Solas Study
Introduction
Introduction: Rediscovery of the Gospel
Theological Movement
Renewed Emphasis on Right Doctrine of the gospel
As Lindberg notes, referring to one of Luther’s early sermons, the “crux of genuine reform … is the proclamation of the gospel of grace alone. This requires the reform of theology and preaching but is ultimately the work of God alone
For Luther, explains McGrath, a “reformation of morals was secondary to a reformation of doctrine.” While forerunners stressed the need for ethical reform in the papacy, Luther recognized that the real problem was a dogmatic one. The great need was theological; the “crux of genuine reform” had to do with the recovery of the gospel itself.
Luther warned at the start of his 1535 Galatians commentary that “if the doctrine of justification is lost, the whole of Christian doctrine is lost.” And again, “If it is lost and perishes, the whole knowledge of truth, life, and salvation is lost and perishes at the same time.”12
As Luther wrote to Staupitz, “I teach that people should put their trust in nothing but Jesus Christ alone, not in their prayers, merits, or their own good deeds.” This one sentence, says Scott Hendrix, summarizes “the essence” of Luther’s “reforming agenda.”14
Though I lived as a monk without reproach, I felt that I was a sinner before God with an extremely disturbed conscience. I could not believe that he was placated by my satisfaction. I did not love, yes, I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners, and secretly, if not blasphemously, certainly murmuring greatly, I was angry with God, and said, “As if, indeed, it is not enough that miserable sinners, eternally lost through original sin, are crushed by every kind of calamity by the law of the Decalogue, without having God add pain to pain by the gospel and also by the gospel threatening us with his righteousness and wrath!” Thus I raged with a fierce and troubled conscience. Nevertheless, I beat importunately upon Paul at that place, most ardently desiring to know what St. Paul wanted.
At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night, I gave heed to the context of the words, namely, “In it the righteousness of God is revealed as it is written, ‘He who through faith is righteous shall live.’ ” There I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that by which the righteous lives by a gift of God, namely by faith. And this is the meaning: the righteousness of God is revealed by the gospel, namely, the passive righteousness with which merciful God justifies us by faith, as it is written, “He who through faith is righteous shall live.” Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates.
Foundation of the Reformation
Martin Luther’s message that sinners were righteous before God through faith in Christ alone (sola fide) not only undermined the Catholic penitential system, but also cut at the root of the medieval priest’s sacral role as a dispenser of salvific grace through the sacraments of the church. The Protestant reformers elevated instead the biblical office of the Christian minister or pastor, whose primary responsibility was to preach the Word of God and supervise the behavior of the spiritual community.… That is not to say that late medieval Catholics ignored the ministry of preaching, nor that Protestant life and worship was empty of religious ritual. Historians now recognize a significant revival of preaching the century before the Reformation, most evident in the work of mendicant friars and the creation of municipal preacherships. At the same time, despite Protestant criticisms of Catholic “ceremonies” and “superstitions,” and despite explosive acts of iconoclasm against Catholic images, the evangelical reformers preserved in modified form traditional rites surrounding the Eucharist, baptism, and reconciliation. Nevertheless, the general pattern still holds true: for Catholics, the primary role of the clergy remained sacramental and liturgical; for the Protestant reformers, it was to preach the Word of God.
When the congregation gathered in Saint Pierre’s, Calvin was convinced that it was through the Word that the Spirit created worship—in spirit and in truth—within the hearts of the listeners (John 4:24): “Through the ministry of the written and proclaimed Word,” says Manetsch, “the Spirit solidifies the faith of God’s people, calls forth their prayers and praise, purifies their consciences, intensifies their gratitude—in a word, guides them into spiritual worship.” As Calvin said, “God is only worshiped properly in the certainty of faith, which is necessarily born of the Word of God; and hence it follows that all who forsake the Word fall into idolatry.” For Calvin, preaching God’s Word was a means to true worship and a safeguard against idolatry, specifically the idolatry previously performed under Rome.38
Why are you standing there?” asked Tetzel. “Run for the salvation of your souls!… Don’t you hear the voice of your wailing dead parents and others who say, ‘Have mercy upon me, have mercy upon me, because we are in severe punishment and pain. From this you could redeem us with small alms and yet you do not want to do so.’ ” Hearing sermons like this one impelled listeners to quickly and fearfully throw their money into the coffer.
What was so different in the Reformers’ sermons was not that anxiety in the listener was absent—the Reformers believed in the wrath and judgment of God and the sinner’s need to repent. Rather, what was so different was how the Reformers proclaimed from the pulpit a gracious God, one who justifies the ungodly by grace alone (sola gratia) through faith alone (sola fide). Proclaimed from the pulpit was not only the righteousness of God but also the righteousness from God. The Reformers did not leave anxious souls to their own merits (or money bags) but turned their eyes from themselves to the cross and empty tomb. The answer was not penance but a crucified and risen Savior—a Savior, we should remember, whose righteousness was imputed to anyone who trusted in him alone for salvation (solus Christus). In contrast to a theology of glory, the Reformers heralded a theology of the cross.
