Order Gerhard's Commentary on Romans 1-6

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2014

Published: Gerhard's Commentary on Romans 1-6

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It has been almost two years since I began translating and posting excerpts here on Intrepid Lutherans from Johann Gerhard's much-quoted (and oft misquoted) commentary on Romans. The entire work has finally been translated and edited, and is now available from Amazon, published byRepristination Press.

Annotations on the First Six Chapters of St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans

Amazon's summary:

Romans 1:16—For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. (KJV)

“The ‘power of God’ is the divine and efficacious means which God uses to save men, (1) because in it the benefits obtained by the suffering and death of Christ are offered, among which are also life and eternal salvation; (2) because through the preaching of the Gospel, God works the faith in hearts through which they embrace the good things offered in the Gospel and apply them to themselves; (3) because through the Gospel faith is preserved and increased, so that we are thus ‘guarded for salvation by the power of God, through faith’ (1 Pet. 1:5); (4) because, in all adversities and temptations, it furnishes a life-giving consolation, so that we may be preserved to eternal life under the weight of the cross.”

Gerhard's Annotations were incomplete at the time of his death; his son, Johann Ernst Gerhard, published them several years after his death. However, the Annotations are of enduring value and significance to the Church because in these first six chapters, Gerhard gives a clear treatment of the doctrine of Justification, and a model of Lutheran exegesis. Modern students of Holy Scripture will benefit from Gerhard's scholarship.

Honestly, the book is full of memorable quotations. In this one Gerhard summarizes the main theme that runs through the entire Epistle to the Romans:

“[Romans 1:17] explains the principal proposition of the entire Epistle, as a favorable opportunity presents itself at the end of the introduction. This principal proposition is that there is no other way to be justified before God except by faith in Christ, whom the Gospel sets before us, as confirmed by the prophetic testimony.”

"Suet Yourself", Mrs I Said. Mesh Bags Impounded for Crafts

St. Francis of Springdale

My big worry for the winter was getting suet to the birds at a reasonable cost. The meat market sold me five pounds, but I needed mesh bags or another system to offer them to the birds.

I searched the Net and found mesh bags, which I ordered. The package was alarmingly small for 10 bags. Nevertheless, I decided to put them on the desk so I would fill them soon. Big mistake.

Mrs. I found the bags and said, "I need these for crafts." She carried them off, reminding me of Little Precious taking Sackett's bone away, carrying it in triumph as Sacky stared in disbelief.

I ordered a second set, large ones, and got this ominous response when they arrived - "I can store my little mesh bags in one of those."

Next on the shopping list - metal baskets for the suet - heavy, ugly, ones with rough edges.

I am still studying the gardening for birds book. It is organized by plants - which ones favor birds for food, nesting, etc. Look up lobelia and other flowers for the birds attracted.

And it is also organized in another part by birds - which flowers, bushes, or trees they like for food, nesting, etc. So - look up blue birds for all their favorites.

Many plants are popular with as many as 40 species. Berry plants attract a wide array of birds. So do sunflowers and hawthorns.

I never thought of trees feeding birds with their seeds, but maples and sycamores have seeds that birds enjoy.

God has created a wide variety of foods for birds, with an enormous overlap in what they need or love. They like soft lining for their nests, so I leave out tufts of Sassy's fur when I comb her.

Once I saw a robin tugging at string on my pea vines. She wanted that string for her nest and would not give up. Some people create baskets of parts for birds - string, lint, and so forth for their nests.

Winter Bonus
Birds want water for bathing, suet, and sunflower seeds in the winter. The colder it is, the more they need water for bathing and preening. My birdbath warmer - don't laugh - was extremely popular in Midland. Once I had about 50 birds lined up by twos to get in. Two would hop in, take a quick bath, and get pushed out. The next two would jump in. I put several gallons of water in each day during the coldest spells.

In Phoenix I ran the waterfall so the recesses were always full of water for drinking and bathing. Birds loved the sound of rushing water, two. Ironically, so many people watered and over-watered that there was always a supply for the birds in one yard or another, and often on the street as the automatics sprinklers overflowed the yard.

The compost pile can be a feeder too. Compost will be warmer in the winter, and there will be some action near the outside and on top when the heap is more mature. Birds will perch on it and grab their food when they see the movement.

Toad houses, perhaps not this splendid,
will attract slug-eating toads.

One Thing Leads to Another
I like bananas and cannot bear to throw the peels away. Instead, I compost them under a layer of newspaper. One place is near the leaky faucet, where two shallow dishes catch water for the birds to use. I realized that was handy for toads, too, and they love slugs.

Slugs are annoying and ugly but they do most of their work underground. By saving puddles of water I am sheltering the predators who get  rid of slugs for me. I have them in the back yard and the front yard, both near the faucets.

Last Big Yard Effort
I found dirt on sale at Lowe's. Torn bags were selling at a deep discount. Sassy and I bought some mulch and mushroom compost.

By trimming the trees I opened up the view to our no-man's-land alley. Some blocks have grassy stretches. We have the back view of storage sheds. I am going to screen that view with butterfly bushes and giant sunflowers. The bushes go in soon, The bushes called Bonnie are known for their size, bigger than any other.

This Mike Dirr selection was named after his wife, Bonnie, and if you know Mike, you know that it must be one fine buddleia! This giant deer resistant butterfly bush reaches 10 feet tall and is covered in large grey-green leaves, then topped from June until frost with large 10" panicles of very fragrant, light blue-violet (RHS 94D) flowers. This is a new color in the world of butterfly bushes to add to large gardens. - See more at Plant Delights: 

I will have a lot more butterfly and hummingbird friendly plants in that area - bee balm, borage, lobelia, butterfly weed, plus berry plants.

On my large, dead tree I will grow trumpet vine, which is popular with hummingbirds.

Trumpet vine - so tempting for the long-beaked hummingbirds.

Take the Miller Analogies Test

Here is one test question: 0, 1, 2, 3...
What is the next number of female executives in Luther-Episcopaldom?

Robin Steinke will be installed as the first...female...president of Luther Seminary.
October 12th.
Liz Eaton will preach as the first female ELCA Presiding Bishop.

The Miller Analogies Test is used to measure IQ, so I imagine Lutherans have a very low IQ overall. They do not see the next step coming.

Here is one question. Fill in the next number - 1, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13

The answers are:
15
17
19
9

If you marked 17, you are right. These are prime numbers, not just odd numbers.

Each next number or step seems to take Lutherans by surprise. They adjust to the new normal and find themselves shocked again with the latest development.

I used to read The Lutheran magazine cover to cover, and my mother kept all of them in order. I was friends with two editors in a row, and they published my articles. When we cut the magazines up into albums to show what had been happening, before I left the LCA, my wife and I were both shocked. We read the individual articles, but putting them into categories revealed all the trends.

As Mrs. I said, "I kept hoping that it was better than that. It was worse."

Left unpublished was the extent of LCMS-WELS involvedment with the LCA/ALC/ELCA.

An atheist played the witch in Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe.
Atheists play the role of synod leaders today.