Calvary Lutheran Church

Main Themes of the Reformation: Scripture Alone

Grace and peace are yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our blessed Lord and Savior. Amen.

John 8:31

“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching,

you are really my disciples.”

Dear Christian friends:

            The place was Worms, Germany. The date: April 18, 1521. Martin Luther’s 95 Theses written four years earlier was causing much controversy in the church. So the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, a young man by the name of Charles V, ordered Martin Luther and a representative of the Catholic Church, a man by the name of Johann Eck to come to Worms and settle the matter once and for all. All the princes of the empire were also present.

            Johann Eck immediately took control of the proceedings. He laid out all the books that Martin Luther had written against the church and then asked him just two questions: Are these books authored by you, and do you recant? In other words, do you take back everything that you have written and admit that you were wrong. Luther looked over the books and confirmed that they were his, but he requested time to think about the second question. That night he prayed, consulted friends, and then gave his famous response the next day.

“Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scripture or by clear reason (for I do not trust in the pope or in councils alone, since it is well-known that they have often erred and contradicted themselves), I am bound by the Scriptures I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise. May God help me. Amen.”

With that statement, we now have another

MAIN THEME OF THE REFORMATION—SCRIPTURE ALONE

            At first we might question whether Scripture alone was really a main theme of the Reformation. After all, the Catholic Church at that time considered the Bible to be the very Word of God. The divine inspiration of Scripture was not mentioned in any of the Lutheran Confessions from that time because, unlike today, the doctrine was not disputed by the Catholic Church or any of the reformers.

            But what Luther was saying at Worms was “Scripture alone.” Scripture alone is the source of truth concerning God and faith, and that was new. That was revolutionary, because the church said that equal to that Word was the traditions, the councils, the decisions of the bishops. And that is true to this day. I quote from the Catechism of the Catholic Church,

“Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture, are bound closely together and communicate one with the other. For both of them, flowing out from the same divine well-spring, come together in some fashion to form one thing and move towards the same goal.” (The Catechism of the Catholic Church, Liguoir, MO: Liguori Publications 1994, paragraph 80).

And later in the same catechism, we read of another source of truth,

“The Roman Pontiff, by reason of his office as Vicar of Christ, and as pastor of the entire Church has full, supreme, and universal power over the whole Church, a power which he can always exercise unhindered” (The Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 882).

So the Roman Catholic Church looks to the papacy as the primary source of doctrine. In second place is Sacred Tradition, with Sacred Scripture coming in a distant third.

            But Luther said, “Scripture alone.” Where did he get such a novel idea? He got if from right there in the Bible. He said so at the Diet of Worms, “Unless I am convinced from Scripture,” and then went on to say that popes and councils have erred and contradicted themselves, and therein lies the problem. Popes and councils are human institutions, Scripture alone throughout history and the world is divinely inspired.

            Paul wrote to Timothy, “All Scripture is God-breathed,” (2 Timothy 3:16). The writers of the Old Testament, the prophets, stressed over and over again, “The word of the Lord came to me . . . .“ The Lord said to Jeremiah, “Now I have put my words in your mouth” (Jeremiah 1:90. One convincing proof that the Old Testament is from God is the many prophecies that predict the future and that were 100% fulfilled, like the words of Isaiah written 700 years before Christ, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and they will call him Immanuel—which means, God with us” (Isaiah 7:14).

            The New Testament also repeatedly emphasizes that it is God himself who spoke through the evangelists and apostles. The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:13). The Bible does not just contain the Word of God, it is the Word of God in every aspect, whether it is talking about events or places or doctrine. That makes the Bible inerrant—true without mistakes, John wrote, “Your word is truth” (John 17:17); sufficient for salvation, John also wrote, “These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31); powerful—the writer to the Hebrews wrote, “The Word of God is living and active” (Hebrews 4:12); and totally authoritative in all matters of faith and life—Peter said to Jesus, “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).

            In Corinth, there were those who claimed a word of “prophecy,” a revelation they received directly from God. Others claimed a word from deep down in their “spirit,” which was to be placed alongside or even above the teaching of the apostles. But Paul wrote to the congregation: “If anybody thinks he is a prophet or spiritually gifted, let him acknowledge that what I am writing to you is the Lord’s command” (1 Corinthians 14:37). The teaching of the apostles was to stand alone. Today we call that “Scripture alone.”

