Bible Students

This paper will aim to cover primarily the theology of Calvin. This will present a short survey of some of the most relevant theological insights for Christianity today. The introduction will cover a short survey of some important sections of Calvin’s life. Calvin’s thoughts will cover prayer, sacraments, service structure, and the center of the Christian life: Sole devotion to God. The conclusion will add a few thoughts of the author about applying Calvin to today’s context. 

Introduction to Calvin

Calvin is one of the most controversial Christian figures of the modern day. He is loved by some and hated by others. The following is a short survey of some of his theology which seems most practical and applicable to the current state of Protestantism in the West. Today, much of Protestantism, especially non-denominational Protestantism, has lost some of its best historical strengths. Of course, this is the constantly-changing nature of Protestantism, that it is reformed time and time again throughout the ages. Protestantism can stand to gain wisdom from the past as it moves into an exponentially-changing future, especially with the wide-spread nature of the internet and increasingly distanced clergy from the congregation. Calvin may not have known where the distant future would go, but he did know something incredibly important: God must be the center of the Christian’s life. 

Calvin knew much of this. In fact, he appreciated many disciplines as a reflection of God’s goodness and character. In his time, Papal abuses divided the church even before the time of both himself and Luther. The Reformation which Calvin helped to popularize was not an attempt to make a new thing, but to make newfound piety for both laymen and clericals. One of his major complaints about the Catholic church was the lack of serious engagement by the congregation. The Mass was a spectacle, not something to take part in. The Reformation was something the people could take part in. This does not mean the Reformation was only about orthopraxy over orthodoxy, though, as the Reformers wrote catechisms in order to understand and state what biblical Christians believed. They came to one outstanding theme: All things must be done for the glory of God. Calvin was an evangelical humanist, and believed spirituality was not something which could be practiced alone. The practice of Christian piety is something which is done in community, and this is what Calvin wanted to revive. The root of piety is the faith in the gospel. Even through the best of Calvin’s ideas, it is important to remember that Calvin stood on the shoulders of many others, and was a great synthesizer. Even if much of his material was not original, he masterfully brought different, even contradictory, ideas together, as will be explored below. 

Calvin’s ministry adventures centered around a town named Geneva. After some rejection by the town and a long, dramatic episode, Calvin eventually settled at the church in Geneva. Geneva was complex, to say the least. Calvin was willing to compromise on many points he found serious, but compromised for the sake of unity. Contrary to popular belief, he was not an uncompromising man, and compromised frequently. Calvin was a pastor. He took advice from his congregation, and called out his own flaws. Failure to take the Word seriously was a serious sin to Calvin. Calvin was a conservative reformer, only giving patient correction. He rebuked others for making controversy out of secondary issues. He was generally open-minded and open to correction. Though Calvin is known today largely as a caricature, not a single charge was brought against Calvin for his behavior in Geneva. In his own time there were contrary pictures of Calvin as a legalist and Calvin as a hedonist spread through the land. He corrected people, but did not call for the death even of blasphemers. 

He believed excommunication should be rare. Only unrepentance would lead to this. This is to say that Calvin was very conservative, even if he is seen as liberal for his time. He was a relatively level-headed individual. 

Calvin in Context

Calvin was a catholic Christian. This is not to say that he was Catholic, but that he was a Christian with the whole of Christianity in view of his teachings. As mentioned earlier, the Reformers desired reformation for the whole church, not for a splintered sect. Calvin was going to be a priest, and was able to attend prestigious schools. He was a student of the Scriptures at school and was very intelligent. Calvin devoured the thoughts of ancient church fathers and swayed his audiences toward the reformation through those references. Calvin wanted to have a strong connection to the ancient church. He and Luther were catholic reformers, not radical new thoughts. Throughout their lives, Calvin and Luther did not meet in person. The spread of Reformed ideas did not come from word of mouth only, but largely through printed material. Reformed churches usually came about independently after debates in their own city. Calvin was excommunicated and his works were blacklisted by the Catholic church. He was quite progressive for his time. He did affirm the solidly Christian belief that faith is trust in a person, that being Christ. He also believed theology was not abstract theory, but application to the life of the individual. Those who feel the other way may not have experienced true theology. He believed every work has evil in it, until Christ washes it clear. Calvin wanted to be right before God, and this was a major motivation for his reformed theology. He wanted to please God, and have faith in God, not the Catholic church. 

