which was discussed in the chapter at Heidelberg in the year of our salvation 1518, in the month of May. *)
1st thesis.
The Law of God, the most salutary teaching of life, cannot promote man to righteousness, but rather hinders him.
This is clear from the Apostle to the Romans 3:21: "Without the law the righteousness that is before God is revealed." St. Augustine interprets this in his book "Of the Spirit and the Letter": "Without the law, that is, without its being done." And Rom. 5, 20. it says: "The law came in next to it, so that sin might become more powerful." And Cap. 7, v. 9: "But when the commandment came, sin revived." Therefore, in the 8th chapter, the apostle calls the law a law of death and a law of sin. Yes, 2 Cor.-3, 6.: "The letter kills", which St. Augustine understands throughout his whole book "Of the Spirit and the Letter" of every, also the most holy law of God.
2nd thesis.
Much less can the works of men, which are repeatedly done by the help of the rule of natural reason, as they say, promote this.
For since the law of God, which is holy and undefiled, true and just, 2c is given to man by God for help, beyond his natural powers, in order to enlighten and move him to good, and yet the opposite happens, that he becomes more evil, how can he, left to his own powers, be promoted to good without such help? He does less from his own who does not do good even with the help of another. That is why the apostle to the Romans on the 3rd, v. 10 ff., calls all men corrupt and unfit who neither know nor seek God, but all, he says, have gone astray.
3rd thesis.
Although the works of men are always apparent and seem good, it is probable that they are mortal sins.
The works of men seem beautiful, but inwardly they are full of filth, as Christ says of the Pharisees, Match. 23, 27. For they seem good and beautiful to Himself and to others, but God does not judge by appearance, but "tests hearts and kidneys." sPs. 7, 10.] But without grace and faith it is impossible to have a pure heart, like
*) In the original: LLeuso Hluz'o. This is an inaccurate timing, since the disputation took place on April 26.
it Apost. 15, 9: "He purified their hearts through faith.
Therefore, the thesis is proved in this way: If the works of righteous men are sins, as the 7th thesis says, much more the works of men who are not yet righteous. But the righteous speak for their works: "Do not go into judgment with your servant, O Lord, for before you no living man is righteous" [Ps. 143, 2.]. Likewise saith the apostle, Gal. 3:10: "They that deal in the works of the law are under the curse." But the works of men are works of the law, and the curse is not laid on slight [venial] sins: consequently they are mortal sins. Thirdly, Rom. 2, 21. says: "You teach that one should not steal, and you steal"; which St. Augustine interprets: namely, according to their guilty will, they are thieves, though they outwardly judge and teach other thieves.
4. thesis.
Even though the works of God are always inconformity and seem to be bad, they are immortal merits.
That the works of God are without form is clear from the saying Isa. 53, 2: "He had no form nor beauty"; likewise 1 Sam. 2, 6: "The Lord kills and makes alive, leads into hell and out again." This is understood to mean that the Lord humbles and terrifies us by the law and the sight of our sins, so that we appear to our eyes and the eyes of men as nothing, as foolish and evil, yes, in truth we are so. And in recognizing and confessing this, there is no form nor beauty in us, but we live hidden in God (that is, in the mere trust in His mercy), since we have nothing in us [when God asks us] but the answer of sin, foolishness, death and hell, according to that saying of the apostle, 2 Cor. 6, 10. 9: 'As those who mourn, but always rejoice; as those who die, and behold, we live.'" And this is what Isaiah Cap. 28, 21. calls "the strange work of God, that he might work his work" [according to the Vulgate] (i.e., he humbles us in us by making us despair, in order that he may thereby keep us in his mercy).
(To increase our beauty by making us trust), just as it is said in Hab. 3:2: "When you are angry, think again of mercy. Such a man therefore displeases himself in all his works; he sees no beauty, but only his unshape. Yes, he also does outwardly what appears foolish and unshapely to others.
