Posted on 10/30/2011 10:50:07 AM PDT by Gamecock
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith’” (Rom. 1:16–17). - Romans 1:16–17
If there were any doubt about the veracity of Paul’s statement that knowledge often “puffs up” (1 Cor. 8:1), we only have to look at many of the assertions made by modern scholarship. For example, our advances in psychology have made many scholars arrogant. Academics are often quick to attribute various psychoses to men who lived hundreds of years ago, even though they have never had any person-to-person contact with these individuals.
Among other giants of the past, Martin Luther has been repeatedly subject to such scrutiny. Some have even gone so far as to label the German Reformer insane, much as he was labeled a “wild boar” by the pope in his own lifetime.
Luther did indeed have a “unique” personality. For much of his life he suffered from anxiety and was known as a hypochondriac. Luther was also prone to bombastic commentary; once he described Erasmus’ writings on free will as dung served on gold plates.
What bothers modern thinkers the most, however, is the acute sense of personal guilt that pervaded Luther during his early life. He had a paralyzing fear of the Lord’s wrath and always seemed to look over his shoulder for God to smite him. During his first celebration of the Mass, Luther froze while consecrating the elements because he realized how unworthy he was before the Lord. While in the monastery he tired his superiors with his long confessions of “trivial” sins, never finding peace for his guilty conscience.
Luther had a better understanding of his Creator’s unsurpassable holiness than most people, and consequently, he had a greater fear of God’s wrath. Only modern society that has become skilled at guilt-denial and self-justification can possibly believe this scholar lacked the ability to reason clearly. But Luther’s embrace of the holiness of God did not make him despair all the days of his life. Instead, it drove him to the Bible where he found that by faith alone man can be credited an alien righteousness that satisfies God’s justice without compromising His holiness (Rom. 1:16–17). The holiness of Christ enables us to be justified in the sight of this holy Lord (Rom. 4).
Coram Deo
God’s demand for holiness is absolute. We have to be holy just as He is holy (Lev. 19:2), and we deserve His wrath when we fail. All men merit this judgment (Rom. 3:23), but in His grace the Father has provided His Son, whose perfect conformity to the Lord’s standard is reckoned to us, if we trust in Him alone (2 Cor. 5:21). Only in Christ can we stand before a holy God. Confess your reliance upon the holiness of Jesus today and forsake your attempts to earn divine favor.
Passages for Further Study
Gen. 15:6
Ps. 130
Gal. 3:10–14
1 Peter 1:13–21
Thank you, sir!
Hoss
We have to ‘try’ to be as holy as God. Therein lies the truth. It is lot by our works that we achieve Sanctification. Sanctification is a life long process in union with the Holy Spirit that will only be completed when we are called ‘home’.
I’m saddened that the good doctor gives such a slanted view of what actually transpired with the pope. That is not very christian.
The christian approach would make their point, but to point out, say, that the pope just wasn’t unclouded enough to understand.....
see this author’s way of describing the time....
http://catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2011/10/revisiting-reformation-pope-defense-of.html
The doctor doesn’t seem to have love for his worst neighbors, we apparent antichrists. I’m not an abortionist, but I love them and pray for them and don’t take their statements out of context, less they never see Christ in me.
The only thing saddening is Pope Leo X. Perhaps a little history is in order:
Follies of Roman Catholicism: How the Catholic Church failed to save itself from the Reformation
God doesn’t create junk: Identifying a God worth serving
How the Renaissance Papacy contributed to the Reformation
The man who dared to laugh at the Pope ["Out of the Storm: The Life and Legacy of Martin Luther"]
later
Mete out the justice, Oh Lord. It is needed.
That was the easiest discussion on this topic I've ever seen.
Nice article, fitting for today.
We can not grasp the holiness of God..The holiness that Isaiah saw ..somehow men separate sin into 'big and "little " categories.. when God has already told them ONE LIE will send them to hell... It is not until we see our sin as God sees it..not until we see the holiness of God will we understand we can NEVER do one thing that earns the merit of God... THAT is why we need a Savior ..
Thank you for posting this!
Martin, old buddy, I forgive you. Everybody has a bad day once in a while.
Reformation day bump.
Hey....what's bombastic about that??? :O)
Indeed!
Jeremiah 9:22
Speak: “Thus declares the Lord,
‘The dead bodies of men shall fall
like dung upon the open field,
like sheaves after the reaper,
and none shall gather them.’”
We have whittled the number down to 10,000? I would think that the Papists would be overjoyed! After all, foe years FRoman Catholics have claimed 40,000!
Wow - down to a mere 10,000 now? Remember when they used to say that we had a million?
Remember...it’s done out of love...
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