Effects of the Reformation

DAY 40 4/9/17 Palm Sunday- DAY 40 EFFECTS OF THE REFORMATION
The Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.  Psalm 118:23; Mark 12:11

Thoughts:
The world is not the same because of the Protestant Reformation.  Though it was a long time coming (think Wycliffe, Waldo and John Hus) it has a long term effect.  In some ways the Reformation was fueled by and fueled the Renaissance.   Most of the Reformers were humanists who sought to get back to the source- the Bible, and were well schooled in their day.  The political power of the Roman Catholic church broke as it both fought and could not fight the Reformation and its leaders.  Feudalism gave way to nationalism both by the Reformers (like Cranmer in England and Knox and Scotland) and the reaction to the Protestants in France and the Netherlands.  Democracy and individualism were influenced by the idea that we didn’t have to go through a priest and people could read scripture alone.  Many point to Calvinism as a tremendous influence on the checks and balances found in American government, and presbyterianism’s representative democracy as influencing the representative democracy of America and others.  The rise of the middle class was definitely inspired by the Protestant work ethic of both Luther and Calvin who valued every day work and encouraged all to do their best for the glory of God.  Vernacular Languages of German, French, and English were tremendously effected by the writings of the German Bible, the Book of Common Prayer and King James Version in English, the French Bible of Olivetan and Calvin’s writings. 
     There were also some negative things.  The church divided then divided then divided again.  In the midst of the divisions the main teaching of love has been downplayed.  Many of the teachings of the Reformation once rejected in the Counter-Reformation and the Council of Trent are now mollified with Vatican I and Vatican II councils that recognize the limits of the veneration of the saints, the problems of indulgences, and the idea that we are saved by grace and not by works.  There has been a tremendous shift in the Catholic church.  At the same time, some Protestants today are downplaying the basis of their own belief systems saying that scholarship and science should be elevated to the same position of authority as the Bible.  There has clearly been a growing skepticism in western Europe and among the old mainline churches of the Reformation in America.  There are some who say that every 500 years a change is made and we should embrace that change.  But the Book of Judges (everyone did what was rig hint heir own eyes), the deterioration that led to the Old Testament and Diaspora exiles should warn us that not all change is good.  We should be ever reforming- but not omit- “According to the Word of God.”  It is clear that without belief and the Spirit no church or even great principle will stand on its own.  The church today needs to get back to its roots, which was the original call of the Reformation (the solas: Scripture, Grace, Faith, Glory to God, and Christ Alone) and also return to our first love.

Prayer: Lord, help me to change.  Keep me from being conformed to the world but to be transformed in a way that honors you alone.  May my life glorify you alone.  

Reformers to Know- Knox and Erasmus

DAY 39 4/8/17- DAY 39 REFORMERS TO KNOW- JOHN KNOX, THOMAS CRANMER
Amos answered, “I was neither a prophet nor the son of a prophet, but I was a shepherd, and I also took care of sycamore fig trees. But the Lord took me and said, ‘Go Prophecy to my people.’” (Amos 7:14,15)

John Knox (1513- 11/24/1572) was a Scottish Reformer who both started and formed Presbyterianism in Scotland.  Knox studied at the University of St. Andrews and possibly the University of Glasgow.  He was influenced by Patrick Hamilton and George Wishart.  Wishart had been persecuted for speaking out against the veneration of Mary.  He had been exiled and when he came back to Scotland, Knox became his bodyguard brandishing a two-handled sword.  However, Cardinal Beaton had Wishart arrested and burned at the stake.  While Knox was a fugitive some Protestants assassinated Cardinal Beaton in St. Andrews castle.  Many protestants rallied to them, including Knox.  The French besieged the castle and Knox was made a French Galley slave for 19 months.  In 1549 he was released in exile to England where he had influence upon the writing of the second edition of the Book of Common Prayer and became a chaplain to the young king, Edward VI.  He disputed with Thomas Cranmer over kneeling in communion, so that a caveat was said that kneeling was not for veneration but humility.  When Edward died, Mary Tudor tried to restore Catholicism and Knox went in exile to Geneva where he met Calvin and then to Frankfurt.  When he left Frankfurt he broke all ties with the Church of England.  He returned to Scotland in 1556 where he was put on trial by the bishops in Edinburgh.  But he had so much noble support that the bishops delayed the trial.  He returned to Geneva.  He wrote (1558) “The first Blast of the Trumpet Against the Monstrous Regiment of Women” in which he decries women in any position of authority especially Mary Guise, Mary Tudor, and Mary Queen of Scots.  Later he softened his tone before Elizabeth I of England.  1559-1560 saw the Church of Scotland become Protestant and Reformed.  In 1560 Knox’s wife Margery died leaving him two children under five.  In 1561 Knox and five others named John wrote the Scots Confession and the Book of Discipline that promoted a predecessor of Presbyterianism where each congregation could hire but not fire their ministers, and superintendents, not bishops, were put in charge.  However it was not until l689 that Presbyterianism took full root.  In 1562 and 1563 the catholic Queen Mary accused Knox of being irreverent and even treason but he was exonerated.  She supposedly said, “I fear the prayers of Knox more than all the armies of Europe.”  Indeed Knox prayed while in one of his many exiles, “Give me Scotland or I die.”  He was also purported to have said, “One man and God is a majority.”  Knox died and his remains are in a barely marked grave in the parking lot. He taught his followers not to revere him, but to listen to his teachings from the Word of God. 
      Thomas Cranmer (7/2/1489- 3/21/1556) was Archbishop of Canterbury during the time England separated from the Latin Catholic church.  He wrote arguments for the annulment of King Henry VIII’s marriage to Catherine of Aragon and the idea of Royal Supremacy, that the king should be in charge of the churches in his realm.  He was born to a modest family in Nottinghamshire.  He studied at Cambridge and also studied LeFevre and Erasmus, Christian humanist with some reforming ideas.  In 1532 he was appointed ambassador to the Holy Roman Empire and set aside his vows to marry Margarete the niece of a reformer in Nuremberg, Osiander.  Cranmer was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury 3/30/1533 and immediately began working on the annulment of Henry’s marriage to Catherine.  Cranmer later oversaw the annulment of two other marriages at Henry’s convenience. Later it was found that Henry had already secretly married Anne Boleyn.  Cranmer became Henry’s main confidant when Thomas Cromwell was executed.  However, the church made few reforms until after Henry died and the young Edward VI succeeded him.  Then Cranmer was able to write the Book of Common Prayer that had a vast influence on the English language.  He allowed Bucer and Knox to come into England and influence the second edition of the Book of Common Prayer.  When the catholic Mary ascended the throne she declared Cranmer a heretic and treasonous.  Cranmer recanted his Protestantism- but on the day he was executed he recanted his recantations.  

