Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.
But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:19-24 NIV)
“What’s a Lutheran?” I bet people ask you that. I bet some of you ask that. “What’s a Lutheran?” There aren’t many of us! In the state of Oklahoma, there are only about 400 people who belong to our denomination—the Wisconsin Synod (WELS). That’s not very many. There are three times as many black bears in Oklahoma as WELS Lutherans. Did you know that? There are almost as many alligators in Oklahoma as there are WELS Lutherans. So the question comes up, “What’s a Lutheran?” What do you say? Often we freeze: “Uh…” “What’s a Lutheran?”
Let’s start with this: Who was Martin Luther? When I was in college, I went on a Spanish immersion trip to the country of Chile. When we Lutherans got out of the bus at the school, the teachers were visibly shocked to see us. Like we were aliens. We asked, “Is everything okay?” They said, “Sorry, you’re not what we expected when we heard ‘Lutherans.’ You’re almost all white people. We were expecting something different from Martin Luther King Jr.!”
Martin Luther is actually different than Martin Luther King Jr. In fact, Martin Luther King Jr. changed his name to match the real Martin Luther. He respected him that much! Martin Luther was born in Germany in 1483. So how many years ago was that? 539. Back then, there weren’t lots of different churches. There was just one church. Which one? The Roman Catholic Church.
As Martin Luther grew up, he had a very sensitive conscience. God gave him a keen sense of his own sin. Luther realized he wasn’t perfect and good. He could feel it. He was sinful. That feeling drove him to look for something more in life. To fill this void in his heart. I bet you’ve been there too. Looking for something more… Looking for something to make you feel better…
Luther started out studying to be a lawyer. That’s what his father wanted him to do for one big reason: Money. He agreed. Maybe money and success could fill that void in his heart. I bet you’ve tried that sometimes… But, one day, Luther got caught in a thunderstorm. That storm brought back all those feelings of guilt. “God must not be happy with me!” So in the middle of the storm, he made God a promise: “If I survive this storm, I’ll become a monk!” So he did. He entered a monastery. He separated himself from the world. I bet you’ve tried that sometimes… You’ve separated yourself from the world too. Maybe then he could feel good about himself.
But even that didn’t work. As a monk, Luther tried to do everything possible to calm that guilty feeling inside of him. He would spend hours and hours in prayer. He would beat his body to punish himself for his sins. He would work hard day after day, trying to feel worthy of God’s love. He would refuse all pleasures—food and drink and everything else. I bet you’ve tried that sometimes… But it wasn’t the answer. Doing all those things didn’t make him feel good.
As a monk, Luther had one special privilege: He got to read the Bible. Do you realize how special that is? We too often take the Bible for granted today. If you can read the Word of God, that’s a privilege! Martin Luther got to read the Bible! And here’s what happened: It made him feel worse. Is that surprising? At first, reading the Bible actually made Luther feel worse. Do you know why? The Bible didn’t say, “Your sins are no big deal. Don’t worry about them!” No. The Bible showed Luther his sin. He realized he was even more sinful than he had thought.
He read: “No one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin.” According to God’s Word, no one has done enough good to be saved. Not you. Not me. Not Martin Luther. Not convinced? Imagine a drunk driver killed your best friend. You go to the courtroom for his trial. Imagine if that drunk driver stood up to defend himself: “Come on. 99% of the time, I drive sober. I only drive drunk 1% of the time. What’s the big deal?” What would you be screaming? “Punish him!” 99% of the time isn’t good enough. And who has been good 99% of the time? No one! The Bible shows our sins.
In fact, the more you read the Bible, the more sinful you realize you are. “Through the law we become conscious of our sin.” You invite your boyfriend to move in, like everyone does. Save money. Smart right? But then you read, “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” (Hebrews 13:4). You like to say “Oh my God” or text OMG! But then you hear, “The Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name” (Exodus 20:7). You get angry at other people. They deserve it, right? Except Jesus says, “Anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment” (Matthew 5:22). God’s commands show us our sins. The more he read the Bible, the more sinful Martin Luther realized he was: “Through the law we become conscious of our sin.”
In the early 1900s, a British newspaper asked its readers, “What’s wrong with the world?” What would you say? A Catholic theologian sent in his response. “What’s wrong with the world?” He wrote: “Dear Sirs: I am.” He got it. In the middle of all the blaming, here’s the truth: The biggest problem in my life is my sin. No amount of good could ever undo the sin I’ve done. “No one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law.” Luther got it. Do you get it? If you’re trusting in your goodness, here’s the verdict in God’s courtroom: Guilty. You? Guilty. You? Guilty. What’s a Lutheran? A Lutheran confesses, “The biggest sinner in my life is me.”
