Thursday, April 24, 2008
Nazbo Rap II
As a follow up to the first “Nazbo Rap” made 2 years ago, we now have “Nazbo Rap II.” It was cut by some students at a mid-western Nazarene Theological Seminary. There’s some bizarre stuff here and there, but it’s entertaining even if you have trouble following Rap lyrics.
Enjoy,ron
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Fear & Death!
A brief mull over Luke 12.4-7:
Death is a pawn in Satan’s diversion; an instrument at God’s beckon. “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.”
Death (and Satan) will be the subject(s) of God’s judgment. “But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell.” Death and hell (Satan’s future temporary quarters) will be cast into the Lake of Fire!
“Yes, I tell you, fear him!” The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Therefore, “Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
Death is a pawn in Satan’s diversion; an instrument at God’s beckon. “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.”
Death (and Satan) will be the subject(s) of God’s judgment. “But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell.” Death and hell (Satan’s future temporary quarters) will be cast into the Lake of Fire!
“Yes, I tell you, fear him!” The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Therefore, “Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
enjoy, ron
Friday, April 18, 2008
Idol's Hillsong Song!
If you were in any doubt about the influence and reach of Hillsong's music, you might like to note that ‘Shout to the Lord’ was sung not once, but twice on two separate episodes of American Idol recently. You can see both on YouTube.
enjoy, ron
Saturday, April 12, 2008
You're a Monster!
Below you'll find a very funny article where Sesame Street's Cookie Monster searches deep within himself and asks: is me really a monster?Obviously struggling with his frequent out-of-control cookie binges, the Cookie Monster reflects on his own self-image. Who am I? Saint or Sinner or Both?
COOKIE MONSTER SEARCHES DEEP WITHINHIMSELF AND ASKS: IS MEREALLY MONSTER? by ANDY F. BRYAN
Me know. Me have problem.
Me love cookies. Me tend to get out of control when me see cookies. Me know it not natural to react so strongly to cookies, but me have weakness. Me know me do wrong. Me know it isn't normal. Me see disapproving looks. Me see stares. Me hurt inside.
When me get back to apartment, after cookie binge, me can't stand looking in mirror—fur matted with chocolate-chip smears and infested with crumbs. Me try but me never able to wash all of them out. Me don't think me is monster. Me just furry blue person who love cookies too much. Me no ask for it. Me just born that way.
Me was thinking and me just don't get it. Why is me a monster? No one else called monster on Sesame Street. Well, no one who isn't really monster. Two-Headed Monster have two heads, so he real monster. Herry Monster strong and look angry, so he probably real monster, too. But is me really monster?
Me thinks me have serious problem. Me thinks me addicted. But since when it acceptable to call addict monster? It affliction. It disease. It burden. But does it make me monster?
How can they be so callous? Me know there something wrong with me, but who in Sesame Street doesn't suffer from mental disease or psychological disorder? They don't call the vampire with math fetish monster, and me pretty sure he undead and drinks blood. No one calls Grover monster, despite frequent delusional episodes and obsessive-compulsive tendencies. And the obnoxious red Grover—oh, what his name?—Elmo! Yes, Elmo live all day in imaginary world and no one call him monster. No, they think he cute. And Big Bird! Don't get me started on Big Bird! He unnaturally gigantic talking canary! How is that not monster? Snuffleupagus not supposed to exist—woolly mammoths extinct. His very existence monstrous. Me least like monster. Me maybe have unhealthy obsession, but me no monster.
No. Me wrong. Me too hard on self. Me no have unhealthy obsession. Me love cookies, but it no hurt anyone. Me just enthusiast. Everyone has something they like most, something they get excited about. Why not me? Me perfectly normal. Me like cookies. So what? Cookies delicious. Cookies do not make one monster. Everyone loves cookies.
Me no monster. Me OK guy. Me OK guy who eat cookies.
Who me kidding? Me know me never actually eat cookies. Me only crumble cookies in mouth, but me no swallow. Me can't swallow. Me no have no esophagus. Me no have no trachea. Me only have black fabric throat. Me not supposed to be able to even talk.
Me no eat cookies.