Prayer: Lord, we have horribly offended you.  Have mercy on us and lead us in the way of righteousness this day.  (From Prayers of Knox)

Reformers to Know- John Calvin

DAY 38- 4/7/17- DAY 38 REFORMERS TO KNOW- JOHN CALVIN
But Moses said to God, ‘Who am I that I should to go Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out? (Ex. 3:11)

John Calvin (7/10/1509- 5/27/1564) was the greatest theologian of the Reformation.  He was born in Noyon France, where Charlemagne was crowned in 768.  John Calvin’s father, Gerard, was a lawyer for the Bishop of Noyon.  His mother, Jeanne LeFranc, died perhaps of the plague when he was three years old.  When Calvin was four Pope Leo X started selling indulgences- which was one of the last straws of corruption in the church for the Protestants.  When Calvin was seven Erasmus made his first Greek translation of the Bible, paving the way for the Bible to be translated into German (translated by Luther), French (translated by Calvin’s cousin Olivetan), and English (Tyndale and Genevan translations- which Calvin influenced). When Calvin was three, Jacques LeFevre, a professor in Paris wrote that we are saved by grace alone.  When Calvin was eight Luther posted his 95 theses on the Wittenburg door fueling the Reformation.  When Calvin was 19 (1528) Henry VIII declared the Church of England Protestant.  Calvin had a brother, Charles, who was an early Protestant in France and persecuted for his faith.  Calvin studied law at Orleans but later went to the University of Paris.  But in 1531, at 22, Calvin’s father died and Ulrich Zwingli of Zurich was killed in a battle with Catholic armies.  In 1532 he wrote a humanist commentary on Seneca that didn’t sell well.  Calvin wrote of his conversion in 1533 that “God by a sudden conversion subdued my heart.”  In Paris Calvin helped write a sermon by Nicolas Cop expressing that the Bible was more authoritative than the church.  Some authorities threatened his life.  Calvin literally jumped out of a third story window to flee some entering the door.  He changed his name to “Charles D’Espeville” (Charles of the City of Hope), and his own servant robbed him of all he had.  Calvin fled to Basel where he wrote the first (1536) Protestant theology book, “The Institutes of the Christian Religion.”  It is said that what Einstein is to physics Calvin is to theology.  In 1536 Calvin visited northern Italy and was passing through Geneva when William Farel threatened him with God’s wrath unless he stayed and preached in Geneva.  But when Farel and Calvin insisted the church (not the state) has the power to say who should take communion, they were exiled by Geneva’s City Council.  Calvin wrote, “Surely if I had merely served humans, this would have been a poor reward.  But it is my happiness that I have served Him who never fails to reward his servants to the fullest extent of his promise.”  Calvin went to Berne and then Strasburg where he preached to French exiles under the influence of Martin Bucer.  In August 1540 Calvin married a widow with two children, Idelette de Bure with whom he had no children.  Later Calvin boasted that in Christendom he had 10,000 children.  In 1541 the Genevans begged Calvin to come back.  Many from all over the world came to Geneva.  John Knox said that Geneva was “the purest school of Christ on earth.”  In Geneva Calvin preached every day, lectured three times a week, was present at every town council, yet found time to write thousands of letters and books.  There are over 2,025 sermons in the Genevan library by him.  He founded the Genevan Academy (University of Geneva and Seminary).  In a time of turmoil Calvin’s writings on Providence and the Sovereignty of God took hold.  His teaching was known as Reformed Theology and had influence over the Netherlands, Hungary, Scotland, parts of France, parts of England, Ferrara Italy, Geneva, Lausanne, Neuchatel, and more. At his death Pope Pius IV said,  “The strength of that heretic [Calvin] consisted in this, that money never had the slightest charm for him. If I had such servants my dominion would extend from sea to sea.”

