By Philip Bartelt

12/12/25

8mins

A Review of "Life Under the Cross: A Biography of the Reformer Matthias Flacius Illyricus" by Wade Johnston

Wade Johnston, Life Under the Cross: A Biography of the Reformer Matthias Flacius Illyricus, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis: MO, 2025.

Matthew L. Rubinstein

12/11/25

A Tale of Two Mothers

This ancient “tale of two mothers” concerns far more than theological semantics—it is the difference between a God who sends and a God who comes.

Christmas with the Herdmans: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Sam P. Schuldheisz

12/10/25

Christmas with the Herdmans: The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

This story points us from our unlikely heroes to the even more unlikely, and joyous, good news that Jesus’ birth for us was just as unlikely and unexpected.

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Pete Lange

01/31/22

No Going Back

The sword of the spirit in Holy Scripture does indeed show us our sin, but thanks be to God, it also shows us our Savior.

Ken Sundet Jones

01/28/22

Thomas Aquinas: The Doctor of the Church

Aquinas would craft a systematic theology that did with the matter of faith what Aristotle had done with the natural world.

Donavon Riley

01/26/22

God's Mercy Never Dries Up

Our hope is God's mercy. It's like a well that never dries up. His mercies were there before he created us. They are present for us today.

Bradley Gray

01/25/22

The Gods We Make vs. the God We Need

Even for idolatrous sellouts like you and me, God’s position has not changed. Even though we may have forgotten him, he never forgets us.

Philip Bartelt

01/19/22

The Anniversary of the Heidelberg Catechism

Not only does Scripture command us to maintain purity of doctrine and practice, it also commands us to reconcile with our brother, to seek to end division, and recognize common ground where there is common ground.

Bradley Gray

01/17/22

The God Who Relieves Every Burden

The imprecatory psalms are like release valves for hurting souls. Their stanzas are God-given spaces in which we can bear our soul’s torment.

Chad Bird

01/14/22

For Those Who Feel Unseen

Men and women are all caught in the universal machine of suffering that chews people up and spits them out. And in their respective griefs and fears, they are all wondering if God sees them, hears them, knows them.

Wade Johnston

01/14/22

Peace for Simeon, and Us

Our children are not our own, but even more, our children are born in need. They are sinful, from conception and from birth.

Ryan Stevenson-Cosgrove

01/12/22

Death and Rebirth in James McBride's Deacon King Kong

At its heart, this is what Deacon King Kong is all about: the paradox of Jesus carving his victory out of the last thing we expect, not our triumphs but our defeats.

Steve Byrnes

01/05/22

Remembering Those We've Lost During Christmas

Christians do have a hope that those who sleep in death will be awakened and their joy will never end, and we yearn for that day.

Pete Lange

01/04/22

Why We Sing at Christmas

The church’s song goes on and on, singing and ringing down to us today.

Wade Johnston

01/01/22

Circumcision of Our Lord

Christ has received the mark of law that we might be marked with the gospel, with the sign of his holy cross on our heads and hearts as redeemed children of God.

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