| mens breakfast |
| JOHN CALVIN |
| History |
| Nominal Christianity was virtually universal
in Europe and the Roman Catholic Church became a great power. There
were kingdoms, principalities and independent city states and an uneasy
relationship between the secular arm and the church especially as
the Roman church grew in power. There was widespread corruption and
many of the bishops exercised a large degree of secular authority.
The RC church grew increasingly wealthy and more and more corrupt.
Its wealth and the power of excommunication became increasingly resented.
|
| There was a pronounced movement away from
the Scriptures and opposition from within gradually increased during
the later Middle Ages as such figures as Wycliffe and John Hus emerged.
There was cultural opposition through the Renaissance and many began
to press for the Reform of the Church. |
| A leader in the development of the new
ideas was Erasmus who was responsible for a revival of interest in
ancient Greek culture and in the Greek text of the New Testament.
He criticised the church for its worldliness and lack of scholarship,
but would not leave it! |
| The movement gave impetus to the movement
known as the Reformation with such figures as Luther, Zwingli, Bucer
and Calvin. There were also more radical reformers loosely gathered
under the term 'Anabaptist 'of whom some were deeply spiritual and
some dangerously revolutionary. This was the Age when it was assumed
that church and state were inescapably linked and the increasing power
of the RC church made it debateable who was in charge. |
| Persecution of those who did not conform
to the establishment was an established fact of life - everybody did
it and the RC church usually led the way! In the HRE particularly
there were independent city states not ruled by Holy Roman Emperor,
king, or secular prince, but controlled by city councils used composed
of influential citizens. |
| Geneva |
| Geneva was an independent city state of
about 10,000, initially governed by bishop and council of citizens.
Independent cities were important at this time as the successful merchant
class became increasingly independent of the princes and bishops who
represented a traditional aristocracy. |
| The town moved in the direction of reform
but met pressure from the bishop and the Duke of Savoy. The city of
Berne had an interest in moderate reform and assisted Geneva but had
an interest in dominating them. William Farel was leading the cause
of reformation and wished to be more drastic than Berne which led
him to appeal to Calvin after seeing his early version of the Institutes
and realizing his ability. |
| The civil government of Geneva consisted
of 4 syndics elected by the citizens, 25 council members chosen by
the syndics, and after 1527 a council of 200 elected by the citizens. |
| Career |
| Calvin was a Frenchman, born in Noyon
in 1509 and his father was a notary of some importance in the household
of the Bishop. His father first intended him to find a career in the
church, but a dispute with the bishop led to a change of mind to the
pursuit of Law (1527) at the behest of his father. |
| He first learned Latin with Mathurian
Cordier, who was expert and had a lasting influence upon him. He moved
on to the College de Montaigu which at the time was a stronghold of
RC orthodoxy. Later, Calvin was to affirm that he was at this time
a stubborn adherent of Rome. |
| The change of direction to the study of
law led him to Orleans and Bourges, where he came onto touch with
the new humanist culture. He became a rising star among young lawyers.
When his father died he abandoned the study of law and began to devote
himself to the new Christian humanist culture, and sometime between
1532 and 34, he was 'suddenly' converted. |
| At this time he was lodging with Etienne
de la Forge, a merchant and was friendly with his cousin Pierre Robert
Olivetan who translated the Bible into French in 1535, for which Calvin
was to write a preface, and it is thought that these two may have
had a deep influence upon him. He also formed a close friendship with
Michael Cop, the young rector of the University at Paris, and when
Cop preached a sermon that expressed strong sympathy with reforming
ideas, some extreme Protestant pamphleteering for which neither was
responsible, led to the flight of both - Cop to Basle and Calvin to
Angouleme, later to join Cop. Etienne de la Forge was apprehended
and burned. The exile of Calvin had begun - he was still in his twenties!
|
| At this time Calvin produced his first
version of the Institutes which was only eight chapters long, addressed
to the king of France to demonstrate that the reformers were not a
threat but desired only a return to what was the primitive faith the
of the Church. In 1536 there was the momentous meeting with Farel
during a one night stay in Geneva through a war between HRE and Francis
l which compelled a detour from his intended destination of Strasbourg.
