For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.”
Martin Luther said that he was born again and entered paradise when he had a breakthrough understanding of Paul’s expression, “The just shall live by faith” (or, “The just by faith shall live”). He saw that Paul was speaking of a righteousness imputed to the sinner who believed in Christ. He called this a “passive righteousness.”
While justification is indeed by faith in Christ, apart from works, that is not the point of Rom 1:16-17.
Salvation in Romans 1 clearly refers to being delivered from God’s wrath during this life. The next verse shows that: “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom 1:18). Note that he says God’s wrath “is revealed.” He did not say it would be revealed in the eschaton.
Luther, like most Protestants today, thought the salvation of Rom 1:16 was salvation from eternal condemnation. However, it is the salvation of believers from God’s wrath during this life.
And verse 17 doesn’t quite say what Luther understood. In light of Hab 2:4 and the epistle to the Romans, it should be translated the just by faith shall [or should] live. Yes, that expression does say that one is just before God by faith. But the emphasis is on the call to live, which is the same as being saved from God’s wrath during this life. Romans is about living for Christ. See especially Romans 5-8.
Here is what Hodges says about Rom 1:16-17:
But where does this take us? The following words express the connection Paul finds between justifying faith and the deliverance he has just mentioned. Thus, according to Scripture (Hab 2:4), “Now the one who is righteous by faith shall live.” The righteous man, therefore, is the one who can live in precisely the sense Paul elaborates in Romans 6–8. In fact, he states, “if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (8:13). Life in the truly Christian sense of that term can only be “lived” by the one who is righteous by faith! (Romans, p. 38, emphases his).
The problem with Luther’s understanding, which is that of most Protestants, is that it misunderstands salvation in Romans. Later in Romans, we learn that to be saved, one must not only believe in Him but also confess and call upon Him (Rom 10:9-10, 13). That skews the understanding of faith in Rom 1:17 to something that includes works.
Luther’s theology shifted over the course of his life. As best I can tell, he initially believed that one is justified before God by faith, apart from works and apart from perseverance. However, later he held that perseverance in faith was required to stay on board the ship of salvation.
I expect to see Luther in the kingdom, since once a person believes, he is secure forever, even if he later stops believing the truth.
I encourage you to meditate on Rom 1:16-17 and to study the words save and salvation in Romans. You’ll be greatly blessed.
Keep grace in focus, and you’ll never forget that justification is by faith, and that justification makes it possible for the believer to live the abundant life God desires for you.
