THE CANADA LUTHERAN. 3 men. , Men are the instruments through which the Holy Spirit carries on the work of salvation. If you do not become a member of the church, and give God's Spirit the opportunity-of working through you for the advancement and enlargement of His Kingdom, you are a religious "slacker," you are guilty of perhaps, the greatest of all sins, the sin of omission. "Your country needs you," is the slogan we read everywhere to-day but alongside of it should also be the slogan, "Your God needs you." The fourth reason is that every one needs the spiritual blessings which the church has to offer. You serve the world because you believe that the world has more to offer you. But all the world has to offer you is the temporary pleasures of sin. With the passing of the world will pass away the world's pleasures. On the other hand the church offers, you the blessings of God, blessings which neither man can give nor take away. What are they? They are forgiveness, love, peace, joy, and life. And they are eternal blessings. If you choose the church these blessings will not "fade away," hut, they will be your inheritance forever. THE TORONTO "GLOBE" ON LUTHER. [We reprint herewith the "Globe's" verdict on Luther, clipped from the issue of Oct. 31st--Reformation Day. "The Lutheran" has also published this and has appended the following: "In England and Canada the war has seriously reacted against the Reformation celebration because Luther happens to be a German, and it is encouraging to note that the Editor of Canada's leading newspaper refuses to hold the greatest apostle of real democracy since the days of Paul responsible for a war which a pernicious and hellish diplomacy created."--W. H. Knauff.] Luther and His Work. On the 31st of October, 1517, Martin Luther nailed to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg his 95 theses, an act which marked the beginning of the Reformation, and it is impossible that a centenary of such importance should pass by unremembered. Apart from every other con- sideration, Christians in the British Empire will not allow the war to prevent their recalling their debt to Martin Luther, especially as he was far more Saxon than Prussian. He little knew what his act was destined to accomplish, and in view of a number of circumstances at the present time it is essential to inquire into the specific meaning of this celebration. One word gives the answer: Liberty. Luther brought freedom to the world, and in this respect he was what has been termed the unconscious herald of democracy, equalizing the humblest member of the community. The religious liberty which he obtained has led to every other form of legitimate freedom, and although liberty has often been abused during the last four hundred years, no abuse can for a moment be a reason for any betrayal or denial of freedom. The world today is a freer place to breathe in, and a far better place to work, with greater opportunities and more inspiring hopes, because of what Luther did. It is, therefore, worth while seeking to discover the roots of this freedom. First of all, it was the freedom of a direct approach to God. Luther found and opened the door that sets the sinner face to face with. God in Christ, and the great doctrine of justification by faith meant,- and still means, the free, unrestricted access of the soul to God, and with it the gift of Divine grace. Faith was no mere insistence on intellectual orthodoxy, but the outgoing and committal of the whole personality--thought, feeling, and will--to God, Who desires to save, and Who welcomes our response to His approach. Whatever may be said of the dangers of individualism in religion, the direct relation of the soul to God is the fundamental truth emphasized by Luther, and by that truth men are made and kept free. Luther called his doctrine the "article of a standing or falling Church." This ,is true, and he might have said with equal accuracy, the "article of a standing or falling soul." Luther's work also involved the freedom of a direct appeal to Scripture as the supreme authority for the conscience. It regarded the Bible as the Divine Word which spoke straight to the soul and elicited a response of trust and obedience. The political world to-day is in revolt against autocracy, and it was exactly this revolt -that Luther proclaimed in the domain of religion. Luther's emphasis on the Bible as the direct, Divine revelation to man was the insistence upon the freedom of the individual soul to- listen to and learn from God Himself. It was the effort of the Reformation (Continued on page 16.)