Whenever Calvin would think about the resurrection, he would find terror. He believed he had been in ignorance and error for his life, rejecting simple faith apart from works. He was taunted by the devil, who taunted him that he alone was learned, and that everyone else must have got it wrong. Could it really be that Calvin was one of the few who had the right understanding of God? This was difficult for Calvin, and seemed prideful, but he pressed on. 

Calvin believed justification was the core issue between the Reformation and Catholicism. Calvin had a distinctively Reformed view of theology, and he did not want people to flock around him. One of his most revolutionary ideas was that Scripture alone must determine practice, not tradition. Additionally, there must be distinction without separation in terms of the natures of Christ. Calvin drew on the church fathers for his Christology and Trinitarianism, when some other Reformers rejected the Trinity as being unbiblical. Calvin was a pioneer covenant theologian. He interpreted the whole of Scripture through this. He also belied private discipline was important, but public piety was better. These ideas lay the foundation for much of the rest of his theology. 

Understanding God

Often it is said that Calvin’s theology is so God-centered there is no place for man. However, he would counter this by explaining that the knowledge of God and oneself go hand-in-hand. Christians are made for Him, so when one thinks of God they think of man as well. This does not mean God is like man, but that man was made to be in God’s Image. Whatever the Image of God is, it means Christians can understand more about themselves through understanding who God is. The first step in understanding God is through understanding His nature. Put simply, His essence is incomprehensible. Instead, one can know God according to His works, but not in His essence. Now, it is one thing to know God, and one thing to know God. Truly knowing God can only be in the context of true religion, responding to that knowledge with obedience. The place of knowing God and ourselves best is Jesus. Knowing God is like knowing other people, needing love and attention, the whole person, waiting for God to reveal Himself. 

Now, according to Calvin, everyone knows God by nature. All natural sciences reflect God. Everyone suppresses the truth through sin. There is enough general revelation to know God, but individuals wilfully misinterpret Him. Humans deliberately do not know God. Every culture has regulations for knowing the gods. People are not friends of God, but enemies who hate God. In fact, the very moral ability of people has been corrupted, and so too their ability to know God. While people at one time could have known God, they have sunk so deeply into their own desires that they no longer can see past their own illusions. God needs to step in to save anyone, for everyone is so deep they can not see their way out. Unless God confronts anyone with Christ, none can not know Him. The famous example of the one in the dark pit is the theologian of glory, the one looking for a glorified Jesus before the humble Jesus. This “glory” is ironic glory, as they seek glory over the giver of glory. The theologian of the cross is the one who seeks God as He is, humble in the form of a servant. 

God and His Creation

Calvin believed Christology must never be studied in a vacuum. Instead, doctrines must be understood as a part of the whole of Christianity. This is because the truth received in the Bible is given in words humans can understand, and so there is something lost in the communication of who God is. Therefore, the doctrine of who God is must be understood in the context of the whole Bible. The communication of truth in the Bible is just as human as it is divine, just as Christ is. Now, only God can convince someone of the truthfulness of the Bible. This is because anyone who believes in God must be convinced by Him, as one who is set against God can never be convinced, even if one were to show him a man risen from the dead. 

