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Sanctification As Confessed By Luther In His Catechisms, Ernest Bernet

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The problem with the doctrine of sanctification is multifaceted. However, Senkbeil, in the above material, has identified for us two main facets in the problem: 1) speaking of justification without properly addressing sanctification, and 2) speaking of sanctification without properly addressing justification. The respective results of these problems are: 1) the whole matter seems to be God’s doing, or 2) the whole matter seems to be our doing.

In order to sift through these issues in sanctification which Senkbeil identifies, I propose for this study that we begin with a semantic method rather than speaking immediately in the traditional doctrinal …

Ordination Liturgies, The Call Process, And The Office Of The Ministry In The Landeskirche Of Braunschweig-Wolfenbuttel, 1569-1815, Kent Burreson

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Therefore this study intends to examine the rites on their own merit as historical evidence of the theological understanding of church and ministry that arose in a specific context—a contextual-historical study of rites concerned with forming pastors. As Smith asserts, "Liturgical events such as ordination do not occur in a vacuum. They are supported by an attendant structure which influences the way in which they are experienced and understood. The political, cultural, theological, and ecclesiastical context will be considered in order to determine the milieu and mindset in which the rites were framed and celebrated." Having determined the context, its …

Luther And The Third Use Of The Law, With Special Reference To His Great Galatians Commentary, Jeffrey G. Silcock

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The question of whether Luther taught a third use of the law is far too broad for a thesis. We will therefore confine ourselves, in the main, to his great Galatians Commentary of 1531 / 1535, where he explicates in considerable detail the doctrine of justification and the proper distinction between law and gospel.4 Even though the nature of the letter is such that Paul speaks there more about justification than about sanctification, Luther still writes enough about the role of the law in the Christian life to warrant using this as our primary source. There are two main reasons …

The Relationship Of Christ And Faith In Luther’S Great Galatians Commentary (1531/1535), Section 2:16-21, Luisivan Veller Strelow

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Luther’s language. is not always .easily understandable in his description of how Christ and faith are related so that faith in Christ justifies with the exclusion of works. Luther refers to the "present Christ" and says, "Therefore faith justifies because it takes hold of and possesses this treasure, the present Christ.” Luther says also that Christ is "the form of faith," and that Christ and the believer are "as one person.” How is this language to be understood? In contrast to some authors who isolated these phrase. and interpret them in a way which goes against their own context, the …

An Analysis Of Justification By Faith, Laverne Janssen

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

A critical evaluation of this topic is practical today for a variety of reasons. Many Lutherans today earnestly desire a consensus on the gospel with the Roman Catholic Church. This desire is often misdirected by a lack of crucial information on the respective Lutheran and Roman Catholic teachings on justification today. The responsible pastor must provide the doctrinal information that is lacking. A restatement of the Roman Catholic position of Trent by the Lutheran pastor will not usually satisfy the questions of those who have witnessed what appear to be basic changes in the Roman Catholic Church in our generation.

The Doctrine Of Scripture In Fundamentalist Theology A Lutheran Appraisal, Terry Forke

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The analysis of these four sources will form the body of this paper. The comparison will support the thesis that there is an appropriate distinction to be made between the fundamentalist and the traditional Lutheran doctrine of Scripture. This distinction is made in the hope that further discussion may be facilitated by the avoidance of unnecessary conflict due to the misuse of the term "fundamentalism" as applied to the Missouri Synod.

Augustine’S Theology Of The Sacrament Of The Altar As Understood From His Theory Of “Signum” And “Res”, Leo Fuhr

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Augustine's Platonic way of thinking causes him to see the things of this world as signs that point to a world beyond. Within the context of this way of thinking, that is, from lower to higher, from outer to inner, from visible to invisible, from temporal to eternal, we will seek to analyze his theology of the sacrament. In order to do this, this paper will examine the terms siqnum and res as employed by Augustine in his theory of sign and in his definition of sacrament. That, in turn, may enable us to re late this theory to his …

Justification In The Eastern Orthodox Churches (A Comparative Study), Eshetu Abate

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The topic of this Thesis, Justification in the Eastern Orthodox Churches, is prompted by the document which recently came out of the U.S. Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue on the doctrine of Justification by faith alone, work which took more than five years ending in September 1983. To one who comes from the East, especially from Ethiopia, a country where half of the population is Orthodox, the reading of the publicity on this dialogue and its outcome raised the question: "How do the Orthodox Churches in the East think about justification by faith alone?" The incubation of this idea yielded the present …

