our sins and receive a one-sided divine forgiveness through the office of the pastor. As surely as Christ has forgiven our sins, our sins are forgiven by those who stand in the stead of Christ in the office of the ministry. This is why Confessional Lutheranism retains private Confession and Absolution. Yet, this is also why Confessional Lutheranism retains private Confession and Absolution apart from works of satisfaction (aka the Sacrament of Penance in the RCC). The works of satisfaction bit in essence turns the Gospel right back into the Law, as the Roman parishioners are required to do works of satisfaction after Confession, and so on.
But I am not intending to make this a discourse about Roman Catholic Sacraments. Rome has written plenty on that topic, and we will allow Rome to speak for herself in this matter.
Back to the Divine Service. As we enter we are absolved. This is an entrance or introduction of sorts, as we prepare for the Real Presence of Christ in the reading of the Holy Scriptures. Lutherans sometimes relegate the Real Presence to the Eucharist, but in reality, we would be remiss to mention that Christ is present in the Divine Service through the reading of the Word as well. The climax of the Liturgy of the Word in the Divine Service is the reading of the Holy Gospel; the very words of Christ Himself.
Yet, after the reading of the Word, we move on to the sermon (or homily). Here is a bridge from the liturgy of the Word to the Liturgy of the Sacrament, and the pastor has a simple, but also very difficult, task to accomplish here. The pastor's job in the sermon, every Sunday, is to deliver us the Law of God that kills us and shows us that we are by nature sinful and unclean and stand condemned before God. However, he is also bound to deliver us the Gospel. After preaching that Law, He is to preach Christ crucified for the forgiveness of our sins. The Gospel is not a crutch to bring us back to the Law. The Gospel stands by itself, proclaiming the forgiveness of sins because of Christ's merit, not ours. And done. That is a sermon.
Far from being some sort of "radical" Lutheranism, this is simply the pattern we see over and over in Scripture when the Apostles are preaching.
We need that forgiveness proclaimed every time we gather in the Divine Service in the presence of Christ Himself, angels, archangels, and the whole company of heaven.
Here is where, as I see it, only the Confessional Lutheran churches stand tall and faithful. Most churches will offer not a proclamation of the Gospel in a sermon, but a guide on what God wants us to do, how to live, or how to do this or that. Most pastors will offer suggestions (from Scripture, in their defense) on how to better follow Jesus by loving God and your neighbor. If the Gospel is mentioned and preached (praise be to God when it is!), it generally is used to move us on to 'bigger and better' things. Like following the Law (commands).
But, that puts us right back where we started. In despair. We hear that Word of God in the Law. We hear those commandments on how to love one another and love God. And once again, we realize that we are in deep trouble. We try to do them. We do our best to honor God. But if we're being honest, we fall completely and utterly short.
Proper distinction and proper usage of the Law and the Gospel seems simple, but in reality, it's not easy. Our pastors have a difficult task of moving us from the Law that condemns us to the forgiveness of sins in Christ that saves us, apart from the Law.
We need the Gospel just as much as every non-Christian in the world today. We need forgiveness just as much as them too. The Gospel does this. It is the power of God unto salvation (Rom 1:16). The Law is not.
Nor should we revert to a sermon format of Law-Gospel-Law (in essence this is what Reformed Theology does). Nor is it just to preach the Law by either preaching strictly on works and holy living or even turning the Gospel into a command to be followed (this is essentially what Rome does). We need Law to accuse and kill, and Gospel to save and forgive. I am not denying the third use of the Law, and our Confessions uphold it in strong language as well. The Divine Service, however, is to give to us the forgiveness of sins, something which the Law, nor our living, can ever possibly do.
The Gospel. It's everything. And you, Christian, need it continually. Just like every other person in this world.
The Gospel is everything because Christ and what He has done is everything.
Grace and Peace
7/12/14
Cheap Grace is the Dumbest Term in the History of Terms. And Stuff.
 |
| Dr. Michael Brown |
Anyways, the term cheap grace is completely foolish. It was actually Dietrich Bonhoeffer who popularized the term, and Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran, of all things. Granted, he was a liberal one.
 |
| Dietrich Bonhoeffer |
 |
| John MacArthur |
The Gospel and the Law are two different words from God Almighty Himself. The Law kills us and drives us to Christ, who gives us pure unadulterated grace as a one-sided free gift in the Gospel.
The problem is, the more law we inject into the gospel, the less good news there is. Ultimately, the people who rail against "cheap grace" are railing against the Gospel being a pure and free gift, in a sense. They're worried that people are going to start rewriting St. Paul and saying: "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Heck yes!" But who does that?
They're worried that people are not going to be moral enough. They're worried that people aren't going to act right. Their problem is, the solution they come up with is to inject the law into the gospel.
The Gospel ceases to be good news when you do that. It puts conditions on the Gospel, and that is a huge error. It turns the gospel into just another command to be obeyed. In other words, it turns the gospel into law.
If they want to talk about the third use of the law or about sanctification or the new obedience, then by all means, let's talk about that. But let's not inject the law into the gospel and create a version of Christianity that teeters dangerously on works salvation.
Thus, ultimately, what these folks are worried about is cheap law, and ultimately, they're worried more about the actions of Christians (third use, sanctification) than they are with the Gospel (Christ for you outside of yourself), and they make the grievous error of mingling the two, thus downgrading the Gospel and grace and mixing our actions into it.