Calvin also believed the Image of God was not a physical attribute held by humans above other animals, but rather a purpose to humanity. The Image of God, according to Calvin, is the relationship mankind has with God. Humans have the ability to have a relationship with God in a meaningful way, which is His Image, His reflection in them. This Image was given in the Garden of Eden, along with the flesh humans have. The flesh of humans is not naturally evil, but only evil when it has been corrupted by sin. The fall of Adam and Eve is not attributed to God, for Adam and Eve had responsibility for their fall. To attribute evil to God is blaspheme. The original sin of humanity occured in the Garden, where Adam was corrupted in His Image, unable to have the same kind of relationship with God, though there is opportunity to have relationship to a lesser level. Adam, the representative head of humanity (a priest, some may say), has cast all people into the corruption through his representing of humanity before God. Without the ability for a perfect relationship, Adam can not perfectly represent us as blameless before God. Christ must do this. Individuals must choose between Adam as their head or Christ as their head. Now, total depravity does not mean that individuals are as evil as they possibly could be, contrary to popular belief. Instead, total depravity means no work is without sin and corruption. No work is done perfectly. Even the best works of humanity are not free from sin, and so justification must come from Christ and no other source. 

Calvin disagreed with Catholicism in the area of the infusion of grace. The Catholic church believed that the more grace was infused into the soul through the practice of the sacraments, the closer one got to final salvation. Calvin argued that all grade was made available initially with the union to Christ. Calvin did believe that though God could do anything through fiat creation, he chose to do many things through other means. While this could apply to the application of grace through sacraments, he argued this was a result of the initial union with Christ, making all grace available. Additionally, though God could do anything through fiat creation, he often chose to work through other means, especially in the area of natural laws and their effects. For example, though God could use a sort of primary grace to heal an injury with His own power, He has chosen to most often work through a secondary grace, the systems He has set in place to act as a way of demonstrating Gis power through His creation. For example, it would be right to give praise to God for a surgeon fixing a wound, for the surgeon is only acting in secondary grace, which was originally given by God. This is an example of a doctrine which can clearly be seen as concrete in God, not only abstract. For Calvin, all doctrines need to be understood as concrete in God, leading to repentance in the individual and new action. Another example of a concrete doctrine is the sovereignty of God. 

It can be understood that even when the clouds cover the sun, the sun still shines. From the perspective of the man on the earth, the sun is gone, but from the perspective of the sun the clouds pose no problem. This is the same for man and God. Even when man does not see God working, this does not mean God is truly not working. The ignoring of God’s providence leads to fear, so the Christian should always be trying to look through the clouds, and trust the sun is still there, shining. In fact, it was the cross where God’s providence seemed the most challenged. However, if God was still shining as the sun through the cross, there is nothing in the life of the believer that should make them doubt God’s providence. Furthermore, God’s providence should not be seen as vindictive. Trials are not divine payback or punishment, or a sign of God’s wrath. God is not angry with His elect, but sends trials for their good. God would never allow a wound he would not heal. Trials are the discipline of the sovereign Father, bringing better fruit as a man pruning a fruit tree, in order to replace dead branches with live fruit. 

The Active Role of Christ

Christians live before God as His creatures, always, but Christians must seek to actively live in God. Christ is this connection, as He was the physical connection between man and God. He is the head, but His saving work did not begin on the cross. He did not only appear to be a real human, but was actually a real human. To Calvin, what Christ did not take on He did not heal. He only healed what He assumed. The physical presence of Christ was something of a controversy, even among the Reformers, specifically regarding the presence in the communion. 

Calvin believed Christ could be with the bread through His omnipresence, but that this would make His presence mean nothing, for He is everywhere by omnipresence. Additionally, Christ must not be confused with the bread, as there must be no division between the two and also no confusion between the two. Calvin believed the Spirit tied Christ’s presence to the bread and wine of communion. 

He would, however, argue against this kind of unity in the incarnation. Christ’s humanity and divinity were united without separation, though distinct. Christ’s resurrection and ascension as a man is not only the inauguration and legitimization of His kingdom, but the exclamation point and a promise of the raising of individuals at the end of time. Just like the unity in the bread, the Spirit unites believers to the risen Christ on earth. While Christ is not physically on earth, the Spirit unites believers to Him. This unity is the source for any piety in the believer. 

