Is the "Gospel in the Stars"? or the Distinction Between Nature and Grace

In 1882 the Lutheran minister Joseph A. Seiss (1823-1904) published the provocative volume, The Gospel in the Stars, Or, Prímeval Astronomy (Philadelphia: E. Claxton & company, 1882). Evidently it found an audience and it has been reprinted as recently as the early . . . Continue reading →

Ursinus on True Thankfulness

Note: Zacharias Ursinus was the primary author of the Heidelberg Catechism. The comments below come from his lectures on the catechism that were authorized by the Elector Palatinate, Frederick III. Happy Thanksgiving. § Having now considered the misery of man, and his . . . Continue reading →

Audio: Exposition of the Nine Points (Pt 8): Defining Grace and Faith

Exposition of the Nine Points (pt 8)-Defining Grace and Faith We reject the errors of those: who teach that Spirit-wrought sanctity, human works, or cooperation with grace is any part either of the ground of our righteousness before God or any part . . . Continue reading →

What Does an Alcoholic/Addict Need?

The question came up recently about how Christians should think about the “12-Step” programs that treat alcoholism/addiction as a disease and that catechize alcoholics/addicts into deism. More than twenty years ago I began to try to address these issues in a paper. . . . Continue reading →

The Inquisition Isn’t Over, It Just Changed Clothes

RNS has a story today about the Vatican’s policy of “pontifical secrecy.” Read the story. The approach Rome is taking toward the problem of sex abuse by priests reminds one of the policies followed in the inquisition. What was established for the . . . Continue reading →

"Tough Grace" Is Not Grace (and It’s Not Law Either)

In an unsigned editorial yesterday CT came out in favor of what it calls “tough grace.” The presenting issue or symptom is CT’s concern that Christian institutions are failing to be both “tough” and “gracious” simultaneously. The argument is that the fall . . . Continue reading →

Office Hours: Fesko on the Fruit of the Spirit, Isaiah, and Practical Arminianism

In this episode Office Hours talks with Dr John Fesko, Academic Dean and Associate Professor of Systematic Theology at WSC and author of The Fruit of the Spirit Is about the nature of the Christian life and especially about whether sanctification (growth . . . Continue reading →