In episode 53, I will be discussing and celebrating Reformation Day and the Protestant Reformation. As we look at the life and words of Martin Luther, we will see that the same formal principle and material principle of the Reformation still matters today. In fact, I believe that this might be the most important podcast that you listen to this year. Seriously. We are living in times of mass confusion and chaos. Christians are hard-pressed on every side. Controversies abound, conflicts rage, and various trials are afflicting the body of Christ. The needs of the church are great. The world is sick with sin. Death and darkness fills our land. Many people have questions. What is the solution and remedy for all of this? The truth of the Protestant Reformation provides us with the answer. There is nothing new under the sun. The world has see conflicts, trials, confusion, and darkness before. The time leading up to the Reformation was just such a time. And yet, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of Castle Church in Wittenberg, everything began to change. No, the change wasn’t because Martin Luther was a perfect man. He was a flawed servant just like the rest of us. However, the Reformation got back to the fundamental root of two vitally important and necessary issues: First, the supreme and final authority of Scripture alone—Sola Scriptura. Second, the doctrine of justification by faith alone—Sola Fide. The Reformation was, at its heart, a return to the teachings of Jesus and the Apostles and bringing them back to light. At the center of the debate was the doctrine that man is justified by faith alone, apart from works of the law. These two pillars are what changed everything. The Reformation was the return to the authority of Scripture and to the true gospel. However, many people today are evidently tempted to yawn at these truths and dismiss the Reformation as if, “Yeah brother, we already know all of that. Talk about something relevant to our life like: politics, the economy, and the state of civilization.” Many people think the gospel only relates to salvation, and that it has nothing to do with these other issues. This is where I would say that this is the most important podcast that you will listen to this year. You see, what Martin Luther argued and demonstrated was, that the article of justification is central and supreme to every other doctrine. If you loose justification, you simultaneously loose everything. Justification matters for both salvation and for Christendom. In other words, would you see the world changed today? Then we need to get back to the heart of the Reformation. Yes, this has to do with the eternal salvation of souls, but this also has to do with politics, the economy, the family, education, business, and everything else. Furthermore, this has to do with bringing glory and honor to our triune God and Savior. The message of the Protestant Reformation is the message that God has always blessed, and which has always caused nations to flourish and prosper. It is God’s message, recorded in sacred Scripture, which the Holy Spirit himself baptizes with fire for the converting of souls and the transformation of civilization. This is the ancient path which we are to walk in. So, watch this to the end, and see it all unfold for yourself, as I briefly discuss the history of the Reformation, and then lay out the formal and material principles—Sola Scriptura and Sola Fide—of the Protestant Reformation. Here Luther will provide us with a great example of the pathway forward. May God bless these old truths for a new Reformation today. Soli Deo Gloria—Glory to God alone!
