The prophet Jeremiah, next to Moses, has been called the epitome of the Old Testament prophetic movement.  His prophetic corpus is not only the largest, it also communicates many details about his prophetic mission and his own personal reflections about his calling.  Jeremiah’s life and witness occurred in an historical context where both the religious and political cultures were abandoning Moses’ Torah and in free fall away from Jeremiah’s predecessors.  His fidelity to God’s calling, in the midst of multiple challenges and much personal sacrifice, will instruct, and by God’s grace, inspire—pastors and laity alike—in our contemporaneous setting to serve the blessed Holy Trinity with clarity, integrity and confessional conviction.

A discussion of how today’s preacher can speak Law and Gospel effectively to hearers who may well be different from yesterday’s. Begins with a survey of how preachers of the past have responded to changing audiences, considers which elements of preaching and hearing never change and then offers very practical criteria for responding to today’s scene. (1.5 CEU)

A discussion of how today’s preacher can speak Law and Gospel effectively to hearers who may well be different from yesterday’s. Begins with a survey of how preachers of the past have responded to changing audiences, considers which elements of preaching and hearing never change and then offers very practical criteria for responding to today’s scene. (1.5 CEU)

Hermann Sasse (1895-1976) was one of the most fascinating Lutheran theologians of the 20th century. His life seemed to be lived from one crisis to another, including the breakdown of liberalism in the early years of the 20th century, his collaboration with Dietrich Bonhoeffer in a confession against Nazism and his stirring critique of world Lutheranism drifting into ecumenical chaos. This class will examine Sasse’s response as a confessional and pastoral theologian to the critical events of his day with application to our own time. Special attention will be given to Sasse’s letters to Lutheran pastors and his sermons. (3.0 CEU)

This course will consider the acts of early Christian martyrs and the theology of the second century, including Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, the martyrs of Lyons, Sts. Perpetua and Felicitas, Irenaeus of Lyons and others. Special emphasis will be placed on their relevance for today. As our contemporary American culture progresses toward a pagan worldview, questions of Christian identity become of paramount importance. In this study, we will have the opportunity to consider these questions and benefit from the wisdom of our early Christian fathers as they preached the Gospel in a hostile environment. (1.5 CEU)

Martin Luther asserted that “Job is magnificent and sublime as no book of Scripture.” Others have called Job the Shakespeare of the Bible. Yet the early Christian scholar Jerome perhaps put it best when he called the book of Job an eel, since the more one tries to contain it, the slipperier it becomes! The purpose of this seminar is to learn how to apply Job to our lives, so that the book becomes less like an eel and more like a loving companion through life’s dark valleys. Bible study and sermonic insights will abound. (1.5 CEU)

The Gospel of Mark is perhaps the most intriguing and mysterious of the Gospels. Again and again, Jesus, like a roaring lion, confounds our expectations. More than any Gospel, Mark emphasizes a theology of the cross in which Jesus’ true nature is known only in His suffering. We will also show how Mark has a profound understanding of the Sacraments which flow from Jesus Himself. (1.5 CEU)

Lutheran preachers know that God’s Law and Gospel are to be proclaimed yet rightly distinguished so that the hearers take comfort in Christ alone. Far from being a slogan or a cliché, the distinction of the Law from the Gospel preserves the place of both and is necessary if Christian doctrine is to remain whole.

This seminar will concentrate on how we preach God’s Law in a world that imagines that it is antinomian. Merely asserting the commandments as a divinely-imposed set moral legislation will likely be met with the charge of hegemony. Nor will it help simply to ignore the Law as though one could preach the Gospel without reference to the Law. The question is not whether or not we are to preach the Law, but how are we to preach it so that it does its deadly work of exposing sin for what it is and shutting every mouth so that the whole world is held accountable to the Creator (Rom. 3:19). We will look at Luther’s way of doing it as well as the work of four contemporary Lutheran theologians: Hans Joachim Iwand, Oswald Bayer, James Nestingen and Steven Paulson.

Looking at an upcoming preaching text, we will work together to identify how it is preachers might move concretely to preach the Law from this specific text. (1.5 CEU)

Our Lutheran liturgical heritage is a positive evolution of the New Testament and early Church, which in turn comes from the Old Testament as was practiced by Jesus Himself.  Jesus’ table fellowship with sinners sets the pattern of Christian worship as one of teaching and eating.  But many people in today’s Church are asking:  What is liturgy and what is our theology of worship?  What is distinctive about our Lutheran liturgy?  May we adapt our liturgy to today’s world to make it more relevant?  These questions and many others will be addressed by looking at our Lutheran liturgy yesterday, today and forever.  (3.0 CEU)

