A POWERFUL REFORMATION
On October 31 we remember the reformation of the church under Martin Luther. On October 31, 1517, Luther posted 95 statements for debate on the church door in Wittenberg. Within weeks the document was distributed throughout Europe. In that document Luther questioned the teaching that forgiveness of sins came only through the Pope based upon one’s own faith and works.
In the years following, Luther was led by the Word of God in the Bible to rediscover the pure teachings of Christ, apart from the opinions of mere men. He taught the good news that you and I are forgiven before God purely because of the undeserved love of God, because of grace. By grace Christ came to live out our righteousness and redeem us from sin. From Him we have a perfect righteousness that becomes ours by faith.
The main way people depart from the Bible is by thinking that we can contribute to our salvation, so by rediscovering and by teaching Justification by Grace through Faith, Luther wasn’t creating a new church, but returning to the original Christian teaching.
From the very beginning, God’s plan was to forgive people their sins through faith in our Savior, Jesus. He promised the Savior to Adam and Eve when they first sinned; and they believed the promise and were forgiven. He repeated that promise over and over, at times making special agreements or covenants as He did with the children of Israel at the time of Moses. The history of the world is the history of God reaching out to overcome the blindness, darkness and spiritual death that oppresses the world.
In our text, Jesus tells us how this good news of salvation overcomes the ignorance and indifference which leaves the human race lost in death, and how Christians work powerfully in the world when they proclaim the word of God to the lost.