Mr. (Rev.) Roger Salter: "A Fella Called God: Absence of Fear in Contemporary Faith"

http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=18298#.Up0u6owo5jo

A FELLA CALLED GOD: THE ABSENCE OF FEAR IN CONTEMPORARY FAITHBy Roger Salter
Special to Virtueonline www.virtueonline.org
November 26, 2013

It was an evening service graced with royal presence and attended by eminent members of the citizenry. As the congregation made their departure from the church building one individual was overheard to comment to another, "Well, we've just been to a place to hear about a fella called God".

Such dismissiveness of God is common in our generation and at every level of modern society. It doesn't diminish or distress the Almighty but it mightily offends those who adore him and pay him the homage of their hearts and lives. In God's people there is a hunger for his glory and a jealousy for his reputation. When worms squeak their blasphemies and insults before God believers tremble at human audacity in the face of his awesomeness, its ultimate consequences, and the tragedy of inveterate irreverence. Contempt for God is the height of self-destructive folly. It is the peak of immorality and madness. It is sheer ignorance of the divine supremacy, majesty, excellence, and worthiness that demand our utmost worship and adoration.

The author of The God Delusion admitted that he could not appreciate the desire to delight in God and offer him devotion. This is to fall below the level of intelligent humanity which humbly views itself as the intended image of God. It is to be evacuated of all sense of affinity with him. Without the intervention of common grace such godlessness results in brutishness. The scornful do not contemplate the gravity of their offence and their terrible end beyond the grave without repentance. Puny unbelief pits itself against the Omnipotent. Their attitude is not only a revolt against sovereignty it is a hostile lunge at Perfect Love. The world of the unregenerate, pious or profane, hates the Lord Jesus. Everything about him pains the unconverted conscience.

The church is not without blame for lowering the general estimate of God in contemporary minds. An effete church presents an enfeebled God. His commands are flexible and his grace cheap. Instead of sorrow for sin and terror of judgment it is almost the case that men feel sorry for God (think of the evangelists who wring their hands whilst attempting to wrest from their audience so-called decisions for Christ as if the Saviour were helpless in securing them himself) who in the affairs of men has been denied and dethroned. He is now only recognized as a dutiful nanny available when needed to fulfill our whims and wants and mop up our messes.

Sentimentality prevails and God as a cozy convenience is the theme of our day. We forget that his mercies are sovereign as well as sure, and that his judgments are perpetually exercised as well as his grace. Our perceptions and presentations of him are lopsided. God has been Disney-fied and rendered innocuous. The worst thing a preacher can do in our culture is to attribute holy wrath to the righteous Lord. Yet Jesus spoke more about hell than any other biblical figure. The concept is either mocked in our time or a matter of horrified rebuke. Instead of meat, or even milk, our congregations are fed on marshmallow. With the consequent tooth decay we can no longer chew on solids. Like the popular Julian of Norwich we must aver that there is no anger in God.

But our kindness is cruel. The season of Advent is pastorally provided to remind us of the Judgment as well as the first coming of Jesus. Jesus in judgment from the great white throne is as essential a component of the Gospel as Jesus the friend of sinners (if we assess ourselves in that way any longer). We are duty bound to sound the Advent alarm and must not shrink from doing so. The fear of God must be instilled in human hearts if there is to be any true and balanced piety. Our God is dreadful as well as darling. When Scripture exhorts us to fear God it means to dread him as well as delight in him. If we tone down that aspect of our message we do not believe in the inspiration and authority of Holy Scripture. We are seeking to improve upon the wisdom and word of God and are apologizing for his impeccable character and ways, substituting our softness for his severity. "Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness" (Romans 11:22). God hardens hearts as well as heals them, and those who forget, ignore, or despise him run that awful risk of his judicial abandonment to their own irreversible stubbornness. "Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him" (Luke-the compassionate- 12:5).

David Broughton Knox assures us, "It is genuine fear that Jesus is talking about, not what people call reverential fear, whatever that means. We all know what ordinary fear means. That Jesus was using the word in this simple straightforward meaning is clear from the passage. He began 'I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body'. Now we all know that sort of fear; very deep and understandable fear. He continued:'. . . but. . . fear him who can not only kill the body but cast the soul into hell. yes, believe me, fear him.' The word 'fear' has the same meaning in the same sentence. It is genuine fear that Jesus is speaking about" (We Preach Judgment, The Doctrine of God, Selected Works, Volume 1. Edited by Tony Payne, Matthias Media, Kingsford, New South Wales, 2000. Superb theology is found in all three volumes).

The Gospel is meant to affright us as well as console us. We must be aroused from every false security and carnal self-deception to which we are willfully prey through the waywardness of our hearts. Our Anglican leadership is too timid to address sin and its doom in any effective way. The judgment upon our Communion is that we largely have leaders afraid of the full gospel and afraid of being counted foolish by the world. We desperately need a return to our roots - the Cranmerism of our Prayer Book and "Articles" that foster a robust and adult Anglicanism that is not mealy-mouthed in enunciating the doctrines of Scripture.

If we cannot depict the plight and peril of sinful man in plainspoken terms we cannot with boldness and winsomeness declare the reality of the divine rescue mission in Jesus Christ. We cannot advocate the wonder of utterly undeserved grace. Mankind is not compelled to acknowledge its desperate need of a gracious Redeemer nor accord him the honor that is his due. We employ 'Saviour' as a courtesy title and not as a plea for extrication from servitude to evil and a sentence of eternal death. Sentimentality has blunted the blade of the gospel sword. And what pygmies we are compared to the best of our forebears at the Reformation, the Puritan era, the Great Awakening, and the Victorian bearers of the banner of truth such as Ryle and McNeile. Should we blush before them when we encounter them in heaven? They were warriors and we are waverers weakened by succumbing to a worldly mind and a sense of entitlement to spiritual pampering. Are we ever stirred by the press releases from Canterbury and clergy conventions and conferences? For our many words the plain truth is still muted. We cannot electrify the elect or shock the shallow. On present form we ought to close down and cease from bringing shame to the Name.

May our Advent pulpits and consecrated mausoleums that we call churches ring out the Word of God in all its breadth and necessary news, good and bad, to immortal souls that need to hear it ere they perish for want of saving knowledge.

Tony Lane records the approach we ought to mimic from Soren Kierkegaard this Advent. "There is also a chasm between the sinfulness of man and the holiness of God. Kierkegaard rightly perceived that without the sense of sin there will be no true Christianity. 'Take away the alarmed conscience and you may close the churches and turn them into dancing halls.' This prophetic word speaks powerfully to our present situation where many apparently lively forms of Christianity are shallow and rootless because they lack this sense of sin" (Exploring Christian Thought, Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee, 1996. An excellent volume for personal and small group study).

May the waiting dance bands find themselves banned from our places of Word and worship steadfastly loyal to God.