Prayer: I offer Thee my heart Lord, promptly and sincerely. (Prayer of John Calvin) 

Reformers to Know- Oecolampadius and Melanchthon

DAY 37- 4/6/17- DAY 37 REFORMERS TO KNOW- OECOLAMPADIUS, MELANCHTHON
Since we are surrounded by such a cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and run the race set before us.  (Hebrews 12:1)

Oecolampadius (1482- 11/24/1531) original name was Hussgen- or House Lamp (thus Latin Oecolampadius) born in the Electorate of Palatinate (Uppper Region of the Rhine in Germany), but later spending most of his time in Basel.  For three years 1519-22 he preached in Augsburg where he encountered and accepted Luther’s teachings.  He briefly became a monk but upon quitting said, “I have lost the monk and found the Christian.”  Oecolampadius had a deep respect for Mary and is quoted thus from both Catholics and Protestants. He once said, that Mary is the neck that mediated the graces of the head (Christ) to the mystical body of Christ- the church.  However he criticized the practices of veneration like the rosary and the abstaining from drink and sexual relations on Saturday only to over-indulge on Sunday.  He represented the Reformed thinking at the Marburg Colloquy coming into disagreement with Luther. 
     Melanchthon (2/16/1497- 4/19/1560) was Luther’s right hand man and successor in Wittenburg.  He is criticized by Lutherans of conceding too much to the Reformed in an effort for unity among the Protestants. 
Melanchthon was a deep thinker and theologian par excellence formulating fuller Luther’s ideas of Justification by Faith, the contrast between Law and Gospel in Lutheran thinking, and differences between his view and transubstantiation.  He did not believe that the bread and wine were changed into the body and blood but were rather united with the body and blood of Christ in the sacrament.  Melanchthon was the main author of the Augsburg Confession, one of the great documents of the Reformation.  Melanchthon also worked with Bucer to try to unite the Lutheran and Reformed branches at Marburg and the Wittenburg Concord.  At the end of his life, the Lutherans were defeated militarily.  Melanchthon refused to sign the Augsburg Interim. But later he signed some documents called the Leipzig Interim that many felt gave too many concessions to the Roman Catholics (conceding the indifferent/adiophora items like candles, vestments, and holy days).  Some Lutherans accused him of being a heretic but he bore this with grace and hope.  The Formula of Concord in 1577 re-united the Lutheran churches. 

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your servants who stand up for the people against the wolves of the day.  Help me to be bold in standing up for you.  

Oecolampadius (left)
Melanchthon (right)

Reformers to Know- Zwingli and Bucer

DAY 36- 4/5/17- DAY 36 REFORMERS TO KNOW- ULRICH ZWINGLI, MARTIN BUCER
“Whom shall I send?  Who will go for us?” Isaiah 6:8

Ulrich Zwingli (1/1/1484- 10/11/1531) was a humanist scholar who studied at the University of Vienna and the University of Basel and became a priest.  Luther was concerned about his own salvation and studied scripture, while Zwingli was concerned about being a good pastor to his congregation, and studied Erasmus’ translation of the New Testament (Latin and Greek).  In 1519 the pope sent a representative to ask that people pay indulgences (paying to relieve sins for the living or the dead) in order to build St. Peter’s in Rome.  Zwingli convinced the rulers and the gates were shut not allowing the representative (Sanson) to come into the city.  In 1519 he became the pastor of the Grossmunster church in Zurich and began preaching straight through Matthew. This year a plague broke out that killed a fourth of the population.  Most were encouraged to leave the city, but Zwingli did not leave his post.  Eventually he contracted but survived the plague.   In 1522 he began preaching his ideas of reform by breaking the Lenten fast publicly by eating sausages.  By October 1523 Zurich had taken all images and statues of the saints out of their churches.  Zwingli was a leader of Zurich and was instrumental in forming and breaking alliances among the Swiss Cantons and Philip of Hesse and Strasburg. In 1529 Zurich formed a Christian Civic Union with Bern and Constance (other cities such as Basel joined).  Five Swiss Cantons formed the Christian Alliance of Catholic states.  A war occurred in which Zurich won and Zwingli pushed for the free preaching of Protestantism there.  In 1529 the Marburg Colloquy tried to unite Lutheran and Reformed (Zwinglian) thought.  It agreed on fourteen points but disagreed about the sacraments.  Zwingli saw baptism and the supper not as sacraments but as an ordinance (command) in which we remember Christ.  On October 11, 1531 the five catholic states attacked Zurich which was unprepared and only musterd 3,500 men to face an army twice its size.  Zwingli was killed, once again refusing to leave his people.  The love he had for Switzerland and for his people made his teachings stick with them.  Afterwards Henrich Bullinger succeeded Zwingli.  He was able to unite the Protestant Cantons and achieved a relative peace, writing the Second Helvetic Confession which is part of the PCUSA’s Book of Confessions. 
      Martin Bucer was a humanist scholar who mainly lived in Strasbourg Germany (11/11/1491- 2/28/1551).  He originally was a Dominican Friar as well.  He met Luther in 1518 and renounced his vows and was excommunicated- fleeing to Strasbourg. Bucer tried to mediate between Luther and Zwingli at Marburg, and later with the Tetrapolitan Confession and Wittenburg Concord (which he helped write with Melanchthon).  Bucer took Zwingli’s views about the supper as a memorial, but thought this was a secondary, indifferent matter.  He noted that Luther rejected “impanation” (the idea that Christ became the bread), but Luther rejected Bucer’s saying there is no difference.  In September 1530 Emperor Charles V declared that all Protestants should join the Catholic Confession or be forced to do so by the military.  Melanchthon and Bucer wrote a common nine theses in response to try again to unite the Lutheran and Reformed confessions.  Luther met with Bucer and, though he disagreed with him asked him to continue to try to unite.  Zwingli neither agreed or disagreed, but Bucer traveled to many different German and Swiss cities pleading for unity.  He once said, “If you immediately condemn anyone who doesn't quite believe the same as you do as forsaken by Christ's Spirit, and consider anyone to be the enemy of truth who holds something false to be true, who, pray tell, can you still consider a brother? I for one have never met two people who believed exactly the same thing. This holds true for Theology as well.”  Bucer continued to work to join the Lutheran and Reformed churches- helping to write the First Helvetic Confession and the Wittenburg Concord- but full agreement was never achieved.  When Calvin was fleeing for his life- Bucer welcomed him in Strasbourg.  Bucer tried to get the Catholics and Protestants to form a German National Church separate from Rome, but this failed with the Schmalkaldic Wars.  He was exiled to England in 1549 where he helped Thomas Cranmer with the second edition of the Second Book of Prayer.  When Mary Tudor came to the throne, she tried to restore Catholicism and had Bucer’s body dug up and burned.  Elizabeth I, later put a plaque down at the place of Bucer’s original burial.  Bucer lived a holy, sincere life in which he valued love over theological differences. 

