¤[Theme music]
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>>John Bradshaw:
This is It Is Written.
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I'm John Bradshaw.
Thanks for joining me.
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What makes a reformer?
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Consider with me Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr.
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¤[Music]
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The son of a minister,
raised in Atlanta, Georgia,
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not raised in privilege,
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but raised in a society that was
designed to disadvantage him.
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Yet he went on to
become a revolutionary,
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an agent of change.
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He boldly
confronted a powerful system.
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You might ask, "Why?"
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What drives a man to do that?
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But Martin Luther
King Jr. was driven to act,
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to write, to speak, to organize,
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to protest by a
system that was broken,
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by a society that
gloried in its brokenness
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and was determined to
preserve its dysfunction.
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"I still have a dream," he said,
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one late summer's day in 1963
on the mall in Washington, D.C.
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It is a dream deeply
rooted in the American dream.
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"I have a dream that one
day this nation will rise up
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and live out the
true meaning of its creed:
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'We hold these
truths to be self-evident,
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that all men
are created equal.'"
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By the time Dr. King was
murdered outside room 306
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of the Lorraine Motel in 1968,
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there would be no
stopping the progress
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that he and so many
others along with him had made
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in advancing the
American civil rights movement.
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Looking back on those days,
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it's difficult to imagine
that a country would choose
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to live with the
system it had created.
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In "the land of the free,"
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millions of
people were not free.
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Self-determination was
the lot of some--not all.
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Intolerance was normal.
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The struggle to right
the wrongs of civil injustice
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in the United
States was long and hard.
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It cannot be
suggested the revolution,
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if you'll let me call it that,
should not have been waged.
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So what is it that
creates a revolutionary?
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You might say it's the times.
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An individual sees a
need that must be met,
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hears a call he or
she cannot ignore--
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people like Gandhi,
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Susan B. Anthony,
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Harriet Tubman,
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William Wilberforce.
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I suspect many
reformers, social or religious,
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will tell you they
ultimately didn't choose
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the role they assumed.
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The role chose them.
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Martin Luther King Jr. was not
named Martin when he was born.
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He was named
Michael, after his father.
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But when little Michael
was just five years old,
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Michael Sr. made
a trip to Germany
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to attend a church
congress in Berlin.
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And while he was there, he was
so deeply impressed by the life
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and ministry of a
certain German gospel minister
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that he made the
decision to change his name,
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and that of his son,
from Michael to Martin.
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Not only did Martin Luther
impress Pastor Michael King,
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Martin Luther changed the world.
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On October the
31st in the year 1517,
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Martin Luther defied the
system that was essentially
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governing western civilization.
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His contribution to
history is so immense
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that Time magazine
ranked him fourth on the list
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of the greatest
men of the millennium.
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It all happened here,
in Wittenberg, Germany,
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in the part of Germany
that for more than 40 years
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was known as East Germany.
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In the 1500s, Wittenberg was
part of the kingdom of Saxony,
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and while the town,
now officially known
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as Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is
a popular tourist destination,
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in Luther's day
it was anything but.
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Wittenberg is a
pleasant town today
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with a population
that hovers around 50,000.
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It's 60 miles
southeast of Berlin
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and just a two-hour drive
to the border with Poland.
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It sits on the Elbe River, which
starts in the Czech Republic
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and flows through
Germany right past Hamburg,
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Germany's second-largest
city, and to the North Sea.
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During Communism,
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Wittenberg's sites of religious
significance were neglected.
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In preparation for the 500th
anniversary of the starting
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of the
Reformation-- October 31, 1517--
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the town has been revitalized,
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the Castle Church
has been renovated,
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and there's a lot of pride
in Wittenberg's favorite son.
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Wittenberg in Luther's day had
a population of around 3,000,
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and it was
hardly the sort of place
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that you would have thought
would launch a revolution.
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Luther called it "miserable."
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His right-hand man in
reform, Philipp Melanchthon,
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referred to Wittenberg
as "a hamlet comprised,
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not of regular houses,
but only of little ones,
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bad huts, built of clay and
covered with hay and straw."
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Duke George of Saxony
called Wittenberg "a hole."
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And one theologian wrote
to a friend about the "poor,
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miserable, filthy,
little town of Wittenberg."
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Now that theologian
couldn't stand Martin Luther.
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That might have
colored his view,
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but you get the
idea nevertheless:
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This place was, was
hardly the garden of Eden.
