swiftly modified to suit circumstances, the deep concern for all Christians and for individual religious experience, which remained at the centre of Reformation and post-Reformation thinking, paved the way for the rise during the eighteenth century of what can be recognized as modern evangel-icalism. The importance of Martin Luther : The choice of Martin Luther as a representative reformer requires no justifi- cation. It is obvious that much of the Reformation agenda was set by his theology. Equally, it is well known that his distinctive eucharistic views con- tinued to determine the hostile relations that existed between Lutheran and Reformed communions long after his own demise. For later evangelicalism

doi:10.4324/9780203166505-17

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swiftly modified to suit circumstances, the deep concern for all Christians and for individual religious experience, which remained at the centre of Reformation and post-Reformation thinking, paved the way for the rise during the eighteenth century of what can be recognized as modern evangel-icalism. The importance of Martin Luther

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ABSTRACT

The antihierarchical theological thrust of Luther’s understanding and experience of conversion should not be underestimated. By making salvation, and especially assurance of salvation, something which was normative for believers and not mediated by any church hierarchy – a reality that was available directly via the grasping of God’s word by faith – Luther effectively undercut the whole elaborate medieval sacramental and penitential system, rendering it unnecessary.4 By making salvation available to all through God’s word and emphasizing personal, unmediated assurance of faith, Luther linked his theology to an experience theoretically open to all and not under the control of the institutional church. This was a profoundly liberating move in terms of the church laity. Furthermore, as directly picked up by Christian writers such as John Bunyan and John Wesley, the Luther-style conversion experience became part of standard evangelical literature, culture and experience.