Prayer: Lord, Help me to value the boldness of Zwingli and the love and unity treasured by Bucer.  

Reformers to Know- Martin Luther

DAY 35- 4/4/17- DAY 35- REFORMERS TO KNOW- MARTIN LUTHER
“Who am I, Lord God, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” (1 Chr. 17:16)

Calvin and the Reformed Protestant leaders called Martin Luther “the Apostle of the Reformation.”  Most of them had deep respect for Luther, even if Luther disagreed with some of their thinking, because he broke the glass ceiling of sacerdotalism in the church. 
Luther was born 11/10/1483 in Eisleben Saxony (Southeast Germany) the son of Hans and Margarette Luther.  Hans was a successful miner but wanted his son to be a lawyer and Luther studied to be one earning an MA at the University in Erfurt.  In 1505 Luther was caught in a terrible thunderstorm and he cried out, “Save me St. Anne and I will become a monk.” Most think Luther was headed toward the monastery anyway in his efforts to save himself from God’s wrath and hell.  At the monastery Luther was constantly doing acts of penance for perceived sins and continually confessing to the abbot in true anxiety for his soul.  At 27 he went to Rome for a church conference but came away more disillusioned by the immorality and power he saw.  He went to the University in Wittenburg, received his doctorate and became a professor there.  1513-1515 Luther’s thinking changed.  He read in Romans, “The just shall live by faith” and realized that salvation did not depend on his actions as much as on putting his faith in what Christ had already done.  On October 31, 1517 he nailed his 95 these to the Wittenburg church door as a means to try to stop indulgences for forgiveness and to reform the church of Rome.  In October 1518 Luther was called before Cardinal Cajetan in Augsburg to recant his 95 theses but he did not.  Luther was excommunicated in January 1521 for saying that the Pope did not have the exclusive right to interpret scripture.  He was summoned before the secular authorities (Emperor Charles V) at the Diet of Worms where he still refused to recant.  His famous statement at Worms was “My conscience is captive to the Word of God…  Here I stand.  I can do no other.  God help me, Amen.”  On May 8, 1521 Luther’s writings were banned and he was declared a heretic.  This made him a condemned man threatened with death.  Friends whisked him away to a castle in Wartburg where he spent months translating the Bible into German.  In 1522 Luther began organizing the Lutheran church from his followers and with the protection of some German princes.  In 1524 a Peasants Rebellion broke out.  At first Luther seemed to side with the peasants (his father was considered a peasant), but in the end he saw this rebellion as wrong and encouraged the defeat of the peasants.  In 1525 he married Katharina Von Bora and together they had six children.  He remained as professor in Wittenburg dying February 18, 1546 at the age of 62.  Philip of Hesse called Luther and Zwingli together October 1-4, 1529 to work out an agreement between the Protestant states.  The Lutherans and Reformed could agree on 14 of 15 points- but the last one (in what sense Christ is present at the Lord’s Super) separated them.  Initially Luther refused to call the Reformed Christians but later he softened his stance and came up with the Marburg Articles that pointed to the fourteen theological agreements.  Luther also believe the body of Christ was ubiquitous (available everywhere) and thus could be present in the elements- whereas reformed thinking spoke of the body of Christ ascended into heaven.  Luther got in trouble along with Melanchthon and Bucer for advising Philip of Hesse to not divorce his wife but to marry again (using as justification the polygamy of the Old Testament).  Luther is often criticized for his attitude toward the Jews and Muslims.  Luther refused to call for a holy war against the Turks, but did encourage a secular war against them.  Luther also criticized the Annabaptists for their aversion against all authority, adult baptism and pacifism, and the antinomians who thought the law did not apply to them.  Luther was the closest thing to a prophet of the Reformation.  Luther was also known for writing many hymns including one we still sing, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.”  Like David and others in the Old and New Testaments we can learn from his faults as well as his good qualities.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for raising up a Luther.  Help us to learn from his mistakes and his boldness.  

Priesthood of All Believers- Christ the Great High Priest

DAY 34- 4/3/17- DAY 34- THE PRIESTHOOD OF ALL BELIEVERS

“Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office.  But because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood.  Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” (Hebrews 7:23-25)
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus.  (1 Timothy 2:5)

The idea of the priesthood of all believers rests on the idea that Jesus is our permanent high priest.  A priest was called to mediate between God and humans: representing God to us and representing us to God.  The priest made sacrifices for forgiveness.  We do not need to make those sacrifices any more.  As Hebrews says (7:27) “He sacrificed once for all when he offered himself.”  As pointed out earlier, we do not sacrifice Christ each time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper.  Christ also intercedes for us- praying for us- and opening up access to God the Father.  So when we pray, we pray in Jesus’ name and for His sake (not ours alone).  Our prayers go through Jesus- not through a priest and then through Jesus.  It appeared that the medieval church seemed to teach that we should be afraid to pray the wrong thing and in the wrong way.  So prayers were written out for each Sunday and for every occasion.  While these can be an aid, it can be a bit like walking with a cane when we could walk without one- we become dependent and lose our ability (to speak freely from our heart). 