The Gift of Christ

As mentioned earlier, doctrines must not be understood as abstractions, but as actualities in the Christian life. They are not something additional to the Christian life, but the heart of the Christian life itself. This is because the gospel, the center of doctrine, is the center of the Christian life. One must never move past the gospel, but grow in contemplation of the character of God always. There is an external call on everyone’s life to do this, believers and unbelievers alike, but only some are given the effectual calling. The effectual calling is the calling which leads to salvation. This is not known as irresistible grace in his time, but effectual calling. It is the work of God, not the work of man and God. It is important to note that Calvin believes all people are called, but only some follow. 

The response to this effectual calling is justification before God, with sanctification tied to justification. That is, not tied as the Catholic church taught, which is that one must keep themself in grace, but rather that sanctification and justification were by the same Spirit, and so could not be separate. True obedience, sanctification, comes out of love. However, the world is made absent of true piety when preachers preach fear of God. Fear does not lead to love, which does not lead to works from a proper heart. Rather, the gospel leads to love, which leads to proper works of the heart. If salvation depended on working, then no one has the ability to do so, as all the works of Christians continue to have some sort of sin in them. The assurance of salvation can not come from works, therefore, but rather from the trusting of the promise of God. There is no feeling that can assure oneself, but only trust in God’s promise. Additionally, it is not the quality or quantity of the faith that saves, but the quality of the object of salvation, namely Christ. The theologian of glory judges by works and appearance, but the theologian of the cross judges by the small faith in the perfect object of faith. Obedience to Christ without love is the Law without the gospel. However, thankfulness to Christ and love for Him is the gospel. This grows out of justification naturally. Now, one must continue to love Christ and work for Him, lest he shrivel on the vine. The one who trusts in the promises of God is able to work out of love. 

Predestination is terrifying when the God of wrath is more real than the God of mercy. However, the God of mercy is more real than the God of wrath, so justification is a great relief for Christians. The one who storms the castle to take a look at the state of their salvation, so to speak, will not do well. Assurance must come from the promises of God, in Christ only, no other way. Apart from this, no one knows the elect and the reprobate, and so Christians must pray for all people. 

The Life of Grace

Grace must be at the center of the Christian’s life. It is far too easy to attempt to work by oneself, apart from the help of God and the community. How many in Calvin’s day retreated to the hermetic or monastic life in order to avoid the world, rather than be in it as a light? Is a personal understanding of God better than serving other people? To Calvin, this was a resounding “no.” The theologian of the cross understands Christ’s coming and humility as a model for servanthood over abstract understanding of God’s character. The preaching of the Word, including the representation of the cross to others through one’s life, produces faith, which produces love and works. In medieval piety, one could be alone to work and know God by oneself. However, Calvin argued this kind of work should be done in the greater community of the faith, not alone. The work of the Spirit and the work of the individual comes together in the believer. 

This preaching of the Word comes in three forms: The normative word of God in Scripture, Jesus, and preaching, which all three bring life. Salvation only comes through the Word. Faith is created through the Word. The reformers translated the Bible into the common language for this purpose. Hearing it publicly was very important. Preaching, the outer Word, drives oneself out and sanctifies them. Like with Jesus and the sacraments, the words of the preacher were tied to the Word of God through the Spirit to create effectual preaching. The Word is living, but the Spirit makes it effectual through the outer word. In fact, Calvin believed ministers were interchangeable, and so he and many other pastors in his area often went on rotation through the churches, preaching. Preaching is great, but repentance is not the only important thing to salvation. 

In fact, repentance is not the cause of forgiveness of sins. Christians gain from confession, not God. The human work of consciously repenting and asking for forgiveness is a work of man that leads to spiritual growth. If one does not knowingly repent from a sin, this does not mean the sin is not forgiven. Christ has forgiven all at conversion, and repentance acts as a form of sanctification, similarly to the sacraments. Baptism is a form of sanctification as well, for all members of the household, including children. There was no point in church history when baptism of infants was introduced, since Christian households, children included, were baptized in the Bible. 

