What Do Lutherans Believe?

Lutheran is a large branch of Western Christianity, and is based on the teachings of Martin Luther. They place a lot of emphasis on determinism and stringent faith. It’s an interesting and exciting religion, and one that—even if you don’t agree with it—it’s important to know the history and the beliefs of it. 

So exactly what do Lutherans believe? As a branch of Christianity, their core beliefs are very similar. They believe that Jesus Christ was resurrected, they believe in the Holy Trinity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. They believe in the Immaculate Conception and birth of Jesus.

Lutherans and Heaven

However, the specifics of the Lutheran beliefs differ from general Christianity. Their central doctrine is the doctrine of justification. This means that Lutherans believe they are saved by God’s grace alone. Their actions in their daily lives will not influence their passage into Heaven, or their passage into Hell. This grace is granted because of Jesus’ sacrifice.

Lutherans also believe that you can tell who is destined to be saved, and who is not by their daily actions. Those who are pious, good, and do not indulge in sins must be destined for Heaven. On the other hand, those who gamble, drink, and commit sins are destined for Hell. It’s important to understand that Lutherans do not believe these actions influence your passage into Heaven or your passage into Hell. Rather, that those who are meant for saving will simply be good.

Lutherans and Sin

Lutherans believe that every human thought and action is infected with sin, and sinful motives. They believe that all of humanity deserves to go to Hell. This is the reasoning behind their justification doctrine—no good deed that an individual does will ever be enough to make up for their human nature. Only through faith, and faith alone, is there the possibility that an individual can be saved.

Lutherans and the Sacraments

Lutherans believe in the sacraments, and consider them sacred acts that were passed along by divine institution. However, unlike Roman Catholicism, the Lutherans do not have a set number of sacraments.

The Lutherans believe in Baptism and the Holy Communion. Some sects might support the idea of Confession, but the same type of private confession as seen in Roman Catholicism is not practiced. However, they hold that Baptism is a saving work of God and it was mandated by Jesus Christ. Lutherans, however, believe that baptisms work as a type of forgiveness of sins. Thus, they administer baptism to both infants and adults. This is another split from Roman Catholicism, in which baptism is for infants only.

The Reformation

In 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the door of a Church in Germany. This is known to be the start of the Reformation. The Reformation was a period of time in which individuals began to cite disputes with the Catholic Church.

The Catholic Church had been the largest and most significant religion in Europe for centuries. However, the Reformation was the beginning of a period in which a number of new Christian branches were formed. The majority of these branches, although separate from each other, can be grouped under the name, “Protestant.”

Indulgences

The major grievance that Martin Luther had with the Catholic Church was over the practice of “indulgences.” An indulgence was essentially a gift of money to the Church. In exchange for this money, you were promised that you would not have to go to Purgatory.

Purgatory was a waiting period before you were allowed into Heaven—it was for individuals that weren’t malicious enough to go straight to Hell, but were not good enough to go to Heaven. Essentially, indulgences were a way to buy your way into Heaven. Luther vehemently opposed this practice, and believed there was no such way to “buy” your way into Heaven.