Today is the festival of the Lutheran Reformation. The central article upon which the church stands or falls, the article that got Luther into a whole mess of trouble, is the doctrine that we are justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone. We are saved and forgiven, not by what we do, but...
The New Testament reading from the Treasury of Daily Prayer today is Matthew 20:1-16, the parable of the Laborers in the Vineyard. The story goes saying, "For the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. 2 After...
On Sunday, October 29th, we are beginning a walk through St. Paul's letter to the Saints in Rome. Luther makes the point that before you begin reading any book of the Bible, you have to know what the words of the Bible mean. For example, it is necessary to have a proper definition of the word...
Today is the commemoration of Faithful Women like Dorcas, Lydia, and Phoebe. Phoebe was a Deaconess who carried St. Paul's epistle to Rome, and Lydia was maker of purple dye that, upon hearing the Gospel through the mouth of St. Paul, became a ardent follower of the Way. Dorcas was a generous...
The Gospel reading in the Treasury of Daily Prayer today is the account of the Transfiguration. Jesus took Peter, James, and John up on a mountain, and before their eyes, was transfigured. He became as white as light and revealed to these three pillars His Divine Nature. With Jesus appeared...
In his writing, No Rusty Swords, Dietrich Bonhoeffer writes, "It is a great comfort which Christ gives to His church; you confess, preach, bear witness to Me and I alone will build where it pleases Me. Do not meddle in what is My province. Do what is given to you to do well and you have done...
Luther speaks of the 1st Petition of the Lord's Prayer saying, "Hallowed be Thy Name. What does this mean? God's Name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be kept holy among us also. How is God's Name kept holy? God's Name is kept holy when the Word of God is...
In his work against Desiderius Erasmus' theology of free choice, "The Bondage of the will," Luther wrote concerning the law and its purpose asserting, "When sins are unrecognized, there is no room for a remedy and no hope of a cure, because man will not submit to the touch of a healer when they...
In his preface to the book of Romans, Luther defines faith saying,"Faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace, so sure and certain that the believer would stake his life on it a thousand times" (LW 35.370). What is faith? It is a certain trust in God's grace toward us. Faith is...
Luther writes in the Small Catechism saying, "Our Father who are in heaven. What does this mean? With these words God tenderly invited us to believe that He is our true Father and that we are His true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask Him as dear children ask their...