But this deformity arises in us either when God chastises us or when we accuse ourselves, according to the saying 1 Cor. 11, 31.: "For if we judged ourselves, we would not be judged by the Lord." And this is what is said Deut. 32, 36. "The LORD will judge his people, and over his servants he will have mercy." Thus, the undeformed works that God works in us, that is, the humble works done in fear, are truly immortal, for the humility and fear of God is all our merit.
5. thesis.
The works of men, we speak here of the good ones as they appear, are not mortal sins in the way that they would be crimes.
For crimes are such actions that can also be accused before men, such as adultery, theft, murder, slander 2c.; but mortal sins are those that seem good, but are inwardly fruits of an evil root and tree. Thus Augustin in the 4th book against Julian.
6. thesis.
The works of God, we speak of those done through man, are not merits in the way that they are not also sins.
Ecclesiastes, Cap. 7, 21, says: "There is not a righteous man on earth who does good and does not sin." But here it is said by some that the righteous does sin, but not when he does good. To these one answers: If this is what this saying meant to say, why does it waste so many words? Or perhaps the Holy Spirit takes pleasure in much and foolish talk? For this mind would be sufficiently expressed thus: "There is not a righteous man on earth who does not sin"; why does he add: "who does good"?
do" ? as if another were a righteous man who acts wickedly. For no one but a righteous man acts well. But where he speaks of sins apart from good works, he says thus, Prov. 24:16: "The righteous falls seven times a day." Here he does not say, "The righteous falls seven times a day when he does good." For it is the same thing: Just as when someone strikes with a rusty, rough hatchet, even though the worker is a good craftsman, the hatchet makes only bad, difficult, and unshapely cuts: so also God, when he works through us 2c
7. thesis.
The works of the righteous would be mortal sins if they were not feared as mortal sins by the righteous themselves out of pious fear of God.
This is clear from the 4th thesis; for to trust in one's work, in regard to which one should have fear, is to give oneself glory and to take God, to whom fear is due in every work. But this is utter perversity, that is, to please oneself, to enjoy oneself in one's works, and to worship oneself as an idol. But this is how he acts who is secure and without fear of God. For if he had fear, he would not be secure, and therefore he would not have pleasure in himself, but his pleasure would be in God.
Secondly, from the saying, Ps. 143, 2: "Do not go into judgment with your servant," and Ps. 32, 5: "I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. 2c But that these are not minor sins is evident from the fact that those say that for minor sins neither confession nor repentance is necessary. If, then, they are mortal sins, and all the saints pray for them, as they say, then the works of the saints are also mortal sins. But the works of the saints are good works, therefore they are meritorious to them only through the fear of a humble confession.
Third, from the Lord's Prayer, "Forgive us our debts." This is a prayer of the saints, therefore those debts are good works for which they ask. But that they are mortal sins is evident from the following saying [Matt. 6:15]: "If you do not forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will not forgive you.
lish father also forgive not." Behold, they are such that they would condemn as unforgiven unless one prayed this prayer in truth and forgave others.
Fourth, it is said in Revelation 21:27: "Nothing unclean shall enter into the kingdom of heaven"; but everything that hinders entrance into the kingdom of heaven is mortal sin (or one would have to determine the concept of mortal sin differently); but venial sin hinders because it defiles the soul and cannot exist in the kingdom of heaven: consequently, 2c.
8. thesis.
Rather, the works of men are mortal sins, since they are done without fear in loud and evil certainty.
The necessary conclusion from the previous thesis is clear. For where there is no fear, there is no humility; where there is no humility, there is pride, and there is the wrath and judgment of God: for God resists the proud. Yes, let pride cease, and there will be no more sin anywhere.
9. thesis.
To say that works without Christ are dead but not deadly seems to be a dangerous abandonment of the fear of God.