Farel pronounced a curse from God on Calvin's intended private life
as a scholar that he took is as a call from God and reluctantly but
submissively obeyed. |
| The situation at Geneva was difficult
at the time, the city was in dispute with the Dukes of Savoy who laid
claim to it and the future of the reformation there was in doubt.
The city of Berne wished to dominate Geneva, and was assisting the
Genevans but had adopted a very moderate interest in Reformation and
influenced Geneva in that direction. |
| The city council had expressed interest
in the Reformation but in a very guarded way, and Farel, who desired
a much more drastic reformation, having seen Calvin's first draft
of the Institutes, felt that he was the man to lead them forward.
They soon faced opposition from the Council because of his and Farel's
resolve that the reform should go further than that in Berne, and
when the Council insisted on a Bernese type reformation they demanded
that the church should be independent of the secular arm in ecclesiastical
matters, and this led to the exile of both of them from Geneva in
1538. Calvin retired to Strasbourg to take up his studies. |
| He became very friendly during this time
with Martin Bucer who was behind the reform in Strasbourg. Much of
his reformed church pattern derived from Bucer's model. [It is interesting
to note the reasons behind Calvin and Farel's dispute with the Council.
The Council ordered the reform to proceed on the very moderate Bernese
model and the two resisted, not because of the model suggested, but
because the Council was presuming to assume authority in the spiritual
realm.] |
| 1538-41, in Strasbourg with Bucer, Calvin
said later that these were the happiest years of his life. Bucer's
thinking was more diffuse and less systematic than that of Calvin
and his application of discipline less stringent, but he realized
the importance of Calvin because of the clarity of his thought. He
saw the need of Church discipline and in spite of his more moderate
approach he appreciated Calvin's firmness. |
| Whilst at Strasbourg he published his
first commentary on Romans. Calvin's hopes to resume the quiet life
of a scholar were disrupted by a new approach from the Council at
Geneva (1541) which appreciated that they could not resist Berne and
continue the reform without him. At the time, they were under pressure
from the Duke of Savoy, and Cardinal Sadeleto, a moderately reforming
RC had written to them a letter to persuade them to return to the
RC fold. Calvin saw the letter and, unbidden, composed a clear and
powerful reply which led to their inviting him to return. |
| Farel had by now settled at Neuchatel,
but helped the Genevans to persuade Calvin to return there. Again
it was unwillingly that he responded - he felt that it was like a
sentence of death, but sense of duty led him to go. He would not leave
unfinished a task to which God had called him. The fact that he was
called by the Council that had expelled him says much for his ability
which they admitted they could not do without. |
| While still at Strasbourg (1540), encouraged
by Bucer to seek a wife, he married Idelette de Bure, the widow of
an Anabaptist who Calvin had reclaimed. They had one son who died
in fancy and Calvin took Idelette's daughter and son as his own. In
contemporary eyes this was an exemplary marriage and when Idelette
died in 1549 Calvin spoke lovingly of her as his best friend. |
| It was in this period that he met Melanchthon,
who was working with Luther, with the aim of reconciliation with the
Lutherans. They became great friends though the difference with the
extreme Lutherans was not resolved and Luther remained uncompromising.
|
| When he returned to Geneva to a rapturous
welcome, Calvin soon came into collision with a group in the Council
known as the Libertines who resented his strict moral reforms aimed
to check immorality, drunkenness, gambling and the like. There was
particular dispute about the power of excommunication. Calvin was
adamant that this was in the sphere of the Church and this was resented
by the loose living members of the council led by Ami Perrin who feared
the public exposure entailed by excommunication. Even in the midst
of opposition, the Council in 1543, during an outbreak of the plague,
forbade Calvin to visit stricken victims because they saw how valuable
he was to the reforming work. |
| They eventually undermined their own position
when at first they supported Servetus who was arrested in Geneva in
1553. He had already been condemned as a heretic by the Catholic Church,
and throughout Europe was known as a dangerous heretic. It became
obvious that they could not continue their support of him and he was
duly tried with Calvin as the chief prosecutor and condemned. In spite
of Calvin's repeated attempts to prevent the sentence of burning,
the Council insisted, and Servetus was burned. Their behaviour undermined
their authority, but the burning left a lasting blemish on Calvin's
future reputation, though in fact whilst he had supported the death
penalty which was universally approved, he had opposed the burning.
