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The Theme Of Ecclesiastes, Frederick W. Danker

Bachelor of Divinity

A brief survey of the critical methods employed by interpreters of the book of Ecclesiastes from the time of the compilers of the Midrashim down to the present day reveals that theological orientation and intellectual disciplines have largely determined the evaluation and interpretation of the book either in its parts or as a whole.

God's Grace The Preacher's Tool. A Homiletical Study Of Titus 2:11-14, Richard R. Caemmerer

Concordia Theological Monthly

Most pastors read the Christmas Epistle during the holidays. Many preached on it as a text for a Christmas message. As they prepared that sermon, they probably realized that this text speaks only secondarily to congregations. Primarily it is addressed to a pastor, a pastor who is training other pastors. It does not speak specifically of Christmas, but of the redemption of Jesus Christ in general; not specifically of the moods and joys of Christmas, but of the objective of good works in Christian people. Hence the text speaks to pastors about their own ministry to people, especially the ministry …

Notes On Luther's Interpretation Of John 6:47-58, John Theodore Mueller

Concordia Theological Monthly

Christ's discourse in John 6: 47-58 is no doubt one· of the most striking and challenging appeals from the lips of our Savior that are recorded in the Four Gospels.

It constitutes the climax in a long and earnest address delivered by our Lord when His Jewish followers, impressed by the amazing miracle of the feeding of more than five thousand in the wilderness with five loaves and two fishes, came to Capernaum to take Him by force and make Him their King, not indeed because they believed in Him as the promised Messiah, but, as Jesus frankly told them, …

The Message Of The First Epistle Of Peter For Our Day, Eric R. Malte

Concordia Theological Monthly

The purpose of this essay is to interpret and illuminate one of the New Testament Epistles which focuses to a rare degree the interests, needs, and problems of the Church of the first century, and gives classical expression to the teachings of Christ and His Apostles in regard to them. These interests, needs, and problems are not greatly different from those which confront thoughtful Christian men and women the world over today. Of this First Epistle of Peter, Luther once said: “It is one of the noblest books of the New Testament, and the true, pure Gospel."

Sermon Study On 2 Kings 14:8-9, Walter R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

This text contains one of the shortest parables of Scripture. One verse tells the story. Its brevity, however, does not impair its dramatic effectiveness. In one telling blow it delivers a graphic, cutting lesson on a deep-rooted evil of human nature.

An Outline Of The First Epistle Of John, Martin J. Hasz

Concordia Theological Monthly

The chief isagogical problem of the Epistle is its structure. Dr. R. C.H. Lenski states: “A curious circumstance about the letter is the fact that it seems to have no divisions. Commentators divide it in one way or in another, and state their reasons for such a division; but when one reads the letter, the proposed divisions do not satisfy. They are upset by the series of repetitions and reiterations that occur throughout the letter. That fact makes some interpreters complain about the lack of logic; but this letter has no formal parts, such as we commonly use and expect. …

Sermon Study On Judges 9:8-15, Walter R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

The word fable seems incongruous in the study of Bible teaching. Truth and fiction are incompatible categories. This needs to be said especially in our day when much in the Bible is labeled fiction or myth. However, like the parable, the fable is used by the Holy Spirit as a teaching device of truth.

It is not often that this literary genus is used by the sacred writers. Strictly speaking, there is only one more fable in Scripture besides the one under consideration here. It is very short and is found in 2 Kings 14:9.

Rhetoric In The New Testament: The Diction In Romans And Hebrews, Walter A. Jennrich

Concordia Theological Monthly

Oratory, as a general term, is properly defined as the power to sway an audience by eloquent speech. As far as is known, the art of such effective public speaking was first studied and taught in Greece, where it was called rhetoric. One of the early teachers of rhetoric in this proper sense was Gorgias, the Greek sophist, who brought his art to Athens in 427 B. C. from his native city of Leontini in Sicily. He afterwards settled in Athens, where he continued the practice and teaching of rhetoric. Therefore it is generally agreed that Gorgias is the creator …

Dramatic Elements In Mark, Kenneth Henry Breimeier

Bachelor of Divinity

The purpose of the paper is, by an analysis of the dramatic features in St. Mark, to bring the reader to a more intimate appreciation of the second Gospel.

