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Concordia Theological Monthly

Publication Date

5-1-1947

Document Type

Article

Keywords

grace, morality, christian, forgiveness, justification, legalistic

Submission Type

Bible Study; Lecture; Sermon Prep

Abstract

A very personal reason prompts the selection of my topic. In my senior year at the Seminary, I had not yet really learned what Christianity really is. To be sure, I was not a scoffer. Far from it. I yearned for the honor of being a Christian, but I did not dare. The sainted Dr. Bente had succeeded in crushing all my pride in human wisdom. In his lectures on the philosophical systems, ancient, medieval, and modern, he had shown us that human reason the moment it tried to explain transcendental problems disregards its own rules of logic in its deductive and inductive reasonings. And the reason for this phenomenon is not so much its inability to explain matters beyond its sphere, but its bias, its being prejudiced by sin, by its innate enmity against God. Thus all the thinking of natural man regarding sin, death, future life, God, etc., is characterized by utter failure. I had lost all pride of, and confidence in, the power of human wisdom.

Disciplines

Biblical Studies

Scripture References in this Resource (separated by semi-colons)

Romans 4:5;

Submission Cost

Free

Submission Audience

Laity; Ministers; Scholars

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