In fact, baptism is beneficial to the child, as they can be grown in the church as the grow up. While it was the historic body of Christ which leads to salvation, the current body of Christ through communion aids in Christ’s presence with the believer. Sacraments are symbols, but they are symbols with real truth. Christ joins Himself with the signs, not through transmutation, but through the presence of the Spirit. Calvin believed Christ must be truly present, both in body and in divinity, in the supper. Christ does not become the gift, nor simply remind believers of the gift, but is joined with the gift through the Spirit. Calvin argued it was nonsense that Christ was bodily with the sacraments if He was not to return until His second coming, but that it was nonsense for Him to be totally absent if He promised to be with His church. Be believed the best answer to this was the binding of Christ to the sacrament through the Spirit. He believed no one can fully understand this, and that abstract understanding is not as important as partaking. Contrary to the common practice, Calvin believed communion should be taken at least once a week. Christians must be constantly depending on the graces of God in every-day life, for it is Christ who builds the church, not the individual. 

The Grace of Service

In Calvin’s day, Evangelicals would cease the activity of the Catholic church without picking up any sort of love for working for Christ. They rejected the simple things. However, the theologian of the cross finds Christ in a trough, a meal, and a bath. Christ descends to the church through the preaching of the Word, which is His gift to the church. The supper is a drama, with Christ as the centerpiece. In fact, it was the religious polemic of the Book of Common Prayer that influenced Calvin and culture in that area. Calvin did not view the earth as evil, as in the case of platonists. He did, however, see the novelty of the time as a hinderance to edification. He allowed some icons in the church for instruction, but generally disliked them. God had already communicated His Word, the Bible, and so the use of pictures was not entirely helpful if one had a Bible. Rather than teach icons, one could teach people how to read. Icons were a difficulty for Calvin, as images of Jesus and God seemed unwarranted and unbiblical. No description of Jesus was given, except that none esteemed Him as much. Icons were helpful to depict biblical history, but were a hinderance when depicting Christ or the Father. Additionally, in the service there was a time for only a few kinds of music, including singing without instruments. Instruments turned praise into entertainment. God gives the words to His followers to speak, so often Psalms should be used in singing. 

Bold Prayer

Today, spending time with the Lord in prayer is often seen as a private thing. However, since it is the whole church moving into eternity together, the whole church should be able to participate together in all things, including prayer. God prefers both sincere and disciplined prayers, as there are times for both of them. God has given the Christian the words for prayer in the Psalms and other places, and expects the Christian to give their own words back. Christians should not eliminate their emotions in worship, though emotions should not be the leading motivation behind what worship style is chosen. Calvin today would likely not see the worship of Protestants as too emotional, but as not emotional enough. Protestant worship today is often focused on happiness, but Calvin’s idea of proper worship includes many emotions, the same as the Psalms. Christians must confide in the Father, for this is what the Father desires. Even pagans pray, but they do not confide in the true God. The Christian should not be a slave of the house, praying that the Judge would show favor, but rather praying as a son to a loving Father. Even the cry of the newborn is pleasing to God, so how much more the desire of the son of the house. 

Some ask what the point of praying is if God is sovereign, but the true question is what the point of praying is if God is not sovereign. God uses the prayers of Christians to accomplish His purposes, and to include them in His work. Prayers should focus on the good of God, and be bold. He is not stingy. Prayer must be done when God feels both near and far. God can handle complaint, and prayers should be real. The Spirit gives instruction to pray. Unfortunately, even the best of prayers are still laced with sinfulness, and so once that inevitability is understood the Christian can have boldness to pray for all manners of things. 

Cares should be cast on God, not being afraid to go into the Temple. Many believe private prayer shapes public prayer, but Calvin saw it the other way around. Rather, the pastor must lead public prayer in order to encourage private prayer. The best gift of God is prayer, and it must be appreciated as such. Christians should remind God of His promises, for their own sake. Meditation, as well, only makes sense if meditation on God results in prayer. 

