ZITAT: 'Real Theology'

Unless I'm way off base with my basic translating skills (and have completely forgotten how to perform an accurate Google search!), I believe the English word "quote" (used as a noun as in "a quote") is translated to "zitat" in German. That will help to explain the strange "Z" word listed in the title of this post.

That being said, I'm always keeping my eyes and ears open for good Lutheran quotes that encourage prayerful consideration and deeper study of God's Word, His Sacraments, Christ's Church, and the Lutheran confessions of "the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints" (Jude 1:3). It helps me in my journey from American Evangelicalism to becoming a Confessional Lutheran (and not just a "Lutheran-In-Name-Only").

Here's the latest... 

Real Theology Begins And Centers In Christ 

As I have frequently advised, Christian and true theology does not present God to us in His majesty, as Moses and other doctrines do, nor does it command us to pry into the nature of God; but it orders us to acknowledge His will as set forth in Christ. It was God's will that Christ should assume flesh, should be born and suffer death for our sins, and that this should be preached among the peoples. Therefore if you are dealing with the doctrine of justification and arguing about finding the God who justifies and accepts sinners, about where and how you should look for Him, then know of absolutely no God outside this man Jesus Christ. Him you should embrace, to Him you should cling with all your heart, stopping your speculation about His majesty. For he who would pry into the majesty of God is overcome by His glory. I speak from experience and know what I am saying. 

[Few cautions occur more often in Luther's writings than the warning against attempting to know God apart from Christ, in His bare majesty. The ever-recurring words are almost proverbial: Scrutator enim maiestatis opprimitur a gloria.]  

*- Martin Luther  

(Ewald M. Plass, What Luther Says, St. Louis: Concordia, 1959, #4389.)

I know that seems like "common sense" but just listen to any episode of Fighting For The Faith with Chris Rosebrough and you'll quickly see that far too many so-called "preachers" and "teachers" intentionally ignore this very basic truth.

It's also why Luther himself lovingly lingered over passages such as Isaiah 53:5, which he commends to his classes as the very marrow of Scripture.

As Plass commented to introduce this Luther quote from 1531, "HE IS OUR GOD in Christ, though in Christ alone. Apart from Christ there is no saving and certain knowledge of God. The Reformer emphasizes this basic truth in his exposition of Galatians 1:3."

In a Lutheran layman's terms, "real theology" is the fact that you can find and know God only through His Word and His Sacraments, mainly in "the Word became flesh" (John 1:14), that is, in the Person and work of His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. 

NOTE: As you know, I am a newly converted Confessional Lutheran who recently escaped American Evangelicalism. That being said, please contact me ASAP if you believe that any of my "old beliefs" seem to have crept their way into any of the material you see published here, and especially if any of the content is not consistent with our Confessions and Lutheran doctrine (in other words, if it's not consistent with God's Word, which our Confessions merely summarize and point us back to) so that I can correct those errors immediately and not lead any of His little ones astray (James 3:1). Finally, please be aware that you might also discover that some of the earlier pieces I wrote on this blog back in 2013 definitely fall into that category since I was a Lutheran-In-Name-Only at the time and was completely oblivious to the fact that a "Book of Concord" containing our Confessions even existed. In addition, there are some entries that are a little "out there" so-to-speak since the subject matter was also heavy influenced by common Evangelical concerns/criticisms that perhaps wouldn't be too big a deal for us Lutherans. I know that now and I'm still learning. Anyway, I decided to leave those published posts up on this website and in cyberspace only because we now have this disclaimer and only to demonstrate the continuing work of Christ and the Holy Spirit in my life (Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 1:6). Finally, please know that any time we engage in interpreting a specific portion of Scripture exegetically, it will always follow the verse-by-verse notes from my Lutheran Study Bible unless otherwise noted. Thank you for stopping by and thank you in advance for your time, help, and understanding. Grace and peace to you and yours!

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