my burg

"...we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified."  (Galatians 2:16 ESV) Because of the fundamental nature of faith... it is natural to find that in the New Testament faith, as the reception of a free gift, is placed in sharpest contrast with any intrusion of human merit; it is natural to find that faith is sharply contrasted with works.  The contrast is really implied by the New Testament throughout, and in one book, the Epistle to the Galatians, it forms the express subject of the argument.  That book from beginning to end is a mighty polemic in defense of the doctrine of justification by faith alone; and as such it has rightly been called the Magna Charta of Christian liberty. At the beginning of the sixteenth century the world was lying in darkness...

"The only haven of safety is the mercy of God, as manifested in Christ, in whom every part of our salvation is complete.   As all mankind are, in the sight of God, lost sinners, we hold that Christ is their only righteousness, since,  by His obedience, He has wiped off all our transgressions;  by His sacrifice, appeased the divine anger;  by His blood, washed away our sins;  by His cross, borne our curse; and  by His death, made satisfaction for us. We maintain that in this way man is reconciled in Christ to God the Father, by no merit of his own, by no value of works, but by gratuitous mercy.” (John Calvin,  A Reformation Debate )

The photo above is of the Luther Monument in Worms, Germany.  Learn more about it here .  In celebration of Reformation Day, here are a few quotes from Martin Luther (apologies for some lacking source citation):  "Faith is a living, unshakeable confidence in God's grace; it is so certain, that someone would die a thousand times for it. This kind of trust in and knowledge of God's grace makes a person joyful, confident, and happy with regard to God and all creatures. This is what the Holy Spirit does by faith. Through faith, a person will do good to everyone without coercion, willingly and happily; he will serve everyone, suffer everything for the love and praise of God, who has shown him such grace. It is as impossible to separate works from faith as burning and shining from fire." (Introduction to the Commentary on Romans ) "We find no rest for our weary bones unless we cling to the word of grace." ( Commentary on Galatians ) “He who believes God...

"The Reformation, what's with that?"   Sometimes when people ask about this, I'll draw a little sketch on a piece of paper or napkin.  It's my seven-minute overview of what happened following Luther's posting of his 95 theses (points to debate) on the Castle Church door in Wittenberg on the eve of All Saints Day, 1517.  This is a very rough generalization indeed... First key issue: authority .  The foundation.  How do we know we are right about what we believe about being right with God?  The Roman Catholic church held that it was the Scriptures, but with a caveat:  specifically, the Scriptures as interpreted and applied by the authority of the Church.  So, to the authority base of the Bible was added the magisterium , that is, what the church, tradition, councils, and Popes officially ruled.  It was the "Bible-plus."  The Reformers said, no (or nay), the councils and traditions and church rulers are very important,...