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Introduction
Awhile ago, I asked if I could be the church’s official Luther apologist
because I believe that many times, when people say “Luther got this wrong,”
whatever ‘this’ might be, I think, “How do you know, Luther got it wrong?”
And the reason I think that is because Luther got the most important
thing in the world right, and viewed the entire world through the lenses of
that thing.
Luther understood, better than anyone, since possibly Paul, that Jesus
Christ came and lived a perfect life, never sinning, perfectly righteous, and
then he received the full wrath of God in place of us all, and because of that,
we are reconciled to our Creator, the Heavenly Father.
Luther called it “The Great Exchange” our sins were placed on Christ,
and his righteousness was placed on those who are children of God so that
when God, the Holy Heavenly Father looks at us, he doesn’t see me the
sinful Paul Hambrick, he sees His perfect son, His true child, His true Israel,
Jesus Christ.
And the reason why Luther understood this so completely was because of
his life experiences leading up to the moment when he read Romans 1:17
“For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is
written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
The way Luther probably would have read that last part, is: “The one
who is righteous by faith, shall live.”
It really sunk in for the first time that there was not anything that Luther
could do that would make him acceptable before God.
Christ did all the work in his life, and on the cross, and it was that event
in history 1500 years previously that made the children of God acceptable to
God. The child of God was righteous by faith alone.
Luther describes that moment as if the gates of paradise were finally
opened to him and he happily walked through them.
But it was all of his experiences before this moment that prepared him to
be open to receive this truth from God.
Luther was a “True Believer” if there ever was one. He didn’t just give
his beliefs lip service, he truly believed what he thought, wrote and said,
which is why, when he says things like, “Pray and let God worry,” we laugh
because it’s a witty statement, but Luther, while being slightly facetious,
would have meant it. You didn’t get “half-pints” with Luther, as I heard a
historian put it this week. When he was warm, he was very warm, and when
he was cruel, he was very cruel, you got the whole full measure of Luther
when Luther believed something.
But two things that Luther seemed to believe above all others - 1) It was
only by God’s grace that he had hope for salvation, and 2) Scripture was the
final authority on everything.
So, when I hear someone say, “Luther got this wrong,” or “Luther wasn’t
quite right here, or there,” I wonder if maybe Luther is just misunderstood.
It’s not that I think he couldn’t have possibly been wrong about things,
he was a man after all, it’s just that I wonder if maybe he saw things that we
don’t see.
I once heard that Luther said, after reading John Calvin’s views on the
Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, “Give me half an hour with this young man,
and we’ll hammer out our differences on the Lord’s Supper.” Which is
interesting because that was the one point that they supposedly disagreed on.
This week, I’m going to give an historical overview of the Life of Luther
leading up to the Diet of Worms and through Wartborg Castle, and next
week, I want to go over his organization of the Protestant Church and through
that talk about his doctrines which will include many of his wonderful quotes
about various topics.
But, let me read one quote here, this is Martin Luther on quoting Martin
Luther, and I want you to keep this in mind whenever you hear someone
quote, or talk about Luther, and whether or not Luther may have been wrong
about a point:
Early Life
Early Life
Luther was born in Eiselben, Germany on 10 November 1483 to Hans
and Margaret Luther. In 1484 they moved to Mansfield (Does anyone know
the significance of that?).
Luther would later compare his early education to purgatory and hell,
however.
He believed that he could not break this vow, sold his books, left law
school and entered an Augustinian friary in Erfurt on 17 July 1505. Luther’s
friends gave him a farewell supper, and then walked him to the friary. Luther
wasn’t really happy about his decision, at the door, he said to his friends,
“This day you see me, and then, not ever again.”
He even wore out his confessor who told him, “Look would you stop
bothering me.”
His superiors thought that maybe he was lazy because he would literally
spend all day long in confessional while everyone else was performing the
work in the monastery.
It dyed and sold dyed cloth, and brewed an apparently popular beer at
the time, so there was plenty of work to do, but Martin spent all of his days in
the confessional booth confessing the tiniest sins.
He wasn’t lazy, and he wasn’t trying to get out of work, he was trying to
find peace for his tortured soul.
He really felt his own sin and the Holiness of God, and he couldn’t come
to terms with it.
The more he tried to do for God, the more aware he became of his
sinfulness.
