The Secret Wireless

  John W. Theilen  October 16, 2023  I Corinthians 6:20 (KJV) O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth. May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen. To Mom, Jessica & Jason, Rebekah, Cindy, Glenn, to all the grandchildren, family and friends gathered here today; grace, mercy, and peace be with you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. The text that is given for your comfort today is Dad’s confirmation verse. I Corinthians 6:20, “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” “Ye are bought with a price.” John Theilen belongs to Jesus Christ. He was purchased 2000 years ago, not with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of God. The death of Jesus is the payment made for the redemption, the purchase, of the whole human race. The most precious substance in all the world, t...

  Some reactions to Matthew Bates’ Salvation by Allegiance Alone & Gospel Allegiance . Matthew Bates, associate professor of theology at Quincy University, has written two books ( Salvation by Allegiance Alone and Gospel Allegiance) that argue for a change in the way Christians, especially Protestants, talk about faith, the Gospel, justification, and salvation. This is not a book review, but more of a theological reaction to Bates’ arguments. These are just short observations. Obviously, to do justice to these arguments would take an entire book or two, and that is just not going to happen. First, the good.   In both Salvation and Gospel Allegiance Bates lays out what he believes should be the actual content of the Church’s Gospel. His summary looks a great deal like Saint Paul’s summary in First Corinthians 15 and the second article of the Apostles’ Creed. This is a needed reminder that a preacher is not called merely to talk about the Gospel, but is actually to ...

  Jesus teaches us to pray, finally, “Our Father…deliver us from evil.”                    What is the evil from which we are to pray to be delivered?   We have already prayed for deliverance from evils that plague and attack the body.   This happens when we pray for daily bread.   So that is included here.   We pray that God would take away all sickness, poverty, and hardship that harms our human flesh.                  Theft, war, bad leaders, angry neighbors, hurricanes, tornadoes, droughts, heat, and more.   There are so many bodily dangers in this world that it is impossible to name them all.   That is why Jesus summarizes them under the heading of daily bread.   These are evils from which we need to be delivered.        ...

Christian, your good deeds are not filthy rags or polluted garments in the sight of God. Yes, I know, this is every Lutheran pastor's favorite verse to quote when proclaiming the Law: We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. (Isaiah 64:6a) And to an extent this is true.  It is true for the person is is without faith, for the one who is apart from Christ.  The context of Isaiah 64 suggests not a faithful people redeemed by their God, but a stiff-necked people wantonly wallowing in their sin: "Behold, you were angry and we sinned; in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?" (Isaiah 64:5b) Men and women who have been baptized into Christ, however, are not in this state.  Christians are redeemed by the blood of Jesus and all their sin has been covered.  Their good deeds, therefore, do please God, despite their sin. Saint Paul declares in Romans 14:23, "Whatever does not proceeds f...

bigfoto.com You are a star.   But probably not the kind you think.   In modern America “star” has become synonymous with “celebrity”.   But that is not what I, nor Saint Paul, mean when we say that you are a star.                   “ Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life .” [Philippians 2:14-16a]                 You shine as lights in the world.   The word “lights” has the meaning of stars.   You shine as stars in the world, as you hold fast to the word of life.   But only as you hold fast to the word of life.           ...

I apologize for the bluntness of this statement, but it is NOT called the Law BUT Gospel distinction. It is called Law AND Gospel. God's Word of Law and Gospel are not to be separated, or even put in opposition to each other.  God is not a schizophrenic.  The Law is His good Word.  The Gospel is His good Word.  They have different content and different purposes, but they are both from God and are both good. The Law is God telling us how to act as human beings.  The Gospel is Him actually making us into human beings. The Law is His will.  It only seems like bad news to us because we ignore it.  The Gospel does not save us from the Law, but rather from our inability to keep the Law. So we should not hear sermons or read blog posts or articles that say, basically, that the Gospel frees us from the Law.  It does not. The Gospel sets sinners free from the accusations of the Law.  But we are never free from the content of the L...

Saint Paul wishes to see the Philippian Christians standing firm in one spirit and striving together for faith in the gospel.   This is the life worthy of the gospel of Christ, that they stand firm in the Spirit and faith that Paul gave to them, that they strive to remain in the one true faith.             This is Paul’s desire so much that he rejoices in his own suffering because it serves to advance the gospel in which they stand.   While he is imprisoned others have picked up the slack and proclaimed the Word of Christ in fearless fashion.   More people are preaching the gospel because Paul is in jail, and that makes him happy.             Paul desires them to stand and strive so much so that he is convinced that he should stay on this earth alive so that he may work harder and serve the Philippians with the gospel.   His greatest desire...