Me destroy cookies.
Me crush cookies.
Me mutilate cookies.
Me make it so no one get cookies.
Everyone right. Me really is cookie monster.
Enjoy, ron
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Monday, March 24, 2008
Six Blind Men!
John Godfrey Saxe's "Six Men of Hindustan" or "The Blind Men & the Elephant" can be applied to about any kind of quest for knowledge.
Originally Saxe wrote this parable to mock theological dispute (The disputants… / Rail on in utter ignorance / Of what each other mean, / And prate about an Elephant / Not one of them has seen!), but it’s applicable to about any field of experience. After all, truth be told, no mere mortal can possess complete and objective knowledge.
But let’s not take lightly the other side of the coin, namely that the six men of Hindustan, though blind, at least were curious and went out there, and had an adventure!
There were six men of Hindustan,
to learning much inclined,
Who went to see an elephant,
though all of them were blind,
That each by observation
might satisfy his mind.
The first approached the elephant,
and happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
at once began to bawl,
"This mystery of an elephant
is very like a wall."
The second, feeling of the tusk,
cried, "Ho, what have we here,
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear,
This wonder of an elephant
is very like a spear."
The third approached the elephant,
and happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
thus boldly up and spake,
"I see," quoth he, "the elephant
is very like a snake."
The fourth reached out an eager hand,
and felt above the knee,
"What this most wondrous beast
is like is very plain" said he,
"'Tis clear enough the elephant
is very like a tree."
The fifth who chanced to touch the ear
said, "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
deny the fact who can;
This marvel of an elephant
is very like a fan."
The sixth no sooner had begun
about the beast to grope,
Than seizing on the swinging tail
that fell within his scope;
"I see," said he, "the elephant
is very like a rope."
So six blind men of Hindustan
disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
exceeding stiff and strong;
Though each was partly in the right,
they all were in the wrong!
Enjoy, ron
Originally Saxe wrote this parable to mock theological dispute (The disputants… / Rail on in utter ignorance / Of what each other mean, / And prate about an Elephant / Not one of them has seen!), but it’s applicable to about any field of experience. After all, truth be told, no mere mortal can possess complete and objective knowledge.
But let’s not take lightly the other side of the coin, namely that the six men of Hindustan, though blind, at least were curious and went out there, and had an adventure!
There were six men of Hindustan,
to learning much inclined,
Who went to see an elephant,
though all of them were blind,
That each by observation
might satisfy his mind.
The first approached the elephant,
and happening to fall
Against his broad and sturdy side,
at once began to bawl,
"This mystery of an elephant
is very like a wall."
The second, feeling of the tusk,
cried, "Ho, what have we here,
So very round and smooth and sharp?
To me 'tis mighty clear,
This wonder of an elephant
is very like a spear."
The third approached the elephant,
and happening to take
The squirming trunk within his hands,
thus boldly up and spake,
"I see," quoth he, "the elephant
is very like a snake."
The fourth reached out an eager hand,
and felt above the knee,
"What this most wondrous beast
is like is very plain" said he,
"'Tis clear enough the elephant
is very like a tree."
The fifth who chanced to touch the ear
said, "E'en the blindest man
Can tell what this resembles most;
deny the fact who can;
This marvel of an elephant
is very like a fan."
The sixth no sooner had begun
about the beast to grope,
Than seizing on the swinging tail
that fell within his scope;
"I see," said he, "the elephant
is very like a rope."
So six blind men of Hindustan
disputed loud and long,
Each in his own opinion
exceeding stiff and strong;
Though each was partly in the right,
they all were in the wrong!
Enjoy, ron
Sunday, March 16, 2008
What’s in a name!
“The Scripture gives four names to Christians, taken from the four cardinal graces so essential to man’s salvation: Saints for their holiness, believers for their faith, brethren for their love, disciples for their knowledge.” - Thomas Fuller (born June 19, 1608, died Aug. 16, 1661) British scholar, preacher, and one of the most witty and prolific authors of the 17th century.
For the modern reader, Fuller’s most interesting work is probably The Holy State, the Profane State (1642), an entertaining collection of character sketches important to the historian of English literature.