Ultimately, this turns Christianity into a law-based religion. And while I will not say that Dr. Brown, Dietrich Bonhoeffer or John MacArthur are not Christians (I have no reason to believe they aren't.), I will point out that all three of them have a big error when it comes to law and gospel.
They mix them badly and end up making the good news into less good news and robbing numerous Christians of assurance of their salvation by basing it upon their own changed life and actions and not on Christ crucified for the forgiveness of their sins, given to them in Word and Sacrament by promise.
Therefore, Dr. Brown, John MacArthur (who are opponents generally), and Bonhoeffer's stance on this particular topic is very heterodox. Christians are being robbed of the good news of Christ outside of them by these sorts of teachings.
And to sum, you cannot obey a promise, because it's something conditioned on the promise giver, not on you. And grace (Gospel) is a promise.
+Pax+
6/13/14
Limited Atonement and Navel Oranges
1 Timothy 4:10 (ESV): For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
1 Timothy 4:10 (KJV): For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.
Oh, the shenanigans! Not the Bible of course. The Bible speaks clearly the vast majority of the time.
1 Timothy 4:10 is a very difficult passage for the Calvinist because taken at face value, it is a dagger to the L in the famous TULIP. Of course, Calvinists are still sola scriptura folks, so they do not ignore the passage and do indeed have ways to explain it.
Here is Dr. Gary Long's attempt at some various explanations in his book Definite Atonement: 1 Timothy 4:10
The obvious problem here for the Reformed camp is the phrase found in the verse that says "...God, who is the Savior of all people (all men KJV)..."
Saviors save. Dr. Long's final conclusion makes little to no sense. He claims that "Savior" here means that God is the "providential preserver" of all men. Well, that is true. God is indeed the providential preserver of all men. What Christian disputes that? But on what basis can Dr. Long turn "Savior" into "providential preserver?" Where else in Holy Scripture does it equate saving and Christ being the Savior with His providential preservation? To put it bluntly, it doesn't. Dr. Long has to completely twist this Scripture to fit his theology.
Saviors save. Christ is the Savior. Christians know this. So, according to 1 Timothy 4:10, who did Christ save? Well, thankfully, Scripture answers this one in this verse. It says, "all people."
Saviors save. Where was Christ's saving work done? All Christians would faithfully answer: In His incarnation, on the cross, and in His rising from the grave.
According to 1 Timothy 4:10, He is the Savior of all people. His work saves, and it was done for everyone. But that isn't the end of the story. It still must be received by Word and Sacrament, in faith.
The doctrine of limited atonement not only twists the living crap out of this verse (among others), but it also has a pretty nasty (unintended) side effect. If Jesus only died for the elect and not the ones whom will end up in perdition, then how can one know if Christ actually died for them?
By looking to yourself and how well you're following Christ, of course! In other words, the doctrine of limited atonement has the nasty consequence of pointing us at ourselves and not to Christ and His promises for assurance of salvation.
This is why men like the Puritans and theonomists and reconstructionists are just being consistent. Limited Atonement, as well as Reformed Theology in general, when applying their own logical principles, is sharply theonomic and points us directly to our own navels for assurance and is very much based on adherence to the moral Law, and a confusion of Law and Gospel.
With sincere apologies to our Continental Reformed brethren, who do a lot better with the Gospel than the theonomists and Puritans.
+Pax+
1 Timothy 4:10 (KJV): For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.
Oh, the shenanigans! Not the Bible of course. The Bible speaks clearly the vast majority of the time.
1 Timothy 4:10 is a very difficult passage for the Calvinist because taken at face value, it is a dagger to the L in the famous TULIP. Of course, Calvinists are still sola scriptura folks, so they do not ignore the passage and do indeed have ways to explain it.
Here is Dr. Gary Long's attempt at some various explanations in his book Definite Atonement: 1 Timothy 4:10
The obvious problem here for the Reformed camp is the phrase found in the verse that says "...God, who is the Savior of all people (all men KJV)..."
Saviors save. Dr. Long's final conclusion makes little to no sense. He claims that "Savior" here means that God is the "providential preserver" of all men. Well, that is true. God is indeed the providential preserver of all men. What Christian disputes that? But on what basis can Dr. Long turn "Savior" into "providential preserver?" Where else in Holy Scripture does it equate saving and Christ being the Savior with His providential preservation? To put it bluntly, it doesn't. Dr. Long has to completely twist this Scripture to fit his theology.
Saviors save. Christ is the Savior. Christians know this. So, according to 1 Timothy 4:10, who did Christ save? Well, thankfully, Scripture answers this one in this verse. It says, "all people."
Saviors save. Where was Christ's saving work done? All Christians would faithfully answer: In His incarnation, on the cross, and in His rising from the grave.
According to 1 Timothy 4:10, He is the Savior of all people. His work saves, and it was done for everyone. But that isn't the end of the story. It still must be received by Word and Sacrament, in faith.
The doctrine of limited atonement not only twists the living crap out of this verse (among others), but it also has a pretty nasty (unintended) side effect. If Jesus only died for the elect and not the ones whom will end up in perdition, then how can one know if Christ actually died for them?
By looking to yourself and how well you're following Christ, of course! In other words, the doctrine of limited atonement has the nasty consequence of pointing us at ourselves and not to Christ and His promises for assurance of salvation.
