Great insight from CFW Walther...

The following was first published by Scott Diekmann of the Stand Firm blog and then by Rev. Erik Brown at Confessional Gadfly. Thought provoking statement from CFW Walther:

…In recent times people actually think one has to make additions, that church doctrine evolves gradually and grows in scope as the church grows older. [They maintain that] in apostolic days, so to speak, the church was in its infancy, but that now it is gradually maturing into full adulthood in Christ [cf. Eph. 4:13]. But it is not doctrine we are to develop, so that new doctrines are introduced, as among the newer theologians; rather we are diligently to use our reason, so that we truly know and understand the doctrines the church has always had. It is not our task to develop new doctrines, but to master our comprehension of the doctrines already revealed and always known to the church. God has by His grace enabled us here in America to realize that it is and can be neither man’s enlightened reason nor anything else, but only God’s Word, that is to be the source of all doctrine. As long as we cling to it, we will be unshaken, as on the rock [cf. Matt. 7:24-25]. Let us gratefully cling to it, refusing to let Satan drive us away. (brackets in original)

C.F.W. Walther, Essays for the Church, Vol. 1 (St. Louis: Concordia, 1992) 157.

Law and Gospel

The following is a quote from C.F.W. Walther from his 14th Thesis in 'The Proper Distinction between Law and Gospel':

Believing the Gospel would be, in truth, an immeasurably great and difficult task for us if God were not to accomplish it in us. But suppose it were not so exceedingly great and difficult; even if it were an easy condition that God had proposed to us for our salvation, our salvation would not be a gift; God would not have given us His Son, but merely offered Him to us with a certain stipulation. That has not been God’s way. The Apostle Paul says: “Being justified freely (δωρεάν) by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Rom. 3, 24. We are justified δωρεάν, that is gratuitously, without anything, even the least thing, being required of us. Accordingly, we poor sinners praise God for the place of refuge He has prepared for us, where we can flee even when we have to come to Him as utterly lost, insolvent beggars, who have not the least ability to offer to God something that they have achieved. All that we can offer Him is our sins, nothing else. But for that very reason Jesus regards us as His proper clients. We honor Him as our faithful Savior by making His Gospel our refuge; but we deny Him if we come to Him offering Him something for what He gives us. In view of the statement of Peter: “Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved,” Acts 4, 12, you must regard it as an awful perversion of the Gospel to treat the command to believe as a condition of man’s justification and salvation.

All that we can offer God is our sins. Anything, especially our good works, are an affront to the cross of Jesus. THIS is the good news. No spiritual discipline, no good work, not even the act of believing, is required for the free gift of salvation that Jesus gave to us from His work on the cross. Again... I repeat... THIS is the good news.

Luther was once asked what our part in salvation is. He replied, 'Sin and resistance!'

Thank you God for your free and unmerited gift of Your love and salvation!

Love Football - Hate FIFA!

Thanks to my friend, Brian, I am a convert to soccer. Or as the vast majority of this planet calls it: Football. Just behind the NFL, it is the most glorious game to behold. While on the surface, it can appear to be slow-paced, and low-scoring, the game is team-oriented, much more than most sports and, thus makes the game quite complex. A lot of rhythm between team mates and lots of precision, both on offense and in defense. This is my second World Cup that I have followed closely, among other tournaments in between. And I enjoy the game immensely.

The one thing I find almost impossible to get over is the issue with the referees. I normally hate when people lambast officials in any sport. Human error is a part of sports. That includes players and officials. 99% of the time in most sports, if an official makes a bad call, it doesn't have an impact on the game and/ or tournament. This seems to be very different in this World Cup.


FIFA, the ruling organization for football throughout the world is completely horrific, with no apparent credible accountability.

Martin Rogers of Yahoo Sports states in this article:

Human error is part of sports and with FIFA having taken the decision to steer clear of video replay, it is inevitable. But this is the World Cup, the best of the best. Except for the men in charge.

The 9 yellow cards given out by the ref in the Germany-Serbia match influenced the outcome of the game. Not the play on the field. The goal disallowed in the USA - Slovenia match was a complete disgrace. And now today. The French referee of the Brazil - Ivory Coast match. Fabiano scored a goal in which he handed the ball TWICE. And then he handed a 2nd yellow card to Kaka for knocking down a player from the Ivory Coast. Which was a player with very poor acting lessons, apparently. Replay shows that he slightly elbowed in the chest, but his hands went directly to his face.

The point is: Humans make errors. Especially sports officials. That should require some sort of accountability. They do not have to even explain what call they are making on the pitch. Utter insanity. It appears that at this point, FIFA is not too concerned about this and will not be correcting any of these issues. And that, in my opinion, is what makes FIFA a complete farce.