Vs. Lutheran Johann Hülsemann: Sanctification

Johann Hülsemann (1602-1661) was a German Lutheran theologian and one of the most eminent Lutheran scholastics. In 1646 he became professor of theology at Leipzig, and served as pastor of St. Nicholas Church in town. He excelled in the field of systematic theology and during his lifetime many regarded him as the leader of German Lutheranism. I will be critiquing his book,  Extensio brevarii theologiae [Extension of the Brevarium of Theology, 555 pages, Leipzig, 1655], which is available online in Latin. For translation I use Google Translate, with a few of my own edits for clearer English. My two replies will be filed under Hülsemann’s name on my Lutheranism web page. His words will be in blue. I use RSV for Bible citations.

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Although the Law promises eternal life to those who are perfectly obedient; yet by the Decree of God, founded in his omniscience, the law would never be fulfilled by man. (p. 102)

He then cites Paul, writing about the law and its relationship to grace. But as far as I know, Paul never states the common Protestant polemical claim that “no one can perfectly keep the law.” But Paul described his former adherence to Judaism and the Law as follows: “as to righteousness under the law blameless” (Phil 3:6; cf. Gal 1:14: “I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers.”).

Moreover, the Bible verifies that several other people also kept the law perfectly: Zechariah and Elizabeth, the Psalmist, King David, Moses, Aaron, Samuel, the children of Levi, and King Hezekiah. See my article: Perfectly Keeping the Law: 15 Bible Passages (12-12-24).

Abraham the Patriarch also being circumcised and regenerated, found nothing of grace or glory by works; But the Scripture says: “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.” (p. 104).

This is the usual Protestant treatment of Abraham, but it’s too simplistic and presents only one side of the story. The full account also incorporates meritorious works, as I have written about, and Abraham was justified three times (twice by works, once by faith). In Genesis 12 Abraham was justified by faith and works together. “So Abram went, as the LORD had told him” (12:4; cf. Heb 8:12). Then he built two altars to the Lord (12:7-8).

These were good works of obedience, and as a result, God said to him, “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great . . . by you, all the families of the earth shall bless themselves” (12:2-3). Abraham clearly exercised faith by obeying God’s instructions (as Heb 11:9 verifies).

In Genesis 15:6, Abraham was justified again: “And he believed the LORD, and he reckoned it to him as righteousness.” James interprets this passage, in the context of three verses about justification, faith and works, all tied in together (Jas 2:20-22). This is what James says “fulfilled” Genesis 15:6 (Jas 2:23). Then he condemns the Protestant notion of “faith alone”: “A man is justified by works and not by faith alone” (2:24).

In Genesis 22, Abraham was willing to sacrifice his son Isaac if God commanded him to do so, and God said, “Because you have done this . . . I will indeed bless you, and I will multiply your descendants . . . because you have obeyed my voice” (Genesis 22:16-18). James 2:21 interprets: “Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar?” (2:21; cf. Heb 11:17).

Works are always present where true faith exists. James also asserts that faith was also a key part of Abraham’s justification (2:18, 20, 22-24, 26). But God again reiterates in Genesis that works were central: “I have chosen him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice; so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him” (Gen 18:19).

For more on this, see my article, Abraham: Justified Twice by Works & Once by Faith [8-30-23]. We can see that Hülsemann completely ignored the crucial role that works played in Abraham’s multiple justifications. He saw what he wanted to see (Protestant faith alone). I, on the other hand, have sought to incorporate all of the relevant biblical data regarding Abraham’s justification(s).

Moses pursued righteousness by the law . . . (p. 104)

He appears to have succeeded, since the Bible states about him: “Moses . . . kept his testimonies, and the statutes . . .” (Ps 99:6-7). God Himself made it clear (through His prophets) that a man could indeed be “righteous” if he followed the Mosaic Law:

Isaiah 51:7 “Hearken to me, you who know righteousness, the people in whose heart is my law; . . .”

Ezekiel 18:5-9 “If a man is righteous and does what is lawful and right — [6] if he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife or approach a woman in her time of impurity, [7] does not oppress any one, but restores to the debtor his pledge, commits no robbery, gives his bread to the hungry and covers the naked with a garment, [8] does not lend at interest or take any increase, withholds his hand from iniquity, executes true justice between man and man, [9] walks in my statutes, and is careful to observe my ordinances — he is righteous, he shall surely live,” says the Lord GOD.

