Page 20 - 08 Luther Before the Diet

been made the drudge of the convent, now

entered the pulpit.

To a crowded assembly he spoke from the

words of Christ, “Peace be unto you.”

“Philosophers, doctors, and writers,” he said,

“have endeavored to teach men the way to

obtain everlasting life, and they have not

succeeded. I will now tell it to you: ... God has

raised one Man from the dead, the Lord Jesus

Christ, that He might destroy death, extirpate

sin, and shut the gates of hell. This is the

work of salvation.... Christ has vanquished!

this is the joyful news; and we are saved by

His work, and not by our own.... Our Lord

Jesus Christ said, ‘Peace be unto you; behold

My hands;’ that is to say, Behold, O man! it is

I, I alone, who have taken away thy sin, and

ransomed thee; and now thou hast peace,

saith the Lord.”