02 December 2023
For that perennial pesky problem…
…of helping the acolytes light the correct candle on which day in the Advent wreath, Pr. Ball has an ingenious solution. He literally turns the candles not to be lighted UPSIDE DOWN. Check it out:
28 November 2023
Bad: Cold; Good: Fire
25 November 2023
29 Years Ago…
24 November 2023
A Joyous Thanksgiving
P.S. Apparently, blogger has not yet closed off a loophole: you can EMAIL the post to the blog and it will still post it, even though you haven’t given permission to track. Sweet!
28 October 2023
Not playing that game
Well, I guess no more pictures for this here blog. Blogger is owned by goggle, and they’ve now made it clear that the only way you can post pics is if you allow them to track you across the internet. Just not interested in that. Besides, this old blog is coming up on its 20th year since the first posting. I’m definitely thinking about letting it lie mostly dormant. There’s some old stuff on there that might prove useful to some, so I won’t be deleting it (until google makes its NEXT demand that merely maintaining it requires them to be able to track you.) But there’s always the “Way Back” machine to find old posts if need be. But for now, just expect a lot more silence over here.
21 October 2023
First Time in a Long Time
Well, I finally cleared my desk of extra writing assignments. At the moment, I have nothing on deck other than writing and recording podcasts and Issues, Etc. shows. And boy does it ever feel GREAT! I won’t last long, because next year’s Advent devotional will be looming come this Advent, but from now till then I am going to enjoy the slower pace.
18 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Where did you learn to philosophize in such a manner about Christ? The Jews crucify Him, who knew the law, but you, inexperienced in this, call God the condemned one and worship the crucified.—St. John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Repentant Thief
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Instruction for a pious and virtuous life is the central teaching of every religion except Christianity. But in the kingdom established by Christ, the main thing is the forgiveness of sins. In order that all people may obtain this forgiveness, the Son of God became a man and died on the cross. This was the real purpose of His entire great work on earth.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 789.
Lewis
When you are arguing against Him you are arguing against the very power that makes you able to argue at all: it is like cutting off the branch you are sitting on.—Business of Heaven, p. 261.
Catechesis
If the invocation of the saints were taught with the greatest caution, even such speculation is dangerous. Why defend it when it has no command or testimony from God’s Word? Indeed, it does not even have the testimony of the most ancient writers.—Ap XXI:33
16 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Today, brothers, Adam was expelled from paradise because of disobedience; today, he will be brought back into paradise. And the thief is a witness. A thief went out, and a thief came in; the one who stole salvation from the cross. I know, I have spoken before about the thief, but the word of the cross has various stories. That thief will be put to death by the wood, and this thief plucks salvation from the wood. He did not take possession of earthly things alone but also of heavenly ones, not by his power but by conquering through faith. For this is the voice of the Lord saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is taken by force, and those who take it are seizing it.’—St. John Chrysostom, The Thief on the Cross
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
It is no wonder that thoughtless Christians do not desire private absolution. The wounds of their sins do not burn them, and thus they do not desire the soothing balm.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 788.
Lewis
Christianity agrees with Dualism that the universe is at war. But it does not think this a war between independent powers. It thinks it is a civil war, a rebellion, and that we living in a part of the universe occupied by the rebel.—Business of Heaven, p. 258, 259.
Catechesis
Granted, the blessed Mary prays for the Church. Does she receive souls in death? Does she conquer death? Does she make alive? What does Christ do if the blessed Mary does these things? Although she is most worthy of the most plentiful honors, yet she does not want to made equal to Christ. Instead she wants us to consider and follow her example.—Ap XXI:27
13 October 2023
12 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Therefore, realizing all these things, and considering how much gain we make from this, let us do everything and arrange everything in such a way that we reconcile with those who are already our enemies, prevent those who are to become so, and make our friends more secure. For love is the beginning and end of every virtue.—St. John Chrysostom, On the Prayers of Christ
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Woe to those whose Christianity consists in nothing more than habitually going to church and other religious exercises or in experiencing a sense of excitement and a lasting interest in religion, without securing a clear knowledge of the right doctrine. Our text tells us that these are children who are “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.”—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 778.
Lewis
One reason why many people find Creative Evolution so attractive is that it gives one much of the emotional comfort of believing in God and none of the less pleasant consequences.—Business of Heaven, p. 255.
Catechesis
The consciences of the pious will not have sure comfort against the terrors of sin and death, and against the devil tempting with despair, if they do not know that their confidence lies in the forgiveness of sins freely for Christ’s sake. This faith sustains and enlivens hearts in that most violent conflict with despair.—Ap XX:85.
11 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
So, too, Paul says about Christ that, since He was free by nature and a genuine Son, He did not, as if He had taken something by robbery, hide His equality but willingly took on the form of a bondservant. For He knew and was fully convinced that this action would not harm His glory in any way. He was not a usurper, nor did He grasp at equality. Equality was His from the beginning, not something acquired and then relinquished, but something immovable and secure. Thus, He remained in the same glory He had as a Son in relation to the Father.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Christ’s Prayers
10 October 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
He looks alone upon the certain, never-changing Word. This is the precious thing of which our text speaks: an established heart that is not carried about by various and strange doctrines. Blessed, blessed is the person who has attained this treasure! His ship of faith safely, unwaveringly, steers into the harbor of eternal peace, even if the stormy winds of false doctrine rage violently against it and even if the waves of persecution rise ever so high.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 774, 775.
Catechesis
It is also a myth that Christian perfection consists in not holding property. For Christian perfection does not consist in contempt for public ordinances, but in the inclinations of the heart, in great fear of God and in great faith. Abraham, David, and Daniel, even in great wealth and while exercising power, were no less perfect than the hermits.—Ap XVI:61
Lewis
One of the moderns said that reality is ‘incorrigibly plural’. I think he is right. All things are from One. All things are related—related in different and complicated ways. But all things are not one.—Business of Heaven, p. 256.
Patristic Quote of the Day
I say these things so that we may not be troubled when we see either ourselves or others in adversities. For if we bear everything that happens with gratitude and courage, everything will certainly turn out for the good and bring us much benefit.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily on the Prayers of Christ
09 October 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
As our love for God and our neighbor is the summary of the Law, so is Christ’s love for us the sum of the Gospel.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 771.
Lewis
If the whole universe has no meaning, we should never have found out that it has no meaning: just as, if there were no light in the universe and therefore no creatures with eyes, we should never know it was dark. Dark would be without meaning.—Business of Heaven, p. 254.
Catechesis
Christ’s kingdom is spiritual. This means that the knowledge of God, the fear of God and faith, eternal righteousness, and eternal life begin in the heart. Meanwhile, Christ’s kingdom allows us outwardly to use legitimate political ordinances of every nation in which we live, just as it allows us to use medicine or the art of building, or food, drink, and air.—Ap XVI:54
Patristic Quote of the Day
Solitude is not just a physical location but also a state free from clamor and disturbances.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Christ’s Prayers
07 October 2023
A Very Late “Aha!”