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Martin Luther was
born here in Eisleben,
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about 60 miles from Wittenberg,
on November the 10th, 1483.
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This whole area was part of
what was known for centuries
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as the Holy Roman Empire.
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He grew up in poverty.
His parents were peasants.
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His father worked as a miner.
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Hardship shaped his upbringing.
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Luther's father, Hans, wanted
Martin to become a lawyer,
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and he was appalled
when Martin instead chose
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to enter a cloister to train
to become an Augustinian monk.
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However, it was in that
cloister that Martin Luther
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found a Bible chained
to the monastery wall.
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It was the first time
he'd ever seen a whole Bible.
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You can imagine how he
felt as he read the gospels
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and the epistles of Paul.
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He was moved.
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At the same time,
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he was overcome by a
sense of his own sinfulness.
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He wanted to
find peace with God,
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and so he did what they
told him to do at the monastery.
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He fasted; he prayed for hours;
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he even
resorted to flagellation.
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Later he would say,
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"If ever a monk could obtain
heaven by his monkish works,
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then I should certainly
have been entitled to it."
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¤[Music]
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But Luther had a
mentor during his training,
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a man named Johann von Staupitz.
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Luther would later say,
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"If it had not
been for Dr. Staupitz,
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I should surely
have sunk in hell."
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Staupitz encouraged
Luther by telling him this:
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"Instead of torturing yourself
on account of your sins,
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throw yourself into
the Redeemer's arms.
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Trust in Him,
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in the
righteousness of His life,
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in the atonement of His death.
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Listen to the Son of God.
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He became man to give you
the assurance of divine favor.
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Love Him who first loved you."
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Between 1501 and 1505,
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Luther studied at
the University of Erfurt,
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a two-day walk from
his home here in Eisleben.
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He earned a master's degree;
then he began studying law,
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but he dropped out of law
school to enter the cloister.
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But the fastings
and the endless prayers
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and all that came with
it left Luther desperate.
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So in 1508 he accepted
a call to teach theology
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at the University of Wittenberg.
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The university had been
founded only a few years before
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by Frederick III,
the elector of Saxony.
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Frederick was a
prince in the state of Saxony
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and was known as an elector
because he was one of the elite
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who elected the
king of the Romans.
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He was a powerful man.
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Not only was Luther
born here in Eisleben,
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but he died here as well.
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In fact, he died right
here in this building behind me
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in the year 1540.
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It was from this
humble little spot,
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virtually in the
middle of the German nowhere,
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that Luther was thrust
into the global spotlight.
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Yet you come to towns
like this, busy towns.
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This is Lutherstadt
Eisleben, it's called.
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Or Lutherstadt Wittenberg--
that's the city's official name.
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You come to places like this--
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there are throngs of
tourists, people visiting,
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people coming and going,
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and you realize that the
vast majority of those people
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haven't got a clue why
Martin Luther did what he did.
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The essence of
Luther's protest has been lost.
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So why did he do it?
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Why did he nail
his Ninety-Five Theses
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to the door of the
biggest church in town?
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Why did he pick a fight
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with the most
powerful people on the planet--
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people he knew who
didn't lose fights like those?
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I'll tell you in just a moment.
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¤[Music]
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>>John: I'm John
Bradshaw from It Is Written,
00:09:37.57\00:09:39.74
inviting you to
join me for "500,"
00:09:39.77\00:09:43.41
nine programs
produced by It Is Written,
00:09:43.45\00:09:45.68
taking you deep
into the Reformation.
00:09:45.71\00:09:48.85
This is the 500th anniversary
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of the beginning
of the Reformation,
00:09:51.39\00:09:53.02
when Martin Luther
nailed his Ninety-Five Theses
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to the door of Castle
Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
00:09:55.56\00:09:58.39
We'll take you to Wittenberg,
00:09:58.43\00:09:59.83
and to Belgium, to
England, to Ireland,
00:09:59.86\00:10:02.53
to Rome, to the Vatican City,
00:10:02.56\00:10:05.10
and introduce you to the people
who created the Reformation,
00:10:05.13\00:10:08.07
who pushed the
Reformation forward.
00:10:08.10\00:10:10.07
We'll take you to
sites all throughout Europe
00:10:10.11\00:10:12.01
where the Reformers
lived and, in some cases, died.
00:10:12.04\00:10:14.84
We'll bring you
back to the United States
00:10:14.88\00:10:16.51
and take you to a
little farm in upstate New York
00:10:16.54\00:10:19.55
and show you how God
spread the Reformation here.
