THE FREEDOM OF A CHRISTIAN
In this month, November 2020, the Lutheran church celebrates the 500th anniversary of
the publication of one of the most important treatises of Martin Luther titled "The Freedom of a
Christian." You can find it in the American Edition of Luther's Works (hereafter LW), volumn 31,
pages 343 to 377. It is also available online for free in English at:
https://www.checkluther.com/wp-content/uploads/1520-Concerning-Christian-Liberty.pdf
If you prefer listening to reading, you may find it in audiobook format here:
https://librivox.org/concerning-christian-liberty-by-martin-luther/
(the reader is the Rev. Jonathan Lange, an LCMS pastor in Evanston, Wyoming).
In June 1520, the pope, Leo the Tenth, had issued his papal bull against Luther. When Luther
finally received it, he first replied in November 2020 with a short treatise blasting away at the
papacy:"Against the Execrable Bull of the Antichrist." Then in the same month, Luther issued a
very conciliatory letter to Pope Leo, along with the treatise "The Freedom of a Christian."
Luther knew well the plots, scheming, lies, and twisted ways of the Vatican curia. He believed,
at this time in the affair, that the people had been deceived by his minions. Thus, Luther damned
the bull, while speaking in a most fraternal way with his spiritual father, Pope Leo X.
Anyone who knows anything about the Reformation knows that Martin Luther did not disagree
with the pope or the church of his day in many areas of Christian doctrine and practice. Both
Luther and the Pope agreed on: 1) the authority of Scripture; 2) the inerrancy of Scripture; 3)
the true historical testimony of Scripture; 4) all the miracles of Scripture; 5) the doctrine of the
Trinity, as found in the creeds; 6) the six-day creation and the historic Fall of Adam and Eve; 7)
the doctrine of original sin; 8) the doctrine of Christology, as found in the creeds and the
Council of Chalcedon; 9) the return of Christ to judge the living the dead; 10) the eternal
damnation of Satan, the devils, the unbelievers; 11) the doctrine and practice of Holy Baptism;
12) that Jesus gave to the public ministry the authority to preach the Word, administer the
sacraments, and to forgive and retain sins (i.e., the Office of the Keys); and many other
Christian doctrines and morals taught by Scriptures.
There were two doctrines, however, in which Luther and the Pope were radically opposed.
That is the doctrines of: 1) the Christian faith; and 2) the Christian life. It is the treatise "The
Freedom of a Christian" that Luther sets forth his doctrines regarding the Christian faith and life,
from Scripture, over against the Roman Catholic church and those in agreement with it. What is
this thing called "faith" which Christian profess? It is the reception of God's Word in
the human soul, mind, heart, and will. Faith hears, receives, accepts, and trusts God's Word as
it is found in Scripture, and as it is explained in Scripturally based preaching and catechesis.
Faith is NOT believing whatever you want, or think, about God or what he might do for you.
Faith is believing what God's Words says. Here is how Luther explains the relationship between
God's Word and faith in "The Freedom of a Christian" (LW 31:346):
The Word is the gospel of God concerning his Son, who was made flesh, suffered, rose from the
dead, and was glorified through the Spirit who sanctifies. To preach Christ means to feed the
soul, make it righteous, set it free, and save it, provided it[i.e., the soul] believes the preaching.
Faith alone [Latin:sola fide] is the saving and efficacious use of the Word of God, according to
Romans 10:9, "If you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God
raised him from the dead, you will be saved." Furthermore, "Christ is the end of the law, that
every one who has faith may be justified" (Romans 10:4). Again in Romans 1:17, "He who
through faith is righteous shall live." The Word of God cannot be received and cherished by any
works whatever but only by faith. Therefore it is clear that, as the soul needs only the Word of
God for its life and righteousness, so it is justified by faith alone [Latin:sola fide] and not any
works; for if it could be justified by anything else, it would not need the Word, and consequently
it would not need faith.
Notice that the doctrine of "justification by faith alone" is a logical conclusion
from the doctrine of the soul, i.e., that "the soul needs only the Word of God for its life and
righteousness." The doctrine of justification is, of course, taught directly by Scripture, especially
in the Books of Romans and Galatians. But there Luther connects that doctrine with the doctrines of the
Word and the soul. This teaching of Luther discarded all the religious works that had been prescribed
to laymen over the centuries by the church, including pilgrimages, veneration of the saints,
veneration of relics, tithes, alms for the poor, mandatory private confession, holy days, fasts,
ets., etc., etc.
The second doctrine in which Luther and the Pope were radically opposed was the
doctrine of the Christian life. In the Roman Catholic church, the ideal, holy Christian life was
first that of the monk or nun, devoted to prayer and contemplation, and secondarily, the celibate
priest, friar, or church official who worked among the people doing God's work. Because they lived
the holy Christian life, the souls of monks, nuns, friars, priests, and church officials went straight
to heaven at death. Because the lived a sub-Christian, unholy life, the souls of every other Christian
went straight to purgatory to be purged of their sins over a period of hundreds, thousands, or million
years. At least, this is what the church had taught and believed, without any warrant from Scriptures.
For Luther and all the magisterial Reformers (Lutherans, Anglicans, Zwinglians, Calvinists),
there was no difference between the priest and the layman in matters of holiness. Priests were
sinners like laymen, and some could become awful crooks, criminals, etc. There was no personal
holiness attached to the office, although the priest/pastor administered the holy things of the
Word, Baptism, Keys, and Lord's Supper. For Luther, holiness was found only in Christ, and was
imputed to all believers because of their faith only (Latin: sola fide). This eliminated the caste system
in Christian society and is sociologically the biggest difference between the Roman Catholic church and the
Protestant churches today. All this can be found, as clear as a bell, in Luther's "The Freedom of a Christian."
Yours in Christ,