St. Paul is not running down the Law altogether in his analyses (since he noted that he himself had kept it in a “blameless” fashion), but — very much like Jesus — he goes much deeper and addresses what ultimately lies behind the Law; what it’s fundamental purpose was: love and faith.

No one is justified by works; for life is to be acquired by faith. (p. 105)

St. James disagrees:

James 2:21, 24-25  Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he offered his son Isaac upon the altar? [24] You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. [25] And in the same way was not also Rahab the harlot justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?

This is not works alone, or the heresy of Pelagianism, but grace-induced works in the regenerate person, that organically flow from faith. In the book of James, the word “works” appears 13 times, and “faith” in the usual sense of the word appears 16 times, so there is a balance.  Nor is it just James. St. Paul directly connects works with salvation and eternal life:

Romans 2:6-7, 10 For he will render to every man according to his works: [7] to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; . . . [10] but glory and honor and peace for every one who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.

St. John agrees with Paul and James:

Revelation 2:23, 26 “. . . I am he who searches mind and heart, and I will give to each of you as your works deserve. . . . [26] He who conquers and who keeps my works until the end, I will give him power over the nations, . . .”

Our Lord Jesus also clearly makes eternal life directly contingent upon keeping commandments and doing extraordinary good works:

Matthew 7:19-21 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. [20] Thus you will know them by their fruits. [21] “Not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (cf. 3:10; Lk 3:9; Jn 15:6)

Matthew 19:16-17, 20-21 And behold, one came up to him, saying, “Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?” [17] And he said to him, “. . . If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” . . . [20] The young man said to him, “All these I have observed; what do I still lack?” [21] Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” (in the parallel passage Lk 10:27 the ruler says, “. . . You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” And Jesus replied, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.”)

Matthew 19:29 And every one who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life. (cf. Mk 10:29-30)

Matthew 25:34-35, 41-43, 46 Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; [35] for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, . . . [41] Then he will say to those at his left hand, `Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; [42] for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, [43] I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ . . . [46] And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Luke 18:26-30 Those who heard it said, “Then who can be saved?” [27] But he said, “What is impossible with men is possible with God.” [28] And Peter said, “Lo, we have left our homes and followed you.” [29] And he said to them, “Truly, I say to you, there is no man who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, [30] who will not receive manifold more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.”

The difference between the Old and New Testaments is this: that there works were required of man for the condition of the reward: Here, non-works, . . . (p. 106)

But the many passages I just cited above decisively show that this is false: works indeed are a crucial, non-optional part of the equation of salvation and the attainment of eternal life. The Bible couldn’t be clearer than it is about that. If the choice is the Bible vs. a man-made, late-arriving tradition of faith alone, then the Bible must prevail. See my collection: Bible vs. “Faith Alone”: 100 Proofs.

Piety has the promise of life and future life. . . . The necessity of good works are either plain and certain, or ambiguous . . . (1) This proposition is certain and undoubted: good works are necessary to justify. (2) It is ambiguous: good works are necessary to whoever wishes to achieve eternal life. . . . [It’s] more ambiguous: (3) Good works are necessary to justify; eternal life is given . . . (4) . . . it is extremely ambiguous, and only with great difficulty reconciled with the orthodox view: good works are not necessary for the attainment of eternal happiness. . . . (5) This proposition: Good works are not necessary for the attainment of eternal happiness, is plainly false and intolerable. (pp. 181-182)

This is close to Catholic and biblical teaching: especially #1 and #5. None of this is “ambiguous”; it’s quite clear. Good works are indeed necessary, post-baptism and post-regeneration, caused by grace and in conjunction with faith, but with our full and meritorious cooperation, in order to appropriate salvation and eternal life.

I’ve shown this in passages above already, but I’ve also additionally collected 80 Bible passages on “salvation caused by actions” and 50 on meritorious works. Protestantism simply can’t explain away all of these. But Hülsemann is joining justification and sanctification very close together indeed, in a way that is virtually biblical and Catholic (whether he knew that or not!).

Good works . . . are necessary to bring about a concord, because of the necessity of the divine commandment, and the natural or intrinsic necessity of the effective connection with the effective cause, i.e. faith, Good works are necessary for all . . . because it is ordained of God, that the one who is created may attain eternal life by faith. (p. 184)

He cites the following passages in support of this:

Hebrews 12:14 Strive for peace with all men, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

Matthew 7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

1 Timothy 2:15 Yet woman will be saved through bearing children, if she continues in faith and love and holiness, with modesty.