Thirteen times the phrase occurs in the Pentateuch, “a land flowing with milk and honey.” I always kind of thought it was an odd phrase. Why “milk and honey”?
Silly me. I’m 63 years old and I don’t think until this very day did I ever try them together. So I went out to the farm to pick up our Saturday raw milk dairy supply thanks to these wonderful creatures (and also picked up some free range eggs):
I got home and poured myself a glass, and put in a teaspoon of this marvelous honey (harvested locally by our friends; and held by that sweet little pooh bear, Grandson Emmett):
And WHAT a discovery! Now I know why “milk and honey” went together as a sign of the promised land! Pure yumminess. A natural milkshake! Awesomeness!!!!
06 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
If someone asks you, ‘Do you worship the crucified one?’ answer with a cheerful voice and a joyful countenance, ‘Yes, I worship, and I will never cease to worship.’ And if they laugh, weep for them because they are deranged. Give thanks to the Lord because He has bestowed such benefits on us that no one can learn without divine revelation. Therefore, even if someone laughs, it’s because the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit.—St. John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Holy Cross
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Woe to the free church in which the manifest, wanton transgressors of the commandments of God, the servants of vice, and those who openly do not listen to the voice of Christ are tolerated without censure. There the blessing of church freedom becomes a church curse.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 766
Lewis
This thing which I have called the Tao, and which others may call Natural Law or Traditional Morality or the First Principles of Practical Reason or the First Platitudes, is not one among a series of possible systems of value. It is the sole source of all value judgments. If it is rejected, all value is rejected. If any value is retained, it is retained.—Business of Heaven, p. 251.
Catechesis
After this look of wisdom and righteousness has deceived people, then countless evils follow. The Gospel about the righteousness of faith in Christ is clouded over, and empty confidence in such works succeeds. Then God’s commandments are clouded over. These human works assume the title of a perfect and spiritual life. They are preferred more than the works of God’s commandments (works of one’s own calling, the administration of the state, the management of a family, married life, and the bringing up of children). Compared with those ceremonies, the latter are judged to be ungodly, so that they are exercised by many with doubting consciences. For it is known that many have left the administration of the state and married life to welcome these human ceremonies [i.e., monasticism] as better and holier.—Ap XV:25, 26
05 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Christ came once and found our ancient document, which Adam had written. He brought the beginning of the debt; we have increased it with our sins afterward. There was a curse, sin, death, and the condemnation of the Law written in that document; Christ abolished all these and canceled them. Therefore, Paul cries out, ‘Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.’ He did not say He wiped it out but nailed it to the cross so that not even a trace of it should remain. That’s why He did not obliterate it but tore it up. The nails of the cross tore it up and destroyed it so that it would become useless forever.—St. John Chrysostom, Third Sermon on the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The Church is not in the state as Church, but as a group of individuals who remain citizens of the state. Officials of the state can be in the Church, not as authorities with their laws and outward powers, but as Christians and brothers, and therefore alike in power and right with all other Church members.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 763.
Lewis
Those who know the Tao can hold that to call children delightful or an old man venerable is not simply to record a psychological fact about our own parental or filial emotions at the moment, but to recognize a quality which demands a certain response from us whether we make it or not.—Business of Heaven, p. 250.
Catechesis
Although the Holy Fathers had both rites and traditions, they did not maintain that these are useful or necessary for justification. They did not cloud over Christ’s glory and office, but taught that we are justified by faith for Christ’s sake, not for the sake of these human services.—Ap XV:20
04 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Do you want to learn the power of this blood from another source? Look from where it flowed initially and from where it had its source, from above the cross, from the side of the Lord. For, it is said, ‘When Jesus was dead but still hanging on the cross, a soldier came and pierced his side with a spear, and immediately there came out blood and water. This was the symbol of baptism and of the mysteries. Therefore, it did not say, ‘Blood came out,’ but ‘Blood and water.’ Why? Because, from both of these, the Church is born, ‘the water, for regeneration, and the blood, for sanctification, the Spirit’s manifestation.’ And the symbols of the baptism and the mysteries came from the side. From the side, therefore, Christ formed the Church, just as He formed Eve from the side of Adam.—St. John Chrysostom, Sermon 3 on the Newly Illumined.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
If the Church is to survive, Christians must come together to study God’s Word, pray jointly, offer praise and thanks to God, and use the holy Sacraments in common. If Christian did not do this, they would despise the Word and Sacraments, which alone sanctify them, and they could not obtain the promise of Christ: “For where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I among them.” (Matt 18:20).—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 759-60.
Lewis
But thirdly we have the view which St. Francis expressed by calling his body, ‘Brother Ass.’… Ass is exquisitely right because no one in his senses can either revere or hate a donkey. It is a useful, sturdy, lazy, obstinate, patient, lovable, and infuriating beast; deserving now the stick and now a carrot; both pathetically and absurdly beautiful. So the body.—Business of Heaven, p. 249.
Catechesis
God has presented Christ with the promise that, because of this Mediator, and not because of our righteousness, He wishes to be gracious to us.—Ap XIV:9
03 October 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
For this reason, indeed, we baptize infants, though they have no sins*, so that sanctification, righteousness, adoption, inheritance, brotherhood, and being members of Christ, becoming a dwelling place of the Spirit may be added.—St. John Chrysostom, Sermon 3 on the Newly Illumined
*Chrysostom was speaking here of volitional sins, sins committed in defiance of God’s will which one knows and understands, but chooses to ignore.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The Sabbath was a model of the rest of Christ in His grave at the end of His work of redemption, as well as a model of the perpetual Sabbath Christ wants to bring about in the hearts of His believers until He brings them to the eternal Sabbath of heaven.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 757
Lewis
If two instinct are in conflict, and there is nothing in a creature’s mind except those two instincts, obviously the stronger of the two must win. But at those moments when we are most conscious of the Moral Law, it usually seems to be telling us to side with the weaker of the two impulses. You probably want to be safe much more than you want to help the man who is drowning: but the Moral Law tells you to help him all the same.—Business of Heaven, p. 248, 9.
Catechesis
In this matter our consciences are not in danger. Since we know that our Confession is true, godly, and catholic, we should not approve the cruelty of those who persecute this doctrine. We know that the Church is among those who teach God’s Word rightly and administer the Sacraments rightly. The Church is not with those who try hard to wipe out God’s Word by their orders and also put to death those who teach what is right and true.—Ap XIV:26, 27.