He would try everything to prove that he was penitent from long periods
of fasting, to sleeping out in the snow without blankets, to self-flagellation.
He would attribute his ill health in later life to his years of self-abuse in the
monastery.
In 1511, Luther had to make a business trip to Rome, and he was excited
to go because… it was Rome, the holy city.
When he got there, he was shocked at the unholiness of the city and
flippancy of the local priests.
They could get through 5 or 6 Mass’ in the time it took him to get
through one.
The enchantment continued for some little while. Luther tried hard to
realise the dreams which had lightened his toilsome journey. Here, thought
Luther, the martyrs had died; on the floor of this stupendous ruin, the
Coliseum, had they contended with the lions; on this spot, where now stands
the sumptuous temple of St. Peter, and where the Vicar of Christ has erected
his throne, were they used "as torches to illumine the darkness of the night".
Over this city, too, Paul's feet had walked, and to this city had that letter
been sent, and here had it first been opened and read, in which occur the
words that had been the means of imparting to him a new life - "The just shall
live by faith."
The first weeks which Luther passed in Rome were occupied in visiting
the holy places and saying mass at the altars of the more holy of its churches.
But it was not long till he began to see that these outward blemishes were as
nothing to the hideous moral and spiritual corruptions that existed beneath the
surface. The luxury, lewdness, and impiety that shocked him in the first
Italian towns he had entered, and which had attended him in every step of his
journey since crossing the Alps, were all repeated in Rome on a scale of
seven-fold magnitude. His practice of saying mass at all the more favoured
churches brought him into daily contact with the priests; he saw them behind
the scenes; he heard their talk, and he could not conceal from himself -
though the discovery unspeakably shocked and pained him - that these men
were simply playing a part, and that in private they held in contempt and
treated with mockery the very rites which in public they celebrated with so
great a show of devotion. If he was shocked at their profane levity, they on
their part were no less astonished at his solemn credulity, and jeered him as a
dull German.
One day Luther was saying mass in one of the churches of Rome with his
accustomed solemnity. While he had been saying one mass, the priests at the
neighbouring altars had sung seven. "Make haste, and send Our Lady back
her Son" was the horrible scoff with which they reproved his delay, as they
accounted it. To them "Lady and Son" were worth only the money they
brought. But these were the common priests. Surely, thought he, faith and
piety still linger among the dignitaries of the Church! How mistaken was
even this belief, Luther was soon to discover.
One day he chanced to find himself at table with some prelates. Taking
the German to be a man of the same easy faith with themselves, they lifted
the veil a little too freely. They openly expressed their disbelief in the
mysteries of their Church, and shamelessly boasted of their cleverness in
deceiving and befooling the people. Instead of the words, "Hoc est meum
corpus" - This is my body etc. - the words at the utterance of which the bread
is changed, as the Church of Rome teaches, into the flesh and blood of Christ
- these prelates, as they themselves told him, were accustomed to say, "Panis
es, et panis manebis," etc. - Bread thou art, and bread thou wilt remain - and
then, said they, we elevate the Host, and the people bow down and worship.
Borgia had lately closed his infamous Pontificate, and the warlike Julius
II. was now reigning. A powerful police patrolled the city every night. They
were empowered to deal summary justice on offenders, and those whom they
caught were hanged at the next post or thrown into the Tiber. But all the
vigilance of the patrol could not secure the peace and safety of the streets.
Robberies and murders were of nightly occurrence. "If there be a hell," said
Luther, "Rome is built over it."
"I would not have missed my journey to Rome," said Luther afterwards,
"for a hundred thousand florins."
Germany was divided up into several states that were all part of the
much larger Holy Roman Empire. It was a type of feudalism, and Frederick
the Wise was the feudal Lord of that area.
The church where Luther pastored was named "All Saints" because it was
the repository of Frederick’s collection of holy relics. This parish served both
the Augustinian monastary and the university. It was in the performance of
these duties that the Luther was confronted with the effects of obtaining
indulgences on the lives of everyday people. An indulgence is a certificate
that absolved individuals of the temporal penalties of the sins they had
confessed. A buyer could purchase one, either for himself or for one of his
deceased relatives in purgatory.
