Addressing the "Theology" of Joel Osteen

OK....first...let me address Joel's unBiblical and narcissistic little "creed" he has the congregation recite before he preaches:

This is my Bible.
[NO...It isn't! It's God's Word contained in a canonical form]

I am what it says I am.
[YEP...a hopelessly depraved and condemned sinner...except for the sake of Christ]

I can do what it says I can do.
[Yep...repent and turn to Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.]

Today, I will be taught the Word of God.
[Ummm....nope! Not from Him!]

I boldly confess
My mind is alert, My heart is receptive.
I will never be the same.
I am about to receive
The incorruptible, indestructible,
Ever-living seed of the Word of God.
[Ummm....nope! Not from Him!]

I will never be the same.
Never, never, never.
I will never be the same.
[We are suppose to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God sent to redeem us from our depravity and restore a righteous relationship with God.]

In Jesus name. Amen.

Now compare that to the true historic Baptismal/Apostles Creed:

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary; suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

CAN YOU SEE THE DIFFERENCE!?!?

Before another "forked tongued" word even drips from his mouth, he has turned their attention from the Christ and on themselves. In so doing, they have already broken the 1st and 2nd Commandments!

#1 Thou shalt have no other gods.

Joel's Creed immediately proclaims that God's Word is about YOU...not the Triune God and specifically NOT Jesus! He has conned them into declaring that you are a "little deity" in their own right.

 #2 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord, thy God, in vain.

Then he turns them into a blasphemers by invoking Jesus' name at the end of that ridiculousness.

The 10 Commandments are the Two Tables of the Law. The first 3 define our relationship with God...4-10 define our relationships with each other. So, Joel has basically and heretically destroyed the Two Tables in his ministry because he severs their relationship with God and then turns their focus on themselves. Of course, I don't expect Joel Osteen disciples to understand that because he DOESN'T TEACH THE COMMANDMENTS.

His advocates obviously have no clue about the two covenants of the Bible. The Old Testament covenant that was specific to the Hebrews in order to secure the Messianic line of people and to mark them as God's people. Within that covenant were the ordination of duties to each tribe....specifically to the Levites as the order of the Priests. Within that God gave them the ability to prophesy/speak for God. In so doing, they gave specific instructions and delivered specific promises and condemnations to the people. What we have is the written record, a description of that. So, just using a 2 Chronicles 22 example that was provided to me as support for one of Joel's sermons...

And when they began to sing and praise*, the Lord set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed.

...we simply back up a few verses and read the context:

O our God, will you not execute judgment on them? For we are powerless against this great horde that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” Meanwhile all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. And he said, *“Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord  to you, ‘Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God’s. Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeruel. You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the  Lord  will be with you.” Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord.

God gave them a specific command and a specific promise for THAT specific situation. That is what theologians call a "descriptive text" it's a historical record of God's work. However, it is not a promise to US that following that same command will illicit a similar result. He NEVER promised that to anyone except THOSE PEOPLE at THAT TIME. We cannot take a descriptive text and us it as a "prescription" for our lives. What IT DOES give us is a glimpse of the work of the pre-incarnate Christ in history and typology. Nowhere does the Bible tell us to apply that Scripture to us. IT'S ABOUT JESUS. What Jesus specifically said was:

John 5:39

You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. I do not receive glory from people.

We are under the New Covenant of Christ. God no longer relates to us the way he did with the OT Hebrews. 

Hebrews 1 :1-2

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, *but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son,* whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

The promises of the OT prophets (other than the fulfilled Messianic promises) DO NOT apply to us. So...

...In an Acts text provided to me...

Acts 16:25-26

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them, and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s bonds were unfastened.

...yes God interceded for Paul and Silas...I do not deny that God works miracles for HIS purposes and plan of salvation in gathering His people. What Joel misunderstands (or intentionally omits) about text is that God did not intercede to free Paul and Silas...if we continue to read the text, we find God's purpose for breaking them out:

When the jailer woke and saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul cried with a loud voice, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here.” [note:they stayed in the jail] And the jailer called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and *he was baptized at once, he and all his family. Then he brought them up into his house and set food before them. And *he rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God.

