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Saturday, April 12, 2014

Walther sermons: ELS sampler, Baseley cross ref.; greatest sermons since Reformation century

     My series presenting Walther's "LDJ" essay (see Part 1 for Table of Contents) has reached the half-way point and the season of Lent draws to a conclusion with Palm Sunday and Holy Week upcoming.  I want to insert a special post regarding Walther's sermons and, in the next post, especially about one sermon that filled my heart with joy, and truly gave me "mental health".  This ties in well with what Walther presented in his essays on the Lutheran Doctrine of Justification.
     In 1978, the "little Norwegian" synod, the Evangelical Lutheran Synod or "ELS" , published a book with a selection of C.F.W. Walther's sermons translated into English.  It is evident the old ELS regarded Walther's sermons very highly... something that is lacking today.  (Why have they eliminated all reference to the Brief Statement in their Doctrinal Statements?)  These sermons were extracted from several books of Walther's sermons in German that had gone untranslated until Pastor Joel Baseley completed his wonderful book translations 30 years later in 2008.  So I want to present below the Table of Contents of this ELS book (that is still available for only $15!) cross referenced to Pastor Baseley's translations in Google Books... and available in print!  There is one sermon that came from a book not translated by Baseley.  It was taken from Walther's Gnadenjahr sermon book and I have taken the liberty to use the translation from D.E. Heck in his Year of Grace book.
     I am dedicating this cross reference table not only to the old ELS, but also to Pastor Ralph Fisher (1924-1998) who maintained a personal library containing Walther’s German sermon books and passed them on to Pastor Joel Baseley before he died.  May Pastor Fisher’s faithfulness to the pure Lutheran teaching live on through Pastor Baseley’s translations of … C.F.W. Walther.  (see Rev. Baseley’s dedication in his Occasional Sermons and Addresseshere)

THE WORD OF HIS GRACE
Occasional and Festival Sermons
By C.F.W. Walther
Translated and Edited by
the Evangelical Lutheran Synod
Translation Committee

Graphic Publishing Company, Inc.
Lake Mills, Iowa
1978
––––––––––––––––––––
CONTENTS
Occasional Sermons
THE NEW LIFE
Pg……..Sermon
1........Righteous through Faith–Rom. 4:16
 9…....Born Again!–John 3:1-15
MISSIONS
17….....The Mission Society Established by God– Is. 43:21
EVANGELISM
27........The Proper Way To Confess Christ–John 1:19-28
THE WORD (Reformation)
35….....Luther–Called by God To Restore the Gospel–Rev. 14:6-12
47…..The Lutheran Reformation: Genuine and Complete–2 Cor. 13:8, 9
56........Apostasy after Luther's Death–Judges 2:6-23
THE WORD (Bible Festival)
64........The Divine Character of the Scriptures–John 6:66-69
70….....Becoming Sure of Scripture Truth–John 7:17
THE WORD (Synod)
77….....Loyalty to the Confessions–2 Tim. 1:13-14
86….....Our Common Task: The Saving of Souls–1 Tim. 4:16
94........Preservation in the Word of Truth–Psalm 119:43
106......Glorious Challenge–Difficult Task–(No Text)
LAYING OF CORNERSTONE (Seminary)
114......Eternal Truth–Not Passing Wisdom–(No Text)
DEDICATION (Church)
120......Serve the Lord with Gladness–Psalm 100
129......The New Jerusalem–Rev. 21:1-5
INSTALLATION (Pastor)
137......Helpers of your Joy–2 Cor. 1:24
144......War–God's Call to Repentance–Jer. 5:3
152......A Fourth of July Address–(No Text)
DISASTER
159......God's Purpose in His Judgments (Cholera)–Jer. 30:11
167......What our God Is Telling us (Fire)–Hosea 8:14
WEDDING
174......Husband and Wife–Christ and the Church–Eph. 5:24-25
FUNERAL
178......Untimely Death of the Upright (Husband)–Isaiah 57:1 b, 2
183......A Song of Jubilee at the Grave (Wife)–1 Cor. 15:54 b, 55-57
Festival Sermons
187......Advent: The First Promise of a World-Savior–Gen. 3:15
194......Christmas: Christ's Birth the Key to our Birth–Luke 2:1-14
202....Adoration of the Angels–A Summons To Praise God–Haggai 2:6,7
208.....New Year's Day: Our Confidence in the New Year–Luke 2:21
216.....Epiphany: Arise, Let the Light Shine–Is. 60:1-6
224......Good Friday: The Importance of Christ's Death–Mark 15:39
229....Easter: Christ's Resurrection–the World's Absolution–Mark 16:1-8
237......Pentecost: The True Nature of the Church–John 14:23-31
246...........The Gospel Gives the Spirit–Acts 2:1-13
253.  Good Shepherd Sunday: The Blessed State of Jesus' Sheep–John 10:11-16

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It goes without saying that a purchase of Walther's sermon books from both the ELS and Pastor Baseley is money well spent.  My printed book from the ELS contains many written notations of the joy Walther's sermons gave me as I returned to my Christian faith.

In the next post, I want to highlight the one sermon I hold as Walther's greatest sermon...

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