            So why is it that there are so many different beliefs and interpretations among even Christians who say that they believe the Bible is the Word of God? It is because so many find it necessary to add one other element to Scripture, and that is reason.

            A survey was taken in a county paper that asked area church leaders to answer questions about heaven and hell. One question was this: where is heaven? One pastor responded, “Our church sees heaven not so much as a place but as an inner way of life. One could say it is like a deep feeling of joy, contentment, and knowledge—an inner strength.” (Trudy Mandel, Director of Religious Education, Unitarian Church North). In other words, heaven is a good feeling we have here on earth. That is reason over Scripture. Jesus said, “I am going to prepare a place for you” (John 14:3).

            Another survey question was: who will go to heaven? One pastor responded: “There are many who claim only Christians go to heaven, based upon a few particularly exclusive gospel texts. This limits God far more than I am willing, and it implies that two-thirds of the world (including Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Native Americans, etc.) simply has it wrong. I prefer to err on the side of an inclusive spirituality, even leaving open the possibility of universal salvation” (Rev. Franz Rigert, Pilgrim United Church of Christ). In other words, maybe everyone will go to heaven. That is reason over Scripture. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

            Another survey question was: Is there a hell? One pastor wrote in, “I like to believe that everyone goes to the same place and those of poor character of habits would find heaven a hell. This sounds reasonable until I think of people like Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin. They cannot be in the same place as most folk. Therefore, there must be a special place for such people” (Rev. Jay Lambert, St. Boniface Episcopal Church). In other words, only the very bad people go to hell. That is reason over Scripture. Jesus said, “No one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit” (John 3:5).

            The Lutheran doctrine of Scripture alone does not reject human reason. After all, human reason is necessary to allow us to understand Scripture. But there are teachings in the Bible where you have to choose between reason and the simple words of Scripture. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it” (Luke 18:17). Little children don’t put their reason before the simple statements of parents and teachers.

            In Luther’s day the teachings of Zwingli (1484-1531) and Calvin (1509-1564) had the expression, “Nothing is given by inspiration that is an offense to reason.” In other words, if something does not seem reasonable, then the Bible passages much be twisted and changed until it is reasonable.

            So when it comes to the question: why are some saved and others lost? Zwingli looked to some quality in man—that man chooses to be saved or lost. Calvin looked to God’s predestination in which God chose some to be saved and others damned. But Scripture says that if man is saved it is purely by the grace of God, and if man is lost it is purely man’s fault. That does not sound reasonable. It sounds like a paradox, a contradiction. But like all paradoxes, both are true.

            Some do not see how the simple act of baptism can forgive sin and save, so they turn it into an act of man dedicating himself to Christ instead of the simple words of Peter, “Baptism saves us” (1 Peter 3:21). Some do not see how the body and blood of the Lord can be present in the Lord’s Supper, so they say it only represents the body and blood, instead of the simple words of Jesus, “This is my body, this is my blood.” In every case, man’s reason has replaced Scripture alone.

            After Luther refused to recant at the Diet of Worms, private conferences were held to determine Luther’s fate. The Emperor presented his final conclusion on May 25, 1521, declaring Luther an outlaw and banning his literature. He was to be apprehended and punished as a notorious heretic. He  also made it a crime for anyone in Germany to give Luther food or shelter. He also permitted anyone to kill Luther without legal consequences. You probably know the rest of the story. Luther went on writing many more books and papers including the translation of the Bible into the German language so the ordinary people of German could read for themselves the very Word of God.
            Luther, along with many other reformers, risked their lives so that we would not only have this Word in our possession to read and enjoy, but that we would look to this Scripture alone as the Word of God and our only source of truth for life and eternity. Amen.

May we pray:

Speak, O Savior; I am list'ning, As a servant to his lord.

Let me show respect and honor To your holy, precious Word.

That each day, my whole life through, I may serve and follow you.

Let your Word e'er be my pleasure  And my heart's most precious treasure. Amen.