This year I have chosen to focus my attention as a born again believer on a key positive aspect of the 31st October. So ignoring the nonsense of ‘Halloween’, let's remember that today is Reformation Day….the anniversary of that momentous act of defiance by Martin Luther in 1517 when he nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Wittenberg Castle Church in Germany.
There is no doubt today that
Luther is a pivotal figure in history.
Yet at the time, Luther, a Roman Catholic Augustinian monk and priest
had only intended to initiate a debate…..common practice in 16th
century Germany. This one act changed
the world.
In those days, almost
everyone in Europe belonged to the Catholic Church. At that time the Church was
politically powerful, but morally and spiritually corrupt. Over time it had
wandered far from Biblical truth putting increasing trust on man-made traditions.
Luther had hoped to find salvation for himself by being a perfect priest. He
was faithful in carrying out all the rituals required of him, but always had a
sense of unworthiness feeling that he could never please God.
Luther often discussed his
troubled thoughts with colleagues at the monastery, but found no peace in the
solutions offered by Church teaching. As he had a remit of teaching and
preaching, Luther spent a lot of time studying the Bible, and through this
process, he finally came upon the answer to his doubts when he read in Romans
Chapter 1 verse 17, ‘The just shall live by faith’.
Luther immediately
understood that he could be justified (declared not guilty and righteous in the
sight of God) by faith through the grace of God. In other words by putting his trust in Jesus
Christ as His Saviour he would be righteous and sinless. There was no need to
slavishly follow rituals or work for his salvation. Martin Luther found the
truth in the Bible, and that truth revealed there immediately set him free!
Luther’s call for reform of
the Church spread like wildfire quickly throughout Europe. Other heroes of the
faith such as John Calvin and John Knox added to the work of Luther and
eventually new churches following the Bible based ideas of these reformers.
What are known today as the ‘Five Solas of the Reformation,’
became basis of Protestant doctrine. These are:
Sola Scriptura: Scripture
alone is the basis for all church doctrine, belief, and practice.
Sola Gratia:
Salvation is by grace alone. It is the unmerited gift of God based solely on
His goodness.
Sola Fide:
Salvation is through faith alone. Faith is a gift from God. We are saved only
by placing faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross. Salvation cannot
be earned by good works.
Solus Christus:
Salvation is found in Christ alone. The Bible in the book of Acts emphasises, ‘there
is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given
among men by which we must be saved.’
Christians world-wide owe a
massive debt to Martin Luther. Apart from his work as a reformer, he was
passionate about the Bible. Luther wanted all people to be able to read the
scriptures in their own language. In his day, the Bible and all worship was in the
ecclesiastical language of Latin, which ordinary people without education could
not understand.
Today everyone has the Bible
in their own language. Sadly many Christians don’t read the Bible regularly or
thoroughly and therefore lack the basic toolkit for spiritual discernment.
We should pray for a 21st
century reformation of interest in the contents of the Bible. After all, it contains
the
truth, and when read persistently with understanding, it will set
anyone free.
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