For the modern reader, Fuller’s most interesting work is probably The Holy State, the Profane State (1642), an entertaining collection of character sketches important to the historian of English literature.
enjoy, ron
Friday, March 14, 2008
Happy Pi Day!
I’m not much of a math enthusiast but I like pie.
Pi Day (not pie day) is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th. Pi is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi = 3.1415926535... The rough ratio of pi 3.14 gives us the date for Pi Day and opens the door to a celebration of this famous constant.
Coincidentally, Pi Day is also the birthday of Albert Einstein, who no doubt knew more than a little about pi. So in honor of Pi Day and Einstein, I think I’ll enjoy a lighted warmed piece of pecan pie with a large scope of vanilla ice cream on top.
Enjoy, ron
Pi Day (not pie day) is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th. Pi is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi = 3.1415926535... The rough ratio of pi 3.14 gives us the date for Pi Day and opens the door to a celebration of this famous constant.
Coincidentally, Pi Day is also the birthday of Albert Einstein, who no doubt knew more than a little about pi. So in honor of Pi Day and Einstein, I think I’ll enjoy a lighted warmed piece of pecan pie with a large scope of vanilla ice cream on top.
Enjoy, ron
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Vision!
I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision. Acts 26:19.
If we lose the vision, we alone are responsible, and the way we lose the vision is by spiritual leakage. If we do not run our belief about God into practical issues, it is all up with the vision God has given. The only way to be obedient to the heavenly vision is to give our utmost for God’s highest, and this can only be done by continually and resolutely recalling the vision. The test is the sixty seconds of every minute, and the sixty minutes of every hour, not our times of prayer and devotional meetings.
“Though it tarry, wait for it.” We cannot attain to a vision, we must live in the inspiration of it until it accomplishes itself. We get so practical that we forget the vision. At the beginning we saw the vision but did not wait for it; we rushed off into practical work, and when the vision was fulfilled, we did not see it. Waiting for the vision that tarries is the test of our loyalty to God. It is at the peril of our soul’s welfare that we get caught up in practical work and miss the fulfillment of the vision.
Watch God’s cyclones. The only way God sows His saints is by His whirlwind. Are you going to prove an empty pod? It will depend on whether or not you are actually living in the light of what you have seen. Let God fling you out, and do not go until He does. If you select your own spot, you will prove an empty pod. If God sows you, you will bring forth fruit.
It is essential to practice the walk of the feet in the light of the vision.
If we lose the vision, we alone are responsible, and the way we lose the vision is by spiritual leakage. If we do not run our belief about God into practical issues, it is all up with the vision God has given. The only way to be obedient to the heavenly vision is to give our utmost for God’s highest, and this can only be done by continually and resolutely recalling the vision. The test is the sixty seconds of every minute, and the sixty minutes of every hour, not our times of prayer and devotional meetings.
“Though it tarry, wait for it.” We cannot attain to a vision, we must live in the inspiration of it until it accomplishes itself. We get so practical that we forget the vision. At the beginning we saw the vision but did not wait for it; we rushed off into practical work, and when the vision was fulfilled, we did not see it. Waiting for the vision that tarries is the test of our loyalty to God. It is at the peril of our soul’s welfare that we get caught up in practical work and miss the fulfillment of the vision.
Watch God’s cyclones. The only way God sows His saints is by His whirlwind. Are you going to prove an empty pod? It will depend on whether or not you are actually living in the light of what you have seen. Let God fling you out, and do not go until He does. If you select your own spot, you will prove an empty pod. If God sows you, you will bring forth fruit.
It is essential to practice the walk of the feet in the light of the vision.
Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest : Selections for the year (March 11). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Amid a crowd of paltry things!
...in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses. 2 Cor. 6:4.
It takes Almighty grace to take the next step when there is no vision and no spectator - the next step in devotion, the next step in your study, in your reading, in your kitchen; the next step in your duty, when there is no vision from God, no enthusiasm and no spectator. It takes far more of the grace of God, far more conscious drawing upon God to take that step, than it does to preach the Gospel.