This is why men like the Puritans and theonomists and reconstructionists are just being consistent. Limited Atonement, as well as Reformed Theology in general, when applying their own logical principles, is sharply theonomic and points us directly to our own navels for assurance and is very much based on adherence to the moral Law, and a confusion of Law and Gospel.
With sincere apologies to our Continental Reformed brethren, who do a lot better with the Gospel than the theonomists and Puritans.
+Pax+
2/14/14
What Does God Expect?
How good must one be to enter glory with Christ? It's a royally important question, and Christianity itself hinges on the answer to it. It hinges first on how we answer the initial question: Just how good do we have to be? What is the standard of righteousness that God requires? The second manner in which we must answer then is: How is this standard fulfilled?
From the outset, all Christians agree that there must be some standard for eternal life. Likewise, there also must be some manner in which that standard is met. Since no one believes that ultimately everyone is condemned (and we won't deal with universalism here), then the two preceding conditions must have answers to them that result in some people being saved.
1. Just how good do we have to be? What is the standard that God expects?
This one should be pretty easy for all Christians to answer. I say that with reservation though, since it's answered incorrectly by many people now days.
Christianity is not a religion of "just do your best." God doesn't accept that. Your best is never good enough, nor can it be.
We all agree that God is perfectly and infinitely Holy, Righteous, and Just. And if we don't, what we worship is less than God. Therefore, the answer should be obvious: God requires a standard that is completely in-line with His perfect holiness, righteousness, and justice.
He requires absolute perfection.
To relax that standard would be for God to relax His attributes and God does not do that. To relax them would be to not hold to them in a sense. In another sense, He cannot relax them because relaxing them would mean that those attributes are not perfect and infinite in the first place.
Jesus' Sermon on the Mount gives us insight into this very truth. He states:
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (St. Matthew 5:17-20)
And then Jesus gets even more blunt later in His sermon, stating:
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (St. Matthew 5:48)
To speak plainly, we must be perfect. We must keep God's Law to perfection. Top put it another way, God demands that we be sinless.
What is a good definition of what it is to be sinless? Well, we could go to the decalogue (10 commandments) and say; keep those perfectly. But I am going to go to Jesus' summation of the decalogue found later in the Gospel according to St. Matthew.
"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (St. Matthew 22:36-40)
But wait a second. Aren't we all sinners? Yeah, we are. That is why the next question and answer is so vital to the Christian faith.
2. How is this standard of righteousness fulfilled?
Does God demand that we fulfill this standard? Yes, He does, we already addressed that in the last section. He demands that we be perfect and then tells us that we must love the Lord our God with our everything, all the time. And also love our neighbors as ourselves.
Have you done that today? Have you loved the Lord your God with your whole heart, mind, strength, soul, and everything of yourself for even one second? I would assert that if you say you have, you're breaking the 8th commandment regarding bearing false witness.
So, pretty clearly we as sinful humanity cannot meet this standard that God states and commands all in one fell swoop. Ironically, the theological camps that think they can meet these standards have quite a low view of sin, despite the fact that they talk all the time about not sinning!
Therefore, there must be another way, lest we all be universally condemned. Thanks be to God, the other way is the Gospel.
In other words, we have a substitute. We have an advocate. We have another who has fulfilled these demands on our behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, and He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (St. John 1:29).
You must be in Christ. If a person is in Christ, they are perfect on account of the work of Christ and His righteousness being imputed to them (Romans 4, 2 Corinthians 5:21). The only way that a person can be perfect is to be counted righteous on behalf of Christ. For you have died, and your life is hidden in Christ with God (Colossians 3:3). Not by works, lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:9).
Our works cannot ever save us. Our obedience can't either. Only the perfect Lamb of God can do that. Not because we are perfect obedient servants -repentant as we are, as Christians live a daily life of repentance- but that Christ is the perfect obedient Servant.
Such is the way of being simul iustus et peccator. Or in English: Simultaneously justified and sinful. Or, we are both sinner and saint.
Thanks be to God for His saving work in Christ!
From the outset, all Christians agree that there must be some standard for eternal life. Likewise, there also must be some manner in which that standard is met. Since no one believes that ultimately everyone is condemned (and we won't deal with universalism here), then the two preceding conditions must have answers to them that result in some people being saved.
1. Just how good do we have to be? What is the standard that God expects?
This one should be pretty easy for all Christians to answer. I say that with reservation though, since it's answered incorrectly by many people now days.
Christianity is not a religion of "just do your best." God doesn't accept that. Your best is never good enough, nor can it be.
We all agree that God is perfectly and infinitely Holy, Righteous, and Just. And if we don't, what we worship is less than God. Therefore, the answer should be obvious: God requires a standard that is completely in-line with His perfect holiness, righteousness, and justice.
He requires absolute perfection.
To relax that standard would be for God to relax His attributes and God does not do that. To relax them would be to not hold to them in a sense. In another sense, He cannot relax them because relaxing them would mean that those attributes are not perfect and infinite in the first place.
Jesus' Sermon on the Mount gives us insight into this very truth. He states:
Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. 19 Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (St. Matthew 5:17-20)
And then Jesus gets even more blunt later in His sermon, stating:
You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (St. Matthew 5:48)
To speak plainly, we must be perfect. We must keep God's Law to perfection. Top put it another way, God demands that we be sinless.
