PPT slidesScript with the story of Martin Luther and the Reformation PPT

500 years ago this year, the Christian church in Europe went through a BIG change. This change became known as the Reformation. There were lots of people and events that came together at this point in history to cause this big change but one man’s name and actions in particular are usually linked to the Reformation. What was his name?

His name was Martin Luther. So who was he and what did he do?

Martin Luther was born in Germany in 1483. He was a bright boy who studied hard. His parents were very hopeful that he would become a lawyer and they sent him to the best schools and university that they could afford.

One night when Luther as a young man was returning to university he got caught in a storm. When a lightning bolt knocked him to the ground, he cried out in fear to be saved. So when he was unharmed, Martin Luther saw this as a sign from God and he promised God that he would give up his law studies to become a monk and serve the church.

This is what he did, even though his parents were not at all pleased. Martin did not want to disappoint his parents, but he wanted to please God even more.

He tried very hard to be a good monk. He prayed long hours, ate little and worked hard. But the more he tried to please God like this the more he felt like a failure. He would ask again and again “What do I have to do to get God to forgive my sins?”

A visit to Rome where the head of the church- the Pope - lived didn’t give him any answers either.

So he returned to Germany where he became a professor at the new University of Wittenberg. The head of the monastery where Luther lived encouraged Luther to read the Bible for answers to his deepest questions.

It was while he was reading Paul’s letter to the Romans that Martin Luther finally understood. It was like a light went on in a dark room!He realised as he read scripture that he didn’t have to earn God’s forgiveness by working hard and being good. Salvation was a FREE gift from God for everyone who believed and had faith in Jesus.

This was very exciting for Martin Luther- finally he had freedom from guilt and was able to trust God.

He wanted others to know this too! But how could he spread this good news?

Not many people in his day could read the Bible for themselves. They had to listen to the priest reading it in Latin which was hard to understand.

The more Luther studied the Bible the more he realised that the priests were also teaching other things about pleasing God and getting to heaven that weren’t even in the Bible.

One of these things was a practice called “indulgences” – where people had to pay money to the priests to buy a place in heaven. This made Luther angry and he wanted to help the church change from this false teaching.

He studied the Bible some more and in Oct 31 1517 he nailed his 95 theses (statements) to the door of the church in Wittenberg (It was THIS event 500 years ago that is most remembered as starting the reformation!)

But how did one set of writings on a church door in a small city in Germany spread throughout Europe?

Students copied and translated the list and sent it throughout Europe.

But the spread of Luther’s ideas was also greatly helped by the invention of the first printing press which could print much faster than hand written or earlier methods of print known as the “Guttenberg Press”.

Many people read these ideas and agreed, but many of the powerful church leaders did not and argued strongly with Luther. Some debates lasted for days and instead of Luther’s hope to change the church from the inside, the Pope forced him to leave the church!

And then Martin Luther was called to defend himself before Charles V, the powerful emperor who ruled over much of Europe. When Martin Luther was asked to take back what he had written, he refused saying:

“Unless I am convinced by proofs from Scriptures or by plain and clear reasons and arguments, I cannot and will not retract - for it is neither safe nor wise to do anything against conscience. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me Amen!”

Martin Luther was declared a traitor who could be killed on sight. However some friends pretended to kidnap him and took him to the Wartburg fortress for safety.

It was while he was there that Martin Luther translated the New Testament from Latin into German for ordinary people.

Luther had experienced the Bible as God’s living word of freedom and he longed for people to read and understand it for themselves.

After some months, although it was still dangerous, Luther was persuaded to return to Wittenberg to a busy life of writing, preaching and working with other reformers to keep bringing change to church life.

One person who read Luther’s teaching was Katherine von Bora, a nun who then very bravely ran away from her convent. In Wittenberg she met and later married Luther and together they had 6 children. Their home was always filled with students from around the world who had come to the University to study with Luther and others. They took this teaching home to their own countries where the protestant church with its many branches began to grow.

With the help of the printing press, Luther and other Reformers translated the whole Bible so ordinary people could read it. They also wrote other material to help people understand and take part in church services with prayers, readings and music.

Luther wrote LOTS of letters, pamphlets, Bible studies and teaching material for parents and children at home. Some of his famous hymns are still sung today! It is estimated that Luther’s complete writings fill more than 100 big fat volumes!

As we remember the Reformation 500 years ago, let’s recall what Martin Luther and others discovered, taught, lived and risked their lives for their belief that:

God’s Word – the Bible - reveals God’s truth and is to be central in our churches and homes.

Salvation is God’s gift to all of us. We cannot earn it by words or deeds. It is given to us by God’s grace alone, through faith in Jesus (Romans 3: 23-24)

Copyright informationSTORY –Compiled by Kids Friendly, researched and rewritten from:‘Martin Luther A man who changed the world’ Author: Paul L Maier, Illustrator: Greg Copeland Concordia Publishing, 2004‘Martin Luther What Should I Do?’ Author: Catherine Mackenzie, Illustrator: Rita Ammassari, Christian Focus Publications, 2013Grow Ministries, Lutheran Church of Australia: Generations In Faith Together – various resourcesSPANZ magazine, Winter 2017, issue 69- Stuart Lange and Peter Matheson

IMAGES:Slide 5 from ‘Martin Luther What Should I Do?’ Author: Catherine Mackenzie, Illustrator: Rita Ammassari, Christian Focus Publications, 2013Slides 4 and 11 from “Martin Luther A man who changed the world” Paul L Maier, Illustrator: Greg Copeland Concordia Publishing, 2004All others from Google images