The Unfinished Reformation
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® Help for Today, Hope for Tomorrow January-February 2016 A Magazine of Understanding September-October 2017 Martin Luther: The Unfinished Reformation 9• Faith: Is It All God Requires for Salvation? 14 Why Does Christianity Reject Christ’s Own Holy Days? 23 • Reflect on God’s Miracles 38 TABLE OF CONTENTS September-October 2017 ® FEATURE ARTICLES 4 Is the Protestant Reformation Being Undone? Five centuries after the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, could we see a reunification of world Christianity? Does Bible prophecy give any indication? 9 Martin Luther: The Unfinished Reformation Five centuries ago Martin Luther started a revolu- tion that changed the world. What’s the story behind the man and the movement he started? 14 Faith: Is It All God Requires for Salvation? Martin Luther’s belief in “faith alone” is a serious theological error with lasting impact to this day. 4 18 What Happened to the Beliefs of the Early Church? Why do you do the things you do and believe what you believe? Do they agree with God’s Word? 23 Why Does Christianity Reject Christ’s Own Holy Days? Protestantism broke with many traditions of the Roman church. Yet it persists in observing unbibli- cal holidays while rejecting the biblical festivals. 27 America: Attacked Abroad, Divided Within 9 27 Is a divided United States entering a time of escalating danger like that spoken of in the Bible? 32 God’s Coming Kingdom: An STUDY SECTIONS Investment in Mankind’s Future At times the heart of a country’s problems lie in 37 Questions and Answers the hearts of its leaders. Yet a wonderful time is Answers to your questions about the Bible and Christian living coming when leaders will not have corrupt hearts. 34 Three Gardens With One DEPARTMENTS Purpose—Now the Next Stop Man’s beginning with God was in a garden, and 30 Current Events and Trends man’s future also awaits in a garden with God. A An overview of events and conditions around the world garden experience in between bridges the divide. 36 Letters From Our Readers 38 When Discouraged, Readers of Beyond Today magazine share their thoughts Reflect on God’s Miracles Feeling discouraged? You might have a great 39 Beyond Today Television Log source of encouragement right at hand! A listing of stations and times for the Beyond Today TV program Photos/illustrations, from top: TomasSereda/iStock/Thinkstock;Photos/illustrations, from top: Scott Ashley 3: Page Hemera Technologies/Photos.com/Thinkstock Venish Martin Cranach; Lucas of painting by Luther Thinkstock/123RF/Shaun Cover 2 Beyond Today • BTmagazine.org EDITORIAL Scott Ashley The Coming Managing editor World Religious sight of the fact that Scripture repeatedly proclaims the Kingdom of God to be the reign of Jesus Christ over the earth at His return (see, for example, Daniel 2:44; Reformation Matthew 6:10; Revelation 11:15). Yes, Bible prophecy tells us that Jesus will establish ew people can claim to have changed the world. His Kingdom on earth, and He will begin the greatest Martin Luther is certainly one of them. In chal- religious reformation the world has ever seen! He will lenging some of the corrupt teachings and prac- initiate “the time for the final restoration of all things, as tices of the Roman church 500 years ago, this God promised long ago through his holy prophets” (Acts German priest and professor set in motion a chain 3:21, New Living Translation). Those prophets consistently Fof events that transformed Europe and broke the hold of the proclaimed that a righteous King would restore God’s Catholic Church over the minds and hearts of the continent. Kingdom to the earth! The result was the Protestant Reformation, which led At that time Jerusalem will become the international to millions leaving the center of religion and Catholic Church to try to government: “All nations reform Christianity. From shall flow to it . and say, that small beginning ‘Come, and let us go up to sprang dozens, then the mountain of the Lord hundreds, and eventually . and we shall walk in thousands of churches His paths” (Isaiah 2:2-3). and denominations—each The world will be holding different beliefs, taught true, biblical yet each claiming to be Christianity, the heart of Christian. which includes faith-filled While Luther’s attempts Interior view of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican in Rome. obedience to God: “Then at changing the Catholic I will give them one heart, Church were partly successful, in the final analysis they went and I will put a new spirit within them . and give them a nowhere near far enough. By his time, in the early 1500s, the heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep Roman church had assimilated centuries of ideas, teachings