I recently came across a correspondence between the Reformer Martin Luther and a friend. in The Voice, Keith S. Lindley sets the scene like this:
“In July of 1530, Martin Luther penned a letter to his dear friend, Jerome Weller. During a season of depression, Weller began to doubt the reality of his salvation, and as a result, he became overwhelmed by the prospect of hell. Reassuring Weller of his saving faith, Luther wrote, “When the devil throws our sins up to us and declares we deserve death and hell, we ought to speak thus: ‘I admit I deserve death and hell. What of it? Does this mean I shall be sentenced to eternal damnation? By no means. For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction in my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Where he is, there I shall be also.’”*
Luther had confidence! But his confidence came from the Bible. Do we sin? Yes. But we are made right with God not based on what we have done, but on what Jesus has done. Romans 3:23-24 puts both realities side by side: “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.”
There are some who doubt their salvation (or their “right-ness” with God). What if Luther was writing not to his friend Jerome Weller, but to you: “When the devil throws our sins up to us and declares we deserve death and hell, we ought to speak thus: ‘I admit I deserve death and hell. What of it? Does this mean I shall be sentenced to eternal damnation? By no means. For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction in my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Where he is, there I shall be also.’”
Let’s be confident—in the Bible, in Christ, and in what he has done for us. It’s a new day. The Lord still reigns. And his people continue to dwell securely and eternally in the shelter of the Most High.
Notes:
—* “Luther and Calvin on the Assurance of Your Salvation” by Keith S. Lindley. Published on Voice: Dallas Theological Seminary on November 27, 2017 here.
–Bible quotes are from the NIV.
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