Prayer: Lord, thank ou that you are the mediator between God and man.  Help me to trust in the way you have made.  

Priesthood of All Believers- All Believers May Serve

DAY 33- 4/2/17- DAY 33- THE PRIESTHOOD OF ALL BELIEVERS

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  (1 Peter 2:9)
Thoughts: The priest had a large amount of power in the Roman Catholic church of the late medieval period.  People were discouraged from reading the Bible. Only the priest was supposed to read (in Latin) and interpret it to the people (though not all priests knew Latin).  Priests had the power to withhold the Lord’s Supper (the Eucharist) and taught that if you did not receive the Eucharist you could not be forgiven.  Priests could tell you what to do in terms of penance in order to achieve forgiveness and could absolve sins in the confessional.  The priest was the mediator between the people and God taking away the authority of Christ as the true mediator between the Father and the people.  The pastor was not a lord and his congregation the fiefdom.  Calvin also taught against the idea of a person getting money from the people and not even ministering to them. The Reformation was in many ways a rebellion against power grabs by the church.  It re-focused power on Christ (only he could forgive sins), and on the people who could pray directly to Him and read God's Word directly.
       The leaders of the Reformation fought against the power of the priest when it went against what scripture said.  They wanted the Bible in the language of the people- both Luther and Calvin were responsible for translations into German, French, and English.  The risk was that people could misinterpret it- but they contended the church too was misinterpreting it.  While communion was still closely guarded for the Protestants, it was not used as a personal weapon as it too often was in the late middle ages.  For Protestants, Jesus Christ is our great high priest, and he is the mediator between God and man (see below).  
     Luther, quoting I Peter 2:9 says (In the Babylonian Captivity of the Church) “In this way we are all priests.  There are indeed priests whom we call ministers.  They are chosen among us and do everything in our name.”  Luther, was not opposed to using the term “priest” and “minister” interchangeably.  Calvin renamed the altar that the Lord’s Supper was served on “the communion table” as a reminder that the minister does not sacrifice Christ again.  We all are called to pray directly to God- we do not have to go through the priest.  We need not over-worry about the content of our prayers- the Holy Spirit helps us to pray and helps us to interpret the scriptures.  We are the priesthood of believers- in that we are called to bring God to others- to the whole world.  As Israel was a witness to God, so all Christians together are an inviting and challenging witness to the Lord.  In our baptism we are all commissioned to go and make disciples and to teach (Mt. 28:19-20). 

Prayer: Lord, thank you that you care about me and desire I know you, read your Word, pray to you, and follow you without hesitation or mediation.  

Tetzel Selling Indulgences in Wittenburg for Forgiveness of Sins

Christ Alone- The Great Single Sacrifice

DAY 32- 4/1/17  CHRIST ALONE- THE GREAT SINGLE SACRIFICE

It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins… We have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all…  For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.  And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.  (Hebrews 10:4, 10. 14,18)

Thoughts: The Great Single sacrifice- the one sufficient for all human beings has been offered.  The ransom for our captivity to sin has been paid.  How can one man’s dying pay for all human being’s sin?   Well, Jesus is not just any man- He is the infinite-worth God- man.  Can you compare the value of God’s life to ours?  Could I compare the lives of a thousand amoebas to my pet dog?  I would choose my dog even if it were a billion amoebas!  The value of the perfect Jesus- God in the flesh- does not compare to our own value.  He is not a lamb paying for human sin- He is God paying an infinite price for a finite amount of sin.  For even though we sin a bunch- our sins are limited by death and number.  But God’s value on Jesus- the Son is infinite.  All the Old Testament sacrifices point to the idea that we need a sacrifice- we need to find a way to have forgiveness before the holy God.  But they also point to the One true Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world- Jesus.  Christ alone has this value.  To degrade this value by saying we need to add our own sacrifices or merit to it is ridiculous.  Christ alone is worthy of our praise- He is the lamb that was slain and He alone is worthy.  “You are worthy…because you were slain and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation…worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!”  (Revelation 5:9,12).

Prayer: Lord, help me to grow in my appreciation of your worthiness. 

Christ Alone Forgives Sins

DAY 31- 3/31/17 CHRIST ALONE FORGIVES SINS
No one can forgive sins but God alone…but that you may know the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins, take up your mat and walk.   
All the prophets testify about Him that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name. (Acts 10:43)

Thoughts: Our hope is not in ourselves and Christ or someone and Christ.  We fail ourselves.  Others fail us.  Christ never failed and never fails.  What makes us realize our sins are forgiven as far as the east is from the west is that Christ has paid the price for them.  Many do not name “forgiveness” as their problem. Guilt and shame are not perceived in our culture.  But alienation from others, depression and loneliness, and purposelessness are aching and nagging problems.  But the root of these things is our own selfishness and pride- which are also sins that we must somehow get past.  Sadly, we usually cannot name our basic sin, but we can only name the symptoms without naming any kind of real cure.  The cure to emptiness, depression, and purposelessness is the hope offered by Christ- and that is the hope of the cross.  It is on the cross alone that we can get past our past failures and alienations to move on in life.  Forgiveness is not made up for by doing good.  For how much good do we need to do?  We cannot earn our way to feeling better and being reconciled to God, others, and ourselves.  If we could, then we could boast about how good we are.  However, Christ gives us a way to pay our debt from outside of ourselves.  The Creator who designed things and holds things to account- also made a way to reconcile us to Himself.  He Himself has paid the price and bore our sins.  To think that we have added to that payment by our own small acts of goodness is demeaning to the majestic cost of the cross.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the forgiveness offered in Christ. 

