This Reformation hymn, penned by Martin Luther's colleague Paul Speratus, is one of the richest, most comforting, and sublimely beautiful hymns ever written. Instead of writing my thoughts about this hymn, I urge you to spend some time reading it thoughtfully and consider the incredible grace God has lavished on us in Jesus Christ. Happy Reformation Day! Soli Deo Gloria!

Salvation unto us has come By God’s free grace and favor; Good works cannot avert our doom, They help and save us never. Faith looks to Jesus Christ alone, Who did for all the world atone; He is our one Redeemer.

What God did in His Law demand And none to Him could render Caused wrath and woe on ev’ry hand For man, the vile offender. Our flesh has not those pure desires The spirit of the Law requires, And lost is our condition.

It was a false, misleading dream That God His Law had given That sinners might themselves redeem And by their works gain heaven. The Law is but a mirror bright To bring the inbred sin to light That lurks within our nature.

From sin our flesh could not abstain, Sin held its sway unceasing; The task was useless and in vain, Our guilt was e’er increasing. None can remove sin’s poisoned dart Or purify our guileful heart— So deep is our corruption.

Yet as the Law must be fulfilled Or we must die despairing, Christ came and hath God’s anger stilled, Our human nature sharing. He hath for us the Law obeyed And thus the Father’s vengeance stayed Which over us impended.

Since Christ hath full atonement made And brought to us salvation, Each Christian therefore may be glad And build on this foundation. Thy grace alone, dear Lord, I plead, Thy death is now my life indeed, For Thou hast paid my ransom.

Let me not doubt, but trust in Thee, Thy Word cannot be broken; Thy call rings out, “Come unto Me!” No falsehood hast Thou spoken. Baptized into Thy precious name, My faith cannot be put to shame, And I shall never perish.

The only righteous in God’s sight Are they this faith possessing; But faith shines forth with heav’nly light, Itself by works professing. Though faith is all that God requires, Thy love the neighbor’s good desires If God hath truly borne Thee.

The Law reveals the guilt of sin And makes men conscience-stricken; The Gospel then doth enter in The sinful soul to quicken. Come to the cross, trust Christ, and live; The Law no peace can ever give, No comfort and no blessing.

Faith clings to Jesus’ cross alone And rests in Him unceasing; And by its fruits true faith is known, With love and hope increasing. Yet faith alone doth justify, Works serve the neighbor and supply The proof that faith is living.

Hope waits in patience for that time When God will show His power. When to expect this joy sublime, God sets for us no hour. He knows full well when best to aid; Though help may often be delayed, In this we all must trust Him.

If His goodwill be hid in night, Dismiss this fear unbidden. To those in whom is His delight, His love is often hidden. His Word shall take away thy doubt, And if thy flesh its “No” should shout, Still cast from thee all terror.

May glory, laud, with highest praise, For this, our God’s salvation, To Father, Spirit, Son be raised, Who’ll bring unto completion The work He hath in us begun, That glory may for Him be won. For this His name be hallowed.

His kingdom come, His will on earth Be done as ’tis in heaven. Of daily bread be there no dearth, And be our sins forgiven As we do them who owe us aught. Into temptation lead us not, From evil free us. Amen.

#hymnody #Lutheran #theology

While I was in seminary, a new Calvinism was flourishing among Evangelicals in the United States. Well, to be honest, a partial Calvinism was flourishing. The Calvinism then (and still) popular among American Evangelicals like John MacArthur, John Piper, Albert Mohler, Mark Dever, and others was a Calvinism that was limited to following Calvin on the “doctrines of grace” when it came to salvation. Men like these, all baptists, have very little room for Calvin when it comes to his teaching on the sacraments.

Here is an excerpt I ran across recently from John Calvin's commentary on John 20. Here, he takes a very Augustinian view on the power of the sacraments as coming from the joining of the sacramental act with the word or promises of Christ:

But let the reader observe, that with the visible and outward sign the word is also joined; for this is the source from which the sacraments derive their efficacy; not that the efficacy of the Holy Spirit is contained in the word which sounds in our ears, but because the effect of all those things which believers receive from the sacraments depends on the testimony of the word. Christ breathes on the Apostles: they receive not only the breathing, but also the Spirit. And why, but because Christ promises to them?

In like manner, in baptism we put on Christ, (Galatians 3:27,) we are washed by his blood, (Revelation 1:5,) our old man is crucified, (Romans 6:6,) in order that the righteousness of God may reign in us. In the Holy Supper we are spiritually fed with the flesh and blood of Christ. Whence do they derive so great efficacy but from the promise of Christ, who does and accomplishes by his Holy Spirit what he declares by his word? Let us therefore learn, that all the sacraments which men have contrived are nothing else than absolute mockeries or frivolous amusements, because the signs can have no truth unless they be accompanied by the word of the Lord. Now, since we never sport in this manner with sacred things, without wickedly pouring contempt on God and ruining souls, we ought to be most carefully on our guard against those stratagems of Satan.

Here Calvin sounds almost like Luther. Indeed, there is very little for this Lutheran to quibble with here. If only Calvin's contemporary followers read and taught more of what Calvin actually taught!

#theology #sacraments #Reformed #Lutheran #Evangelicalism

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