What is a good definition of what it is to be sinless? Well, we could go to the decalogue (10 commandments) and say; keep those perfectly. But I am going to go to Jesus' summation of the decalogue found later in the Gospel according to St. Matthew.
"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (St. Matthew 22:36-40)
But wait a second. Aren't we all sinners? Yeah, we are. That is why the next question and answer is so vital to the Christian faith.
2. How is this standard of righteousness fulfilled?
Does God demand that we fulfill this standard? Yes, He does, we already addressed that in the last section. He demands that we be perfect and then tells us that we must love the Lord our God with our everything, all the time. And also love our neighbors as ourselves.
Have you done that today? Have you loved the Lord your God with your whole heart, mind, strength, soul, and everything of yourself for even one second? I would assert that if you say you have, you're breaking the 8th commandment regarding bearing false witness.
So, pretty clearly we as sinful humanity cannot meet this standard that God states and commands all in one fell swoop. Ironically, the theological camps that think they can meet these standards have quite a low view of sin, despite the fact that they talk all the time about not sinning!
Therefore, there must be another way, lest we all be universally condemned. Thanks be to God, the other way is the Gospel.
In other words, we have a substitute. We have an advocate. We have another who has fulfilled these demands on our behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, and He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (St. John 1:29).
You must be in Christ. If a person is in Christ, they are perfect on account of the work of Christ and His righteousness being imputed to them (Romans 4, 2 Corinthians 5:21). The only way that a person can be perfect is to be counted righteous on behalf of Christ. For you have died, and your life is hidden in Christ with God (Colossians 3:3). Not by works, lest anyone should boast (Ephesians 2:9).
Our works cannot ever save us. Our obedience can't either. Only the perfect Lamb of God can do that. Not because we are perfect obedient servants -repentant as we are, as Christians live a daily life of repentance- but that Christ is the perfect obedient Servant.
Such is the way of being simul iustus et peccator. Or in English: Simultaneously justified and sinful. Or, we are both sinner and saint.
Thanks be to God for His saving work in Christ!
12/1/13
The Law Kills...So Let's Insert An Easier One.
Bad Theology rears its ugly head again.
Have you ever heard a well-meaning brother or sister in Christ share a story that goes something like this?
I thought I was a Christian. I went to church every Sunday because that's what Christians do. And I thought I was a pretty good person. But I eventually realized that nothing I did could ever save me. I was not a good person and I was lost. I was not saved just by going to church.
Sound familiar so far? So far, it's not so bad. The person has realized that they cannot do anything to save themselves and the perfect demands of God's Holy Law has crushed them. They then continue with something like...
I was not saved just by going to church. I would stay out all night doing x, y, and z. Then I would get up and go to church in the morning. I realized my lost state and then really, truly, gave my life to Jesus. I made it a personal relationship. I could not do anything to earn my salvation, but I made sure I was really, truly, saved. I accepted Christ as my personal Lord and Savior.
And here is where the train goes off the rails. The first part sounds so good! The Law did it's job! It crushed the person and drove them to Christ. Score one for the Law.
But then...but then...but then. It's supposed to read: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved" (Eph 2:4-5)
But it doesn't. It reads: I gave my life to Christ and made Him my personal Lord and Savior. I gave up those things I used to stay up all night doing; x, y, and z. All of them. I'm not perfect, but I love Jesus. This of course is accompanied by heavy emotion, choked back tears, and such.
So here is the rub. The person ultimately is rooting their salvation in doing something. Whether that be "making Christ Lord and Savior" or "surrendering" or "accepting Christ," they're rooting their salvation in...voila, an easier version of the law. This is all purely subjective. How can this not lead to a lack of assurance of salvation? I gave up x, y, and z. Well, what if you do x, y, and z again? or even just one of them? Well, there goes your assurance and now you're back at square one.
The other thing is that this just is not at all what Scripture tells us about salvation. Scripture tells us that Christ saves us. Alone. By Himself. It's like, all 100% Him. There is no "I'm saved because I gave my life to Christ." That's not in Scripture. There is also no "I made Jesus my personal Lord and Savior." That's not in Scripture either. There is really no "I'm a Christian and know I am really, truly, personally saved because I gave up all these things." That kind of sounds like you're boasting in leaving behind things. Know what I mean?
The other thing that is bothersome about testimonies like this is that they downplay the role of the Church. Big time. They always pit "personal relationship" vs. "church." You hear phrases like "going to church doesn't make you a Christian," and things like that.
Well, the Church is precisely the place that delivers Christ to you: personally and objectively. Not by your willing it, not by you making Christ Lord, and not by your giving up things. Those are all subjective, and those are all works!
Instead, the Church gives you Christ the way Christ said He is to be given. Christ gave us officers in the Church to deliver His good gifts to us. We call this the office of the ministry. Your pastor preaches Christ crucified to you. He is present in His Word. Your pastor baptises you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In that you are united to Christ. Your pastor administers the blessed Sacrament of Christ's body and blood, which is for the forgiveness of sins.
When, oh when, did we start replacing the Law with an easier law of "accepting Christ," "making Christ Lord and Savior," and giving things up? That's how we know we're really saved people will say.
I say nonsense. We know we are really saved because Christ strengthens our faith weekly by giving us Himself in Word and Sacrament. We ARE baptised. He has claimed us. We are His.
Get rid of Pietism. It's a dead end and it's terrible theology. And stop chucking the Church under the bus. The Church gives you God's good gifts. If God is your Father, the Church is your Mother.
