This was an image of the world and of God’s Church, showing how things have ever gone. But he who holds a mean between both, apprehends the right use of the Word and the sacraments.
OF GOD’S WORKS
As when he delivered the children of Israel out of the long, wearisome and heavy. God will have his servants to be repenting sinners, standing in fear of his anger, of the devil, death and hell, and believing in Christ.
OF THE NATURE OF THE WORLD
The god of the world is riches, pleasure, and pride, wherewith it abuses all the creatures and gifts of God. The highest wisdom of the world is to busy itself with temporal, earthly, and ephemeral things; and when these go ill, it says, Who would have thought it. Even so the contemners and enemies of the Word will disturb the peace, and turn Germany upside down.
The world is nothing but a reversed Decalogue, or the ten commandments backwards, a mask and picture of the devil, all contemners of God, all blasphemers, all.
OF IDOLATRY
Carlstad asked me: Should a man, out of good intention, erect a pious work without God’s Word or command, does he herein serve a true or a strange God. Now if this same honor and calling upon God be done according to God’s Word — that is, when a man expects from him all graces for the sake of his promises made unto us in Christ, then he honors the true, living, and everlasting God. Whoso hearkens not to God’s voice, is an idolater, though he perform the highest and most heavy service of God.
But let us stick to God’s Word in the Holy Scripture, namely, that Christ is true God with God the Father, and that the Holy Ghost is true God, and yet there are not three Gods, nor three substances, as three men, three angels, three sons, three windows, etc.
OF JESUS CHRIST
All the wisdom of the world is childish foolishness in comparison with the acknowledgment of Christ. And yet we must be conformable to the express image; of the Son of God. In person he was sent only to the Jews, and therefore he preached in the land of the Jews.
Paul names the Lord Christ, ministrum circumcisionis, by reason of the promise which God gave to the fathers.
OF THE HOLY GHOST
Scripture teaches that the Holy Ghost is he who makes alive, and, together with the Father and the Son, is worshipped and glorified. Therefore the Holy Ghost, of necessity, must be true and everlasting God with the Father and the Son, in one only essence. Our blessed Savior Christ himself preaches that the Holy Ghost is everlasting and Almighty God.
It must needs follow, that the Holy Ghost is true, eternal God, equal in power and might with the Father and the Son, without all end.
OF SINS
Yet these are nothing in comparison of contemning of God’s word; yea, all these would remain uncommitted, if we did but love and reverence that. But not to hear God’s word with diligence, yea, to contemn, to persecute it, of this man makes no account. The forgiveness of sins is declared only in God’s Word, and there we must seek it; for it is grounded on God’s promises.
The sins committed against the first table of God’s ten commandments, are not so much regarded by the world, as those committed against the second table.
OF FREE WILL
Hence, we conclude in general, That man, without the Holy Ghost and God’s grace, can do nothing but sin; he proceeds therein without. But when we divines speak of free will, we ask what man’s free will is able to accomplish in divine and spiritual matters, not in outward and temporal affairs: and we conclude that man, without the Holy Ghost, is altogether. It is the matter on which the Holy Ghost works (as a potter makes a pot out of clay), equally in those that resist and are averse,.
And again, so long as the Holy Ghost comes not into us, we are not only unable to do anything good, but we are, so long, in the kingdom of the devil, and do what is pleasing unto him.
OF THE CATECHISM
We should esteem and love the catechism, for therein is the ancient, pure, divine doctrine of the Christian Church. In all my youth I never heard any preaching, either of the Ten Commandments, or of the Lord’s Prayer. Also, ‘The Lord is nigh unto all those that call upon him; yea, all that call upon him faithfully.’ and, ‘He that calleth upon the name of the Lord, shall be saved.’.
Further, the Lord says: ‘And will visit the sins of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generations’, etc.
OF THE LAW AND THE GOSPEL
Paul is, where he says: ‘Through faith in Christ we are justified, and not through the works of the law.’ When, indeed,. Two learned men came to me, and asked whether the law of God revealed sin to people without the particular motion of the Holy Ghost. He that will dispute with the devil out of the law, will be beaten and taken captive; but he.