Jesus sent the earthquake as an opportunity to plant His Church in Philippi...that's it. Paul and Silas and the earthquake were the tools he used. Yet, Joel wants to pull that one verse out and use it as a prescription for how God can intercede daily for us to "save our business", "restore our relationships", "fix our finances" or whatever our other immediate "idol" needs to be repaired. That use of the Bible is exactly how the Pharisees, whom Jesus constantly rebuked, used the Scriptures. It's VERY legalistic, narcissistic and arrogant. In fact, if we read:

But when it was day, the magistrates sent the police, saying, “Let those men go.”  And the jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The magistrates have sent to let you go. Therefore come out now and go in peace.”  But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned, men who are Roman citizens, and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly? No! Let them come themselves and take us out.” The police reported these words to the magistrates, and they were afraid when they heard that they were Roman citizens. So they came and apologized to them. And they took them out and asked them to leave the city. So they went out of the prison and visited Lydia. And when they had seen the brothers, they encouraged them and departed.

So, once Paul would have met his accusers in court, they would have been freed anyway. Now, I do not deny that God works in our lives to protect us and sustain us spiritually and physically.  This is His promise:

John 3 :16-18

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world  to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

Matthew 6 :19-34

“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust    destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven*, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. *For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also*. “The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! “*No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money*.“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his  span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, *and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

So, instead of reading Jesus ACTUAL words in the Gospels...Joel will allude to a single or couple of verses out of context (if he mentions a verse at all) and turn it into a false theology. He's not the only false teacher guilty of this, he was just the one of many. American Evangelicalism is replete with false teachers propagating this heresy. It's mostly because these self-proclaimed, "I was called" preachers do not understand Christian doctrine, dogmatics, systematic theology...and in most cases simple contextual reading comprehension.

We don't interpret the Bible by saying "What does it mean to me?" We interpret the Bible by saying "What does the text mean?...and read it without the chapter and verse numbers. The Books of Bible are not divided by chapters and verses...nor is it to be studied that way. The chapter and verse numbers are simply reference points added a few centuries ago to help sort the texts and communicate with each other where we might be reading during study.

As to all of this being MY understanding of the Bible. It isn't...it's the understanding of the Church for 1800 years until the Revivalists Movement in America, sparked mainly by Charles Finney, perverted the way Americans read the Bible. It's fueled by lazy and Biblically ignorant pagan/Christians that believe God exists in feelings, prosperity, rainbows, clouds and sunshine...instead of in His TRUE Word and Sacraments. 

However, God did say this would happen before Christ's return...he simply seems to have blessed many of us with a frustrating "front row seat" to the GREAT APOSTASY!

Response to an atheist

I was asked by an atheist to give a logical reason for my faith in Christ. Here's my response [after rereading it, I made a few edits, but the main point is the same]:

I can try, honesty, I've not studied Apologetics thoroughly so, I'm not certain my arguments will be convincing.

To begin with, my doctrinal view of faith (which is in the minority of Christianity these days) is that faith in God isn't a choice...it's God's work. Humans are presented with the Gospel and they are converted to belief (not always instantly) by the Holy Spirit or they reject it.

Also, we admit that much of what we believe is not logical...it's our faith that clings to it...but I will give it my best shot.

The thing that probably meets the logical argument for faith, more than anything, is the nature of man. I fail to see how anyone can claim that humans are "evolving" from a morality standpoint. Folks want to point to our technological advancements and claim that it's evolution...but the nature of man hasn't changed. Even our technological advancements, from the stone age, were driven by our desire for power and authority over other groups of people...basically...military conquest. Almost every technological advancement was a result of an egomaniac wanting to conquer a neighboring people...or...an ego maniac trying to prevent himself from being conquered. THAT desire to rule and, basically, be a type of god is the very thing that original sin in Genesis addresses.

It's not in human nature to be submissive, we either want to rule or align ourselves with a group we think can rule more effectively...so regardless of whether we want to admit it, we have faith...we simply place it in ourselves or another person or group of people. Now, I do admit that some people are more suited to "rule" because of simple desire, education, intelligence or aptitude...but they are no different from a morality standpoint...they are driven by the same good/evil desires and personal lusts that drive the rest of us.

