October 31 is always a day that impels us to stand still and remember the great deeds of the Lord which He wrought at the end of the Middle Ages.

The darkness was thick that prevailed everywhere; religion had degenerated into a crude superstition, and instead of the Word of God, all sorts of human institutions ruled over the people.

Instead of the justification of the sinner before God only by faith, the doctrine was set up that man may be justified by works, while the doctrine of indulgences gave occasion to an abominable corruption of morale.

Pope Urban II (about 1100) had already instituted these indulgences. All those that marched to the promised land, there to fight against the unbelievers, were promised forgiveness of sin.

At the time of the Reformation, Pope Leo I sat on the papal seat in Rome since 1513.

Leo I was a descendent from the noble family of Medici, as could be observed in his inclinations and characteristics. He was highly polished in his manners, but very sensual; he had made his court perhaps the most brilliant court of Europe. In his palace were found all pomp and splendour which could be imagined, while no religious faith obstructed him in anything.

The religion of Christendom he called the "Great Fable" coming from ancient times and with which he had to content himself because he was indebted to that for his powerful seat, and for that reason he called the fable of Christ profitable.

That was spoken by a man who dared to call himself a vicar of Christ.

Due to his squandering, the treasury became depleted, and since at the same time he wanted to continue the building of St. Peter's church at Rome, he wrote out an indulgence by which he offered forgiveness of sin to all who would support him with money in his undertaking.

This indulgence, written in 1517, would be of special power and would extend over all of Christendom. The indulgence would not only be in force for the living, but would also serve for the deliverance of the deceased in purgatory.

The elector and the archbishop of Mainz and Magdeburg received the charge to have that trade carried on also in Germany, and there charged Tetzel, a Dominican monk, with its execution.

This Tetzel was a former inquisitor, had sold indulgences before already, and thus for this purpose he was a man of experience.

He was someone with a suspicious past. On a former occasion, because of a horrible crime, he had been condemned to be sewed in a sack and drowned, but because of the intercession of powerful friends, this sentence was not carried out.

Tetzel commenced to travel through the German empire being supplied with a large, red-painted cross with the papal coat of arms upon it. When his cortege, consisting of mules with bags full of indulgences, drew near to a city, it was announced to the inhabitants that the grace of God and of the Holy Father had appeared before the gates of their city.

Monks and nuns joined themselves to that procession, and the red cross was placed in the church opposite to the high altar while an iron chest was placed there for the money.

Then Tetzel, dressed as a Dominican monk, began to show from the pulpit the precious value of the indulgences, on which occasion he finished his address with: "Hasten, come and buy before the time to buy is past. When this cross is laid down, then the time is past, then the gate of heaven is closed, and then too late, you would begin to knock and lament your foolishness that you have neglected to provide yourself with those things which are then no longer within your reach."

Thus spake this monk, misrepresenting the Word of God which calls to us, "Come, buy and eat, without money and without price."

But the people remained ignorant of that Word. It lay hidden in the libraries which were inaccessible to the laity, also because it was in the Latin language.

He even sold indulgences for sins which still were to be committed.

The forgiveness which had been paid for to the pope, reconciled so perfectly with God that no more penalty was necessary. With respect to the deceased in purgatory, it was said:

As soon as the money sounds in the chest
That soul leaps into heaven's rest.

It is no wonder that in this way the people surrendered themselves to those abominable sins. Thus, for instance, for murder an indulgence cost 8, for polygamy 6, for church robbery and perjury 9, and for witchcraft 2 ducats.

At that time Luther, the monk of Wittenberg, made his appearance.

Although he had not yet broken with Rome, since the light of the Gospel had not yet broken through into his soul, in his preaching and in the confessional he had sharply condemned the indulgence trade, pointing out that only for the sins which were confessed sincerely and with repentance, an indulgence could be given.

He even addressed himself to a trio of bishops of Mainz, Meissen and Lebus, but they gave him an evasive answer. None dared to oppose the thousands of monks that followed Tetzel until he came also to Wittenberg to continue his horrible practice in the city of Luther.

Thousands flocked to Tetzel, and there were even those who appealed to the indulgence of Tetzel, when after confession Luther gave them no absolution.

Tetzel was furious at the man who had dared to express himself contemptuously about the papal indulgences.