Christ Alone- Not Christ AND

DAY 30- 3/30/17 CHRIST ALONE- NOT CHRIST AND…
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)

Thoughts: Late medieval theology (Ockham) had disintegrated into thinking that doing good was so important that it should be rewarded with eternal salvation.  One can understand why we should motivate people to do good. 
      Similarly, late medieval Latin theology talked about forgiveness being earned by penance, by confession, by the Eucharist, by indulgence, and by the transferring of righteousness/grace from one person to another.  The problem is that while a priest could say that they absolve someone, that does not mean that the sinner felt forgiven.  Luther, when he was a good monk, felt he needed to do more and more to somehow obtain forgiveness for his sins.  It was only when Luther realized Christ alone could forgive that he actually realized he was forgiven and trusted his forgiveness.  Protestants could speak of assurance of salvation because of the assurance that they were forgiven by Christ’s act (and not their own plus Christ’s act).  The Roman Catholic church at the time taught that repentance and our actions were necessary for salvation and that we could lose our salvation.  While Luther was more vague, Calvin spoke of the doctrine of eternal security and perseverance.
       Our salvation does not depend on our actions plus Christ.  Our salvation does not depend upon some saint and the cross of Christ.  Our salvation does not depend on our taking the Lord’s Supper and Christ’s cross.  It is not doing any law or good that makes us acceptable.  Christ’s grace shown on the cross and accepted by faith makes us acceptable- and forgiven. 

Prayer: Lord, help me to appreciate your love alone and your work for me.  

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Solus Christus and Pluralism

DAY 29- 3/29/17- SOLUS CHRISTUS- AND PLURALISM
11And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (1 John 5:11-12)

Thoughts- E pluribus unum- “Out of many one” is a motto of the United States on the Great Seal.  Ironically the official motto of the United States (1956) is “In God we trust.”  This trust in God can be a uniting thing that brings people of different races and backgrounds- rich and poor together.  In our day the ‘E pluribus Unum” motto has taken precedent in a kind of reverse.  Today we seem so divisive that perhaps a better descriptive motto (that I do not recommend) is “E Unum pluribus” (out of one- many).  The sense of oneness is disappearing along with the spiritual and purposeful bonds that once helped us pull in the same moral and spiritual direction.  What is missing is a sense of love. The idea of True Love has been derided and confused with lust.  We have elevated an ever- hungry but never-satisfying-government into the role of the One who cares for us above all others.  Though all religions in America are equally protected, not all are equally useful for the good of the state nor are they all equally valid.  For example, some religions do not encourage charity but instead encourage focus on self in order to find inner peace.  Arkansas struggled in 2015 as the government put a Ten Commandments statue up.  Some Satan worshipers asked to put a statue of the devil up claiming equal treatment and equal validity and were recently (1/25/17)given the green light to move ahead.  For some, this is simple fairness- everyone should be on equal grounds.  But this goes beyond common sense into the realm of silly moral ineptitude.  The solution is not to get rid of all statues- or even all religious monuments.  The solution is to begin to make a distinction.  Who makes that distinction?  The people should be able to make (by vote or by representatives) that distinction.  For a Satanic symbol could quickly become an idol and an object for worship for some, and Satanists elevate hate and division over love and unity.  There are those who think Christianity is evil- but it is a religion that teaches love.  There are some who believe Christianity is judgmental- but Christianity teaches to leave judgment to God and it is the Christians who teach “he who is without sin cast the first stone” and “Judge not lest ye be judged.”  Yet, having said that, Christianity has always been a believer in truth.  God is the ultimate judge of truth.  What we believe matters.  If we really believe that all religions are alike, would we allow ISIS to have a monument on the statehouse grounds out of fairness?  It matters what you believe.  There is a difference between those who behead Christians (like ISIS) and those who are beheaded for simply being Christian.  It is not wrong to affirm Christ as our model for belief and practice.  The Reformers were right to affirm that Christ is our truth, and we would be right to not be ashamed of the truth of Christ.  

Prayer: Lord, let me claim the truth and not be ashamed of it.  

Solus Christus- Christ Alone

DAY 28- 3/28/17 SOLUS CHRISTUS

“I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father but by me.”  John 14:6
“Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction , and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Mt. 7:13,14
There is a way that seems right to man, but in the end it leads to death. Proverbs 16:25

Thoughts: For some Jesus is only one among many ways, one among many truths.  Jesus was not saying, “Follow me and I will lead you to the truth” rather- “I am the truth.”  Many do not have a problem adding Jesus to their spirituality- or having Jesus as one god among many.  But the “solus” or “only” claim of Jesus is what not only rubs them the wrong way but frustrates them.  For them, all roads lead to the mountaintop, however winding.  But, despite what post-moderns think, Jesus was saying that truth matters.  To say that truth matters means that lying and deceiving is not okay. 
     At the time of the Reformation (and still today), people were trying to get around the idea that salvation comes through faith in Christ and trust in the cross as a sacrifice for our forgiveness.  So the idea of purgatory- that we may somehow pray for others to have their sins burned off in time with punishment; or as some Catholic sects believed- transfer the righteousness of one saint over onto us was followed.  Luther and the Reformation leaders called people back to the idea of Christ as our Savior. 
    Once a baby had jaundice and her parents were told that if they put the baby underneath a special light for so many hours, the baby would get better.  But suppose the parents quarreled- “That’s too easy!  How about if we scrub her, warm her, put a little skin coloring on her, and drops in her eyes? If we work hard enough at it, I’m sure we could get her normal coloring back.”  The doctor would have insisted, No, there’s only one way to handle this.”  If the parents had said, “No, we will just ignore this and maybe it will go away.” The doctor would remind them that things can get better if they do not follow his simple but important steps.  Believing in Christ is simple but it is also important.  Jesus opens the door to belief to whosoever will.  It is not exclusive in its invitation it is exclusive in its solution.  
    Lee Strobel asks, if there were two country clubs- one of which had an exclusive membership for those who earn it and do a multitude of tasks; and the other invited everyone- no matter what they looked like or what they had to join. For the second, entry was not based on qualifications or earning it but on accepting the invitation.  Christianity is like the latter.  All are invited and we do not earn our way.  Rather we depend on one who has paid the way for us. 