For in this way people become secure and thereby arrogant, which is dangerous. For in this way, the honor due to God is constantly taken away and transferred to other things, since every effort should be made to give him his honor the sooner the better. Therefore the holy scripture [Sir. 5, 8.] advises: "Do not tempt to turn to the Lord." For if he offends God who deprives Him of His honor, how much more does he offend Him who continually deprives Him of it and still walks safely in it! But he who is not in Christ or departs from Him deprives Him of His honor, as is well known.
10. thesis.
Yes, it is very difficult to see how a work can be dead and yet not be a harmful or deadly sin fei.
This I prove: Because the Scripture does not have the way to speak of dead things in such a way that
that which is dead is not deadly; indeed, neither is grammar, which says that dead is more than deadly; for they call a deadly work one that kills; but a deadly work not one that is killed, but one that is not alive. But that which is not living is displeasing to God; as it is written, Prov. 15:8, "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord."
Secondly, the will must necessarily do something with regard to such a dead action, namely, either love it or hate it. He cannot hate it, since he is evil: consequently he loves it: consequently he loves something dead. And so, just in this, he commits an evil act of the will against God, whom he should have loved and glorified in this and in every work.
11. thesis.
Presumption cannot be avoided, nor can there be true hope, unless the judgment of condemnation is feared in every work.
This is evident from the above 4th thesis; because it is impossible to hope in God if one has not first despaired of all creatures and knows that nothing can avail one except God. But since there is no one who has this pure hope, as we said above, and we thus trust to some extent in the creatures, it is obvious that we must fear God's judgment because of this impurity in everything. And so presumption is to be avoided, not in fact, but in inclination, that is, that it displeases us to stand still trusting in the creature.
12. thesis.
Then, with GOD, the sins are truly forgivable when they are feared by men as deadly.
This is sufficiently clear from what has been said, for as much as we accuse ourselves, so much God excuses, according to the saying: "Confess your iniquity, that you may be justified" and that other [Ps. 141, 4.]: "Lest my heart incline to the words of wickedness to excuse sins" [according to the Vulgate].
13. thesis.
Free will after the Fall is a mere name, and by doing as much as is in it, it sins mortally.
The first part is clear: for the will is a prisoner and servant of sin; not that it fei nothing, but that it is not free, except for evil. Thus it is said in John 8:34, 36, "He that committeth sin is the servant of sin. If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be justly free." Therefore St. Augustine says in the book "Of the Spirit and the Letter": "The free will without grace can do nothing but sin"; and in the second book against Julian: "You call the will free, but it is rather a subjugated will" 2c, and in innumerable other places.
The second part of the thesis is clear from what has been said above and from the saying of Hos. 13:9: "Israel, you are bringing disaster upon yourself, for your salvation is with me alone" 2c
14. thesis.
After the Fall, free will is able to do good by means of a suffering faculty, but it is always able to do evil by means of an active faculty.
Just as a dead man is able to live only in a suffering way, but to die, while he lives, also in an active way. But the free will is dead, means through those dead, whom the Lord has raised, as the holy teachers say. Moreover, St. Augustine proves this thesis in various places [of his writings] against the Pelagians.
15. thesis.
Even in the state of innocence he could not remain by an active, but only by a suffering capacity, let alone progress in good.
Since the Magister Sententiarum in the 2nd book, 24th Dist., 1st Cap., cites St. Augustine, he says at the end thus: "By these testimonies it is evidently proved that man at creation received righteousness and a good will, and the help by which he was able to persevere, otherwise he could have been
it seems as if he had not fallen through his fault." He speaks of the active faculty, which is obviously contrary to Augustine in his book "On Reproof and Grace", where he speaks thus: "He had received the ability if he wanted, but he did not have the will with which he could", understanding here by the "ability" the suffering faculty and by the "will with which he could" the active faculty.
The second part, however, is sufficiently clear from the Magister in the same Distinction.
16. thesis.
The man who thinks he will attain grace by doing what is in him adds to sin so that he becomes doubly guilty.
