Martin Luther and Reformation Day
October 31st is called Reformation Day - the day that marks the start of the Great Protestant Reformation. Today, most people think of October 31st as Halloween, or the celebration of All Saint's Day - but long before ghosts, goblins and goodies a little monk in a country far, far away was hammering something very important to a large wooden door.
Tonight we want to look at the life
of one Martin Luther - a name many people are familiar with, but a life that
many know little about!
The
Early Years
Martin Luther was a German, born in 1483 in Eisleben. His father had been born a peasant, but worked his way into the middle class, eventually becoming a successful business owner. Resolute that his son would continue this upwardly mobile trek, he determined Martin would become a lawyer and from an early age had him schooled with this in mind.
The senior Luther was a strict
father - perhaps even severe. Martin would recount in later life cruel beatings
from his father's hand during an unhappy childhood. Some believe that the
depression and anxiety that he struggled with as an adult were rooted in this
difficult upbringing.
In the summer of 1505, Martin got
caught in a severe thunderstorm with crashes of thunder and lightening all
about him. His greatest fear was that he would die and go to hell, so in
desperation, he prayed to St. Anne (as Catholics were prone to do in such
circumstances) telling her that he would become a monk if she would deliver him
from the storm. Delivered he was, and being a man of his word, Luther joined an
Augustinian monastery at
His hopes quickly began to dim,
however. Roman Catholicism teaches that in order for any sin to be forgiven, it
must be confessed to a priest and then paid for by some form of penance. [1] This is what you may have heard called
"the confessional." Martin was very intent on being forgiven for all
of his sins, so he would go to the little booth every day, often for several
hours at a time, confessing every sin he could bring to mind. But, "Luther
had an overpowering sense of his own sinfulness and the more he sought to
overcome it the more he became aware of sin's sway over him." [2]
Why was this? Because the more he
studied his own heart, the more evil he found there. Luther was learning
experientially what we call the doctrine of the sinful nature. He was
discovering his own heart described in the Bible in these ways:
•
Ecclesiastes 7:20 "Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who
does good and never sins."
• Jeremiah
17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who
can understand it?
• Mark 7:21-23 "For from within, out of
the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder,
adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride,
foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a
person."
We sin because we are
sinners. Sin is not the result of our environment, childhood or socio-economic
status.
• Psalm
51:5 "Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother
conceive me.
• Ephesians
2:3 ".were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. "
The Roman church taught that man
was able to deal with his own sin by doing certain things - keeping the
sacraments (baptism, confirmation, Eucharist/communion, penance, extreme
(final) unction, holy orders). They taught that saving grace was conferred via
these actions, without any view to the heart condition of priest or person
(recipient). Luther kept jumping through all these hoops waiting for some sense
of sin forgiven - but it never came. Even when he dabbled in mysticism which
elevated a sort of felt "love for God" above everything else - he
discovered that what was really in his heart was hate. He hated God!
The
Monk is Saved!
Martin Luther was beginning to
despair! The more he tried to please God, the more his anger toward God grew -
his inner turmoil was intense.
It was just at this time, having
received his doctorate in theology the year before that Luther was appointed to
the new
The great discovery probably came
in 1515, when Luther began lecturing on the Epistle to the Romans. He later
declared that it was in the first chapter of that epistle that he found the
solution to his difficulties. That solution did not come easily. It was not
simply a matter of opening the Bible one day and reading that "the just
shall live by faith." As he tells the story, the great discovery followed
a long struggle and bitter anguish, for Romans 1:17 begins by declaring that,
in the gospel, "the righteousness of God is revealed." According to this
text, the gospel is the revelation of the righteousness - the justice - of God.
But it was precisely the justice of God that Luther found unbearable. How could
such a message be gospel, good news? For Luther, good news would have been that
God is not just, meaning that God does not judge sinners. But
in Romans 1:17 , the good news and the justice of God
are linked. Luther hated the very phrase "the justice of God," and
spent day and night seeking to understand the relationship between the two
parts of the that single verse, which, after declaring
that in the gospel "the justice of God is revealed," affirms that
"the righteous shall live by faith."
The answer was surprising. Luther
came to the conclusion that the "justice of god" does not refer, as
he had been taught, to the punishment of sinners. It means rather that
the "justice" or "righteousness" of the righteous is not
their own, but God's. The "righteousness of God" is that which is
given to those who live by faith. It is given, not because they are righteous,
nor because they fulfill the demands of divine justice, but simply because God
wishes to give it. Thus, Luther's doctrine of "justification by
faith" does not mean that what God demands of us is faith, as if this were
something we have to do or achieve and which God then rewards. It means rather
that both faith and justification are the work of God, a free gift to sinners. As
a result of this discovery, Luther tells us, "I felt that I had been born
anew and that the gates of heaven had been opened. The whole of Scripture
gained a new meaning. And from that point on the phrase, "the justice of
God" no longer filled me with hatred, but rather became unspeakably sweet
by virtue of a great love." [3]
Two years later, Luther was in full
swing, teaching the book of Romans to the other monks and students at the
seminary. Most were receiving his teaching with open arms.
