“These writings by Timothy East were first published in England in a journal called “Spirit and Manners of the Age”. “The author is the same who prepared the Evangelical Rambler, which has been received with so much favor.
“It need scarcely be said, that in studying this narrative the open Bible should always be at hand. But I may remind myself and others, that the only real understanding of any portion of Holy Scripture is that conveyed to the heart by the Spirit of God.
“The present volume of essays is designed for those who love the Greek New Testament… The drift back towards Greek is definite, particularly among ministers. In the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, for instance, three hundred young ministers were enrolled during the past session in the various classes in the Greek New Testament, besides those who had carried such work in previous sessions.
“The Fourth of July! Independence Day! One hundred and fifty-two years ago today there took place in history one of those events the like of which takes place only once in five hundred or a thousand years; the promulgation of that immortal Declaration of Independence.
“If ever family prayer is to be generally practiced in our families… it must be offered whilst the members of the family, old and young, are sitting around the table at the morning or evening meal.
“In this little book the reader will find, first of all, the Small Catechism of Dr Martin Luther without alteration. This is followed by the shorter explanation of this Catechism, in questions and answers, by Dr.
“Every effort is made by Roman Catholic propagandists in America to discredit the Protestant Reformation and all that has flowed from it during the past four centuries. They insist that it was the greatest tragedy of human history, and trace all the ills of modern life to its influence.
“It seems but a small concession that we are asked to make when an article of our confession is represented as a stumbling block… but surrendering that article would only lead to the surrender of another on the same ground, and that is the beginning of the end.
“…all epistle texts are selections from letters directed to certain definite persons for a certain important spiritual purpose. What the preacher of today does is to place himself and his hearers in the light of some part of one of these imperishable letters, that now once more the original purpose of this part of the letter may be attained.
“Skepticism as to the personality of the great Adversary of souls is not confined to unbelievers and rationalists. In sending out a third edition of this work, the writer desires to call the attention of Christians to a doctrine once universally received in the Church, and which is still a protest against the Sadduceeism of our age…
“Heinrich Christian Schwan was the Missouri Synod president for 20 years (1878-1899), but that lengthy service and his pastoral and missionary activities have been effaced from the LCMS histories. Schwan’s presidency was sandwiched between the presidencies of CFW Walther and Walther’s hand-picked successor in teaching, Franz Pieper.
“The prophecies of the great apostasy… cannot be expounded and applied without giving offense and raising opposition. The word of God is a sword — the sword of the Spirit, — and swords are designed for conflict.
“The message of the Law is needed in our congregations today as much as ever. Even where church attendance is gratifying, spiritual life is often on a rather low spiritual and moral plane… The range of topics treated in these sermons is virtually extensive with the spiritual needs and duties of our people.
“No Calvinistic preacher has ever produced a Postil, — the term derived from post illa (sc. verba), meaning “after those words,” i.e. the sermon spoken after reading the words of the text.
“So thorough has become the importance of the Individual, that the supremacy of law over royal power is now an established rule in England, and every individual has the right to resist an illegal act against his person or property, by whomsoever attempted.
“…if the character of a religious system can be ascertained by the rites which it imposes, and the practices which it sanctions, I should not hesitate to pronounce the mythology of Hinduism to be cruel and obscene.
Timothy East’s practical book is intended to, “disturb the false peace of the criminally indifferent… impart consolation to the conscientiously fearful, (and to) excite to higher degrees of gratitude the comparatively few, who know that they are safe for eternity.
Many people have opinions about Martin Luther, but few have actually read his words. This small volume includes what church scholars Henry Wace and C. A. Buchheim consider Luther’s three primary works.
“Luther taught that every true believer is a spiritual priest, is as near to the great Head of the Church as any official priest can be, and is equally entitled to the promise and gift of the Holy Ghost.
“Professor Jacobs is an exceptionally sympathetic and competent biographer… (He) has availed himself of all the latest sources of information, and done the needful work of selection and condensation with excellent judgment and skill.