Most people in our community think of October 31st as Halloween, a day when kids of all ages dress up in costumes and trick or treat. But others in our community remember October 31st for something else, and for these people this October 31st is of particular significance.
500 years ago, on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther, a German monk, posted Ninety-five Theses on a church door in Wittenberg, Germany concerning some church teachings and practices. That action began the Reformation -- a movement that changed Western society.
Today 560 million Protestants worldwide owe a debit of gratitude to Luther. The German language exists as it does today in large part due to Luther's translation of the New Testament. Millions of Lutherans today follow Luther's teachings. Zion Lutheran Church, at 450 North Main Street, is one such gathering of followers.
Yet October 31st, Reformation Day, is not a celebration of Luther. Lutherans do not follow Luther, but rather what he taught about Jesus and the Bible.
Luther believed that all mankind is guilty of sin before God, that God will punish those who do what He forbids, and that mankind's sinful condition makes it impossible for them to earn God's love. Luther taught that the solution is not in man, but God. He preached and taught that God in the Bible promises salvation by His grace, through faith, because of Jesus.
The message of the Reformation is that the Scriptures teach that God is gracious to sinners. He freely forgives all who have faith in His Son, Jesus. Forgiveness is given through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. All who believe in Jesus as their Savior receive forgiveness and eternal life. All of this is a free gift from a loving God.
Luther's teaching, and that of the Reformation and the Lutheran Church today, is often summarized with three phrases: "by faith alone," "by grace alone," and "by Scripture alone".
"By grace alone" means people do not deserve God's love, forgiveness, or eternal life. God gives these freely by His grace.
"By faith alone" excludes human efforts. Through faith in Jesus as God's one and only Savior, believers receive God's love, forgiveness, and eternal life. Luther and Lutherans teach that faith is not something people do. God gives faith to people through His Holy Spirit, working in the Word of God and the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord's Supper.
"By Scripture alone" means God reveals this truth only through the Holy Bible. Scripture is the only trustworthy source for the truth about God. The Scriptures are properly read in light of Jesus as the Son of God in the flesh. The Bible teaches that His death and resurrection is the key event in all of history, because there, Jesus died to gain the forgiveness for everyone's sins. This does not mean that Christians should only read the Bible. Scripture alone means that the Bible is the only trustworthy source for doctrine and life.
"By grace alone," "by faith alone," and "by Scripture alone" point to one more Reformation truth: "through Christ alone". God's grace, our faith and the Scriptures all focus on Jesus Christ. Then and now, it is all about Jesus. Luther and the reformers taught that Jesus is how God relates to mankind and how mankind relates to Him. The reformers taught that Jesus is our salvation, that Jesus is the way that God loves sinners.
When Martin Luther understood Jesus as the center of all of Scripture and man's relationship to God, he saw everything in light of this. This moved him to teach about the Christian's role in society, the role of the government, and how individual Christians live out their faith. He also translated the Bible into German so that everyone could read the Word of God, and he wrote the Small Catechism as a summary of the Christian faith.
500 years ago, on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted the Ninety-five Theses in Wittenberg, Germany. Though much has changed since then, many things we encounter daily are still influenced by the Reformation. The Reformation is all about Jesus. 500 years later, Lutherans still teach: it is still all about Jesus!