It’s been almost 500 years since Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany .
They were huge, earth- shattering ideas then.
But if you look around at the Protestant landscape in America today, it seems as if that great event (period) in the history of the world never happened.
I visit many Christian blog sites and I find scant freedom from the religious, spiritual ladder-climbing projects that Luther railed against. ‘ A little bit of me, and a lot of God’ is still the overwhelming mindset that inhabits the church in America, if not the world. Not to say that there are not churches and pastors and preachers that have heard the pure gospel and the freedom found within that liberating Word of truth and promise. They are there. Few and far between. But they do exist.
But most churches cannot help themselves when it comes to adding onto Christ and His pure gospel. ”You gotta have a Pope’. ‘You gotta make a decision’. ‘You gotta show you are serious’. ‘You gotta show some fruits.’ ‘You gotta have an inerrant Bible (text).’ ‘You gotta do this, you can’t do that.’
Well, we say no. All ‘you gotta have is Christ Jesus who forgives your sin’.
We stand with Luther, who stood with Paul (and others), who believed that Christ, alone, is enough. He is enough.
The first one on Luther’s list of 95 grievances was this; #1 “The entire life of the Christian is one of repentance.” So much for our religious projects.
Maybe we’ll get it right during the next 500 years. But I don’t see many signs of that happening. But with God, and His Word alone, all things are possible.
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Filed under: The Reformation |
The Old Adam Lives! 
Steve: I lived and preached way too many years in the “You gotta” stage. If I do anything (and I do) I want it to be out of love for Jesus rather than “I gotta.” Love the thought in this post. Thanks.
Thank you, Bill.
Yes, usually people people just get worn out with all the demands that that the gospel +, places upon people. They are looking for rest, and assurance…outside of anything that they do, or feel.
That’s where the external Word of the ‘pure gospel’ comes in.
I really appreciate the perspective of folks like yourself who have come through all of that and can rest in Christ’s finished work for sinners.
hebrews 4 kinda stuff eh? i read it and believe it and then go about my daily life not believing it. im constantly pounded by thoughts of failure and inadequacy. my inability always seems to spur me to try harder or give up entirely. its rare i enter his rest but in those moments when i find myself in his rest there is no place i would rather be. the weight is gone. the pain and ache soothed. reminds me of a song…
graceshaker,
I know of what you speak. This life of faith is TOUGH. It truly is a battle. If weren’t for Christ Jesus doing all the fighting on my behalf, I would have thrown the whole thing overboard a long time ago.
Thanks. Gotta run. I’ll listen to the song this evening when I get home.
@graceshaker, Me and my wife walked down the asile to that song after the ceremony. It’s a classic that nobody has ever heard.
Steve, it’s fascinating how quickly the Protestant Church abandoned justification by faith to return to the Theology of Glory. Most Protestants are apparently only Protestants because they don’t like the Pope, Mass, and Mary. When pressed, their doctrine of Justification is functionally identical to Rome. Very sad.
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