Reformation Doctrine (130)
  1. The only solution to free will is the announcement from a preacher that the Father forgives us for Christ's sake.
  2. The point Luther made, again and again, was that distance between God and sinners is collapsed when the crucified Christ himself comes to sinners through a preacher.
  3. Theologians of glory searched for God everywhere except the Cross of Christ.
  4. For Luther, those who refuse Christ as a curse want their sin removed not in Christ but in themselves.
  5. Erasmus sought to find meaning behind the words of Scripture in order to make an ultimate claim. Luther, on the other hand, found the Gospel to be meaningless outside of Christ and his Cross.
  6. Luther understood when the Word of God came it did not offer sinners a choice.
  7. For Luther, Erasmus’ Christ-less, Spirit-less theological conclusions demonstrated that behind his supposed humanistic optimism lay a profound despair and pessimism.
  8. For Erasmus, it would be better for people in general to bear the disease of moralism and choice than to be cured of it by the preaching and teaching of God’s unconditional election of sinners in Christ.
  9. When explaining that sinners were saved by grace alone Erasmus would not go so far as to say that the reception of God’s grace erased human responsibility.
  10. Erasmus laid out his argument for a theology of grace and free will in much the same way modern Protestants have done since the Enlightenment.
  11. Luther's response to Erasmus was not meant to be a polite contribution to an academic duel.
  12. Luther’s allies and opponents also would not allow him to put off responding to Erasmus indefinitely. They badgered him constantly to write a response.
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