THE REFORMATION – 31 October 1517

31 October 1517 is one of most important days in the Christian Church history. What Martin Luther, an insignificant monk, in a small place called Wittenberg, in Germany, did that day, has had its ripples felt all across the world, and we are still reaping its benefits. Luther nailed on the door of the Church at Wittenberg, his ninety-five questions or theses, against the practice of indulgences, and challenged for a debate of the same.

This one act, by one man lit the fire, and it spread like wildfire. What he did that day was never intended it to bring about such a revolution. Sure as it is, Reformation is nothing less than a revolution. A change of thought and the direction of the Church, which made it possible for so many good things to come about.

The Five Solas of the Reformation sums up well, the whole thinking behind this ‘Great Awakening.’ They are SOLA SCRIPTURA (Scripture Alone), SOLUS CHRISTUS (Christ Alone), SOLA FIDE (Faith Alone), SOLA GRATIA (Grace Alone), and SOLI DEO GLORIA (Glory to God Alone.)

The writers on Reference’s website believe, which is rightly so, that “The Reformation inspired a mood of anti-authoritarianism, which led to backlash against the feudal system and, by extension, to the democratic movement around the world. In the centuries following the Reformation, movements like women’s suffrage and the abolition of slavery traced their roots back to Reformation-era principles.”

Jack Arnold observes that, “It is impossible to understand modern history apart from the Reformation. We cannot understand the history of Europe, England or America without studying the Reformation. For example, in America there would never have been Pilgrim Fathers if there had not first been a Protestant Reformation.”

To credit the Reformation to one man is unfair, even though it was Luther’s daring act that lit the fire. There were many godly men and women, for about two hundred years before Martin Luther, whom God used in the preparation of the stage for the Reformation. John Wycliffe [1330-1384] is one such person, who is called, “The Morning Star of Reformation.”

There are two things to learn for us, from the Reformation. Firstly, let us never forget the courage and the sacrifices of those who stood for truth, some by their very life.* Secondly, *let us continue to uphold the spirit of Reformation, and carry the banner of our LORD high and flying. Even so the LORD help us.