The following account of Martin Luther is taken from a message by John Piper. I love the truth of God's sovereignty he so plainly speaks of, and how history has only but proven this truth! God uses us—weak, fearful, confused sinners—to accomplish His great plans and purposes in spite of ourselves. As I read my Bible this morning, new gratefulness for men like Calvin and Luther and even Frederick of Saxony who protected Luther, flooded over me. They stood boldly to preserve this precious Word and to teach it faithfully to all who would listen. Yes, God is a redeemer, not only of our foolish decisions, but of our foolish hearts which, without His love first poured out, would never have turned to Him."Luther was born November 10, 1483 in Eisleben to a copper miner who wanted him so badly to be a lawyer. And he was on his way to being a lawyer. In 1502, at the age of 19, he received his Bachelors degree, ranking, unimpressively, 30th of 57 in his class. In January, 1505 he received his Master of Arts at Erfurt and ranked second among 17 candidates. That summer the providential Damascus-like experience happened.
On July 2, on the way home from law school, he was caught in a thunderstorm and was literally knocked off his horse by lightening. Luther was so frightened that he cried out, 'Help me, St. Anne; I will become a monk.' In other words, since he did not know the safety of the gospel, he took the next best thing which was the safety of the monastery. And to his father's utter dismay, he kept his vow two weeks later. On July 17, 1505 he knocked at the gate of the Augustinian Hermits in Erfurt and asked to be accepted, which he was. Now later on he admitted that was a blatant sin—what he did. He went against his father’s will and he did it out of fear. Then he added, 'But oh, how much good the merciful Lord has allowed to come of it!' And just a parenthetical encouragement to you, reading biography and church history is so hope-giving because you see the providence of God overcoming foolish decisions. And some of you right now are in crises because of very stupid decisions that you’ve made. And you are wondering whether there is any future for marriage, for parenting, for ministry. And the answer is: The sovereignty of God manifest in this ungodly, carnal decision of Martin Luther, that sovereignty of God is great enough to do wonders through your stupid decisions. Because He did... with Martin Luther."
Take a minute to read through the article. It is sure to edify...
Martin Luther: Lessons from His Life and Labor
John Piper, Bethlehem Baptist Pastor’s Conference, 1996.
