Paredwka: Dropping the Ball
The following quote begins quite the theological exposition. Sit back and hold on for the ride! I'll give you a brief taste but you'll have to click through for the full treatment. If you are convinced (or convicted) your perspective will radically change about theology and practice:
PEOPLE ARE PERISHING ETERNALLY AND WE HAVE TO DO SOMETHING What do the Lutheran Confessions teach about Predestination? (My Orthodox friends may find this view rather different from theirs. It might make for an interesting side-post.) Simply put, Lutherans (are supposed to) believe that the entire race of humanity is lost in sin and death because of Adam and Eve's trangsgression, but that God - in His own particular wisdom and secret counsel - has determined to save certain individuals by grace, through faith, for Christ's sake alone. The Lord knows who are His. He will accomplish their salvation through His own appointed means. While God cannot be blamed for humanity's rebellion, He is credited for showing mercy on a remnant. Jesus dies for all, but not all are elect. Yet the elect (read: those specifically chosen by God before the foundation of the world) will be saved through His ordinary means. The question for missions is this: will God save them with us (as servants of His will), without us, or in spite of us? It seems that in the LCMS a different model of Predestination is at work. The salvation of the elect is not dependant on God's secret decision from before the foundation of the world. Otherwise, why does our leadership illustrate the Ablaze! missions agenda by rapid finger snapping (snap, snap, snap, snap, etc.) and then say something to the effect of, 'This is people dying without knowing Jesus, and we need to do something about it.'?Read more: Paredwka: Dropping the Ball: LCMS Ablaze!
