The following are some of Caspar Schwenckfeld's
comments on the opening portion of the Lord's Prayer.
Our Father who art in Heaven
It gives us great assurance that the Lord
Christ has bid us call God a Father: it awakens the faith. For those
who pray, indeed, all those who want to walk to God must believe that
He is a merciful God and a strict judge over all unrepentant people.
God is actually above all things and Creator of all men. He is, however,
the Father only of those who through Christ have been reborn from above
and who have been received into grace.
Hallowed be
This is altogether a hard concept as it takes all holiness and righteousness from
the flesh. It also points out that all holiness, which belongs to God
alone, is poured out through Jesus Christ into unholy condemned men
when they believe, as it is written: For they all stem from one, both
he who sanctifies, and they that are sanctified, Hebrews 2:11.
Thy Name
There is but one name of God: indeed, God
may neither be known nor grasped: one may know and grasp all that
he is being undivided and everything, which is his or proceeds from
his essence, is God Himself. O, let it be: let thy name be made holy;
pour out thy power and holiness upon poor sinners. Let your son, Jesus
Christ indeed sanctify all those for whose sake He became man.
Reflection: In these
comments on the Lord's Prayer, Schwenckfeld reminds us of the character
of God. He is our Father, who on the one hand, is merciful and
who on the other hand is to be revered as the creator of all and authority
over this universe. His name is to be hallowed (in other words, revered
and respected) and lifted up above all other names. Do you seek in your
prayer life that God's name would be seen as exalted and holy, or are
your desires somewhere else? Ask for his name to be glorified in your
prayers today.
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The Lord's Prayer (Middle portion)
The following are some of Caspar Schwenckfeld's
comments on the middle portion of the Lord's Prayer.
Thy Kingdom come
They who are sanctified will be received into the inheritance of the
Kingdom of God in the righteousness of truth. Indeed, they are really
pleased that they have been taken out of the kingdom of the evil spirit
away from all sin and have been transplanted into the kingdom
of the Son of Love. Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.
Because all flesh strives continually against God, and the whole world,
as John says (I John 5:19), lies in evil, it is necessary that we should
pray heartily that the will of God may be brought into us, indeed, that
men might bring the will of God to pass on earth just as the angels
in heaven bring it to pass, so that both the fleshly and the spiritual
worlds might be united in obedience to the will of God.
Give us this day our daily bread
Because the Lord Christ has bid us call God our Father, and because
fathers provide bread for their children, this petition was quite rightly
added. From whom should His children receive their daily bread, if not
from their Father in Heaven? . . . Thus this is their principle concern:
they do not worry how their bodies and bellies will be preserved. God
takes care of that and no one who trusts in Him will be in need.
Reflection:
Once again, Schwenckfeld explains why these requests from the Lord's
Prayer should be a part of our daily prayer lives. We should pray for
our daily needs, our daily bread since God is concerned about these
things. We should also pray for God's kingdom and His will to be done,
since His right and peaceful kingdom and his loving will are ultimately
for our best interests as well. Certainly, pray for your needs, but
also pray for his loving will (rather than your own will) to be done
in your life and pray for His kingdom to come on this earth in a greater
way.
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Learn to Pray?
Question? How shall I learn to pray,
and what is prayer?
Answer:
Prayer is the lifting of the heart to God by faith in Him to whom we either
pour out our or others' pressing needs, sins, misery, or ignorance,or
in whose received gifts, benefits, and grace we give rightly thankful.
On that subject when it is properly considered, no one may be excluded.
You cannot pray to him to whom it is not necessary to pray; to whom,
indeed, would you now rather have proper recourse, than to our Lord
and Master Jesus Christ, to teach you to pray? This is indeed what His
disciples did, Luke 11:9-10. There he exhorts everyone clearly to pray,
promising that they will be heard, when He says:
And I say also to you: Ask, and
you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened
to you; for whoever asks, receives; whoever seeks, will find, and to
whomever knocks, it will be opened, with no exceptions.
Indeed, the Lord is near to all who call to Him in truth, as the Spirit
of God says in the Psalms (Psalms 145:18). Why then did we desire fervently
to become partakers of such great overpowering grace and promises that
we should ask the Lord from whom all good things come to teach us with
heart and mouth to pray according to His will, indeed, to give us the
Spirit of prayer which is promised in the Prophets. Amen.
