The Story of Martin Luther and the New Reformation

"I, a Poor, Stinking Bag of Dung"

Speaker

Dwight K. Nelson

Dwight Nelson served as lead pastor of the Pioneer Memorial Church on the campus of Andrews University from 1983 to 2023. During his time at Pioneer he spoke on the “New Perceptions” telecast, taught at the theological seminary and has written books, including The Chosen. He and his wife, Karen, are blessed with two married children and 2 granddaughters.

Offering

Saturday, October 14, 2017
Program: 
Praise
Bless His Holy Name • Blessed Be the Name of the Lord Medley • Breathe
Prayer
Sharon Terrell
Tithes & Offerings
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God • Max Reger
PMC Operating Expense • Sharon Terrell
Children’s Story
Dwight K. Nelson
Worship in Music
Fortress Variations • Jay Bocook
Sermon
"'I, a Poor, Stinking Bag of Dung': The Story of Martin Luther and the New Reformation" • Dwight K. Nelson
Connect Card
My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less • 522
As We Depart
Crown Him With Many Crowns • James Swearingen

More In This Series

"The Story of Martin Luther and the New Reformation:
'I, a Poor, Stinking Bag of Dung'"

www.newperceptions.tv

  • 1 Corinthians 2:1-5
    • Roland Bainton: "The man who thus called upon a saint was later to repudiate the cult of the saints. He who vowed to become a monk was later to renounce monasticism. A loyal son of the Catholic Church, he was later to shatter the structure of medieval Catholicism. A devoted servant of the pope, he was later to identify the popes with Antichrist. For this young man was Martin Luther" (Here I Stand: A Life of Martin Luther 15).
  • 4 Takeaways/Legacies for the New Reformation
    • #1—Only .
      • Luther: "I was a good monk, and I kept the rule of my order so strictly that I may say that if ever a monk got to heaven by his monkery it was I. All my brothers in the monastery who knew me will bear me out. If I had kept on any longer, I should have killed myself with vigils, prayers, reading and other work." (Bainton 34).
      • James Kittelson: "Anfechtung was what Luther later called this grinding sense of being utterly lost. By it he intended the idea of swarming attacks of doubt that could convince people that God's love was not for them. Later he considered this sense of being irredeemably evil to be the work of Satan, who sought to make a Christian's sins, doubts, and anxieties too much even for the grace of God. At such moments just the rustling of dried leaves in a forest sounded like the legions of hell coming to seize one's soul.” (Luther the Reformer: The Story of the Man and His Career 56)
      • Derek Wilson: "Certainly Luther went through periods of black depression when he retreated into himself and spoke to no one. He never fully shrugged off this particular demon and to the end of his days would retire into a room by himself when problems weighed heavily upon him." (59)
      • Luther: "I greatly longed to understand Paul's Epistle to the Romans and nothing stood in the way but that one expression, 'the justice of God,' because I took it to mean that justice whereby God is just and deals justly in punishing the unjust. My situation was that, although an impeccable monk, I stood before God as a sinner troubled in conscience, and I had no confidence that my merit would assuage him. Therefore I did not love a just and angry God, but rather hated and murmured against him." (Bainton 49)
      • Luther: "Then [one day] I grasped that the justice of God is that righteousness by which through grace and sheer mercy God justifies us through faith. Thereupon I felt myself to be reborn and to have gone through open doors into paradise. The whole Scripture took on a new meaning, and   . . . now it became to me inexpressibly sweet in greater love. This passage of Paul ['the just shall live by faith'] became to me a gate to heaven." (Bainton 49-50)
      • H. M. S. Richards once declared: "I have only one doctrine: I am a great —but I have a great ." And when asked “What is the Adventist message?" he replied, " only."
    • #2—Only .
      • Luther: "The wounds of Jesus are safe enough for us.” (Kittelson 99)
      • Ellen White: "The lower you lie at the foot of the cross, the dearer and more exalted will be your conception of your Redeemer." (Review and Herald 10-16-1888)
      • Ellen White: "The theme that attracts the heart of the sinner is Christ and Him crucified. On the cross of Calvary Jesus stands revealed to the world in unparalleled love." (Maranatha 99)
    • #3—Only .
      • Derek Wilson: "Within decades of Luther's death... all Europe was awash with Bibles in contemporary languages.... This was the richest part of Martin Luther's legacy. He bequeathed to the peoples of the world a collection of religious writings and invested them with supreme authority (or, as he would have said, recognized the supreme authority they manifestly possessed)."(363)
      • Luther: "God's word cannot be without God’s people, and God’s people cannot be without God’s word. . . . For it is the word of God which builds the Church. . . . [W]here that is heard, where baptism, the sacrament of the altar [the Lord’s Supper], and the forgiveness of sins are administered there hold fast and conclude most certainly that there is the house of God and that there is the gate of heaven." (Wilson 364)
      • Ellen White: "But God will have a people upon the earth to maintain the Bible, and the Bible only, as the standard of all doctrines and the basis of all reforms. The opinions of learned men, the deductions of science, the creeds or decisions of ecclesiastical councils, as numerous and discordant as are the churches which they represent, the voice of the majority—not one nor all of these should be regarded as evidence for or against any point of religious faith. Before accepting any doctrine or precept, we should demand a plain 'Thus saith the Lord' in its support." (The Great Controversy 595)
    • #4—Only .
      • Proverbs 4:18
      • Ellen White: "The Reformation did not, as many suppose, end with Luther. It is to be continued to the close of this world's history. Luther had a great work to do in reflecting to others the light which God had permitted to shine upon him; yet he did not receive all the light which was to be given to the world. From that time to this, new light has been continually shining upon the Scriptures, and new truths have been constantly unfolding." (The Great Controversy 148-149)
      • John 16:12-13