In fact few heretics were executed in his time at Geneva. He preferred
to see them reclaimed or banished. |
| Much of the conflict centred round the
issue of control. Calvin had no wish to interfere in political affairs
but was adamant that the Council should not interfere in ecclesiastical
matters. They wanted to be able to legislate 'how much reform' was
to be allowed, and there was a struggle about the power to excommunicate.
The power of excommunication meant that the person involved was unable
to present themselves at the Lord's Table and this meant a very public
exposure of the fact that they were sinners. |
| Another aspect of this dispute was the
frequency of the service. Calvin was never able to gain the weekly
celebration he desired, but he did eventually establish the authority
of the Church Consistory to excommunicate. |
| The dispute about authority to excommunicate
came to a head when one of the city officials, Philibert Berchelier,
was excommunicated and determined nevertheless to present himself
at the table for Communion. Calvin was adamant that he would refuse
the man, who eventually withdrew because of considerable popular opposition:
Calvin was victorious! Some of the Libertines attempted an armed rebellion
but this was easily overthrown and the next council election Calvin's
supporters won easily. |
| Though he had to deal with a number of
heretics, from this time onwards (1555), his position at Geneva was
assured. It must be remembered that during all this time he was only
one pastor with one vote on the Consistory Council of pastors and
elders. What he did, he did by reason not demand! |
| In the last years of his life he suffered
from much ill health which he endured patiently and he had more than
his fair share family grief. His wife died in 1549 and was deeply
mourned. After the death of her mother, Calvin's step-daughter Judith
committed adultery. His brother's wife was also aught in adultery
with Calvin's personal servant whom he had trusted implicitly but
was subsequently found to have been consistently stealing from him.
These family difficulties and the early death of his only son by Idelette
caused him lasting grief. |
| Estimate of calvin |
| Calvin would have abhorred the idea of
a movement called by his name. His dying wish to be buried in an unmarked
grave expressed his desire that men should not make an idol of him.
His overwhelming desire was that God should be glorified. His dogmatism
was borne of his essential theological conviction concerning the Authority
of Scripture interpreted by the Holy Spirit. |
| Here was a man, subject to error but like
Luther 'a slave to God and His Word'. He was a man of towering intellect
- he had few intellectual equals. He first studied law and gained
a reputation as a student for his knowledge and insight. Here he learned
scholastic discipline and developed an acute analytical mind. |
| As a theologian, he developed a profound
knowledge of Scripture in the original languages which he used in
the pulpit: he had an almost inexhaustible knowledge of the early
Fathers. He was a master expositor of Scripture famed for his clarity
and brevity. Yet, this mighty intellect was yielded to the authority
of Scripture and dependent on the Holy Spirit, maintaining that the
best of human minds was in darkness about the things of God apart
from His Word and the inward working of the Spirit on heart and mind. |
| It has been said of him that he accomplished
more in a brief life of 55 years, in the face of almost continuous
opposition, than many people would in a thousand. |
| His fundamental beliefs |
- The final authority of Scripture. He would go no further than
he believed was warranted by Scripture and would not engage in
philosophical speculations. This authority extended to Doctrine,
Church Practice and Personal Behaviour. But he was not a legalist
- his obedience was the response of faith and love - Christ as
Redeemer was central to his thinking. Whilst Scripture was his
authority he acknowledged dependence upon the Holy Spirit for
ability to understand, apply and obey. Where he was dogmatic it
was because he believed that the Bible was dogmatic on these issues.