So, at the end of the day....I look at where my faith is directed...and it simply seems foolish to place it in my own abilities to somehow bend my reality and defeat my "character flaws" to evolve into a better person....or....direct my faith in our worldly leaders to "drag me" and my flawed self to a more "evolved" state of existence. Especially when it's painfully obvious they are not different from me except they have a different skill set.

Conversely, I really can't accept that I am somehow a "stepping stone" in human evolution that will benefit later generations...especially when I look through history and see the same basic human story repeating itself with no real advancement in character or morals. Maybe it's ego...but I don't like thinking of myself as the air breathing "mud fish" in the process of growing legs so a later generation can crawl out of the muck onto dry land. In essence, that's what Darwinist tells us we are.

So, I am left completely faithless and in despair, because that's really a spiritually lifeless existence in which the only thing left is blind accumulation of as many possessions as possible before I die and become "worm food"... (Honestly, I'm not a greedy person and a large horde of "stuff" doesn't appeal to me)...or...I place my faith in something outside humanity.

In my thinking, as I have looked through civilization...the one constant in humanity is the understanding of the spiritual. The essence of life within us. Science really hasn't been able to explain it...which isn't surprising...science doesn't know what gravity IS. They can measure it and see it's affects...but they don't know WHAT it is. So, even atheists, who cling to science as their excuse for unbelief...actually have faith in gravity, because their entire scientific worldview is centered around it. If gravity fails, their worldview will come apart.

So, if humanity has always had an undercurrent "sense" of the spiritual (as is evidenced by the enormous number of religions throughout history), then that evidence alone leads me to believe that there is some credence to the body/soul dynamic of human existence. There must be a God...something perfect, outside of myself and humanity, in which to place my faith. 

Combine that with my experiential evidence of man's depravity and potential for evil...I must believe that potential lies somewhere within me. I prefer to not be overcome by it due to the hopelessness and despair a faithless existence society would offer.

So, in the realm of religions we have to choose from...I prefer one that is uplifting, sustaining and promises to transform me into a better person...and as a "kicker" into eternity. I do not want to live in a worldview where I am a "slave" to a god. Christianity is the ONLY religion that offers a God that serves, forgives and sacrifices Himself for His believers. He acts and we respond. EVERY other religion in the world says..."do these things", "behave specifically this way", "change yourself" and there might be blessings. Humans act to please the god and the god responds accordingly...assuming you don't have a "fickle" god.

Jesus says simply..."believe", "I came here to save you from yourself", "I am your intercessor before the Father", "when you fail, it's OK...simply repent and I forgive you", "be Baptized and know you are saved", "take and eat, take and drink...this is a gift to sustain your faith in me", "I have paid the penalty for all of your sins/evil acts/wrongdoings...there is no condemnation for you", "God is pleased with you because of me", " I will transform your mind". Those things comfort me...they give me hope...they make me want to live a moral life and love my neighbor.

In my opinion, it's really of no consequence to believe in an eternity. If I am right and Jesus brings me into the new creation, restored and truly alive after this life ends...that will be glorious. If I am wrong, my end is the same as it would be if God doesn't exist...and I won't know anyway.

Understand that my Christian faith isn't based on that logic, but that logic has been formed by my life of faith in Christ. I view my faith as a gift from God...and not one I deserve. There are alot of spiritual aspects in which we believe. The world knows what those are and that's where we get criticized. It becomes difficult to defend from a logic standpoint because faith clings to it and it's what we are taught from the Scriptures. So, we simply trust in them.

Maybe that makes sense.

The Rapture

OK...here's something that doesn't make sense to me about this *mythical "rapture"*:

Paul writes specifically in Romans:

Romans 6 : 3-5

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

Peter compares Baptism to the flood in 3 : 20-22

_....when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, *were brought safely through water.* *Baptism*, which corresponds to this, *now saves you*, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, *through the resurrection of Jesus Christ*, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him._

So, when I read 1 Corinthians 15 : 51-57

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

and Philippians 3 : 20-21

But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

I simply see this as the Last Day fulfillment of Christ's promise...the Day he returns in Judgement...and He will Judge me Righteous because he has already Judged me in my Baptismal Death! Then He will Resurrect or Transform me...depending on whether I am dead or alive when He arrives.

