The only hope for idol-addicted sinners who are utterly incapable of decluttering their souls is Jesus, the one at the heart of the gospel, and the only one who stands before the Father with an undivided heart.
More than a friend, Amsdorf was also an important figure in the work of religious reform, providing counsel to Luther on key occasions, shepherding the churches, and defending the faith until his death.
Just as it is necessary that Christ took on flesh for our salvation, so too, it is necessary that he should be in the supper bodily

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In Christ Jesus, through faith, we’ve received everything we need for our bodies and lives, and life eternal.
These words not only rescue and defend; they also attack.
I rededicated my life as many times as I could when the guilt was unbearable. I would read my Bible more and pray more, yet I still struggled. I knew deep down, I was breaking God’s heart with my failure at being his child.
There is no comfort in naked sovereignty. A bully may be said to be “sovereign” over the elementary school playground, but that doesn’t bring much comfort nor does it promise security. We need something more than a God who is in control.
It is one thing to pray against death’s slow and aggressive assault on God’s creation. It is another to trust in the one who has conquered the grave.
It is that love, finally, which comes back again and again, not as an afterthought, but as the underlying theme of the entire section.
A change during a time of crisis is nothing new; it's an experience we can see throughout history.
Lack of effort isn’t the sworn enemy of fruit-bearing. Self-sufficiency is.
The good news of Jesus Christ guides us into godly worship, not self-worship.
“Who Am I?” edited by Scott Ashmon (1517 Publishing, 2020) is now available for purchase.
By basing our assurance on the promises of God, which we not only hope for in the future but live in now, the Christian can finally rest in the comfort that they are both saved and not responsible for their own salvation.
There is often no way forward for us without the prophetic lament, because such laments force out our honesty and resentment at the God who does not treat us as we expect to be treated.