He would never go further on doctrinal matters than could be clearly
demonstrated from Scripture. The authority was God's, not his.
He was never more than pastor of one church: God's servant among
His people.
|
- The centrality of Christ - object of Scripture was to point
to Christ and the Old Testament must be understood in this light.
The object of all was the Glory of God.
|
- Dependence on the Holy Spirit. The most brilliant human mind
was darkness apart from Him!
|
| It is an error to make Predestination
the centre of His thinking. To him it was an intensely practical doctrine
to humble and give assurance to Christians. They were God's people
not because of any merit in them. Because they were chosen by God
they could be assured of their continuance in the faith. As chosen
by God they were chosen to 'the obedience of faith'. The later editions
of the Institutes devoted several chapters to this topic for the comfort
of Christians (see Ephesians 1). |
| His faith was expressed in his way of
life. He was an exile for most of his life and faced almost continual,
hostile and unjust opposition with dignity and humility. |
| His character |
| He had an overwhelming sense of duty towards
God. It was this that brought him first to Geneva when Farel threatened
him with the curse of God if he would not accept the call to assist
the progress of Reformation in Geneva. He would have preferred the
quiet life of a scholar at peace in obscurity to pursue his studies.
His obedience to God's call was ardent and reverent 'with fear'. His
expectation of this kind of response from other Christians was the
reason why many thought him harsh and demanding. He never expected
that others would do what he did not do himself. |
| He was very disciplined and hardworking
to a degree in his youth that certainly affected his health later
in life. He was not ascetic but lived a life of rigorous self-discipline.
|
| In his later life he persevered in the
face of many physical infirmities, personal sorrows and bereavement,
and disappointment. In Geneva where he ministered for most of his
adult life, he had to face continual opposition from powerful people
who resented his strict moral code and resisted his spiritual reforms
by every devious means they could employ. |
| He never had any power other than his
authority as the pastor of one of the three Geneva churches and his
great spiritual power of persuasion. A centre of dispute very often
was the Lord's Supper and the church's power to excommunicate for
ungodly behaviour. A strong party in the Council resisted his attempt
to have a weekly communion (celebration of the Lord's Supper) because
that would draw attention to the fact that some had been excommunicated
for loose living. |
| He was also insistent that the power of
excommunication should belong to the Church not the secular arm of
the City Council. The opposition was on one occasion so fierce that
he offered to resign, but he was vindicated by a changing turn of
events. In the Communion matter he eventually compromised to have
a quarterly communion. He was willing to compromise in matters not
central to the faith. |
| His life was consistent with the truths
in which he believed. He was undoubtedly an earnest contender for
the faith once for all delivered to the saints, but in 'matters indifferent
he showed a compromising spirit to preserve unity. In much adversity
and physical infirmity he showed a patient and humble spirit and he
died in joy and peace as a believer who had completed his course.
|
| He was aware of his faults and confessed
them freely, particularly his inclination to impatience. One example
of this occurred whilst he was at Strasburg. There arrived a man called
Pierre Caroli, a professed convert from Rome, who had caused Calvin
trouble during his first period at Geneva when Calvin had refused
to sign the Nicene Creed as a creed of human invention. Caroli falsely
accused Calvin of being an Arian and Caroli had to leave Geneva and
returned to the RC Church. |
| Now he wanted to leave the RC again and
went to Strasbourg and claimed that he desired to be reconciled to
Calvin. Bucer was sympathetic and encouraged Calvin to be reconciled.
A statement of reconciliation was drawn up by Bucer which Calvin refused
as unsatisfactory and imprecise. Calvin warned Bucer of Caroli's instability
and stormed out of the room in anger. |
| He later apologised profusely to Bucer
and the two were reconciled, but the incident is a vivid example of
Calvin's bad tempter, and his acknowledgment of it. Interestingly
Caroli later returned to the RC church. The incident also shows the
precision and clarity of Calvin's thought which has led many to accuse
him of niggardliness. Usually he was very balanced and fair in his
writing thorough precise in his thinking. It was his clear, precise
and analytical thinking that made him such an important leader in
the Reformation. |
| Beza's 'Life of Calvin' |
| Beza was Calvin's successor at Geneva
and wrote sympathetically, defending him against many false allegations.
