D. Scott Meadows
John Calvin: An Appreciation
Last year’s quincentennial of Calvin’s birth piqued my interest considerably. A fellow pastor said he did not know of a single definitive biography of Calvin, so I began researching the options. From what I have discovered, since 1975 a satisfying text has been T. H. L. Parker’s John Calvin (Lion Paperback), which I can now commend warmly.
Parker’s shorter book, Portrait of Calvin (1954), has its own charm and is available to download as a free PDF file.1 Reformed Baptist scholar and historian Michael Haykin expressed his opinion that it was a much more enjoyable book than the later, longer work by Parker. In my judgment that depends whether the reader seeks detailed information or an overview.
A strong contender for status as a definitive work is a new book by F. Bruce Gordon, Calvin (2009, Yale University Press), which is enthralling me so far through chapter seven of 18. It seems a realistic portrayal, faults and all, while remaining essentially sympathetic. It exhibits the skillful writing and careful scholarship of another great biography from YUP, Jonathan Edwards: A Life, by George Marsden, which I recommend highly.
Besides these, I have been working through more than a few books by or about Calvin, especially in the last year, a sampling of which I have brought to show you. A quick annotated bibliography follows.
As conservative, evangelical, Reformed Christians and pastors, we have so much of great importance to appreciate in John Calvin. Secular philosopher and historian Will Durant called Calvin’s Institutes “one of the ten books that shook the world.” Pastor Walter Chantry told me personally that he found his breath often taken away by Calvin’s commentaries, and recommended that if I must choose between the two, I should buy them before acquiring Institutes. In his last pastoral theology module (August 2009), Pastor Albert N. Martin at 75 expressed his judgment that a young pastor ought to resolve early in his ministry to read all Calvin’s commentaries straight through.
Our secular contemporaries, so proud of modernity, would be typically shocked to learn how much of their cherished worldview concerning society in general is an outgrowth and development of ideas propounded by Calvin, considered radical and progressive in his time. If you want to stun any liberal university professors you know, put in their hands a copy of David W. Hall’s slim volume, The Legacy of John Calvin (2008, P&R Publishers). The author convincingly demonstrates Calvin’s “enlightenment” on education (he started a public school for the common people), a kind of welfare program for the truly needy (he organized the “Bourse,” an agency of diaconal care), early movements toward religious liberty (he sought some church governance for the company of pastors independent of city magistrates), civil collegial governing instead of monarchy, decentralized politics in a republic, parity among all professions (not just “clergy” had a divine calling or vocation to their work), principles of free market capitalism including the private ownership of property and legitimacy of profit (a liberal professor will not appreciate this, though it is progress out of the Middle Ages), music in the vernacular (the Psalter in words people could understand was egalitarian in spirit, a democratization of worship), and the legitimacy of publishing ideas in books for sale to “everyman” for his consideration. These surprising advancements, little known and rarely recognized, may disarm the professor’s prejudice enough to prompt further research of Calvin’s ideas, hopefully leading to a serious consideration of Calvin’s gospel.
For me personally, I am discovering that I am far more indebted to Calvin than I ever had the knowledge and intelligence to grasp. The more I learn of his doctrine, the more often I am dumbfounded and humbled. Many of the strongest convictions I have, even on relatively subtle and minor points of doctrine, are traceable to Calvin’s insights preserved by printing and by his influence, direct and indirect, upon the church between his day and ours. I find this to be true while recognizing that the most important truths he taught were already present implicitly or otherwise in Scripture, and that he himself was heir to a rich heritage of Christian thought. Still, so much spiritual gold was unearthed by Calvin, the discoverer of treasure-laden veins in the mine of God’s Word hardly noticed by others, much less appreciated and held forth for glorious display. Five general areas of Calvin’s thought and example will suffice for this lecture.
The Sovereignty of God
Calvin is associated with the sovereignty of God like Michelangelo is associated with art. Of course the doctrine is as old as faith itself, for there is nothing more fundamental to true religion than that God is and that he is Lord of lords, the Almighty. The saints of Scripture believed this, and saints of subsequent church history. The theological giants Augustine and Aquinas both emphasized God’s sovereignty, along with many others.
The difference with Calvin, perhaps, is that he exhibited more consistently than any before him that the sovereignty of God relates to every other doctrine of the Bible—creation, providence, the fall, and redemption. God’s eternal, absolute, effectual, irresistible sovereignty thoroughly steeps and saturates the entire teapot of Calvinism.
Further, for Calvin, God’s sovereignty was not a philosophical speculation to be debated, but a pinnacle of mountainous proportions from which to survey clearly all of life. His famous opening of Institutes illustrates the point.
Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves. But, while joined by many bonds, which one precedes and brings forth the other is not easy to discern. In the first place, no one can look upon himself without immediately turning his thoughts to the contemplation of God, in whom he “lives and moves” [Acts 17:28]. For, quite clearly, the mighty gifts with which we are endowed are hardly from ourselves; indeed, our very being is nothing but subsistence in the one God. Then, by these benefits shed like dew from heaven upon us, we are led as by rivulets to the spring itself. . . . To this extent we are prompted by our own ills to contemplate the good things of God; and we cannot seriously aspire to him before we begin to become displeased with ourselves. For what man in all the world would not gladly remain as he is—what man does not remain as he is—so long as he does not know himself, that is, while content with his own gifts, and either ignorant or unmindful of his own misery? Accordingly, the knowledge of ourselves not only arouses us to seek God, but also, as it were, leads us by the hand to find him (1.1.1, Battles).
Of course Calvin grappled with the so-called problem of evil. Since God is absolutely in control of all creatures and events, and God is infinitely good and wise, how can evil exist and continue in the world which is undeniably the great kingdom over which he exercises his irresistible sway? I have found no place in Calvin’s writings more helpful and disarmingly simple on this topic than Institutes 1.18, “The Instrumentality of the Wicked Employed by God, While He Continues Free from Every Taint.” This is such a good discussion of a difficult matter that I have returned to it repeatedly, especially to help others to think biblically in this area.
Calvin demolishes the well-intentioned shift of some theologians to defend God from an accusation that he is the “Author of sin” by insisting on a distinction between what God does and what he merely permits others to do. According to this evasion, sin exists only by God’s permissive decree. Calvin teaches rather that God “draws or bends Satan himself, and all the reprobate, to his will,” and that they do this “only at the secret instigation of God” and in fulfillment of his eternal decree, without discussing or deliberating the matters with anyone else. Calvin says that “the modesty of those who [argue for bare permission] might perhaps be excused, did they not endeavor to vindicate the justice of God from every semblance of stigma by defending an untruth,” and he proceeds to show that the Bible, without embarrassment, reveals God’s active causation of men’s most heinous deeds, including the crucifixion of Christ, for his own noble purposes. God is the ultimate cause of all things, but not the blameworthy cause of any thing, including man’s sin.2 Indeed, our 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith, following the 1646 Westminster Confession, seems indebted to Calvin’s discussion at this very point.
The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in his providence, that his determinate counsel extendeth itself even to the first fall, and all other sinful actions both of angels and men; and that not by a bare permission, which also he most wisely and powerfully boundeth, and otherwise ordereth and governeth, in a manifold dispensation to his most holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness of their acts proceedeth only from the creatures, and not from God, who, being most holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin (1689 LBCF 5.4, emphasis mine).
This question of God’s relation to sin is something of a litmus test for an uninhibited and exalted perspective on his absolute sovereignty. Calvin’s conception of God’s rule was large enough to assert that even Satan himself, not to mention the rest of God’s enemies, is ultimately his unintentional servant, and an important element of the means God employs to carry out his eternal, comprehensive decree.
A High View of Scripture
In company with a host of the church’s best teachers, Calvin was firmly committed to the equation of Holy Scripture and the Word of God. For Calvin, what the Bible says, God says. Nothing significant is especially novel about Calvin’s bibliology in general, and his doctrine of divine inspiration in particular.
What captures my notice and wins my great appreciation is his response in ministry to a high view of Scripture. Calvin had the intelligence and spiritual integrity, by God’s grace, to see and follow the logical and spiritual implications, if not by himself, to a degree that set him quite apart from others, and established a distinctive tradition within Christendom for which we ought to be very thankful.
First, Calvin exhibits a profound commitment to the absolute authority and sufficiency of Scripture. He respected other Christian documents, like the writings of the Church Fathers and consensus pronouncements in the form of creeds and confessions, but Calvin’s thinking began with the Bible, was filtered through the Bible, and ended with the Bible. He championed the Protestant doctrine of sola Scriptura, that Scripture alone is of ultimate authority, the litmus test by which every person, church, teaching, and subordinate doctrinal standard is to be judged.
So what are the central ideas that Calvin developed? The most important is the fundamental assertion that a consistent and coherent theological system can be derived and defended on the basis of the Bible. Calvin’s greatest legacy to Protestantism is arguably not any specific doctrines but rather his demonstration of how the Bible can serve as the foundation of a stable understanding of Christian beliefs and structures.3
Calvin also took the strictest approach to thoroughly biblical worship, advocating what came to be known as “the regulative principle” which seeks and requires biblical justification for everything related to the substance of worship, rejecting manmade innovations as spurious, even if not explicitly forbidden in the Word of God. The churches indebted to Calvin’s influence in this particular maintain a simple, biblical form of worship without the “bells and smells” of Romanism, elements of which are regrettably still seen in Lutheranism and Anglicanism, historic rejectors of the regulative principle.