Pax
Have you ever heard a well-meaning brother or sister in Christ share a story that goes something like this?
I thought I was a Christian. I went to church every Sunday because that's what Christians do. And I thought I was a pretty good person. But I eventually realized that nothing I did could ever save me. I was not a good person and I was lost. I was not saved just by going to church.
Sound familiar so far? So far, it's not so bad. The person has realized that they cannot do anything to save themselves and the perfect demands of God's Holy Law has crushed them. They then continue with something like...
I was not saved just by going to church. I would stay out all night doing x, y, and z. Then I would get up and go to church in the morning. I realized my lost state and then really, truly, gave my life to Jesus. I made it a personal relationship. I could not do anything to earn my salvation, but I made sure I was really, truly, saved. I accepted Christ as my personal Lord and Savior.
And here is where the train goes off the rails. The first part sounds so good! The Law did it's job! It crushed the person and drove them to Christ. Score one for the Law.
But then...but then...but then. It's supposed to read: "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved" (Eph 2:4-5)
But it doesn't. It reads: I gave my life to Christ and made Him my personal Lord and Savior. I gave up those things I used to stay up all night doing; x, y, and z. All of them. I'm not perfect, but I love Jesus. This of course is accompanied by heavy emotion, choked back tears, and such.
So here is the rub. The person ultimately is rooting their salvation in doing something. Whether that be "making Christ Lord and Savior" or "surrendering" or "accepting Christ," they're rooting their salvation in...voila, an easier version of the law. This is all purely subjective. How can this not lead to a lack of assurance of salvation? I gave up x, y, and z. Well, what if you do x, y, and z again? or even just one of them? Well, there goes your assurance and now you're back at square one.
The other thing is that this just is not at all what Scripture tells us about salvation. Scripture tells us that Christ saves us. Alone. By Himself. It's like, all 100% Him. There is no "I'm saved because I gave my life to Christ." That's not in Scripture. There is also no "I made Jesus my personal Lord and Savior." That's not in Scripture either. There is really no "I'm a Christian and know I am really, truly, personally saved because I gave up all these things." That kind of sounds like you're boasting in leaving behind things. Know what I mean?
The other thing that is bothersome about testimonies like this is that they downplay the role of the Church. Big time. They always pit "personal relationship" vs. "church." You hear phrases like "going to church doesn't make you a Christian," and things like that.
Well, the Church is precisely the place that delivers Christ to you: personally and objectively. Not by your willing it, not by you making Christ Lord, and not by your giving up things. Those are all subjective, and those are all works!
Instead, the Church gives you Christ the way Christ said He is to be given. Christ gave us officers in the Church to deliver His good gifts to us. We call this the office of the ministry. Your pastor preaches Christ crucified to you. He is present in His Word. Your pastor baptises you in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In that you are united to Christ. Your pastor administers the blessed Sacrament of Christ's body and blood, which is for the forgiveness of sins.
When, oh when, did we start replacing the Law with an easier law of "accepting Christ," "making Christ Lord and Savior," and giving things up? That's how we know we're really saved people will say.
I say nonsense. We know we are really saved because Christ strengthens our faith weekly by giving us Himself in Word and Sacrament. We ARE baptised. He has claimed us. We are His.
Get rid of Pietism. It's a dead end and it's terrible theology. And stop chucking the Church under the bus. The Church gives you God's good gifts. If God is your Father, the Church is your Mother.
Pax
11/1/13
Reformation Day - October 31
October 31 is the day we celebrate the truth that thundered forth in the Reformation. October 31, 1517 was the day that Martin Luther hammered the 95 theses on the door of the Wittenberg Church, challenging the corruption and abuses of the Roman Church.
Old Testament:
Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength, very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. 8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Epistle:
Romans 3:19-28
Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. 27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Revelation 14:6-7
Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. 7 And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
The Holy Gospel
John 8:31-36
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Collect
Almighty God, gracious Lord, pour out your Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep them steadfast in your grace and truth, protect them and comfort them in all temptations, defend them against all enemies of your Word, and bestow on the Church your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
Old Testament:
Psalm 46
God is our refuge and strength, very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. 8 Come, behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. 10 “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” 11 The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Jeremiah 31:31-34
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord. 33 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
Epistle:
Romans 3:19-28
Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin. 21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. 27 Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? By a law of works? No, but by the law of faith. 28 For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.
Revelation 14:6-7
Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. 7 And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
The Holy Gospel
John 8:31-36
So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Collect
Almighty God, gracious Lord, pour out your Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep them steadfast in your grace and truth, protect them and comfort them in all temptations, defend them against all enemies of your Word, and bestow on the Church your saving peace; through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen
9/26/13
Chump Change Lawless Donkishness
Lutherans are Gospel people. Always gonna be Gospel people. We're Evangelical Catholics. We're Orthodox, but not Eastern, Catholic, but not Roman, Evangelical, but not Protestant.
We emphasize the Gospel to the point where a lot of folks outside of Lutheranism think we're antinomianians. Heck, there are some within Lutheranism who are antinomian and decry anyone else who dares exhort anyone over anything.
But let's not throw the baby out with the baptismal water!
It is good that we are focused on the Gospel and then...well, more Gospel. I would rather be labeled antinomian than a legalist. Chances are, I've correctly understood the Gospel then.