Yet, Evangelicals have allowed Satan to steal the true meaning and purpose of Baptism and turn it into some sort of act of obedience...when Scripture is clear that Baptism is God's work in and to us.

Martin Luther wrote about Baptism:

In these words you must note, in the first place, that here stand God's commandment and institution, lest we doubt that Baptism is divine, not devised nor invented by men. For as truly as I can say, No man has spun the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord's Prayer out of his head, but they are revealed and given by God Himself, so also I can boast that Baptism is no human trifle, but instituted by God Himself...

...For it is of the greatest importance that we esteem Baptism excellent, glorious, and exalted, for which we contend and fight chiefly, because the world is now so full of sects clamoring that Baptism is an external thing, and that external things are of no benefit. But let it be ever so much an external thing, here stand God's Word and command which institute, establish, and confirm Baptism. But what God institutes and commands cannot be a vain, but must be a most precious thing, though in appearance it were of less value than a straw....

_...*For to be baptized in the name of God is to be baptized not by men, but by God Himself*. Therefore, although it is performed by human hands, *it is nevertheless truly God's own work*. From this fact every one may himself readily infer that it is a far higher work than any work performed by a man or a saint. For what work greater than the work of God can we do? *But here the devil is busy to delude us with false appearances, and lead us away from the work of God to our own works*..._

...Therefore let it be decided that Baptism always remains true, retains its full essence, even though a single person should be baptized, and he, in addition, should not believe truly. For God's ordinance and Word cannot be made variable or be altered by men. But these people, the fanatics, are so blinded that they do not see the Word and command of God, and regard Baptism and the magistrates only as they regard water in the brook or in pots, or as any other man; and because they do not see faith nor obedience, they conclude that they are to be regarded as invalid. Here lurks a concealed seditious devil, who would like to tear the crown from the head of authority and then trample it under foot, and, in addition, pervert and bring to naught all the works and ordinances of God. Therefore we must be watchful and well armed, and not allow ourselves to be directed nor turned away from the Word, in order that we may not regard Baptism as a mere empty sign, as the fanatics dream.

So, since most Evangelicals have allowed Satan to steal from them the glorious redemptive work of God in Baptism...I can understand why it must be replaced with something else. So, men have concocted this "silly little rapture" to sew their theology back together.

...and THEN...just to add silliness to silliness....they call it a "secret rapture" when 1 Thessalonians 4 : 15-17 says

For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

and Jesus Himself says in Matthew 24 : 27

For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be  the coming of the Son of Man.

Bright lights, a loud command, voice of the archangel, trumpet of God, Jesus riding on a cloud...that's hardly coming in secret. So, my options are to conclude one of two possibilities:

1) Jesus and the Apostles are liars about Baptism and Christ's return

or

2) This secret rapture isn't Biblical and a heresy i should avoid at all costs

UMMMM...I'm going with option #2. At least I know I'm not calling my Lord a "Liar" and an "Idiot".

The Parable of the Sower

I was reading the parable of the sower today in Mark 4 and particularly Jesus' explanation. We all know the text:

Mark 4:13-20 (ESV)

And he said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? The sower sows the word. And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away. And others are the ones sown among thorns. They are those who hear the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. But those that were sown on the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirtyfold and sixtyfold and a hundredfold.”

 My study Bible had an interesting comment as to the sower. It said, 

"Those sowing God's Word include Jesus himself, the first disciples, and all subsequent teacher's and preachers of the Gospel. The administration of Baptism and the Lord's Supper are included in this sowing activity." 

I think often that people see this sowing as a one-time conversion event...either you get it or you don't, but I think Jesus' meaning is much better and contains more Gospel. The "seed is sown". Sometimes we are on "the path" mired in despair and unrepentance and we never hear the comfort of the Gospel because Satan has successfully diverted our attention. Sometimes we are on "rocky ground" and this broken creation and sin has disrupted our lives and we turn to our attention and forget the grace of the Gospel. Sometimes we are "among thorns" and our sinful desires and idolatry are more important to us. Then, sometimes, because of the Holy Spirit, we are in "good soil" and "bear fruit".

