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MORSELS FROM THE SAVIOUR
Precious Biblical Food Translated from our Old orthodox Lutheran Fathers.
Vol.4. January- April 2016 No.1.
[Editorial Note: This is purely a private endeavour by the undersigned in order to assist faithful orthodox Lutheran Christians to grow ever deeper in Christian faith and knowledge in these last days. As often as we can we would like to place before our readers portions of translated Biblical material from our orthodox Lutheran fathers which to our knowledge is not at present available to our readers in English. Pastor B L Winter, ELCR.]
What do we learn from Luther at Worms?1
by Dr. F. Pieper
Part 7.
STAND FIRMLY ON THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE AGAINST ALL OPPOSITION.
Only one thing is to be our concern. Of this Luther at Worms also directly reminds us. This is the concern that we stand firm against all those who oppose and speak against the doctrine of salvation by grace alone (sola gratia), that means, that we in no way allow ourselves to be robbed of the Gospel of the Grace of God by the doctrine of works, no matter how they may call it.
Rome already rejoices that the Gospel as taught by Luther is abandoned (in general) by the Protestantism of our day. It is still being maintained in America only by the Lutherans in the state of Missouri (also the Synodical Conference, Ed.) and still in Germany only by the Lutheran Free Church in Saxony. This judgment is found in the large Catholic work of modern times on which Catholic theologians of the entire world have worked, namely, in the Catholic Encyclopedia. It states there (VIII, 576, 1910) in regard to the Christian doctrine of justification by faith without works of the Law: “The strict orthodoxy of the old
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1 Taken from District Report, North Dakota-Montana, 1921, pages 9-47 which contained the original German Essay. This portion covers pages 27-31 of the original.
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Lutherans, e.g. in the Kingdom of Saxony and the State of Missouri, alone continues to cling tenaciously to a system which otherwise would have slowly fallen into oblivion.”
THE ENTIRE TRUE CHRISTIAN CHURCH ON EARTH BELIEVES IN SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE WITHOUT THE WORKS OF THE LAW.
What the Roman Catholic writer says here is a mixture of truth and fiction. As far as the Christian doctrine of grace by the remission of sins through faith without works of the Law is concerned, it is not a system falling into oblivion2, but at the present time it is also believed by the whole Christian Church on earth. All people who at the present time belong to the true Christian Church do not have different beliefs in regard to how to obtain God's grace and salvation, but they all have exactly one and the same faith. They all have ceased trusting in their own works and believe that God is a gracious God to them alone for the sake of Christ's merit3. This is also true with respect to the Christians who still are found under the papacy. In opposition to the prohibition of the Pope, in trial and mortal danger they trust alone in the merit of Christ of which they have heard in passing (incidentally). Therefore Luther speaks of a "paragon4" of Christians under the papacy, because, in spite of all the temptations (to fall away) by the official doctrine of the papacy, nevertheless they do not believe the Pope's teaching, but the Gospel of Christ.
Our Lutheran Confessions testify to the same truth (Apology M. 151, 271): "Therefore, even though Popes, or some theologians, and monks in the Church have taught us to seek remission of sins, grace, and righteousness through our own works, and to invent new forms of worship, which have obscured the office of Christ, and have made out of Christ not a Propitiator and Justifier, but only a Legislator, nevertheless the knowledge of Christ has always remained with some Godly persons.” (Triglotta, III, 271, page 225).
Furthermore we read in the Apology (M. 151, 268): "For we know that those things which we have said are in harmony with the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures, with the holy Fathers, Ambrose, Augustine, and very many others, and with the whole Church of Christ (universae ecclesiae5), which certainly confesses that Christ is Propitiator and Justifier." (Triglotta, III, 268, page 225).
That all people who after all belong to the Christian Church have one and the same faith, that they do not, namely, trust in their own works, but as poor sinners are saved alone through the merit of Christ, that is the clear teaching of Holy Scripture. That all the Children of God in the Old Testament believed that they would be saved alone by the merit of Christ, is the clear teaching of Holy Scripture. All the Children of God in the Old Testament believed that they were saved alone by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, as the Apostle Peter testified in the house of Cornelius, "To Him (Jesus) give all the prophets witness, that through His Name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins" (Acts 10:43). The Apostle Paul summarizes the faith of all the children of God in the New Testament until the last day in the words of Rom. 3:28,
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2 Something which will soon be forgotten.
3 The forgiveness of sins, life and salvation which Christ alone has earned for the whole world, John 1:29.
4 An excellent example of particular quality.
5 Invisible Church.
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"Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law."
SATAN WANTS TRUE CHRISTIANS TO ABANDON SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE.
But it is true when the Roman Catholic writer (above, BLW.) states, however, that modern Protestantism which boasts of making progress in Christian doctrine, has thrown away the Gospel of Grace, which again was brought to light by the Reformation, and has again fallen into the doctrine of salvation by works. This is also true of such who call themselves Lutherans. Also it is expected of us to abandon the truth that we are saved “alone by grace.” This occurred in the following way: it was claimed that they wanted to adhere to the truth that man is saved alone by grace. But when one compares the people who are saved with the people who are lost, then one must give up the truth that man is saved “by grace alone,” and say that the conversion and salvation of a person does not depend alone by the grace of God, but also on the "behaviour" of man, on his self determination for faith, on his lesser guilt.
Against this Dr Walther correctly wrote: "A theology which makes faith man's own deed, and seeks the reason why certain men are saved while others are lost in their free, personal decision, in their conduct, in their cooperation, is distinguished from the Roman doctrine of justification only by its terminology." (phraseology). (LuW 1872, page 352).
