For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. Romans 1:17

Many Protestant churches commemorate the 16th-Century Reformation on the last Sunday of the month of October. The word “reformation” literally means to form again. During the 16th century, the people of God were deprived of God’s Word, and many of them were not assured of their salvation because of the wrong teachings of the Roman Catholic church. The Protestant Reformation moved to change all that.

As we commemorate Reformation Sunday today, we will be considering how the Reformation began, and what it has given us. Let us learn the roots of our rich Protestant heritage, and be thankful to the LORD for it!

The Protestant Reformation began with Martin Luther in Germany. On 31st October 1517, Luther nailed his nine-five theses (statements) on the castle door of Wittenberg Church to challenge certain practices of the Roman Catholic church. At that time, the pope, who was the leader of the Roman Catholic church, wanted to reconstruct St Peter’s Basilica. In order to renovate this huge building, a lot of money was needed. Therefore, to raise fund for this ambitious project, he promoted the sale of indulgences. Indulgences are tickets issued by the Roman Catholic church for the forgiveness of sins.

Luther protested against the sale of indulgences. He knew that only God can forgive sins, not the church! He was convinced that this (sale of indulgences) was against the Word of God. The salvation of a soul is faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone! The Bible says, “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17). This protest of Luther sparked off a chain of reactions throughout Europe which later became known as the Reformation.

Before the Reformation, the Word of God was kept from the people by the Roman Catholic church. The people of God were not allowed to read the Bible and had to rely on the priests to teach them spiritual truths. But many of their teachings were not biblical! An example would be the teaching on salvation. Roman Catholics teach that salvation is by works, not by faith. The people of God could not be assured of their faith and lived in constant fear of losing their salvation. They were walking in darkness without light from God’s truth.

The Reformation brought again the correct doctrine of salvation to the people of God. It also gave us the Word of God in our own languages. Luther translated the Bible into the German language while William Tyndale translated it into English.

The King James Bible which you hold in your hands comes as a result of Tyndale’s translation. We would not have had a Bible in our own language without the Reformation. Are you thankful to the Lord for the 16th-Century Protestant Reformation? You should be!