Five hundred years ago, Martin Luther looked around him and realized that literally thousands of people were being deceived by religion. Luther, who himself was a Catholic priest, was concerned that the church of which he was a part was deceiving the people. He watched as the church sold “indulgences”. The idea was people would give the church money and in turn they would receive a means for themselves, a family member, or close friend to get into heaven. Luther was deeply disturbed by the practice; he knew it was not honest. In addition to the problem with indulgences, Luther was also deeply disturbed in his own heart as he wrestled with guilt from sin and longed for freedom. Giving money or reciting a prayer seemed so empty. Luther saw the problems right away. A salvation based on works could easily be lost. If you forgot to confess a sin; if you didn’t admit all of your guilt, or if the minute you walk away you commit yet another sin, then you find yourself back in trouble.
Think about the man Abraham for a moment. It is in Abraham’s life where we see so clearly that salvation is a gift from God, an act of grace, and is received when one finally comes to put their faith in God. It is not purchased from the Church, or earned somehow by good works. Abraham came from a pagan family in a pagan land. Abraham came from the land of Ur, living among wicked people and was probably wicked himself. No one there worshipped the true God. But God called him as an act of grace. Then God went even further. In Genesis chapter fifteen, we read about how God made a covenant with Abraham. The whole thing in one sense is quite messy: Abraham kills a number of animals and lays them out in two rows. But what is significant is that the promise is one way. Abraham doesn’t have to do anything. Abraham doesn’t promise anything. It is just a one-way promise by God to Abraham. The promise is rich with blessings, wealth, larger family, and lots of land. In fact that promise is that he will be father of the nation of Israel.
In the middle of this chapter, Abraham does have an “aha” moment. Abraham discovers the true nature of God. Abraham realizes that God is faithful, that God is good, that He is gracious, that He is merciful, and that He is very patient with us in light of our failures. So Abraham, realizing all of this, opens his heart to God. Abraham trusts God. Genesis chapter fifteen verse six says “Then he (Abraham) believed in the LORD; and He (God) reckoned it to him as righteousness.”
This is exactly what Martin Luther discovered in his life. Luther discovered that God not only was the giver of life, but that He also was the giver of salvation, and with salvation he gave great blessings.
When Luther rediscovered in the early 1600’s what Abraham experienced here, the floodgates were opened of what we now call the Protestant Reformation. The truth of the simplicity of salvation rocked the church, and it changed the world. Sadly, there are still many places where people are being taken advantage of. There are so-called religions around the world that peddle a false hope. There are people who set up their own religion and demand allegiance, and often behind it all is money, not unlike in Luther’s day.
So what does all of this have to do with the reformation, and the chaos of religions around the world? For starters, the church had to change. It could no longer sell indulgences. You can’t buy your salvation. Some people still act as if they can, but the simple truth is you can’t. Salvation as discovered by Luther and originally experienced by Abraham is a result of faith, a gift freely given to us by God.
Further, knowing you can’t buy your salvation means you can keep all that money you were planning on using for that spiritual journey. It eliminates the need to travel around the world to discover the truth about God. It also answers the question of how to get to heaven. No need to invest thousands in some prophet, no need to chase some guru around the world, all we need to do is understand that salvation is a gift from God, and we receive it by simply putting our faith in Jesus Christ.
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9