Martin Luther

Justification by Faith

From the day he first saw into the meaning of the statement “the just shall live by faith” until now, the reverberations of Martin Luther’s revelation of justification by faith have greatly impacted the church. The dynamic of Luther’s salvation experience was a combination of things: his being a sensitive and devoted Augustinian monk with a troubled conscience, his observations of the corruption of the papal system, the influence of the mystic writers upon him, and his careful examination of the precise meaning of “justice” and “justification” in the book of Romans.

By the time Luther saw that justification was by faith alone, and not by works, he had virtually exhausted every possible means of saving himself. He had fasted, he had prayed, and he had gone on pilgrimages. He had confessed his sins over and over again to the point that his Augustinian vicar, Johann von Staupitz, said to him, “Look here, if you expect Christ to forgive you, come in with something to forgive — parricide, blasphemy, adultery — instead of all these peccadilloes.”

Luther’s troubled conscience was pained over the slightest movement within him, and according to Staupitz, he seemed to thrive on his inward torment. Nevertheless, Luther’s deep turmoil was preparing him to find a Christ that he had never known before. “The righteousness of God” became a revelation, not of an angry, judging God, but of the way God makes men righteous — through Christ dying on the cross, and by simple faith in that fact. Luther’s own words tell the story of this far-reaching discovery:

I greatly longed to understand Paul’s Epistleto the Romans and nothing stood in the way but that one expression, “the justice of God,” because I took it to mean that justice whereby God is just and deals justly in punishing the unjust. My situation was that, although an impeccable monk, I stood before God as a sinner troubled in conscience, and I had no confidence that my merit would appease Him. Therefore I did not love a just and angry God, but rather hated and murmured against Him. Yet I clung to the dear Paul and had a great yearning to know what he meant.

Night and day I pondered until I saw the connection between the justice of God and the statement that “the just shall live by his faith.” Then I grasped that the justice of God is that righteousness by which through grace and sheer mercy God justifies us through faith. Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open doors into paradise. The whole of Scripture took on a new meaning, and whereas before the “justice of God” had filled me with hate, now it became to me inexpressibly sweet in greater love. This passage of Paul’s became to me a gate to heaven. Instantly all Scripture looked different to me. I passed through the Holy Scriptures, so far as I was able to recall them from memory, and gathered a similar sense from other expressions. Thus the “work of God” is that which God works in us; the “strength of God” is that through which He makes us strong; the “wisdom of God” is that through which He makes us wise; and the “power of God,” the “blessing of God,” the “honor of God,” are expressions used in the same way.

As intensely as I had formerly hated the expression “righteousness of God,” I now loved and praised it as the sweetest of concepts; and so this passage of Paul’s actually was the portal of paradise to me. These words, “the just” and righteousness,” were lightning and thunder in my conscience under the papacy, and merely hearing them mentioned terrified me.

In this tower, in which there was a special place for the monks, I once meditated on these words:

Then it suddenly came to my mind: If we are to live righteously because of righteousness by faith, and this righteousness of God is intended to save everyone who believes, it follows that righteousness is by faith, and life by righteousness. And my conscience and spirit were lifted up, and I was made certain that it is the righteousness of God which justifies and saves us. And immediately these words became sweet and delightful words to me. These things the Holy Spirit taught me in this tower.… This most excellent righteousness— the righteousness of faith —which God imputes to us through Christ, without our works, is neither a civil (politica) nor a ceremonial righteousness nor one of the divine Law nor one concerned with our works. This righteousness is totally different, that is, a merely passive righteousness, just as those mentioned above are active righteousnesses.

Door of the Schlosskirche (castle church) in Wittenberg to which Luther is said to have nailed his 95 Theses, sparking the Reformation.For in this righteousness we do nothing, nor do we have anything to give to God; we only receive and allow Another to work within us, that is to say, God. That is why this righteousness of faith, or this Christian righteousness, may be called a passive righteousness. This is the righteousness shrouded in mystery (Col. 1:26), a righteousness which the world does not understand, and not only so, but one which even Christians do not sufficiently grasp and which they find difficult to cling to in times of temptation. This is why we must constantly drill it and stress it without ceasing. And he who does not grasp it and cling to it in afflictions and amid the terrors of conscience cannot hold his own; for besides this passive righteousness there is no other comfort of conscience so firm and certain.… All works, however holy they may be, are completely excluded and put aside as necessary for salvation. If a good work saves a man, then apples and pears also save him. Christian righteousness is not a righteousness that is within us and clings to us, as a quality or virtue does, that is, something that is found to be part of us or something that is felt by us. But it is a foreign righteousness entirely outside us, namely, Christ Himself is our formalis Iustitia, our essential Righteousness and complete Satisfaction (1 Cor. 1:30).

