What is Religion According to Luther?

We are all sinners in God’s eyes, as Luther says repeatedly in this essay. The root of all sin, the flesh, is something with which we must continually battle if we wish to reach Heaven in the afterlife. However, there is no way of consciously battling against the flesh. Neither is there any conscious way of appeasing God with one’s goodwill and giving nature. These works, as Luther points out, are not virtues at all, but rather a sign of interior sin, for “[one does] these things without a free desire and love of the Law, with loathing and under restraint.” At this point in the Preface, I found myself wondering, wouldn’t a truly holy person do good works and love them in his heart? Could there be no exception to the seeming rule that good works indicate inner sin? Luther addresses this at a later point, saying that there is no person good enough, who keeps the Law so well, that he should be so virtuous as to want to do good works without thought of himself and his salvation. If no such person exists, then how does any person arrive in Heaven? The answer is simple; Paul is quoted as saying, “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” Luther explains, “They must be saved without any merit of theirs, by faith in Christ.” There is no sinless person. There is no way to enter Heaven on one’s own. Faith in Christ is our only hope of salvation, and as it seems, there is no sinner so great as to not be extended this favor, unless his faith in Christ lessens for his belief in his ultimate salvation. Therefore, it is almost unnecessary to do good in one’s life; only true faith would instill in us the desire to do so, but none has such faith as to do such good. Therefore, any outer sign of good is a sign of inner sin. No worries, though; Christ will save all those who follow him. What, then, is the good of being good?