VOL. 6, NO. 4 | Eternal Victim Slain: The Theology of the Cross and the Crisis of Modern Consciousness

Only a year after the nailing of the rather conservative Ninety-Five Theses in 1517, Martin Luther began to clearly distinguish two antithetical theologies: glory and the cross. The theology of glory rests on the premise that we can find God by climbing ladders of religious or philosophical speculation, mystical experience, or moral achievement. At the end of the “seeker’s” ascent is God alright, but this “naked God” is not salvation, but the “consuming fire.” If we were to encounter God directly, we would be turned to ash. But God wants to have a saving relationship with us through the Mediator, Jesus Christ, and has graciously devised a way of clothing himself in flesh, clothing us in his righteousness, and then raising our bodies as the victorious fruit of his own physical resurrection. One day there will be glory, but for now, the cross.

Featured Articles:

• Hide Nor Your Face | by Michael S. Horton
• Is Anybody Home? | by Robert Kolb
• Suffering and Joy | by J. A. O. Preus
• Divine Impassability and Our Suffering God | by Peter D. Anders