Here, too, unfortunately, we lack the proper seriousness and beginning
For this reason, we should accustom ourselves to praying, no matter
how cold and weak it may seem at first to be. For the same reason, we
should (in consideration of the present great crises and our own misery)
train our forgetful flesh by a daily external time of prayer and should
wait patiently in the prayer of faith. For if we seek the kingdom
of God and is righteousness with a serious prayer in true faith, these
things, and everything else will be added to us as well, Matthew 6:35.
Reflection: In this
synopsis on prayer, Schwenckfeld urges us to pray often in two
ways - pouring out our needs to God or thanking God for his goodness
to us as Christians. We are to pray earnestly and daily no matter how
cold and weak prayer may seem to us at first. Seeking God's kingdom
in prayer sincerely and daily will bless our souls.
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Spiritual Knowledge of Christ?
Question: What is the spiritual knowledge of Christ?
Answer: The spiritual knowledge of Christ is a knowledge of
Christ as the Holy Spirit knows, proclaims, praises, glorifies, and
brings him into the believing heart wherein he becomes glorious and
known, with his heavenly riches and gifts through the Gospel which is
the power of God. It is a knowledge of the faith, a knowledge of Christ,
which makes a man righteous, pious, and blessed. Concerning this God
promised this through the prophet Isaiah, who, after he portrays Christ
with His cross, suffering, death, benefit, fruit, and blessing, he says,
"By his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many."
Isaiah 53:11. The Lord also says in the Gospel that therein is eternal
life, John 17:3. And Peter says that through such knowledge all manner
of spiritual power is given to us which serves the purpose of life and
godliness (2 Peter 1:3). Paul prays for the spirit of wisdom and for
the revealing of such knowledge, about which the Scripture shows in
many places (Ephesians 1:17) - just as the knowledge of Christ and God
the Almighty is in him. It is the summation and the largest part of
the Christian catechism for which we should ask and diligently research.
Such knowledge, however, takes place if God the Heavenly Father
inwardly reveals his true natural Son Jesus Christ with his good deeds,
redemption and glorification and if the Holy Spirit inscribes him in
the heart with golden letters into the believing heart. Just as Christ
also dwells in the chosen heart through faith - and no one can experience
him spiritually or according to the Holy Spirit - it is the Holy Spirit
who brings him into the heart to dwell there and to establish his Kingdom
in men.
Reflection:
Caspar Schwenckfeld notes the importance of God's individual work in
a believer's heart. This occurs through the Holy Spirit who reveals
Jesus Christ in people's hearts. How important it is then
to pray and ask for his Holy Spirit to work in the hearts of those who
do not know him! How important it is then to pray and ask the Holy Spirit
to work in our own hearts as well! Spiritual knowledge, spiritual
work occurs through the Holy Spirit's work.
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How should I be Born Again?
Question:
How should I be born again? (Here Schwenckfeld refers to Nicodemusin
John 3:4).
Answer: The Lord Christ explains Himself further at the same
place, John 3:5, and says, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless
a man is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom
of God." The flesh gives birth into hell to death and condemnation;
but God gives birth in heaven to eternal life alone through his word
Jesus Christ by the Holy Spirit. You must understand it therefore
in this way. After the first Adam we, and all of Adam's natural
children and descendants, inherited the destruction of disobedient flesh.
As Adam's children we received the condemnation and disfavor of God
into which Adam had fallen. Thus, from our fleshly birth we are
dead in our sins, enemies of God, unknowing godless things, unable to
help ourselves, lost and condemned, and born into the kingdom of darkness
of the evil spirit. Now, we are told that we must be reconciled to God
our Heavenly Father by grace through the second Adam (that is, through
our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself up to death for our sake) with
God the heavenly Father. By the outpouring of Jesus' blood the
anger of God is stilled, sin is erased, and condemnation is taken away.
Through him we are awakened from the dead, made living, brought and
offered up to God. All of this comes about by faith. So we who truly
believe in Him and everything, which He did, that even His suffering
and dying, happened for our sake and benefit, accept all these things
through faith. In the same way we are moved, renewed, and purified by
his heavenly water and spirit, so that in him and by his grace(which
has now appeared to all men) we might become pious, righteous, holy,
obedient to God, heirs of heaven, and children of God.
Reflection:
Here Caspar Schwenckfeld speaks of the importance of being born anew.