He had many opponents for many different reasons. Some were opposed
to his firm stand against the endeavour to establish the church's
independence of the state. He urged separation but expected e state
to support the church, especially in upholding godly morality. He
was a firm believer in church discipline to enforce discipline against
'scandalous behaviour' and this was greatly resented by his refusal
to administer communion to magistrates who were guilty. |
| There were days when there were many
doctrinal deviations and his firm stand against these was bitterly
resented. The Servetus episode was used (an still is) to malign his
name but though he supported the death penalty (which many of the
leading Reformers and the R C Church approved, Calvin did not approve
of burning and attempted to change it. |
| Executions for religious reasons were
rare in Geneva. Calvin much preferred to attempt to reclaim heretics
but on occasion those who were stubborn in their heresies were expelled.
|
| Allegations deal with by Beza - |
- Heretic - His theology was faithful to scripture and
his expositions were linguistically discerning and careful.
- Always wanted to be in charge - He continually consulted
his colleagues and was humble but courageous in dealing with doctrine.
He was magnanimous rather than proud. In Geneva he never realized
his great desire for frequent, even weekly, communion.
- Spendthrift - He was humbly modest in dress and lived
in a humbly furnished house refusing the wealth that his prominence
could have brought him. The allegation of gambling was brought
against him and Beza replied that occasionally on the urging of
friends he occasionally indulged in legitimate games.
- Miser - He would not profit from his books or from the
benefits that princes would have given him.
- Debauched - This was a most unjustified allegation because
he lived a strongly self-disciplined life and after the death
of his wife he remained single and irreproachable.
- Short-tempered - He was embattled against bitter enemies
of the gospel, and was unyielding in defence of Gospel Truth.
He was a strict disciplinarian but fair. The case of Servetus
has justifiably been held against him, but he did not approve
of the burning which was enforced by the secular arm which was
often opposed to him. He generally preferred to deal with recalcitrant
heretics by banishment. Beza points out that his enemies were
vociferous and hostile, his patience was often tried by the lack
of wisdom on the part of those around him, and the disabling infirmities
he experienced at the end of his life. Beza remarks that none
of his friends suffered any lasting offence as a result of what
he did or said. Beza also notes that he was acutely aware of this
fault and conscious of its importance. Beza saw this fault as
tempered by his many fine qualities.
|
| Calvin's achievements |
- In the Institutes he left an unsurpassed reformed manual of
theology and critique of the RC Church. In his commentaries he
left an outstanding guide to understanding of the Bible.
- In Geneva he established a pattern for the organisation of the
church which later became 'Presbyterianism'. He was responsible
for the extensive employment of laymen in the church through the
system of elders and deacons. [Pastors: teachers or doctors, elders
& deacons]
- Under his influence there developed in the church as sense of
International brotherhood as he supported oppressed brethren in
many countries and Geneva became a place of refuge for many Protestant
exiles.
- He belonged to an age where there was continual dispute about
the relationship between the church and the secular authority
- the Emperor and the Pope, the church and the state. Most states,
whether national or city, were nominally Christian but which had
final authority was in dispute. Calvin insisted on the independence
of the church from the state, each with its particular sphere
but expected the support of the secular arm for the church when
required. When Council members did not live up to their civic
moral and spiritual responsibilities there was great tension.
Calvin had continual confrontation with a group on the Council
known as the Libertines, led by a man called Ami Perrin, who were
morally loose in their way of life. Nothing would turn him from
defence of truth and the freedom of the Church. In these things
he was unyielding.
- He had a great sense of civic responsibility and pioneered the
way to a very comprehensive system of free education which started
from the Geneva Academy which was aimed to provide an educated
pastorate. He also encouraged commerce by developing trade, care
for the poor, and the development of proper toilet facilities.