Here's the thing, I believe He meant that the sower never stops sowing, and conversely, we never stop receiving the seed!

We are told in Romans 10:17 that

So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

and in Jesus' High Priestley Prayer in John 17:14-17

I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from  the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

Paul writes in 2 Thessalonians 2:13

But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

By continually hearing the Gospel correctly preached, we are continually sown God's Word. We receive his Word in the Sacraments, once in Baptism that crucifies our flesh and raises us with Christ and continually when we receive His Body and Blood in the Lord's Supper. We receive it wherever we are spiritually and sometimes it takes root and sometimes it doesn't, but Christ never stops sowing.

Paul writes in Romans 7:22-25; 8:1-4

For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Because of God's sanctifying work through His Word by the Holy Spirit, we walk in the Spirit...even on those days that I am not in "good soil"...because Christ keeps sowing.

What does Jesus require of us? Not much really...Jesus came into Galilee saying (Mark 1:15)

“The time is fulfilled, and  the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Simply repent and believe. If we are not on good soil, there's a simple prayer from Mark 9:24b:

“I believe; help my unbelief!”

...and he answers in John 10:27-28

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Hear His voice through good Law and Gospel preaching and simply reading His Word...because that's where He continues to sow and sustain us.

While reading Mark Chapter 2 today, I was struck by the beautiful words of Jesus:

_Mark 2:27-28_

_And he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.”_

Too often, Christians view worship on Sunday as something we do for our Lord not something our Lord does for us. Certainly, we give him praise in our hymns and music and we give him thanks in our prayers...but is Church an act of obedience or a means by which we receive His gifts? Well, what do the Scriptures say?

Obviously, Jesus frames the discussion with His quote in Mark 2, but what does He mean by that?

_Exodus 23:12_

_“Six days you shall do your work, *but on the seventh day you shall rest*; that your ox and your donkey may have rest, and the son of your servant woman, and the alien, *may be refreshed*._

_Deuteronomy 5:14_

_Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant, or your ox or your donkey or any of your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant *may rest as well as you.*_

_Colossians 2:16-19_

_Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. *These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ*. Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not *holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together* through its joints and ligaments, *grows with a growth that is from God.*_

Phillip Melanchthon (16th century Reformation Theologian) wrote in the Augsburg Confession (with the counsel of Martin Luther and many other Theologians) that Church is:

_...the congregation of saints, in which the Gospel is rightly taught and the Sacraments are rightly administered._ _-Article VII; Of the Church_

So, if Jesus says the Sabbath is for Man, the Scriptures speak of resting and nourishing and the Church is defined as Preaching the Gospel and Administering of the Sacraments...what then are we to expect on Sunday morning? I think it can be defined in one word...Grace.

Paul says "...faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17). With the assaults on our faith we endure from the outside world, our faith must be continually nourished through hearing the Gospel of Christ preached. This is a means of Christ's Grace.God's Word is effective...it effects our sanctification through the Holy Spirit.

_Hebrews 4:12_

_*For the word of God is living and active*, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and *discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart*._

That is basically the definition of Sanctification, a gift we receive from the Holy Spirit by Grace through our Faith. It's a means by which God nourishes our Faith.

When God's Word is attached to a substance...specifically water, bread and wine...we receive that Grace through physical means of Baptism and Holy Communion.

_Titus 3:5_

_But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, *he saved us*, not because of works done by us in righteousness, *but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit*,_

So, when a Baptism occurs in Church it is the gift of the Holy Spirit descending on that person and granting them all of the promises of Christ's Salvation. It is God's work...we are simply the recipients of that awesome gift.

Likewise, Holy Communion is a gift of Grace effected by God's Word.

_1 Corinthians 10:6_

_The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?_

_Matthew 26:26-28_

_Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, *“Take, eat; this is my body.*” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, *“Drink of it, all of you, for  this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.*_

_1 Corinthians 11:23-26_

_*For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you*, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread,  and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “*This is my body* which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, *“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.* Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes._

This is a "new covenant" a new promise from God delivered through Christ in the Sacrament. It's truly wonderful and tangible gift in which we receive "often".

