August 1523.
To the chosen dear friends of God in Riga, Reval and Tharbthe (Dorpat) in Liefland, my dear lords and
. Brethren in Christ, Martin Luther, Ecclesiastes at Wittenberg, Grace and Peace in Christ.
I have learned in writing and orally, dear lords and brothers, how God, the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, has also begun his miracles with you and has visited your hearts with his gracious light of truth, and has blessed you so highly that you can rejoice in it with all your hearts.
as a true word of God, as it truly is: But the richer and greater grace God offers us here, the more senselessly the princes, bishops, and all the broad scales of the Behemoth resist, blaspheme, condemn, and persecute; until they have captured many, and now recently burned two, so that Christ may send new martyrs to heaven in our time, that I may gladly pronounce you blessed, who at the end of the world, like the Gentiles, Acts 13:48. 13,48.,
receive the salvific word with all pleasure, which our Jews in this Jerusalem, even Babylon, not only despise, but also do not allow anyone to hear. The wrath of God has come upon them, says St. Paul, until the end; but grace reigns over you.
2 Therefore, my beloved, be thankful for divine grace and recognize the time of your visitation, "so that you do not receive the grace of God in vain," 2 Cor. 6:1. And first of all, see to it that you do not become Galatians, who started out so gloriously and became such fine, pure and sincere Christians, but were soon turned away by the deceivers onto the wrong road of works and turned back. Undoubtedly, wolves will also come among you, before which the good shepherds, whom God has now sent to you, will depart, and will blaspheme the right way and lead you again into Egypt, so that you serve the devil with false worship in God's stead, from which Christ has now redeemed you by his heavenly light and redeems you daily, so that you may come to know him and be sure that he alone is our Lord, priest, teacher, bishop, father, savior, helper, comfort and assistance forever in all sins, death, misery and what we lack, whether temporal or eternal.
For thus have ye heard and learned, that whosoever believeth that Jesus Christ is become our Saviour and Bishop of our souls by his blood without our merit, according to the will and mercy of God the Father, that the same faith without all works doth certainly impute and give Christ unto us, even as he believeth. For Christ's blood is not mine or yours because we fast or read, but because we believe it, as Paul says, Rom. 3:28: "We consider that a man is justified by faith without works of the law.
This faith makes our hearts joyfully peaceful toward God, and it must love Him, because it sees that it is God's will and the gracious inclination of His goodness toward us that Christ acts this way with us. This is what it means to come to the Father through Christ and to be drawn to the Father and to have peace with God, to await death and all accidents safely and cheerfully. Where this faith does not exist, there is blindness, no Christian, nor any other person.
any little spark of divine work or favor.
5. From this you have further learned that all teachings that have been presented to us so far, to become pious and blessed by works, to put away and atone for sin, as there are: fasting, praying, prayer, mass, vigil, consecration, monasticism, nunnery, profanity, that these are all doctrines of the devil, blasphemies against God; because they presume to do to us that which the blood of Christ alone is to do by faith, thus giving to the doctrines and works of men that which belongs to God's word and works alone. But this light of faith sees clearly that such things are vile, horrible darknesses, and abides in God's grace in Christ, leaving his merits before God. This is the way to heaven and the main part of Christian life.
6th Then ye have heard that such a man is henceforth guilty of nothing, but to love his neighbor, as Paul saith, Rom. 13:8, and Christ, John 13:34, "This is my commandment, that ye love one another." For where Christ's disciples are, they must do nothing for themselves, or for their sins, or for their salvation; but this Christ's blood has already done, and made all things perfect, and loved them, that they should no longer love themselves, or seek, or desire any good thing; but what they would do and seek for themselves, let them turn to their neighbor, and do such good works, of which they have no need, to another; even as Christ did to us, who also gave and shed his blood, not for himself, but for us. And this is also the sign by which true Christians are known, as Christ says, John 13:35: "By this shall it be known that ye are my disciples, when ye have love one to another." This is the other main part of Christian life.
7 So teach and do, my beloved, and let no other wind of doctrine move you, whether it comes from Rome or from Jerusalem. The summa lies in faith in Christ and in love for our neighbor. Indulgences, saintly service, and whatever other works may be of benefit to us and our souls, avoid them like deadly poison.
8. but where you cling to this little teaching and remain, the cross and
Persecution does not remain outside. For the evil spirit cannot suffer that his holiness, which he has established with works through the clergy all over the world, should thus be disgraced and destroyed. But be ye constant, and remember that ye shall not fare better than your Lord and Bishop Christ, who also was martyred for such doctrines, when he punished the worksiniquity of the Pharisees. Such a cross will be useful and necessary for you, which will bring you into a firm, sure hope, so that you may hate this life and await the future with comfort; so that you may be ready and perfect in the three things, faith, love and hope.
9. but what of sacraments and of external things with food and drink,
Your preachers will tell you enough about clothing and vestments. For where these three things go right, Christian liberty also goes right in all such outward things. May our Lord, Jesus Christ, fully prepare, strengthen and fortify you for his eternal kingdom with all the fullness of his wisdom and knowledge, to whom be praise and thanksgiving forever and ever, amen.
10 Let this admonition be acceptable to you, dear brethren. For though you already know it, or do not need it from me, yet my diligence and duty is owed you in this, to care for and serve you even in unnecessary ones. Let your preachers be commanded to you, and pray also for us. God's grace be with you, Amen. Anno 1523.
More about spiritual temptations can be read in:
I. Part, 1. B. Mos., 15. Cap., § 1-51, of Abraham's challenge.
- Gen. 21, Cap. 146-167, about the challenge of Abraham and Hagar.
II. part, 1. B. Mos., 32. cap., § 144-154, of the temptations of the believers.
- Gen. 26, § 134-163, about the doubt of the eternal providence.
- Gen. 32, chap. 58-61, of the providence of God.
- Gen. 42, § 32-71, about the play of God with his believers and the people.
- Gen. 45, § 95-117, of God's kingdom and ways.
IV. Theil, Ausleg. d. 22 ersten Ps.; 6. Ps., § 1 bis 79, von dem Gebet eines Angefochtenen, der mit Sünde und Tod zu kämpfen hat.
- Explanation of the 25 first Ps.; 3. Ps., § 1-12, u. 42. Ps., von den Anfechtungen und Verfolgung der Christen.
IV. Theil, Ausleg. d. 15 Lieder im höh. Chorus; 130. Ps., David's prayer in his temptations. Anfechtungen.
XI. Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of the Sermon on the 3rd Sunday after Easter, a sermon of consolation preached by Christ to his disciples.
- 1st and 2nd sermon on Sunday after Christ's heaven, from Christ's sermon of consolation.
- 1. (§29 ff.), 2. and 3. sermon on the day of Pentecost, Christ's comforting sermon, which he preaches to his disciples.
XII. Part, XXX. Nine sermons; 5th sermon, an exhortation to steadfastness.
- XXXIII Some short sermons; on Sunday. Reminiscere, about the victory of the faith of the Cananaean woman.
XIIIa&b. Theil, Pred. am 4. Sonnt. n. Epiph., § 22 ff, von den Anfechtungen.
- Sermon on Sunday. Reminiscere, about the struggle and victory of the Cananaean woman against her temptations.
See also in the 2nd main part the 3rd article: On Faith.