Martin Luther was the
leader in “reforming” the Protestant Church (thus the term “Reformation
Day”). At age 21, he became a monk and
was ordained as a priest at the age of 23.
Throughout his career Luther was torn by this thought, “If man was ruled
by sin, how could he hope to gain redemption in the eyes of God?” He was never able to feel cleansed or at
peace despite all attempts through “good works”.
In his study of scripture Luther came to a new
conviction. He realized that man could
NEVER gain credit with God or earn His favor...BUT...that man could receive,
THROUGH FAITH, the gift of salvation through the life, death, and resurrection
of Jesus. The doctrine of Justification
by Faith became the basis of Luther’s teachings. This doctrine teaches that through Jesus we
are made right with God and therefore salvation is NOT “EARNED” by works; it is
a DIVINE GIFT from God that we receive freely through faith in Jesus.
Based on this teaching,
Luther nailed a critique of indulgences (purchasing merit earned by others for
one’s own salvation) to the Castle Church in Wittenburg. This critique was known as the 95 theses. In
the years ahead, Luther faced many hardships, including excommunication from
the Catholic Church. Despite this and
many dangers to his life, he continued to stand by his teachings and the number
of people who followed his teaching grew.
Among his writings is Luther’s Catechism, which describes Lutheran
teachings and gives biblical support for those teachings.
We celebrate the fact that due to Martin Luther’s
convictions, we, as Christians know that salvation is ours not because of what
we do…but because of our faith in Jesus.
All glory is given to God, who through His wisdom has provided us with a
path to His heavenly home!!
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