00:10:19.58\00:10:22.48
Don't miss "500."
00:10:22.52\00:10:24.55
You can own the
"500" series on DVD.
00:10:24.59\00:10:27.62
Call us on 888-664-5573
00:10:27.66\00:10:32.19
or visit us online
at itiswritten.shop.
00:10:32.23\00:10:36.83
¤[Music]
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>>John Bradshaw: Thanks for
joining me on It Is Written.
00:10:42.40\00:10:45.07
It was on
October the 31st, 1517,
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that Martin Luther nailed
his famous Ninety-Five Theses
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to the door of
the Castle Church,
00:10:52.61\00:10:54.48
and he launched the movement
that became known to history
00:10:54.52\00:10:57.09
as the Protestant Reformation.
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But when Martin Luther did that,
00:10:59.89\00:11:01.56
he wasn't a radical, and
he wasn't a revolutionary.
00:11:01.59\00:11:04.83
He wasn't even a reformer.
00:11:04.86\00:11:07.20
He was a loyal son of
the Roman Catholic Church.
00:11:07.23\00:11:11.13
But when he was
around 27 years old,
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he traveled to the city of Rome.
00:11:13.37\00:11:16.24
What he found when he got
there shook him to his core.
00:11:16.27\00:11:20.71
As a young monk,
00:11:20.74\00:11:22.24
Luther had been living a
strict lifestyle of self-denial,
00:11:22.28\00:11:25.98
but when he arrived in Rome,
00:11:26.01\00:11:27.98
he found priests
and monks and bishops
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living in luxury and debauchery.
00:11:30.32\00:11:33.59
He found so much spiritual
corruption that he stated:
00:11:33.62\00:11:36.26
"If there is a hell,
Rome is built over it!"
00:11:36.29\00:11:41.30
One event in particular
profoundly affected him.
00:11:41.33\00:11:44.43
Pope Julius II had
recently made a decree
00:11:44.47\00:11:47.84
that a special
indulgence was available
00:11:47.87\00:11:50.07
to those who would
walk on their knees
00:11:50.11\00:11:51.91
up what had become
known as Pilate's Staircase.
00:11:51.94\00:11:56.28
The staircase was believed
to have been the very staircase
00:11:56.31\00:11:59.55
Jesus walked on during His
trial before Pontius Pilate,
00:11:59.58\00:12:03.55
and the church claimed it had
been miraculously transported
00:12:03.59\00:12:06.55
from Jerusalem to Rome.
00:12:06.59\00:12:08.66
Luther was determined
to acquire this indulgence,
00:12:08.69\00:12:12.06
and so one day he devoutly
00:12:12.09\00:12:13.73
climbed these
stairs on his knees.
00:12:13.76\00:12:16.60
But suddenly a voice
seemed to declare in his ears
00:12:16.63\00:12:19.70
like thunder the
words of the apostle Paul,
00:12:19.73\00:12:22.50
quoting the prophet
Habakkuk in the book of Romans:
00:12:22.54\00:12:25.34
"The just shall live
by faith." Romans 1:17.
00:12:25.37\00:12:31.41
Luther sprang to his feet
and left the place in shame.
00:12:31.45\00:12:35.78
He'd been
practicing salvation by works:
00:12:35.82\00:12:38.95
the idea that a person's
good deeds merit favor with God,
00:12:38.99\00:12:43.49
as opposed to
simply being a response
00:12:43.53\00:12:45.96
to the goodness
and the love of God.
00:12:45.99\00:12:48.00
But he heard God
say to his heart,
00:12:48.03\00:12:50.17
"The just shall live by faith."
00:12:50.20\00:12:53.30
And Martin Luther
was a changed man.
00:12:53.34\00:12:55.67
¤[Music]
00:12:55.70\00:12:59.47
Not long after he
began teaching in Wittenberg,
00:12:59.51\00:13:02.34
the church embarked
on a grand new project,
00:13:02.38\00:13:06.21
the building of the
largest church in the world:
00:13:06.25\00:13:09.25
St. Peter's Basilica, in
what is now Vatican City.
00:13:09.28\00:13:14.42
To help pay for the project,
00:13:14.46\00:13:15.79
the church offered
its people the chance
00:13:15.82\00:13:17.66
to purchase
indulgences for their sins.