He was opposed to those who “try to frighten people into going frequently to confession,” and he warned against questioning, as he once did, whether one’s contrition was sufficient: “Rather you should be assured that after all your efforts your contrition is not sufficient. This is why you must cast yourself upon the grace of God, hear his sufficiently sure word in the sacrament, accepted in free and joyful faith, and never doubt that you have come to grace
He was opposed to those who “try to frighten people into going frequently to confession,” and he warned against questioning, as he once did, whether one’s contrition was sufficient: “Rather you should be assured that after all your efforts your contrition is not sufficient. This is why you must cast yourself upon the grace of God, hear his sufficiently sure word in the sacrament, accepted in free and joyful faith, and never doubt that you have come to grace
The Scriptures were, as Calvin called them, “spectacles” that the Spirit used to open blind eyes to the gospel. Bullinger could even say in the Second Helvetic Confession of 1566 that the “preaching of the Word of God is the Word of God.” Bullinger did not mean that the preacher’s words and thoughts were revelatory, as if the canon was open and ongoing. By this expression Bullinger instead meant to communicate that when the preacher proclaims the true meaning of Scripture, the people of God are fed the Word of God. God is present, talking to his people. Though the preacher is fallible, weak, and unworthy, God’s Word is not; it is true, objective, powerful, and sufficient. Transcending the preacher, the Word brings God himself into the room with the good news of his Son to troubled, hell-bound souls held captive by the law. Calvin contended that the Spirit utilizes the preached Word (along with the Lord’s Supper) to elevate the church into the heavens where Christ sits so that she might enjoy all his saving benefits. The believer’s union with Christ, therefore, is not at all unrelated to the proclamation of God’s Word.50
A Sacred Trust
The Protestant doctrine of sola scriptura—the conviction that Holy Scripture was the unique, final authority for the Christian community—had important consequences for pastoral ministry. The scripture principle gave gravitas to the office of preacher [italics added]. It also made the educational formation of Protestant clergy an urgent priority, especially in those academic disciplines most necessary for biblical exposition such as classic rhetoric, theology, and biblical exegesis. By transferring the locus of authority from the Catholic magisterium to the written Word of God, the reformers enhanced the personal authority of the minister, who was now entrusted with special responsibility to interpret and proclaim the sacred text.
As Luther memorably said, the Scriptures are the “swaddling clothes in which Christ lies.”
It was not enough, therefore, for Scripture to be merely read; it had to be proclaimed. “The ears alone,” Luther said, “are the organs of the Christian.” And the “lips are the public reservoirs of the church”:
In them alone is kept the Word of God. You see, unless the word is preached publicly, it slips away. The more it is preached, the more firmly it is retained. Reading is not as profitable as hearing it, for the live voice teaches, exhorts, defends, and resists the spirit of error.
Luther concluded this thought with a startling statement: “Satan does not care a hoot for the written Word of God, but he flees at the speaking of the Word.” Satan does not worry about Bibles sitting around on shelves. He begins to worry when those Bibles are picked up and taken into pulpits. He knows that when the Word is proclaimed, the Holy Spirit comes alongside it and penetrates “hearts and leads back those who stray,” for “the Word,” said Luther, “is the channel through which the Holy Spirit is given.” And when the Holy Spirit is given, souls are made alive, justified, and set on the pathway to glorification.
The Reformation was not about Calvin or any other personality. Much less was it about the ups and downs of church politics by which the church is ever beset. No, the Reformation was about the Word of God, which was to be proclaimed faithfully and conscientiously to the people of God. Calvin held himself to a high standard and demanded no less of others called to the office of preaching. The true pastor, he said, must be marked by “ruthless persistence” (importunitas). Pastors are not granted the luxury of choosing their own times of service, or suiting their ministry to their own convenience or preaching “sugar stick” sermons removed from their biblical context.
But it wasn’t just the pulpit that placed Scripture at the center of worship; the entire Protestant service was immersed in Scripture, from beginning to end. The Bible, in other words, became the DNA of the worship time, infiltrating everything from the opening call to worship to the singing of psalms to the closing benediction. For example, consider this sample Sunday morning service that Calvin followed:
Liturgy of the Word
Call to worship: Psalm 124:8
Confession of sins
Prayer for pardon
Singing of a psalm
Prayer for illumination
Scripture reading
Sermon
Liturgy of the Upper Room
Collection of offerings
Prayers of intercession and a long paraphrase of the Lord’s Prayer
Singing of the Apostles’ Creed (while elements of the Lord’s Supper are prepared)
Words of institution
Instruction and exhortation
Communion (while a psalm is sung or Scripture is read)
Prayer of thanksgiving
Benediction: Numbers 6:24–26
For Calvin, it was crucial that the Word be the controlling principle, for it is in the Word that God meets his people and his people meet him
Calvin would have been horrified by the church’s obsession today with “putting on a show,” driven first and foremost by pragmatic, consumeristic motivations. “For Calvin,” says W. Robert Godfrey,
worship was not a means to an end. Worship was not a means to evangelize or entertain or even educate. Worship was an end in itself. Worship was not to be arranged by pragmatic considerations but was rather to be determined by theological principles derived from the Scriptures. The most basic realities of the Christian life were involved. In worship God meets with his people.
The Word, for Calvin, was not merely at the center of worship; it was the very content of worship, as seen in the liturgy above, for in it Christ himself stoops down to hear the praises of his bride, only to then bring them back up to heaven in the Lord’s Supper
