If the devil were wise enough and would stand by in silence and let the gospel be preached, he would suffer less harm. For when there is no battle for the gospel it rusts and it finds no cause and no occasion to show its vigor and power. Therefore, nothing better can befall the gospel than that the world should fight it with force and cunning.
Martin LutherOur office...subjects us to great burdens and labors, dangers and temptations, with little reward or gratitude from the world. But Christ himself will be our reward if we labor faithfully.
Martin LutherGod delights in our temptations and yet hates them. He delights in them when they drive us to prayer; he hates them when they drive us to despair.
Martin LutherGod works by contraries so that a man feels himself to be lost in the very moment when he is on the point of being saved.
Martin Luther