Classics

“Another quality that strikes us… is Luther’s unfailing sense of humor. Reformers are usually deficient in humor. Their earnestness seldom permits them to laugh. Luther was the most earnest man of his century, and lived in more earnest times than any Europe had witnessed since the close of the first century.

“When you feel your burden of sin weighing heavily upon you, only go to Him… Only those who will not acknowledge their sin and feel no need of a Savior — only these are rejected.

“For nearly [three] hundred years Starck’s Daily Handbook has been a standard book of devotion; and it is not likely to be superseded by anything superior for many years to come.

“The mistake of those who direct all their efforts toward making men better and improving human society by teaching and enforcing the law… is of serious consequence to the souls of men… It can neither save their souls nor make them good… The only help for us is in Christ, without whom we can do nothing; and that help consists first of all in the forgiveness of our sins, which separate us from God and all that is good, and deprive us of all true peace and joy.

“Human reason and inclination are always in their natural state averse to the doctrine of Justification by Faith. Hence it is no wonder that earth and hell combine in persistent efforts to banish it from the Church and from the world.

A Summary of the Christian Faith brings Hutter’s classic Compendium into a readable and easily accessible form. Henry Eyster Jacobs writes: “The book is not a mere compilation, but the matured expression of the convictions of the author, from the time when, as a child he was introduced to many of the problems treated, to the present.

“If any clergyman needs a spiritual guide, let him choose Scriver. He is the preacher for preachers, full of consolation and encouragement to the well-meaning, but a storm of hail to the faithless and slothful pastor.

Theodore Schmauk’s exploration and defense of the Christian faith consists of five parts: Historical Introduction Part 1: Are Confessions Necessary? Part 2: Confessions in the Church Part 3: Lutheran Confessions Part 4: The Church in America “This book is written in the belief that the one ultimate authority among men is truth.

“The Life of Dr. Passavant should have been given to the Church at least a decade ago… Such lives are lived for others. They are not over when those who lived them are gone, but being dead they yet speak.

“The ‘Brief History of the Lutheran Church in America,’ …has been kindly admitted as a textbook in almost all theological seminaries of the Lutheran Church in this country… As in the previous edition, so in this one, it has been our aim to furnish a textbook that would serve as a guide for instruction in theological seminaries.

Hutter’s Compend has been a beloved handbook of the Christian Faith for many Christians over many years. It’s well suited for people at all levels of knowledge. The translator, Henry Eyster Jacobs, has this to say about it:

“If ever any man was competent to write on true Christianity, that man was John Arndt. It had become his very life; it entered into the very center of his own experience; it was an essential part of his being, and hence it was only necessary to let the mouth utter that, of which the heart was full.

Nicholas Hunnius (1585-1643), a man of great learning, studied at Wittenberg and began to teach philosophy and theology in 1609. Elector John George I. of Saxony appointed him, in 1612, superintendent of Eilenburg, where he won the respect of his superiors and the affection of his congregation.

“The more we meditate on the titles thus bestowed upon us, the more we find that we must think more highly of ourselves in our connection with the Savior. We are spiritually of royal descent.

Rev. William Landels writes: The Pilgrim’s Progress is, without question, of all uninspired volumes, the most extraordinary book in the English language. Regard being had to the condition of its author, and the circumstances connected with its production, to its widespread popularity, and its suitableness for readers of every class, there is none to compare with it.