For it is clear from what has been said that while he does what is in him, he sins and seeks what is his. But if he thinks that by sinning he will become worthy of grace, or will be sent to grace, he adds presumption to it, because he does not believe that sin is sin and evil is evil, which is an exceedingly great sin. Jer. 2:13 says: "My people commit a twofold sin, forsaking me, the living fountain, and making them here and there wells cut out, which are not full of holes, neither do they give water," that is, through sin they are far from me, and yet they presume to do good of themselves.
Now you say, "What shall we do? Shall we walk idly, because we do nothing but sin? I answer, By no means, but when you have heard this, fall down and ask for mercy, and put your hope in Christ, in whom is our salvation, life and resurrection. For this is why we are taught this; this is why the law makes sin known to us, so that, having recognized sin, one may seek and obtain grace. Thus God gives grace to the humble [1 Petr. 5, 5], and he who humbles himself is exalted [Matth. 23, 12]. The law humbles, grace exalts; the law works fear and wrath, grace hope and mercy. For through the law comes knowledge of sin [Rom. 3, 20],
but through the knowledge of sin, humility, and through humility, grace is obtained. Thus, a foreign work of God finally causes his own work, since he makes a sinner to make a righteous one.
17. thesis.
To speak in this way is not to give cause for despair, but to spur the effort to humble oneself and seek the grace of Christ.
This thesis is clear from what has been said; for since, according to the gospel, the kingdom of heaven is given to children and the humble, Christ also loves them. But humble cannot be those who do not recognize themselves as condemnable and unrighteous sinners. But sin is recognized only by the law. It is obvious that not despair but rather hope is preached when we are told that we are sinners; for this preaching of sin is precisely the preparation for grace, or rather the acknowledgment of sin and faith in such preaching. For then the desire for grace arises when the recognition of sin has arisen; then the sick person seeks the medicine when he recognizes the evil of his illness. Just as, therefore, to tell a sick person of the danger of his disease is not to give him cause for despair or death, but rather to urge him to seek the remedy, so also to say that we are nothing and sin always, by doing what is in us, is not to make people despair (if they are not foolish), but to make them anxious for the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
18. thesis.
It is certain that man must first despair of himself completely in order to be able to obtain the grace of Christ.
For this is what the law wants, that man despairs of himself, since it leads him to hell and makes him poor and shows him to be a sinner in all his works, as the apostle does in Rom. 2 and 3 with the words [Rom. 3:9]: "We are condemned that we all should be under the law.
are sin." But he who does as much as is in him, and believes that he is doing something good, certainly does not consider himself to be nothing, nor does he despair of his strength; indeed, he is so presumptuous that he seeks to obtain grace out of his strength.
19. thesis.
Not the one is rightly called a theologian who sees the invisible things of God as conceived by what has become.
This is evident from those who have been so and yet are called fools by the apostle, Rom. 1:22. Furthermore, the invisible things of God are virtue, divinity, wisdom, justice, goodness 2c; but the knowledge of all these things makes neither worthy nor wise.
20. thesis.
But who understands the visible and lesser things of God, seen through cross and suffering.
The lesser and visible things of God are opposed to the invisible, namely humanity, weakness, foolishness; as the apostle, 1 Cor. 1, 25, calls God's weakness and foolishness. For since men misused the knowledge of God from works, God again wanted to be known from suffering and to reject the wisdom of invisible things by the wisdom of visible things, so that those who did not worship God as He is revealed in His works should worship Him as He is hidden in suffering, as 1 Cor. 1, 21: "Because the world in its wisdom did not know God in His wisdom, it pleased God well to make blessed those who believe in it by foolish preaching"; so that it is now not sufficient and of no use for anyone to know God in His glory and majesty if he does not recognize Him in the lowliness and shame of the cross. Thus he makes the. Wisdom of the wise to shame 2c, as Isaiah says [Cap. 45, 15.]: "Truly, you are a hidden GOtt."