29 September 2023
A Glorious Feast of St. Michael and All Angels
“….Through Him Your majesty is praised by all the holy angels and celebrated with one accord by the heavens and all the powers therein. The cherubim and seraphim sing Your praise, and with them we laud and magnify Your glorious name…” Just got back from the Divine Service for this holy day. We sang “Stars of the Morning,” “Lord God, to Thee We Give All Praise,” “Let All Mortal Flesh,” and “Christ, the Lord of Hosts Unshaken.” Liturgy was Divine Service 3 with Pastor Ball as celebrant. Pastor Mark Preus served as Deacon and chanted (exquisitely!) the Gospel and preached us very sweet and joyous homily (even more exquisitely!!!). Three school children formed our choir and sang the Introit, Gradual and Alleluia Verse. We had full procession with incense, cross, torches, and Gospel Book. Aside from the school children, a number of parishioners attended and some guests from neighboring parishes. Now, don’t forget about tonight’s hymn festival at Good Shepherd at 7 p.m.! It promises to be simply glorious. What a perfect St. Michael and All Angels day from start to finish!
27 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Blessed is God, who works wonders alone, who makes all things and transforms them. Those who were captives until yesterday are now free and citizens of the Church; those who were formerly in disgrace because of sins now have boldness and righteousness. They are not only free but also holy, not only holy but also righteous, not only righteous but also sons, not only sons but also heirs, not only heirs but also brothers of Christ, not only brothers of Christ but also joint heirs, not only joint heirs but also members, not only members but also temples, not only temples but also instruments of the Spirit.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily 3 on the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The Book of Wisdom speaks truly when it says about such children, “For his soul pleased the Lord; therefore hasted He to take him away from among the wicked.” (Wisdom 4:14) What could it be but love if someone were to free us from a solitary, dark underground prison and lead us into a hall of light where we would be united with our best friends? What else it be but love if someone were to bring us from a place full of danger to a perfectly secure castle? What else could it be but love if someone moved us from bitter poverty to riches, from the deepest shame to the highest honor, from misery and distress to joy, from continual sickness into lasting health, from dying into never-ending life?—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 744.
Lewis
Let me implore the reader to try to believe, if only for the moment, that God, who made these deserving people, may really be right when He thinks that their modest prosperity and the happiness of their children are not enough to make them blessed: that all this must fall from them in the end, and that if they have not learned to know Him they will be wretched. And therefore He troubles them, warning them in advance of an insufficiency that one day they will have to discover.—Business of Heaven, p. 244.
Catechesis
Since by faith the believer has overcome death’s terrors, there is no longer in the believer’s death that sting and sense of anger of which Paul says, “The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law.”—Ap XIIb:56.
26 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Therefore, the faith in this [i.e., baptism], which grants the forgiveness of sins, bestows upon us this adoption. And the things that follow, sufficient to instruct us about who has been liberated and who has been honored by this mystical rite. For as they emerge from those holy pools, all those present embrace, greet, kiss, rejoice, and are glad that those who were formerly slaves and captives have become free and sons, and have been invited to the royal banquet. After the ascent from there, they are immediately led to the terrifying table, full of countless goods, and they partake of the body and blood of the Lord, and they become the dwelling place of the Spirit. And they go forth adorned like certain earthly angels, appearing everywhere and shining with the rays of the sun.—St. John Chrysostom, Second Sermon on the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The unbelieving world thinks it is impossible to sing a hymn of thanksgiving at the coffins and graves of its loved ones. Rather, it wants to quarrel with its Creator and Ruler, cursing God as a cruel tyrant who has jealously taken from it its dearest on earth and, with a merciless hand, destroyed its life happiness. But believers, standing at the coffins and graves of their loved ones who have fallen asleep in faith have a completely different outlook. They humbly submit themselves to the wondrous counsel of their God and Father. They sing in firm faith, “What God ordains is always good.” But they also thank Him that, out of His eternal goodness, He created them, preserved them, governed them, and redeemed them by His Son.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 742.
Lewis
No doubt Pain as God’s megaphone is a terrible instrument; it may lead to final and unrepented rebellion. But it gives the only opportunity the bad man can have for amendment. It removes the veil, it plants the flag of truth within the fortress of a rebel soul.—Business of Heaven, p. 243.
Catechesis
True prayers, true alms, and true fastings have God’s command. Where they have God’s command, they cannot be omitted without sin.—Ap XIIB:46
25 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
For indeed, baptism is both a burial and a resurrection. ‘For the old man is buried in sin, and the new one, being renewed in the image of the Creator, rises up.’ We put off and we put on. We put off the old garment, tattered by the multitude of sins, and we put on the new one, free from every stain. But what am I saying? We put on Christ Himself: ‘For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.’—St John Chrysostom, On the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
You may think you do not fear death, but have you ever looked directly into its smirking face, into its hallow, staring eyes? Truly, it is not the might of man, but God’s grace alone, that can overcome this king of terror.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 738.
Lewis
We can rest contentedly in our sins and in our stupidities; and anyone who has watch gluttons shovelling down the most exquisite foods as if they did not know what they were eating, will admit that we can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world. —Business of Heaven, p. 242.
Catechesis
True terrors, true grief of mind, do not allow the body to satisfy itself in sensual pleasures, and true faith is not ungrateful to God. Neither does true faith hate God’s commandments. In a word, there is no inner repentance unless it also produces the outward putting to death of the flesh.—Ap XIIB:34
22 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Have you seen the condescension of the Master? Have you seen the impossible philanthropy? He does not ask for anything burdensome or difficult from us. For He did not say, ‘Learn from Me, for I have worked miracles, raised the dead, and performed wonders, all by My own power.’ But what did He say? ‘Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.’ Have you seen how great the gain is from this yoke? How great the benefit? Therefore, if anyone is worthy to come under this yoke and capable of learning from the Master that He is gentle and humble in heart, he will provide rest for his whole soul. For this is the essence of our salvation.—St. John Chrysostom, On the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
For the small earthly good we contribute to the preservation and spreading of the Word of God, we have a means of making a poor person’s soul rich in imperishable treasure. With it we have a key to unlock eternal joy and a seed that will grow into a fruitful tree.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p., 732.
Lewis
They [Adam and Eve] wanted, as we say, to ‘call their souls their own’. But that means to live a lie, for our souls are not, in fact, our own. They wanted some corner in the universe of which they could say to God, ‘This is our business, not yours.’ But there is no such corner.—Business of Heaven, p. 239.
Catechesis
Therefore, it would be wicked to remove private Absolution from the Church. If anyone despises private Absolution, he does not understand what the forgiveness of sins or the Power of the Keys is…. The ministry of Absolution is favor or grace; it is not a legal process or law.—Ap XIIb:3-6
21 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Consider whom He calls: those who have spent their resources in transgressions, those who are burdened by sins, those who can no longer stand upright, those filled with shame, those who have no boldness. And for what purpose does He call them? Not to demand an account or to sit in judgment. But what? To grant rest from their toil, to remove the heavy burden.—St. John Chrysostom, On the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Nevertheless, for the Christian, there can be no doubt that is obligated to sacrifice some of his earthly goods for the preservation and spreading of God’s Word.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 728.
