Everywhere he looked upon scenes that filled him with astonishment and horror . He saw that iniquity existed among all classes of the clergy . He heard indecent jokes from prelates , and was filled with horror at their awful profanity , even during mass . As he mingled with the monks and citizens he met dissipation , debauchery . Turn where he would , in the place of sanctity he found profanation . " No one can imagine ," he wrote , " what sins and infamous actions are committed in Rome ; they must be seen and heard to be believed . Thus they are in the habit of saying , ' If there is a hell , Rome is built over it : it is an abyss whence issues every kind of sin .'" -- Ibid ., b . 2 , ch . 6 . By a recent decretal an indulgence had been promised by the pope to all who should ascend upon their knees " Pilate ' s staircase ," said to have been descended by our Saviour on leaving the Roman judgment hall and to have been miraculously conveyed from Jerusalem to Rome .
Luther was one day devoutly climbing these steps , when suddenly a voice like thunder seemed to say to him : " The just shall live by faith ." Romans 1:17 . He sprang to his feet and hastened from the place in shame and horror . That text never lost its power upon his soul . From that time he saw more clearly than ever before the fallacy of trusting to human works for salvation , and the necessity of constant faith in the merits of Christ . His eyes had been opened , and were never again to be closed , to the delusions of the papacy . When he turned his face from Rome he had turned away also in heart , and from that time the separation grew wider , until he severed all connection with the papal church .
After his return from Rome , Luther received at the University of Wittenberg the degree of doctor of divinity . Now he was at liberty to devote himself , as never before , to the Scriptures that he loved . He had taken a solemn vow to study carefully and to preach with fidelity the word of God , not the sayings and doctrines of the popes , all the days of his life . He was no longer the mere monk or professor , but the authorized herald of the Bible . He had been called as a shepherd to feed the flock of God , that were hungering and thirsting for the truth . He firmly declared that Christians should receive no other doctrines than those which rest on the authority of the Sacred Scriptures . These words struck at the very foundation of papal supremacy . They contained the vital principle of the Reformation .
Luther saw the danger of exalting human theories above the word of God . He fearlessly attacked the speculative infidelity of the schoolmen and opposed the philosophy and theology which had so long held a controlling influence upon the people . He denounced such studies as not only worthless but pernicious , and sought to turn the minds of his hearers from the sophistries of philosophers and theologians to the eternal truths set forth by prophets and apostles . Precious was the message which he bore to the eager crowds that hung upon his words . Never before had such teachings fallen upon their ears . The glad tidings of a Saviour ' s love , the assurance of pardon and peace through His atoning blood , rejoiced their hearts and inspired within them an immortal hope . At Wittenberg a light was kindled whose rays should extend to the uttermost parts of the earth , and which was to increase in brightness to the close of time .
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