We're all about grace coming to us in Word and Sacrament. Because those drive everything for us. They give us Christ, who alone merits salvation at Calvary and through His rising from the dead. We preach that Christ alone saves us, apart from anything else. He gives us this one-sided monergistic saving work in His Word, given to us through preaching, absolution, water, bread, and wine. We keep the main thing the main thing.
Christianity is not about being a moral do-gooder.
But, let's not overreact to the unfortunate destruction of many churches by the foolishness of Pietism.
I'm not going to get into the minutiae of this "Great Sanctification Debate" as it was labelled some months ago. I understand the concern of some people within Lutheran circles of using the words "progressive sanctification." I get that.
Let's just say that I'm on board with men like Prs. Cooper and Surburg on this one. Neither one of them is teaching works righteousness. Neither one of them is saying that we need to do all sorts of introspective navel-gazing to determine if we really are a Christian. Don't believe me? Look at Pr. Cooper's blogs regarding Paul Washer. (http://justandsinner.blogspot.com) Neither of them are saying we are sanctified by the law. The law can't do that. These guys are Confessional Lutheran Book of Concord pastors, not Pietists. Many of the accusations against them were false and misguided. Both of them are faithful Lutheran Gospel men. Both of them are all about the Gospel. And I'm not a pastor, so I'm definitely not looking to stir up an old debate.
I am of the opinion that the Confessions support them in a very solid way, however.
What do our confessions say?
Epitome, VI, 1: Since the Law was given to men for three reasons: first, that thereby outward discipline might be maintained against wild, disobedient men [and that wild and intractable men might be restrained, as though by certain bars]; secondly, that men thereby may be led to the knowledge of their sins; thirdly, that after they are regenerate and [much of] the flesh notwithstanding cleaves to them, they might on this account have a fixed rule according to which they are to regulate and direct their whole life, a dissension has occurred between some few theologians concerning the third use of the Law, namely, whether it is to be urged or not upon regenerate Christians. The one side has said, Yea; the other, Nay.
Epitome VI, 3: We believe, teach, and confess that the preaching of the Law is to be urged with diligence, not only upon the unbelieving and impenitent, but also upon true believers, who are truly converted, regenerate, and justified by faith.
Epitome VI, 8: Accordingly, we reject as a dogma and error injurious to, and conflicting with, Christian discipline and true godliness the teaching that the Law in the above-mentioned way and degree is not to be urged upon Christians and true believers, but only upon unbelievers, non-Christians, and the impenitent.
Epitome - Third Use
Solid Declaration VI, 1-5: Since the Law of God is useful, 1. not only to the end that external discipline and decency are maintained by it against wild, disobedient men; 2. likewise, that through it men are brought to a knowledge of their sins; 3. but also that, when they have been born anew by the Spirit of God, converted to the Lord, and thus the veil of Moses has been lifted from them, they live and walk in the law, a dissension has occurred between some few theologians concerning this third and last use of the Law.
For the one side taught and maintained that the regenerate do not learn the new obedience, or in what good works they ought to walk, from the Law, and that this teaching [concerning good works] is not to be urged thence [from the law], because they have been made free by the Son of God, have become the temples of His Spirit, and therefore do freely of themselves what God requires of them, by the prompting and impulse of the Holy Ghost, just as the sun of itself, without any [foreign] impulse, completes its ordinary course.
Over against this the other side taught: Although the truly believing are verily moved by God's Spirit, and thus, according to the inner man, do God's will from a free spirit, yet it is just the Holy Ghost who uses the written law for instruction with them, by which the truly believing also learn to serve God, not according to their own thoughts, but according to His written Law and Word, which is a sure rule and standard of a godly life and walk, how to order it in accordance with the eternal and immutable will of God.
For the explanation and final settlement of this dissent we unanimously believe, teach, and confess that although the truly believing and truly converted to God and justified Christians are liberated and made free from the curse of the Law, yet they should daily exercise themselves in the Law of the Lord, as it is written, Ps. 1:2;119:1: Blessed is the man whose delight is in the Law of the Lord, and in His Law doth he meditate day and night. For the Law is a mirror in which the will of God, and what pleases Him, are exactly portrayed, and which should [therefore] be constantly held up to the believers and be diligently urged upon them without ceasing.
For although the Law is not made for a righteous man, as the apostle testifies 1 Tim. 1:9, but for the unrighteous, yet this is not to be understood in the bare meaning, that the justified are to live without law. For the Law of God has been written in their heart, and also to the first man immediately after his creation a law was given according to which he was to conduct himself. But the meaning of St. Paul is that the Law cannot burden with its curse those who have been reconciled to God through Christ; nor must it vex the regenerate with its coercion, because they have pleasure in God's Law after the inner man.
Solid Declaration - Third Use
So, in short, I don't need to pontificate much here. The Lutheran Confessions are pretty clear. We affirm the third use of the law. We are not antinomians. We affirm the new obedience of the believer. We affirm that the life of a Christian should be one of repentance. (Luther's first thesis, anyone?) As our Confessions say, the Law is for the believer too.
In a very big way, I am glad that we get called antinomian sometimes because we are all about the Gospel given in Word and Sacrament. It's good and proper to be all about the Gospel. But let's stop overreacting to the grievous error of Pietism. Our Confessions are clear, the believer is also to live a life of repentance and walk in obedience to Christ. St. Paul, St. John, and St. Peter all exhort Christians repeatedly in Scripture. Yes, of course the Gospel is center, the Spirit is the driving agent behind this all, and the Word and Sacrament ministry is at the fore. But they still don't stop with exhortation.
