We are not our own...

We are not our own: let not reason nor our will, therefore, sway our plans and deeds. We are not our own: let us therefore not set it as our goal to seek what is expedient for us according to our flesh. We are not our own: in so far as we can, let us therefor forget ourselves and all that is ours.

Conversely, we are God's: let us therefore live for him and die for him. We are God's: let his wisdom and will therefore rule all our actions. We are God's: let all the parts of our life accordingly strive toward him as our only lawful goal. ( Taken from the Institutes of Christian Religion by John Calvin, Book III, Chapter VII.)

As we enter the Christmas season, we are so often prone to indulge ourselves. Hence, let us meditate on Calvin's words above and consider not ourselves but rather deny ourselves and focus on the glory of Christ in every thought, word and deed this holiday season.

The Vanity of this Life

Whatever kind of tribulation we may suffer, this should always be our goal: to learn contempt for the present life, and thus be led to meditate on the life to come. ...Our folly comes from the fact that our minds are more or less dazzled by the false glitter of wealth, honour and power, which are superficially attractive and which stop us looking further ahead. By the same token our heart is full of greed, ambition, and other evil desires, and is held so fast by them that it cannot look higher up. Lastly, our entire soul seeks its happiness here on earth, because it is wrapped and entangled in the pleasures of the flesh.

To remedy this evil, the Lord teaches his servants to recognize the vanity of this present life, carefully training them by means of various afflictions. Lest they look forward in this life to peace and tranquility, he allows war, turmoil, theft and other evils to upset and trouble them. Lest they thirst too much  for ephemeral wealth or trust too fondly n the wealth they have, he reduces them to poverty, sometimes by sending barrenness to the earth, sometimes by fire, sometimes by other means; or else he condemns them to bare sufficiency. Lest they delight too much in marriage, he gives them difficult or headstrong wives who torment them, or wayward children to humble them, or else afflicts them with the loss of spouse or children. If, however, in all these things he treats them kindly, to stop them becoming proud in their conceit and complacent through excessive confidence, he warns them by means of sickness or peril, and gives them as it were visible proof of how fragile and fleeting are the good things we enjoy, since they are subject to decay.

Thus the discipline of the cross is of great benefit to us when we understand that the present life, judged in itself, is full of worry, trouble and much misfortune. It is never completely happy at any time, and all the blessings we hold dear are transitory and uncertian, trifling and tinged with endless misery. The conclusion we draw then, is that here we must expect nothing but conflict. If we would seek  our crown, it is to heaven that we must look. We may be sure that our heart will never really learn to want the life to come, and to meditate on i, without first feeling disdain for this earhly life. (From A Guide to Christian Living by John Calvin, translated by Robert White, Banner of Truth, pgs. 87-91.)

This passage from John Calvin has helped more than many others to understand our place here on earth and the afflictions we all encounter. I hope it helps you as well.

Calvin on Free Will at 0630 hrs

Every other Monday at 6:30am I get together with a couple of other lunatics and discuss Calvin. All joking aside, it has been a blessing. We discuss some pretty meaty stuff over breakfast and coffee and then head off in our separate ways. We discussed free will and several other subjects today. Allow me to share some choice quotes from Calvin that I have highlighted in my copy of Book II, chapter 2 that I have found undeniably helpful on the subject of free will.

Wherefore, it is not without reason that Augustine so often repeats the well-known saying, that free will is more destroyed than established by its defenders (August. in Evang. Joann. Tract. 81). It was necessary to premise this much for the sake of some who, when they hear that human virtue is totally overthrown, in order that the power of God in man maybe exalted, conceive an utter dislike to the whole subject, as if it were perilous, not to say superfluous, whereas it is manifestly both most necessary and most useful. (II. 2.1)

Again, that no will is free which has not been made so by divine grace. Again, that the righteousness of God is not fulfilled when the law orders, and man acts, as it were, by his own strength, but when the Spirit assists, and the will (not the free will of man, but the will freed by God) obeys. He briefly states the ground of all these observations, when he says, that man at his creation received a great degree of free will, but lost it by sinning. In another place, after showing that free will is established by grace, he strongly inveighs against those who arrogate any thing to themselves without grace. His words are, “How much soever miserable men presume to plume themselves on free will before they are made free, or on their strength after they are made free, they do not consider that, in the very expression free will, liberty is implied. “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty,' (2 Cor. 3:17). (II.2.8)