Every Christian has to partake of what was the essence of the Incarnation, he must bring the thing down into flesh-and-blood actualities and work it out through the finger-tips. We flag when there is no vision, no uplift, but just the common round, the trivial task. The thing that tells in the long run for God and for men is the steady persevering work in the unseen, and the only way to keep the life uncrushed is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the Risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to damp you. Continually get away from pettiness and paltriness of mind and thought out into the thirteenth chapter of St. John’s Gospel.
Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest: Selections for the year (March 6). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.
It takes Almighty grace to take the next step when there is no vision and no spectator - the next step in devotion, the next step in your study, in your reading, in your kitchen; the next step in your duty, when there is no vision from God, no enthusiasm and no spectator. It takes far more of the grace of God, far more conscious drawing upon God to take that step, than it does to preach the Gospel.
Every Christian has to partake of what was the essence of the Incarnation, he must bring the thing down into flesh-and-blood actualities and work it out through the finger-tips. We flag when there is no vision, no uplift, but just the common round, the trivial task. The thing that tells in the long run for God and for men is the steady persevering work in the unseen, and the only way to keep the life uncrushed is to live looking to God. Ask God to keep the eyes of your spirit open to the Risen Christ, and it will be impossible for drudgery to damp you. Continually get away from pettiness and paltriness of mind and thought out into the thirteenth chapter of St. John’s Gospel.
Chambers, O. (1993, c1935). My utmost for his highest: Selections for the year (March 6). Grand Rapids, MI: Discovery House Publishers.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Amazing Grace History/
How about black history month based on "just the black notes" on the piano! enjoy, ron
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Pearl of Great Price!
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it" (Matthew 13.46). What Christ refers to in the parable, of course, is the Kingdom of God. And lest we confuse anyone - the Kingdom means everything – the triune God Himself and all the good that you and I could possibly desire (Matthew 6.33).
Aesop tells the following story. A cock was once strutting up and down the farmyard among the hens when suddenly he espied something shinning amid the straw. "Ho! ho!" quoth he, "that's for me," and soon rooted it out from beneath the straw. What did it turn out to be but a Pearl that by some chance had been lost in the yard? "You may be a treasure," quoth Master Cock, "to men that prize you, but for me I would rather have a single barley-corn than a peck of pearls." (The Cock and the Pearl)
Moral: Precious things are for those that can prize them.
In short, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces” (Matthew 7.6)
A fine pearl was an object of such great value that one might sell all one’s accumulated wealth to purchase it (Mt 13.45, 46), but a pearl, used figuratively for the Word of God, should not be cast before swine or roosters for that matter. (Mt 7.6).
Aesop tells the following story. A cock was once strutting up and down the farmyard among the hens when suddenly he espied something shinning amid the straw. "Ho! ho!" quoth he, "that's for me," and soon rooted it out from beneath the straw. What did it turn out to be but a Pearl that by some chance had been lost in the yard? "You may be a treasure," quoth Master Cock, "to men that prize you, but for me I would rather have a single barley-corn than a peck of pearls." (The Cock and the Pearl)
Moral: Precious things are for those that can prize them.
In short, “Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces” (Matthew 7.6)
A fine pearl was an object of such great value that one might sell all one’s accumulated wealth to purchase it (Mt 13.45, 46), but a pearl, used figuratively for the Word of God, should not be cast before swine or roosters for that matter. (Mt 7.6).
enjoy, ron
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Prince Caspian Super Bowl Commercial
It has been confirmed that Disney will play a Prince Caspian trailer during the Super Bowl. The new trailer has been posted online and can be viewed here above (or click here).
C. S. Lewis (1898 – 1963) wrote the seven Chronicles of Narnia from 1950 – 1956. I’ve been a Narnia fan since reading the complete set with my children several decades ago. You can follow the latest in Narnia movie news plus a whole lot more at NarniaWeb.com. Along with a discussion forum, action figures, cast interviews, photo gallery and Narnia T-shirts, the web site is your complete source for Narnia movie news.
enjoy, ron
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The Salvation Question!
Jews are well-known to always answer a question with a question. The story goes of a Jewish fellow and a non-Jewish fellow walking down the street, and the non-Jew says to the Jew, “How come you guys always answer a question with a question” and the Jew replies: “So what’s wrong with that?!”