So in prayerful preparation for Church on Sunday, do not overlook the wonderful gifts God delivers to us in Worship by Word and Sacrament...then let our voices shout out thanks and praise for His unending and definitely undeserved love that he continually pours out to us in his gifts.

Baptismal Regeneration

During a recent theological conversation with some very faithful Christians about a number of topics, I had a couple of takeaways I wanted to write about. First, let me state that the opinions I want to address I simply view as heterodox to the Lutheran Confessions and not heresy. In the end, these issues are more about what comforts a Christian and sustains them in their faith than simply proving who is “right”. So, please accept all of this in the loving context it is intended.

The thing that struck me during the conversation was the push back against the doctrine of Baptismal Regeneration. One of the comments that were made was that, and I'm paraphrasing, if Baptism Saves and someone walks away from the Faith, that means their “Will” is greater and more powerful than God's will. There seemed to be some consensus among the panel that this statement is true. I immediately knew I disagreed, but I wanted some time to think, study and read in order to frame a doctrinally correct response to this.

The first thing I wanted to do was find examples of when man's willfulness outwardly defied God's and was manifested in their actions. I quickly came to Gen 3....The Fall. Regardless of any other example in the Bible of defiance to God (which generally was followed by punishment), original sin is the pinnacle example. Adam and Eve were created perfect and still defied God's will to not eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge. So, to say that we, in the sane inherent sinful condition cannot defy God's will simply does not have Scriptural support. Even Paul says of himself in Romans 7:19:

“For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.”

We know Paul was making an “over the top” argument here, but his point is still valid. We still, daily, sin by thought, word or deed...which is willful defiance of God's will for us. We do these things even in the knowledge of our Salvation by Grace through Faith. The Reformation Theologians wrote in the The Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord that Faith is God's work completely against man's will:

Reason and free will are able to a certain extent to live an outwardly decent life; but to be born anew, and to obtain inwardly another heart, mind, and disposition, this only the Holy Ghost effects. He opens the understanding and heart to understand the Scriptures and to give heed to the Word, as it is written Luke 24:45: Then opened He their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures. Also Acts 16:14: Lydia heard us; whose heart the Lord opened that she attended unto the things which were spoken of Paul. He worketh in us both to will and to do of His own good pleasure, Phil. 2:13. He gives repentance, Acts 5:31; 2 Tim. 2:25. He works faith, Phil. 1:29: For unto you it is given, in behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him. Eph. 2:8: It is the gift of God. John 6:29: This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent. He gives an understanding heart, seeing eyes, and hearing ears, Deut. 29:4; Matt. 13:15. He is a Spirit of regeneration and renewal, Titus 3:5. 6. He takes away the hard heart of stone, and gives a new tender heart of flesh, that we may walk in His commands, Ezek. 11:19; Deut. 30:6; Ps. 51:10. He creates us in Christ Jesus to good works, Eph. 2:10, and makes us new creatures, 2 Cor. 5:17; Gal. 6:15. And, in short, Every good gift is of God, Jas. 1:17. No one can come to Christ unless the Father draw him, John 6:44. No one knoweth the Father, save him to whom the Son will reveal Him, Matt. 11:27. No one can call Christ Lord except by the Holy Ghost, 1 Cor. 12:3. Without Me, says Christ, ye can do nothing, John 15:5. All our sufficiency is of God, 2 Cor. 3:5. What hast thou that thou didst not receive? Now, if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it? 1 Cor. 4:7.

Since it is also true that, according to the Reformation Theologians:

And first, it is true that Christians should regard and recognize as sin not only the actual transgression of God's commandments; but also that the horrible, dreadful hereditary malady by which the entire nature is corrupted should above all things be regarded and recognized as sin indeed, yea, as the chief sin, which is a root and fountain-head of all actual sins. And by Dr. Luther it is called a nature-sin or person-sin, thereby to indicate that, even though a person would think, speak, or do nothing evil (which, however, is impossible in this life, since the fall of our first parents), his nature and person are nevertheless sinful, that is, thoroughly and utterly infected and corrupted before God by original sin, as by a spiritual leprosy; and on account of this corruption and because of the fall of the first man the nature or person is accused or condemned by God's Law, so that we are by nature the children of wrath, death, and damnation, unless we are delivered therefrom by the merit of Christ.