The Rev. Roger Salter is an ordained Church of England minister where he had parishes in the dioceses of Bristol and Portsmouth before coming to Birmingham, Alabama to serve as Rector of St. Matthew's Anglican Church

Mr. (Dr. Prof.) Daniell's "The Bible in English:" Anglo-Saxon Bibles

Daniell, David. The Bible in English: Its History and Influence. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2003.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Bible-English-History-Influence/dp/0300099304/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1385668294&sr=8-1&keywords=david+daniell+english+bible

Prof. David Daniell is Emeritus Professor of English at the University College London. He is an honorary Fellow of Hertford and St. Catherine’s colleges, Oxford. He has authored articles and books on Shakespeare and the Arden edition of Julius Caesar. He edited the Penguin edition of William Tyndale’s Obedience of a Christian Man. Yale University Press published his editions of Tyndale’s New Testament and Tyndale’s Old Testament. He is also the author of that magnum opus: William Tyndale: A Biography. The latter is a must-read.

The Anglo-Saxon Bible, AD 850-1066, pages 44-55

There was much interest in the Latin Bible and “there was a good deal of translating” (44). But, they were “part-Bibles.” That is, the Gospels as a book of glosses. The Psalter and other books of the Bible were “glossed” into Old English (OE), or, Anglo-Saxon (AS), OE and AS being used interchangeably. “Glossing” was the Latin text with a running OE translation. More later on that.

William Tyndale recollected in 1528:

“…except my memory fail me and that I have forgotten what I read when I was a child thou shalt find in the English chronicle how that king Adelstone [Athelstan, AD 924—939] caused the holy scripture to be translated into the tongue [AS or OE] that was then in England and how the prelates exhorted him thereto…” (emphasis added, 47)

 Three things about the quote. (1) the plurality of prelates seeking AS or OE translations. (2) Tyndale may have received this from the librarian, William, Malmesbury Abbey, citing an 1120 source, 12 miles from Tyndale’s homestead. (3) The king “caused the holy scripture” to be translated, a claim to factuality.

Athelstan (reigned AD 925—939). Athelstan followed in the footsteps of his grandfather in his enthusiasm for learning and for the education of the nation.

Wikipedia offers this:

"The reign of Æthelstan has been overlooked and overshadowed by the achievements of his grandfather, Alfred the Great, but he is now considered one of the greatest kings of the West Saxon dynasty.[134] Modern historians endorse the view of twelfth century chronicler William of Malmesbury that "no one more just or more learned ever governed the kingdom".[135] According to Frank Stenton: "In character and cast of mind he is the one West Saxon king who will bear comparison with Alfred."[136] Simon Keynes agreed, writing that he "has long been regarded, with good reason, as a towering figure in the landscape of the tenth century ... he has also been hailed as the first king of England, as a statesman of international standing, and as the one Anglo-Saxon ruler who will bear comparison with king Alfred the Great."[137] David Dumville described Æthelstan as "the father of mediaeval and modern England",[138] while Michael Wood regards Offa, Alfred, and Æthelstan as the three greatest Anglo-Saxon kings, and Æthelstan as "one of the more important lay intellectuals in Anglo-Saxon history".[139]

Again, from Wikipedia:

"Æthelstan's reputation was at its height when he died. According to Sarah Foot, "He found acclaim in his own day not only as a successful military leader and effective monarch but also as a man of devotion, committed to the promotion of religion and the patronage of learning." Later in the century, Æthelweard praised him as a very mighty king worthy of honour, and Æthelred the Unready, who named his eight sons after his predecessors, put Æthelstan first as the name of his eldest son.[144] Memory of Æthelstan then declined until it was revived by William of Malmesbury, who took a special interest in him as the one king who had chosen to be buried in his own house. William's account kept his memory alive, and he was praised by other medieval chroniclers. In the early sixteenth century William Tyndale justified his English translation of the Bible by stating that he had read that King Æthelstan had caused the Holy Scriptures to be translated into Anglo-Saxon[145]" (emphasis added).

A question arises: was King Athelstan England’s Charlemagne? Another question: his role in laying the groundwork for Oxford and Cambridge? Or, another question, what about readings in the churches?

Alfred (AD 871—899) predecessor to Athelstan (AD 924—939). He inherited the throne at a difficult time. Viking raids were on-going for territory and plunder. Alfred understood himself and England in OT terms. He saw the decline of learning and the decline of the ecclesiastical culture.

But Athelston, the first king of England (AD 924—939), ordered translation of books in English, volumes “most needful for men to know.” Examples: Gregory the Great’s Pastoral Care, Boethius’ Consolation of Philosophy, Augustine’s Soliloquies, Orosius’ History Against Pagans, and also the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. Athelstan asked the immemorial and insightful question: if the Scriptures were translated from Hebrew to Greek and Greek to Latin, why are they not translated into English (AS or OE)? That spirit would animate Wycliff and Tyndale and all Catholic (=not Roman) Christians since. Alfred learned and personally kept the canonical hours. He had an anthology of Biblical extracts, passages of patristic exegesis, various literary texts and Psalm 1-50. He also began writing his legal codes in English, founding them on Exodus 20 and the 10 commandments. His laws were to be coordinated with Moses (this will delight Presbyterian theonomists). Athelstan saw God at work with nations, thinking like OT prophets. Kingship and OT themes would became DNA-thematic in English history.

Anglo-Saxon glosses. Glosses were “teaching methods in schools attached to monasteries” (46). The teacher would read the Latin and expound on it. The student would copy the Latin and then “gloss” it into English. “Glossing = translating = interpreting and understanding.” Queen Elizabeth learned her several languages this way. From the foreign language, then into English, and, then for her, back from the English to the foreign language. The "Lindisfarne Gospels," produced centuries earlier, was glossed in the mid-10th century by Aldred.  The “Rushworth Gospels” were “glossed” by Farman into Mercian in the 10th century. The Gospels were “glossed” into the West Saxon dialect in the 10th century. The Psalms, being liturgically important, were glossed in the 10th century and there are 14 manuscripts surviving from this period. Genesis—Judges was “glossed” by Aelfic, as were Proverbs and Ecclesiasticus. The standing question: was it for weak and illiterate monks, learning their language and grammar, or for the public?  Learning the Bible was clearly the issue.

Aelifric and biblical translation, 48-50. He was an abbot of Cerne, Dorset, and later of Eynsham near Oxford, 5 miles to the northeast. He was the foremost Anglo-Saxon scholar of the late 10th-early 11th century. He wrote homilies, saints’ lives, a Latin grammar, pastoral letters and biblical translations. Why biblical translations if not for teaching? He wanted an “authoritative body of doctrine” available to those who could not read Latin. He wrote the Temporale and Sanctorale which was used and copied into the 13th century. His wrote his homilies in AD 990 for his own personal use. He issued these to his clergy for their use: for monks, secular clergy, and laity in monastic churches, collegiate churches, cathedrals and parish churches. Parish churches were still developing and forming. He aimed at the Latin-literate and the ignorant; his writings exhibited a “wide, balanced Christology” and he wrote in English (AS-OE). He translated the daily lections in the “vernacular” also. Most odd.  Aelfric translated the Heptateuch. He worried about the ability to distinguish between the Old and New Testament “dispensations.”

Wulftan, 50. Besides Aelfric, the other great Anglo-Saxon preacher was Wulfstan. He was the archbishop of York. He also did legislative work under King Ethelred (AD 978—1016) and King Canute (AD 1016—1035). Wulfstan, cognizant of the varied Viking and Danish raids, focused on “last things,” the fundamentals of the faith, the role of the church, and morality.