Questioning, of course, is central to learning and growing. And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good” (Matthew 19.16-17a).
Questions are very powerful tools for making decisions and solving problems, for inventing, changing and improving our lives as well as the lives of others. The question of eternal life is certainly a big question and it seems that most everybody is looking for an answer to it. Even the religious leaders of Jesus’ day were diligently studying the Scriptures in order to possess eternal life (John 5.39-40). What’s up with that?
Questions allow us to make sense of the world. Certainly the young man’s question to Jesus assumed that eternal life could be achieved by doing some good thing but it also assumed that eternal life was the paramount thing to get.
Yet Jesus’ reply did not expressly focus on salvation. Rather Jesus obliged the young man to think more seriously about the word good. Answering a question with a question can sometimes trigger something to get us moving in the right direction. “Only God is good,” Jesus said. By emphasizing the goodness of God Jesus questioned the man’s idea of goodness. You see, goodness is found in relation to God, not by ‘good deeds’ of our own devising. In other words, Jesus is asking, “Do you believe that I am good and therefore that I am God?”
Think about it! Surely salvation is good! But if Jesus is good, then He is God, and knowing Jesus (His Person & Work) is far better than salvation. No! Even more, knowing Jesus is salvation (John 17.3).
Any questions?
enjoy, ron
Questioning, of course, is central to learning and growing. And behold, a man came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good” (Matthew 19.16-17a).
Questions are very powerful tools for making decisions and solving problems, for inventing, changing and improving our lives as well as the lives of others. The question of eternal life is certainly a big question and it seems that most everybody is looking for an answer to it. Even the religious leaders of Jesus’ day were diligently studying the Scriptures in order to possess eternal life (John 5.39-40). What’s up with that?
Questions allow us to make sense of the world. Certainly the young man’s question to Jesus assumed that eternal life could be achieved by doing some good thing but it also assumed that eternal life was the paramount thing to get.
Yet Jesus’ reply did not expressly focus on salvation. Rather Jesus obliged the young man to think more seriously about the word good. Answering a question with a question can sometimes trigger something to get us moving in the right direction. “Only God is good,” Jesus said. By emphasizing the goodness of God Jesus questioned the man’s idea of goodness. You see, goodness is found in relation to God, not by ‘good deeds’ of our own devising. In other words, Jesus is asking, “Do you believe that I am good and therefore that I am God?”
Think about it! Surely salvation is good! But if Jesus is good, then He is God, and knowing Jesus (His Person & Work) is far better than salvation. No! Even more, knowing Jesus is salvation (John 17.3).
Any questions?
enjoy, ron
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Monkey Around?
Prince Charles is quoted as saying, “I learned the way a monkey learns - by watching its parents.” Perhaps so but I wonder who learns fastest, the Prince or the monkey?
According to recent scientific findings, when it comes to serious mental powers like short-term memory, young chimpanzees can significantly outperform the Prince at some short-term memory tasks.
In the words of Winston Churchill, “Never hold discussions with the monkey when the organ grinder is in the room.” After all, scientists have the video to prove it. And one of the lead researcher’s says that chimps seem to have something akin to "photographic memory," at least for short-term tests. Don't believe it? Well, then, here’s a way for you to test yourself against the chimp. Just click the link below for a video test.
Click: Test yourself against the chimp!
FYI: Rules of the Game: First, researchers in Japan taught six chimps--three 5-year-olds and their mothers--to recognize and order the numbers 1 through 9. Then they taught them to play a memory game.
In the game, the numbers would appear randomly on a video screen. The object was to touch them in order: 1, 2, 3, etc. But there was a catch. As soon as the chimps pressed 1, the rest of the numbers disappeared, covered over by white boxes. So they had to remember where they had seen the numbers and touch the white boxes that covered them.
Results of the Game: Not only could the chimps do this just as accurately as college students, they could do it faster, too. So the scientists devised another test, to see who could remember and order five numbers that flashed on a screen for just fractions of a second. Result? Another chimp win.