The Concept Of Prophet In New Testament, Emil Mach

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

In the German universities the prophets were looked upon as “mad fellows”. Indeed any idea of God revealing Himself to men was frowned upon and I was left with doubts. The material of this thesis has convinced me that God takes great care to reveal Himself to man and that we may place our trust in His revelation of Himself. So, by this work, my whole Christian faith has been more firmly established.

The Concept Of Sin In The Old Testament, Holland H. Jones

Bachelor of Divinity

The fact that the invitation to believe is always prededed, in Scripture, by the call to repentance reveals the necessity for an extensive knowledge of sin and it consequences. Scripture teaches that we must be conscious of and sorry for our sins before we can be drawn to the Gospel of Christ.

Epicurean Catchwords In The Letters Of Saint Paul, Eugene Walter Nissen

Bachelor of Divinity

By way of an historical survey of Hellenistic Greece and of Epicurean expansion, coupled with a comparison of Epicurean and Pauline teaching, this thesis will attempt to show that it is not only possible but very probable that Epicurean catchwords do exist in the writings of St. Paul, and that such terminology was emptied of its former connotation, refilled with Christian meaning, and redirected against the Epicureans.

Sermon Study Of Isaiah 28:23-29, Walter R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

"All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake He not unto them" (Matt. 13:34). He used "earthly stories with heavenly meaning” that have no equal. "Never man spake like this Man” (John 7:46), because “He taught them as One having authority and not as the scribes” (Matt. 7:29). But holy men, moved by the Holy Ghost, also used this teaching device with telling effect. The Old Testament parables are perhaps not so well known. They commend themselves for pulpit use because they present familiar lessons in a different setting. The pastor may want …

St Paul's Use Of Military Terms In His Epistles, Robert A. Hobus

Bachelor of Divinity

The purpose of this thesis is not to show how Paul was influenced by the Gentile world into which he was born. The writer will not try to point out how the, intellectualism of· the Greeks and the materialism of the Romans influenced Paul in his theology. It will be taken as a positive premise in this thesis that Paul's theology was of divine origin, that his words were inspired words, that his teachings were from God instead of being a mixture of the best thoughts or philosophies that either of these civilizations produced. The fact that Paul was born …

The Doctrine Of The Humanity Of Christ According To The Epistle To The Hebrews, Carl Miller

Bachelor of Divinity

To illustrate: if there are five passages that all bring out point "A" of the pre-determined outline of the doctrine, it is not necessary to treat all five passages just to show that point "A" is covered in the epistle. If this procedure seems somewhat arbitrary, we state again that the purpose of this thesis is merely to show how completely the doctrine of Christ's humanity has been revealed in the epistle to the Hebrews.

The Pneuma In Luke-Acts, Ruben C. Baerwald

Bachelor of Divinity

The chief concern of this investigation will be the meaning and use of πνε̂υμχ in Luke-Acts. We shall discuss the term on the basis of all the relevant passages in order to determine the sense or senses in which Luke uses it and then proceed to a consideration of some of the larger problems connected with the concept.

In Christ Jesus An Approach To The Ε̂ŴΜα Τoȗ Χειδτοȗ Concept Through The Pauline Use Of The E’V Xeidtω̑ Formula, Walter Bartling

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

All modern studies of' the ’ΕνΧειδτοȗ formula have as their starting point the fascinating dissertation of Adolf Deissmann, which appeared in 1892. It is hardly possible to overestimate the influence this book has had upon research in Pauline theology, not only upon study of the problem to which it is immediately directed, but especially also upon inquiries into the nature of Pauline "mysticism". Its influence on interpreters of the δ̂wμαΧειδτοȗ concept will become apparent as we proceed somewhat atlength to present Deissmann’s argument. All modern studies of' the ’Εν Χειδτοȗ formula have as their starting point the fascinating dissertation of …

St Paul's Ethical Terminology, Arthur Vincent

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Because of the importance of Paul as missionary and as a teacher of doctrine and ethics and the past neglect of Pauline ethics; along with the changing conditions demand a constant study of the eternal principles of right and wrong.

An Interpretation Of The Epistle Of St. Jude, William Hassold

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

Luther's attitude towards the letter of Jude, as he himself says, was influenced by three factors: 1) its close resemblance to part of 2 Peter; 2) its use of material found nowhere else in Scripture; 3) its rejection by many of the Church fathers. We shall have to consider each of these matters in formulating our opinion of the letter of Jude.