The Pope had cleared out the Vatican’s coffers on both his building
campaign for St. Peter’s Basilica, and his lavish lifestyle which included huge
parties and massive boar hunts.
The 95 Theses were quickly translated into German, widely copied and
printed. Within two weeks they had spread throughout Germany, and within
two months throughout Europe.
This was one of the first events in history that was profoundly affected by
the printing press, which made the distribution of documents easier and more
wide-spread.
The 95 Theses:
Aftermath to Worms
As I said last week, Luther nailing the 95 Theses to the church door at
Wittenburg was merely an attempt to start a debate.
The 95 Theses were quickly translated from Latin into German, printed,
and widely copied, making the controversy one of the first in history to be
aided by the printing press.[35] Within two weeks, copies of the theses had
spread throughout Germany; within two months throughout Europe.
This was a particularly creative time for Luther. It was during this time
that he published his commentary on Galatians, his Work on the Psalms, and
three of his best-known works were published in 1520, these were: To the
Christian Nobility of the German Nation, On the Babylonian Captivity of the
Church, and On the Freedom of a Christian. We’ll look at these works in
depth a little later.
Now, in addition to nailing the Theses to the church door, Luther also
mailed a copy to Archbishop Albrecht of Mainz and Magdeburg.
This was the official act of Luther expressing his grievance with the
Church, the nailing of the letter to the door was just traditional.
You might be asking, why he would do this, but keep in mind, Luther’s
problem was primarily Tetzel’s tactics of selling indulgences for profit - not
that the Church had no right to proclaim someone as absolved of their sins.
It’s almost as if Luther was trying to tell the Pope, “Hey, you’ve got this
crazy monk up here that’s tarnishing your good name by selling indulgences
for profit, and using sleazy slogans to do it.”
The Archbishop Albrecht did not respond to Luther’s letter, but had it
checked for heresy, and in December of 1517 forwarded the letter to Rome.
Pope Leo X, as I said last week, needed the money from indulgences, so
he responded, to Luther, but slowly.
Over the next three years, he sent several papal theologians and envoys
against Luther.
This just made Luther angry, and gave him more resolve to stand his
ground.
Remember, last week I said that Luther was a “True Believer” and once
he was convinced of something, he went all out in favor of whatever that
might be.
Luther’s job was to study the Scriptures, he was the Biblical Studies
professor of Wittenburg. He knew his Bible. He believed it was the very
inspired words of the Creator of the entire universe, and if you disagreed with
him, you were wrong.
Well, often when people are summoned to Rome, they don’t leave Rome
alive, so Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony, whom we were introduced to
last week persuaded the Pope to hold the examination in Augsburg where the
Imperial Diet was held.
Without getting into great detail about Church politics at this time,
Germany was part of the Holy Roman Empire, along with several other
countries, and the countries were further divided up into territories that were
ruled by electors. The Holy Roman Empire had as much authority over things
as the Vatican did, and so Charles V the Holy Roman Emperor had as much
authority as the Pope did.
Frederick as one of the electors within Charles V empire had some pull
with the Pope, and this is why the Pope would have agreed to have Luther
examined outside of territory that he controlled.
Many historians say that it’s a mystery why Frederick wanted to protect
Luther. Maybe he agreed with Luther’s theology, maybe he just liked Luther.
But let’s think about this for a second. Frederick is Luther’s employer and
owns the University at Wittenburg that he teaches in, and whose enrollment
has increased significantly since Luther became famous, and he owns the
church where Luther pastors, and contains his vast collection of relics that
people pay good money to see.
Luther realizes this and savvily uses his political connections to his
advantage.
In October 1518, at the Imperial Diet, the papal legate Cardinal Cajetan
began his examination of Luther, and told him to recant his statements in the
95 Theses. His instructions were, if Luther did not recant, he was to be
arrested.
Luther informed the Cardinal that he did not consider the papacy part of
the biblical Church, and so he wasn’t going to answer to him any longer.
In January of the following year, 1519, Luther was drug into a debate
when he was challenged by theologian Johann Maier von Eck. When he
invited Luther to speak, Luther said, among other things, that Matthew 16:18
(Where Jesus says Peter is the rock on which the church will be built), does
not confer on popes the exclusive right to interpret scripture, and that
therefore neither popes nor church councils were infallible.
