The individualistic, global societies created and propelled by sin operate under the assumption that the fortunes and failures of life result strictly from the decisions and actions of the individual. Human beings are autonomous creatures and independent entities unto themselves. Hence, the notion of imputed righteousness (the application of a foreign righteousness on another) struggles against the grain. Yet, the nature of reality foils this principle at every turn. In each stage of life, we experience the effects of others' actions on our lives in permanent and uncontrollable ways, just as we impose similar effects. In this lesson, Martin Luther comes face to face with the notion of imputed righteousness, a concept previously alien to him while under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Church.