Christ's Righteousness

In order to grasp this matter the better, I am in the habit of imagining that there is no quality in my heart which is called faith or love. Instead, I put Christ in its place and say: “This is my Righteousness.” I do so in order thereby to free myself from looking to the Law for righteousness or from regarding this Christ as merely a Teacher or Giver of knowledge. Rather I want Him to be my Gift and my Doctrine in His own Person, so that I have everything in Him, just as He says: “I am the Way” (John 14:6). He does not say: “I give you the way,” as if He were working and giving me this way while He Himself is standing outside me. He must be, remain, live, speak in me, not through me, as Paul says:

If you have a true faith that Christ is your Savior, then at once you have a gracious God, for faith leads you in and opens up God’s heart and will, that you should see pure grace and overflowing love. This it is to behold God in faith that you should look upon His fatherly, friendly heart, in which there is no anger nor ungraciousness. He who sees God as angry does not see Him rightly but looks only on a curtain, as if a dark cloud had been drawn across His face. But this must be our ground and anchor-hold, that Christ is our only perfect righteousness. If we have nothing in which we may trust, yet these three things (as Paul says) faith, hope and love do remain. Therefore we must always believe and always hope; we must always take hold of Christ as the head and fountain of our righteousness. He that believes in Him shall not be ashamed. Moreover, we must labor to be outwardly righteous also: that is to say, not to consent to the flesh, which always entices us to some evil; but to resist it by the spirit. We must not be overcome with impatience for the unthankfulness and contempt of the people who abuse the Christian liberty; but through the Spirit we must overcome this and all other temptations. Look then how much we strive against the flesh by the spirit, so much are we outwardly righteous. Although this righteousness does not commend us before God.

Let no man therefore despair if he feels the flesh oftentimes stirring up new battles against the spirit, or if he cannot by and by subdue the flesh, and make it obedient unto the spirit. I also do wish myself to have a more valiant and constant heart, which might be able, not only boldly to despise the threatenings of tyrants, the heresies, offenses and tumults which the fantastical spirits stir up; but also might by and by shake off the vexations and anguish of spirit, and briefly, might not fear the sharpness of death, but receive and embrace it as a most friendly guest. But I find another law in my members, rebelling against the law of my mind, and so forth. Some others do wrestle with inferior temptations, as poverty, reproach, impatience and such-like.

Let no man marvel therefore or be dismayed when he feels in his body this battle of the flesh against the spirit: but let him pluck up his heart and comfort himself with these words of Paul’s: “The flesh lusts against the spirit,” and so forth, and: “These are contrary one to another, so that you do not do those things that you would.” For by these sentences he comforts them that are tempted. As if he should say: It is impossible for you to follow the guiding of the Spirit in all things without any feeling or hindrance of the flesh; indeed, the flesh will resist: and so resist and hinder you that you cannot do those things that gladly you would. Here, it shall be enough if you resist the flesh and fulfill not the lust thereof: that is to say, if you follow the spirit and not the flesh, which easily is overthrown by impatience, covets to revenge, bites, grudges, hates God, is angry with Him, despairs, and so forth. Therefore when a man feels this battle of the flesh, let him not be discouraged with that, but let him resist in the Spirit, and say: I am a sinner, and I feel sin in me, for I have not yet put off the flesh, in which sin dwells so long as it lives; but I will obey the spirit and not the flesh: that is, I will by faith and hope lay hold upon Christ, and by His word I will raise up myself, and being so raised up, I will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

