About the book:
"Didn't he write the Ninety-Five Theses?"
Though most Protestants--approximately 900 million believers worldwide--trace their spiritual roots back to the Reformation, many people today have only a vague knowledge of Martin Luther's extensive writings. Jack Kilcrease and Erwin Lutzer step into this vacuum with Martin Luther in His Own Words, a carefully selected collection of Luther's works.
Organized around the five solas of the Reformation (sola Scriptura, sola fide, sola gratia, sola Christus, soli Deo gloria), the selections offer readers an accessible primer on works that are foundational to the theology of Protestantism in all its forms. An introduction to each writing includes an explanation of its historical context and theological significance.
Students of the Bible, pastors, teachers, and seminary students will find this collection an enlightening introduction to Luther in his own words and a useful addition to their libraries.
My review:
This was an interesting and informative book featuring some of the key ideas Martin Luther wrote about. I really appreciated the introduction to each chapter that gave some of the background and circumstances surrounding the writing along with a short summary. A lot of the things he said were pretty amazing considering the time in which he wrote them. He didn't mince words calling out the pope. priests, etc., for the way they were leading people astray, especially for saying we depend on works to get to Heaven, instead of on God's grace. I knew his life was in danger, but hadn't realized how confrontational he was. I also never knew that he wrote so much or that he translated the Bible into German, the language of the people. I also found it interesting to learn about some of the practices the Catholic Church was enforcing, such as not being able to eat certain foods at certain times of the year and actually calling it a sin if you did so. I learned a lot about some of the theological views present then and now; this book really made me think more deeply about my faith. My favorite chapters were about freedom, the views of Christ's suffering and how Christ took our sin. I would recommend this book if you're interested in Martin Luther, the Reformation or theology!
I received this book free from Baker Books.
The Authors
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Jack D. Kilcrease
Jack D. Kilcrease (PhD, Marquette University) is professor of historical and systematic theology at the Institute of Lutheran Theology. He is a church elder at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Grand Rapids. He is the author of The Self-Donation of God: A...
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Erwin W. Lutzer
Erwin W. Lutzer (BTh, Winnipeg Bible College; ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) is pastor emeritus of Moody Church in Chicago. He has led tours to the sites of the Reformation in Europe, including Wittenberg, Worms, Geneva, and Zurich. He is the ECPA Gold...
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