Two Central "Solas" of the Reformation

Introduction

It was April of 1521 when Martin Luther was summoned to the Diet of Worms. This diet wasn’t something to be eaten, but it was a convention of civil and religious leaders to deal with the problems Martin Luther had been creating. With everything stacked against him, Luther was accused of setting the western world on fire through his preaching and writing. The Roman emperor and the Roman Catholic Church were not happy with Luther.

The German monk, turned Protestant preacher, thought he was attending in order to debate his protests against the Roman church. But when it came time for Luther to speak, he was only asked two questions. Arrayed in front of him, his books and pamphlets had been placed upon a table in the center of the room. The interlocutor asked, “Martin Luther, are these your books?” Luther affirmed that they were. Then came the second question, “Do you recant what you’ve written?” All Rome wanted was not debate, but Luther’s repentance.

In response, Luther asked for time to think it over. Though Luther’s famous speech is rightly highlighted, that didn’t happen until the next day. Reluctantly, Luther was given the time requested, and he had to wrestle with what to do next. If he did not recant, he knew he’d face the heretic’s pyre. If he did recant, he knew he’d be denying the very convictions which had led to this moment in history.

In the end, there were really two main issues as stake. The first was the material cause of the Reformation: “How can I, a sinner, be justified before a holy God?” And the second was the formal cause, a question of authority: “Who has the authority to answer decisively those ultimate questions of Christian belief and practice?”

Scripture Reading

2 Timothy 3:14–17 (ESV)

14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Main Point

The doctrine of salvation through faith alone is the heart of the Christian gospel, and the Scriptures are the ultimate authority for telling us what we must believe and how we should live.

Message

1) The Background

The divide between East and West

Since 1054 AD, Christianity was basically divided in the world between the East and the West. The East was Eastern Orthodox, and the West was Roman Catholic. [1]

History is not nearly as clean as I’m making it sound here, but this division will be sufficient for our purposes today.

During the late 1300s and early 1400s, political and ecclesiological maneuvering showed the lack of true catholicity among the Western Church.

For example, the Council of Constance met from 1414-1418 in order to settle a dispute over who would be the “pope,” an office held by 3 different men at that time.

Rome became the center of the Western Church

Throughout the rest of 1400s, Roman popes made successive efforts to rejuvenate Rome as the center of the Western Church.

By the beginning of the 16th century (the 1500s), Roman Catholicism was the Western Church… but many Europeans (both among the nobility and the commoners) were becoming dissatisfied with Rome.

Trouble was brewing

The religious hierarchy was corrupt: simony was not uncommon, and church leaders extorted, manipulated, and abused those under their authority as well or better than civil leaders.

The priesthood seemed a sham: Though all priests were supposed to be celibate, many (especially in Rome!) were promiscuous, and most priests did not speak Latin even though it was the language of the only available Bible, Church theology, and the Mass.

The way of salvation was superstitious and hard work: Whatever Rome taught in theory, the religion practiced by the average Roman Catholic was full of pagan concepts, including talismans, pilgrimages, prayers to deified humans, and regular payments for religious services.

In summary, the Scriptures were inaccessible, the gospel was obscured, and real absolution (i.e., assurance) was seemingly impossible.

This is not to mention the political and societal instabilities of the 15th and 16th centuries.

2) The Material Cause

What shall I do to be saved?

Martin Luther was initially something of a poster-boy for Roman Catholic religiosity.

According to Rome, becoming a monk or nun was like starting fresh or being reborn.

But Luther still sinned after having become a monk!

Rome offered priestly confession/absolution.

But after hours in the confessional, Luther would remember some forgotten sin!

Rome offered indulgences for pilgrimages and for honoring relics.

But after all he did, Luther wondered “Who knows if it’s true?”

So, Luther’s mentor (Johann von Staupitz) arranged to have Luther study and lecture on the Psalms, Romans, Galatians, and Hebrews in the Wittenberg theological college.

“The righteous shall live by faith!”