Melanchthon's Understanding Of The Will In The Loci Communes, Richard Osslund

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

It is a commonplace among many Lutheran theologians that Philip Melanchthon was a synergist. The purpose of this study is to evaluate this theological judgment on the basis of Melanchthon’s Loci of 1521, 1535, 1543, 1555, and 1559. The conclusion of this study is that Melanchthon's writings do not support the charge of synergism which has been directed against him. It is not the intention of the author to ascribe malevolence or lack of scholarly integrity to those who have described Melanchthon's position as synergistic. There are reasons for the historical judgment that Melanchthon was "the father of synergism in …

The Doctrine And History Of Worship In The Reformed Presbyterian Church Of North America, John Delivuk

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

As the smaller, conservative Presbyterian churches have moved towards merger, one doctrinal problem has emerged. It is the position of the Reformed Presbyterian (Covenanter) Church of North America (RPC) on worship. The Reformed Presbyterian Church holds to the traditional Reformed positions of a capella singing and the exclusive use of the Psalms for singing in worship. This thesis was written to explain Reformed Presbyterian worship. The questions that it attempts to answer are: What is the historical basis for Reformed Presbyterian worship? What is the doctrinal basis for Reformed Presbyterian worship? What, if any, have been the changes in Reformed …

A Beauty Walk A Systematic Compendof Navajo Theology, Walter Snyder

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The doctrine of god will itself be the subject of five chapters. These five chapters will treat the subjects of: The First God; The Former Gods; The Latter Gods; The Present Gods; and, Demonology. There was a serious question whether the last two chapters should come under the doctrine of god or not. The first thought was that they should be under the separate categories of angelology and demonology since they both dealt with spirits. However, in both instances these are spirits that are worshipped. Therefore, the final decision was that they should properly go under the doctrine of god. …

The Doctrine Of Sanctification As Portrayed In Spener's Pia Desideria In Light Of The Lutheran Confessions, Francis Monseth

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The writer believes there is a need for a fresh study of the doctrine of sanctification. In the area of Christian ethics, a variety of views have found earnest adherents. Though various approaches have been advocated, three main categories are seen by the writer to be able to encompass the present spectrum: antinomianism, legalism, and truly biblical Christian living. The latter is given expression in the Lutheran Confessions. It is marked by pronounced emphasis upon the inseparability of justification and sanctification. Indeed, as A. T. Mollegen has expressed it, the whole of Protestantism in its historic confessions has derived its …

Key 73: A Case Study In The Doctrine Of Church Fellowship, Curtis Peterson

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

This study is presented with the hope that it can help establish confessional Lutheran evangelistic and missiological practice on the bedrock of sound, Biblical and Confessional doctrine. The specific theological concern of this presentation is the doctrine of church fellowship. Key 73 is an excellent place to begin such a study because it is especially in evangelism and mission practice that the pressure to unite without prior doctrinal agreement is the greatest. "Conservatives” are particularly vulnerable to these temptations, because of their zeal for reaching the lost with the Gospel. Those who believe that there is salvation in no other …

The Role Of Lutheran Theology In India Today, James Canjanam Gamaliel

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

As I write, I have in mind the pastors and lay leaders of the nine Lutheran Churches of India. The topics treated in this thesis will be useful for group discussions in congregations so that the people and the pastors will realize the heritage of the Lutheran Church. How the five doctrines chosen are crucial in facing the specific problems and opportunities the church in India is facing will be shown in each chapter. In evaluating the contribution of Lutheran theology, the doctrines promulgated by the Second Vatican Council and some Roman Catholic scholars will al.so, when relevant, be referred …

Principals Of Biblical Interpretationin The Lutheran Confessions, Ralph Bohlmann

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Basic and preliminary to the above investigation, however, is an understanding of the principles of biblical interpretation employed in the Lutheran Confessions. The setting forth of these principles and the presuppositions upon which they rest is the primary purpose of this paper. In our investigation we shall give primary attention to confessional statements referring explicitly to biblical interpretation and to examples of biblical interpretation within the confessions that illustrate hermeneutical principles.