“The distinction between the Law and the Gospel is a special brilliant light, which serves to the end that God’s Word may be rightly divided and the Scriptures of the holy prophets and apostles may be properly explained and understood.” (Formula of Concord, Solid Declaration V,1).  We will look at Luther’s “Antinomian Disputations” (published in English translation by Lutheran Press under the title “Only the Decalogue Is Eternal” in 2008) as a help in today’s struggle faithfully to preach the Word of God and rightly divide Law and Gospel without falling into the errors of antinomianism and legalism.  (1.5 CEU)

Hermann Sasse (1895-1976) was one of the most fascinating Lutheran theologians of the 20th century. His life seemed to be lived from one crisis to another, including the breakdown of liberalism in the early years of the 20th century, his collaboration with Dietrich Bonhoeffer in a confession against Nazism and his stirring critique of world Lutheranism drifting into ecumenical chaos. This class will examine Sasse’s response as a confessional and pastoral theologian to the critical events of his day with application to our own time. Special attention will be given to Sasse’s letters to Lutheran pastors and his sermons.

Mark’s Gospel is perhaps the most mysterious and least appreciated. Largely ignored by the early church and underestimated by modern scholarship, Mark has much to offer today’s Church. His portrait of Jesus is strange but compelling. His teaching on the cross and Christ’s Gospel message should resonate especially with Lutherans, providing a bridge to the Pauline Epistles. Even more, Mark accentuates the powerfully sacramental character of our Lord’s ministry. For Mark, Christ’s power manifests itself in Baptism, and His enduring presence is to be found in the Bread of the Eucharist. For a church that so often appears like a boat tossed about on the sea, facing persecution and riddled with doubt, the Gospel of Mark may very well be the Gospel for the 21st Century Church. (1.5 CEU)

Christians are often asked to give an account or reason for their faith and Scripture enjoins us to always be prepared to make a defense for the hope that is ours in Christ. Because few are equipped for such encounters, this course seeks to introduce Christians to and encourage them in today’s apologetic challenges. (1.5 CEU)

This class will study the various portrayals of Christ as the glorious man and the slaughtered lamb in the book of Revelation in order to appreciate more fully the Christology of this apocalypse. Special attention will be given to the light that the Old Testament and Jewish apocalyptic literature sheds on these portraits of Christ. (3.0 CEU)

This class will study various portions of the New Testament, especially the words and actions of Jesus and Paul, to see and understand the guidance these texts offer for shaping our pastoral theology and practice. (3.0 CEU)

A worldview is a network of our most basic beliefs about the world and life within it. Observing and analyzing the dominant motifs of the most pervasive worldviews in America not only help Christians make sense of why people think and act as they do, but also provides some of the necessary equipment for interaction with those who do not share basic Christian convictions and beliefs. (1.5 CEU)

This course will focus on the theology of the ‘image of God’ as expressed in the Church’s reading of Scripture, her Christological vision, and her liturgical life. This class will give special attention to three main aspects. First, we will consider the scriptural narrative and the way images function as the very texture of God’s revelation to His people. Second, we will examine early Christian texts as testimonies to the way images have functioned in the Church’s proclamation of Christ crucified. Finally, we will explore the theological foundations of early Christian iconography and the aesthetic character of images as concrete expressions of the Church’s faith and her passionate confession of the Gospel. (1.5 CEU)

Knowing what good to pursue and what evil to avoid, in some ways, for the Christian, is simple. God’s commands direct us. Yet our sinful nature, the various needs of the neighbor and daily life circumstances can cloud our understanding of God’s will and how to carry it out. This course will explore methods for thinking about the will of God and carrying it out in our lives. Classical philosophical theories, such as virtue ethics, teleology and deontology, will also be considered from a Christian perspective. The significance of Luther’s natural orders or realms of life will round out the discussion in a concrete way. (3.0 CEU)

This course will be an investigation into the Scriptures, looking particularly at the way the apostles speak of compassion and mercy. Emphasis will be toward Clement of Alexandria’s approach to teaching the Christian faith in a gnostic world. Further, this course will examine scriptural texts exegetically and will consider how, in light of Clement’s approach, the Church may communicate the Scriptures and draw people into the Church in our modern-day gnostic and postmodern culture. (3.0 CEU)

The Apostolic Council in Jerusalem has much bearing on the situation facing The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) today. Significant decisions were made by the apostles and other leaders in the Church in the first 20 years of the Church’s life that are instructive for us to observe. This course will take a tour of the early Church from the Ascension to the Apostolic Council with a view towards how decisions were made by the early fathers. The Apostolic Council is a watershed event in the life of the early Church, but it is also a significant marker for the history of the Church and programmatic for us today. This brief, highlighted tour will recognize significant events in the first 20 years of the Church’s existence, observing the leaders as they are described in Acts and Galatians, the decision-making process of the early Christians, as well as offering a brief interpretation of the Apostolic Council in light of the issues facing the LCMS today. (1.5 CEU)

North America embraces various world views such a deism and naturalism as well as many living religions which are in direct competition with Christianity. This course will provide insight into a number of world views and religions and offer ways to address them missiologically and apologetically. (1.5 CEU)