WITH THE LOSS OF SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE GOES THE LOSS OF CERTAINTY OF SALVATION
This is, however, a denial of the doctrine of grace of Christianity. It occurs in this way: God accepts us by grace so that we might be saved, not on the basis of our good behaviour, nor on the basis of our lesser guilt which we have in comparison with other people, but solely and alone because of the grace that Christ has obtained for all people, and that is greater than the guilt of all sinners. May God preserve us in this pure Gospel! And who of us could be certain of the grace of God if this grace would be performed by something in us, whether it was called a free choice,or right behaviour, or lesser guilt, conditional or unconditional? We have obtained a new, larger place for our theological seminary in St. Louis. God has so blessed us that the old place on southern Jefferson Avenue has long become too small. The place we may change. This can work for the furtherance of the Gospel. But one thing we cannot and must not change, either in our institution in St Louis, or in our institution at Springfield, or in any other of our synodical teaching institutions (colleges): the everlasting Gospel of the grace of God which is alone on account of the merit (work) of Christ, without the works of the Law. That alone is the only way to be saved which is revealed in the Holy Scriptures, the Word of God. And no other doctrine is acceptable in this world (for the salvation of mankind) since the Fall.
FOR CERTAINTY OF SALVATION STEADFASTLY ADHERE TO THE DOCTRINE OF UNIVERSAL GRACE.
We must hold firmly to two things in relation to the grace of God in Christ if it is to remain pure, and if it is to be and remain certain to us sinners. In the first place, we must hold firmly to the doctrine that
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God's grace is universal, that is, it extends to all mankind without exception (gratia universalis). As is well known the Calvinists deny universal grace. Calvin believed that God is gracious to about twenty percent of people. But (with Calvin) God is not reconciled with all people through Christ, and He has not offered to all without distinction the forgiveness of sins in the Gospel, so no person can be certain of the forgiveness of his sins by faith in the Gospel. Amidst the terrors of the divine Law he will feel that he belonged to the eighty percent of people whom God did not want to save through Christ. Yes, even if only one person had not been redeemed (by Christ), then every sinner in terror of conscience would be inclined to regard himself as one who is not saved. To summarize: if we want to make poor sinners certain of the grace of God, which is the task of the Church, then we must immovably hold firmly to this truth that the grace which has been obtained by Christ is absolutely and without reservation universal. For Scripture so teaches this in John 1:29, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world"; also in 1 John 2:2, “And He is the propitiation6 for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world."; and in 1 Tim.2:6 we read, “Who (Christ Jesus) gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”
Therefore the following objection is not valid: “If my name were written in the Bible, then no doubt I would believe that God wanted to save me.” Because Scripture says that Christ has taken away the sin of the world, then you can know from it more quickly and with complete certainty that grace is available for you (individually) as if Scripture contained the names of everyone who is redeemed. That would require a long record of names and a long search. The term "world", grasped in faith, makes you certain right now that you belong to those who are redeemed and that God is gracious to you because you also make up a part of the world. This truth Luther explained in his glorious exposition of John 1:29.
Incidentally, many Calvinists actually admit that only the Scriptural doctrine of universal grace can make us certain of the grace of God, when they in their perplexity remain silent about the "twenty per cent of the redeemed", yet they are able to comfort the terrified sinner when they hold up in front of those who need comfort such Scripture passages in which universal grace is taught. In practice when severe distress arises they become Lutherans. Every departure from this doctrine of Scripture makes it impossible (to comfort lost sinners) because when it occurs they try to calm the terrified conscience by the Law of God.
FOR CERTAINTY OF SALVATION STEADFASTLY ADHERE TO THE DOCTRINE OF SALVATION BY GRACE ALONE.
If the grace of God in Christ for sinners is to be and remain certain for us, then we must, in the second place, adhere immovably to the truth that salvation is by grace alone (sola gratia). As soon as we place anything at all alongside of the grace of God, to make something in addition to the grace of God in Christ as the basis for or "the reason for explaining" our conversion and salvation, then we become uncertain of grace and salvation. In order to express this very clearly Luther says that grace would be uncertain to him also if it were only dependent upon a faithful saying of the Lord's Prayer. Then the question would at once arise in the terrified conscience whether the saying of the Lord's Supper would also have the right quality required
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6 Ransom payment.
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by God, namely, complete trust. But no Christian can pray the Lord's Supper with a perfect trust, as certain as a Christian still has the unbelieving (corrupt) flesh in himself.
Luther writes: "I must tell you an instance of this7. We read it of St. Bernard, who had complained to a good friend that he found it most difficult to pray aright and that he was unable to finish praying one Lord's prayer without having foreign thoughts. His friend was greatly surprised at this; he thought that praying aright was not at all a task or labor. So St. Bernard made a bet with him. His friend was to try it, and a good stallion was to be the wager; but he was to tell him the truth. The friend promised to do so without any trouble and began to pray: Our Father, etc.. But before he had come to the end of the First Petition, he was wondering whether the saddle, too, were to be his in case he won the horse. In brief, he strayed so far with his thoughts that he soon had to stop and concede the victory to St. Bernard. In a word, if you are able to speak one Lord's Prayer without any other thoughts of your own, I shall consider you a master. I cannot do it; in fact, when thoughts come to me, I am glad if they go as readily as they came." (SL VIII 749-750, § 11; What Luther Says page 1087, No.3473).
Furthermore Luther states: "All those who are only outwardly pious who are prepared in the best way with their good works will be terrified when God's judgment comes near to them."
(to be continued)
(Italicised emphasis is Dr. Pieper’s. Headings have been added, paragraphs divided up and pictures added.)
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7 How thoughts stray while one is praying.