The room in Wartburg where Luther translated the New Testament into German. There is an original first edition of the translation under the case on the desk.It is very profitable for the godly to know this, and to bear it well in mind; for it wonderfully comforts them when they are tempted. When I was a monk I thought by and by that I was utterly cast away, if at any time I felt the concupiscence of the flesh: that is to say, if I felt any evil motion, fleshly lust, wrath, hatred, or envy against any brother. I tried many ways, I went to confession daily, and so forth, but it profited me not; for the concupiscence of my flesh did always return, so that I could not rest, but was continually vexed with these thoughts: This or that sin you have committed; you are infected with envy, with impatience, and such other sins; therefore you have entered into this holy order in vain, and all your good works are unprofitable. If then I had rightly understood these sentences of Paul’s: “The flesh lusts contrary to the spirit, and the spirit contrary to the flesh,” and so forth, and “these two are one against another, so that you cannot do the things that you would do,” I should not have so miserably tormented myself, but should have thought and said to myself, as now commonly I do: Martin, you shall not utterly be without sin, for you have yet flesh; you shall therefore feel the battle thereof, according to that saying of Paul’s: “The flesh resists the spirit.” Despair not therefore, but resist it strongly, and fulfill not the lust thereof. Thus doing you are not under the law.

I remember that Staupitius was accustomed to say: “I have vowed unto God more than a thousand times that I would become a better man; but I never performed that which I vowed. Hereafter I will make no such vow: for I have now learned by experience that I am not able to perform it. Unless therefore God be favorable and merciful unto me for Christ’s sake, and grant unto me a blessed and a happy hour when I shall depart out of this miserable life, I shall not be able with all my vows and all my good deeds, to stand before Him.” This was not only a true, but also a godly and a holy desperation: and this must they all confess both with mouth and heart, which will be saved. For the godly trust not to their own righteousness, but say with David:

They look unto Christ their Reconciler, who gave His life for their sins. Moreover, they know that the remnant of sin which is in their flesh is not laid to their charge, but freely pardoned. Notwithstanding in the meanwhile they fight in the Spirit against the flesh, so that they should not fulfill the lust thereof. And although they feel the flesh to rage and rebel against the spirit, and they themselves also do fall sometimes into sin through infirmity, yet they are not discouraged, nor think therefore that their state and kind of life, and the works which are done according to their calling, displease God: but they raise up themselves by faith.

The faithful therefore receive great consolation by this doctrine of Paul’s, in that they know themselves to have partly the flesh, and partly the spirit, but yet so notwithstanding that the spirit rules and the flesh is subdued, that righteousness reigns and sin serves. He who does not know this doctrine, and thinks that the faithful ought to be without all fault, and yet sees the contrary in himself, will eventually be swallowed up by the spirit of heaviness, and fall into desperation. But whoever knows this doctrine well and uses it rightly, to him the things that are evil turn unto good. For when the flesh provokes him to sin, by occasion thereof he is stirred up and forced to seek forgiveness of sins by Christ, and to embrace the righteousness of faith, which otherwise he would not so greatly esteem, nor seek for the same with so great desire.

Therefore it profits us very much to feel sometimes the wickedness of our nature and corruption of our flesh, that even by this means we may be awakened and stirred up to faith and to call upon Christ. And by this occasion a Christian becomes a mighty workman and a wonderful creator, who of heaviness can make joy, of terror comfort, of sin righteousness, and of death life, when he by this means repressing and bridling the flesh, makes it subject to the Spirit.

Therefore let not them which feel the concupiscence of the flesh, despair of their salvation. Let them feel it and all the force thereof, so that they consent not to it. Let the passions of lust, wrath and such other vices shake them, so that they do not overthrow them. Let sin assail them, so that they do not accomplish it. Indeed, the more godly a man is, the more does he feel that battle. And from this come those lamentable complaints of the saints in the Psalms and in all the Holy Scripture. Of this battle the hermits, the monks, and the schoolmen, and all that seek righteousness and salvation by works, know nothing at all.

Statue of Martin Luther outside the St. Mary's Church, Berlin.But here may some man say, that it is a dangerous matter to teach that a man is not condemned, if by and by he does not overcome the motions and passions of the flesh which he feels. For when this doctrine is taught among the common people, it makes them careless, negligent and slothful. This is what I spoke of a little before, that if we teach faith, then carnal men neglect and reject works: if works be required, then faith and consolation of conscience is lost. Here no man can be compelled, neither can there be any certain rule prescribed. But let every man diligently try himself to see what passion of the flesh he is most subject to, and when he finds that, let him not be careless, nor flatter himself: but let him watch and wrestle in Spirit against it, that if he cannot altogether bridle it, yet at the least he does not fulfill the lust thereof.