Something about a baby and some water. Or something.
We emphasize the Gospel to the point where a lot of folks outside of Lutheranism think we're antinomianians. Heck, there are some within Lutheranism who are antinomian and decry anyone else who dares exhort anyone over anything.
But let's not throw the baby out with the baptismal water!
It is good that we are focused on the Gospel and then...well, more Gospel. I would rather be labeled antinomian than a legalist. Chances are, I've correctly understood the Gospel then.
We're all about grace coming to us in Word and Sacrament. Because those drive everything for us. They give us Christ, who alone merits salvation at Calvary and through His rising from the dead. We preach that Christ alone saves us, apart from anything else. He gives us this one-sided monergistic saving work in His Word, given to us through preaching, absolution, water, bread, and wine. We keep the main thing the main thing.
Christianity is not about being a moral do-gooder.
But, let's not overreact to the unfortunate destruction of many churches by the foolishness of Pietism.
I'm not going to get into the minutiae of this "Great Sanctification Debate" as it was labelled some months ago. I understand the concern of some people within Lutheran circles of using the words "progressive sanctification." I get that.
Let's just say that I'm on board with men like Prs. Cooper and Surburg on this one. Neither one of them is teaching works righteousness. Neither one of them is saying that we need to do all sorts of introspective navel-gazing to determine if we really are a Christian. Don't believe me? Look at Pr. Cooper's blogs regarding Paul Washer. (http://justandsinner.blogspot.com) Neither of them are saying we are sanctified by the law. The law can't do that. These guys are Confessional Lutheran Book of Concord pastors, not Pietists. Many of the accusations against them were false and misguided. Both of them are faithful Lutheran Gospel men. Both of them are all about the Gospel. And I'm not a pastor, so I'm definitely not looking to stir up an old debate.
I am of the opinion that the Confessions support them in a very solid way, however.
What do our confessions say?
Epitome, VI, 1: Since the Law was given to men for three reasons: first, that thereby outward discipline might be maintained against wild, disobedient men [and that wild and intractable men might be restrained, as though by certain bars]; secondly, that men thereby may be led to the knowledge of their sins; thirdly, that after they are regenerate and [much of] the flesh notwithstanding cleaves to them, they might on this account have a fixed rule according to which they are to regulate and direct their whole life, a dissension has occurred between some few theologians concerning the third use of the Law, namely, whether it is to be urged or not upon regenerate Christians. The one side has said, Yea; the other, Nay.
Epitome VI, 3: We believe, teach, and confess that the preaching of the Law is to be urged with diligence, not only upon the unbelieving and impenitent, but also upon true believers, who are truly converted, regenerate, and justified by faith.
Epitome VI, 8: Accordingly, we reject as a dogma and error injurious to, and conflicting with, Christian discipline and true godliness the teaching that the Law in the above-mentioned way and degree is not to be urged upon Christians and true believers, but only upon unbelievers, non-Christians, and the impenitent.
Epitome - Third Use
Solid Declaration VI, 1-5: Since the Law of God is useful, 1. not only to the end that external discipline and decency are maintained by it against wild, disobedient men; 2. likewise, that through it men are brought to a knowledge of their sins; 3. but also that, when they have been born anew by the Spirit of God, converted to the Lord, and thus the veil of Moses has been lifted from them, they live and walk in the law, a dissension has occurred between some few theologians concerning this third and last use of the Law.
For the one side taught and maintained that the regenerate do not learn the new obedience, or in what good works they ought to walk, from the Law, and that this teaching [concerning good works] is not to be urged thence [from the law], because they have been made free by the Son of God, have become the temples of His Spirit, and therefore do freely of themselves what God requires of them, by the prompting and impulse of the Holy Ghost, just as the sun of itself, without any [foreign] impulse, completes its ordinary course.
Over against this the other side taught: Although the truly believing are verily moved by God's Spirit, and thus, according to the inner man, do God's will from a free spirit, yet it is just the Holy Ghost who uses the written law for instruction with them, by which the truly believing also learn to serve God, not according to their own thoughts, but according to His written Law and Word, which is a sure rule and standard of a godly life and walk, how to order it in accordance with the eternal and immutable will of God.
For the explanation and final settlement of this dissent we unanimously believe, teach, and confess that although the truly believing and truly converted to God and justified Christians are liberated and made free from the curse of the Law, yet they should daily exercise themselves in the Law of the Lord, as it is written, Ps. 1:2;119:1: Blessed is the man whose delight is in the Law of the Lord, and in His Law doth he meditate day and night. For the Law is a mirror in which the will of God, and what pleases Him, are exactly portrayed, and which should [therefore] be constantly held up to the believers and be diligently urged upon them without ceasing.
For although the Law is not made for a righteous man, as the apostle testifies 1 Tim. 1:9, but for the unrighteous, yet this is not to be understood in the bare meaning, that the justified are to live without law. For the Law of God has been written in their heart, and also to the first man immediately after his creation a law was given according to which he was to conduct himself. But the meaning of St. Paul is that the Law cannot burden with its curse those who have been reconciled to God through Christ; nor must it vex the regenerate with its coercion, because they have pleasure in God's Law after the inner man.