00:13:17.69\00:13:20.93
An indulgence is a way to
reduce the amount of punishment
00:13:20.96\00:13:23.90
you have to undergo for
the sins you've committed.
00:13:23.93\00:13:26.03
So while it's not exactly
the same as buying salvation,
00:13:26.07\00:13:29.97
you'd be buying pardon
for sin, which, of course,
00:13:30.01\00:13:33.58
flies in the face
of the entire Bible.
00:13:33.61\00:13:36.11
Ephesians 2, verse 8
tells us we are saved
00:13:36.14\00:13:38.55
"by grace...through faith,"
which is a "gift of God."
00:13:38.58\00:13:42.48
First John 1, verse 9 says that
00:13:42.52\00:13:45.69
"If we confess our sins,
00:13:45.72\00:13:47.76
He is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins."
00:13:47.79\00:13:52.56
Luther was appalled.
00:13:52.59\00:13:55.73
Commissioned by the
archbishop of Mainz,
00:13:55.76\00:13:58.83
a man named Johannes Tetzel
began traveling around Germany
00:13:58.87\00:14:03.04
selling these indulgences.
00:14:03.07\00:14:05.37
Now, that might have got past
Martin Luther once upon a time,
00:14:05.41\00:14:08.71
but not now.
00:14:08.74\00:14:09.84
Not now that he
understood something
00:14:09.88\00:14:11.78
about the grace of God.
00:14:11.81\00:14:14.22
He found the
selling of indulgences
00:14:14.25\00:14:15.68
to be completely sacrilegious.
00:14:15.72\00:14:17.95
How, he wondered, could
anybody purchase salvation
00:14:17.99\00:14:21.36
or purchase
lesser punishment for sin
00:14:21.39\00:14:24.29
or purchase lesser
time spent in purgatory,
00:14:24.33\00:14:27.86
even if there was a purgatory?
00:14:27.86\00:14:30.30
In the Bible, when Simon Magus
00:14:30.33\00:14:32.50
tried to purchase from Peter
the power to work miracles,
00:14:32.53\00:14:36.40
Peter replied,
00:14:36.44\00:14:37.94
"Your money perish with you,
00:14:37.97\00:14:39.51
because you thought
that the gift of God
00:14:39.54\00:14:41.91
could be purchased with money!"
00:14:41.94\00:14:43.95
That's Acts 8, verse 20.
00:14:43.98\00:14:46.38
Luther was strong in his
opposition to the practice.
00:14:46.41\00:14:49.92
He contacted his bishop
and voiced his concerns,
00:14:49.95\00:14:52.79
and then he took
those concerns public
00:14:52.82\00:14:56.09
when he nailed them to
the door of the Castle Church.
00:14:56.12\00:14:59.23
Those concerns became known
as Luther's Ninety-Five Theses,
00:14:59.26\00:15:03.37
and they launched the
Protestant Reformation.
00:15:03.40\00:15:06.10
The church,
western civilization,
00:15:06.13\00:15:09.67
the world would
never be the same again.
00:15:09.70\00:15:13.88
So what are the
Ninety-Five Theses?
00:15:13.91\00:15:17.11
The first one
lays the foundation
00:15:17.15\00:15:19.25
not only for those that follow,
00:15:19.28\00:15:22.02
but also for the most basic
message of the Reformation,
00:15:22.05\00:15:25.69
as far as human
salvation is concerned.
00:15:25.72\00:15:28.56
"When our Lord and Master
Jesus Christ said, 'Repent,'
00:15:28.59\00:15:32.33
He willed the
entire life of believers
00:15:32.36\00:15:35.63
to be one of repentance."
00:15:35.66\00:15:36.93
The second follows right on:
00:15:36.97\00:15:39.03
"This word cannot be
understood as referring
00:15:39.07\00:15:42.00
to the sacrament of penance,
00:15:42.04\00:15:43.94
that is,
confession and satisfaction,
00:15:43.97\00:15:46.84
as administered by the clergy."
00:15:46.88\00:15:49.08
Later he writes in number 20,
00:15:49.11\00:15:51.81
"Therefore the pope,
when he uses the words
00:15:51.85\00:15:55.08
'plenary
remission of all penalties,'
00:15:55.12\00:15:58.49
does not actually
mean 'all penalties,'
00:15:58.52\00:16:01.66
but only those
imposed by himself."
