Luther and the Diet of Worms

I have a brief section of Luther and the Diet of Worms on my other blog. You may find it here.

October 12-14, 1518: Interview with the Cardinal

As a result of his protest against indulgences posted on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther was subsequently called to appear before Roman Catholic Church officials and to recant his words. In the city of Augsburg on October 12, 1518, Luther met with the famed Dominican Papal representative, Cardinal Cajetan. The meeting began with Luther showing great respect toward the Cardinal but soon turned more contentious. The following excerpt of a portion of the account is from the famous biography of Luther, "Here I Stand", by Roland Bainton:

...Luther...came out with a blunt rejection of the decretal and of the authority of the pope who formulated it. "I am not so audacious that for the sake of a single obscure and ambiguous decretal of a human pope I would recede from so many and such clear testimonies of divine Scripture. For, as one of the canon lawyers has said, 'in a matter of faith not only is a council above a pope but any one of the faithful, if armed with better authority and reason.'" The cardinal reminded Luther that Scripture has itself to be interpreted. The pope is the interpreter. The pope is above a council, above everything in the Church. "His Holiness abuses Scripture," retorted Luther. "I deny that he is above Scripture." The cardinal flared up and bellowed that Luther should leave and never come back unless he was ready to say, "Revoco"--"I recant."

Luther wrote home that the cardinal was no more fitted to handle the case than an ass to play on a harp. (p. 73)

Years later Luther would write about this meeting and note:

"But I could not bring myself to say those six letters, REVOCO."

In the Lord Christ we have a helper...

... the great lesson that comes with faith, not to be overwhelmed when things go evilly, especially when we must die, but to remember that in the Lord Christ we have a helper whose hand is almighty. Of him we must not despair; of ourselves and of other people we may indeed despair, in fact we must; none of these can put a stop to death, for it is too mighty for them. But we can be bold in God and his Son, Jesus Christ. For he can do what we cannot; what we don't possess, he does. If we cannot help ourselves, he is able, and he does so gladly and willingly, as we see here. Such a heart that persists in truth on the Lord Christ serves God truly, even as the Lord desires. Those who despair and doubt are God's enemies and really do not esteem him to be God; otherwise, they would allow themselves to be comforted.

Martin Luther, 1532

More On Prayer

"First, when I feel that I have become cool and joyless in prayer because of other tasks or thoughts (for the flesh and the devil always impede and obstruct prayer), I take my little psalter, hurry to my room, or, if it be the day and hour for it, to the church where a congregation is assembled and, as time permits, I say quietly to myself and word-for-word the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and, if I have time, some words of Christ or of Paul, or some psalms, just as a child might do."

from "A Simple Way to Pray, For a Good Friend, Peter, the Master Barber" by Martin Luther, 1535.

Easter Monday Sermon

"What does the work, the ability, of all mankind amount to when it comes to accomplishing or meriting a thing of such magnitude as remission of sins and redemption from death and eternal wrath? How will it compare with the death and shed blood of the Son of God, with the power of his resurrection? How will it divide honors with him in having merit to secure remission of sin and redemption from death? The efficacy of Christ's death and blood alone God would have preached in all the world and accepted by mankind. Therein he rejects the boasting of the Jews and of all aspirers to holiness through their own works, teaching them they cannot obtain his favor through the Law, or by their own efforts. In Christ's name alone is remission of sins received, and that through faith."

From an Easter Monday sermon by Dr. Luther from Acts 10:34-43.

Festival of Christ's Nativity - First Sermon - Part 2

Martin Luther preached his first sermon of Christmas 1532 on Christmas Eve using Isaiah 9:1-7 as his text. In that sermon, he briefly summarized the reasons we celebrate Christ’s birth. The following are his major points from that message.

We celebrate this festival, first of all, because of what we confess in the Creed. For it is a great, unspeakable endowment that we have in faith to regard this as God’s consummate wisdom that he, who created heaven and earth, is born of a virgin. …

Second, we also celebrate this festival because of the great good connected with it. … For if God were against and hostile to us, he certainly would not have assumed the poor, wretched human nature into his person. … Therefore, we celebrate this festival, so that we may truly learn to recognize and lay hold on this kinship we have with God and God has with us, and the communion of this grace, comforting ourselves with it and rejoicing over it.

The worldly-wise and Epicureans set no store by such things. … You see, the world never ceases to look upon it as absurd that God became our flesh and blood and was crucified for our sins. … That’s the route the world takes; it pays no attention to preaching and, meanwhile, is absorbed in thinking: We would rather have our belly full of beer, gorge ourselves, and carouse. … Of a truth, that’s the way it might well have been, with the whole world rejoicing and in high spirits because of this birth. The beloved, holy angels respond this way, regard it as a wonderful happening, and never cease being astonished over it. …

He gives this child the greatest and most beautiful names; that should cause us not merely to ponder him as he lies in his mother’s lap, having body, eyes, ears, and members, and looking just like any other human being, but also to see and recognize him as being the true, eternal God. … The prophet, therefore, wants to rouse us, and get us to look properly at this child and recognize who he is.

Ah, Lord God, everyone ought open his hands here, take hold of and joyfully receive this child, whom this mother, the Virgin Mary, bears, suckles, cares for, and tends.

Hopefully, may everyone lay hold on this! I shall say one more thing; God allowed this child to be born for the sake of condemned and lost sinners. Therefore, hold out your hand, lay hold of it, and say, True, I am godless and wicked, there is nothing good in me, nothing but sin, vice, depravity, death, devil, and hellfire; against all this, however, I set this child whom the Virgin Mary has in her lap and at her breast. … I accept this child and set him over against everything I do not have.

Whoever, therefore, wants to be a Christian ought to listen with joy to this preaching and believe that it is true what the prophet says, ‘Unto us a child is born.’

We keep this festival and preach about it in order that we might learn that our labor is not in vain or useless, and that at least for a few people, comfort and joy will follow. Amen.

Festival of Christ's Nativity - First Sermon - Part 1

The opening of Luther’s first sermon celebrating the “Festival of Christ’s Nativity”, preached on Christmas Eve, 1532 at the parish church. After reading Isaiah 9:1-7, Dr. Luther began:

People are presently celebrating the beautiful and delightful festival of the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. And it is fitting, indeed, for us to celebrate God’s glorious grace with a truly wonderful festival and to ponder it well, so that the article in which we confess and pray in our Christian faith, “I believe in Jesus Christ, conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary,” may be remembered not just within Christendom, but also that distressed, sorrowful hearts everywhere might find comfort and be strengthened over against the devil and every misfortune.