Tag Archives: Martin Luther

Forensic Friday: Who’s Lutheran Now?

By D. G. Hart | Published: August 19, 2011

From Luther’s sermon for the seventh Sunday after Trinity (1534): Thus St. Paul says: “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey: whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” and this means, as you now through grace are bound to… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption | Also tagged , , | 12 Comments

Where’s Waldo Wednesday: Can Union Comfort the Way Justification Does?

By D. G. Hart | Published: June 1, 2011

The following passage from Luther’s daily readings left me thinking: What more could God do? How could a heart restrain itself from being happy, glad, and obedient in God and Christ? What work or suffering could befall to which it would not gladly submit, singing with love and joyful praise to God? If it fails… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption | Also tagged , | 81 Comments

My Kind of Lutheran (about me, remember?)

By D. G. Hart | Published: April 29, 2011

First they gave us Martin Luther, then Garrison Keillor (okay, that one was indirect), and now Hans Fiene (thanks to our confessional Lutheran correspondent from Texas). You do have to love Christians who can be this orthodox and this funny. Mind you, I wouldn’t let Hans near the pulpit of our congregation, though he is… Read More→

Posted in Wilderness Wanderings | Also tagged , , | 20 Comments

Luther Answers the Question

By D. G. Hart | Published: April 20, 2011

Such justification is hidden not only from reason and the world but also from the saints. For it is not a thought, word, or work in us, but it is quite outside and above us, for it is Christ’s going to the Father, which means His suffering, Resurrection, and Ascension. And this does not take… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption, Piety without Exuberance | Tagged | 28 Comments

Desiring God or Faith in Christ?

By D. G. Hart | Published: March 3, 2011

I am falling behind on responses to the last post — the hazards of moving and orchestrating a relocation. TMI alert! But — dare I say — I am still leading family worship, pious Reformed Protestant that I try to be (TMI warning!), and this morning encountered the following from Martin Luther. It strikes me… Read More→

Posted in Piety without Exuberance, Shameless Selves Promotion | Also tagged , | 30 Comments

Where’s Waldo Wednesday: Reformed Monopoly?

By D. G. Hart | Published: February 16, 2011

. . . faith does not merely mean that the soul realizes that the divine word is full of grace, free and holy; it also unites the soul with Christ, as a bride is united with her bridegroom. From such a marriage, as St. Paul says, it follows that Christ and the soul become one… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption | Also tagged , , | 3 Comments

Two-Kingdom Tuesday: Making Luther Safe for the Baylys

By D. G. Hart | Published: December 21, 2010

One of the advantages of the holiday season is the excuse it gives for reading Protestants who follow the church calendar – in this case, Martin Luther. The Martin Luther Christmas Book is a wonderfully good read any time of the year, but since sermons, songs, and church events keep reminding us of the nativity… Read More→

Posted in Wilderness Wanderings | Also tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Act One, Scene Two: Kloosterman on Luther as Neo-Calvinist

By D. G. Hart | Published: October 25, 2010

I would not have thought it possible. “It” in this case is an effort to disassociate Martin Luther from two-kingdom theology. Most Reformed Protestants beyond the age of accountability understand intuitively, it seems, that Lutheranism goes wobbly in its Christian teaching because of the dualism that haunts it, thanks to Luther’s two-kingdom theology. Furthermore, when… Read More→

Posted in Neo-Protestantism | Also tagged , , , | 19 Comments

Where’s Waldo Wednesday: Cornering the Market on Suffering

By D. G. Hart | Published: August 18, 2010

During interactions with advocates of union with Christ I have frequently heard remarks that suggest this doctrine takes account of the believer’s suffering in breathtaking ways. In fact, union is apparently so effective in accounting for the miseries of this life that it needs to be a regular part of counsel and preaching to Christians.… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption | Also tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Where’s Waldo (A Day After) Wednesday

By D. G. Hart | Published: July 1, 2010

What you gotta like about this quote is the close proximity of justification and two-kingdom political theology. If water, the Spirit, and justification are what get you into the Kingdom of God, how exactly does that work for accounting? And the author even concedes that the claim is “hard” to accept, which might account for… Read More→

Posted in Application of Redemption | Also tagged , , , | 3 Comments