Second, Calvin’s high view of Scripture led him to emphasize the centrality of biblical preaching to pastoral ministry, and to exercise great care and sobriety in it. His regular course in the pulpit was systematic, verse-by-verse exposition of entire books of the Bible. He eschewed fanciful and allegorical interpretations and instead strove to convey the true sense of each text, in its context, based on a grammatico-historical hermeneutic with keen sensitivity to the synthetic doctrine of all Scripture on any particular topic under homiletical consideration. He masterfully exemplified “the analogy of faith” in action as a responsible exegete. His extensive knowledge of Latin, law, logic, Greek, and Hebrew, along with his deep spiritual integrity, catapulted him to very high attainment as a preacher.
Recently reading Steven J. Lawson’s book, The Expository Genius of John Calvin (2007, Reformation Trust Publishing), has greatly enhanced my appreciation of Calvin’s preaching. Through it I came to realize that in most respects, Calvin is a trustworthy example for the imitation of modern preachers. Lawson identifies 32 traits of Calvin’s expository genius in his sermons: biblical authority, divine presence, pulpit priority, sequential exposition, diligent mind, devoted heart, relentless will, direct beginning, extemporaneous delivery, scriptural context, stated theme, specific text, exegetical precision, literal interpretation, cross-references, persuasive reasoning, reasonable deductions, familiar words, vivid expressions, provocative questions, simple restatements, limited quotations, unspoken outline, seamless transitions, focused intensity, pastoral exhortation, personal examination, loving rebuke, polemic confrontation, succinct summation, pressing appeal, and climactic prayer. Lawson helpfully explains and illustrates each of these from Calvin’s sermons, which are distinct from his commentaries and generally much less known. Though a slim volume, Lawson’s book highlighting this Geneva preacher’s pulpit virtues goes beyond acquainting us with Calvin’s preaching; it is just as useful as a textbook in general homiletics.
Calvin was careful to bridge the gap between the biblical world with its original context and readers to the pew sitters before him in sixteenth century Europe. He made the Word understandable to his fellows and pressed its practical applications upon the conscience. In Calvin’s Preaching, T. H. L. Parker cites Calvin at length on the topic of “The Pastoral Impulsion” (chapter two), either by direct quotation or by paraphrase. I would reproduce an excerpt of this most helpful treatment. The original occasion was a sermon on 2 Tim 3.16-17 where Calvin explained in simple language the purpose of pastoral preaching. The following paragraph conveys something of his spirit and philosophy of application in preaching, a hotly-debated subject among some Reformed preachers today.
“When I expound Holy Scripture, I must always make this my rule: That those who hear me may receive profit from the teaching I put forward and be edified unto salvation. If I have not that affection, if I do not procure the edification of those who hear me, I am a sacrilege, profaning God’s Word.” . . . Teaching on its own is not sufficient, for we are cold and indifferent to God’s truth. We need to be pierced. The preacher has to use vehemence, so that we may know that this is not a game. . . . We must apply the Word of God to our use, so that we may be woken up instead of being far too sleepy. . . .The consequence of this for the preacher is that it is not enough for him to say, “This is God’s will. For we have to be woken up and made to think in good earnest and to look at ourselves more closely and approach to God “as if he had summoned us before his seat of justice.” Then everything will become clear and we shall be put to shame when we see our former poverty and rottenness. . . . If we have really been deeply sunk in vices the preacher must use force and violence if they are to be uprooted and thrown out. “When a father sees his children going badly astray, he will not be content just to say to them, ‘What are you up to, my children?’ That would be neither right nor good. He will say, ‘Unhappy creatures! Have I brought you up, have I provided for you until now, only for you to pay me back like this? . . . Go wretch! You deserve to be in the hangman’s hands. . . . Must I nourish such scum in my house?’” . . . The faithful pastor must use vehemence and vivacité [liveliness], “to give vigour and power to the Word of God.” Certainly this must be done with sweetness and gentleness; but all the same it must be done. And the people must not say, “How, that is too hard to be borne! You ought not to go on like that.” Those who cannot bear to be reproved had better look for another school-master than God. There are many who will not stand it: “What! Is this the way to teach? Ho! We want to be won with sweetness.” “You do? Then go and teach God his lessons!” These are our sensitive folk who cannot bear a single reproof to be offered to them. And why? “Ho! We want to be taught in another style.” “Well, then, go to the devil’s school! He will flatter you enough—and destroy you.”4
Like Luther before him, Calvin’s conscience was held captive by Scripture, and he evidently wanted to lead as many people as possible to heaven with him.