Biblical Essays
REVISITING THE LEGACY
Martin Luther (1483-1546) was a Roman Catholic monk who was offended by the pretensions and evils of the medieval church. Going beyond the reform-from-within movements that had preceded him, he helped launch the Protestant Reformation that is the inheritance of the vast majority of the Christians in our geographical and theological regions.
His conscience was offended at the hawking of indulgences by the church; he attacked the theory that the “merits” of saints were available for money from a sort of treasury over which the church administered. He came to challenge the decrees of councils and popes that could not be supported by Scripture itself. The importance of Scripture led him to translate the New Testament into his native German.
These and other theological views combined with the social and political atmosphere of the sixteenth century to change the course of western civilization. In spite of the assertions of some to the contrary, the American Restoration Movement is indebted to such personages as Luther and Zwingli as well as to Campbell and Stone. All these men were trying to discover how to be Christ-followers in their historical settings. Though we will no doubt wrestle with their legacies until Christ’s return, still, we are forever in their debt.
Looking back on his life and career, Luther once wrote: “A good work is seldom undertaken or accomplished through wisdom or foresight . . . everything must be accomplished in the midst of error or ignorance.” In the always-ongoing reformation of faith, his insight is significant. We struggle to find our way in a world where sin has darkened our understanding and must depend entirely on God’s gracious work in leading us through Christ.