00:16:01.69\00:16:05.39
Number 21:
00:16:05.43\00:16:06.63
"Thus those indulgence
preachers are in error
00:16:06.66\00:16:10.37
who say that a man is
absolved from every penalty
00:16:10.40\00:16:14.07
and saved by papal indulgences,
00:16:14.10\00:16:16.50
sacraments of the church,
00:16:16.54\00:16:18.54
or the purchase of indulgences."
00:16:18.57\00:16:21.04
Number 27:
00:16:21.08\00:16:22.34
"They preach only
human doctrines who say that
00:16:22.38\00:16:26.51
as soon as the money
clinks into the money chest,
00:16:26.55\00:16:29.12
the soul flies
out of purgatory."
00:16:29.15\00:16:31.95
Number 86:
00:16:31.99\00:16:33.49
"Why does not the pope,
00:16:33.52\00:16:35.52
whose wealth today is greater
00:16:35.56\00:16:38.16
than the wealth of
the richest Crassus,
00:16:38.19\00:16:41.26
build this one basilica of
St. Peter with his own money
00:16:41.30\00:16:45.90
rather than with the
money of poor believers?"
00:16:45.93\00:16:49.54
You can understand why
Luther became so unpopular
00:16:50.74\00:16:54.68
with the leaders of the church.
00:16:54.71\00:16:57.18
His teachings
spread throughout Germany,
00:16:57.21\00:16:59.21
and soon they made it to Rome.
00:16:59.25\00:17:02.18
The pope demanded
that Luther travel to Rome
00:17:02.22\00:17:05.15
and stand trial
for his teachings.
00:17:05.19\00:17:07.22
German leaders refused.
00:17:07.26\00:17:09.06
They said that Luther's
trial must be heard in Germany,
00:17:09.09\00:17:11.86
and so that's what took place.
00:17:11.89\00:17:13.93
During that trial,
00:17:13.96\00:17:15.26
Luther was told that he
had to retract his teachings
00:17:15.30\00:17:17.80
and submit to the
authority of the church,
00:17:17.83\00:17:20.17
or he'd be sent to
Rome for punishment.
00:17:20.20\00:17:22.64
But he managed to
get away from Augsburg,
00:17:22.67\00:17:24.61
where his case was heard,
00:17:24.64\00:17:26.07
by slipping through a
gate in the wall of the city,
00:17:26.11\00:17:29.44
and he made it back to
Wittenberg and to safety.
00:17:29.48\00:17:31.98
Frederick, the elector
of Saxony, protected Luther.
00:17:32.01\00:17:35.55
He refused to hand him
over to the authorities of Rome,
00:17:35.58\00:17:38.52
saving Luther
from certain death.
00:17:38.55\00:17:41.36
¤[Music]
00:17:41.39\00:17:46.93
>>Announcer: "Every Word"
is a one-minute Bible-based
00:17:47.93\00:17:50.60
daily devotional presented
by Pastor John Bradshaw
00:17:50.63\00:17:53.54
and designed especially
for busy people like you.
00:17:53.57\00:17:56.20
Look for "Every
Word" on selected networks
00:17:56.24\00:17:59.37
or watch it online
everyday on our website:
00:17:59.41\00:18:01.74
itiswritten.com.
00:18:01.78\00:18:04.58
[Fire crackling
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00:18:05.08\00:18:07.05
[Coyote barking]
00:18:07.08\00:18:09.35
¤[Music]
00:18:09.38\00:18:14.92
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00:18:14.96\00:18:17.33
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00:18:17.36\00:18:19.89
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buzzing, feet crunching grass]
00:18:19.93\00:18:22.86
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00:18:22.90\00:18:24.83
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00:18:24.87\00:18:29.37
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00:18:29.40\00:18:31.24
¤[Music]
00:18:31.27\00:18:38.61
[Dramatic sounds,
heart thumping, creaking]
00:18:38.65\00:18:48.82
¤[Dramatic music]
00:18:48.86\00:18:50.73
[Crowd cheering]
00:18:50.76\00:18:57.90
¤[Soft music]
00:18:59.83\00:19:08.91
>>John Bradshaw:
Luther was excommunicated
00:19:12.91\00:19:14.95
from the Roman church.
00:19:14.98\00:19:17.15
It's said that this
tree here in Wittenberg
00:19:17.19\00:19:20.42
marks the spot where he
publicly burned the papal edict
00:19:20.46\00:19:24.79
announcing his excommunication.