(Reuters): Modern Rome Accused of Fiddling as Ancient Pompeii Crumbles

Pompeii, a must-visit for travelers to Italy. Magnificent town of the first century AD south of where St. Paul landed at Pozzuoli, a northern suburb of Naples.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/12/02/us-italy-pompeii-idUSBRE9B10PI20131202

Rome accused of fiddling as Pompeii crumbles

By Naomi O'Leary

ROME Mon Dec 2, 2013 12:53pm EST

A restorer works in the ancient Roman city Pompeii, which was buried in AD 79 by an eruption of the Vesuvius volcano, February 6, 2013.

Credit: Reuters/Ciro De Luca

 

ROME (Reuters) - Collapsing walls at the ancient Roman city of Pompeii have raised fresh concerns about Italy's efforts to maintain one of the world's most treasured sites, preserved for 2,000 years but now crumbling from neglect.

On Monday, site officials said part of a wall had collapsed on one of Pompeii's major streets after weeks of heavy rains and wind. Plaster had also fallen off the wall of the ornately frescoed House of the Small Fountain.

A series of collapses in Pompeii over the last month led Italian media to dub it a "Black November" for the ancient city, preserved under ash from a volcanic eruption in 79 A.D. and rediscovered in the 18th century, revealing a time capsule of daily life in Roman times.

The European Union launched a 105 million euro ($140 million) restoration project for the UNESCO World Heritage site in February but work has only partially begun as bids by companies for contracts are still being assessed, according to a site official.

The declaration of a state of emergency five years ago failed to halt the deterioration amid allegations that funds were being siphoned off by the mafia, and reports of mismanagement and looting. The collapse of the frescoed House of the Gladiators caused international outcry in 2010.

Italy's National Association of Archaeologists expressed "regret and anger" at the latest collapse and criticized the government for failing to appoint someone to lead the restoration.

INCOMPREHENSIBLE

"This is an incomprehensible delay. If culture is to be a priority in Italy we must start with Pompeii, now decimated by continuous collapses caused mainly by a lack of routine maintenance," the group said in a statement.

The fresh collapses come at an embarrassing moment for the government which in October passed a decree to improve access to Italy's heritage sites in order to stimulate tourism.

The law ordered the Pompeii restoration project to be sped up and for the person to lead the works to be named.

Responding to the latest collapses, Culture Minister Massimo Bray said that person would be named within a week.

"The work will begin with the restoration of the wall damaged yesterday. The damage, albeit limited, requires intervention," Bray said on Twitter.

Italian media have highlighted the contrast between the management of Pompeii and a successful exhibition at the British Museum in London about the ancient city, which helped attract record numbers of visitors this year.

The EU's regional fund spent 7.7 million euro on restoration at Pompeii during 2000-2006, but today just five individual sites are open at any one time due to damage, compared to 64 in 1956.

With over 2 million tourists each year, Pompeii is one of Italy's top attractions.
($1 = 0.7345 euros)

(Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

Peter Martyr Vermigli: Italian Reformer

By Mr. Andy Underhile

Peter Martyr Vermigli: Italian Reformer

Some of the men whom God used to bring reformation to the church in the 16th century are widely known, and even our children are acquainted with them and the work they did. Other Reformers are not so well known. They stand, as it were, in the shadows of Luther, Calvin, Knox, and Zwingli. If one knows them at all, they are vague figures in the darker corners of the stage of church history when the great drama of the Reformation was taking place. Because of this, we might conclude that they are of little or no importance to an understanding of the Reformation. Such a conclusion would be a sad mistake.

It is my purpose in this article to bring one such Reformer out of the shadows to stand for a few moments in the spotlight so that we can see him clearly and the great work he did on behalf of the cause of God in these remarkable times. His name is Peter Martyr Vermigli.

Vermigli's Early Life

Vermigli's background has two very strange aspects to it, both of which point to the inscrutable ways of God. They have to do with the fact that, although the Reformation swept through nearly the whole of Europe, from the Balkans to the Atlantic, two countries were left almost untouched: Italy and Spain. Both countries played a role in Vermigli's early life.

Italy was the birthplace of Vermigli. It was, of course, the country in which was found Rome, the seat of the papacy. Yet it would not be correct to say that Italy was the most Roman Catholic of all Europe's countries. It was almost totally unaffected by the Reformation because it was almost totally worldly. It was the country of the Renaissance at its worst. It was wholly apostate. It was corrupt and depraved. It cared not for God or man, for church or state. It was Jerusalem become Sodom. An Italian by birth, Vermigli was a "brand plucked out of the burning."

Yet this must not be construed as meaning that Peter Martyr was the only one saved from Italy's apostates. Other men and women, though few, were saved, some through Vermigli's influence. Notable among these were Jerome Zanchius, the author of a still popular book entitled Predestination, and Ochino, an influential reformer who later was charged with Arian views. Peter Martyr was also to marry a God-fearing woman from Italy.

Vermigli was born in the city of Florence on September 8, 1499. He was born of parents who were part of the royalty of the city, moderately wealthy, capable of enjoying the pleasures of what was the largest and most influential city in all Italy. The family name was Vermigli, but Peter was called "Martyr" after a martyr by the name of Peter, whose shrine was near the family home.

Many more children were born into the family, but they all died in infancy except one sister. This was probably why Vermigli's father disowned Peter when he joined a monastery. It is understandable that the father wanted someone to carry on the family name, something impossible for a monk.

 Peter was a gifted student and dedicated man. His progress in his education and in the hierarchy of Italian monastic life was swift and sure. He began his monastic career at the age of 16 as a canon regular of the Order of St Augustine, the strictest monastic order in Italy; and he spent the early years of his monastic life in the convent of Fiesole near Florence. In 1519 Vermigli transferred to the University of Padua. He was soon ordained a preacher and proved to be powerful and effective. He became abbot of Spoleto; later, principal of the college of St. Peter ad Aram in Naples.

 

For the rest, see:

http://andycontramundum.blogspot.com/2013/12/peter-martyr-vermigli-italian-reformer.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+blogspot%2FDofecr+%28Contra+Mundum%29

December 1546 AD: Henry VIII Fixing His Bastardy Problem & Succession

December 1546 A.D. King Henry refines his will on dynastic succession. 

For more information, see: http://reformationanglicanism.blogspot.com/2013/08/dynastic-succession-of-tudors-to-stuarts.html

Fixing Henry's "bastardy" problems.

In this "Third Act," the succession was outlined: Edward, Mary, and Elizabeth in that order (“the previous bastardizations being now ignored”). Might makes right, right?

In December 1546, Henry "refines" the will. He provides another potential line of succession.

If the Edwardian, Marian and Elizabethan succession should fail to have issue, the throne would devolve to the issue of Henry VIII’s oldest sister, Margaret Tudor (the Stuart line).

The question of “succession remained a vital issue” during Elizabeth 1’s reign (3). With Edward and Mary dead and Elizabeth childless, who's next? Henry had the foresight to anticipate this.

Henry VIII’s will came into “operation without trouble or question.”

James 1st will come to the English throne in 1603. He was the son of Henry VIII's eldest sister.

"To rule or not to rule? Rule by military victory, dynastic succession, or both in some combination? Or, with other factors like a Parliament and the Church too?"

December 604 BC: Jeremiah's Inconvenient Sermon Read in Temple

December 604 B.C. Lest we forget. Jeremiah 36.1-10. The scroll is read in the Temple...when preaching is inconvenient.

1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying,

2 Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day.

