How does Martin Luther describe Romans?

• A. A minor letter
• B. A guide to church governance
• C. The historical chronicle
• D. The true masterpiece of the New Testament and the very purest gospel

Answer: (D)

Martin Luther treated Romans as the centerpiece of the New Testament because it clearly presents the gospel of salvation by faith, apart from human works. He described it as the true masterpiece of the New Testament and the very purest gospel because it lays out justification by faith alone—God’s grace received through faith in Christ—rather than earning righteousness through works. This insight, central to Luther’s Reformational breakthrough, comes from the way Romans explains how sinners are declared righteous by faith and how the law reveals sin while the gospel offers forgiveness as a gift. That emphasis on grace through faith, highlighted in Luther’s study and especially in his preface to Romans, is why he would call this letter the pinnacle and the purest form of the gospel. The other options miss what Romans primarily communicates in his view: it’s not about church governance, nor a historical chronicle, nor a minor letter.