We inherited a sinful and condemned nature because we are human beings,
all children of Adam who sinned for all of us. We must now become children
of God, which only happens spiritually through Jesus Christ and the
Holy Spirit. Christians must all trust Jesus Christ personally
as their Savior and Lord to be free from sin and be born anew (cf. Ephesians
2:8-9). Have you done so? If not, ask him to come into your life,
forgive your sins, and ask him to be your Lord and Savior today.
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Free from evil and Sin?
Question: How then might I be freed from
incredible evil and sin and instead be saved and experience the blessings
of salvation?
Answer: This can take place only through the spirit of grace
in the new birth and renewal which is in Christ Jesus. Through Jesus
Christ's blood, sins have been washed away, the heart purified, and
the old creature is reborn as a child of God. The first birth, the birth
of the flesh, was ruined in Adam. Our first birth was damned, condemned,
and died. Therefore, there must be another birth, the birth of the Spirit.
If a person is to be helped and be freed from sin and condemnation,
and be blessed, then that one needs to be reborn. The Holy Spirit
through the apostolic teaching of the gospel needs to convince people
of their sins, that they are unfaithful, godless, sinful, useless, and
completely depraved. He also must convince people that they stand under
the serious judgment of God and are deserving of the punishment of
hell and the condemnation of death. As well as that, he must also show
the comforting Savior Jesus Christ as a forgiver of sins and a very
gracious giver of eternal life. He must convince people that through
Jesus, people must come in faith and through him come in our heart,
soul, and conscience. In Jesus Christ, all must be purified, refashioned,
and born again if any want to be freed of sin and become righteous,
holy, and blessed. All these things are proclaimed as part of the work
of the Holy Spirit in the entire world, and are abundantly testified
to in the Scriptures, so that there is nothing else which should be
preached. This is the reason why Christ alone was conceived and
born in a new and wonderful holy manner. He was born so that he might
purify our sinful hearts and that we might be born again into eternal
life and into the inheritance of the kingdom of God. As the Lord Himself
says in John 3:5, "I tell you the truth,
no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the
Spirit." In Matthew 18:3, Jesus also says to His disciples,"I
tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
Reflection: Caspar Schwenckfeld tells us
that we need God's Spirit to working our lives to be saved. After the
Holy Spirit works, we must each turn to Jesus and ask him to forgive
us our sins and make us the kind of people He wants us to be. God will
then grant new life, indeed, eternal life. Schwenckfeld's understanding
helps us by showing that God himself must work to convert people. We
cannot do it no matter how much we may want a friend or family member
to come to Christ. His Spirit must change people's hearts. His
understanding also tells us that it is important that the church regularly
teaches the way to salvation. People are sinful and need to know that
there is a Savior who forgives and creates new life. The church must
faithfully proclaim this message. Finally, his teaching shows
us that God's Spirit can do wonderful things in people's lives. We can
be reborn and find new life when we trust him as Savior and Lord. What
a great thing it is that we can each find new life through Jesus!
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Schwenkfeld's Catechism -
What is Sin? Why are we Sinners?
The following is the first half of the second
question found within Schwenckfeld's catechism.
Question: What is sin, and how is it that we are sinners?
Answer: Sin came to all humanity from the disobedience of Adam
(Rom 5:19).God had placed Adam in the Garden of Eden to maintain it.
He had given Adam a commandment not to eat from the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil (Gen 3:2, 3). Adam, however, completely disregarded
God and his holy word and brought upon him the curse and anger of God.
On that day Adam died spiritually to God and became a condemned creature
in his sight. This condition he passed along to all of his offspring,
which means to us. As a result, it means that we are by nature sinners,
dead before God, and condemned in his sight. It is very important
that we understand this correctly. Sin with its injury and depravity
ought to be properly understood if we are to understand what it means
to be reborn in Christ. We ought to see it as our very nature and be
sorrowed by sin greatly as the Holy Scripture and the Spirit of God
would want us to understand it. This is very different from those
who think of sin with their minds alone People think of sin in its individual
works (i.e., lies, murder, theft, etc.). They disregard the instinctive
lust and desires of the evil heart. They do not grasp that this is worthy
of their condemnation before God. The Spirit of God, however, condemns
this sin and inner foundation of evil before God.
Reflection:
We tend to think of sin in terms of specific actions like lying,murder,
stealing, etc. Schwenckfeld's view of sin fits well in line with other
Reformers (like Calvin, Luther, etc.). These Reformers saw sin firstly
as our nature and then secondly in terms of action. We do bad actions
because we have a flawed nature. This nature is hostile to God and needs.
How thankful we should be as Christians that God has taken away this
hostility between him and us through Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Jn 2:1-2).