The Doctrine Of Baptism As An Ecumenical Factor, Elvin Janetzki

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

This ecumenical problem of apparent unity in disunity is the starting point for this study. All aspects of the problem, however, cannot be fully investigated here, so it has been narrowed down to show how a major ecumenical organization, The World Council of Churches, through its Assemblies and Commissions has become increasingly interested in the doctrine of Holy Baptism, to investigate why it has done so, and to trace the attempts it has made to formulate a doctrine of Baptism that it is hoped will resolve the problem of unity in disunity to the satisfaction of all concerned.

A Survey Of Recent Teaching On Holy Scripture In Selected American Lutheran Theologians, Leander Waechter

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

In this thesis the writer intends to investigate the doctrine of Holy Scripture as this doctrine is set forth and expounded among leading American Lutheran theologians. As the title indicates, the primary objective of this study is a survey, involving: (a) investigation and research: (b) analysis: (c) presentation and summary

Pieper's Principium In Its Historical-Theological Setting, David Meyer

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

My purpose is not merely to seek a critical and objective analysis of Pieper’s understanding of Scripture as the present-day principium theologiae, but my purpose is to reproduce Pieper’s theology of the principium against the backdrop of his theological world as he saw it.

A Study Of Epistemology In The Theologies Of Emil Brunner, Martin Heinecken, Taito Kantonen, And Joseph Sittler, John Heinemeier

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Chapter I of the paper will deal with Brunner and Chapter II with Heinecken, Kantonen and Sittler in comparison to Brunner. The concluding section will summarize Brunner’s position, evaluate the comparison made between his position and that of the three Lutherans, and raise several questions for further investigation in this field.

Philip Melanchthon's Doctrine Of The Holy Eucharist, Randell Tonn

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

This dissertation is an attempt to determine, primarily on the basis of his own major writings, opinions and letters, the doctrine of the Holy Eucharist as taught, believed and confessed by Philip Melanchthon. The question we seek to answer is: “What was Philip Melanchthon’s doctrine of the Holy Eucharist?" This question is deliberately phrased to exclude the question, "What do other commentators say that he taught and believed?" On the basis of his own words, we seek to determine what is Melanchthon saying about the Eucharist; not what might he be interpreted as saying; what would we prefer him to …

The Concept Of Predestination According To Martin Luther And John Calvin, Won Yong Ji

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Only Saint Augustine and Martin Bucer are mentioned, in the paper, in conjunction with Luther and Calvin. · Luther and Calvin are the two men who are to have the spotlight focused upon them. The question is what is their doctrine of predestination? What do they teach and write and think and believe about predestination? Hence the primary purpose of this thesis is to analyze and synthesize Luther's and Calvin's views on predestination, and to compare them with each other. To be correct, we shall have to make a distinction between “Luther's views” and ''Lutheran views," ~ and between “Calvin's …

Luther And Brunner On Creation, Henry Reimann Jr

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The present thesis grew out of several desires. One was to study a phrase of Luther’s theology. Another was to become more a acquainted with a representative modern theologian. A study of the theocentric theology in Luther and Brunner was suggested to meet these desires. This very broad subject; was limited to one specific doctrine in Luther's and Brunner’s theology, the doctrine of Creation.

Die Lehre Von Der Kirche Bei Luther, C.F.W. Walther Und In Der Neueren Neutestamentlichen Forschung, Reinhart Mueller

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The Doctrine of the Church by Luther, C.F.W. Walther and in Newer New Testament Research

St. Augustine's Theology Of Grace, John Van Lierop

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

As a result of my study it is my conv1·ction that Grace is the heart of the Gospel - and that with all the talk about Ecumenical Christianity today, I believe it will be hopeless to strive for one great "World Church" unless there is first an agreement and unity about the Theology of Grace, which is the foundation-stone of all Theology.

The Doctrine Of The Church And Ministry According To Dr. Walther, In Relation To The Romanizing Tendencies Within The Lutheran Church, Waldemar Streufert

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

When one studies the writings of Dr. Walther in the field of the doctrine of the Church and the Ministry, one cannot fail to notice his peculiar approach to this locus of theology. In employing the word 'peculiar; we do so advisedly. In a certain sense, he expresses the same doctrine proclaimed by the martyrs of apostolic days. In this respect, Walther is ecumenical, not peculiarly original. On the other hand, placing his theories beside the theories of his contemporaries, we must admit that Walther is an exception to the rule.

Doctrine Of Verbal Inspiration And Its Opponents, Wallace Mclaughlin

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Scripture as the only current Source and Norm of Christian Truth.