Obedience and Love

The confusion of Law and gospel leads to serious errors. The Law deals with precepts, rewards, and punishments. The Law always accuses. The Law and Gospel are both mothers, but the Law only births condemnation. The Gospel is the instrument for reconciliation. The Christian must not rely on works of the Law. The Law is God’s compass for living. Once the believer recognizes how the Law condemns them, they are spurred to have faith in Christ. In this, the Law has served its purpose. The Law is good, but gives no power to fulfill its demands. Only now that the Law is not the way to God, the Law can be used for good. The Law is needed first, for the purpose of the gospel. They are inseparable. Separating justification and sanctification is heretical as well. Jesus is not another Moses or Aristotle, because Jesus brings the Gospel, which is new life through faith, not works or understanding.

The commandments are not only commands against evil, but commands to do good as well to Calvin. Christians must only invoke God, not Mary or any other saints. The Sabbath remains as Sunday, which fulfills the moral part of this command. The ceremonial part is fulfilled in Jesus. Now, the whole part of the Christian life is Sabbath rest through Jesus. The man who does not love his wife is a monster, which was a neglected belief in Calvin’s time. Coveting is the opposite of love. God commands not only outward conformity, but inward love. The Law must lead to the gospel, for the Law does not give the power to obey God inwardly. Only the Spirit gives this. Those who obey apart from the Spirit can be known as legalists. 

Legalism is often hidden behind the weaker-brother argument, meaning that much legalism is done “for the sake of the weaker brother.” One believes alcohol, sex in marriage, or any other holy thing as evil because of the chance of offending the weaker brother. This legalism is not helpful. Rather, they should teach those who are weak in the better way.  Otherwise, no one would ever be allowed to even laugh, and there would be no end to the superstition. Faith is the root, love is the fruit.

The Kingdom

Calvin would not have understood the difference between getting saved and joining a church. The true church was based on the visible marks of holiness. However, Calvin believed wherever right preaching and sacraments were, there was the church. The Catholic church was not a true church, though there were some rogue true churches in it. Discipline was a marker of a true church. Leaving a church was the same as leaving a marriage. Christians are always weak and never outgrow the church. Many western Christians have many “essential” practices which are not in the Bible, while also believing the Bible to be silent on church government. There should be a plurality of church governing members. Church leaders are not Christ, but point to him. All people sin willingly, and so all people take communion with unclean hands. Rather, they must be depending on Christ’s righteousness. Calvin believed the Presbyterian model was the most biblical, but also that the Bible was not entirely clear and many models could work. Hospitality is unknown to man today. The Image of God in people is worthy of giving all of the Christian’s self and their possessions. Even if the church lies in ruins, full of tares, Christians still must love the ruins. Tranquility in the Catholic unity of churches is not good if the tranquility is a result of Christ’s silence. 

Conclusion

This is only a brief taste of what Calvin has to offer to the Christian life. While there is an enormous well of helpful wisdom from Calvin, the space can only permit so much. There is one incredibly important take-away from Calvin’s works: God is the center of everything. God must be made the center of the Christian’s life, where He rightfully belongs. Apart from this, one can not call himself a Christian, nor pretend to practice Christian virtue. Much of Calvin’s theology was in response to His time, especially regarding his theology of infant baptism. Calvin likely would see Protestants today, especially of the non-denomination variety, as largely heretical. However, there is much wisdom to be taken from the ancient church thinkers, including Calvin, which Protestantism today can greatly benefit from. Finally, though Calvin is a great thinker, it must be remembered that he is only a servant of Jesus. Ultimately all Christians have immediate access to Christ at all times, and do not need to go through a mediator such as Calvin. One does not need Calvin to understand the Bible, but he is certainly helpful. 

Bibliography

Greig, Pete. How to Pray. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2019. 

Horton, Michael. Calvin on the Christian Life. Wheaton, IL. Crossway Publishers, 2014.

McGrath, Allister. Christianity’s Dangerous Idea. San Francisco, CA: HarperOne, 2008. 

Olsen, Roger E. The Story of Christian Theology. Westmont, IL: IVP, 1999. 

Trueman, Carl R. Luther on the Christian Life. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Publishers, 2015.

Warren, Tish. Prayer in the Night. Westmont, IL: IVP, 2021.