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Schwenkfeld's Catechism -
Foundation of Eternal Salvation
The following is the first question and answer
found within Schwenckfeld's catechism. I have written a brief reflection
following that.
Question: What is the proper foundation of eternal salvation?
Answer:The proper foundation, the beginning and end, of eternal
salvation, stands completely and absolutely in our Lord Jesus Christ,
and in the true perception of him, in whom also is eternal life; for
it is written, "Another foundation can no person lay than
that which is laid, namely Jesus Christ (1 Cor 3:11); and there
is salvation in none other; and, there is no other name given to
people in which we shall be saved (Acts 4:12)." Whoever believes
in him will be saved and will not be put to shame (Rom 10:11). Concerning
this all of the prophets witness so that all those will receive
forgiveness of their sins through his name who believe in him (Acts
10:43; 13:38).
Reflection:
Salvation is found in no other person besides Jesus Christ. In a world
where many are saying that salvation can be found in other beliefs (i.e.,
other religions, New Age thinking, etc.), Caspar Schwenckfeld stands
in agreement with historic Protestant thinking. Salvation begins and
ends in Jesus Christ. This is the first point that Schwenckfeld makes
in his catechism.
Howard Weigner Kriebel -
The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania
The past few months, Caspar's Corner has been considering books written
about Caspar Schwenckfeld. This month the focus will be on Howard Weigner
Kriebel, The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania, A Historical Sketch. Lancaster:
New Era, 1904.
H. W. Kriebel wrote The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania in response
to a request from the Pennsylvania German Society. The society had deemed
that the Schwenkfelders' contribution to Pennsylvania History was highly
significant. As a result, it petitioned Prof. H. W. Kriebel in 1900
to write a volume for their series on Pennsylvania German History. Kriebel's
book forms the twelfth part of that series which is titled, Pennsylvania:
The German Influence in its settlement and development. A Narrative
and Critical History.
Kriebel then isolates fourteen doctrines that form the basis of Schwenckfeld's
thinking
(pages 7-12).
1. The spiritual knowledge of Christ.
2. Jesus Christ as sole mediator.
3. Jesus Christ as true God and man.
4. Salvation is through the blood of Jesus Christ.
5. Duality in religion between the things of this world and the things
of heaven.
6. Jesus Christ as author and finisher of faith.
7. The inspired nature of the Bible.
8. Sin consisting of act and nature.
9. The living experience of forgiveness of sin.
10. Regeneration following the calling of God
11. Regeneration from the divine gift of spiritual power.
12. Christ as head of the Christian church.
13. The primary aspects of the sacraments of baptism and communion as
being the inner grace of God.
14. The separation of church and state.
The remainder of this book is devoted to the people who followed Caspar
Schwenckfeld. There are chapters on the Schwenkfelder migration, settlement
in Pennsylvania, and church organization from 1734-1782. There is a
lengthy discussion of the constitution adopted in 1782 as well as the
church life under that constitution. There are also chapters devoted
to the relationship between Schwenkfelders and Zinzendorf in Pennsylvania,
education of Schwenkfelders, Schwenkfelders as citizens, and the private
lives of Schwenkfelders.
Copies of The Schwenkfelders in Pennsylvania, A Historical Sketch can
be found in the church library.
Books about Caspar Schwenckfeld
The past few months, Caspar's Corner has been considering books written
about Caspar Schwenckfeld. This month the focus is on Gerhard
Schultz, A Vindication of Caspar Schwenckfeld (Norristown: Board of
Publication, 1942).
A Vindication of Caspar Schwenckfeld is
a translation of Christopher Schultz's Erläuterung für Herrn
Caspar Schwenckfeld und die Zugethanen seiner Lehre. Christopher Schultz
was a leader of the Schwenkfelders during their migration from Germany
to America. He wrote the volume in German to send back to Silesia, Germany
to vindicate the name of Caspar Schwenckfeld and his followers. In the
mid 1940's, Gerhard Schultz found this to be an important book, and
as a result, he translated it from German into English.
A Vindication of Caspar Schwenckfeld can be divided into two equal
portions. The first half of the volume is largely biographical. It contains
an account of Caspar Schwenckfeld and his followers. There is a section
on the era in which he was living, his co-believers, and his followers
in Silesia, Germany. In one chapter in this section, he shares of the
Roman Catholic Church that sent out Jesuit missionaries to try to convert
Schwenkfelders to Catholicism. This chapter also shares of the great
tensions amongst the Schwenkfelders in Silesia, Germany due to Catholics
and Lutherans who were persecuting them.
