Ecclesiologia by Revere Franklin Weidner

Last updated on: March 13, 2015 at 2:34 pm By Jordan Cooper

Our newest work in the Complete Works of Revere Franklin Weidner series is now available. This is his volume on ecclesiology in his eight volume Christian dogmatics. Here is the description: This is the eighth and final volume in Revere Franklin Weidner’s dogmatics series; this particular volume is on the doctrine of the church. In this work, Weidner addresses the essential issues regarding the study of ecclesiology. He discusses the Biblical teaching of the church, as well as its development... Read more

What Do the Two Kinds of Righteousness Have to do With Prayer?

Last updated on: March 10, 2015 at 5:12 pm By Jordan Cooper

Find out in this midweek Lenten sermon from Wednesday March 4, 2015. This is the second message in our series on spiritual disciplines (a hard topic for Lutherans to preach on!) Here is the message Read more

Two Kingdoms and Theonomy

Last updated on: March 10, 2015 at 1:01 pm By Jordan Cooper

On today’s program, I continued my discussion of Theonomy. I addressed several of the criticisms of my previous program, and addressed some of the ongoing conversation related to the debate between JD Hall and Joel McDurmon. I also tried to explain a historic Lutheran two kingdom approach to culture in contradistinction to claims by John Frame. Here is the program. Read more

The Two Kingdoms are Not the Church and the State

Last updated on: March 9, 2015 at 8:20 pm By Jordan Cooper

Lutherans are known for their distinctions: law and gospel, sin and grace, saint and sinner, etc. One of these distinctions is that between the kingdom of the right and the kingdom of the left. In popular terms, this is often called the “two kingdoms,” or sometimes the “two realms.” In some contemporary discussions, particularly among Reformed believers, this is also sometimes called “Escondido Theology” due to the theology of several professors at Westminster Seminary in California who adhere to their... Read more

Good Works Remain on Earth

Last updated on: March 8, 2015 at 10:22 pm By Jordan Cooper

We must, therefore, sharply distinguish between the proclamation of faith and good works, nevertheless, good works are only like the foliage of a tree or the fruit-apples, pears, or the like-that a tree produces. Faith, indeed, is a tree that produces foliage and fruit. Good works are meant to remain here below, on earth, among people, serving our neighbor’s welfare. Faith on the other hand, ascends on high, deals directly with God, receives the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation,... Read more

Habitual Sin and Perpetual Pardon, Power and Progress

Last updated on: March 7, 2015 at 8:49 pm By nathanrinne

Post by Nathan Rinne First of all, I’m developing a Twitter habit (you can follow me here, but please understand if I don’t follow you). I resolved to pay less attention to blogs this year (nothing wrong with blogs, just need to be doing other things), but now I’ve been sucked into reading Twitter posts (again, nothing wrong with Twitter….). Here’s what’s on my mind this morning…. Lutheran convert Daniel Emery Price just yesterday sent out a tweet that has... Read more

Were the Early Lutherans Theonomists?

Last updated on: March 7, 2015 at 11:07 am By Jordan Cooper

A few people have pointed me to a post in which it is argued that the early Lutherans did not believe in the two kingdom distinction, but were in fact Theonomists. The article can be found here. For those readers who are unfamiliar with the Theonomy movement, it is a contemporary movement which began in the 1960s-1970s with Rousas Rushdoony who argued that Old Testament civil laws should be applied in the state today. In contrast to this, Lutherans have... Read more

The Theonomy Debate

Last updated on: March 4, 2015 at 1:23 pm By Jordan Cooper

On today’s program I discussed theonomy in light of the recent debate between JD Hall and Joel McDurmon on the subject. I gave a brief history of the theonomy movement, explained a Lutheran view of the church and state, and gave a brief critique of the theonomic position, along with thoughts on the debate. Here is the program Read more

Facing Hostility, Can Some Christian Colleges Boldly Continue to Welcome All?

Last updated on: March 25, 2015 at 12:10 pm By nathanrinne

Post by Nathan Rinne How Christian colleges and universities in America can continue to be faithful to their calling – and continue to influence our society – is a very interesting question and will be more so in the years to come. Traditionally, many Christian colleges were founded in large part explicitly to serve the purpose of Christian education. This describes the colleges and universities of the Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod, of which I am a part. Initially, the... Read more

A Review of Luther on the Christian Life: Cross and Freedom by Carl Trueman

Last updated on: March 3, 2015 at 1:10 pm By Jordan Cooper

I am always a little wary of books written on Luther from those who are not part of the Lutheran tradition. Like Bonhoeffer and C.S. Lewis, every tradition wants to claim Luther as their own, and thus books on Luther often emphasize the particular aspects of his theology that are consistent with the author’s views. Though I have appreciated the work of Carl Trueman in the past, I will admit that I was somewhat cautious when approaching this volume, wondering... Read more