Prayer: Lord, help me to see you are my only and most important savior.  Help me to trust in you alone.  

Song: "In Christ Alone" 

Soli Dei Gloria- To Glorify and Enjoy Him

DAY 27- SOLI DEI GLORIA- TO GLORIFY AND ENJOY HIM

“I have come that they might have life and have it abundantly.”  (John 10:10)
WSCQ1: “What is the chief end of man?”  A: Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.”
Translation: “What is the main purpose of human beings?”

Thoughts:  The Christian life is not so purposeful that it has no fun.  The old saying is, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”  We are made to glorify and honor God and find our pleasure in that.  I remember the movie, “Chariots of Fire” about Eric Liddell who won the gold in the Olympics.  He said, “When I run, I can feel his pleasure.”  We can run, skip, jump, play in a way that honors God. Having good, clean fun can honor Him.  Calvin talked about sailing on Lake Geneva on Sundays.  In fact, if you know you are enjoying your life for God- and not just for yourself- there is even more fun in that!  Your work and your chores can also have more meaning if you are doing them to God’s glory but also if you are learning that you may enjoy God’s presence and help in the midst of the work you do.  It is not merely an inconvenience.  Interruptions can become ways we see God’s providential hand leading us.  So whatever you do, know Jesus came to help, to heal, to comfort, to give you life- abundantly.  The abundant eternal life does not begin after you die and go to heaven- it begins now.

Prayer: Lord, help me to find you in my life.  Help me to find purpose but also joy in my journey.  

Soli Dei Gloria- The Place of Mary and the Saints

DAY 26 3/26/17 SOLI DEI GLORIA- THE PLACE OF MARY AND THE SAINTS

“Then the angel said…At this I fell at his feet to worship him.  But he said to me, “Do not do it!  I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus.  Worship God!” (Rev. 19:10,22:9)
“Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.” (Mt. 4:10)
“Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”  1 Corinthians 11:1 (cf. I Cor. 4:16)

“Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.  And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”  (Heb. 12:1)

Thoughts: Part of the confusion and division between the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Protestant churches is the role of Mary and the saints in our worship, prayers, and salvation.  There are those who accuse (falsely) that devotion to Mary derives from the very common pagan devotion to Mother earth. However, there are others who have obviously taken this too far.  For example forming a later tradition of the immaculate conception of Mary by her parents, and the perpetual virginity of Mary even though Jesus clearly had younger brothers and sisters (and thus not by Joseph from a previous marriage as some conjecture).  Some even have her playing  a role as a co-redemptor with Christ for our salvation (Cult of the Redemtrix- which is not generally recognized).  Some even superstitiously worship the bones or relics of the saints (see Second Helvetic Confession V).
      The Second Helvetic Confession (written by Zwingli’s successor in Zurich, Bullinger) says, “At the same time we do not despise the saints or think basely of them.  We love them as brothers and also honor them; yet not with any kind of worship but by an honorable opinion of them and just praises of them.”  We also imitate them.  We probably need to remember the words of the angel to Mary, “Blessed are you among women.”  She is the mother of Jesus, and chosen by God for this purpose.  Other saints too are to be imitated as they follow Christ.  In scripture, the term “saints” is used many times.  It means “sanctified ones”- those who believe and are following our Lord.  The term is not limited to the holiest among us.  But even saints like Abraham, Moses, Peter, and Paul sin and fail.  1 Corinthians 10:11 (in reference to the saints of the Old Testament) says, “These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us. There are both good and bad found in everyone.  It is important to set before us those who follow Christ close that we may not be discouraged  in our own journey. 

Prayer: Lord, you alone are worthy to receive honor and glory and power and wealth and strength.  For you created all things.  Help me not to worship or pray or trust in another for my salvation.  

Soli Dei Gloria- Thoughts on Glory

DAY 25- 3/25/17- SOLI DEI GLORIA- THOUGHTS ON GLORY

In the Old Testament, the word “Glory” is Kabod meaning heavy.  It tends to imply that someone who receives glory is rich (Gen. 31:1), powerful (Is .8:7), in position (Gen. 45:13).  Kabod also carried with it the idea of light emanating from the center of God’s glory- a blinding splendor with flashes of lightning. 
In the New Testament the word “Glory” is doxa- from which we get our word “doxology.”  It denotes the majesty and holiness of God. 
    Christ is the manifestation of the divine glory (Heb. 1:3);  he is the exact representation (Col. 1).  We see the glory of the One and Only in this Word made flesh (John 1:14).  Christ purely glorified the Father.  He was full of grace and truth.  As we imitate Christ- as we love others and do His work we also honor and glorify God. 
    We glorify God as we reflect His glory in our lives.  Jesus is the light of the world- and he calls us “the light of the world.”  But our lights are reflectors of His great light.  Moses face glowed when he saw the glory of God on the mountain- but it was not Moses’ glory that was reflected-  but God’s glory that was glowing on Moses’ face.  Any glory we have should point people to the glory of God working in and through us. 
     In heaven we shall see this glory face to face.  We shall be made like Him and enabled to be in the 

presence of the throne of God- to see the throne described but beyond description in the book of Revelation. 