Eck then branded Luther a new John Huss, who had been deemed a
heretic and burned at the stake in 1415. Eck then devoted himself to Luther’s
defeat.
In this writing, Luther is not only calling into question the authority of
the Roman church, but he’s calling into question the authority of the Roman
church in Germany.
Who are these crazy Italians who demand money from the proud
German people - their not part of the Biblical church and here they are
extorting German money from honest German people. What are we going to
do about this German people?
This endears him to the German nobility and the German people who get
wind of all this from the copies being printed all over Europe.
The second pamphlet Luther wrote was The Babylonian Captivity of the
Church in which he denies that their are 7 sacraments according to the
Scriptures - there are only two: Baptism and Communion, with declaration of
Absolution being a possible third, and let me just say that in the mind of
Luther, it is not so much the act of stating absolution through the words of the
priest that Luther is referring to here, but the absolution that comes from the
individual being declared righteous because of the Grace of God. This
Justification comes through Faith, and Faith through hearing the word, so
essentially, what Luther is saying is the Word being preached is a possible
third sacrament.
The third treatise he wrote was On the Freedom of the Christian. This
work developed the concept that as fully forgiven children of God, Christians
are no longer compelled to keep God's law; however, they freely and
willingly serve God and their neighbors.
It was from this that you will here, “Lutherans have no category for
ethics.” And it is also from this treatise that Luther was challenged by
someone who said, “Dr. Luther, you are basically telling people that they can
be Christians and sin all they want.” And Luther said, “Of course. You can do
whatever you want and behave however you want, and still be a Christian…
but why would you?”
On 15 June 1520, Luther was sent a papal bull stating that unless he
recanted certain statements taken from his writings, including the 95 Theses,
within 60 days, he would be excommunicated. Luther responded by setting
the bull on fire publicly, and on 3 January 1521 Pope Leo X excommunicated
Luther.
Now, again, power was shared by both the Vatican and the Holy Roman
Empire, so now the responsibility of enforcing Luther to recant his statements
fell to the HRE.
Frederick the Wise had convinced Charles V that he should hear Luther’s
case himself, not put it off on anyone lower than himself.
Luther was convinced that he was going to his death, and he was
worried as any man would be.
But as he made the trip from Wittenburg to Worms, he was treated like a
celebrity. Whole towns would rush out and wish him well, they would throw
parties in his honor as he passed through.
He was Germany’s most famous and best selling author, and the people
of Germany were behind him all the way.
Luther was told to appear the following day before the Diet at 4 p.m. Dr.
Jerome Schurff was to act as Luther’s advocate, and Eck was the Vatican’s
advocate.
On April 17: The Imperial Herald Sturm and Pappenheim came for
Luther. Pappenheim reminded Luther that he should speak only in answer to
direct questions from the presiding officer, Johann von Eck (not the professor
from Ingolstadt). Eck asked if a collection of books was Luther’s and if he was
ready to revoke their heresies. Dr. Schurff said, “Please have the titles read.”
There were 25 of them, probably including The 95 Theses, Resolutions
Concerning the 95 Theses, On the Papacy at Rome, Address to the Christian
Nobility, The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, and On the Freedom of a
Christian, all of which had been written prior to the Diet of Worms. Luther
requested more time for a proper answer, so he was given until the next day
at 4 p.m.
April 18: Luther prayed for long hours, consulted with friends and
mediators, and presented himself before the Diet the next day. A larger crowd
assembled than the previous day. Luther was a changed man, no longer in
awe or feeling timid. He had probably memorized his speech. When the
counselor put the same questions to him, Luther began, “The Most Serene
Lord Emperor, Illustrious Princes, most clement Lords, etc.” He stated that he
lacked the etiquette of the court. "They are all mine, but as for the second
question, they are not all of one sort." Luther went on to place the writings
into three categories: (1) Works which were well received by even his
enemies: those he would not reject. These affected the Protestant
Reformation. (2) Books which attacked the abuses, lies and desolation of the
Christian world and the papacy: those, Luther believed, could not safely be
rejected without encouraging abuses to continue. To retract them would be to
open the door to further oppression. (Oberman, 39) “If I now recant these,
then, I would be doing nothing but strengthening tyranny” (Oberman). (3)
Attacks on individuals: he apologized for the harsh tone of these writings but
did not reject the substance of what he taught in them; if he could be shown
from the Scriptures that he was in error, Luther continued, he would reject
them.