We are now conquerors of sin, of the law, of death, and of the devil;.
OF JUSTIFICATION
So that we plainly see, the true Christian faith is far different from the faith and religion of the pope and Turk. Faith is the dialectica, for it is altogether prudence and wisdom; hope is the rhetorca, an elevation of the heart and mind. Desert is a work nowhere to be found, for Christ gives a reward by reason, of the promise.
Patience is the most excellent of the virtues, and, in Sacred Writ, highly praised and recommended by the Holy Ghost.
OF PRAYER
It is impossible that God should not hear the prayers which with faith are made in Christ, though he give not according to the measure, manner, and time we dictate, for he will not be tied. Augustine; she prayed to God that her son might be converted, but as yet it would not be; then She ran to the learned, entreating them to persuade and advise him thereunto. Christ gave the Lord’s Prayer, according to the ideas of the Jews — that is, he directed it only to the Father, whereas they that pray, should pray as though they were to be heard for the Son’s sake.
Therefore we must have regard to the word; when God says’ thou shalt not pray, then we may well cease.
OF BAPTISM
We have hitherto protected and maintained the jurisdiction and rights of the Church, and still will do so, yielding not in the least to the temporal jurisdiction in causes belonging to doctrine and consciences. Twould lead to infinite disorder, for many people would then wholly dispense with the ministers of the Church.’. Faith comes of the Word of God, when this is heard; little children hear that Word when they receive baptism, and therewith they receive also faith.
When, in a difficult labor, the arm or leg of the child alone presents itself, we must not baptize that limb, under the idea that thereby the infant can receive baptism.
OF THE SACRAMENT OF THE LORD’S SUPPER
The elevation of the sacrament was taken out of the Old Testament; the Jews observed two forms, the one called Thruma, the other Trumpha;. Moreover, the words were to be spoken, without any abstraction of thought, in such a way, that only he must hear them that spake them, and none of the people standing by. The operative cause of the sacrament is the word and institution of Christ, who ordained it.
Question was made touching the words ‘given for you’, whether they were to be understood of the present administering, when the sacrament is distributed, or of when it was offered and accomplished on the cross.
OF THE CHURCH
For although the Church bathes her garment in the blood of the Lamb, and is colored over with red, yet she is more fair, comely, and beautiful than any state and assembly upon the face of the earth. Even so likewise the Church will by God be raised and wakened out of the grave, and become living again;. Thirdly, was the church at Alexandria; and still before the Romish, were the churches of the Galatians, of the Corinthians, Ephesians, of the Philippians, etc.
James received his orders, and was bishop, and where the pillars of the church had their seat.
OF EXCOMMUNICATION
Thou has a neighbor whose life and conversation is well known unto thee, but unknown to thy preacher or minister: When thou seest, this neighbor growing rich by unlawful dealing, living lasciviously, in adultery, etc.; that he governs his house and family negligently, etc.; then thou oughtest, Christian-like, to warn and earnestly admonish him to desist from his sinful courses, to have a care of his salvation, and to abstain from giving offense. For this command of Christ, touching the admonishing and warning a sinning brother, is even as necessary as this: ‘Thou shalt do no murder, thou shalt not commit adultery, not steal’, etc., seeing that when, either out of fear or for some other worldly respect, thou omittest this admonition, there depends thereon, not thy neighbor’s body and goods, but the salvation of his soul. For although many covetous persons, adulterers, etc., are among us;, yet they proceed so craftily, and in such sort act their sins, that we cannot detect them.
But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more’, etc.; and ‘If he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church.
OF PREACHERS AND PREACHING
Scarce the fiftieth part is applied to the profit of the Church; the rest he throws away; we obtain but the fragments under the table. A preacher ought to remain by the text, and deliver that which he has before him, to the end people may well. From the year of our Lord 1518, to the present time, every Maunday Thursday, at Rome, I have been by the pope excommunicated and cast into hell; yet I still live.
We ought to direct ourselves in preaching according to the condition of the hearers, but most preachers commonly fail herein; they preach that which.