What, then, is meant by Cyprian in the passage so often lauded by Augustine, “Let us glory in nothing, because nothing is ours,” unless it be, that man being utterly destitute, considered in himself, should entirely depend on God? (II.2.9)

All the weapons of impiety must be bruised, and broken, and burnt in the fire; you must remain unarmed, having no help in yourself. The more infirm you are, the more the Lord will sustain you. So, in expounding the seventieth Psalm, he forbids us to remember our own righteousness, in order that we may recognise the righteousness of God, and shows that God bestows his grace upon us, that we may know that we are nothing; that we stand only by the mercy of God, seeing that in ourselves eve are altogether wicked. Let us not contend with God for our right, as if anything attributed to him were lost to our salvation. As our insignificance is his exaltation, so the confession of our insignificance has its remedy provided in his mercy. (II.2.11)

Man, when he withdrew his allegiance to God, was deprived of the spiritual gifts by which he had been raised to the hope of eternal salvation. Hence it follows, that he is now an exile from the kingdom of God, so that all things which pertain to the blessed life of the soul are extinguished in him until he recover them by the grace of regeneration. Among these are faith, love to God, charity towards our neighbour, the study of righteousness and holiness. All these, when restored to us by Christ, are to be regarded as adventitious and above nature. (II.2.12)

The end of the natural law, therefore, is to render man inexcusable, and may be not improperly defined—the judgment of conscience distinguishing sufficiently between just and unjust, and by convicting men on their own testimony depriving them of all pretext for ignorance. So indulgent is man towards himself, that, while doing evil, he always endeavours as much as he can to suppress the idea of sin. (II.2.22)

We know too well from experience how often we fall, even when our intention is good. Our reason is exposed to so many forms of delusion, is liable to so many errors, stumbles on so many obstacles, is entangled by so many snares, that it is ever wandering from the right direction. Of how little value it is in the sight of God, in regard to all the parts of life, Paul shows, when he says, that we are not “sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves,” (2 Cor. 3:5). ...Augustine, in speaking of this inability of human reason to understand the things of God, says, that he deems the grace of illumination not less necessary to the mind than the light of the sun to the eye (August. de Peccat. Merit. et Remiss . lib. 2 cap. 5). And, not content with this, he modifies his expression, adding, that we open our eyes to behold the light, whereas the mental eye remains shut, until it is opened by the Lord. ...“With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments,” (Ps. 119:10). Though he had been regenerated, and so had made no ordinary progress in true piety, he confesses that he stood in need of direction every moment, in order that he might not decline from the knowledge with which he had been endued. Hence, he elsewhere prays for a renewal of a right spirit, which he had lost by his sin, (PS. 51:12). For that which God gave at first, while temporarily withdrawn, it is equally his province to restore. (II.2.25)

...[W]hat answer shall we give to the apostles who declares that “we are incapable of thinking a good thought?” (2 Cor. 3:5). What answer shall we give to the Lord, who declares, by Moses, that “every imagination of man's heart is only evil continually?” (Gen. 8:21). Since the blunder has thus arisen from an erroneous view of a single passage, it seems unnecessary to dwell upon it. Let us rather give due weight to our Saviour's words, “Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin,” (John 8:34). We are all sinners by nature, therefore we are held under the yoke of sin. But if the whole man is subject to the dominion of sin, surely the will, which is its principal seat, must be bound with the closest chains. And, indeed, if divine grace were preceded by any will of ours, Paul could not have said that “it is God which worketh in us both to will and to do” (Php 2:13). Away, then, with all the absurd trifling which many have indulged in with regard to preparation. Although believers sometimes ask to have their heart trained to the obedience of the divine law, as David does in several passages (Ps.51:12), it is to be observed, that even this longing in prayer is from God. This is apparent from the language used. When he prays, “Create in me a clean heart,” he certainly does not attribute the beginning of the creation to himself. Let us therefore rather adopt the sentiment of Augustine, “God will prevent you in all things, but do you sometimes prevent his anger. How? Confess that you have all these things from God, that all the good you have is from him, all the evil from yourself,” (August. De Verbis Apost. Serm. 10). Shortly after he says “Of our own we have nothing but sin.” (II.2.27)

Spurgeon on Calvin(ism)

As tomorrow we celebrate the 500th anniversary of John Calvin's birthday a few appropriate quotes from Charles Spurgeon might be in order.