According to the Weimar Edition of Luther's works, here is the full text
of Luther's final speech: "Unless I am convinced by the testimonies of the
Holy Scriptures or evident reason (for I believe neither in the Pope nor
councils alone, since it has been established that they have often erred and
contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures adduced by me, and
my conscience has been taken captive by the Word of God, and I am neither
able nor willing to recant, since it is neither safe nor right to act against
conscience. God help me. Amen" (E. G. Schwiebert, Luther and His Times,
504f.).
Frederick the Wise had arranged for masked men to kidnap him and
whisk him away to the Castle at Wartburg where he would be safe.
It was during this time that he translated the Bible into German, from
Latin, and wrote other papers, including one that told Nuns and Monks they
could break their monastic vows and live freely in Christ.
Doctrinal Distinctives
Doctrinal Distinctives
First some great quotes from Luther which certainly demonstrate his
beliefs:
By God's grace, I know Satan very well. If Satan can turn God's Word
upside down and pervert the Scriptures, what will he do with my words -- or
the words of others?
Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain of God's favor that it
would risk death a thousand times trusting in it. Such confidence and
knowledge of God's grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your
relationship to God and all creatures. The Holy Spirit makes this happen
through faith. Because of it, you freely, willingly and joyfully do good to
everyone, serve everyone, suffer all kinds of things, love and praise the God
who has shown you such grace.
If you are a preacher of mercy, do not preach an imaginary but the true
mercy. If the mercy is true, you must therefore bear the true, not an
imaginary sin. God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a
sinner, and let your sins be strong (sin boldly), but let your trust in Christ be
stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the
world. We will commit sins while we are here, for this life is not a place
where justice resides. We, however, says Peter (2. Peter 3:13) are looking
forward to a new heaven and a new earth where justice will reign.
For the history of the centuries that have passed since the birth of Christ
nowhere reveals conditions like those of the present. There has never been
such building and planting in the world. There has never been such gluttonous
and varied eating and drinking as now. Wearing apparel has reached its limit in
costliness. Who has ever heard of such commerce as now encircles the earth?
There have arisen all kinds of art and sculpture, embroidery and engraving, the
like of which has not been seen during the whole Christian era. In addition
men are so delving into the mysteries of things that today a boy of twenty
knows more than twenty doctors formerly knew.
Superstition, idolatry, and hypocrisy have ample wages, but truth goes a-
begging.
For where God built a church, there the Devil would also build a
chapel...Thus is the Devil ever God's ape.
Reason is the greatest enemy that faith has: it never comes to the aid of
spiritual things, but--more frequently than not --struggles against the divine
Word, treating with contempt all that emanates from God.
But the Jews are so hardened that they listen to nothing; though
overcome by testimonies they yield not an inch. It is a pernicious race,
oppressing all men by their usury and rapine. If they give a prince or
magistrate a thousand florins, they extort twenty thousand from the subjects in
payment. We must ever keep on guard against them.
I think these things ( firearms ) were invented by Satan himself, for they
can’t be defended against with (ordinary) weapons and fists. All human
strength vanishes when confronted with firearms. A man is dead before he
sees what’s coming.
We believe that the very beginning and end of salvation, and the sum of
Christianity, consists of faith in Christ, who by His blood alone, and not by any
works of ours, has put away sin, and destroyed the power of death.
Faith ever says, "If Thou wilt," not "If Thou canst."
What can only be taught by the rod and with blows will not lead to much
good; they will not remain pious any longer than the rod is behind them.
Sin cannot tear you away from him [Christ], even though you commit
adultery a hundred times a day and commit as many murders.
To sum the matter up: whoever finds himself unsuited to the celibate life
should see to it right away that he has something to do and to work at; then
let him strike out in God's name and get married…. Let God worry about
how they and their children are to be fed. God makes children; he will surely
also feed them.
In short, I will preach it [the Word of God], teach it, write it, but I will
constrain no man by force, for faith must come freely without compulsion.