Lewis
And indeed the only way in which I can make real to myself what theology teaches about the heinousness of sin is to remember that every sin is the distortion of an energy breathed into us—an energy which, if not thus distorted, would have blossomed into one of those holy acts whereof ‘God did it’ and ‘I did it’ are both true descriptions.—Business of Heaven, p. 239.
Catechesis
Neither is there any doubt that we are defending Paul’s meaning. He teaches that through faith we receive the forgiveness of sins for Christ’s sake, and that through faith we should set Christ as Mediator against God’s wrath, and not our works. Nor should godly minds be disturbed when the adversaries find fault with Paul’s judgments. Nothing is said so simply that it cannot be distorted by objecting. We know that we have mentioned Paul’s true and genuine meaning. We know that our belief brings sure comfort to godly consciences, without which no one can stand in God’s judgment.—AC XIIa:84
20 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
You need to know that no sin is so great that it can overcome the zeal of the Lord. Even if someone is a fornicator, an adulterer, effeminate, a homosexual, a prostitute, a thief, a greedy person, a drunkard, an idolater, the power of grace and the philanthropy of the Lord is so great that it can erase all these things and show the mind alone to be grateful.—St. John Chrysostom, Sermon on the Newly Illumined
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
People think they should know themselves easily and so do not seek to penetrate the hidden depths of their soul. However, in today’s text (Lam 3:40: Let us test and examine our ways, and return to the LORD!) and in many other places in the Bible, we are urgently called upon to learn to know ourselves. That we are so often implored to do this suggests that it is not at all as easy to accomplish as we may think.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 725, 726
Lewis
We do not really know what it feels like to be a man much better than ourselves. His whole inner landscape is one we have never seen, and when we guess it we blunder.—Business of Heaven, p. 238.
Catechesis
We, on the other hand, call consciences away from the Law to the Gospel, and from confidence in their own works to confidence in the promise and Christ. We do so because the Gospel presents Christ to us and freely promises the forgiveness of sins for Christ’s sake.—Ap XIIa:76
19 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Do not be ashamed when corrected; rather, be humbled by listening. If you wish to leave from here with the treasury of the forgiveness of sins, do not hesitate. Instead, offer your soul, lamenting bitterly for what you have done, and confess to the Master that you will no longer be found in the same condition. From that moment on, rest assured that you have also received the gift of the forgiveness of sins, and do not despair of yourself any longer.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily on the Purification of Our Lord
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Oh, may each of us be frightened of the shameful service to mammon! Sad is the time of service, and terrible is the wage. Here on earth, it deceives man out of rest and peace of heart, and there in heaven, he will lose God, his soul, and his salvation.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 725.
Lewis
Goodness is, so to speak, itself; badness is only spoiled goodness. And there must be something good first before it can be spoiled.—Business of Heaven, p. 237.
Catechesis
For a terrified conscience cannot set our works or our love against God’s wrath. It is eventually quieted when it takes hold of Christ as Mediator and believes the promises given for His sake. For those who imagine that hearts become quieted without faith in Christ do not understand what the forgiveness of sins is or how it comes to us.—Ap XIIa:64
18 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
And in the reply, “I did not know that he was the high priest,” he spoke the truth to those who understand him. It is as though he were saying, “I have come to know another high priest, for whose name’s sake I am suffering these injuries—a high priest whom it is not lawful to revile but whom you are reviling, because in me you hate nothing else than his name.”—St. Augustine, Sermon on the Mount 1.19.58
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Some give, but only as little as they can give with honor. They can, out of love of money, let a person depart without having received the charity for which he asked. They can cruelly turn away from the needy individual who wants to borrow from them. They can gleefully pocket the fixed interest of the debtor who can present it to them only with groaning. They can conclude a hard bargain and even stop the wages of the poor. Each person who fits this description is a slave of mammon. Money is his idol, to whom he has sworn his soul. The love of God may be on his tongue, but it does not dwell in his heart.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, pp. 721, 722.
Lewis
That is to say, I believe in angels and I believe that some of these, by the abuse of their free will, have become enemies of God and, as a corollary, to us. These we may call devils. They do not differ in nature from good angels, but their nature is depraved.—Business of Heaven, p. 236.
Catechesis
For conscience cannot be quieted except through faith. Therefore, faith alone makes alive, according to this declaration: “The righteous shall live by faith.”—Ap. XIIA:47
This weekend…
…I was privileged to preach the 225th anniversary of St. John’s Lutheran Church in Conover, NC.
So I flew out Saturday afternoon to Charlotte, caught an Uber up to Conover, checked into my hotel, then enjoyed a late dinner with Pr. Scott Johnson and his lovely wife Denise. Sunday Pr. Anton Legoutine picked me up at the hotel and took me to St. John’s, where I preached their early and late services and led Bible Class. It was wonderful to see the love of the people for each other: never seen so many Lutherans hugging each other! Not once, but twice in their history their sanctuary has been destroyed by fire. After grabbing a really quick bite at their dinner, I ubered back to Charlotte and, after standing in long lines at the airport, got a chance to write Monday’s sermon for Matins, and then finally hop a flight…to Dallas…and then, at long last, finally arrived at St. Louis after ten and got home about 11. Deep breath, and off we go into a new week! Thanking the Lord, though, for safe travel and for the many saints I got to meet in Conover.
14 September 2023
On the Feast of the Holy Cross, 2023
Pics courtesy of my daughter-in-law, Meaghan Weedon:
Faithful cross, true sign of triumph, Be for all the noblest tree,
None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit Thine equal be;
Symbol of the world’s redemption, For the weight that hung on Thee.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
As long as a man lives in sin, having no power to hate it and to fight against it, the Spirit is not in him and he walks according to the flesh on the way to hell. Whoever walks by the Spirit still has fleshly desires within him, but he is also empowered to hate sin and fight against it so that it does not gain dominion over him. If someone sins because he wants to, he walks according to the flesh. If someone walks in the Spirit, he, too, commits sin, but this is not what he wants to do and he abhors what he has done.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 711.
Lewis
The freedom of God consists in the fact that no cause other than Himself produces His acts and no external obstacle impedes them—that His own goodness is the root from which they all grow and His own omnipotence the air in which they all flower.—Business of Heaven, p. 233.
Catechesis
This regulation [Omnis utriusque] commands that we do something impossible—that we should confess all sins. However, it is clear that most sins we neither remember nor understand, according to Psalm 19:12, ‘Who can discern his errors?’—Ap XI:65
Patristic Quote of the Day
Why didn’t Jesus appear to Paul before he fell into danger? Because, as always, it is in afflictions that God consoles. For then he appears more desirable as he trains us even in the midst of dangers.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily 49 on Acts
13 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
What he uttered here is important. For he did not say, “baptized in his name” but “calling on the name of Christ.” It shows that he is God; for it is not lawful to “call on” anyone else except God.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily 47 on Acts
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Christ came into the world to unite heaven and earth, to reconcile God and man, and to lead us sinner back into fellowship with God. Therefore, as soon as a person, in penitence, recognizes his fall from God and turns in faith to Jesus Christ, the Mediator of the New Testament, the wall of separation crumbles, his sins are forgiven him, and God unites Himself to him in grace.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 708, 709.