The development of the Protestant Work Ethic owes much to him.
- He laboured abundantly to preserve the unity of the church,
even entering into talks with the RC church to see whether unity
could be recovered. He made persistent attempts to establish unity
with the Lutherans on the subject of communion. He and Melanchthon
would undoubtedly have come to an understanding but the extreme
Lutherans resisted. After must debate he did come to an understanding
with Bullinger and the Zwinglians. He was ready to be compromising
on any of the matters that did not involve major Christian doctrines
and encouraged reformers in other lands in this policy.
- He took a lively interest in other Reformed Churches, and was
a great help to believers in Poland. Through refugees from England
and Scotland he was to have a profound effect on the churches
there. He showed special concern for the reformed believers in
France and his correspondence with them gives a fine insight into
the practical application of his theology, especially of election
and providence.
|
| He also wrote fine letters to believers
who were in trouble or persecuted reminding them that adversities
were part of the promise of God to faith and were a vital part of
his purpose. 'All the exhortations which one could make to you to
suffer patiently for the Name of Jesus Christ and for the struggle
of the Gospel will be pointless if we are not well assured of the
cause for which we fight. Because when it is a question of leaving
this life it is indeed necessary that we be resolute and certain why
it is, and such constancy cannot be in us unless it is founded on
the certainty of faith' He recommended persecuted Protestants do endure
bravely. He would not countenance rebellion unless led by a Prince
of the blood. |
| In 1552-53, just at a crisis point in
Calvin's career when the Servetus crisis was looming and the Council
was doing its best to embarrass Calvin there were five young men of
Lyons who had been living in Switzerland who travelled back to Lyons
for a visit. They were denounced as Protestants, arrested and languished
for a long time in prison. Various Protestant authorities pleaded
for their release, and Calvin did what he could, but they were at
last condemned to be burned as heretics. |
| Three of his letters to them have survived.
In his final letter to them when their appeal had failed he wrote
- 'It cannot be that you find some twinges of frailty, yet be confident
that He whose service you are upon will so rule in your hearts by
His Spirit that His grace shall overcome all temptations. We who are
here shall do our duty in praying that He would glorify Himself more
and more by your constancy and that He may by the consolations of
His Spirit sweeten and endear all that is bitter to the flesh and
so absorb your spirits in Himself that in contemplating that heavenly
crown you may be ready to leave behind all that belongs to this world.'.
|
| Just two days before their execution he
sent another letter recognising how difficult it was to face persecution
and advising them to pray that God 'would so subdue them to His good
pleasure that nothing shall hinder you from following withersoever
he shall call'. They went to the stake bravely singing from the Psalms.
|
| ABIDING LESSONS |
| He was no ivory tower theologian but his
beliefs were tested in the fires exile, persecution and plague. His
great concern was for the Glory of God and a faithful Christian testimony
to His grace and goodness. Christ and the believer's union with Him
were central to his thinking. |
- The Christian may expect opposition from the world if not persecution
- John 15:18-25. 16:1-4. The opposition stemmed in a large measure
from his loyalty to Christ and the teaching of His Word.
- His zeal and wholehearted dedication are a lesson to all. His
first aim was the glory of God.
- His dependence upon the Holy Spirit. Here was a very talented
man but he was God- dependent.
- His teaching emphasised that adversity was best dealt with by
understanding of the truth.
- He set a great value on the inter-action of churches and sought
to organise this.
- His emphasis on the civic responsibilities of believers was
a fair reflection of our Lord's call to Christians to be salt
and light. In an outbreak of the plague in Geneva in 1543, he
had to be restrained from visiting those stricken because the
authorities in Geneva saw how valuable he was to the city.
- His concern in all things was the Glory of God, and to this
end, depending on the help of the Holy Spirit, he directed all
his efforts.