The second half of this book is filled with Schwenckfeld's thinking
on theological issues. In this part of the volume, Gerhard Schultz shares
about Caspar's view of the office of the ministry, the word of God,
the Holy Scriptures, and the Holy Sacraments. He also provides a summary
of Caspar Schwenckfeld's beliefs and his general approach to Christianity,
which is as follows:
This pious man on many occasions and for various reasons addressed
and presented his confession of faith to many eminent persons; these
can still be found and read in his printed books, tracts, apologies,
and epistolars, in all of which he discloses to the light of day the
faith and hope of his heart in a manner entirely simple and wholly consistent.
He substantiates everything in unanimity with Scripture in every point,
nor would he accept any norm or canon of Christian belief and religion
outside the Scriptures. Next to the Holy Scriptures he based his profession
on the twelve articles of universal belief (i.e., the Apostles Creed)
and on everything which the old Councils of Nicea and Ephesus, and the
old accepted Church Fathers with testimony of Holy Scripture decided
upon, wrote, and taught. (p. 127)
Gerhard then provides a translation of a document from Schwenckfeld's
writing which is entitled in English "The confession of our common
Christian belief with a summary declaration or interpretation."
(1)
The volume then concludes with accounts of Caspar Schwenckfeld's life
and death and a diary of the voyage of Silesian emigrants.
Paul L. Maier, Caspar Schwenckfeld on
the Person and Work of Christ (Assen: Van Gorcum, 1959).
The past few months, Caspar's Corner has been considering books written
about Caspar Schwenckfeld. This month the focus is on Paul L. Maier,
Caspar Schwenckfeld on the Person and Work of Christ (Assen: Van Gorcum,
1959).
This book is significant for understanding the thinking of Caspar Schwenckfeld.
Unlike other books on Caspar Schwenckfeld that provide numerous points
about Caspar Schwenckfeld's understanding, Maier states one chief point
upon which Caspar Schwenckfeld's theology lies and argues for it throughout
his book. He states,
The central concentration in Schwenckfeld's theology is neither his
concept of the Eucharist, nor the Church, nor "Word and Spirit,"
but the doctrines concerning the person and work of Christ. Christological
and soteriological themes (i.e., teaching about Christ and salvation)
clearly bulk largest in the some fifteen thousand pages of the latest
critical edition of his works [i.e., The Corpus Schwenkfeldianorum],
and this emphasis is reflected in the name which Schwenckfeld chose
for his followers: "Confessors of the Glory of Christ" rather
than "Schwenkfeldians." (p. 2)
The largest part of this book is devoted to Schwenckfeld's thinking
on the person of Jesus Christ. He titles this understanding as Erkenntnis
Christi, which is the knowledge of Christ. This is not merely a head
knowledge of the person of Christ but an acknowledgement of him in one's
soul in four ways according to Maier. These ways are: the promise of
Christ as the pre-existent Word, the accomplishment of Christ in the
state of humiliation, Christ in the state of exaltation, and the participation
in Christ in salvation.
Maier's book does continue to isolate other ideas about Schwenckfeld's
theology such as a practical Christianity, the inner reception of the
sacraments, and the importance of the Bible. He concludes, however,
by returning to the importance of truly grasping Jesus Christ. He states,
For the compendia of church history it may suffice to summarize: Schwenkfeldian
theology is centered in the Erkenntnis Christi, an immediate, spiritual
apprehension and appropriation of the exalted Lord, whose person Schwenckfeld
regarded as non-creaturely, whose glorified humanity he equated with
divinity, and whose justifying-sanctifying inhabitation was realized
through that partial, substantial-spiritual emanation of Christ himself
which Schwenckfeld called faith. This is the Schwenckfeldian gospel
. . . all else is commentary. (p. 110)
It is my hope that this book will be republished and made accessible
to those within our conference.
Dr. Drake Williams contributed an article in a
recent volume on the use of the Psalms in the New Testament. Scholars
from Great Britain, the Netherlands, and the United States contributed
to this volume. His article is on the use of the Psalms in 1 and 2 Corinthians.
The volume is available in our church's library and is entitled, THE
PSALMS IN THE NEW TESTAMENT, (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 2004).
Footnote (1). Corpus
Schwenkfeldianorum Vol 8; Document 376, 251-257
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