While recently reading Heiko Oberman's biography, Luther: Man between God and the Devil, I was struck by how reticent Luther was to fulfill the important role he played in the Reformation. It reminded me of the same reticence that would be seen a few years later by another reformer - John Calvin. Neither of these men sought to be the "heroes" that they became, but both of them understood the roles they were to play as part of God's wise providence. There are lessons of humility and of responsibility/duty for us to learn from these two men!
"[S]ervice to the Word - Luther had not sought it; the post of a professor - he had not desired it; the misson of an evangelist - he would have liked to avoid it. As he saw it, he entered the monastery under compulsion, blinded by fear; his doctoral studies had been imposed on him against his will by his Augustinian superiors. Instead of fighting and becoming entangled in feuds, he would have liked to devote himself to study and meditation. Time and again, Luther offered to cease his activities if only the Gospel became public property. But again and again he was overwhelmed, led where he did not wish to go, by a God who, irrespective of obedience or disobedience, steers the course of history." -- Heiko Oberman