3 It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.

4 Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah: and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the Lord, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book.

5 And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot go into the house of the Lord:

6 Therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the Lord in the ears of the people in the Lord's house upon the fasting day: and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities.

7 It may be they will present their supplication before the Lord, and will return every one from his evil way: for great is the anger and the fury that the Lord hath pronounced against this people.

8 And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the book the words of the Lord in the Lord's house.

9 And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast before the Lord to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem.

10 Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the Lord, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entry of the new gate of the Lord's house, in the ears of all the people.

Reforming Non-Liturgicals: Presbyterians, Pentecostals, Baptists & Kin: 1662 Book of Common Prayer

Reforming Non-Liturgicals: Presbyterians, Pentecostals, Baptists & Kin: 1662 Book of Common Prayer

Jean Calvin, Heinrich Bullinger and Martin Bucer did not toss the BCP. Why further objection? A “regulatory” hymnbook, “regulatory” Confessions, “regulated” educations, and a “regulatory” Book of Order. What’s the problem?

Or, the “unregulated” Baptists, Pentecostals, and other wildcats. Truth-time: you hate good order, discipline and direction.

Proverbs 12.1: “Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.”

And, now, “recalibrations” from the Book of Common Prayer:

A few notes. (1) Aside from arguments from custom or order, we see no reason for a Bishop’s involvement, a senior administrative Presbyter, primes inter pares. (2) The child should be schooled in the Heidelberg and Westminster catechisms, not the awful thing in the BCP. (3) On prudential grounds, we would advocate for confirmation at ages 16-18. Our Episcopal parish practices later years, not age 12. (4) There is room for discussion here. This much, it advocates for solemn instruction before communication at the Table of the LORD. (5) Otherwise, the “form” is quite good, solemn, prayerful, biblical and wise; it reminds us of the reasons for good, solemn, thoughtful and dignified Prayer Book Churchmanship. (6) And, for non-lits, get some kneelers too, wouldya...sheesh.

The Order of Confirmation. Or Laying on of Hands upon Those That Are Baptized and Come to Years of Discretion.
________________________________________
Upon the day appointed, all that are to be then confirmed, being placed, and standing in order, before the Bishop; he (or some other Minister appointed by him) shall read this Preface following.

TO the end that Confirmation may be ministered to the more edifying of such as shall receive it, the Church hath thought good to order, That none hereafter shall be Confirmed, but such as can say the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Commandments; and can also answer to such other Questions, as in the short Catechism are contained; which order is very convenient to be observed; to the end, that children, being now come to the years of discretion, and having learned what their Godfathers and Godmothers promised for them in Baptism, they may themselves, with their own mouth and consent, openly before the Church, ratify and confirm the same; and also promise, that by the grace of God they will evermore endeavour themselves faithfully to observe such things, as they, by their own confession, have assented unto.

Then shall the Bishop say,

O ye here, in the presence of God, and of this congregation, renew the solemn promise and vow that was made in your name at your Baptism; ratifying and confirming the same in your own persons, and acknowledging yourselves bound to believe, and to do, all those things, which your Godfathers and Godmothers then undertook for you?

And every one shall audibly answer, I do.
The Bishop.

OUR help is in the Name of the Lord;
Answer. Who hath made heaven and earth.
Bishop. Blessed be the Name of the Lord;
Answer. Henceforth, world without end.
Bishop. Lord, hear our prayers.
Answer. And let our cry come unto thee.

The Bishop. Let us pray.

ALMIGHTY and everliving God, who hast vouchsafed to regenerate these thy servants by Water and the Holy Ghost, and hast given unto them forgiveness of all their sins: Strengthen them, we beseech thee, 0 Lord, with the Holy Ghost the Comforter, and daily increase in them thy manifold gifts of grace; the spirit of wisdom and understanding; the spirit of counsel and ghostly strength; the spirit of knowledge and true godliness; and fill them, 0 Lord, with the spirit of thy holy fear, now and for ever. Amen.

Then all of them in order kneeling before the Bishop, he shall lay his hand upon the head of every one severally, saying,

DEFEND, 0 Lord, this thy Child [or this thy Servant] with thy heavenly grace, that he may continue thine forever; and daily increase in thy Holy Spirit more and more, until he come unto thy everlasting kingdom. Amen.

Then shall the Bishop say,
The Lord be with you.
Answer. And with thy spirit.

And (all kneeling down) the Bishop shall add,

Let us pray.

OUR Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. Forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil. Amen.

And this Collect.

ALMIGHTY and everliving God, who makest us both to will and to do those things that be good and acceptable unto thy divine Majesty; We make our humble supplications unto thee for these thy servants, upon whom (after the example of thy holy Apostles) we have now laid our hands, to certify them (by this sign) of thy favour and gracious goodness towards them. Let thy fatherly hand, we beseech thee, ever be over them, let thy Holy Spirit ever be with them; and so lead them in the knowledge and obedience of thy Word, that in the end they may obtain everlasting life; through our Lord Jesus Christ, who with thee and the Holy Ghost liveth and reigneth, ever one God, world without end. Amen.

ALMIGHTY Lord, and everlasting God, vouchsafe, we 0 beseech thee, to direct, sanctify, and govern, both our hearts and bodies, in the ways of thy laws, and in the works of thy commandments; that, through thy most mighty protection both here and ever, we may be preserved in body and soul; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Then the Bishop shall bless them, saying thus,

THE Blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, be upon you, and remain with you for ever. Amen.

And there shall none be admitted to the holy Communion, until such time as he be confirmed, or be ready and desirous to be confirmed.

Reforming the Un-Reformed: Schooling the ACNA, Anglicostals, Tractarians, Canterbury Welby, Arminians, & Kin: Heinrich Bullinger

Reforming the Un-Reformed: Schooling the ACNA, Anglicostals, Tractarians, Canterbury Welby, Arminians, & Kin: Heinrich Bullinger.

“The Second Helvetic Confession” was a confession that (Canterbury) Matthew Parker endorsed; he wrote Heinrich Bullinger that it expressed the beliefs “of all of us.” But, in contrast, the ACNA is invoking self-conscious efforts to efface Reformed and Reformation theology; see amnesia-efforts at: http://www.virtueonline.org/portal/modules/news/article.php?storyid=18192#.Um_6jIzD9jo)

A lengthier document, Mr. Bullinger’s Decades was required for ordinands in the Church of England. Mr. (Rev. Dr. Prof.) R. Scott Clark has provided an outline of the Decades at: http://clark.wscal.edu/bullinger.php .

The Decades is available at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Decades-Henry-Bullinger-Volumes/dp/1146886381/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1380934921&sr=8-1&keywords=heinrich+bullinger+decades+volume+1 .

"The Second Helvetic Confession" is at: http://www.ccel.org/creeds/helvetic.htm

We say with Zachary Ursinus, "Friend, entering here: be short and leave…or else stay and assist us in the work."

Or, with Proverbs 12.1: “Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, But he who hates correction is stupid.” Be calm and take your medicines daily.

Now, school-time with Mr. Bullinger.

________________________________________
CHAPTER XVIII
Of The Ministers of The Church, Their Institution and Duties

GOD USES MINISTERS IN THE BUILDING OF THE CHURCH. God has always used ministers for the gathering or establishing of a Church for himself, and for the governing and preservation of the same; and still he does, and always will, use them so long as the Church remains on earth.