- He did not commend violence but humble steadfastness in the
face of opposition.
|
| What do we learn from Calvin? |
| 1 |
Loyalty and allegiance to the Scriptures. What the
Bible taught should determine the doctrine and practice of the church
and the practical and moral life of the believer. To understand and
embrace the teaching of Scripture man is absolutely dependent upon
the Spirit of God. He saw the Old and New Testament as equally the
Word of God and their fulfilment was in Christ |
| 2 |
He had the greatest reverence for the Bible as the
Word of God, and faithfulness to Scripture was a mark of the Institutes.
In Geneva his chief ministry was of regular expository preaching and
he produced commentaries on virtually every book of the Bible except
the Song of Songs and Revelation which was such a fertile resource
for the extremities of the Radical Reformation, though he defended
the canonicity of both. He may be regarded as 'the Prince of Exegetes'
and his commentaries are still widely published today. |
| 3 |
His dependence upon the power of the Holy Spirit.
A man of great intellect and powers of persuasion but he was dependent
upon the Holy Spirit to interpret and proclaim Scripture. |
| 4 |
Nothing was more important to him than the Glory of
God. The things that so easily dominate our lives whether sickness
or health, success defeat, pleasure or adversity are all from His
hands to fulfil his purposes which may be summarised in 'His Glory
and our good'. For us as Christians our obedience is the best way
to demonstrate His Glory. Here was a man who knew himself to have
been 'arrested by God' and his supreme aim from that time was to glorify
God and Jesus Christ, the Son whom He sent into the world to save
a people. |
| |
From this, nothing was to turn him aside. He did not
seek anything for himself! What he did, he did because he believed
that God had called him to it. He made few references to himself in
his writings, and requested that he should be buried in an unmarked
grave so that it would not become a place of pilgrimage. He did not
in any way aim to draw attention to himself but as a humble servant
of the Lord Jesus Christ. |
| |
From the brief reference he made to his conversion
we gather than it was sudden and broke a stubborn spirit. We also
know that William Farel's insistence alone took him to Geneva in the
first place as Farel called down the curse of God upon his chosen
way of quiet retiring scholarship. His return to Geneva later came
as a result of an invitation from its citizens, and he looked upon
as an agonizing sentence. His life seems to have been lived out under
this sense of a divine compulsion, and it is this conviction that
made him so uncompromising about spiritual matters. When things were
of 'secondary importance' his first concern was to keep the peace,
but about holiness in the Christian life there could be no compromise.
|
| |
One of his great concerns was to keep the church free
from the intervention of the state and to this end he spent most of
his life in a battle to resist the power of the magistracy. Whilst
the Lutherans were happy to accept State intervention and even control,
he was not. |
| |
For much of his second term in Geneva he was resisted
by a powerful group in the council who because of their moral laxity
were called the 'Libertines' especially when he had some of their
members excommunicated for loose living. They resisted his desire
to have a weekly Communion because that would draw attention to excommunication
and he was never able to establish this desire. |
| |
It is unfair to label him autocrat or a dictator for
officially he was never more than one member of the Consistory and
what he did, he did by persuasion not by edict. We should admire and
seek to imitate his zeal and steadfastness in the face of opposition.
|
| 5 |
In the Institutes he leaves us a reliable manual of
biblical theology defending biblical truth against error. |
| 6 |
What he accomplished is a mighty evidence of what
God can do with a truly dedicated man. Whilst he mightily affirmed
the absolute Sovereignty of God, his whole way of life testified to
his belief in the responsibility of man. He was obedient but never
passive! |
| 7 |
He never held any office of state. He was never more
than a simple pastor of a local congregation. His power was of persuasion
without 'the arm of the flesh'. His extensive ministry in so many
countries is a testimony to the power of God's Word and the Holy Spirit
through the ministry of a dedicated man. His influence was widespread
in France, England, Scotland and Poland. The 39 Articles of the Church
of England are Calvinistic. |
| 8 |
In his second period in Geneva it became a place of
refuge for like-minded believers from many other countries who were
persecuted in their native countries. Many English and Scottish reformers
found refuge there and John Knox said of Geneva that it was a most
perfect school of Christ. He kept close contact with the persecuted
believers in France and encouraged them in every way to remain steadfast
to the truth. We should take interest in Christians in other lands,
particularly the persecuted. |
| 9 |
The 5 young men of Lyons are an example of his care
and comfort. |
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10
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His doctrines of Providence and Predestination were
proved in the fires of his own personal experience. Was ever a man
so persecuted and misunderstood - Matthew 5:11-12, John 15:18-21 and
16:1-2. 2 Timothy 3:12? What of the trials of his family bereavement
and disappointment? Only in 1559 did he become a citizen of Geneva.
