On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther publicly posted 95 thought-provoking messages. They were updated for the Heidelberg Disputation held the next year.

This part is not controversial: “The love of man comes into being through that which is pleasing to it.” A man marries a woman he finds attractive. Their children flock to their peers with the coolest phones. The irony is that this human love, this ugly selfishness, is not lovable. If even our love cannot please God, then how can he possibly love us?

Answer: “The love of God does not find, but creates, that which is pleasing to it.” He sent his only begotten Son, the completely selfless Jesus of Nazareth, to pay for the selfishness of the entire world. My selfishness. Your selfishness. Because of God‘s unconditional love, he forgives the selfishness of everyone who believes this good news. By making the legal record of their selfishness null and void, he creates attractiveness in them that they did not have in themselves.

The message continues, “… sinners are attractive because they are loved; they are not loved because they are attractive…” That is the Lutheran Reformation. Happy Reformation Day!