Therefore, the first beginning, institution, and office of ministers is a most ancient arrangement of God himself, and not a new one of men.

INSTITUTION AND ORIGIN OF MINISTERS. It is true that God can, by his power, without any means join to himself a Church from among men; but he preferred to deal with men by the ministry of men. Therefore ministers are to be regarded, not as ministers by themselves alone, but as the ministers of God, inasmuch as God effects the salvation of men through them.

THE MINISTRY IS NOT TO BE DESPISED. Hence we warn men to beware lest we attribute what has to do with our conversion and instruction to the secret power of the Holy Spirit in such a way that we make void the ecclesiastical ministry. For it is fitting that we always have in mind the words of the apostle: "How are they to believe in him of whom they have not heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher? So faith comes from hearing, and hearing comes by the word of God" (Rom. 10: 14, 17). And also what the Lord said in the Gospel: "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives any one whom I send receives me; and he who receives me receives him who sent me" (John 13:20).

Likewise a man of Macedonia, who appeared to Paul in a vision while he was in Asia, secretly admonished him, saying: "Come over to Macedonia and help us" (Acts 16:9). And in another place the same apostle said: "We are fellow workmen for God; you are God's tillage, God's building" (I Cor. 3:9).

Yet, on the other hand, we must beware that we do not attribute too much to ministers and the ministry; remembering here also the words of the Lord in the Gospel: "No one can come to me unless my Father draws him" (John 6:44), and the words of the apostle: "What then is Paul? What is Apollos? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but only God gives the growth" (I Cor. 3:5 ff.).

GOD MOVES THE HEARTS OF MEN. Therefore, let us believe that God teaches us by his word, outwardly through his ministers, and inwardly moves the hearts of his elect to faith by the Holy Spirit; and that therefore we ought to render all glory unto God for this whole favor. But this matter has been dealt with in the first chapter of this Exposition.

WHO THE MINISTERS ARE AND OF WHAT SORT GOD HAS GIVEN TO THE WORLD. And even from the beginning of the world God has used the most excellent men in the whole world (even if many of them were simple in worldly wisdom or philosophy, but were outstanding in true theology), namely, the patriarchs, with whom he frequently spike by angels. For the patriarchs were the prophets or teachers of their age whom God for this reason wanted to live for several centuries, in order that they might be, as it were, fathers and lights of the world. They were followed by Moses and the prophets renowned throughout all the world.

CHRIST THE TEACHER. After these the heavenly Father even sent his only-begotten Son, the most perfect teacher of the world; in whom is hidden the wisdom of God, and which has come to us through the most holy, simple, and most perfect doctrine of all. For he chose disciples for himself whom he made apostles. These went out into the whole world, and everywhere gathered together churches by the preaching of the Gospel, and then throughout all the churches in the world they appointed pastors or teachers according to Christ's command; through their successors he has taught and governed the Church unto this day. Therefore, as God gave unto his ancient people the patriarchs, together with Moses and the prophets, so also to his people of the New Testament he sent his only-begotten Son, and, with him, the apostles and teachers of the Church.

MINISTERS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Furthermore, the ministers of the new people are called by various names. For they are called apostles, prophets, evangelists, bishops, elders, pastors, and teachers (I Cor. 12:28; Eph. 4:11).

THE APOSTLES. The apostles did not stay in any particular place, but throughout the world gathered together different churches. When they were once established, there ceased to be apostles, and pastors took their place, each in his church.

PROPHETS. In former times the prophets were seers, knowing the future; but they also interpreted the Scriptures. Such men are also found still today.

EVANGELISTS. The writers of the history of the Gospel were called Evangelists; but they also were heralds of the Gospel of Christ; as Paul also commended Timothy: "Do the work of an evangelist" (II Tim. 4:5).

BISHOPS. Bishops are the overseers and watchmen of the Church, who administer the food and needs of the life of the Church.

PRESBYTERS. The presbyters are the elders and, as it were, senators and fathers of the Church, governing it with wholesome counsel.

PASTORS The pastors both keep the Lord's sheepfold, and also provide for its needs.

TEACHERS. The teachers instruct and teach the true faith and godliness. Therefore, the ministers of the churches may now be called bishops, elders, pastors, and teachers.

PAPAL ORDERS. Then in subsequent times many more names of ministers in the Church were introduced into the Church of God. For some were appointed patriarchs, others archbishops, others suffragans; also, metropolitans, archdeacons, deacons, subdeacons, acolytes, exorcists, cantors, porters, and I know not what others, as cardinals, provosts, and priors; greater and lesser fathers, greater and lesser orders. But we are not troubled about all these about how they once were and are now. For us the apostolic doctrine concerning ministers is sufficient.

CONCERNING MONKS. Since we assuredly know that monks, and the orders or sects of monks, are instituted neither by Christ nor by the apostles, we teach that they are of no use to the Church of God, nay rather, are pernicious. For, although in former times they were tolerable (when they were hermits, earning their living with their own hands, and were not a burden to anyone, but like the laity were everywhere obedient to the pastors of the churches), yet now the whole world sees and knows what they are like. They formulate I know not what vows; but they lead a life quite contrary to their vows, so that the best of them deserves to be numbered among those of whom the apostle said: "We hear that some of you are living an irregular life, mere busybodies, not doing any work" etc. (II Thess. 3:11). Therefore, we neither have such in our churches, nor do we teach that they should be in the churches of Christ.

MINISTERS ARE TO BE CALLED AND ELECTED. Furthermore, no man ought to usurp the honor of the ecclesiastical ministry; that is, to seize it for himself by bribery or any deceits, or by his own free choice. But let the ministers of the Church be called and chosen by lawful and ecclesiastical election; that is to say, let them be carefully chosen by the Church or by those delegated from the Church for that purpose in a proper order without any uproar, dissension and rivalry. Not any one may be elected, but capable men distinguished by sufficient consecrated learning, pious eloquence, simple wisdom, lastly, by moderation and an honorable reputation, according to that apostolic rule which is compiled by the apostle in I Tim., ch. 3, and Titus, ch. 1.

ORDINATION. And those who are elected are to be ordained by the elders with public prayer and laying on of hands. Here we condemn all those who go off of their own accord, being nether chosen, sent, nor ordained (Jer., ch. 23). We condemn unfit ministers and those not furnished with the necessary gifts of a pastor.

 In the meantime we acknowledge that the harmless simplicity of some pastors in the primitive Church sometimes profited the Church more than the many-sided, refined and fastidious, but a little too esoteric learning of others. For this reason we do not reject even today the honest, yet by no means ignorant, simplicity of some.

PRIESTHOOD OF ALL BELIEVERS. To be sure, Christ's apostles call all who believe in Christ "priests," but not on account of an office, but because, all the faithful having been made kings and priests, we are able to offer up a spiritual sacrifices to God through Christ (Ex. 19:6; I Peter 2:9; Rev. 1:6). Therefore, the priesthood and the ministry are very different from one another. For the priesthood, as we have just said, is common to all Christians; not so is the ministry. Nor have we abolished the ministry of the Church because we have repudiated the papal priesthood from the Church of Christ.

