Luther: What You Don't Say

Nielsen: Jesus' Compassion

The quote in the meme is actually the first line. Here is the full quote:

"Jesus’ compassionate touch and protective hands are for all people, regardless of size and importance in this world. In fact, He is especially compassionate and protective of those who are on the bottom of the social ladder—children, lepers, tax collectors, prostitutes, and sinners. He welcomes the helpless, the hurting, those most likely to be trampled, and those who can bring Him nothing in return. No one is too small or insignificant to be blessed by Jesus’ hands."

Rev. Dr. Glenn A. Nielsen, Professor, Director of Vicarage, Concordia Seminary, St. Louis.

What are we doing to touch those on the bottom of the social ladder ?

Bonhoeffer: Sermon

If choosing to obey God and His commandments means life, then we might also learn something about the cost of that from Lutheran pastor and teacher, Dietrich Bonheoffer. Besides his books, and his dedication to the German underground church during the reign of Adolph Hitler, he was, among other things, known for his quotes. “One act of obedience is better than one hundred sermons.”  His best known book, The Cost of Discipleship, explained the choices of life or death as “cheap grace” vs. “costly grace.”

 Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate. Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it, a man will gladly go and give all that he has…it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows Him. Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again and again … costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of His Son: “ye were bought at a price,” and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. 

Love all the above but this quote to me reminds me that we better be more than preaching / teaching.

Vivsingh did a post on "15Brilliant Quotes On and Around Faith" and good ole Martin Luther came in at #10. If you want to check out his top 15, you can do that here.

I know that I struggle with laughter at times. I love the picture of laughter and I love the quote of Luther on the photo. Individuals may argue the theological component of the meme or his statement but I think that we need to connect Faith & Laughter a little more.

Root: Playing House

The quote is from Andrew Root. I have been following Andrew Root for awhile and have always enjoyed listening to him speak. I especially enjoy his thoughts on youth & family ministry and the concept of place sharing. I recently went to hear him at the Equipping Congregations event we had at Southwest Minnesota Synod. For those of you who may have not ran across him; here is a little information:

Andrew Root joined Luther Seminary in 2005 as assistant professor of youth and family ministry. Previously he was an adjunct professor at Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington D.C., and Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton, N.J. 

Root received his bachelor of arts degree from Bethel College, St. Paul, Minn., in 1997.  He earned his master of divinity (2000) and his master of theology (2001) degrees from Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, Calif.  He completed his doctoral degree from Princeton Theological Seminary in 2005.

The Quote

The quote comes from the following book: The Promise of Despair: The Way of the Cross as the Way of the Church (Living Theology). if you want more information on the book or interested in purchasing it; you can find the description here on Amazon.

I think that too many times, we are just "playing"

Luther: Gospel

The quote is attributed to Luther throughout books and quote sites. However, there is no direct place that individuals can point to where Luther mentioned this concept.

The thought comes from Puritan thought-process. Here is their thought:

God had given us two books; the book of nature and the book of revelation.

Many individuals are uncomfortable with the statement and even think that Luther would not mention this concept. However, there can be some Scriptural thought to consider and it comes from the Book of Romans (Chapter 1):

 18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse 

Charles Plauger wrote the following in a discussion on the quote and the meaning:

 I'm not sure if Luther wrote this or not. But, the context of the statement is of the utmost importance. God does display the gospel outside of scripture, for God himself resides outside of scripture. His love and glory exist beyond such bounds, and so they can be readily seen in all of his creation

I love the statement and believe it is true. What do you think of the quote ?

Bonhoeffer: We Are Sinners

 Confess your faults to one another

In the book of James, we have the following Scripture. It is from James chapter 5 and is found in verses 13-18. The version is the New American Standard Bible.

 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.  Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.

The fact is that we are sinners

The fact that we are sinners comes from a quote in Bonhoeffer's book Life Together: The Classic Explanation of Faith in Community (pg. 112):

“He who is alone with his sin is utterly alone. It may be that Christians, notwithstanding corporate worship, common prayer, and all their fellowship in service, may still be left to their loneliness. The final breakthrough to fellowship does not occur, because, though they have fellowship with one another as believers and as devout people, they do not have fellowship as the undevout, as sinners. The pious fellowship permits no one to be a sinner. So everybody must conceal his sin from himself and from the fellowship. We dare not be sinners. Many Christians are unthinkably horrified when a real sinner is suddenly discovered among the righteous. So we remain alone with our sin, living in lies and hypocrisy. The fact is that we are sinners…All sham has ended in the presence of Christ. The misery of the sinner and the mercy of God – this is the truth of the Gospel in Jesus Christ.”

If you are interested in buying the book, here is the link for the book on Amazon

The bold in both the Scripture and book that are bolded are my bolds. I have them "marked" because they are the words and phrases that I used for the meme.