Doesn’t that sound awful? It is. I mean, we are! But Luther kept studying God’s Word. He realized something: Like a doctor tells you about your cancer so that he can treat it, God shows us our sins so that he can forgive them. As Luther kept reading God’s Word, he read “But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” Every one of us wants to be righteous. To be good. How does that happen? True righteousness doesn’t come from us. Being good doesn’t come from being good. Where does it come from? God. “This righteousness of God is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.”
Suddenly, by God’s grace, a light bulb came on for Martin Luther. “I’m righteous by faith.” What does that mean? There’s a verse way back at the beginning of the Bible about Abraham. It says, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). Abraham wasn’t righteous—good—because of what he did. He was sinful. But when Abraham trusted in God’s promise of a Savior, God counted that faith as righteousness. God declared him “Not guilty!” not by his works, but by his faith in Jesus. It’s not our righteousness that saves us. It’s God’s righteousness that saves us through faith in Jesus. Can you see the difference?
“All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Jesus justified the world at the cross. Sometimes people say that “justified” means “just as if I’d” never sinned. Have you heard that? It’s true! When Jesus died on the cross, he took away all your sins. “Just as if I’d” never sinned. God declares you “Not guilty!” once and for all. Not, “one day you might be forgiven.” Not, “try harder and we’ll see.” Forgiven. Justified. Today! When Jesus died and rose, it was like the gavel slamming down. “Not guilty.” You. “Not guilty.” What’s a Lutheran? By faith, Lutherans trust that we are “justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
The gospel changed Martin Luther’s life. Suddenly, he didn’t feel guilty anymore. Jesus had forgiven him. That message didn’t just change his life. By God’s grace, it changed the world. Over the past 500 years, this gospel message of God’s grace has spread around the world. Did you know that there are more Lutherans in Ethiopia than in the United States? Did you know that our seminary in India graduates almost as many new pastors as our Seminary in Wisconsin? Luther rediscovered the gospel, and the truth of God’s Word continues to change the world. I am more sinful than I ever thought I was. I am more loved by Jesus that I ever thought I could be.
Every one of us walks that same journey of grace that Martin Luther did. It starts by walking down into the valley of our sin. Not hiding sin. Not ignoring sin. Not excusing sin. Confessing it. Repenting of it. “I’m worse than I ever thought!” That’s true! But then we see God’s grace to us in Jesus. When I was a sinner, Jesus died for me. When we were powerless, Jesus died for us. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done. It doesn’t matter where you’ve been. “There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
The Lutheran church likes to use three phrases: By grace alone. By faith alone. By Scripture alone. We see all three of those truths in these verses from Romans. “This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” How are we righteous? Through faith in Jesus! “All are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” How are we justified? Freely by his grace! “…to which the Law and the Prophets testify.” What tells us this good news? The Law and the Prophets. The Bible! By grace alone. By faith alone. By Scripture alone. Can you say that with me? By grace alone. By faith alone. By Scripture alone. You just did it. You just answered the question! What’s a Lutheran? Someone who trusts Jesus’ promise that we are saved by grace alone. By faith alone. By Scripture alone. That’s a Lutheran!
Doesn’t everyone believe that? Sadly, no. Do you know why there are so many different denominations? Because they all teach different things. No two denominations are the same. What church you belong to matters! Earlier this year, I was in Arkansas looking for a place to plant a new Lutheran church. Our mission counselor and I met with the president of the chamber of commerce in a suburb of Little Rock. We asked, “Are there a lot of churches in your city?” He said, “Yes. Way too many. There’s a church on every street corner!” “Oh,” we said. “So, is it a good idea for us to try to start another church?” He said, “Absolutely!” Huh? He said, “I can count on one hand the number of churches in this city that actually talk about God’s grace. If your church will teach people about the grace of God in Jesus, then we need another church.”
Because that’s what we all need. We don’t need the best praise band. We don’t need the funnest activities. We need Jesus! We don’t need more examples. We don’t need seven steps to a great life. Because we can’t, and we know it. We need Jesus! Every time we come to worship, we come with hearts that are broken. With lives that aren’t what we planned. We need Jesus Christ! We need to hear the Word of God preached into our hearts and into our souls. To show our sins. And then to show our Savior. If you need that, then I think you should be a Lutheran. One day, when you are on your deathbed, may this be your dying thought: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” That’s what it means to be a Lutheran: Grace alone. Faith alone. Scripture alone.
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