PS. Once I entered a free-style dance contest as a teenager. I won! My prize? A Monkees Album! "Hey hey we're the Monkees, People say we monkey around. But we're too busy pushing buttons to put Prince Charles down."
PSS.
According to recent scientific findings, when it comes to serious mental powers like short-term memory, young chimpanzees can significantly outperform the Prince at some short-term memory tasks.
In the words of Winston Churchill, “Never hold discussions with the monkey when the organ grinder is in the room.” After all, scientists have the video to prove it. And one of the lead researcher’s says that chimps seem to have something akin to "photographic memory," at least for short-term tests. Don't believe it? Well, then, here’s a way for you to test yourself against the chimp. Just click the link below for a video test.
Click: Test yourself against the chimp!
FYI: Rules of the Game: First, researchers in Japan taught six chimps--three 5-year-olds and their mothers--to recognize and order the numbers 1 through 9. Then they taught them to play a memory game.
In the game, the numbers would appear randomly on a video screen. The object was to touch them in order: 1, 2, 3, etc. But there was a catch. As soon as the chimps pressed 1, the rest of the numbers disappeared, covered over by white boxes. So they had to remember where they had seen the numbers and touch the white boxes that covered them.
Results of the Game: Not only could the chimps do this just as accurately as college students, they could do it faster, too. So the scientists devised another test, to see who could remember and order five numbers that flashed on a screen for just fractions of a second. Result? Another chimp win.
PS. Once I entered a free-style dance contest as a teenager. I won! My prize? A Monkees Album! "Hey hey we're the Monkees, People say we monkey around. But we're too busy pushing buttons to put Prince Charles down."
PSS.
Once I was a tadpole beginning to begin,
Then I was a frog with my tail tucked in,
Then I was a monkey in a banyan tree,
And now I am a professor with a Ph.D.
Enjoy, ron
Then I was a frog with my tail tucked in,
Then I was a monkey in a banyan tree,
And now I am a professor with a Ph.D.
Enjoy, ron
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Excommunicate Luther!
"Here I stand, I can do no other, God help me, Amen..." (Martin Luther)
On this day in 1521, Pope Leo X issued the papal bull Decet Romanum Pontificem, excommunicating Martin Luther, the German priest whose questioning of certain Roman Catholic practices initiated the Protestant Reformation.
Luther fought the good fight of faith to the very end. Seized by a crippling heart attack, Luther eulogized before his death, "When I die, I want to be a ghost... So I can continue to pester the bishops, priests and godless monks until that they have more trouble with a dead Luther than they could have had before with a thousand living ones."
Here is a short biography with links:
1483 (November 10) Born in Eisleben
1505 Monk in Erfurt
1512 Doctor of Theology in Wittenberg
1517 Nailed the 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church
1521 Outlawed and exiled to the Wartburg
1522 Return to Wittenberg
1525 Married Katharina von Bora
1534 Published the complete Bible in German
1546 (February 18) Died in Eisleben
“Through faith in Christ, therefore, Christ’s righteousness becomes our righteousness and all that he has becomes ours; rather, he himself becomes ours. Therefore the Apostle calls it 'the righteousness of God' in Rom. 1:17; For in the gospel 'the righteousness of God is revealed…; as it is written, 'The righteous shall live by his faith.' Finally, in the same epistle, chapter 3:28, such a faith is called 'the righteousness of God': 'We hold that a man is justified by faith.' This is an infinite righteousness, and one that swallows up all sins in a moment, for it is impossible that sin should exist in Christ. On the contrary, he who trusts in Christ exists in Christ; he is one with Christ, having the same righteousness as he. It is therefore impossible that sin should remain in him. This righteousness is primary; it is the basis, the cause, the source of all our own actual righteousness. For this is the righteousness given in place of the original righteousness lost in Adam. It accomplishes the same as that original righteousness would have accomplished; rather, it accomplishes more.” (Luther – Two Kinds of Righteousness)
Enjoy, ron
Note: A site devoted to interactive annotative study of the writing of Martin Luther can be searched here.
Note: On this PBS site there are a number of interesting offerings included with a documentary titled Martin Luther: The Reluctant Revolutionary.
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