Lewis
That God can and does, on occasion, modify the behaviour of matter and produce what we call miracles, is part of the Christian faith; but the very conception of a common, and therefore, stable world, demands that these occasions should be extremely rare.—Business of Heaven, p. 232.
Catechesis
In our churches no Anabaptists have arisen. This is because the people have been strengthened by God’s Word against the wicked and rebellious faction of these robbers. This is also among the distinct errors of the Anabaptists we condemn. They argue that the Baptism of little children is useless. For it is very certain that the promise of salvation applies also to little children. It does not, however, apply to those who are outside of Christ’s Church, where there is neither Word nor Sacraments. Christ’s kingdom exists only with the Word and the Sacraments. Therefore, it is necessary to baptize little children, that the promise of salvation may be applied to them, according to Christ’s command to baptize all nations.—Ap IX:51
12 September 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The Christian Church, which is the kingdom of Christ on earth, is essentially all the people who have received Christ as their King and are ruled by Him, who believe on Him from their heart, and who are thus true Christians.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 706.
Lewis
If the fixed nature of matter prevents it from being always, and in all its dispositions, equally agreeable even to a single soul, much less is it possible for the matter of the universe at any moment to be distributed so that it is equally convenient and pleasurable to each member of society. If a man travelling in in one direction is having a journey down hill, a man going in the opposite direction must be going up hill.—Business of Heaven, p. 232.
Catechesis
Ministers act in Christ’s place and do not represent their own persons, according to Luke, “The one who hears you hears Me.” Ungodly teachers are to be deserted because they no longer act in Christ’s place, but are antichristis. Christ says, “Beware of false prophets.” Paul says, “If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”—Ap VII/VIII:47, 48.
Patristic Quote of the Day
For they had experienced him [St. Paul, that is] as a most vigorous preacher of grace and as one who taught the exact opposite of their view, that one is not justified by these but by the grace of Jesus Christ and that all the ordinances of the law were foreshadowings meant to announce him. That is why they stirred up persecution and hatred against him.—St. Augustine, Letter 82.
11 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Agabus is imitating the ancient prophets who were accustomed to say, “The Lord God says this,” because the Holy Spirit is Lord and God in the same way as the Father and the Son are, and it is impossible to separation the operation of those whose nature and will are one.—The Venerable Bede on Acts 21:11.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
A true Christian is one whose eyes have been opened so he vividly recognizes that he is a completely unworthy sinner and that everything temporal and eternal, in body and soul, and in earthly and heavenly goods is a pure blessing of grace that God gives him for Christ’s sake. A true Christian does not merely grant this in humility. Instead, this knowledge illuminates his entire being like a new sun, and in this light he sees everything that he is and has. Therefore, he lives in constant thanks.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 704.
Lewis
Being Christians, we learn from the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity that something analogous to ‘society’ exists within the Divine being from all eternity—that God is Love, not merely in the sense of being some the Platonic form of love, but because, within Him, the concrete reciprocities of love exist before all worlds and are then derived to the creatures.—Business of Heaven, p. 231,
Catechesis
However, the fact that the Sacraments are administered by the unworthy does not detract from the Sacraments’ power. Because of the call of the Church, the unworthy still represent the person of Christ and do not represent their own persons, as Christ testifies, “The one who hears you hears me” (Luke 10:16). (Even Judas was sent to preach.) When they offer God’s Word, when they offer the Sacraments, they offer them in the stead and in the place of Christ. Those words of Christ teach us not to be offended by the unworthiness of the ministers.—Ap VII/VIII:28
09 September 2023
08 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
And lifting up his eyes, the rich man saw Abraham and Lazarus in his bosom. Why did Lazarus not see the rich man? Because the one in the light does not see the one in the darkness, but the one in the darkness sees the one in the light.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Lazarus and Dives
07 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
He had said previously that the presbyters of Ephesus had been summoned to Miletus. Now he calls them bishops, that is, overseers. One city could not have several bishops, but under the name bishops Paul indicates these presbyters as being in fact priests, for the order was connected, and in many it was practically the same.—The Venerable Bede, Commentary on Acts (20:28)
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
When the Law and the Gospel are mixed, no one can be certain of his salvation. But when they are properly distinguished, we can readily see how even the greatest sinner can be just before God.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 695.
Lewis
But you will not get to Newfoundland by studying the Atlantic that way, and you will not get to eternal life by simply feeling the presence of God in flowers or music.—Business of Heaven, p. 228.
Catechesis
So other good works please because of faith, just as the prayers of the Church ask that all things may be accepted for Christ’s sake. They likewise ask all things for Christ’s sake. For it is clear that this clause is always added at the close of prayers: “through Christ, our Lord.”—Ap V:264 [IV:385]
06 September 2023
+ George Daniel Plvan
Word reached me not long after I finished assisting at the Divine Service this morning, that my beloved vicarage supervisor had fallen asleep in Jesus. Pastor Plvan was such a fine pastor, preacher, and healer of souls. When Cindi and I arrived at Holy Trinity in Garfield, NJ, Pastor and (Saint) Vera (he always called her that and she really was a remarkable living saint) had us over to their home. He had a sign up in his basement. “When I want your opinion… I’ll give it to you.” I smiled at it; he saw my smile, and with his own smile responded: “And I mean it.” He loved his boxer dogs, his family, his parish, and he taught me to love and value the Slovak way of being Lutheran. From Oplatky to the joys of the Tranoscius, from pierogi to Cas Radosti! He commented “Slovak Lutherans are different; we’re not combative like the Germans.” And they really weren’t! His gentle way of pastoring probably taught me more than any class at seminary. After a particularly trying visit with a grumpy shutin, he’d smile and said: “Oh, she’s one of God’s special people.” Ha! His sermons were always simple and direct, law and gospel. Aside from my wife, he was the first person I told about my brother’s death in a car accident on the night before Palm Sunday. I was supposed to preach that day. He looked at me and asked: “Can you do it?” I took a deep breath and said: “Yes, I think so.” And not a little piece of getting through that homily was the desire not to let Pastor down. He had that effect on you. I asked Pastor Plvan if he’d preach my ordination and he graciously came down to Maryland for that. His daughters Joy and Grace we count among our dearest friends. Additionally, Joy is my eldest daughter’s godmother. Lauren and David were even in Joy’s wedding. The last time I got to see Pastor was at my son-in-law’s installation at St. Paul’s, Norlina in North Carolina. He and Vera came down for the event. It was so very good of them. Pastor’s vicars included Prof. Joel Elowsky from the St. Louis sem; Dr. Curtis Giese (married to Garfield parishioner Nancy Simko, I believe) of Concordia TX; District President of Texas, Michael Newton; District President of Southwest District, Michael Gibson, and a host of others. He was secretary of the SELC District for a number of years. Rest eternal grant him, O Lord, and let light perpetual shine upon him!
