Sin Boldly: Martin Luther's Letter to Melanchthon

For those who think Martin Luther was an antinomian when he said, "Sin boldly," it might be well to read the context of the remark. Obviously Luther is referring to the Roman Catholic prohibition of marriage for priests and nuns:

13. If you are a preacher of mercy, do not preach an imaginary but the true mercy. If the mercy is true, you must therefore bear the true, not an imaginary sin. God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong, but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world. We will commit sins while we are here, for this life is not a place where justice resides. We, however, says Peter (2 Peter 3:13) are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth where justice will reign. It suffices that through God's glory we have recognized the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world. No sin can separate us from Him, even if we were to kill or commit adultery thousands of times each day. Do you think such an exalted Lamb paid merely a small price with a meager sacrifice for our sins? Pray hard for you are quite a sinner.

The opening lines of the letter prove that the context has to do with marriage of priests:

2. By the way, St. Paul very freely speaks about the priests (1 Timothy 4:1-3), that devils have forbidden them to marry; and St. Paul's voice is the voice of the divine majesty. Therefore, I do not doubt that they must depend on him to such a degree that even though they agreed to this interdiction of the devil at the time, now--having realized with whom they made their contract--they can cheerfully break this contract.

3. This interdiction by the devil, which is clearly shown by God's Word, urges and compels me to sanction the actions of the Bishop of Kemberg. For God does not lie nor deceive when He says that this is an interdiction from the devil. If a contract has been made with the devil it must not endure since it was made in godless error against God and was damned and repudiated by God. For He says very clearly (1 Timothy 4:1 Vulgate) that those spirits are in error who are the originators of the interdictions.

To read the original letter from Martin Luther to Phillip Melanchthon click here: Let Your Sins Be Strong.