Podcast Episode 37
Martin Luther and the 95 Theses
with Dr. Eric Ryrie & host Nick Walters
Episode 37 of This Week in Christian History focuses on one of the most recognizable turning points in the story of Christianity: Martin Luther’s posting of the Ninety-Five Theses in 1517. This episode includes an interview with Nick Walters, founder of the Center for Christian History at Mississippi College, as the series continues its mission to help viewers explore the people, movements, events, and turning points that shaped the global Christian story. Each weekly episode invites viewers to look across centuries of Christian influence and reflect on how past believers helped form the world we live in today.
This episode’s Deep Dive features Dr. Alec Ryrie, Professor of the History of Christianity at Durham University. Dr. Ryrie is an internationally respected historian whose work examines the Reformation, Protestant identity, and the lived experience of Christian believers in early modern Europe. His scholarship helps explain the cultural, theological, and devotional changes happening in the decades surrounding Martin Luther’s life. The Deep Dive segment provides broader historical context about the world of late medieval and early Reformation Christianity, exploring the religious environment in which Luther acted, the longstanding tensions within European Christianity, and the ways movements for renewal had been growing long before 1517. Dr. Ryrie’s background enriches the overall framework of the episode by helping viewers understand how a moment in Wittenberg connected to larger spiritual and cultural transitions that reshaped Christian history.
Each episode of This Week in Christian History also highlights significant events that took place during the same week across earlier centuries. These weekly highlights help viewers appreciate the wide range of individuals whose ministries, writings, and leadership left a lasting imprint on Christian life. One highlight from this week centers on A. W. Tozer, who began his public ministry on November 4, 1928. Tozer, known today as one of the most beloved devotional writers of the twentieth century, had only a sixth-grade education. His rise as a preacher, writer, and spiritual leader came from personal discipline, deep reflection, and a life of intense prayer. Tozer wrote The Pursuit of God during an overnight train ride with only a Bible, notebook, and a few pencils, and he was known to spend three hours a day in prayer as part of his regular spiritual preparation. His ministry reminds us how God can use a willing heart and a disciplined devotional life to produce writings that continue to shape Christian believers worldwide.
Another major highlight from this week in history is the final sermon preached by John Knox on November 9, 1572. Knox was one of the most influential leaders of the Protestant Reformation, playing a central role in shaping Scottish Presbyterian identity and helping establish the theological character of the Scottish Reformation. For decades, Knox preached at St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, where he challenged, encouraged, and taught congregations seeking clarity about Scripture and Christian belief. His final sermon was delivered just fifteen days before his death. A statue of Knox stands outside St. Giles today, marking both his historical influence and the enduring memory of a preacher whose convictions helped reshape the religious direction of a nation. Remembering Knox’s final sermon invites reflection on perseverance in ministry, the legacy of Reformed preaching, and the long reach of his theological impact across the centuries.
These weekly highlights, paired with conversations with Nick Walters and expert guests like Dr. Alec Ryrie, help This Week in Christian History present a wide-angle view of the global Christian story. From the devotional writings of A. W. Tozer, to the final sermon of John Knox, to the historic moment of Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses, this week’s episode demonstrates the remarkable range of individuals and events that continue to influence Christian faith and practice. Whether exploring moments of reform, personal devotion, or national religious identity, the series invites viewers to engage the past in a way that deepens understanding of the present.
Image citation: Ferdinand Pauwels, Luther Hammers His 95 Theses to the Door (1872). Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