This battle of the flesh against the spirit, all the saints have had and felt: and the same do we also feel and prove. He that searches his own conscience, if he is not a hypocrite, shall well perceive this to be true in himself which Paul here says: that the flesh lusts against the spirit. All the faithful therefore do feel and confess that their flesh resists against the spirit, and that these two are so contrary the one to the other in themselves, that, do what they can, they are not able to perform that which they would do. Therefore the flesh hinders us so that we cannot keep the commandments of God, so that we cannot love our neighbors as ourselves, much less can we love God with all our heart, and so forth. Therefore it is impossible for us to become righteous by the works of the law. Indeed there is a good will in us, and so must there be (for it is the Spirit itself which resists the flesh), which would gladly do good, fulfill the law, love God and his neighbor, and such-like, but the flesh does not obey this good will, but resists it: and yet God does not impute unto us this sin, for He is merciful to those that believe, for Christ’s sake.

But it does not follow therefore that you should make a light matter of sin because God does not impute it. True it is that He does not impute it: but to whom, and for what cause? Not to them that are hard-hearted and secure, but to those who repent and lay hold by faith upon Christ the mercy-seat, for whose sake, just as all their sins are forgiven them, even so the remnants of sin which are in them are not imputed unto them. They do not make their sin less than it is, but amplify it and set it out as it is indeed; for they know that it cannot be put away by satisfactions, works, or righteousness, but only by the death of Christ. And yet notwithstanding, the greatness and enormity of their sin does not cause them to despair, but they assure themselves that the same shall not be imputed unto them, or laid unto their charge, for Christ’s sake.

His tombstone in the Castle Church in Wittenberg.Just as Martin Luther was, you may be troubled in your conscience because of personal sins and wrongdoings. Your conscience is loaded with guilt. Perhaps you have attempted to relieve that guilt by making promises to God, or by making determined resolutions to change your ways, or even by telling someone else about your sins. All these self-made “attempts” have not removed the guilt on your troubled conscience. Why? Because the Bible describes all these attempts as “dead works.” Indeed, the accumulation of guilt on your troubled conscience, as on Luther’s, is waiting for you to see and hear the good news of the gospel. The good news is that God’s righteousness has completely solved your problem.

His righteousness is revealed in His way and method of dealing with your troubled conscience. God’s way is the cross of Christ! When Christ died on the cross and shed His precious blood, God’s righteousness was displayed in how He solved the problem of sin and guilt.

You may need to repent of your repentance that was based upon dead works, and simply look at God’s righteousness manifested on the cross. Only the blood of Jesus Christ can relieve a guilt-ridden conscience. Trust in God’s way of solving your problem of sin and guilt through the cross, and you will find Him!

Luther's Misconception

If ever a religious man would get to heaven by his good works, Martin was determined to be that man. If ever a religious man were to be forgiven for the sins he had committed, Martin was also determined to be that man. In attempting to be religious and to receive forgiveness, Martin entered the Augustinian order of monks. He fasted for days at a time. He dressed simply and lived even more simply. He prayed for hours, doing penance in such a way that he was in physical danger because of the stresses upon his body. He sought direction from those in authority over him, and following their teachings made lists of his sins in order to seek Christ's forgiveness.

His Conversion

He was faithful in his duties as a monk, and studied hard from a Latin Bible. As he read, one day a verse seemed to leap from the page: "The just shall live by faith." Not works? Not devotions? How could this be? He continued to strive to serve God faithfully and to find the peace he so desperately sought. He traveled to Rome and visited every shrine that he could. He studied the Bible books of Romans, Psalms and Galatians. The University of Wittenberg granted him a Doctor of Theology degree, entitling him to teach theology, yet this teacher still did not know how to find God's peace. While teaching the book of Romans, he wrestled with the idea of justification by faith. He could not see how to resolve the righteousness of God with the sins of man. As he continued to study the scriptures, God finally showed him the light. "I saw that the righteousness of God is received from God by faith as a gift. I saw that this was the means by which the merciful God declares the believers righteous. I felt myself newborn. All the scriptures appeared different to me. Instead of hating, now I intensely loved God's righteousness."

And so, the teacher who had been a seeker now became the teacher who had received the greatest of gifts: the forgiveness of all of his sin and an eternal life communing with Christ. At last he could share real truths with others. This powerful biblical idea of justification by faith became such a mighty force, that Martin Luther's name came to stand for a person who was wholly resting upon Christ's sacrifice as payment for his sins.