Saturday, July 23, 2016
John 3:16-17 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
IN THE HEART OF SCRIPTURE STANDS CHRIST CRUCIFIED
Christ is the Spirit's Constant Refrain in Scripture -- The Holy Spirit would bind us solely to the Man called Jesus Christ, God's only Son. The thought before us is frequently found in John's Gospel, as if the Holy Spirit could preach nothing other than the only Son of God and Mary, and as if the poor Man, the Holy Spirit, knew nothing besides. This sounds very ridiculous to the sensible and wise of this world, as the poet says: "A lute player who always plays only one little song is laughed at." Just so the world ridicules the Holy Spirit as a player able to strum on one string only. But such very wise masters -- who are able to teach the Holy Spirit how to talk -- are a rule unto themselves and need neither God nor the Holy Spirit.
Christ Makes Himself the Center -- Christ thereby gives us real ability to explain Moses and all the prophets. He tells us clearly that Moses with all his stories and figures points to Him, refers to Him, and means Him in the sense that He is the Center from which the entire circle has been drawn and towards which it looks and that whoever directs himself to this Center belongs in the circle. For Christ is the central spot of the circle; and when viewed aright, all stories in Holy Scripture refer to Christ.
What Is The Bible Without Christ? -- What matter of more sacred importance can lie hidden in Scriptures now that the seals are broken, the stone is rolled from the sepulcher, and the greatest of all mysteries is brought to light: Christ, the Son of God made Man -- God, Triune and yet one, Christ, who suffered for us and will rule eternally? Take Christ out of the Scriptures, and what else will you find in them?
(quotes of Martin Luther, from "What Luther Says -- An Anthology," Volume 1, pages 147-148)