So also, when Philip spoke after the theology of glory, Joh. 14, 8: "Show us the Father", Christ immediately drew its
He turned back the fleeting thought of seeking God elsewhere and led him to Himself, saying: "Philip, he who sees me sees also my Father. Therefore the true theology and knowledge of God is in the crucified Christ, as it is also said in Joh. 14, 6: "No one comes to the Father, but through me"; and Joh. 10, 9: "I am the door" 2c.
21. thesis.
A theologian of glory calls evil good and good evil; but a theologian of the cross calls the matter as it is.
This is clear, for if he does not know Christ, he does not know God hidden in suffering. Therefore he prefers works to sufferings, glory to the cross, strength to weakness, wisdom to foolishness, and in general good to evil. Of this kind are those whom the apostle calls "enemies of the cross of Christ" [Phil. 3, 18.], especially because they hate the cross and suffering, but sift works and the glory of them, and thus call the good of the cross evil and the evil of the work good. But that one cannot find God except in the cross and suffering has already been said. Therefore, the friends of the cross say that the cross is good and the works are evil, because through the cross the works are destroyed and the old Adam is crucified, who is rather built up through the works. For it is impossible that he should not be puffed up by his good works, who is not first humbled and brought to nothing by suffering and evil, until he knows that he is nothing, and that the works are not his but God's.
22. thesis.
That wisdom, which regards the invisible things of God as comprehended from the works, puffs up completely, blinds and hardens.
This has already been said; because they do not know and hate the cross, they must necessarily love the opposite, namely wisdom, glory, power 2c. Therefore they are more and more blinded and hardened by such love. For it is impossible that the desire could be satisfied by the attainment of that which it desires. For
Just as the love of money increases as money itself increases, so the more the soul drinks, the more it thirsts, as the poet says: "The more they are watered, the more they thirst for water. So it is said in Eccl. 1:8, "The eye never sees enough, and the ear never hears enough." And this is true of all desires.
Therefore, the desire for knowledge is not satisfied by the wisdom one has attained, but is more irritated. So the lust for glory and honor is not satisfied by the honor it has obtained, nor is the lust for dominion satisfied by power and dominion, nor is the lust for praise satisfied by praise 2c; as Christ indicates, John 4:13, when he says, "Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again."
So there remains only the one remedy, that one does not cure it by satiating, but by eradicating, that is, that he who wants to become wise does not seek wisdom by going forward, but that he goes backward and becomes a fool in seeking foolishness. Thus, he who wants to become powerful, rich in honors, full of delight, satiated in all things, must rather flee power, honor, pleasure, satiety in all things, than seek them. This is the wisdom that is foolishness to the world.
23. thesis.
And the law works the wrath of God, kills, curses, makes guilty, judges and condemns everything that is not in Christ.
Gal. 3, 13: "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law"; and there [v. 10]: "Those who practice the works of the law are under the curse"; and Rom. 4, 15: "The law only causes wrath"; and Rom. 7, 10: "It was found that the commandment was unto death for me, which was given unto life"; Rom. 2, 12: "They that have sinned against the law shall be condemned by the law." Therefore, he who boasts in the law as wise and learned boasts of his shame, his curse, the wrath of God and death, as it says in Rom. 2:23, "Why do you boast in the law?"
24. thesis.
And yet that wisdom is not evil, nor to flee the law; but man without the theology of the cross misuses the best in the worst way.
For the law is holy [Rom. 7, 12.], and all the gift of God is good [1 Tim. 4, 4.]; all that is created is very good, Gen. 1, 31. But, as is said above, he who is not yet destroyed and made nothing by the cross and suffering attributes works and wisdom to himself, but not to God, and so he misuses the gifts of God and defiles them.
