Luther: The Movie
http://www.lutherthemovie.com/

I left the theater shaken. Barely able to control my legs and the urge to just fall to my knees and cry out to God, the movie “Luther” was quite literally a religious experience. This is the first time that I have seen a major motion picture in a theater and found myself moved by the Holy Spirit during it! Joseph Fiennes brings “Martin Luther” to life in this film about the 16th century “Father of Protestantism.”

In real life, Martin Luther was a devout priest (with an interesting sense of humor) who originally intended to enact change in the Catholic Church. His concerns were printed in his “95 Thesis.” It is important to note that the “95 Thesis” did not deny the existence of purgatory, the need for formal confession, the need for penance, or the supremacy of the Pope. His primary complaint was that the selling of indulgences (which were writs from the church which could be purchased in order to shorten or bypass time in purgatory for either the living or the dead) went against the idea of salvation by faith alone. However, the church reacted strongly (since the sell of indulgences was a major source of revenue for funding the building of Saint Peter’s Basilica and for financing the empire’s wars) and Martin Luther was told to recant. Martin refused and it was then that he began to view the Catholic Church as opposed to the truth and, therefore, opposed to God.

As the split between the Catholic Church and Luther became more heated (and Luther’s views became more widely known and popular), he developed his belief that the Pope was the Antichrist and the Catholic Church was the “Whore of Babylon” spoken of in Biblical prophecy. In writings such as “A Prelude on the Babylonian Captivity of the Church”, he denounced such practices as confession to priests and penance. Due to the threats to his life, Luther was forced to hide out in a friend’s castle where he performed the first translation of the Bible into a common language (German) so that everyone could read the Bible for themselves.

But there were some unintended consequences to Luther’s writings. They sparked the “Peasant’s War” (even though Luther opposed it) which was a grassroots uprising for religious, political, and economic rights. The revolution was eventually put down and cost an estimated 100,000 lives.

And Luther was not without a dark side. His later writings not only caused but advocated violence against Jews (“Jews and Their Lies”) and Anabaptists (who did not believe in the baptism of children). And some of his stances on issues such as treatment of those who disagree with his theology, no need for separation of church and state, and others might make most modern Protestants uncomfortable. However, he was only a sinful man, and God choose to use him to bring about great good.

But back to the movie…there were several lines which really struck home with me:

“One preaches best what one needs to learn most.”

“When the devil says that you deserve hell and damnation for your sins, say ‘Yes, and what of it? I have a savior who paid in my place.’”

The courage, faith, and “no compromise” attitude conveyed by Luther was truly inspiring. Throughout the movie there were great expositions of solid Christian doctrine. What a refreshing change! I found myself on the verge of tears on several occasions as I heard many of the precious promises of Christianity boldly spoken from the screen of a commercial theater (instead of the ridicule we’re used to hearing from the screen concerning Christianity).

I strongly encourage anyone who loves the Lord to go see this movie! I intend to buy it on DVD as soon as it comes out! I praise God that great movies that also accurately portray the Gospel are now coming out in theaters! With “The Gospel of John” and “The Passion of Christ” coming out next, perhaps we’re seeing a trend! There’s a great hunger for God now and we need to take advantage of it!

John 4:35 Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, and then comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest.