Don't Tell Me That! From Martin Luther's Antinomian Theses

What is repentance? How can the "whole life of the believer" be spent repenting? Is not the Christian to live a life of joy, free from the guilt created when sin is exposed by the Law of God? Luther's answers to these questions will help today's Christian gain greater insight into Christian living.

In his Antinomian Disputations, Martin Luther attempts to demonstrate that having been redeemed in Christ, a Christian's life is not what which is lived beyond the parameters of the 10 Commandments given by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Instead, the prime imperative of the 10 Commandments, that of love, is actually defined and shaped by them. In Christ, therefore, the Christian is not free to abolish the Law, but free to fulfill it, as Christ Himself did. In that even the Christian is still confronted by sin, however, the 10 Commandments cannot be simply the goal of Christian living, but actually must still confront the Christian, driving the Christian to daily repentance. Paraphrasing Luther from the Disputations, "In that Christians still die with as much frequency as non-Christians, Christians must still have sin. In that Christians still have sin, the Law is needed to expose that sin." Thus the first of Luther's famous 95 Theses is explained: "When our Lord and Savior Jesus! Christ said 'Repent,' He meant for the whole life of the Christian to be one of repentance."

In his Antinomian Disputations, Martin Luther attempts to demonstrate that having been redeemed in Christ, a Christian's life is not what which is lived beyond the parameters of the 10 Commandments given by God to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Instead, the prime imperative of the 10 Commandments, that of love, is actually defined and shaped by them. In Christ, therefore, the Christian is not free to abolish the Law, but free to fulfill it, as Christ Himself did. In that even the Christian is still confronted by sin, however, the 10 Commandments cannot be simply the goal of Christian living, but actually must still confront the Christian, driving the Christian to daily repentance. Paraphrasing Luther from the Disputations, "In that Christians still die with as much frequency as non-Christians, Christians must still have sin. In that Christians still have sin, the Law is needed to expose that sin." Thus the first of Luther's famous 95 Theses is explained: "When our Lord and Savior Jesus! Christ said 'Repent,' He meant for the whole life of the Christian to be one of repentance."