When the new gospel appeared that man cannot in any way prepare himself for or cooperate with grace, but can only surrender unconditionally in the face of the command of God and seek refuge in Christ alone, this meant that earthly human life was no longer to be used to win spiritual prizes. It thus was allowed to be itself. When man has God’s grace solely through the work of Christ, his own works are not intended to win anything at all with God. But from this the Reformers did not conclude that man can live as he jolly-well pleases. Just the opposite. Freedom is not freedom to do what one pleases, but freedom to serve other people in one’s earthly work. Man remains under the command of God. For this reason, he cannot do as he pleases, but must remain in his earthly work, there to work for the welfare of his neighbor. But he is free from one thing: He is free from trying to win God’s grace thereby. He can follow his everyday vocation in joy and confidence, in the certainty that he has God’s grace for Christ’s sake, for Christ’s sake alone.
Thus the lordship of Christ in the conscience meant the reclamation of earthly human life. As long as Christ was not the sole Lord of the good conscience, as long as man himself attempted to cooperate by fulfilling God’s demands, man had always to distinguish between what was especially pleasing to God in his life, which of his works would best earn merit with God and be religiously profitable to him and the things in his life which had no such significance. In this way, human life was divided into two stories: an upper, spiritual story, containing everything of religious value, everything which could help to create a good conscience toward God — monastic life, prayer, fasting, church attendance, almsgiving, pilgrimages, etc.— and a lower story, containing one’s daily work and family life.
This division represented a devaluation of everything earthly and physical and. everyday. With the new view of man’s relationship to God, however, this division disappeared. When Jesus Christ is absolute Lord of the conscience, then no human work — be it monastic life, fasting, church attendance, almsgiving, or pilgrimages— has any value whatsoever over against God. They are altogether without value, altogether permeated by selfishness. All must capitulate in the face of God. But then the division into stories collapses. As a further consequence, although human life on earth has no value in the conscience, before the throne of God, the situation is totally different with regard to one’s relationship to other people. There, these things do indeed have value, for there, out in everyday life, is where God wants them.
In the conscience, before God’s throne, he will not hear of our works. There, he recognizes Christ alone. But out in everyday life he wants our works; he wants to use them as instruments of his goodness toward others.
Thus, from the standpoint of the Reformers, the new relationship to God and the new relationship to earthly things are inseparable. They represent two sides of the same coin, two sides of the absolute lordship of Christ. When Christ is dethroned in the conscience, neither can he reign over man’s everyday life. Then man will use it to gain spiritual merit for himself, and his neighbor will not be helped as Christ wills. But when Christ is allowed to reign in the conscience, our earthly life is rescued from its false purpose and set free to benefit our neighbor as Christ wills. The new view of earthly and physical things is itself an integral part of the proclamation of the lordship of Christ.
– Regin Prenter, “Does the Church Need A New Reformation?”, dialog 1:1 (1962)
Media Vita In Morte Sumus 