Luther’s own troubled conscience and his study of the Scriptures made him wrestle with one passage more than any other… Romans 1:17 - “For in it [i.e., the gospel] the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’”

Stephen Nichols wrote, “While Luther’s conversion date is debated, the nature of his conversion itself remains remarkable. For Luther, real faith meant coming to grips with the righteousness of God in Romans 1:17… As Luther reflected on the righteousness of God, he did not embrace it; rather, he states, ‘I hated the righteous God who punishes sinners… Thus I raged with a fierce and troubled conscience.” Nichols goes on, “[Luther] hated the righteousness of God because he understood it to mean that which he had to achieve. His breakthrough, the resolution to his long-endured spiritual struggles, came when, ‘by the mercy of God,’ he finally realized that the righteousness that Paul refers to and that God requires is not something that we have to earn, but is something that Christ accomplished for us.” [2]

Luther said, “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 the merciful God justifies us by faith… [then Luther said], Here I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates… I extolled that sweetest word with a love as great as the hatred with which I had before hated the word ‘righteousness of God.’”

Sola Fide: Christ is the object of saving faith, which is both an unaccompanied and passive act on the part of the sinner.

Let’s walk through Romans 3:21–26.

“21 But now the righteousness of God has been manifested [revealed or made clear/apparent] apart from the law, although the Law and the Prophets bear witness to it— 22a [What kind of righteousness?] the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.”

“22b For there is no distinction: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God...”

“24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus [But how did Christ earn or provide “redemption”?], 25a whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood [Ah! “propitiation”!], to be received by faith.”

“25b This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins. 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.”

Rome taught and teaches that one is justified through faith AND obedience in/to the seven sacraments.

“Justification is conferred in Baptism” (pg. 536, section 1992; emphasis added). [3]

“The grace of the Holy Spirit has the power to justify us, that is, to cleanse us from our sins and to communicate to us ‘the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ’ and through Baptism” (pg. 535. section 1987; emphasis added).

“There are seven [sacraments]: Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist, Penance, the Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony… [and] the sacraments form an organic whole” (pg. 341).

Indeed, “The [Roman Catholic] Church affirms that for believers [all seven] sacraments of the New Covenant are necessary for salvation… [since] they are efficacious… communicating the grace that each sacrament signifies” (pg. 319, sections 1127 and 1129; see also “ex opere operato” in section 1128).

In short, the official teaching of the Roman Catholic Church is that justification is by faith and obedience in/to the sacramental system.

Jesus does His part in justification by living and dying and rising again, and the sinner does his/her part by joining himself/herself to Christ by way of the sacraments.

Two things to remember:

This does not mean that all Roman Catholics are bad.

This does mean that Rome’s official teaching is at odds with what we (FBC Diana) believe about the heart of the gospel… which means we must ask the inevitable question: “Who says?” or “By what authority?”

3) The Formal Cause

Rome did and does point to her own authority.

“Sacred Scripture is the speech of God as it is put down in writing under the breath of the Holy Spirit. And [Holy] Tradition transmits in its entirety the Word of God which has been entrusted to the apostles by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit” (pg. 31 of the Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church, sections 80-81).

“As a result the [Roman] Church, to whom the transmission and interpretation of Revelation is entrusted, ‘does not drive her certainty about all revealed truths from the holy Scriptures alone’” (pg. 31 of CCC, section 82).

Instead, says Rome, “Both Scripture and Tradition must be excepted and honored with equal sentiments of devotion and reference’” (pg. 31 of CCC, section 82; see also Dei Verbum, listed in the bibliography).

What all this means is that the Roman Church (particularly her pope and church councils) is the only institution in the world which has been entrusted with both the transmission and the interpretation of Scripture.

Rome says what Scripture is and what it means.

Rome may say that Scripture and Tradition have “equal” honor, but Rome holds the keys to both, and thereby places herself as the ultimate authority over all.

The reformers pointed to Scripture.

John Calvin wrote, “[The Apostle Paul] testifies that the church is ‘built upon the foundation of the prophets and apostles’ [Eph. 2:20]. If the teaching of the prophets and apostles is the foundation, this must have had authority before the church began to exist… if the Christian church was from the beginning founded upon the writings of the prophets and the preaching of the apostles, wherever this doctrine is found, the acceptance of it – without which the church itself would never have existed – must certainly have preceded the church. It is utterly vain, then, to pretend that the power of judging Scripture so lies with the church that it certainly depends upon churchly ascent… Indeed, Scripture exhibits… clear evidence of its own truth…” (pg. 105, Mathison).

And, when Luther was commanded to recant (disavow or deny) all that he had written against Rome’s teaching, he famously responded, “Since then Your Majesty and your lordships desire a simple reply, I will answer without horns and without teeth. Unless I am [convinced] by Scripture and plain reason – [for] I do not except the authority of popes and councils, [since] they have contradicted each other – my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. [Here I stand]. God help me. Amen” (pg. 95, Mathison).

