Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Romans 1:16-17 In the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith."
THE GATES OF PARADISE
Sometime in the fall of 1514 Dr. Martin Luther was studying the 71st Psalm in preparation for his classroom lectures. The phrase "deliver me in your righteousness" appeared in verse two. This led Luther to turn to the book of Romans, intent on discovering Paul's understanding of this phrase that had caused him a problem for a long time. As he himself later explained, this time, as he studied the expression "the righteousness of God," something different happened.
"I hated the expression 'righteousness of God,' which I had been taught to understand as that righteousness with which God is righteous ... and punishes the unrighteous sinner. Though I lived above reproach as a monk, I knew I was a sinner before God. My conscience would give me no peace. I did not love, yes, I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners ... secretly, and blasphemously, I was angry with God who even by the gospel was threatening us with His righteousness and wrath.
"... Until, after days and nights of wrestling with the problem, God finally took pity on me, so that I was able to comprehend the inner connection between the two expressions, 'the righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel' and 'the righteous shall live by faith.'
"Then I begin to understand that the 'righteousness of God' is here that righteousness by which the righteous are saved by God's grace, namely, through faith. That is, that the righteousness of God which is revealed through the gospel is to be understood as that righteousness with which God through mercy justifies man by faith, as it is written, 'the righteous shall live by faith.'
"Now I felt exactly as though I had been altogether born again, and had entered paradise itself through open gates."
What the Spirit revealed to Martin Luther in his private study in a corner tower of the Black Cloister in Wittenberg, Germany, he could not keep to himself. God led Luther to publicly write, teach, preach and confess what the Spirit had revealed to him, so that it would be spread world-wide.
As we thank and praise God for this our Reformation heritage, let us not fail to share with others the Gospel treasure the Spirit of God has graciously revealed to us through Luther and those who followed him.