Now there were many things going on
the world of politics and government while Luther was growing in Christ in Wittenburg. The Pope (Leo X - one of the most vile and
money-hungry popes ever!) was trying to gain more political power. The Kings of
Now, kids.
Have you ever done something like this? There you are in the classroom and your
teacher leaves for a few seconds and you stand up in front of the class and say
something funny about the teacher? Everyone laughs and you go on your way. The
next day, you decide to do the same thing - but this time, the teacher walks in
and hears everything you say! Oh no!!!
Well, a similar kind of thing
happened to Luther - only we shouldn't say, "Oh no!" but "All
right!"
Luther did what was common in that
day and decided to open a topic for debate by writing out his complaints and
nailing them to a door. He had 97 of them. He wrote them, nailed them - and.. nothing happened. No one
noticed!
So, not long after, Luther wrote
out some more abuses he saw in the church, and nailed them to the door. and the whole world stood up and took notice!!! The Reformation
had begun!
The
Problem with Indulgences
What Luther was wanting to debate
was the use of Indulgences. An Indulgence is a way to buy, with money, your
salvation. or the salvation of someone you love who
already died!
John Tetzel, a Dominican priest, was travelling the world selling Papal Indulgences.. so that the greedy Leo could
raise enough money to build a huge white building in
"As
soon as the coin in the coffer rings,
The
soul from purgatory springs!"
Such nonsense was not to be
tolerated even in the Roman church, and Luther wrote his 95 theses to address
it. They included statements like these:
45 .
Christians are to be taught that he who sees a man in need, and passes him by,
and gives [his money] for pardons, purchases not the indulgences of the pope,
but the indignation of God.
51 . Christians are to be taught that it would be
the pope's wish, as it is his duty, to give of his own money to very many of
those from whom certain hawkers of pardons cajole money, even though the
82 . To wit: -- "Why does not the pope empty
purgatory, for the sake of holy love and of the dire need of the souls that are
there, if he redeems an infinite number of souls for the sake of miserable
money with which to build a Church? The former reasons would be most just; the
latter is most trivial."
Luther had just spoken against the
elaborate plans of the Pope - possibly the single most powerful man in the
world at that time!
Now, we should note that another
factor in the providence of God throwing barrels of fuel on this fire was the
printing press. For the first time in the history of the world, multiple copies
of one document could be printed off in a very short time. Luther's 95 theses
were published on October 31 st , 1517 and they quickly spread across
The Pope was furious and demanded
the Augustinian monks deal with Luther. They met together in
Luther was called to other councils
and meetings, [5] but the greatest test in his life came at
the Diet of Worms.
The
Diet of
A diet of worms is what a happy
robin eats. It is also a church meeting or council in a city in
Here, all the great rulers and
dignitaries of the day assembled to question the little German monk. Luther was
very afraid! Imagine what it would be like to stand before men who could
condemn you to death at any moment. There you are in your little monk habit and
there they are in all their glory and robes and jewelry and power and
authority!
There was no debate or questioning
or study - Luther was simply asked to renounce his writings (piled on a table
in front of him) - including the 95 theses.
This was a critical moment - not so
much because Luther was unconvinced of his writings, but because he believed in
the authority of the church! To go against the church was, in Roman Catholic
theology, to go against God. Luther asked for one day to consider what he ought
to do.
The next day came and the whole
assembly was buzzing with anticipation. The same demand to recant and renounce
his works was made. Luther abandoned the Latin used in official debates and
with a loud voice in German said:
"My conscience is a prisoner
of God's Word. I cannot and will not recant, for to disobey one's conscience is
neither just nor safe. God help me. Amen."
He then left the proceedings and
returned to his room!
What
Happened Next?
The Emporer
was not about to let a monk defy his authority. He quickly published the Edict
of Worms on May 21, 1521 . It said in part,
"Luther is now to be seen
as a convicted heretic. He has twenty-one days from the fifteenth of April.
After that, no one should give him shelter. His followers also are to be
condemned, and his books will be erased from human memory."
Among other things, this ruling
permitted anyone to kill Luther without suffering legal consequence, and the
property of Luther's followers and supporters could be seized by force. It is
worth noting that Luther lived under this edict for the rest of his life.