00:19:24.83\00:19:27.56
Luther's writings began
to spread throughout Europe
00:19:27.93\00:19:31.30
when he was summoned
to appear before a council
00:19:31.33\00:19:33.80
in the city of Worms.
00:19:33.84\00:19:35.84
Huge crowd greeted
him when he arrived there.
00:19:35.87\00:19:38.67
If he was found
to be a heretic--
00:19:38.71\00:19:41.28
that was almost a given--
00:19:41.31\00:19:43.01
he'd be sentenced to death,
00:19:43.04\00:19:44.55
and the cause of the Reformation
might just die along with him.
00:19:44.58\00:19:48.22
But if by some miracle he
escaped the sentence of death,
00:19:48.25\00:19:51.79
then the cause of
the Bible would advance.
00:19:51.82\00:19:55.19
When he was asked to recant,
00:19:55.22\00:19:57.03
to retract his views
and submit to the authority
00:19:57.06\00:20:00.33
of the church of Rome,
00:20:00.36\00:20:02.03
Luther replied in words
that would live forever:
00:20:02.06\00:20:05.07
"I cannot submit my faith either
to the pope or to the councils,
00:20:05.10\00:20:09.80
because it is clear as the day
that they have frequently erred
00:20:09.84\00:20:13.14
and contradicted each other.
00:20:13.17\00:20:15.21
Unless therefore I am convinced
by the testimony of Scripture,
00:20:15.24\00:20:19.31
or by the clearest reasoning,
00:20:19.35\00:20:21.92
unless I am persuaded by means
of the passages I have quoted,
00:20:21.95\00:20:25.45
and unless they
thus render my conscience
00:20:25.49\00:20:28.16
bound by the Word of God,
00:20:28.19\00:20:30.19
I cannot and I will not retract,
00:20:30.23\00:20:33.60
for it is unsafe for a Christian
to speak against his conscience.
00:20:33.63\00:20:37.57
Here I stand; I can do no
other; may God help me. Amen."
00:20:37.60\00:20:44.74
The council refused to
deliver Luther up to the church,
00:20:44.77\00:20:47.91
but on his way
back here to Wittenberg,
00:20:47.94\00:20:50.85
Luther was captured.
00:20:50.88\00:20:52.45
He was captured by the man
who protected him, Frederick,
00:20:52.48\00:20:55.75
because Frederick
knew it was not safe
00:20:55.78\00:20:57.75
to leave Luther in circulation.
00:20:57.79\00:21:00.06
So he took him to the Wartburg
Castle to keep him safe.
00:21:00.09\00:21:03.26
And while he was there,
00:21:03.29\00:21:05.26
Luther translated the
New Testament into German.
00:21:05.29\00:21:08.73
Meanwhile, back
here in Wittenberg,
00:21:08.76\00:21:10.97
reform within
the church continued.
00:21:11.00\00:21:13.54
Priests began to marry;
00:21:13.57\00:21:14.97
the worship
service was altered--
00:21:15.00\00:21:17.21
things that had been strictly
"verboten" by the church.
00:21:17.24\00:21:20.61
Luther didn't do
it all on his own.
00:21:21.61\00:21:24.38
His right-hand man
was Philipp Melanchthon,
00:21:24.41\00:21:26.85
a religion professor
who taught with Luther.
00:21:26.88\00:21:29.95
Apart from
Luther and John Calvin,
00:21:29.98\00:21:32.15
it's likely no figure
stands higher in the development
00:21:32.19\00:21:35.19
and history of the
Protestant Reformation.
00:21:35.22\00:21:37.79
Melanchthon is kind
of the forgotten one,
00:21:37.83\00:21:40.03
but he was absolutely
essential to the work of reform.
00:21:40.06\00:21:42.76
The establishment
of the Lutheran Church
00:21:42.80\00:21:45.13
and the crafting
of its public witness
00:21:45.17\00:21:47.20
would largely be
accomplished through his work.
00:21:47.24\00:21:51.11
Luther married Katharina
von Bora, a former nun,
00:21:51.14\00:21:54.84
a woman that he had
helped escape from a convent.
00:21:54.88\00:21:58.41
With the Bible being the
ultimate guide in his life,
00:21:58.45\00:22:00.62
he came to view
enforced or mandated celibacy
00:22:00.65\00:22:03.79
as being completely unbiblical.
00:22:03.82\00:22:05.92
And he realized that his
church taught that Peter,
00:22:05.95\00:22:09.22
said to be the first
pope, had himself been married.