PRIESTS AND PRIESTHOOD. Surely in the new covenant of Christ there is no longer any such priesthood as was under the ancient people; which had an external anointing, holy garments, and very many ceremonies which were types of Christ, who abolished them all by this coming and fulfilling them. But he himself remains the only priest forever, and lest we derogate anything form him, we do not impart the name of priest to any minister. For the Lord himself did not appoint any priests in the Church of the New Testament who, having received authority from the suffragan, may daily offer up the sacrifice that is, the very flesh and blood of the Lord, for the living and the dead, but ministers who may teach and administer the sacraments.

THE NATURE OF THE MINISTERS OF THE NEW TESTAMENT. Paul explains simply and briefly what we are to think of the ministers of the New Testament or of the Christian Church, and what we are to attribute to them. "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God" II Cor. 4:1). Therefore, the apostle wants us to think of ministers as ministers. Now the apostle calls them rowers, who have their eyes fixed on the coxswain, and so men who do not live for themselves or according to their own will, but for others--namely, their masters, upon whose command they altogether depend. For in all his duties every minister of the Church is commanded to carry out only what he has received in commandment from his Lord, and not to indulge his own free choice. And in this case it is expressly declared who is the Lord, namely, Christ; to whom the ministers are subject in all the affairs of the ministry.

MINISTERS AS STEWARDS OF THE MYSTERIES OF GOD. Moreover, to the end that he might expound the ministry more fully, the apostle adds that ministers of the Church are administrators and stewards of the mysteries of God. Now in may passages, especially in Eph., ch. 3, Paul called the mysteries of God the Gospel of Christ. And the sacraments of Christ are also called mysteries by the ancient writers.

Therefore for this purpose are the ministers of the Church called--namely, to preach the Gospel of Christ to the faithful, and to administer the sacraments. We read, also, in another place in the Gospel, of "the faithful and wise steward," whom "his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time" (Luke 12:42). Again, elsewhere in the Gospel a man takes a journey in a foreign country and, leaving his house, gives his substance and authority over it to his servants, and to each his work.

THE POWER OF MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. Now, therefore, it is fitting that we also say something about the power and duty of the ministers of the Church. Concerning this power some have argued industriously, and to it have subjected everything on earth, even the greatest things, and they have done so contrary to the commandment of the Lord who has prohibited dominion for this disciples and has highly commended humility (Luke 22:24 ff.; Matt. 18:3 f.; 20:25 ff.). There is, indeed, another power that is pure and absolute, which is called the power of right. According to this power all things in the whole world are subject to Christ, who is Lord of all, as he himself has testified when he said: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Matt. 28:18), and again, "I am the first and the last, and behold I am alive for evermore, and I have the keys of Hades and Death" (Rev. 1:18); also, "He has the key of David, which opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens" (Rev. 3:7).

THE LORD RESERVES TRUE POWER FOR HIMSELF. This power the Lord reserves to himself, and does not transfer it to any other, so that he might stand idly by as a spectator while his ministers work. For Isaiah says, "I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David" (Isa. 22:22), and again, "The government will be upon his shoulders, but still keeps and uses his own power, governing all things.

THE POWER OF THE OFFICE AND OF THE MINISTER. Then there is another power of an office or of ministry limited by him who has full and absolute power. And this is more like a service than a dominion.

THE KEYS. For a lord gives up his power to the steward in his house, and for that cause gives him the keys, that he may admit into or exclude from the house those whom his lord will have admitted or excluded. In virtue of this power the minister, because of his office, does that which the Lord has commanded him to do; and the Lord confirms what he does, and wills that what his servant has done will be so regarded and acknowledges, as if he himself had done it. Undoubtedly, it is to this that these evangelical sentences refer: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt. 16:19). Again, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (John 20:23). But if the minister does not carry out everything as the Lord has commanded him, but transgresses the bounds of faith, then the Lord certainly makes void what he has done. Wherefore the ecclesiastical power of the ministers of the Church is that function whereby they indeed govern the Church of God, but yet se do all things in the Church as the Lord has prescribed in his Word. When those things are done, the faithful esteem them as done by the Lord himself. But mention has already been made of the keys above.

THE POWER OF MINISTERS IS ONE AND THE SAME, AND EQUAL. Now the one and an equal power or function is given to all ministers in the Church. Certainly, in the beginning, the bishops or presbyters governed the Church in common; no man lifted up himself above another, none usurped greater power or authority over his fellow-bishops. For remembering the words of the Lord: "Let the leader among you become as one who serves" (Luke 22:26), they kept themselves in humility, and by mutual services they helped one another in the governing and preserving of the Church.

ORDER TO BE PRESERVED. Nevertheless, for the sake of preserving order some one of the ministers called the assembly together, proposed matters to be laid before it, gathered the opinions of the others, in short, to the best of man's ability took precaution lest any confusion should arise.

Thus did St. Peter, as we read in The Acts of the Apostles, who nevertheless was not on that account preferred to the others, nor endowed with greater authority than the rest. Rightly then does Cyprian the Martyr say, in his De Simplicitate Clericorum: "The other apostles were assuredly what Peter was, endowed with a like fellowship of honor and power; but [his] primacy proceeds from unity in order that the Church may be shown to be one."

WHEN AND HOW ONE WAS PLACED BEFORE THE OTHERS. St. Jerome also in his commentary upon The Epistle of Paul to Titus, says something not unlike this: "Before attachment to persons in religion was begun at the instigation of the devil, the churches were governed by the common consultation of the elders; but after every one thought that those whom he had baptized were his own, and not Christ's, it was decreed that one of the elders should be chosen, and set over the rest, upon whom should fall the care of the whole Church, and all schismatic seeds should be removed." Yet St. Jerome does not recommend this decree as divine; for he immediately adds: "As the elders knew from the custom of the Church that they were subject to him who was set over them, so the bishops knew that they were subject to him who was set over them, so the bishops knew that they were above the elders, more from custom than from the truth of an arrangement by the Lord, and that they ought to rule the Church in common with them." Thus far St. Jerome. Hence no one can rightly forbid a return to the ancient constitution of the Church of God, and to have recourse to it before human custom.

THE DUTIES OF MINISTERS. The duties of ministers are various; yet for the most part they are restricted to two, in which all the rest are comprehended: to the teaching of the Gospel of Christ, and to the proper administration of the sacraments. For it is the duty of the ministers to gather together an assembly for worship in which to expound God's Word and to apply the whole doctrine to the care and use of the Church, so that what is taught may benefit the hearers and edify the faithful It falls to ministers, I say, to teach the ignorant, and to exhort; and to urge the idlers and lingerers to make progress in the way of the Lord. Moreover, they are to comfort and to strengthen the fainthearted, and to arm them against the manifold temptations of Satan; to rebuke offenders; to recall the erring into the way; to raise the fallen; to convince the gainsayers to drive the wolf away from the sheepfold of the Lord; to rebuke wickedness and wicked men wisely and severely; no to wink at nor to pass over great wickedness. And, besides, they are to administer the sacraments, and to commend the right use of them, and to prepare all men by wholesome doctrine to receive them; to preserve the faithful in a holy unity; and to check schisms; to catechize the unlearned, to commend the needs of the poor to the Church, to visit, instruct, and keep in the way of life the sick and those afflicted with various temptations. In addition, they are to attend to public prayers of supplications in times of need, together with common fasting, that is, a holy abstinence; and as diligently as possible to see to everything that pertains to the tranquility, peace and welfare of the churches.