Prayer: Lord, when I am honored, give me grace to point up to you.  When I am blessed, help me to remember you are the Blessor.  

Soli Dei Gloria- Nature Glorifies God

DAY 24- 3/24/17- SOLI DEI GLORIA- NATURE GLORIFIES GOD-
The heavens are telling the glory of God, and the earth proclaims the work of His hands.  Psalm 19:1

Calvin believed that the created order display the goodness of the Creator (Selderhuis CH p.274).  Nature, he said, is the “theater” of God’s glory, the “mirror” of the providence and power of God, a “witness” to the glory of God and proof of his love toward man (Inst I.5.1,8; I 6.2).  

The world along with all humans groan for a day when things will be fair and just- where right wins and is clear.  But the problem is that we know if we were treated justly we would be condemned.  Yet we long for things to be made right.  We long for the heat to not be so hot and the cold to not be so cold.  We long for bad things to come out of the shadows.  We long for the weak to be made strong, and the captive to be set free, the blind to see and the deaf to hear.  Jesus gave us a glimpse of this happening when he came the first time- healing and helping.  One day there will be no more dark, and there will be no more sun to eclipse.  God will be our light and we will see things for what they really are.  In the meantime- the sun points to the Son. The invisible qualities of God are seen in creation (Romans 1).  Creation is like the moon reflecting the sun.  Creation is the fingerprint of God- pointing to His glory.  We do not need to glorify anything in creation.  Creation is meant to be a mirror to reflect God's light..  To glorify creation would be to glorify the mirror instead of the substance.  But creation is meant to reflect the One we should glorify.  

Prayer: Lord, give me eyes to see your invisible character in nature.  

Soli Dei Gloria- How Do We Glorify God

DAY 23- 3/23/17- SOLI DEI GLORIA- How do we Glorify God? 

“I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not give my glory to another or my praise to idols” (Isa. 42:8).

          While our work may glorify God, and our actions of love may glorify God, and things like prayer and witnessing honor Him, there is one thing we do that is more special still- it is to worship God.  We take this for granted.  One of the reasons God asked us to keep a Sabbath weekly is that it is good for us to honor God with our time and focus. 
    When we believe in His redeeming work, we glorify Him.  When we trust in Him by faith, relying on His grace, believing in His sacrifice on the cross.  When we trust in His reality, His real love- we honor Him.  As we continue to grow in our faith- He becomes more and more the center of our lives.  He becomes our Lord more and more as we follow in His steps.  This glorifies God and reflects positively back to Him- even if no one else sees it.

Prayer: Lord, may my heart, my time, my talent, my giving all reflect your glory.  

Soli Dei Gloria- The Singleness of God's Glory

DAY 22- 3/22/17- SOLI DEI GLORIA- GLORY TO GOD ALONE  The Singleness of Glory
“Soli Deo honor et Gloria” (Vulgate translation of 1 Tim. 1:17)- “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory forever and ever Amen.” 

Some translate Soli Dei Gloria as “Glory to the only God.”  In some parts of animistic African Religion (and American voodoo) there are many gods who receive growing ranks of glory until the most glory goes to the invisible creator God.  In Roman Catholicism and to a lesser degree in eastern orthodoxy there are differing ranks of glory going to saints and especially to Mary.  The Second Council of Nicea spoke of three different levels of glory: 1) the latria that glorifies and adores the Trinity; 2) the Hyperdulia that glorifies Mary; 3) the dulia that glorifies the other saints.  Ironically when the angel came to Mary to tell her she would have a son you see her tremendous humility and she said, “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior” (Lk. 1:46).  The problem is when we start spreading the glory around to others (instead of to God alone) that we can easily slip (consciously or subconsciously) into praying to, worshiping these other saints as if they were god, demi-gods, or mediators between us and God.  But there is only one mediator between us and God (1 Tim. 2:5) and that is Jesus Christ.  When we try to take the glory that is due to God and give it to another- it diminishes the honor that is due Him.  So the first two commandments say, “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God...(Dt. 5:7,8). 

Prayer: Help me Lord to give my heart solely to you and to no other.  May you alone be my one true Lord. 

Soli Dei Gloria

DAY 21- 3/21/17- SOLI DEI GLORIA- GLORY TO GOD ALONE
“So whether you eat or drink of whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”  (1 Cor. 10:31

Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel, perhaps the greatest Reformation musicians, wrote on each of  their pieces, “Soli Dei Gloria.”   This does not mean (as some suppose) simply that our music should praise God.  It also means that what we produce, what we work for, what we do in life should glorify God.  If you look at the lives of Handel and Bach they were prolific.  Their work was not simply motivated by money (though Handel sometimes appears to be the merchant) but their inspiration was purposeful.  They lived on- purpose lives- writing music to honor God. 
    To Glorify God is to have a purpose.  The Westminster Shorter Catechism asks, "What is the chief end of man? The answer is "To glorify God and to enjoy Him forever."  The Reformation brought a supreme sense that we are not to glorify the saints, or the church, or the Pope, but we should glorify God alone.  This singleness of heart and purpose brought about the Protestant work ethic- a motivation to do even small things (washing dishes, taking out the trash) to the glory of God.  Today we are missing that direction, meaning and purpose in life (and even in church life).  

Prayer: May my work, my song, my art, my love, my life honor you and you alone, O Lord.