00:22:09.26\00:22:12.93
Now, unfortunately, not
all of Martin Luther's legacy
00:22:13.76\00:22:17.63
has been
positive for Christianity.
00:22:17.67\00:22:20.04
There are many of
Luther's admirers today
00:22:20.07\00:22:22.30
who are embarrassed by
the very anti-Semitic views
00:22:22.34\00:22:27.11
that he often espoused.
00:22:27.14\00:22:29.54
How in the world do you
reconcile this idea of Luther
00:22:29.58\00:22:32.11
on the one hand proclaiming
the righteousness of Christ
00:22:32.15\00:22:35.55
and on the other
hand being a hatemonger?
00:22:35.58\00:22:38.35
It has been said by
commentators and critics
00:22:38.39\00:22:41.29
that Luther fueled the
fires of anti-Semitism,
00:22:41.32\00:22:44.43
which Adolf Hitler
picked up on centuries later.
00:22:44.46\00:22:48.60
Well, you probably
don't reconcile it,
00:22:48.63\00:22:50.17
but there are a
couple of things that
00:22:50.20\00:22:51.53
I think a person
really ought to keep in mind.
00:22:51.57\00:22:53.90
Luther came to Christianity
out of abject darkness.
00:22:53.94\00:22:58.11
He came to the Bible from
no biblical frame of reference,
00:22:58.14\00:23:02.11
so to expect complete spiritual
maturity from Martin Luther
00:23:02.14\00:23:05.18
is maybe a little bit too much.
00:23:05.21\00:23:07.08
Luther was wrong in
his anti-Semitic views.
00:23:07.12\00:23:11.02
Nevertheless, there
have been a lot of people
00:23:11.05\00:23:12.75
down through the
years who've been wrong,
00:23:12.79\00:23:14.36
particularly
about matters of faith.
00:23:14.39\00:23:15.89
David, wrong about a lot.
00:23:15.92\00:23:17.69
Solomon, his lifestyle,
00:23:17.73\00:23:19.56
his practices were,
in many cases, wrong.
00:23:19.59\00:23:22.13
James and John wanted to
call fire down from heaven
00:23:22.16\00:23:25.67
and incinerate
people simply because
00:23:25.70\00:23:28.14
they weren't on the same team.
00:23:28.17\00:23:29.67
That was wrong.
00:23:29.70\00:23:30.64
There were church
men in the United States
00:23:30.67\00:23:32.61
who defended
slavery and used the Bible
00:23:32.64\00:23:36.04
to justify their
aberrant positions.
00:23:36.08\00:23:39.25
Wrong.
00:23:39.28\00:23:40.95
So on the one hand,
Luther was a revolutionary;
00:23:40.98\00:23:43.55
Luther was a radical;
Luther was a reformer.
00:23:43.59\00:23:45.79
He saw so much in the
church and in the world
00:23:45.82\00:23:48.69
that he called to people's
attention and pointed out
00:23:48.72\00:23:51.83
as being outside of God's will.
00:23:51.86\00:23:53.53
On this one, though, for
the most part, he missed it.
00:23:53.56\00:23:56.77
You wonder why that can happen.
00:23:56.80\00:23:58.77
Bit of a mystery, really.
00:23:58.80\00:24:00.80
Luther's final sermon would be
delivered here in his hometown
00:24:02.00\00:24:06.01
of Eisleben on
February 15, 1546,
00:24:06.04\00:24:10.51
three days before his death.
00:24:10.55\00:24:12.75
He didn't set out to form a new
church, to be a troublemaker.
00:24:12.78\00:24:16.89
He simply wanted the
church to look to the Bible
00:24:16.92\00:24:20.49
and embrace the
teachings of Jesus
00:24:20.52\00:24:23.46
and allow people to
read the Bible for themselves
00:24:23.49\00:24:26.63
and be guided
by the Holy Spirit.
00:24:26.66\00:24:29.00
In fact, Luther coined
the phrase "sola scriptura,"
00:24:29.03\00:24:33.60
the Bible alone.
00:24:33.64\00:24:35.50
Luther wasn't
guided by tradition
00:24:35.54\00:24:38.37
and would be
faithful to God's Word,
00:24:38.41\00:24:41.01
and this formed the basis of
the most profoundly impactful
00:24:41.04\00:24:44.35
religious movement
in almost 2,000 years.