To which I say, amen!

I believe that those who do the will of God, those who do good, are understood as [having done] works of charity, but the purpose and reason . . . is a specification of the object of salvation, not a cause, a medium, or a merit of salvation. . . . the Holy Spirit, when he speaks of the ways, means, and conditions of acquiring salvation from the innate, excludes both the works of the reborn and the unregenerate from every way of obtaining or achieving salvation; both instrumental and meritorious. (p. 186)

Having virtually stated the biblical and Catholic position, now in effect he “waters it down”: so that it doesn’t sound too “Catholic” or smack of works-salvation (which we condemn as vigorously as any Protestant does). I submit that this is equivocation at worst and incoherence and inconsistency at best. Scripture indeed teaches that our works play a causal role in the attainment of salvation. I’ve listed probably the principle passages above. Others directly assert sanctification is a direct cause of salvation (always along with God-originated grace and faith and our cooperation):

Psalm 7:10 My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.

Matthew 5:20 For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

Acts 26:18 to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.

Romans 6:22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.

Romans 13:11-14 . . . For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed; [12] the night is far gone, the day is at hand. Let us then cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light; [13] let us conduct ourselves becomingly as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. [14] But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.

2 Thessalonians 2:13 . . . God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

2 Peter 3:11-14 . . . what sort of persons ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, [12] waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be kindled and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire! [13] But according to his promise we wait for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. [14] Therefore, beloved, since you wait for these, be zealous to be found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.

We do not deny merit, as commonly accepted by the Latin Fathers, for any way of accomplishing good. (p. 187)

Good as far as it goes . . .

Having good works, will be given increase of profit, not grace, not glory for themselves: . . . Grace is not from you: nay, [not] even from works, but through faith. (p. 188)

In fact, the Bible teaches that there are degrees of grace given to persons, and at least in some cases, this seems to have a relation to what the person did (good works):

James 4:6 But he gives more grace; therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Pet 5:5 also cites this saying)

2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. . . . (how can we “grow” in grace — Peter commands us to — if we have no part  that at all? Therefore, grace-enabled merit in us must necessarily be involved)

The Bible also massively teaches that God shares His glory with His creatures and that we are “being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another” (2 Cor 3:18), and in some passages, works are the cause of both glory and eternal life / salvation:

Romans 2:7, 10 For he will render to every man according to his works: [7] to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; . . . [9] There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, [10] but glory and honor and peace for every one who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek.

1 Thessalonians 2:12 to lead a life worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory.

2 Peter 1:3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,

As so often, Protestants provide slogans and sayings with assumed premises (not always biblically-based ones) or relatively few carefully selected Bible verses  (while ignoring many other relevant ones, which sometimes amount to half-truths), whereas Catholics can consider what the entire Bible teaches on any given topic, because it’s always harmonious with our Catholic doctrines. And that’s because those doctrines were based on the Bible in the first place.

Here we have a major Lutheran theologian — thought to be one of the best –, and I’m running rings around him (as a mere lay apologist), in terms of how much Scripture I bring to bear to support Catholic views and critique Lutheran views where they differ. And I frequently find this to be the case. Ironic or shocking as it may sound, Protestantism is insufficiently biblical: even woefully inadequate in this respect at times.

What confidence can any man have among the popes: for he is bound to doubt whether he has true faith, truth, and merit? (p. 188)

It’s a (polemical) falsehood that Catholics have less confidence in their salvation than Protestants do, merely because we deny faith alone. I’ve addressed this topic in writing and in a video. Catholic self-examination of conscience is also quite biblical.

We deny only that trust can be placed in works to both confer and earn justification and glorification benefits, . . . (p. 188)

Then they deny many clear passages of the Bible that include works in the overall equation of salvation, and also teach merit.

We retain . . . the form of speech: good works are necessary, because obedience to the divine order is due. But we do not use this form of speech: good works are necessary for the sake of eternal life: . . . (p. 196)

This is contrary to the teaching of the Bible, as shown above, and much more so in the many links I have provided (which mostly collect Bible passages).

Photo credit: Johann Hülsemann: Österreichische Nationalbibliothek – Austrian National Library [public domain / picryl]

Summary: I critique arguments for faith alone from the German Lutheran scholastic theologian, Johann Hülsemann (1602-1661), found in his 1655 book, “Extensio brevarii theologiae“.