But in order that the minister may perform all these things better and more easily, it is especially required of him that he fear God, be constant in prayer, attend to spiritual reading, and in all things and at all times be watchful, and by a purity of life to let his light to shine before all men.

DISCIPLINE. And since discipline is an absolute necessity in the Church and excommunication was once used in the time of the early fathers, and there were ecclesiastical judgments among the people of God, wherein this discipline was exercised by wise and godly men, it also falls to ministers to regulate this discipline for edification, according to the circumstances of the time, public state, and necessity. At all times and in all places the tule is to be observed that everything is to be done for edification, decently and honorably, without oppression and strife. For the apostle testifies that authority in the Church was given to him by the Lord for building up and not for destroying (II Cor. 10:8). And the Lord himself forbade the weeds to be plucked up in the Lord's field, because there would be danger lest the wheat also be plucked up with it (Matt. 13:29 f.).

EVEN EVIL MINISTERS ARE TO BE HEARD. Moreover, we strongly detest the error of the Donatists who esteem the doctrine and administration of the sacraments to be either effectual or not effectual, according to the good or evil life of the ministers. For we know that the voice of Christ is to be heard, though it be out of the mouths of evil ministers; because the Lord himself said: "Practice and observe whatever they tell you, but not what they do" (Matt. 23:3). We know that the sacraments are sanctified by the institution and the word of Christ, and that they are effectual to the godly, although they be administered by unworthy ministers. Concerning this matter, Augustine, the blessed servant of God, many times argued from the Scriptures against the Donatists.

SYNODS. Nevertheless, there ought to be proper discipline among ministers. In synods the doctrine and life of ministers is to be carefully examined. Offenders who can be cured are to be rebuked by the elders and restored to the right way, and if they are incurable, they are to be deposed, and like wolves driven away from he flock of the Lord by the true shepherds. For, if they be false teachers, they are not to be tolerated at all. Neither do we disapprove of ecumenical councils, if they are convened according to the example of the apostles, for the welfare of the Church and not for its destruction.

THE WORKER IS WORTHY OF HIS REWARD. All faithful ministers, as good workmen, are also worthy of their reward, and do not sin when they receive a stipend, and all things that be necessary for themselves and their family. For the apostle shows in I Cor., ch. 9, and in I Tim., ch. 5, and elsewhere that these things may rightly be given by the Church and received by ministers. The Anabaptists, who condemn and defame ministers who live from their ministry are also refuted by the apostolic teaching.

Schooling Montanists: Corrections from Francis Nigel Lee

Lee, Francis Nigel. Miracles and Pseudo-Miracles—What and When and Why? http://www.dr-fnlee.org/docs8/mapm/mapm.pdf. Accessed 30 Sept 2013.

Schooling Anglicostals, TBN, Charismatics, Montanists and Kin. Costals aggressively pushed themselves forward with global marketeering; a pushback is long overdue.

Proverbs 12.1: “Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.”

A theological study about the nature of miracles and their cessation at inscripturation but the continuation of pseudo-miracles according to revealed religion from the fall of the first Adam till the second coming of the Second Adam.)

And now, for reproofs from F. Nigel Lee:

21. B.B. Warfield: miracles were objective and supernatural

Rev. Professor Dr. B.B. Warfield is 'notorious' for his view that all miracles ceased
during the apostolic age. That is the gist of his famous book, Counterfeit Miracles.44 Yet even there, he stoutly defended the reality of miracles -- against those who deny that they ever occurred.

Less well-known is Warfield's essay The Question of Miracles. There, he argued: 45
"The question as to miracles is not precisely the question of the supernatural. There are modes of the supernatural that are not miracles. There is the subjective supernatural...."[Yet] miracles are objective supernatural occurrences in the external world.... Their actual occurrence is a matter of experience, and is a proper subject for testimony."

Since the inscripturating of the final book of the Bible, is the last miracle which has ever occurred -- there is no need to give any 'testimony' at all (and certainly never to claim any similar kind of authority) for any subsequent remarkable events such as immediate healings etc. For whatever the latter are, they are certainly not miracles.46

Warfield rejected the occurrence of any miracle as such, ever since the apostolic age.47 He assessed all so-called post-apostolic miracles -- to be pseudo-miracles.48

Reforming the Un-Reformed: Corrections from Ursinus & the Heidelberg Catechism

Corrections from Ursinus & the Heidelberg Catechism

For those visiting, we say with Mr. Ursinus, "Friend, entering here, be short or go… or stay but assist us in our work."
http://www.seeking4truth.com/ursinus/zutblcont.htm

And now, recalibrations from Mr. Usinus and the Heidelberg Catechism below.

V. HOW MANY THINGS ARE NECESSARY FOR THE ATTAINMENT OF THIS COMFORT?
This proposition is considered in the following question of the catechism, to which we refer the reader.

FIRST LORD'S DAY

Question 2. How many things are necessary for thee to know, that thou, enjoying this comfort, mayest live and die happy?

Answer. Three; the first, how great my sins and miseries are; the second, how I may be delivered from all my sins and miseries; the third, how I shall express my gratitude to God for such deliverance.

EXPOSITION

This question contains the statement and division of the whole catechism and at the same time accords with the division of the Scriptures into the Law and Gospel, and with the differences of these parts, as they have already been explained.

I. A knowledge of our misery is necessary for our comfort, not that it of itself administers any consolation, or is any part of it, (for of itself it rather alarms than comforts,) but it is necessary:

First, because it excites in us the desire of deliverance, just as a knowledge of disease awakens a desire of medicine on the part of the sick. Where there is no knowledge of our misery, there is no deliverance sought, just as the man who is ignorant of his disease never inquires after the physician. Now if we do not desire deliverance, we do not seek it; and if we do not seek it we will never obtain it, because God gives it only to those who seek, and knock, as it is said--"To him that knocketh, it shall be opened." "Ask, and it shall be given unto you." "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness." "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden." "I dwell with him that is of a contrite and humble spirit." (Matt. 7:6 ; 5:6 ; 11:28 . Isaiah 57:15 .) That now which is necessary for the purpose of exciting in us a desire of deliverance, is also necessary for our comfort. But a knowledge of our misery is necessary for the purpose of creating in us the desire of deliverance. Therefore it is necessary for our consolation; not, indeed, as being in its own nature the cause, but as a motive, without which we would not seek it; for in itself it terrifies, yet this terror is advantageous when it leads to the exercise of faith.

Secondly, that we may be thankful to God for our deliverance. We should he ungrateful if we did not know the greatness of the evil, from which we have been delivered; because, in this case, we could not correctly estimate the magnitude of the blessing, and so would not obtain deliverance, since this is granted only to such as are thankful.

Thirdly, because without the knowledge of our sinfulness and misery, we cannot hear the gospel with profit; for unless, by the preaching of the law as touching sin and the wrath of God, a preparation be made for the proclamation of grace, a carnal security follows, and our comfort becomes unstable. Sure consolation cannot stand in connection with carnal security. Hence it is manifest that we must commence with the preaching of the law, after the example of the Prophets and Apostles, that men may thus be cast down from the conceit of their own righteousness, and may obtain a knowledge of themselves, and be led to true repentance. Unless this be done, men will become, through the preaching of grace, more careless and obstinate, and pearls will be cast before swine to be trodden under foot.

