What about the Reformation should give us hope?

Jason Dohm explains in this video that one of the things from the Reformation that should give us hope is how much change can happen in such a short time when men advocate without apology and without compromise certain truths from the Word of God.

God used reformers to bring about a monumental shift in entire nations. Christians should never be a hopeless people. God can reach into history at any time to accomplish His purposes. We shouldn’t hopelessly forget God but seek Him and ask that He would reform us today. When reformation comes to an individual, their life becomes conformed to Scripture. An individual will be more and more reformed into the image of Christ. 

Ephesians 2:8-9 (NKJV) - "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

One of the things we should learn from the Protestant Reformation in our own times is how much change can happen in a short period of time. When men of God stood up and advocated forcefully and without apology and without backing down certain truths from the Word of God. God was pleased to use them to to cause a monumental shift in how whole nations were thinking about things. And I think that's what we should learn. Christians should never be a hopeless people because we have an Almighty God who can reach into history at any time to accomplish his purposes and his pleasure.

And so we should be crying out to God as God's people that he'll do this, not hopelessly forgetting God by not crying out, but actually seeking the Lord to come and do these monumental shifts in our own day. When a person begins to be individually Reformed, when Reformation comes to an individual, they begin to have a life that is conformed more to what we see in scripture. And what is that? Well, when Jesus was asked, which is the great commandment and the law, he said, the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. And the second greatest commandment is like it, to love your neighbor as yourself.

The Apostle Paul said, love is the fulfillment of the law. That's really what it looks like in an individual's life when he begins to be reformed into the image of Christ or into conformity with the Scriptures. Love. You