Wade Johnston, Life Under the Cross: A Biography of the Reformer Matthias Flacius Illyricus, Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis: MO, 2025.
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.
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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This is the first installment in our series, From Eden to Easter: Life and Death in the Garden. Each day throughout Holy Week, we will take a special look at the gardens and wildernesses of Scripture, and in particular, these scenes' connections to Christ's redemption won for us on the cross.
Every earthly kingdom meets its end. All empires crumble and fall. But from the beginning, the kingdom of God, which Christ would rule, was said to be eternal.
The Psalm now is this: as Christ suffered and then was exalted, so we are also in him.
Kleinig continually directs the reader's attention to Christ and his gifts.
God’s people get the warm feast of victory, while God’s meal is prepared cold.
Lent isn't simply a season. It's the Christian life in microcosm.
Jesus satisfies, fills, and saves because he is the Son of God, who, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns forever.
The cross traced in ashes isn’t a badge of honor or a mark of our works. It’s a reminder of Christ’s work.
In the liturgy, Christ is present, self-giving, and ever-addressing his people.
The liturgy ensures that the gospel is never something inward, merely a thought or sentiment of the believer.
By the end of this prayer of wrestling, David finally has the strength to claim victory over his lying enemies.
There is a “re” involved with baptism, but unlike the Anabaptists, it’s not a “re-do,” but a “re-turn" or a “re-member.”