"We are all beggars."

Offering for August 2, 2025

Pioneer Operating Budget

Birthdays were always a special and happy occasion in our home. When it is one of the sibling’s birthdays, we give all our kids gifts to enjoy, not just the celebrant. But when it was our birthday, our children would draw pictures and color them expressing their creativity and love for us. They didn’t have the money to purchase gifts or nice Hallmark cards. Yet when they presented them to us, we cherished those handmade cards more than all the commercial cards produced by Hallmark. Why? Because they were our children’s expression of love from the heart.

It’s hard not to express this love without giving a gift. Likewise, every offering gift should be measured by the unfathomable Gift of heaven. The greatest offering one could make would then appear as nothing in comparison. “How vain the endeavor to measure with mathematical rules, time, money, and love against a love and sacrifice that is measureless and incomputable!" (Testimonies for the Church, Vol.4, p.119). If we can catch a glimpse of just how much God loves us, we would faint. All self-interest and selfish motives will disappear, we will be lost in awe and wonder. It would spur us to shower our Lord with more gifts and with praise and thanksgiving.

North American Division Stewardship Ministries

Register Now for Andrews Academy

Andrews Academy is now enrolling students in grades 9 - 12 for the 2025/2026 school year. We invite you to join the AA family! You will be blessed by what Andrews Academy has to offer. Students consistently score above state and national levels on standardized testing, they are involved in many spiritual and service activities throughout the school year. Our Seventh-day Adventist school’s mission is to inspire our students to think deeply, live fully, serve unselfishly and to honor God completely. School begins August 18. Registration day is August 13. Financial assistance may be available. Call 269-471-3138 for more information or visit https://www.andrews.edu/aa/ and click on “apply today”. 

District Nine Family Camp - (Sub) Camp Au Sable

 Although registration for District Nine Family Camp is still open at www.midistrictnine.com, ALL rooms and RV sites have been reserved!  However, if you wish to tent there are spaces still available.  If you wish to bring your RV, there are spaces available ONLY in the Northwoods.

Help Us Welcome New Students

Many new faces will soon join us as they begin their academic journey at Andrews University. We are preparing to welcome them with our traditional Welcome Picnic on Sabbath, August 23. You can support Belong by signing up to be a table host, preparing food, becoming a general volunteer—or all of the above! Text the word “PICNIC” to 269-281-2345

Looking for a Prayer Group to Join?

Join us for the Midweek House of Prayer, held online every Wednesday morning from 7:00 to 8:00 AM. We are currently studying the Gospel of Mark. Come and see how your contributions can benefit everyone in the group! The Zoom link is https://andrews.zoom.us/j/9889172131.

Something in Common Sabbath School

Better Decisions/ Fewer Regrets video series by Andy Stanley continues

  • July 19–The The Conscience Question
  • July 26–The Maturity Question
  • August 2–The Relationship Question

Everyone is welcome in PMC Boardroom off of the Fellowship Commons Room from 10:30-11:30 AM on Sabbath.

Fellowship Dinner
Pioneer Commons

 There will not be a fellowship dinner during the months of July and August, 2025.