Concordia Publishing House

In Luther’s day, there were any number of catechisms and catechetical materials. They were often extremely extensive and required the young people to memorize not only the Ten Commandments, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Creed, but also a list of seven spiritual gifts, seven cardinal virtues, the seven Sacraments, seven words of mercy, the eight beatitudes of God, and on and on and on. Luther cleared away the medieval clutter with his Small and Large Catechisms.

This post is adapted from the latest edition in Gerhard’s Theological Commonplaces series, On Justification through Faith.

Works-righteousness was as big of a theological issue in Gerhard’s time as it is in ours. So Gerhard went back to the primary source—the Bible—to see what God has to say about the topic. Here’s what he found.

On Christmas Day, 1881, C. F. W. Walther was invited to preach on predestination at a church in Macoupin County, Illinois. This day also coincided with the church’s anniversary, and Walther took the opportunity to address the intimidating topic in light of Ephesians 1:3–6. This sermon is featured in the newest volume in the Walther’s Works series, Predestination.

This twelve-chapter book has profoundly influenced how Christians understand prophecies concerning Christ through the rest of the Bible. And its practical message of remaining faithful to God despite the surrounding culture is powerfully relevant for us today.

With all the press that comes with being a pastor, it can be hard to focus on your ultimate calling: proclaiming the Word of God. That’s why Martin Luther’s “Sacristy Prayer” has been encouraging your brothers in the ministry for generations—both as you prepare to write sermons and as you stand to deliver those sermons.

The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper is Jesus’ gift to His Church. He wants us to extend our hand to receive it. We disrespect Him, our Lord and Savior, when we turn away from His gift of love. It’s kind of like going to Grandma’s house for Thanksgiving dinner. If we don’t show up, she is sure to ask us why we weren’t there: “I prepared the meal for you, but you didn’t come.” It’s Grandma’s meal, prepared just for us, and we turned away from it.

The following excerpt is taken from Dr. James Voelz’s commentary on Mark 1:1–8:26, part of Concordia Publishing House’s Concordia Commentary series.

Concordia Publishing House is pleased to announce the release of its twenty-sixth volume in the Concordia Commentary series: Galatians, by Dr. A. Andrew Das. What follows is Dr. Das’s commentary on Galatians 3:28 and 29.