The Typological Method Of Biblical Interpretation: An Investigation, Willard Burce

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

It was the original object of this study to investigate these three questions. The subject is very large, however. It. seems more salutary to deal for the first with the history of typology and to see how exegetes of the Church down through the years have faced the problems of understanding and discussing types.

The Authorship Of The Fourth Gospel In Present-Day Thought, Walter Heyne

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

It ls the purpose of this paper to explore recent literature to ascertain the prevailing views on this subject. The available English and German literature which has appeared since approximately 1915 has been surveyed to determine mainly this one thing: What is the current thinking on the subject of the authorship of John’s Gospel? In this sense, this is largely a statistical study, and no particular effort has been made to distinguish between the authority and scholarship of those whose opinion are presented. The date 1915 was selected as the terminus a quo since the second decade of our century …

The Brethren Of The Lord And Their Relation To Jesus, Norman Wangerin

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

It is my purpose to examine these various hypotheses in the light of tradition and Scripture. Thus the theories themselves will first be discussed briefly. Next they will be examined on the basis of the references to this problem in the literature of the early Church. Finally, the Scripture passages which have a bearing on the subject will be taken up. The correct interpretation of these passages is after all the real key to the problem.

The Ending Of St Mark's Gospel A Study In Textual Criticism, Henry Hamann

Master of Sacred Theology Thesis

The writer, rather immodestly it may be held, can -not accept the principles enunciated by WH .and accepted by many textual critics since, and accordingly a rather large section of the present study is given over to a critical-analysis of the principles of WH and the formulation of· other critical principles, which form the foundation upon which the real work is raised.

Sermonic Study On Isaiah 26:19, Theo. Laetsch

Concordia Theological Monthly

The resurrection of Christ is the foundation on which the faith and hope, the very life of every Christian, is built (1 Cor. 15:14-20). The fact of Easter pertains to the New Testament. But the promise of a future Easter dates back to that day on which sin and death entered into the world and on which the Lord gave to sinful Adam and Eve the blessed assurance of the coming of a Deliverer (Gen. 3:15). This promise served as the basis of Adam's hope and faith, expressed in the name he gave to his wife, Eve, the living, because …

Sermon Study On Is. 50:4-10, Theo. Laetsch

Concordia Theological Monthly

On this passage August Pieper in his Kommentar ueber den zweiten. Teil des Propheten. Jesaias makes the following apt; remarks. “Vv. 4-9 consists of two subdivisions: vv. 4-6, vv. 7-9; the first speaks of the obedience of the Servant; the second, of the support granted Him by the Lord. This passage reads like a prelude to ch. 53. The obedient and suffering Servant of the Lord here states essentially the same facts concerning Himself that the Prophet states concerning Him in ch. 53.

Miscellanea, Ralph Moellering

Concordia Theological Monthly

Miscellanea

The Forgotten Epistle, Otto E. Sohn

Concordia Theological Monthly

The Epistle to Philemon may fitly be called one of the forgotten books of the New Testament. Along with 2 and 3 John it has received but little attention in our synodical literature. And is there anyone among us who has ever preached a sermon on it or on a portion of it?

The Inaugural Vision Of Ezekiel, W. R. Roehrs

Concordia Theological Monthly

"Ezekiel is the strangest figure in the goodly fellowship of the prophets . . . probably no book of the Old Testament is as little read as his, and it may well be the least popular, as it is the least known of the Old Testament." This is the verdict on the Book of Ezekiel in the most recent book on the Prophets of the Old Testament. It may comfort the modern Bible student to know that it has troubled the exegetes, Jewish and Christian, through the centuries. Luther quotes Jerome as saying that the early rabbis considered its contents …

Brief Studies In The Prophets, L. Fuerbringer

Concordia Theological Monthly

In our first article on the Prophet Zechariah we spoke in general of his person and his book. We dwelt, furthermore, On a particularly beautiful and significant symbolical action, the crowning of the Priest-King, a clear prophecy of the Messiah. In the present article we shall briefly consider four other Messianic prophecies found in the third section of the book. These prophecies lend to the entire work a special character.

Brief Studies In The Prophets, L. Fuerbringer

Concordia Theological Monthly

In resuming these brief studies, we do so in response to repeated requests by readers of this journal in whom they had aroused interest not only to study in detail the Prophets in question, but also, on the basis of these brief studies, to preach on these Prophets before their congregations in Sunday evening and weekday services or to treat them in their Bible classes for adults.