05 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
It must be noted that the prophets do not know everything, but only what the Holy Spirit reveals to them. So see how Paul, like a prophet, foretells “that chains and afflictions await me,” and that the Ephesians will never see him again and that there will arise among them heretics and some of bad faith, and yet about the first of these he confesses not to know what exactly their end shall be. So although the Lord revealed to him everything else, this one thing he hid from him, namely, what would happen to him after chains and afflictions.—Ammonius, Catena on Acts 20.22
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
There is only one love that saves us and that is the love of God in Christ Jesus. Whoever despairs of his own love and comforts himself with this love, begins to love a little. But one day he will arrive in heaven, where all live in perfect, eternal love and are blessed.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 691.
Lewis
A man who has lived in many places is not likely to be deceived by the local errors of his native village: the scholar has lived in many times and is therefore in some degree immune from the great cataract of nonsense that pours from the press and the microphone of his own age.—Business of Heaven, p. 226.
Catechesis
When Paul says, “He will render to each one according to his works,” not only the outward work ought to be understood, but all righteousness or unrighteousness. So, “Glory, honor, and peace for everyone who does good,” namely, to the righteous. “You gave Me food” is cited as the fruit and witness of the righteousness of the heart and of faith and, therefore, eternal life is given to righteousness.—Ap V:252 [IV:373]
04 September 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
“I have not shunned,” he says, “to declare to you all the counsel of God.” Thus did the apostles simply, and without respect of persons, deliver to all what they themselves had learned from the Lord. Thus also does Luke, without respect of persons, deliver to us what he learned from them, as he has himself testified, saying, “Even as they delivered to us, who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word.”—St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Ad. Haer. 3.14.2
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Where is there a person who leads such a life in love? There is no one. Only Christ lived, suffered, and died in this manner, not for Himself, but because of His love for sinners. True Christians, in whom Jesus lives, make a beginning of such love, but they never bring it to perfection. It is, therefore, evil delusion when a person thinks he is able to justify himself before God and make himself holy by the fulfillment of the commandment to love the neighbor.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 689.
Lewis
All on our merely natural activities will be accepted, if they are offered to God, even the humblest; and all of them, even the noblest, will be sinful if they are not.—Business of Heaven, p. 225.
Catechesis
If consciences are not rightly taught about these, they can have no certain comfort. However, we have stated clearly enough that good works do not fulfill the Law, that we need God’s mercy, that through faith we are accepted by God, that good works—be they ever so precious, even if they were the works of St. Paul himself—cannot bring rest to the conscience. It makes sense that we are to believe that we receive eternal life through Christ by faith, not because of our works or of the Law.—Ap V:241 [IV:362]
03 September 2023
Today’s sunrise
31 August 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
Notice how in every case idolatry arises from money.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily 42 on Acts
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
If a person has come to a vivid knowledge of sin and then asks, “What should I do to blot out my immense sin and become pure?” the preachers should answer, “The blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, makes you clean from all your sin.”—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 679.
Lewis
A cultured person, however, is almost compelled to be aware that reality if very odd and that the ultimate truth, whatever it may be, must have the characteristics of strangeness—must be something that would seem remote and fantastic to the uncultured… On these grounds I conclude that culture has a distinct role in bringing certain souls to Christ. Not all souls—there is a shorter, and safer, way which has always been followed by thousands of simple affectional natures who begin, where we hope to end, with devotion to the person of Christ.—Business of Heaven, p. 222.
Catechesis
So prayer relies on God’s mercy, when we believe that we are heard for Christ’s sake. He is our High Priest, as He Himself says, “Whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it” (John 14:13-14). Without this High Priest we cannot approach the Father.—Ap V:212 [IV:333]
29 August 2023
The Decollation of St. John the Baptist
A beautiful Divine Service at St. Paul’s this morning for the feast. The red of martyrdom shone from paraments and vestments. A select choir from the school chanted the Introit: “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation…” The voices of man of the children singing the tenor up an octave on the Gloria, soaring above the melody. The collect with its: “forerunner of Your Son, Jesus Christ, in both his preaching of repentance and his innocent death.” Powerful readings from Revelation 6, Romans 6, and the account of the martyrdom from Mark 6. “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him from them all” in the Gradual and the verse, my mother’s favorite Bible passage, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” And if precious to Him, so also precious to us. So 2,000 years later we still gather to remember and recount the events of that day. The hymn was “If Thou but Trust in God to Guide Thee” which was perfect, as was Pastor Gleason’s homily. The Advent preface with its “whose way John the Baptist prepared, proclaiming Him the Messiah, the very Lamb of God, and calling sinners to repentance.” The gift of the Savior’s precious body and blood, giving us the forgiveness of sins and a guarantee of a blessed resurrection with John and all the saints. We are so very blessed in our Church and school. This year, with four grandchildren in the school, I’m more thankful than ever for them being catechized in liturgy and song so richly, so abundantly. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for this place!
Patristic Quote of the Day
God does not wait for time to elapse from repentance. You spoke your sin, you were justified; you repented, you were shown mercy.—St. John Chrysostom, Homily 8 on Repentance
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Although many institutions of more recent founding have fallen over the years, the holy preaching office has never ceased to exist. God has proved that the preaching office is His work, in that He has mightily protected it so that it might never be lacking in His Church. For the works of God must remain, even when the works of man must perish.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 674.
Lewis
Provided, then, that there was a demand for culture, and that culture was not actually deleterious, I concluded I was justified in making my living by supplying that demand—and that all others in my position (dons, schoolmasters, professional authors, critics, and reviewers) were similarly justified; especially if, like me, they had few or no talents for any other career—if their ‘vocation’ to a cultural profession consisted in the brute fact of not being fit for anything else.—Business of Heaven, p. 220.
Catechesis
We overcome the terrors of sin and death not through love, but through faith. For we cannot set up our love and fulfilling of the Law against God’s wrath, because Paul says, “Through [Christ] we have also obtained access [to God] by faith.”—Ap V: 193 [IV:314]
28 August 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Justification happens in a blink of an eye. As soon as a sinner, in despair, recognizes his sin and desires grace and redemption, God speaks a word in heaven, and justification takes place. Sanctification, on the contrary, does not happen suddenly. It occurs gradually, and it continues until the end of our life…. Sanctification, which follows justification, begins weakly and grows until death, but it never comes to perfection.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 670, 671.