While everyone was waiting for this
Edict to be written, however, Martin Luther was kidnapped by soldiers of
Luther remained in Wartburg until
the burgeoning Reformation needed his direct help again. Like many such seasons
in the history of the church, God often appoints one man with his own unique
strengths and weaknesses to lead His people. Melancthon
and Karlstadt had neither the mind nor the fortitude
of Martin Luther - so at great personal risk he came out of hiding and returned
to Wittenburg. He would spend the majority of the
rest of his life there, writing, debating, teaching, marrying, having children,
mentoring students and seeking to apply the Bible to all that the church was
and did.
He was no great friend of Baptists.
which ought to be the subject of another night. but we can thank God the massive doctrinal and practical
and political reform brought about through the life of the German
monk.
Why
Does it Matter?
Martin Luther's life teaches us
many lessons:
- Great men of God don't seek
fame - it finds them. Luther, like Calvin in
- Luther's life shows us that
we may be called to go against all the powers and the impressive people of
the world to follow Jesus. Luther was not the first nor will he be the
last to be attacked for his faith. We can learn from him, however, to be
sure that what we are following is the Jesus of the Bible, not just some
weird aberrant view we have concocted.
- Luther's life also teaches us
that there are no perfect men. Luther often erred in public debate by
using slanderous terms and remarks. This was more than just the
"style of the day." One example is from the introduction to his
excellent work, "The Bondage of the Will" written to refute
Erasmus's "The Freedom of the Will." He says, ".your Book
is, in my estimation, so mean and vile, that I greatly feel for you for
having defiled your most beautiful and ingenious language with such vile
trash; and I feel an indignation against the matter also, that such
unworthy stuff should be borne about in ornaments of eloquence so rare;
which is as if rubbish, or dung, should he carried in vessels of gold and
silver." [6] Not only that, but like many great
men, he was very busy and could sometimes make decisions without full
knowledge of the truth concerning the situation.
- Our freedom to worship as
Protestants should never be taken for granted. Good men and women died and
suffered much in order for us to be free to worship God as we believe He
desires to be worshipped. The differences between us and
- Luther's life also teaches us
that Christian greatness is never void of personal devotion. Luther
followed Christ and submitted to His will. He was far more than a great
personality - he loved Jesus.
Luther in many ways became a
living legend in his own day. And the common people, freed from the oppression
of
Dear
Christian people all, rejoice,
Each soul with joy upraising.
Pour forth a song with heart and voice,
With love and gladness singing.
Give thanks to God, our Lord above,
Thanks for His miracle of love!
Dearly He hath redeemed us. [7]
Nun freut euch, lieben
Christen g'mein,
Und lasst uns fröhlich springen,
Dass wir getrost und all in ein
Mit Lust und Liebe singen:
Was Gott an uns gewendet hat,
Und seine süsse Wunderthat,
Gar theur hat er's erworben.
[1] Roman Catholicisim defines
penance in this way: " Penance is a sacrament of the New Law instituted by Christ
in which forgiveness of sins committed after baptism is granted
through the priest's absolution to those who with true sorrow confess their
sins and promise to satisfy for the same. It is called a "sacrament"
not simply a function or ceremony, because it is an outward sign instituted by Christ
to impart grace to the soul. As an outward sign it comprises the
actions of the penitent in presenting himself to the priest and accusing
himself of his sins, and the actions of the priest in pronouncing absolution
and imposing satisfaction. This whole procedure is usually called, from one of
its parts, "confession", and it is said to take place in the
"tribunal of penance", because it is a judicial process in which the
penitent is at once the accuser, the person accused, and the witness, while the
priest pronounces judgment and sentence. The grace conferred is deliverance
from the guilt of sin and, in the case of mortal sin, from its eternal
punishment; hence also reconciliation with God
, justification. Finally, the confession is made not in the secrecy
of the penitent's heart nor to a layman as friend and advocate, nor to a
representative of human authority, but to a duly ordained priest with requisite
jurisdiction and with the "power of the keys", i.e., the power to
forgive sins which Christ granted to His Church." Accessed on October 28, 2004 from
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11618c.htm.
[2] Justo Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity, Volume
II: The Reformation to the Present Day (San Francisco, CA: Harper and Row,
1985),16.
[3] Gonzalez, p. 19-20. Emphasis mine.
[4] The primary "other reason" was the fact that
Tetzel was a Dominican and they were Augustinians. Their mutual distrust went
back generations!
[5] The Diet of the Empire at
[6] The Bondage of the Will , 14.
[7] Words: Martin Luther , 1523 ( Nun
freut euch );
translated from German to English by Christian G. Haas , 1897.