Take myself as an example. I opposed indulgences and all the papists, but
never with force. I simply taught, preached, and wrote God’s Word; otherwise
I did nothing. And while I slept or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip
and Amsdorf, the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or
emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing; the Word did
everything. Had I desired to foment trouble, I could have brought great
bloodshed upon Germany; indeed, I could have started such a game that even
the emperor would not have been safe. But what would it have been? Mere
fool’s play. I did nothing; I let the Word do its work.
All who call on God in true faith, earnestly from the heart, will certainly
be heard, and will receive what they have asked and desired.
Anyone who is to find Christ must first find the church. How could anyone
know where Christ is and what faith is in him unless he knew where his
believers are?
Be thou comforted, little dog, Thou too in Resurrection shall have a little
golden tail.
Beautiful music is the art of the prophets that can calm the agitations of
the soul; it is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has
given us.
Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still
plant my apple tree.
Every man must do two things alone; he must do his own believing and
his own dying.
God writes the Gospel not in the Bible alone, but also on trees, and in
the flowers and clouds and stars.
I am afraid that the schools will prove the very gates of hell, unless they
diligently labor in explaining the Holy Scriptures and engraving them in the
heart of the youth.
I am more afraid of my own heart than of the pope and all his cardinals.
I have within me the great pope, Self.
I feel much freer now that I am certain the pope is the Antichrist.
I have held many things in my hands, and I have lost them all; but
whatever I have placed in God's hands, that I still possess.
Let the wife make the husband glad to come home, and let him make her
sorry to see him leave.
The will is a beast of burden. If God mounts it, it wishes and goes as God
wills; if Satan mounts it, it wishes and goes as Satan wills; Nor can it choose its
rider... the riders contend for its possession.
To gather with God's people in united adoration of the Father is as
necessary to the Christian life as prayer.
You should not believe your conscience and your feelings more than the
word which the Lord who receives sinners preaches to you.
• Justification by Faith
• Two Sacraments
Justification by Faith
"This one and firm rock, which we call the doctrine of justification, is the
chief article of the whole Christian doctrine, which comprehends the
understanding of all godliness."
This and the solas are the material principle upon which all other
teachings of Luther rest.
This righteousness is not just from Christ, but is the very righteousness of
Christ imputed to the believer through faith.
"That is why faith alone makes someone just and fulfills the law," said
Luther. "Faith is that which brings the Holy Spirit through the merits of
Christ"[3]. Thus faith, for Luther, is a gift from God, and ". . .a living, bold trust
in God's grace, so certain of God's favor that it would risk death a thousand
times trusting in it."
As we’ve already said, Luther’s epiphany came mainly through his eyes
being opened to Romans 1:17 "For therein is the righteousness of God is
revealed from faith, to faith: as it is written: 'The just shall live by faith.'"
The first and chief article is this: Jesus Christ, our God and Lord, died for
our sins and was raised again for our justification (Romans 3:24-25). He alone
is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29), and God
has laid on Him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6). All have sinned and are
justified freely, without their own works and merits, by His grace, through the
redemption that is in Christ Jesus, in His blood (Romans 3:23-25). This is
necessary to believe. This cannot be otherwise acquired or grasped by any
work, law, or merit. Therefore, it is clear and certain that this faith alone
justifies us...Nothing of this article can be yielded or surrendered, even though
heaven and earth and everything else falls (Mark 13:31).
ANY!
But the chief office or force of the Law is that it reveal original sin with all
its fruits, and show man how very low his nature has fallen, and has become
[fundamentally and] utterly corrupted; as the Law must tell man that he has no
God nor regards [cares for] God, and worships other gods, a matter which
before and without the Law he would not have believed. In this way he
becomes terrified, is humbled, desponds, despairs, and anxiously desires aid,
but sees no escape; he begins to be an enemy of [enraged at] God, and to
murmur, etc. 5] This is what Paul says, Rom. 4:15: The Law worketh wrath.
And Rom. 5:20: Sin is increased by the Law. [The Law entered that the offense
might abound.]
On Gospel:
We will now return to the Gospel, which not merely in one way gives us
counsel and aid against sin; for God is superabundantly rich [and liberal] in His
grace [and goodness]. First, through the spoken Word by which the forgiveness
of sins is preached [He commands to be preached] in the whole world; which
is the peculiar office of the Gospel. Secondly, through Baptism. Thirdly,
through the holy Sacrament of the Altar. Fourthly, through the power of the
keys, and also through the mutual conversation and consolation of brethren,
Matt. 18:20: Where two or three are gathered together, etc.