It follows that our very day to day existence is in willful disobedience to God and only reconciled by the power of the Holy Spirit and his regenerative work (Means of Grace) in us through His Word and Sacraments, (Baptism and Holy Communion).

Beginning with Baptism...I defer to Martin Luther:

In these words you must note, in the first place, that here stand God's commandment and institution, lest we doubt that Baptism is divine, not devised nor invented by men. For as truly as I can say, No man has spun the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord's Prayer out of his head, but they are revealed and given by God Himself, so also I can boast that Baptism is no human trifle, but instituted by God Himself, moreover, that it is most solemnly and strictly commanded that we must be baptized or we cannot be saved, lest any one regard it as a trifling matter, like putting on a new red coat. 7] For it is of the greatest importance that we esteem Baptism 8] excellent, glorious, and exalted, for which we contend and fight chiefly, because the world is now so full of sects clamoring that Baptism is an external thing, and that external things are of no benefit. But let it be ever so much an external thing, here stand God's Word and command which institute, establish, and confirm Baptism. But what God institutes and commands cannot be a vain, but must be a most precious thing, though in appearance it were of less value than a straw. 9] If hitherto people could consider it a great thing when the Pope with his letters and bulls dispensed indulgences and confirmed altars and churches, solely because of the letters and seals, we ought to esteem Baptism much more highly and more precious, because God has commanded it, and, besides, it is performed in His name. For these are the words, Go ye, baptize; however, not in your name, but in the name of God.

10] For to be baptized in the name of God is to be baptized not by men, but by God Himself. Therefore, although it is performed by human hands, it is nevertheless truly God's own work. From this fact every one may himself readily infer that it is a far higher work than any work performed by a man or a saint. For what work greater than the work of God can we do?

and the same with Holy Communion:

It is the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, in and under the bread and wine which we Christians are commanded by the Word of Christ to eat and to drink. 9] And as we have said of Baptism that it is not simple water, so here also we say the Sacrament is bread and wine, but not mere bread and wine, such as are ordinarily served at the table, but bread and wine comprehended in, and connected with, the Word of God.

10] It is the Word (I say) which makes and distinguishes this Sacrament, so that it is not mere bread and wine, but is, and is called, the body and blood of Christ. For it is said: Accedat verbum ad elementum, et fit sacramentum. If the Word be joined to the element, it becomes a Sacrament. This saying of St. Augustine is so properly and so well put that he has scarcely said anything better. The Word must make a Sacrament of the element, else it remains a mere element. 11] Now, it is not the word or ordinance of a prince or emperor, but of the sublime Majesty, at whose feet all creatures should fall, and affirm it is as He says, and accept it with all reverence, fear, and humility.

12] With this Word you can strengthen your conscience and say: If a hundred thousand devils, together with all fanatics, should rush forward, crying, How can bread and wine be the body and blood of Christ? etc., I know that all spirits and scholars together are not as wise as is the Divine Majesty in His little finger. 13] Now here stands the Word of Christ: Take, eat; this is My body; Drink ye all of it; this is the new testament in My blood, etc. Here we abide, and would like to see those who will constitute themselves His masters, and make it different from what He has spoken. It is true, indeed, that if you take away the Word or regard it without the words, you have nothing but mere bread and wine. 14] But if the words remain with them, as they shall and must, then, in virtue of the same, it is truly the body and blood of Christ. For as the lips of Christ say and speak, so it is, as He can never lie or deceive.