A fire was kindled in the market place to demonstrate what must be done with the man who dared to obstruct that "holy work".

But Luther, who was still of the opinion that the pope and the bishop of Mainz were ignorant of the wickedness of this sale of indulgences, did not keep silence.

He pointed out to the people that God does net demand satisfaction from the sinner since Christ has paid for the sins, and that God grants forgiveness "freely" while the church can only forgive those sins which had been committed against itself, but not those against God.

But the church of Rome agreed more with Tetzel than with Luther.

Thus October 31 dawned.

On November 1, or All Saint's Day, the relics would be exhibited by the priests, and great multitudes flocked to Wittenberg, and as they supposed, to strengthen their faith and to merit the indulgence which was connected with visiting the church.

Thus, on the eve of this Romish feast day, Wittenberg was crowded. Luther could have availed himself of no more suitable occasion to execute his plan. Armed with his 95 theses, he moved through the crowd and directed his steps to the Castle church of Wittenberg where he fastened the 95 theses to the church door with the offer to defend them publicly the next day.

This act prompted the blessed Reformation.

In two weeks the theses were distributed throughout all of Germany, and no one appeared the following day to refute them.

The 21^st thesis says, "Therefore those preachers of indulgences are in error who allege that through the indulgences of the pope a man is freed from every penalty."

And the 32^nd thesis says, "Those who think themselves sure of salvation through their letters of pardon will be damned forever along with their teachers."

As was evident from other theses, at that time Luther was still a Roman Catholic. The papacy, purgatory and the merits of the saints were not rejected by him.

The act of Luther was not disapproved of by all. A number of monks, who sought peace in fasting and prayer and self-chastisement, agreed with Luther.

But greater was the number of those who found more pleasure in a lazy and luxurious life, and who were furious about Luther's act.

However, the work of the Reformation continued.

God's Spirit continued to work in the heart of Luther, and while creeping on his bare knees up the Pilate's stairs in Rome to find rest and peace for his soul, the light descended into his heart when the word, "The just shall live by faith," was applied to his soul.

Henceforth the free grace of God, without merit of works, but only by faith in Christ, was preached by Luther, and Luther was used in God's hand to introduce the Reformation of the Church.

These things we commemorate on October 31. How unspeakably great is the benefit which God has given us thereby.

What would have become of us if the Reformation had not yet made its appearance, if the times of the Middle Ages with its works of darkness had not been followed by times in which God's Word was placed as a light upon a candlestick?

For that reason, how this day should lead us to true gratitude before Him, Who wrought the Reformation also in our country; also to humiliation and confession of guilt since America has departed so far and has forgotten God's deeds.

A generation has risen up which has departed from the sound doctrine according to God's Word as it was preached by our fathers; a generation which on the one hand, like the atheists, denies the existence of God, while on the other hand, like the modernists, attack Christ in His Sonship, or like the remonstrants and liberals, turn to Pelagianism.

But the saddest of all is that so many who call themselves Reformed do not consider the difference with Rome so great so that salvation could also be found in Rome.

Some dare to say that it is only the church walls which separate us, and as Bavinck once said about Schaepman that they shall meet each other in heaven again.

In politics, they walk together with Rome supposing that thereby the revolution could be checked; with Rome which brings an altogether different Gospel than the church of the Reformation.

How should we then, with Rome, be able to place the Gospel, the complete Word of God, against the revolution?

Some help Rome by sending an ambassador to the pope, to the pope who calls all Bible Societies a pest, and who curses all heretics such as Luther and Calvin and others.

His seat has become drunk with the blood of the saints, which for the sake of their faith, were stretched out, were broken upon the wheel, were scourged, were strangled, were buried alive, drowned and burned.

They walk with Rome that more and more obtains power in our country, and that with the help of those who call themselves Reformed, whose eyes are blinded supposing that Rome is no longer as bad as formerly.

Yea, what remains of that which the Reformation brought us?

There are certainly all reasons for a deep abasement before the Lord, so that He will not deliver us into the hands of our enemies.

May this be the fruit of the commemoration of this day. That it may please Him to work reformingly with His Spirit in our hearts.

Only then shall the work of the Reformation obtain the right significance for us, when we also learn to know that which was the deepest motive of our fathers in their struggle against Rome, namely, The grace of God freely.