Category: Martin Luther and the Reformation

With Luther, our ultimate concern is for the gospel. As evangelical Lutherans, we want the good news of righteousness through faith in Christ presented clearly and widely, for the glory of God as the one who loves sinners and for the benefit of human beings. When it comes to the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture,…

Luther’s insistence on the sola Scriptura principle, that every teaching be established by the Scriptures alone, not by the councils of the church or the Roman pontiff, arose from a heart captured by the gospel. He loved the Scriptures and turned to them because they pointed consistently to Christ as the sinner’s righteousness and life.[1]…

The Edict of Worms pulled no punches in its description of Luther. He was “a demon in the appearance of a man, clothed in religious habit to be better able to deceive mankind”[1] and “possessed by some evil spirit.”[2] By his teaching, the edict contended, Luther “institutes a way of life by which people do…

That scene is a filmmaker’s dream. A monk from the little town of Wittenberg stands up to the powerful leaders of the Holy Roman Empire and drops the mic. Stirring music follows and the scene fades to black. The End. (He did say, “Amen,” after all!) While his confession ranks as a critical point of…

Luther refused to recant because he believed it was neither safe nor right to go against conscience. If we think of conscience the way many understand it today, we will miss the point. Luther was not a twenty-first century citizen of the United States demanding the freedom to believe whatever he felt was right. He…

At that point, von der Ecken, in the name of the emperor, demanded that Martin provide an unambiguous (without horns or teeth) response to the question of recanting what he had written. In response Luther spoke the famous words: Since then your serene majesty and your lordships seek a simple answer, I will give it…

Luther was to appear at 4:00pm on April 18, again at the bishop’s residence, but it ended up beginning at 6:00pm and in a larger hall, before even more dignitaries. Luther’s “tremor” at his first appearance provided this unique opportunity: He got to address the diet in plenary session.[1] By all appearances, Luther was a…

Luther’s conduct on April 17 seemed strange, both to those who attended the diet and to those who reflect on it five hundred years later. Why didn’t Luther give an immediate answer to the question about his willingness to recant his writings? After all, Luther had to have expected the question was coming. At the…