My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and practices from other religions, just as Roman religion and I will be their God” (Ezekiel 11:19-20). had done in earlier centuries. At that time the world’s universal religion—true Catholicism had adopted as its major holidays Easter Christianity—will include observance of the religious and Dec. 25—the first being a resurrection celebration of festivals of the Bible that were kept by Jesus and His completely different gods of pagan antiquity and the latter disciples. “It shall come to pass that everyone who is left of being the birthday of the sun god, as any encyclopedia or all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up Internet search will clearly show. from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, From Greek philosophy the church had taken the ideas and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles” (Zechariah 14:16; of the immortal soul and going to heaven or hell at death. compare Leviticus 23:34). From sun-worship it appropriated Sunday, the first day of The biblical Sabbath, the seventh day of the week (from the week, as its weekly day of rest and worship. The coming Friday sundown to Saturday sundown in biblical reckoning Kingdom of God as taught by Jesus Christ, the apostles of time), will also be required of all people: “‘. From one and the biblical prophets, was replaced with an earthly Sabbath to another, all flesh shall come to worship before kingdom in the form of the church. Me,’ says the Lord” (Isaiah 66:23). Luther, who proclaimed sola scriptura—that we should We hope you’ll carefully read the articles in this issue to follow Scripture alone—should’ve put his words into better understand the right and truly needed religious refor- practice and led a real reform by going back to the original mation that is coming for the entire world—and how you can teachings of Jesus Christ and the apostles. Had he done so, be a part of the greatest changes the world has ever seen! the world would be far different! It’s a shame that today’s Christianity largely believes itself to be the Kingdom of God on earth and has lost Photos/illustrations, from top: TomasSereda/iStock/Thinkstock;Photos/illustrations, from top: Scott Ashley 3: Page Hemera Technologies/Photos.com/Thinkstock Venish Martin Cranach; Lucas of painting by Luther Thinkstock/123RF/Shaun Cover BTmagazine.org • September-October 2017 3 EXPLORING GOD’S WORD When the Catholic monk Martin Luther challenged the Catholic Church with his Ninety-five Theses, few could’ve foreseen the upheaval and division that would result. Now, 500 years later, could we see a reunification of world Christianity? Does Bible prophecy give any indication? by Peter Eddington as a major split ever occurred in your congregation underlying current is quietly sweeping through the Lutheran or church denomination? It’s a sad fact of life that Church as the Catholic Church in Rome gathers increasing church splits have been common throughout the support that could eventually see Luther’s dreams undone. 2,000 years since Jesus founded His Church. Lutherans and Catholics receiving communion H Five centuries ago the dominant branch of the traditional Christian religion, the Roman Catholic Church, As we study the modern relationship between Catholics and faced a serious schism as one of its priests and theologians, the Lutherans, we can’t help but notice a softening of the barrier now-famous Martin Luther, came to reject several teachings that drove these two faiths apart starting in 1517. The wedge and practices of the church. Among the disputes, Luther that initially divided them is gradually being pulled out. Is the strongly took issue with the Catholic view on indulgences Reformation losing its identity? and that freedom from God’s punishment for sin could be On July 5, 2017, in Wittenburg, Germany—the same town purchased with money. where Martin Luther openly attacked church practice and The year 2017 marks the 500th anniversary of Martin teaching 500 years ago, setting in motion the Protestant Luther’s Ninety-five Theses, which tradition claims was affixed Reformation—the World Communion of Reformed Churches to the door of the castle church of Wittenberg on Oct. 31, 1517 (representing 80 million believers) agreed to the Joint Declara- (though the story is a matter of dispute). The Theses launched tion on the Doctrine of Justification, previously agreed to in what would become known as the Protestant Reformation. 1999 by Catholics and Lutherans, and by Methodists in 2006. Luther was later excommunicated, his Theses rejected by Pope “Together with great joy, today’s formal act brings new Leo X in 1520. This split in Christianity was the second major challenges and responsibilities in our pursuit of fidelity to breakup after the Orthodox split of the 11th century.