Lewis
As St. Augustine says somewhere ‘God wants to give us something, but cannot, because our hands are full—there’s nowhere to put it.’—Business of Heaven, p. 219 [Day of St. Augustine of Hippo]
Catechesis
So the worship and the divine service of the Gospel is to receive gifts from God.—Ap V:189 [IV:310]
Patristic Quote of the Day
Are you a sinner? Do not despair; rather, enter, presenting repentance. Have you sinned? Tell God, “I have sinned.” What is the labor, what the period of time, what the expense? What kind of hardship is it to say, “I have sinned”? You have an advocate with the Father who said, “Be the first to confess your sins so you may be justified.” Say the sin to obliterate it. For this, there is no toil, no expense, no need of deep arguments, no need of philosophical reasoning, say, “I have sinned.” —St. John Chrysostom, Homily on Repentance
27 August 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Justification occurs in heaven. A poor person, mourning over his sins, often does not know that he has already been justified. He may continue to cry tears of repentance on earth while in heaven all the angels are already rejoicing over him. However, justification does not remain without effect on a person.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 668.
Lewis
Thus St. Augustine and Rousseau both write Confessions; but to the one his own temperament is a kind of absolution (au moins je suis autre), to the other it is ‘a narrow house too narrow for Thee to enter—oh make it wide. It is in ruins—oh rebuild it’…—Business of Heaven, p. 218.
Catechesis
When the heart is cheered and quickened through faith in this way, it receives the Holy Spirit. He renews us, so that we are able to keep the Law, to love God and God’s Word, to be submissive to God in afflictions, to be chaste, to love our neighbor, and so on. Even though these works are far from the perfection of the Law, on account of faith they please God.—Ap V:173 [IV:294]
Patristic Quote of the Day
In the same way, Christ also acted: He first removes the source of the evils. For the source, root, and mother of all evils is our nature of sin. (Πηγὴ γὰρ κακῶν καὶ ῥίζα καὶ μήτηρ πάντων ἐστὶ τῆς ἁμαρτίας ἡ φύσις.) This nature paralyzes our bodies; it causes diseases.—St John Chrysostom, Homily on the Paralytic, par. 5
26 August 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Wherever there is true faith, there will also be the proof of a new life. If you were once arrogant, you will now be humble before God and man.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 666.
Lewis
I am saying only that the highest good of a creature must be creaturely—that is, derivative or reflective—good. In other words, as St. Augustine makes plain [De Civ. Dei, xii, cap. I], pride does not only go before a fall but is a fall—a fall of the creature’s attention from what is better, God, to what is worse, itself.—Business of Heaven, pp. 217, 218.
Catechesis
For the Gospel shows another way. The Gospel compels us to make use of Christ in justification. The Gospel teaches that through Christ we have access to God through faith. It teaches that we ought to set Him as Mediator and Atoning Sacrifice against God’s anger. The Gospel teaches that through faith in Christ the forgiveness of sins and reconciliation are received, and the terrors of sin and of death are overcome.—Ap V:170 (IV:291)
Patristic Quote of the Day
For it is not a man who is then baptizing, but the only-begotten Son of God Himself. And what was done upon the flesh of the Lord is happening now on us; for just as John seemed to hold back the flesh, the Word of God led to the Jordan's washbasin, baptized and from above the paternal voice was saying, 'This is my beloved Son.' So now, the Holy Spirit through His epiphany. This too happens to us, upon our flesh; for the baptism occurs in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. For this reason, even John said, instructing us, 'It is not a man that baptizes us, but God. 'He who is coming after me, the mightier one, of whom I am not worthy to loose the strap of His sandal. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire.' For this reason, the one baptizing does not say, 'I baptize this one,' but 'This one is being baptized into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,'* indicating that it is not he who baptizes, but the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, whose name is invoked.—St. John Chrysostom, Final Catechesis of the Baptizands
*St. John reflects here the custom of the Eastern Church to baptize in the passive, so as to stress the divine activity. In the west, the baptismal “I” is understood to be one who is standing in for the Blessed Trinity, in whose name the Baptism is administered.
Saturday mornings…
…tend to start out nice and slow. We roll out of bed about a half hour before the sun rises and aim to see it each day. Alas, this morning, was stormy, so we enjoyed the lightning and rain instead. We brewed up some Crio-brew (brewed cacao; our replacement for coffee; no caffeine and all the flavor of hot chocolate with zero sugar) and then blended it with a bit of butter, and enjoyed a cuppa. Then I headed down to McDonald’s to pick up our usual Saturday morning fare (six sausage egg and cheese McMuffins—without the muffin and without the cheese). It’s a cheaper way to ring it up than ordering six sausage patties and six round eggs! Afterwards, we put up the garage door and sat in our lawn chairs, just inside the garage, and said our morning prayers, still getting whatever sunlight escaped the clouds. Then I worked my puzzles (currently doing each day Wordle; Worldle; Nerdle; Blossom; and Connections). After that, off to the Essenbach’s farm to pick up our milk and eggs for the week. Like so many, as a child I could not really digest pasteurized milk. I was always having stomach issues and they basically stopped when the milk stopped. In fact, I HATED milk, but still drank it because “it’s good for you.” Most folks would eat the cookie and wash it down with the milk; I did the exact opposite. I used the cookie to get rid of the nasty taste of the milk. Go figure. But I have zero problem whatsoever digesting the raw milk (and yoghurt) from the Essenbach’s. In fact, I LOVE it. After picking it up, we headed back to Hamel. Did a little stop at DK’s market (and ran into Mark) and post office and now the rain is pouring down again and I’m sitting here sipping yet another cup of Crio-brew. A perfect Saturday morning, in my book. Just perfect.
25 August 2023
Patristic Quote of the Day
It must be noted that we must believe that women passed on the faith: see how completely desirous of salvation Apollos was, for even though he was an educated man and was well versed in the Scripture’s secrets, he did not consider it worthless to learn the fullness of the faith from a woman. He did not become conceited as if he were receiving a rebuke from a woman that “you should learn more fully the things concerning God the Word’s ordaining.” Therefore Priscilla explained to him in her teaching the things of faith, and Apollos listened and received them.—Ammonius, Cantena on the Acts of the Apostles.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
God is not satisfied when we accept only some of His holy Word, no matter how acceptable it appears to our reason and our feelings. Whoever thinks he is unable to accept some small part of Holy Scripture rejects all of it. Whoever does not want to recognize the Old Testament as God’s Word thereby rejects the New Testament, for the latter is grounded in the former… Where there is true faith, there one is filled with the deepest reverence toward Scripture.—God Grant It!, p. 664, 665.
Lewis
Now the New Testament has nothing at all to tell us of literature.—Business of Heaven, p. 217 [so much for all those “Bible as literature” courses!]
Catechesis
Nevertheless, scarcely a weak and feeble fulfilling of the Law happens even in saints.—Ap V:169 [Ap IV:290]
Need a bit of comfort from God’s Word?
