Be strong in the Lord.
—Ephesians 6:10
From the day Martin Luther nailed those ninety-five theses to the door of the Wittenberg church to the day he appeared at Worms before the most threatening body of church prelates and political moguls of his day, he stood as the embodiment of courage.
Reading his Latin Bible in his tiny cell in the Augustinian convent at Erfurt, he had determined to stand firmly on its teaching, regardless of the consequences.
Today’s Germany not only celebrates the music of Bach, Mendelssohn, Handel, Beethoven, and Wagner, it also celebrates liberation from a corrupt clergy—all because Martin Luther, a sixteenth-century German monk, took a stand against fearsome odds.
Jeers, persecution, and condemnation marked Luther’s pilgrimage. Today, he is an admired hero. Time has a way of correcting corrupt political maneuverings.
When need be, have the courage to take a stand.