Christians are quite often tempted to use improper means in the spiritual warfare and trials in which they find themselves. In our time, some, out of religious zeal, have likely written Madalyn Murray unchristian, hate letters. Others likely have yielded to the passion of taking part in some religious war. Peter took a sword and started to use it when enemies of Jesus came to seize the Lord.

Martin Luther faced the question of proper means in the time of the reformation. There was considerable non-Christian and carnal Christian support for what Luther was doing. Many hated the authoratarianism and slavery in the Romanism of his day and were would-be helpers of him.

A prominent example of this was a man by the name of Ulrich von Hutten.

Hutten was a German humanist and writer. In fact he was the "ablest leader" of the humanists at that time. He was outspoken, forceful, and capable. He wrote many pamphlets and a most famous writing called "The Roman Trinity" in which he grouped criticisms of Rome in several groups of three. Here are a couple of examples as quoted by Schaff:

"Three things keep Rome in power: the authority of the pope, the bones of saints, and the traffic in indulgences." "Three things are necessary in Rome to gain a lawsuit: money, letters of recommendation, and lies."

Von Hutten was particularly biting in his criticism of the popes saying "for centuries no genuine successor of Peter had sat in his chair in Rome, but successors and imitators of Simon Magus, Nero" and other unjust men.

Von Hutten had boldness and could effectively expose hypocrisy but he did not have Luther's love of 'the saving "gospel" nor his godly heart. He was all too ready to fight evil with evil.

Now this prominent leader offered his services to Luther, "his pen and his sword". He also offered him, through the name of another prominent humanist, Franz von Sickingen, a place of safety where other dissidents of the Roman church were sheltered. These overtures of friendship and sympathy no doubt appealed to the often harassed Luther but he took careful heed.

He liked what the humanists stood for in one way, and what they stood against, some of the same abuses that he crusaded against. Yet he didn't sense a spiritual kinship with them and he felt they were too shallow and rash. Above all, he didn't agree with their advocacy of physical force. Luther wrote to Spalatin exclaiming, "you see what Hutten wants. I would not have the gospel defended by violence and murder". Luther did not want to countenance the use of a sword to force reform. Like Paul he could say, we are not carrying on a worldly !var, for the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but have divine power to destroy strongholds". He believed, Schaff declared, that the Word of God must be the conquering tool and force, that the sword of the Spirit was the God-used weapon to triumph over evil. So he declined to become too close with the humanists.

However, von Hutten was persistent in arousing the passions of others. An archbishop and the Elector of Trier were attacked and von Hutten's friend, von Sickingen, was mortally wounded and his castles were captured and some of them burned. Luther believed that this outcome was a "judgment of God" and became even more sure that trying to advance a good cause by such means was wrong.

Von Hutten also found little sympathy when he fled to Basel to Erasmus. Erasmus gave him a cool welcome.

Von Hutten later died at the young age of thirty-five and Luther believed that God was teaching in this that it is "not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts" (Schaff). It was the Spirit and the Word (prominent Reformed themes) that God wanted to use to promote Christ's kingdom and His gospel.

It is well to question ourselves, do we always resist the temptation to use carnal means to promote what we believe are good ends. Don't we too often, in our lives, resort to some type of questionable force to push through things? Don't we sometimes do, what Christ rejected in temptation, accept the offer of some type of "angels" to see us through? We may use some "strong man" or lobbyist more than looking to God.

Canadian Christians sometimes even use Wintario funds to serve church purposes. Should we not trust more in God to supply our needs? He is Almighty and has promised to meet every need. He will also bless what is right, especially as we trust Him. He will use His Word to advance His kingdom and the important cause of reform. Someone wrote in "Now" magazine, "believers can safely leave the 'war' wit h the Lord . . . He has never lost a battle - much less a war".

Let us reaffirm and live by the Scriptural teaching, "for though we live in the world we are not carrying on a worldly war, for the weapons of our warfare are not worldly but have DIVINE POWER to destroy strongholds". (II Corinthians 10 :3 & 4). That's the kind of faith and commitment we need! Remember Luther's triumph over the temptation of wrong means.