Give a listen right here to my dear friend, Pr. Jerry Gernander.
24 August 2023
From this morning’s service
Upon the Festival of St. Bartholomew. We not only remember today this holy apostle of Christ, but also the numerous French protestants surprised and killed by their Roman Catholic fellow countrymen on the Eve and day and week following St. Bartholomew in 1572. The numbers of those killed has not be ascertained with certainty but runs from 5,000 up to 30,000.
“And take they our life, goods, fame, child and wife. Let all these all be gone! They yet have nothing won. The kingdom ours remaineth.”
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” Ps cxvi
Patristic Quote of the Day
After his resurrection, the Savior said to his disciples: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” They to whom the command had been given knew that “God wants all people to be saved and to attain knowledge of the truth.” Since the human race had been divided into two religious groups, Jews and pagans, a division of the heralds of the gospel was also made so that some were assigned to the Jews, while others to be apostles of the nations. But since all the teachers had the single aim of leading all to the knowledge of the one God and to the teaching of the Gospel, Paul, though an apostle to the nations, if he happened to be able to benefit the Jews would, without a doubt, becomes a Jew to the Jews so that they might not become estranged from him as if he had departed from the law, although he had already crossed over and beyond the Jewish shadow.—Didymus the Blind, Catena on the Acts of the Apostles 18:18.
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
The birth of faith in the soul of a sinner cannot leave him unmoved. Indeed, it is a work that transforms the whole person—from darkness to light, from spiritual death to spiritual life—and brings him out of powerlessness into a divine strength.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 662, 3.
Lewis
Surely God saves different souls in different ways? To preach instantaneous conversion and eternal security as if they must be the experiences of all who are saved seems to me very dangerous: the very way to drive some into presumption and others into despair.—Business of Heaven, p. 216
Catechesis
Last, readers are to be reminded of this: the adversaries give the worst advice to godly consciences when they teach that forgiveness of sins is earned by works. Conscience, in seeking forgiveness through works, cannot be confident that the work will satisfy God. It is always tormented, and continually invents other works and other acts of worship, until it completely despairs. This course is described by Paul in Romans 4:5. There he proves that the promise of righteousness is not obtained by our works. We could never affirm that we had a reconciled God, for the Law always accuses. So the promise would be in vain and uncertain. He concludes that this promise of the forgiveness of sins and righteousness is received through faith, not because of works. This is Paul’s true, simple, and genuine meaning.—Ap V:164 (IV:285)
23 August 2023
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
Conversely, there is no one more fortunate than the one who knows he stands in grace before God. With joy he can lie down at night, for he knows he is placing himself in the arms of his God who appoints his angels to watch over him. With joy he can awaken in the morning, for he knows God has preserved him and given him a new day of grace. With joy he goes to his calling, for he knows God is with him.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 660.
Lewis
In fact, however, the value of the individual does not lie in him. He is capable of receiving value. He receives it by union with Christ.—Business of Heaven, p. 214.
Catechesis
We grant also this, that alms merit many favors from God, lessen punishments, and merit our defense in the dangers of sin and death, as we have said a little before about the entire repentance.—Ap V:157 (Ap IV:278)
Patristic Quote of the Day
Paul, after countless journeys, despite such great wonders, stayed with a tentmaker and sewed skins. Angels honored him and demons trembled at him, and still he was not ashamed to say, “These same hands served my needs and those who were with me.”—St. John Chrysostom, Catena on the Acts of the Apostles 18:4,5
22 August 2023
Go figure….
So, eating an overwhelmingly carnivore (meat based) diet for more than five years, feasting royally on eggs and real butter and cooking in bacon fat, how wrecked are my lipid numbers? Funny you should ask, because this morning the doc drew blood again and the results showed up in my inbox this afternoon:
My cholesterol came in high: 215 total. BUT of that, the HDL was 111; the LDL-C was 94; and the triglycerides were all of 48. So all of the ratios were in “normal” range, and even on the lower side. The most astounding ratio to me was the Trig/HDL, which came to .4. Optimal range there is .5-1.9. Some insulin resistance shows as 2.0-3.0. Significant insulin resistance is above 3. I’m sitting just slightly better than the perfect range!
It gets even more interesting if I share that this lipid profile was run just six months ago. The doc wanted them rechecked because she didn’t like what she saw at all: You see, in February, my total cholesterol was 390. My HDL was 83. My triglycerides were 155. My LDL was 275. Six months later the triglycerides were down by 100 and the LDL by 181. How did that happen? Statins, right? WRONG. I refused to take them.
Still eating overwhelmingly meat, cheese, eggs, and so on, and no cholesterol lowering medicines, the numbers came into perfect ratios. One thing did change, and I suspect it’s huge (suspect, because after all, post hoc ergo propter hoc is a logical fallacy). Back the first week in June I gave up coffee (regular or decaf.) . For a number of years we made our coffee without a paper filter, using a pour over. I loved the rich taste, but it was causing me some other health issues. So I just dropped it entirely. We already knew about pour over coffee elevating triglycerides, but the total effect on dropping it has been nothing short of astounding. And with the coffee, I’ve stopped alcohol except for when I receive the Sacrament. Crazy, isn’t it? I can’t wait to hear what the doc says about THESE results.
About the coffee, it was sad to give it up as I’ve drunk it since I was a kid. But my body was giving me signs (which I won’t go into) that it needed to go. So go it went. But thanks to my sister-in-law, we’ve discovered brewed cocoa and enjoy that now and again. It’s 99.9% caffeine free, and doesn’t seem to have any of the negative impact the coffee did (but it’s only now and again because it is way more expensive).
Old Lutheran Quote of the Day
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) Thus, it is certain: the justification of a poor sinner before God stands rock-solid, for it rests as much on God’s righteousness, holiness, and faithfulness as on His goodness and grace. Its foundation is that God’s Son has already reconciled all people, already paid the debt of sin, and already acquired and offered them forgiveness and righteousness.—C. F. W. Walther, God Grant It!, p. 658.
Lewis
A rejection, or in Scripture’s strong language, a crucifixion of the natural self is the passport to everlasting life. Nothing that has not died will be resurrected.—Business of Heaven, p. 214.
Catechesis
When Christ is apprehended as Mediator through this faith, the heart finds rest and begins to love God and to keep the Law. It knows that now, because of Christ as Mediator, it is pleasing to God, even though the incomplete fulfilling of the Law is far from perfection and is very impure.—AC V:149 [IV:271]
Patristic Quote of the Day
He says that “the world and everything in it” is the work of God. Do you notice the conciseness and, in the conciseness, the clearness? And what was strange to them? The fact that God made the world. These things, now known to anyone, the Athenians did not know, not even the wise among them. For if he made them, it is clear that he is Lord. Notice what Paul affirms as the mark of divinity: creation, which the Son also has.—Homily 38 on Acts
21 August 2023
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