Sin Boldly

There is a famous brief quotation attributed to Martin Luther that goes like this… “Sin boldly.” Sin boldly. Or sometimes, “Love God and sin boldly.”  

At first hearing, it sounds like the opposite of what a pastor should be encouraging his congregants to do. We don’t want you to sin – boldly or not! Hadn’t Luther read the Apostle Paul when he clearly said we should not sin all the more so that grace will abound? Is this some kind of antinomian encouragement to sin brazenly, since after all the Lord forgives anyway? And of course the answer is, yes, Luther had read the Book of Romans. And no, he is not encouraging us to sin. 

In context, this quotation comes from a letter he wrote to his colleague and successor, Philip Melanchthon. And this is what he says: 

“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 (or ‘sin boldly’), but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world.”

What this means then is we ought to be real with ourselves. We must be honest. If we really believe in God’s mercy, and not an imaginary mercy, then let us acknowledge our sin for what it really is. Sin boldly – let your sins really be sins, that you may be forgiven. As the Apostle John wrote, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” But “if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:8–9). 

And so here at this Table, God’s grace is made tangible for you. Never think of it as abstract or unattainable. It is as real as your sin. Take hold of His mercy as you take hold of this bread and wine. And come, and welcome, to Jesus Christ.