I am not a Calvinist by choice, but because I cannot help it.

I believe nothing merely because Calvin taught it, but because I have found his teaching in the Word of God.

Some seem to believe in a kind of free agency which virtually dethrones God, while others run to the opposite extreme by believing in a sort of fatalism which practically exonerates man from all blame. Both of these views are utterly false, and I scarcely know which of the two is the more to be deprecated. We are bound to believe both sides of the truth revealed in the Scriptures, so I admit that, when a Calvinist says that all things happen according to the predestination of God, he speaks the truth, and I am willing to be called a Calvinist; but when an Arminian says that, when a man sins, the sin is his own, and that, if he continues in sin, and perishes, his eternal damnation will lie entirely at his own door, I believe that he also speaks the truth, although I am not willing to be called an Arminian. The fact is, there is some truth in both these systems of theology.

They are all Calvinists there, every soul of them. They may have been Arminians on earth; thousands and millions of them were; but they are not after they get there, for here is their song, “Salvation unto our God, which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.”

Happy Hogmanay and Reading Calvin Part Two

If you don't want to join the guys over at Ref21 reading Calvin through the year there is another way. The team at Princeton Theological Seminary are reading through Calvin as well. Check it out here. Or, you can cut right to the chase and downlaod the .pdf file with the reading schedule at this link. Don't have the Institutes? Click below to check out what Amazon has and get started reading Calvin this year!

Happy Hogmanay!

Reading Calvin?

The guys over at the Ref 21 blog are promoting the reading of Calvin through 2009. Not a bad idea, eh? Take look here for the info. Lig Duncan lists 10 reasons to read Calvin (wow, do we really need 10?). Here's his top 6:

1. Because it the most important book written in the last 500 years.
2. Because it is foundational for every Reformed systematic theology ever since.
3. Because Calvin was the best exegete in the history of Christianity.
4. Because Calvin is one of the five greatest theologians in Christian history.
5. Because he wrote it as a "sum of piety" not as an arid, speculative dogmatic treatise.
6. Because it gave J.I. Packer the idea for "Knowing God."

Calvin Quote

I believe the Reformed anti-drinking crowd would do well to study their Reformed history particularly where it comes to the personal views of the likes Luther, Calvin and many of the Puritans. Here is another example of Calvin's opinion of wine:

We are nowhere forbidden to laugh, or to be satisfied with food, or to annex new possessions to those already enjoyed by ourselves or our ancestors, or to be delighted with music, or to drink wine (III, XIX, 9).

Calvin on Psalm 104:15

I have been debating a fellow at another blog about drinking and rather than continue on there I thought I would post something about it here. He made a few points, none of them biblical but all based on personal prejudices. He can’t seem to understand that just because someone has a drink doesn’t mean he will get drunk. He infers that after the first drink (which is not a sin) its then easier to have the second and third and then you’re drunk (which is a sin). It doesn’t work that way. He points out that if I am Reformed then I should know that all should be done to the glory of God. Amen! I agree with that.