00:24:44.38\00:24:49.32
The supremacy of the Bible and
the teaching of justification
00:24:49.35\00:24:52.49
by grace alone, through
faith alone, in Christ alone,
00:24:52.52\00:24:56.86
were Luther's passions,
00:24:56.89\00:24:58.69
and they lit a
fire for the gospel
00:24:58.73\00:25:00.96
that illuminated the
world and has led millions
00:25:00.96\00:25:03.93
and millions of people
to faith in Jesus Christ.
00:25:03.97\00:25:07.70
Now, do you think Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr. would say
00:25:07.74\00:25:10.11
that the work he started
has really been completed,
00:25:10.14\00:25:13.51
or do you think
that he might think
00:25:13.54\00:25:15.28
there's a little more
work that needs to be done?
00:25:15.31\00:25:18.25
The same is likely
true of Martin Luther.
00:25:18.28\00:25:21.48
There's still work
that needs to be done.
00:25:21.52\00:25:24.02
There are still
people the world over
00:25:24.05\00:25:26.76
who must hear the
great truths of the Bible
00:25:26.79\00:25:28.89
and be led to a personal
relationship with Jesus Christ.
00:25:28.92\00:25:33.16
So how's it with you, friend?
00:25:33.19\00:25:34.36
How's that
working out in your life?
00:25:34.40\00:25:37.40
How is it with you?
00:25:37.43\00:25:38.93
¤[Music]
00:25:38.97\00:25:44.44
>>John: The prophesies
of the book of Revelation
00:25:45.47\00:25:47.14
announce startlingly
that Babylon is fallen.
00:25:47.18\00:25:51.65
What does that mean?
00:25:51.68\00:25:52.58
How do we
understand the fall of Babylon?
00:25:52.61\00:25:55.68
I'd like to send
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00:25:55.72\00:25:57.52
It's entitled
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Or visit us online
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00:26:04.09\00:26:07.76
Or you can write to
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00:26:07.83\00:26:10.53
I'd like you to
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Our number is 800-253-3000,
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00:26:41.40\00:26:45.10
>>John Bradshaw:
Let's pray together now.
00:26:45.90\00:26:47.44
Our Father in heaven,
we've been on a journey
00:26:47.47\00:26:49.84
as we've traced this,
this outstanding life,
00:26:49.87\00:26:54.18
an ordinary person,
00:26:54.21\00:26:55.51
blessed by the great
Sovereign of the universe
00:26:55.54\00:26:58.91
to do extraordinary things.
00:26:58.95\00:27:00.38
And today we are
the beneficiaries
00:27:00.42\00:27:02.35
of much of what Luther did.
00:27:02.38\00:27:04.55
He's left us so
much that's positive.
00:27:04.59\00:27:07.29
We don't have
to imitate the man,
00:27:07.32\00:27:08.82
but his ethic,
his approach to You--
00:27:08.86\00:27:11.66
we thank You
that You've given us
00:27:11.69\00:27:13.96
the opportunity to
say, "Here I stand."
00:27:14.00\00:27:17.67
Lord, let the fire of
faith burn in our hearts.
00:27:17.70\00:27:20.60
I pray that we'll have
love for You like Luther did.
00:27:20.64\00:27:22.54
What You did
through him was miraculous.
00:27:22.57\00:27:24.21
It'll take a miracle,
but You can do it in us.
00:27:24.24\00:27:27.08
I pray that You will.
00:27:27.11\00:27:28.08
Somethere there's a
man, a woman, a young person
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looking at his or
her life and wondering,
00:27:31.25\00:27:33.72
"What next?"
00:27:33.75\00:27:34.62
I pray that You'll
encourage that one,
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that there is
salvation by faith,
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that there is salvation
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through the grace of
this great God of heaven.
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Lord, we thank You;
00:27:44.53\00:27:45.53
we know that the
Reformation must be finished,
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must be finished soon.
00:27:47.20\00:27:48.13
We're looking
forward to going home.
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Let it be so, we pray.
00:27:49.80\00:27:51.00
We thank You, in Jesus' name.
00:27:51.03\00:27:53.84
Amen.
00:27:53.87\00:27:55.07
Thanks so much for joining me.
00:27:55.24\00:27:56.50
I'm looking forward to
seeing you again next time.
00:27:56.54\00:27:58.54
Until then, remember:
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"It is written, 'Man
shall not live by bread alone,
00:28:00.68\00:28:04.91
but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
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¤[Theme music]
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¤[Theme music]
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