Working Out Works

A caricature of Luther's view would be to deny any role whatsoever to works.  However, Luther does not exclude all works; in fact, he thinks that works are necessary given our current situation of being bodily--but works are not necessary for (nor has any part of) our justification.  Though not necessary, Luther claims that works indeed flow naturally and spontaneously from a life of faith; that is, the life of works is a response to the grace received by faith.

So one should not think that given Luther's faith-alone slogan, there is no room for works.  Certainly there is no place for works when it comes to justification (for Luther), but works are intimately tied to faith:

  "Our faith in Christ does not free us from works but from false opinions concerning works, that is, from the foolish presumption that justification is acquired by works... righteousness does not consist in works, although works neither can nor ought to be wanting; just as we cannot be without food and drink and all the works of this mortal body, yet our righteousness is not in them, but in faith; and yet those works of the body are not to be despised or neglected on that account.  In this world we are bound by the needs of our bodily life, but we are not righteous because of them" (Luther Freedom of a Christian).

(aside:  I can't help but notice the Platonic overtones here, which I take to be antithetical to the proper Christian view of the body, which I plan to write on extensively at some other time).

I won't repeat my worries about Luther's soul/body framework (see previous post); however, one should pause at the relationship between faith and works as espoused by Luther.  According to some of what Luther says, it seems that the works that flow spontaneously and naturally from faith is co-extensional to sanctification in the life of a Christian.  If so, then one should consider what the relationship is between justification and sanctification.

If that's right, then does Luther inadvertently disparage the role of sanctification?  I worry that he may be creating a distinction that undermines the sanctifying process.  For if one is merely justified in the act of believing or in the having of faith, and if one is immediately glorified upon death, then where does sanctification fit in this system?  Of course, one can say Luther considers room for sanctification since he does want to retain works for the Christian.  But if the works Luther regards are merely a matter of temporal affairs, then what is the role of sanctification in the grand scheme of things?

I am not assuming that Luther and others do not (nor cannot) provide an answer.  It's just not currently obvious to me what it could be (and I am willing to be corrected and informed of my ignorance).  My concern is that even if Luther can admit sanctification into his scheme, nevertheless it will be assigned a smaller position than I take it to be from the basis of Scripture (where I take the role of spiritual discipline and transformation to be integral to the sanctifying process, which also includes the body--cf. Romans 12, Romans 6, 1 Corinthians 9, 2 Corinthians 4).

On the other hand, if the works that flow naturally and spontaneously from faith are not co-extensive with the activities and practices of sanctification, then the question still arises as to the place and significance of sanctification.  I take it that sanctification is not a gratuitous appendage tacked on to a believer but is rather an essential element in the whole Christian life.  Any theological system that undermines or disparages the value of sanctification, then, should prima facie be considered dubious without further explanation.  To reiterate, I am not saying that Luther's view has no place for sanctification; what I am saying is that it is hard for me to know just what it could be (though again, I'm open to correction).

One last point.  From purely a Biblical basis, it is not obvious to me that justification and sanctification are as separate and independent as they are often treated.  In fact, much of what is said about justification in Scripture seems to be interchangeable with what is said about sanctification.  Thus, I have a further worry that Luther is making an unwarranted distinction that problematizes how we should think of the spiritual life (especially spiritual growth and maturation).  More to be said on this later!