The Gospel is not just that Christ died for your sins - that’s the most
important message of the Gospel - but it’s everything we do on Sunday -
Word and Sacrament combined into the entire order of worship - The Law
reminding us of our separation from God and need for redemption; Our
confession of sins; The Word preached to us proclaiming the Grace of God,
the death and resurrection of Christ and the forgiveness of our sins; baptism
and communion as physical reminders of God’s covenant with us in Christ.
Priesthood of Believers
Luther believed that all believers are members of the one body of Christ.
This was spoken in contrast to the medieval belief that Christians are
divided into “spiritual” (clergy) and “temporal” (laity) Christians.
All Christians are “priests” in the eyes of God, and this is exclusive to
protestants.
Righteous Sinner
Romans 7 is the basis for this doctrine - where Paul says he does what he
doesn’t want to do because the old man is still with him.
Sacraments
Communion was the main reason that Calvin and Luther disagreed.
Luther stated that Christ said, “This IS my body.” And he really stated
that the argument rests on what the meaning of “is” is.
Luther believed that Christ was truly present in the bread and wine, and
Calvin said that Christ is represented by the Holy Spirit.
Some of the old arguments say, “How can Christ be there if he’s at the
right hand of the Father.” But I see these arguments as not being very strong
because how do you reconcile that the church is the body of Christ.
Martin Luther's doctrine of the two kingdoms (or two reigns) of God
teaches that God is the ruler of the whole world and that he rules in two
ways.
Here is what is said about Luther, and his book On Secular Authority
from wikipedia:
Martin Luther's book, On Secular Authority, was an ardent expression of the principle of
Liberty of Conscience. “Liberty of conscience” is the principle that forbids human authorities
from coercing people’s spiritual beliefs. In this book, Luther insisted that God requires
voluntary religious beliefs. Compelled or coerced faith is insincere and must never be allowed.
Luther insisted that “liberty of conscience” was one of Jesus Christ’s principles. According to
Luther, the civil government’s role is simply to keep outward peace in society. The civil
government has no business enforcing spiritual laws. “The laws of worldly government extend
no farther than to life and property and what is external upon earth,” Luther insisted. Echoing
Luther, writing on religious liberty, Thomas Jefferson stated “The legitimate powers of
government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others.” Jefferson may not have had
Luther specifically in mind, but was perhaps an heir to the Protestant tradition which gave birth
to this sentiment. Addressing the question of whether the state should permit its citizens to
believe religious views which are heterodox, Luther said, “heresy can never be prevented by
force... heresy is a spiritual matter which no iron can strike, no fire burn, no water drown.” In
other words, it is folly to legislate and enforce religious beliefs.
Luther’s articulation of the parameters of civil government was a monumental step in the
development of the separation of church and state. He argued for a clear distinction between
two separate spheres: civil and spiritual. This is known as the Doctrine of the two kingdoms.
The civil sphere deals with man’s physical life in society as he interacts with other human
beings; in this, man is subject to human governments. The spiritual sphere deals with man’s
soul, which is eternal, and which is subject only to God. The Doctrine of the two kingdoms is
articulated by Luther in these terms:
God has ordained the two governments: the spiritual, which by the Holy Spirit under
Christ makes Christians and pious people; and the secular, which restrains the unchristian
and wicked so that they are obliged to keep the peace outwardly... The laws of worldly
government extend no farther than to life and property and what is external upon earth. For
over the soul God can and will let no one rule but himself. Therefore, where temporal power
presumes to prescribe laws for the soul, it encroaches upon God’s government and only
misleads and destroys souls. We desire to make this so clear that every one shall grasp it, and
that the princes and bishops may see what fools they are when they seek to coerce the people
with their laws and commandments into believing one thing or another.
Luther encouraged civil disobedience toward any government which would encroach the line of
separation between the civil and the sacred:
We are to be subject to governmental power and do what it bids, as long as it does not
bind our conscience but legislates only concerning outward matters.... But if it invades the
spiritual domain and constrains the conscience, over which God only must preside and rule,
we should not obey it at all but rather lose our necks. Temporal authority and government
extend no further than to matters which are external and corporeal.