Sola Scriptura is the inevitable result of knowing what Scripture is.

Let’s turn now to that passage we read together a bit ago.

2 Timothy 3:14–17 says, “14 as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

Because Scripture is the very word of God, it is the ultimate authority on every subject to which it speaks.

Because Scripture is the very word of God, it is to be believed and practiced with diligent humility and aggressive devotion.

Because Scripture is the very word of God, it (above all else) is profitable… it teaches eternal truths, it reproves every sinner, it corrects every error, and it trains the obedient hearer in real righteousness.

Because Scripture is the very word of God, it is perfect, sure, right, and pure. It is clean and true; and it (above all else) is able to make one wise, enlightened, and joyful (Ps. 19:7-11).

Sola Scriptura is not...

Sola Scriptura is not Solo Scriptura.

Christians of every generation stand on the shoulders of those who’ve gone before.

Creeds and Councils, in so far as they adhere to and explain Scripture, can and do provide us with helpful guardrails.

Sola Scriptura is not “every interpretation is equally valid.”

If you’re the first or only person you know to hold a particular interpretation of any passage of Scripture, you’re almost definitely wrong.

4) The Reformation Continues

Semper Reformanda

Because we are sinful (both individually and collectively) we must constantly bring our beliefs and practices back to the Scriptures.

Some of us don’t actually know what the Bible says on many subjects.

We’ve seen or heard something, and that sticks in our minds, but we simply are not able to give chapter and verse for what we believe/do.

All of us must be humbly committed to constant correction.

We need to be corrected by the Bible.

And we need to correct others by the Bible.

Evangelism - Helping sinners have a correct understanding of our only hope for salvation.

Discipleship - Helping Christians follow Jesus... by teaching them what Jesus says about what to believe and how to live.

Doctrine divides, but shared doctrine is the only basis for real unity.

“Doctrine divides”

I don’t remember hearing or reading anyone that came right out and said it, but many church leaders and Christians can sometimes act like doctrine should be avoided.

I understand the impulse to avoid doctrine, because it does actually divide… Christians from non-Christians, Baptists from Presbyterians, and sometimes even Baptists from Baptists.

But our shared doctrine is the only basis for real unity.

Our actions and schedules and relationships will only continue without doctrine as long as there is never a disagreement or conflict.

However, our shared doctrine keeps us from splitting or fighting over those convictions and practices that don’t necessitate unanimity.

Being a congregational church, every member is collectively responsible to ensure that FBC Diana remains faithful as long as she exists.

There may come a day when there aren’t enough Christians in Diana to maintain a church building, but may there never come a day when the church buildings in Diana become more important than the doctrines believed by those who gather within them.

The gospel of grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone is our only gospel.

By all accounts, it seems clear that Martin Luther never intended to start a revolution in Germany… He never intended to create a denomination, and he didn’t set out to split the Roman Catholic Church.

But Martin Luther wasn’t the only one who came to realize that the gospel Rome preached was a different gospel altogether from the one they read about in the Bible.

Ultimately, we must cling to these Reformation doctrines today (Sola Fide and Sola Scriptura), not because “we’re Baptists!” or because we prefer a low church liturgy over Rome’s high liturgy, but because the Bible (above all else) teaches us what God has done in Christ to save wretched sinners like us… and because this gospel of God’s grace in Christ, accessible to us by faith alone, is the only gospel that truly saves.

Endnotes

[1] I am drawing a good bit of my content here from my re-reading of Michael Reeves’ “The Unquenchable Flame.” This short book is the best introduction and summary I’ve ever read on the Protestant Reformation.

[2] Pages 37-38 of Nichols’ book, listed in the bibliography.

[3] These are all citations from the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Bibliography

Mathison, Keith. The Shape of Sola Scriptura. Moscow, ID: Canon Press, 2001.

Montini, Giovanni Battista. “Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation: Dei Verbum.” The Vatican, November 18, 1965. https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html.

Nichols, Stephen. Martin Luther: A Guided Tour of His Life and Thought. P&R Publishing Company, 2002.

Ratzinger, Joseph, ed. Catechism of the Catholic Church. New York: Crown Publishing Group, 1995.

Reeves, Michael. The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation. B&H Publishing, 2010.