For 30 years he was an exile! |
| 11 |
He has unjustly been labelled an icy intellectual
dispassionate man, but that is not true. He lived in an age when the
Roman Church seemed to be a great power, but many were confused and
discontented with it. Some were setting up versions of Christianity
which Calvin saw to be constructed on inadequate foundations. It was
necessary to think through what was 'the faith once for all delivered
to the saints' and Calvin puts us all in his debt by seeking to do
that. |
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He endeavoured to state clearly what Christians believed
from the Bible which was their supreme authority. Whilst thoughtful
and intellectual he did not neglect the complete dependence of the
Christian upon the ministry of the Holy Spirit. An over-riding concern
with him was to exalt the supreme greatness of God and the smallness
and insignificance of man before Him. That there could be fellowship
between them was an act of unspeakable Divine Mercy. At the same time
he formed lasting and affectionate friendships and a godly and affectionate
relationship with his wife for 9 years until her death. |
| 12 |
He was a retiring scholastic man who have been content
to pursue a quiet life as a scholar but he felt himself to be a man
under constraint - by God, first of all, from whom he had received
what was to him an unmistakable call - then the solemn curse of Farel
which compelled him to go to Geneva in the first place - later again
he felt constraint as he was recalled by the citizens of Geneva. He
was not a man seeking to have his own way. His humility is demonstrated
in his insistence that he should be buried in an unmarked grave. He
certainly would never have rejoiced in a movement called by his Name.
When he was insistent upon a course of action or a doctrine, it was
because he considered that this was the will of God and he would no
compromise that. |
| 13 |
He left behind a system of Church organisation which
has become in Presbyterianism one of the most influential forms of
church government. He sought after a biblical balance of authority
to defend doctrinal truth with congregational consent. Other systems
have profited from the example of that biblical balance. His system
encouraged the use of laymen. |
| 14 |
The execution of Servetus was a blot on his righteous
life. It may be said in his defence that he spoke out against the
burning but he approved of the death penalty which was an accepted
fate for stubborn heretics in that age, and many other Reformers agreed
wholehearted with what he did. |
| |
It was the only death for heresy in his period of
domination in Geneva. He had made persistent to reform Servetus but
eventually saw him as a threat to the Reformed cause which had to
be removed. Sometimes cancers have to be removed to save the patient
and he saw Servetus in that light. In the last three centuries we
have seen the Church afflicted by the consequences of the toleration
of error. |
| 15 |
A little word from him about worship - 'God will have
his people fed - when we come together it is not to hear merry songs
or to be fed with wind, but to receive spiritual nourishment. A great
lover of the Psalms he paraphrased a number for congregational singing
and encouraged the adaptation of popular tunes that were easily sung.
He was not a rigid Sabbatarian but encouraged a right use of the Lord's
Day for spiritual refreshment. |
| 16 |
We are reminded of the very different kind of people
the Lord uses in His work. Luther, Farel, Calvin, Zwingli were very
different characters, none without his weaknesses. In England, Cranmer
has often been judged as too ready to compromise but he was willing
to die for his faith and it is doubtful whether any of the other reformers
would have survived under Henry Vlll. We should not judge them for
their imperfections but see them as redeemed sons of Adam, outstanding
servants of God and His Church. Calvin's contribution was very considerable.
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