Inspirational Quotes by Martin Luther
“Theology is nothing else but grammar engaged with the words of the Holy Spirit.”
topics: theology
“Wer ein Christ sein will, der steche seiner Vernunft die Augen aus.”
“Als ik wist dat morgen de wereld ten onder gaat, zou ik vandaag een appelboompje planten…”
“and that to appear to have them is useful; to appear merciful, faithful, humane, religious, upright, and to be so, but with a mind so framed that should you require not to be so, you may be able and know how to change to the opposite.”
“Of what does not belong to you or to your subjects you should, therefore, be a lavish giver, as were Cyrus, Cæsar, and Alexander; for to be liberal with the property of others does not take from your reputation, but adds to it. What injures you is to give away what is your own. And there is no quality so self-destructive as liberality; for while you practise it you lose the means whereby it can be practised, and become poor and despised, or else, to avoid poverty, you become rapacious and hated.”
“For I am ashamed of and annoyed by my exceedingly disgraceful lack of faith amid such a wealth of promises by which we have been overwhelmed and made drunk, when I consider and see that the saintly fathers had such great faith in promises not yet fulfilled.”
“And the human mind endures misfortunes of any kind more easily than prosperity and abundance, as the German proverb puts it: “Strong legs are needed to be able to endure good days.”
“Although the arms and kings of the world should serve the purpose of peace in the kingdom of Christ for the sake of teaching and propagating the Gospel, that kingdom should not be administered through laws. For laws do not make Christians. No, the Word and the sacraments — the Eucharist, Baptism, etc. — establish and build the kingdom of Christ.”
“But there is a common opinion among all authors in the church that the Antichrist, whom they take to be the viper, will come from the tribe of Dan; and this opinion has been received and approved by all as an important article of faith.”
“But grace has changed my nature for the better, to keep me from joining them and shedding innocent blood.”
“For if I believe the promise of God, I am certain that my life is pleasing to God and is superior to all the orders, since it makes a heavenly man, a conqueror of death, an heir of eternal life, and one who tramples the devil underfoot, as is stated in Ps. 91:13: “You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and serpent you will trample underfoot.” This is the strength and particular power of Christians.”
“But the Christian life is of such a nature that it is bound daily to the vine, that is, to the Word, and is made drunk with the gifts of the Spirit or the Word. In the second place, it is not only made drunk this way by the Spirit and filled with the confidence which is the most salutary inebriation for the new man; but it is also washed in wine according to the old man.”
“He who believes that he has a gracious God as his Father, and that Christ, the Son of God, has abolished death, sin, hell, and the devil, should he not rejoice and exult? Indeed, he should even go through iron mountains and adversities of every kind with a fearless and invincible heart, and he should conclude that everything is flowing with honey, milk, and wine; yes, he should praise God with the height of joy and gratitude, now no longer as one who is mortal but as one who is living an eternal life.”
“One must be careful to hold fast to the fact that God makes promises and defers the things promised, and that He tries us with a scarcity of available things in order to instruct us in faith in the promise and in order that this faith may be strengthened and may learn to believe God not only in prosperous times, when things are available, but also in adversity, when things are lacking.”
“If, however, you feel you have made it, flattering yourself with your own little books, teaching, or writing, because you have done beautifully and preached excellently...if you perhaps look for praise, you are of that stripe, dear friend then take yourself by the ears, and if you do this in the right way you will find a beautiful pair or big, long, shaggy donkey ears. Then do not spare any expense! Decorate them with golden bells, so that people will be able to hear you wherever you go, point their fingers at you, and say, "See, See! There goes that clever beast, who can write such exquisite books and preach so remarkably well." That very moment you will be blessed and blessed beyond measure in the kingdom of heaven.”
― Martin Luther ,
“Faith is a living, bold trust in God’s grace, so certain of God’s favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it.”
“If the Lord God in this life - *in das Sheisshaus* (in this shit house) - has given us such noble gifts, what will happen in that eternal life, where everything will be perfect and delightful?”
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Martin Luther changed the course of Western civilization by initiating the Protestant Reformation. As a priest and theology professor, he confronted indulgence salesmen with his 95 Theses in 1517. Luther strongly disputed their claim that freedom from God's punishment of sin could be purchased with money. His refusal to retract all of his writings at the demand of Pope Leo X in 1520 and the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms meeting in 1521 resulted in his excommunication by the pope and condemnation as an outlaw by the emperor.
Luther taught that salvation is a free gift of God and received only by grace through faith in Jesus as redeemer from sin, not from good works. His theology challenged the authority of the pope of the Roman Catholic Church by teaching that the Bible is the only source of divinely revealed knowledge and opposed sacerdotalism by considering all baptized Christians to be a holy priesthood.
His translation of the Bible into the language of the people (instead of Latin) made it more accessible, causing a tremendous impact on the church and on German culture. It fostered the development of a standard version of the German language, added several principles to the art of translation, and influenced the translation into English of the King James Bible. His hymns inspired the development of singing in churches. His marriage to Katharina von Bora set a model for the practice of clerical marriage, allowing Protestant priests to marry.