One part of a full analysis of Luther's teachings on works, sin, and faith.
Coming soon: Luther's direct quotations about the relationship between works and faith.
Explanation is both unnecessary and irrelevant.
If a person is truly honest with themselves, they will acknowledge they sin each and every day. Some are what some call little sins, others "big" sins. Some sins are seen publicly....some just remain in the mind. In either case they are sins as that is how Jesus identified sin.
The mere thought of murder is equated to actual murder. The mere thought of adultery is equated to actual adultery. We could go on with example after example of these. They are all viewed as sin and sufficient to separate you from God.
That is why Paul wrote, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
When one considers how often one sins a day, we should be on our knees thanking God that by His grace it is through faith in Christ we are saved.
We are saved through believing Jesus died for our sins. We become His followers. We follow His commandments.
As Paul wrote,
21I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, 23but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members.
24Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death?
25Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.
Romans 7:21-25 NASB
He also suggested bigamy was acceptable.
“Set fire to their synagogues or schools,” Martin Luther recommended in On the Jews and Their Lies. Jewish houses should “be razed and destroyed,” and Jewish “prayer books and Talmudic writings, in which such idolatry, lies, cursing, and blasphemy are taught, [should] be taken from them.” In addition, “their rabbis [should] be forbidden to teach on pain of loss of life and limb.” Still, this wasn’t enough.
Luther also urged that “safe-conduct on the highways be abolished completely for the Jews,” and that “all cash and treasure of silver and gold be taken from them.” What Jews could do was to have “a flail, an ax, a hoe, a spade” put into their hands so “young, strong Jews and Jewesses” could “earn their bread in the sweat of their brow.”
I’m reminded about something I’ve frequently said, though hopefully not like it was a novelty I’d happened upon, that in our society we are dealing with people who not only make out that homosexuals nothing to repent of but that they couldn’t.
These are the two sides to the they were born this way argument.
On the one hand they seek to blame God, acting as if their lusts were His doing.
Yet on the other hand they act as if their sin is bigger than God.
Remember, immediately after listing off those who cannot enter the Kingdom we find Paul saying and such were some of you.
I’m fully convinced that for many it isn’t the charge that they must repent that most offends but that they actually can by the power of the Holy Spirit in Christ.
Saying someone must repent only tells them that you disapprove of their lifestyle; but, saying they can repent places the burden for continuing in that lifestyle squarely on their shoulders.
God is bigger than our sin. (period, fin, that’s all folks)
But as Luther might say observing these comments, when he said that the root of sin is men wanting to make themselves out to be god themselves, what I’m implying / adding is that sin and therefore the actual father of sin, the devil, is what ends up sitting on the throne of the heart that rejects Christ, and not the man who thinks he’ll be just fine on his own.
This, I think, is part of what Paul meant when he spoke of those who are slaves to sin. They are not sitting on the throne of their own hearts, their sin is. As for being free with respect to righteousness I take that as meaning that they can be a small sinner, effectively temperate and morally/ethically agreeable in all things or the greatest sinner and neither their (in human terms) goodness or badness affects that they are still slaves to sin.
The only thing a sinner like that can do to change being a slave to sin is to repent as God has provided in Christ (and only in Christ).
Which gets us to the flip side. God IS BIGGER than our sin, Grace is fully adequate to make anyone one a “such were you” person.
The saints are then slaves to righteousness, for Christ sits on the throne of our hearts, and we are free with respect to sin ... obviously because sin can no longer condemn us as Paul and Luther would no doubt agree, but I would go further to opine that because of on account to us being able to obey the Master that has saved us and not the body of death (which we still at present cart around) we can, or could be if our walk were perfect, not sin even though tempted.
Before anyone launch into me for that realize what I’m saying, what are I hope it’s implied limits, and how that works.
Let’s go back for a moment and consider again the sinner who is a slave to sin: whatever they do, just so long as they do not turn to Christ, doesn’t affect in any way that they are a slave to sin. They don’t have an obedience per se, the knocking by Christ to come in as it happens in their lives is still outside of them.
But the redeemed saint faces a choice of masters. Will they obey the Holy Spirit on the throne or the demands of the old body of death?
Obedience to the Holy Spirit is without sin. If a person were so active to obey the Holy Spirit on all occasions and to turn aside from the demands of the body of death they would be living without new sin while that obedience was so astonishing.
So I’m not saying that we who fall flat on our faces, spiritually speaking, don’t sin but that when we are described as being free with respect to sin that just doesn’t necessarily stop at us not being under condemnation. And when we do fall flat on our faces because we listen to the demands of the body of death we also have a mighty champion before God whose nail scars speak louder than our sins.
Also realize that there is coming a day when this body of death will be taken away, when there won’t be two trying to demand our obedience but just the Holy Spirit.
So those who say they’ve nothing to repent of, but they blame God for their sin, take up armor to equip themselves against the call of repentance ... in their eyes it just becomes us judging them and who are we to judge them?
And when they say they cannot repent they are bowing down to the slaver squatting on a place made for God and any who do repent, who are “such were you”, are offensive to them for, when we cut to the chase, they serve the King and not the squatter.
This is not just “homosexuality” but arguably any sin that so easily entangles. It’s just as a practical matter there doesn’t seem to be many sins besides homosexuality that seem to wrap up folks whole sense of identity, or who they think they really are, in them.
I’m not saying there aren’t other identity sins, just that homosexuality certainly is one.
We should all keep this in mind when the enemy throws guilt and condemnation our way.
I think the same kind of dishonest criticism of Luther's teachings - usually taken out of context and ignoring his use of hyperbole - is present in modern day Liberals' treatment of Conservatives and especially of President Trump.
Reading about the latest "outrage" reminds me of when I taught elementary school. Six year olds often tattled on others because they heard someone say a "bad word". Most of the time it was as simple as, "We were going there, but then we stayed home." "Oh! You said butt!, I'm telling teacher!". I gets ridiculous when it's adults acting that way.
Did he never read Romans 6:1 an following? “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
Saul cum Paul proclaimed himself the chief of sinners.
In much of churchianity today, one hides one’s sins for the ostensible sake of one’s (so-called) Christian Witness.
I know one famous (and published) Pastor who wanted to confess his adultery to the congregation - but was dissuaded from doing so by the Elders of that church. (It became a much-publicized scandal ten years later.)
I was raised Lutheran. My father’s idea of an entertaining evening was reading aloud first the Word of God, then the Book of Concord - to all of us.
I spent six years at a now-prominant “Christian” junior/high school. I have attended pastoral conferences, and become acquainted with scores of preachers, and all major denominations, over decades.
I know whereof I speak:
Today’s churchians would try to bury Paul conspiring to murder Stephen - for the sake of his ministry.
I recall trying to live out the Word by confessing my own sins to those closest to me. They did not want to hear it. (”That’s enough!” my “Bible-believing” roommate once yelled.) I see now it is because they had no intention of confessing their own.
Most people do not understand Sin or Grace.
To show you how powerful these words of assurance STILL are, I was reading this to my husband and could hardly finish I got so choked up with emotion! Praise the Lord for His amazing grace.
If something is worth doing, then you must do it well.
5.56mm
I find it amazing that his detractors never seem to post the last half of the statement!
He said, “Be a singer and sing boldly.”