Why We Need the Book of James in the New Testament Canon
In many ways, the book of James has not had an easy journey into the New Testament canon. We have few references to it in the earliest stages, it was doubted by some church fathers, and, of course, Luther himself referred to it as “an epistle of straw.”
However, we should be immensely grateful that God has preserved this book for us. Despite its detractors, the book of James provides essential theological balance for the key doctrinal debates in the church today. Several key contributions:
1. James reminds us that one can offer extended moral exhortations without being a “moralist.” In an effort to avoid the charge of “moralism,” many … Continue reading...
Sola Scriptura in Tabletalk
For the last week or so I have been helping my 9-year old son memorize Luther’s famous declaration at the Diet of Worms (1521) for a school project. As I helped him, I was struck again by Luther’s unwavering commitment to the scriptures as the ultimate guide for the Christian life:
…Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason (for I do not trust either in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God.
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The Real “7 Minutes of Terror”
I have been captivated this week the successful landing of the Mars rover Curiosity. NASA has gone to great lengths to explain that this mission is unprecedented in regard to its complexity, intricacy, and difficulty. In their fascinating video “7 Minutes of Terror,” the folks at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) describe the harrowing 7 minutes as the capsule enters the Martian atmosphere at 13,000 mph, deploys the strongest high-speed parachute ever built, then is slowed further by rockets, and then finally the rover is lowered to the surface by a complex “sky crane” maneuver—and all of this happens during the “black out” phase when there is no radio … Continue reading...