The New Living Way Prepared by Christ

An ornamental woodcut headpiece features a central circular emblem containing eleven stars arranged in a stylized constellation. The emblem is flanked by dense, symmetrical arrangements of feathered foliage, resembling palm fronds.

Luke 12:49-59.

§. 1. JESUS, the Savior of the world, has come to ignite completely the fire of divine love and righteousness upon earth, to cleanse us entirely from the impure world and self-love, and to extinguish completely the resulting fire of wrath, so that the righteous love of GOD alone might burn within us. And this was his heartfelt wish, longing, prayer, and desire, that it might already be burning everywhere. v. 49.

§. 2. To obtain this, He had to first pave the new and living way for it Himself through the Cross. He had to first let Himself be baptized with the baptism of fire or suffering. Now, as the Prince of Life Himself was made perfect or completed through suffering; Hebrews 9:11-24. And [as He has] now entered into the Holy Place to appear before God, to acquire the full measure of His Spirit for us, and to actually share it with all believers, John 7:37-39, 14:10-14, 17, 16:7-15. Thus, to all who are obedient to Him in suffering, and who unite through faith with the acquired power of His blood or death to follow Him on this new way, He has become a Prince and Finisher of faith and salvation, Hebrews 2:9-10, 5:8-9, 10:19-20. For this reason, He was also so powerfully driven in His inward being by the love of the Father, that this baptism of suffering might be completed in Him. v. 50.

§. 3. The reason, entirely blind to the ways of GOD, fantasizes and thinks: Jesus has come, and still comes daily, to keep and strengthen us in the fleshly peace that we have with sin, in the sweet rest that we find in our own works of the law or righteousness, in the false silence with the world; so as not to stir up its wrath and fury against us, and