Let’s look at what John Calvin has to say concerning this in his commentary on Psalm 104:15:

And wine that cheereth the heart of man. In these words we are taught, that God not only provides for men’s necessity, and bestows upon them as much as is sufficient for the ordinary purposes of life, but that in his goodness he deals still more bountifully with them by cheering their hearts with wine and oil. Nature would certainly be satisfied with water to drink; and therefore the addition of wine is owing to God’s superabundant liberality. The expression, and oil to make his face to shine, has been explained in different ways. As sadness spreads a gloom over the countenance, some give this exposition, That when men enjoy the commodities of wine and oil, their faces shine with gladness. Some with more refinement of interpretation, but without foundation, refer this to lamps. Others, considering the letter î, mem to be the sign of the comparative degree, take the meaning to be, that wine makes men’s faces shine more than if they were anointed with oil. But the prophet, I have no doubt, speaks of unguents, intimating that God not only bestows upon men what is sufficient for their moderate use, but that he goes beyond this, giving them even their delicacies.

So, it is lawful and indeed an added blessing, if you will, to enjoy the gift of wine. God wants us to enjoy wine, it’s explicit in this verse. How can someone argue that? God gives us what we need and then even more.

Calvin continues:

The words in the last clause, and bread that sustains man’s heart, I interpret thus:...“Make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof;”for if we give full scope to the desires of the flesh, there will be no bounds. As God bountifully provides for us, so he has appointed a law of temperance, that each may voluntarily restrain himself in his abundance. He sends out oxen and asses into pastures, and they content themselves with a sufficiency; but while furnishing us with more than we need, he enjoins upon us an observance of the rules of moderation, that we may not voraciously devour his benefits; and in lavishing upon us a more abundant supply of good things than our necessities require, he puts our moderation to the test. The proper rule with respect to the use of bodily sustenance, is to partake of it that it may sustain, but not oppress us. The mutual communication of the things needful for the support of the body, which God has enjoined upon us, is a very good check to intemperance; for the condition upon which the rich are favored with their abundance is, that they should relieve the wants of their brethren. As the prophet in this account of the divine goodness in providence makes no reference to the excesses of men, we gather from his words that it is lawful to use wine not only in cases of necessity, but also thereby to make us merry. This mirth must however be tempered with sobriety, first, that men may not forget themselves, drown their senses, and destroy their strength, but rejoice before their God, according to the injunction of Moses, (Leviticus 23:40;) and, secondly, that they may exhilarate their minds under a sense of gratitude, so as to be rendered more active in the service of God. He who rejoices in this way will also be always prepared to endure sadness,whenever God is pleased to send it. That rule of Paul ought to be kept in mind, (Philippians 4:12,) “I have learned to abound, — I have learned to suffer want.”

So here we see that when God so blesses us we are not to over indulge, i.e., get drunk. With blessing comes responsibility. God has given us wine to “make us merry. This mirth must however be tempered with sobriety, first, that men may not forget themselves, drown their senses, and destroy their strength, but rejoice before their God, according to the injunction of Moses, (Leviticus 23:40;).” Well said! Thus, it is not a forgone conclusion that drinking, sooner or later, will lead to drunkenness or even to just one episode of drunkenness. When we drink we are to employ self-control. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that if you do not drink, then you are missing out on an intended blessing from God. Perhaps its time for the non-drinking Christian crowd to re-think their non drinking position.

What better way to end this post then with the conclusion of Calvin's commentary on this verse:

Moreover, when men have been carefully taught to bridle their lust, it is important for them to know, that God permits them to enjoy pleasures in moderation, where there is the ability to provide them; else they will never partake even of bread and wine with a tranquil conscience; yea, they will begin to scruple about the tasting of water, at least they will never come to the table but in fearfulness. Meanwhile, the greater part of the world will wallow in pleasures without discrimination, because they do not consider what God permits them; for his fatherly kindness should be to us the best mistress to teach us moderation.

John Calvin on Piety

To understand Calvin's Institutes one must understand what he means by piety. From book 1, chapter 2, I call "piety" that reverence joined with with love of God which the knowledge of his benefits induces. For until men recognize that they owe everything to God, that they are nourished by his fatherly care, that he is the Author of their every good, that they should seek nothing beyond him - they will never yield him willing service. Nay, unless they establish their complete happiness in him, they will never give themselves truly and sincerely to him.

Calvin: Institutes of the Christian Religion (2 Volume Set)

New Calvin Site

I came across this the other day. A group is already preparing for the anniversary of Calvin's 500th birthday. Great looking site and I'm anxious for more news on this.