h, however, he declared that
he did not consider it essential, and would not contend with anybody
about it. Nor were the questions involved disputed to any extent or
dealt with in the _Formula of Concord_. As to Osiander, however, the
train of his thoughts runs as follows:--

The Logos, the divine Word, is the image of God, into whom His entire
essence flows in a manner and process eternal. In a temporal and
historical way the same image is destined to be realized in the nature
of man. Divine essential righteousness indwelling and efficacious in
humanity--such was the eternal plan of God. For the realization of this
purpose the Logos, God's image, was to become man, even if the human
race should not have fallen. This was necessary because in finite man
there is absolutely no similarity with the infinite essence of the
non-incarnate Logos. Without the incarnation, therefore, this infinite
dissimilarity would have remained forever (_esset et maneret simpliciter
infinita dissimilitudo inter hominem et Verbum Dei_). And in order that
man might be capable of God and share His divine nature (_capax Dei et
divinae naturae consors_), God created him according to His image;
_i.e._, according to the idea of the incarnate Logos. "God formed the
body of man," said Osiander, "that it should be altogether like unto the
future body of Christ. Thereupon He breathed into it the breath of life,
_i.e._, a rational soul together with the human spirit, adorned with the
proper powers, in such a manner that it, too, should be like unto the
future soul of Christ in everything." (Frank 2, 104.)

In the incarnate Logos, however, according to whom man was created,
humanity and divinity are personally united. When the Word was made
flesh, the divine essence was imparted to His human nature. And Christ,
in turn, imparts the same essence to all who by faith are one with Him.
From eternity the incarnate Word was destined to be the head of the
congregation in order that the essential righteousness of God might flow
from Him into His body, the believers. Before the Fall the Son of God
dwelled in Adam, making him just by God's essential righteousness. By
the Fall this righteousness was lost. Hence the redemption and atonement
of Christ were required in order again to pave the way for the renewal
of the lost image or the indwelling of God's essential righteousness in
man. The real source of this righteousness and divine life in man,
however, is not the