"Even before the Reformers had passed off the stage, different sects began to grow up within the Protestant movement and to break from the founding churches. The sects said that Luther made a good start in reviving the doctrines of justification by faith, but they had the feeling and Luther stood only half way and that they must go on, higher and deeper.
But Luther discerned that they erred on the greater charter of Protestantism - justication by faith - and, as far as he was concerned, if this was wrong everything was wrong. 'Whoever departs from the article of justification does not know God and is an idolator,' wrote Luther. 'For when this article has been take away, nothing remains but error, hypocrisy, godlessness, and idolatry, although it may seem to be the height of truth, worship of God, holiness, etc.' (What Luther says [St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959], Vol. II, pp. 702-704).
These sectarian teachers did not deny justification as an initiating step in the Christian life. Their error was the old one of relegating justification to something whereby the believer can make a start and then go on to higher things. With them, justification by faith was no longer the center. Their focus was away from Christ's work to their own, from the objective to the subjective." -John Robbins, Appendix found in The Holy Spirit, Pg. 102
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