“I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes . . . For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” (Rm 1:16-17)
These words stunned a young monk when he understood them for the first time. Like nearly everyone in his day, he believed salvation came as a result of our faithful obedience to God’s Law in the performance of good works. So that’s exactly what he tried to do, as much as any man could. He fasted. He wept. He prayed. He obeyed. He confessed his sins daily, even hourly. But still he was plagued with doubts and tormented by the guilt of his sin. It nearly drove him insane! How could he, a sinner, ever hope to be righteous in the eyes of a holy God! He knew that was the problem – his sin – for God was holy and He was not! And even if he did manage to purge some of the sin from his life (if that was even possible!), even if he could come to the place where he believed he was 98% righteous with only 2% sin remaining, he knew he would still fall far short of God’s perfect righteousness. So what could he do? When told by one of his superiors that he must learn to “Love God,” he cried out in anger and despair, ”Love God? Sometimes I think I hate Him!”
Yet God had mercy. The monk was made a professor and given the job of teaching the book of Romans. That is where God began to open his eyes so he could see the simple, life-giving truth of the Gospel – that God gives the righteousness He requires as a gift, freely by grace alone to those who put their faith in Christ alone. Not by works! Not by religion! Not by morality! Not by ritual! But by grace through faith alone in Christ alone, any sinner can be saved! That realization changed everything for that monk, Martin Luther, and through him would ignite the Gospel Revolution we now call the Reformation. As we encounter that same Gospel truth in Galatians 2:15-16 this morning – another of Luther’s favorite books – may we renew our hope in Christ by faith alone.
We are justified by grace through faith alone in Christ, not by works of the Law!
Pastor Scott