Solid Declaration - Third Use
So, in short, I don't need to pontificate much here. The Lutheran Confessions are pretty clear. We affirm the third use of the law. We are not antinomians. We affirm the new obedience of the believer. We affirm that the life of a Christian should be one of repentance. (Luther's first thesis, anyone?) As our Confessions say, the Law is for the believer too.
In a very big way, I am glad that we get called antinomian sometimes because we are all about the Gospel given in Word and Sacrament. It's good and proper to be all about the Gospel. But let's stop overreacting to the grievous error of Pietism. Our Confessions are clear, the believer is also to live a life of repentance and walk in obedience to Christ. St. Paul, St. John, and St. Peter all exhort Christians repeatedly in Scripture. Yes, of course the Gospel is center, the Spirit is the driving agent behind this all, and the Word and Sacrament ministry is at the fore. But they still don't stop with exhortation.
Something about a baby and some water. Or something.
9/23/13
Polluted Righteous Toxicity
The Pharisees again. Jesus had a lot of interactions with them, didn't He? The Pharisees were the leaders of the day in Judaism. Yet they had it all wrong. The Holy Gospel reading this Sunday concluded with this verse:
St. Luke 16:15: And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
Jesus once again has some strong words for the religious leaders of the day.
Some people today have proposed that the Pharisees were being rebuked by Christ just for being hypocrites, not for their actual law-keeping works.
This isn't really the case, however. Jesus repeatedly rebukes them for being hypocrites, but also for following the law as the way to righteousness.
Jesus rebukes them here for being those who justify themselves before men, yet in reality, their works are an abomination before God. Sort of sounds like Isaiah, doesn't it? If you're not familiar with the verse to which I refer, here it is:
Isaiah 64:6: We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
All our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. The KJV renders it 'filthy rags.' Our deeds are incapable of righteousness. Our deeds cannot justify us.
We may try to be outwardly righteous. We may appear outwardly righteous. But we aren't. Our works are an abomination because they can never conform perfectly to God's Law. We are commanded to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, but we never do. And we never can. We're sinners. We are commanded to love our neighbor as ourselves. But we never do this perfectly either.
The folly of the Pharisees is that they thought this was the way to righteousness. They missed the entire point of the Law and the Prophets. The entire point of the Law and Prophets was standing right in front of them, rebuking them!
The Pharisees perceived righteousness was polluted, because the Pharisees were, just like us, sinful in thought, word, and deed. Their God was too small. And their religion was toxic. It was condeming because it failed to trust Christ, but rather tried to earn the Father's favor by doing good.
It is true, however, that we must be righteous. But is this accomplished by our law-keeping or obedience? No, it can never be. The entire point of the Law and the Prophets stood in front of the Pharisees, rebuking them. That Christ is our righteousness. You must be righteous, but only He is.
Hence, the cross, the grave, and the resurrection. For the Christ has taken our sin on Himself and risen for our justification; to declare us righteous as heirs of His Kingdom, for all who believe.
2 Corinthians 5:21: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Romans 3:21-26: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
It's all about Jesus from start to finish. So don't be like the Pharisees and have your own polluted righteousness and toxic false religion of working to earn something before God.
Jesus already earned everything that is necessary. He did it all alone, by Himself. And He did enough to save everyone.
Receive your Savior.
St. Luke 16:15: And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.
 |
| Are these Pharisees or Orthodox Priests? |
Some people today have proposed that the Pharisees were being rebuked by Christ just for being hypocrites, not for their actual law-keeping works.
This isn't really the case, however. Jesus repeatedly rebukes them for being hypocrites, but also for following the law as the way to righteousness.
Jesus rebukes them here for being those who justify themselves before men, yet in reality, their works are an abomination before God. Sort of sounds like Isaiah, doesn't it? If you're not familiar with the verse to which I refer, here it is:
Isaiah 64:6: We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
All our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. The KJV renders it 'filthy rags.' Our deeds are incapable of righteousness. Our deeds cannot justify us.
We may try to be outwardly righteous. We may appear outwardly righteous. But we aren't. Our works are an abomination because they can never conform perfectly to God's Law. We are commanded to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, but we never do. And we never can. We're sinners. We are commanded to love our neighbor as ourselves. But we never do this perfectly either.
The folly of the Pharisees is that they thought this was the way to righteousness. They missed the entire point of the Law and the Prophets. The entire point of the Law and Prophets was standing right in front of them, rebuking them!
The Pharisees perceived righteousness was polluted, because the Pharisees were, just like us, sinful in thought, word, and deed. Their God was too small. And their religion was toxic. It was condeming because it failed to trust Christ, but rather tried to earn the Father's favor by doing good.
It is true, however, that we must be righteous. But is this accomplished by our law-keeping or obedience? No, it can never be. The entire point of the Law and the Prophets stood in front of the Pharisees, rebuking them. That Christ is our righteousness. You must be righteous, but only He is.
Hence, the cross, the grave, and the resurrection. For the Christ has taken our sin on Himself and risen for our justification; to declare us righteous as heirs of His Kingdom, for all who believe.
2 Corinthians 5:21: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.Romans 3:21-26: But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.
It's all about Jesus from start to finish. So don't be like the Pharisees and have your own polluted righteousness and toxic false religion of working to earn something before God.
Jesus already earned everything that is necessary. He did it all alone, by Himself. And He did enough to save everyone.
Receive your Savior.
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