II. A knowledge of our deliverance is necessary for our comfort:

First, that we may not despair. A knowledge of our misery would lead us to despair, did not a way of deliverance present itself to us.

Secondly, that we may desire this deliverance. An unknown good is not desired; because what we have no knowledge of, we cannot desire. If we be ignorant, therefore, of the benefit of our deliverance, we will not long after it, and of course will not obtain it. Yea, if it were even offered to us, or we were to fall upon it, we would not embrace it.

Thirdly, that it may comfort us. A good that is not known, cannot impart any comfort.
Fourthly, that we may not devise another method of deliverance, or embrace one invented by others, and thereby cast a reproach upon the name of God, and endanger our salvation.

Fifthly, that we may receive it by faith; but faith cannot be without knowledge. Deliverance is also obtained by faith alone.

Lastly, that we may be thankful to God; for as we do not desire an unknown good, so we neither appreciate nor feel thankful for it. But the benefit of deliverance is not given to the ungrateful. God is pleased to confer it only upon those in whom it produces its proper effect, which is gratitude. For these reasons, a knowledge of our deliverance, what it is, in what manner and by whom it is effected, and bestowed, c., is necessarily required, that we may enjoy true and solid comfort. This knowledge is obtained from the gospel, as heard, read, and apprehended by faith; because it alone promises deliverance to those that believe in Christ.

III. A knowledge of gratitude is necessary to our comfort:

First, because God is pleased to grant deliverance only to the thankful. It is only in such that his purpose is realized, which is his glory and gratitude on our part. Gratitude is, therefore, the principal end, and design of our deliverance. "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil." "He hath adopted us to the praise of the glory of his grace." (1 John 3:8 . Eph. 1:4 .)

Secondly, that we may return such gratitude as is acceptable to God, who will not have us to be grateful under any other form than that which he has prescribed in his word. True gratitude is, therefore, not to be rendered according to our own notion, but is to be learned from the Word of God.

Thirdly, that we may know that whatever duties we perform towards God and our neighbor, are not meritorious, but are a declaration of our thankfulness; for that which we do from gratitude, we acknowledge we have not deserved.

Lastly, that our faith and comfort may be increased; or, that by this gratitude, we may assure ourselves of our deliverance, as we are made acquainted with the causes of things from their effects. Those who are grateful, acknowledge and profess that they are certain of the good which they have received. We may learn what true gratitude is, in general, from the gospel, because it requires faith and repentance in order that we may be saved, as it is said, "Repent, and believe the gospel, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand." (Mark 1:15 .) In the law, however, it is taught particularly, because it distinctly declares what works, and what manner of obedience is pleasing to God. We must, therefore, necessarily treat of thankfulness in the catechism.

Objection. It is not necessary to teach that which follows of its own accord. Gratitude naturally follows a knowledge of our misery and deliverance. Therefore there is no necessity that it should be taught.

Answer. There is here an incorrect course of reasoning, in supposing that to be true generally, which is so only in part; for it is not a just inference that because gratitude follows a knowledge of our deliverance from misery, that the manner of it must also necessarily follow. We are, therefore, to learn from the Holy Scriptures, the nature of true gratitude, and the manner in which it should be expressed, so as to be pleasing and acceptable to God. Again; the major proposition is not universally true; for that also which follows of its own accord, may be taught for the purpose of increasing our knowledge and confirming us therein. And it is in this way, that is, through the revelation and knowledge of his Word, that God awakens, increases, and confirms in us, true gratitude.

(NYT): "Paul Crouch, 79, Evangelical Broadcaster Dies"

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/02/us/paul-f-crouch-founder-of-trinity-broadcasting-network-dies-at-79.html?_r=0

Paul F. Crouch, 79, Evangelical Broadcaster, Dies

Mark Boster/The Los Angeles Times

Paul F. Crouch and his wife, Janice, were the face of TBN.

By EMMA G. FITZSIMMONSPublished: December 1, 2013  

Paul F. Crouch, a television evangelist who founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network with his wife and turned it into the world’s largest Christian television network, died on Saturday. He was 79.    

 

His death was confirmed by the network, which said he had suffered from degenerative heart disease for a decade.

      

Mr. Crouch served as the face of Trinity Broadcasting, along with his wife, Janice, expanding it from one station in Southern California to thousands of stations across the world. He often appeared on camera, microphone in hand, quoting from the Bible and delivering his upbeat brand of Christianity. 

 

But he also faced criticism over lavish spending of the millions of dollars in donations collected through the network. Last year, his granddaughter accused the network of financial improprieties, and her father, Paul Crouch Jr., was forced off the staff.

      

Paul Franklin Crouch was born in St. Joseph, Mo., on March 30, 1934. His parents were Pentecostal missionaries who had lived in Egypt. He took an interest in ham radio as a boy and was a licensed operator at 15.

      

He graduated from the Central Bible Institute in Springfield, Mo., where he worked with other students to build the campus radio station. After graduating, he managed the television and film unit for the Assemblies of God church.

      

He and his wife, who met in 1956, founded Trinity Broadcasting Network in 1973 and bought their first station, now called KTBN-TV 40, in Santa Ana. They embraced satellite technology, broadcasting to other states and eventually overseas.

      

In a video tribute by the network on Saturday, Mr. Crouch could be seen on camera celebrating the network’s expansion to new cities. “All over the country, they’re coming to know Jesus,” he said. “Church, I think we ought to rejoice because the whole world is getting saved.”

      

TBN now runs on 84 satellite channels and more than 18,000 television and cable affiliates, according to the company. Mr. Crouch was the host of a show called “Behind the Scenes” that aired until recently.

      

The network runs sermons from prominent preachers like Joel Osteen and aired a special this month featuring the Rev. Billy Graham. This year, Mr. Crouch interviewed Rick Santorum, a former Republican presidential candidate, on his show.

      

The network also owns the Holy Land Experience theme park in Orlando, Fla.

      

Some Christian leaders have criticized the Crouches for preaching the “prosperity gospel” — the message that if you have faith in God and donate generously, you will profit in return. In 2010, donations to TBN totaled $93 million. The Crouches had multiple homes, including his-and-hers mansions in Newport Beach, Calif., and used corporate jets valued at $8 million and $49 million each. In 2010, Mr. Crouch’s salary as president of Trinity Broadcasting was $400,000; Mrs. Crouch’s as first vice president was $365,000.

      

In 2012, Mr. Crouch’s granddaughter Brittany Koper went public with the accusations of financial improprieties. Ms. Koper told The New York Times that her job had been to label extravagant personal spending as ministry expenses. But a lawyer for the network said Ms. Koper and her husband had been fired by TBN and accused them of stealing $1.3 million. 

 

The dispute took a toll on the family. Her father left the network, where he had served on the board, saying that getting caught in the middle of the dispute was “one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to endure.”

      

Mr. Crouch is survived by his wife; two sons, Paul Jr. and Matthew; and several grandchildren. 

 

Mr. Crouch often traveled overseas with the network and filmed episodes of his “Behind the Scenes” show in London and Rome. In one episode this year, he reminisced about how the network found an audience in Africa, noting that one time when he arrived at the airport in Nairobi, Kenya, immigration officials recognized him. They “praised the Lord” and patted him on the back, he said.      

 

“That’s God,” he said. “He’s opening these doors, and we’re going through them.”