But he who is humbled by suffering does not work, but knows that God works in him and does everything. Therefore, whether he works or not, it is the same for him, he neither boasts when he works, nor is he ashamed when God does not work in him; he knows that it is enough for him when he suffers and is brought to ruin by the cross, to be destroyed more and more. And this is what Christ, John 3:7, says: "Ye must be born again." Therefore, if one must be born anew, he must first die and be raised with the Son of Man; to die, I say, means to feel the present death.
25. thesis.
Not he who works much is righteous, but he who believes much in Christ without work.
For righteousness in the sight of God is not attained by frequently repeated actions, as Aristotle taught, but it is infused through faith; for the righteous lives by faith, Rom. 1:17; and Rom. 10:10 says, "If one believes from the heart, he becomes righteous." Therefore I want the "without works" to be understood in this way: not as if the righteous works nothing, but that his works do not bring about his righteousness, but rather his righteousness does the works. For without our works grace and faith are poured in, after which works follow. Thus it is said in Rom. 3, 20: "By the works of the law no flesh is justified in his sight"; and Rom. 3, 28:
"We therefore hold that a man is justified without works of the law, by faith alone," that is, works do nothing for our justification. Then, because he knows that the works he does by such faith are not his but God's, he does not seek to be justified or glorified by them, but seeks God. His righteousness through faith in Christ is sufficient for him, that is, Christ is his wisdom, righteousness 2c, as it is said in 1 Cor. 1:30, but he himself is Christ's instrument.
26. thesis.
The law says, Do this, and it is never done; grace says, Believe in this, and all is already done.
The first part of the thesis is clear from the apostle and his interpreter, St. Augustine, in many places, and above it is sufficiently said that the law rather works wrath and keeps all under the curse. The second part is clear from the same, for faith justifies, and the law (says St. Augustine) commands what faith attains. For so Christ is in us through faith, yes, one with us. But Christ is righteous, and fulfills all the commandments of God, therefore we also fulfill all things through him, since he became ours through faith.
27. thesis.
Correctly, the work of Christ should be called working, and our work should be called worked, and that thus the worked work is pleasing to God through the grace of the working work.
For since Christ dwells in us through faith, he incites us to works through this living faith in his works. For the works that he does are the fulfillment of God's commandments, given to us through faith; when we look at them, we are moved to follow them. Therefore the apostle says [Eph. 5:1], "Be ye therefore followers of GOD, as the dear children." Thus the works of mercy are kindled by his works, by which he has made us blessed,
As St. Gregory says: "Every action of Christ is our instruction, yes, it moves us. If his action is in us, it lives through faith, because it attracts us powerfully, according to the saying Hohel. 1, 4: "Draw me after you, and we will run after the smell of your ointments", that is, your works.
28. thesis.
The love of God does not find, but creates what is lovable to it; the love of man, however, arises from what is lovable to it.
The second part is clear and accepted by all philosophers and theologians. For the object is the cause of love, in that, according to Aristotle, all the faculty of the soul is suffering and a matter, and is active only by receiving; that he thus also testifies that his philosophy is contrary to theology, since it seeks in everything what is its own, and rather takes the good than gives it. The first part is clear, because the love of God that lives in man loves sinners, the wicked, fools, and the weak, in order to make them righteous, good, wise, and strong, and so rather flows out and gives the good. For therefore sinners are beautiful because they are loved; not are they loved because they are beautiful. Therefore the love of man flees sinners and the wicked. Thus saith Christ [Matt. 9. 13.], "I am not come to call the righteous to repentance, but sinners." And this is the love of the cross, born of the cross, which turns, not where it may find good to enjoy, but where it may dispense good to the poor and needy; for "it is more blessed to give than to receive," saith the apostle [Apost. 20, 35I. That is why Ps. 41:2 says: "Blessed is he who takes care of the needy," since by nature the mind can have nothing to do with what is nothing, namely the poor and needy, but with what is, what is true and good. Therefore he judges according to the appearance and looks at the person of the people and judges according to what is in front of his eyes 2c.
End.