Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain of God's favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it. Such confidence and knowledge of God's grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures. The Holy Spirit makes this happen through faith. Because of it, you freely, willingly and joyfully do good to everyone, serve everyone, suffer all kinds of things, love and praise the God who has shown you such grace.
Widely recognized as the as one of the founding fathers of the Protestant Reformation, his writings sparked a divergent path in the Christian church and got him excommunicated from the Catholic Church. And while his work and writing on the Grace of God became the foundation for Protestant theology, by modern terms he was far from perfect. His later-life writing on Judaism was deeply anti-Semitic and widely referenced by the Nazis during World War II.
For better and worse, his life and work have had a profound impact on the world we live in today. He died this day in 1546.
Originally published on The Minot Voice: February 18, 2015