It was not cold blood about the heart but a single word in Chapter 1 [of Romans] that stood in my way [of feeling freedom from guilt]: "In it the righteousness of God is revealed." For I hated that word, "righteousness of God," which I had been taught to understand philosophically regarding the "formal" or "active" righteousness, with which God is righteous and punishes the unrighteous sinner ... I did not love - yes, I hated - the righteous God who punishes sinners, and secretly, if not blasphemously - certainly murmuring greatly - I was angry with God ... I raged with a fierce and troubled conscience. I beat importunately upon Paul at that place. At last, by the mercy of God, meditating day and night ... I began to understand that the righteousness of God is that through which the righteous lives by a gift of God - namely by faith. An this is the meaning: the righteousness of God is revealed by the gospel, namely, the passive righteousness with which merciful God justifies us by faith ... And I extolled my sweetest word with a love as great as the hatred with which I had before hated the word "righteousness of God." Thus that place in Paul was for me truly the gate to paradise. Later I read Augustine's The Spirit and the Letter, where contrary to hope I found that he, too, interpreted God's righteousness in a similar way. ("Righteousness of God, however, is without the law, which God by the Spirit of grace bestows on the believer without the help of the law" ~ Augustine)
Martin Luther's own account of his conversion in the Preface to Luther's Latin Writings, 1545
Thanks to Dan Orr for turning me on to this ... great stuff!
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