15] Hence it is easy to reply to all manner of questions about which men are troubled at the present time, such as this one: Whether even a wicked priest can minister at, and dispense, the Sacrament, and whatever other questions like this there may be. 16] For here we conclude and say: Even though a knave takes or distributes the Sacrament, he receives the true Sacrament, that is, the true body and blood of Christ, just as truly as he who [receives or] administers it in the most worthy manner. For it is not founded upon the holiness of men, but upon the Word of God. And as no saint upon earth, yea, no angel in heaven, can make bread and wine to be the body and blood of Christ, so also can no one change or alter it, even though it be misused. 17] For the Word by which it became a Sacrament and was instituted does not become false because of the person or his unbelief. For He does not say: If you believe or are worthy, you receive My body and blood, but: Take, eat and drink; this is My body and blood. Likewise: Do this (namely, what I now do, institute, give, and bid you take). 18] That is as much as to say, No matter whether you are worthy or unworthy, you have here His body and blood by virtue of these words which are added to the bread and wine. 19] Only note and remember this well; for upon these words rest all our foundation, protection, and defense against all errors and deception that have ever come or may yet come.

20] Thus we have briefly the first point which relates to the essence of this Sacrament. Now examine further the efficacy and benefits on account of which really the Sacrament was instituted; which is also its most necessary part, that we may know what we should seek and obtain there. 21] Now this is plain and clear from the words just mentioned: This is My body and blood, given and shed for you, for the remission of sins.22] Briefly that is as much as to say: For this reason we go to the Sacrament because there we receive such a treasure by and in which we obtain forgiveness of sins. Why so? Because the words stand here and give us this; for on this account He bids me eat and drink, that it may be my own and may benefit me, as a sure pledge and token, yea, the very same treasure that is appointed for me against my sins, death, and every calamity.

23] On this account it is indeed called a food of souls, which nourishes and strengthens the new man. For by Baptism we are first born anew; but (as we said before) there still remains, besides, the old vicious nature of flesh and blood in man, and there are so many hindrances and temptations of the devil and of the world that we often become weary and faint, and sometimes also stumble.

24] Therefore it is given for a daily pasture and sustenance, that faith may refresh and strengthen itself so as not to fall back in such a battle, but become ever stronger and stronger. 25] For the new life must be so regulated that it continually increase and progress; 26] but it must suffer much opposition. For the devil is such a furious enemy that when he sees that we oppose him and attack the old man, and that he cannot topple us over by force, he prowls and moves about on all sides, tries all devices, and does not desist, until he finally wearies us, so that we either renounce our faith or yield hands and feet and become listless or impatient. 27]Now to this end the consolation is here given when the heart feels that the burden is becoming too heavy, that it may here obtain new power and refreshment.

28] But here our wise spirits contort themselves with their great art and wisdom, crying out and bawling: How can bread and wine forgive sins or strengthen faith? Although they hear and know that we do not say this of bread and wine, because in itself bread is bread, but of such bread and wine as is the body and blood of Christ, and has the words attached to it. That, we say, is verily the treasure, and nothing else, through which such forgiveness is obtained. 29] Now the only way in which it is conveyed and appropriated to us is in the words (Given and shed for you). For herein you have both truths, that it is the body and blood of Christ, and that it is yours as a treasure and gift. 30] Now the body of Christ can never be an unfruitful, vain thing, that effects or profits nothing. Yet, however great is the treasure in itself, it must be comprehended in the Word and administered to us, else we should never be able to know or seek it.

31] Therefore also it is vain talk when they say that the body and blood of Christ are not given and shed for us in the Lord's Supper, hence we could not have forgiveness of sins in the Sacrament. For although the work is accomplished and the forgiveness of sins acquired on the cross, yet it cannot come to us in any other way than through the Word. For what would we otherwise know about it, that such a thing was accomplished or was to be given us if it were not presented by preaching or the oral Word? Whence do they know of it, or how can they apprehend and appropriate to themselves the forgiveness, except they lay hold of and believe the Scriptures and the Gospel? 32] But now the entire Gospel and the article of the Creed: I believe a holy Christian Church, the forgiveness of sin, etc., are by the Word embodied in this Sacrament and presented to us. Why, then, should we allow this treasure to be torn from the Sacrament when they must confess that these are the very words which we hear every where in the Gospel, and they cannot say that these words in the Sacrament are of no use, as little as they dare say that the entire Gospel or Word of God, apart from the Sacrament, is of no use?

So, we are sinners in willful defiance of God...called into the Faith by the Grace of his spoken Word and Baptism by the power of the Holy Spirit and maintained in the Faith by His spoken Word and Holy Communion.