The Theology of John Calvin

The subject of this address is the theology of John Calvin and I shall ask leave to take this subject rather broadly, that is to say, to attempt not so much to describe the personal peculiarities of John Calvin as a theologian, as to indicate in broad outlines the determining characteristics of the theology which he taught. I wish to speak, in other words, about Calvinism, that great system of religious thought which bears John Calvin's name, and which also--although of course he was not its author, but only one of its chief exponents--bears indelibly impressed upon it the marks of his formative hand and of his systematizing genius. Of all the teachers who have wrought into it their minds and hearts since its revival in that tremendous religious upheaval we call the Reformation, this system of thought owes most perhaps to John Calvin and has therefore justly borne since then his name. And of all the services which Calvin has rendered to humanity--and they are neither few nor small--the greatest was undoubtedly his gift to it afresh of this system of religious thought, quickened into new life by the forces of his genius, and it is therefore just that he should be most widely remembered by it. When we are seeking to probe to the heart of Calvinism, we are exploring also most thoroughly the heart of John Calvin. Calvinism is his greatest and most significant monument, and he who adequately understands it will best understand him.

It was about a hundred years ago that Max Gobel first set the scholars at work upon the attempt clearly to formulate the formative principle of Calvinism. A long line of distinguished thinkers have exhausted themselves in the task without attaining, we must confess, altogether consistent results. The great difficulty has been that the formative and distinctive principles of Calvinism have been confused, and men have busied themselves rather in indicating the points of difference by which Calvinism is distinguished from other theological tendencies than in seeking out the germinal principle of which it itself is the unfolding.

The particular theological tendency with which Calvinism has been contrasted in such discussions is, as was natural, the sister system of Lutheranism, with which it divided the heritage of the Reformation. Now undoubtedly somewhat different spirits do inform Calvinism and Lutheranism. And equally undoubtedly, the disunguishing spirit of Calvinism is due to its formative principle and is not to be accounted for by extraneous circumstances of origin or antecedents, such as for example, the democratic instincts of the Swiss, or the superior humanistic culture of its first teachers, or their tendency to intellectualism or to radicalism. But it is gravely misleading to identify the formative principle of either type of Protestantism with its prominent points of difference from the others. They have vastly more in common than in distinction. And nothing could be more misleading than to trace all their differences, as to their roots, to the fundamental place given in the two systems respectively to the principles of predestination and justification by faith.

In the first place, the doctrine of predestination is not the formative principle of Calvinism, it is only its logical implication. It is not the root from which Calvinism springs, it is one of the branches which it has inevitably thrown out. And so little is it the peculiarity of Calvinism, that it underlay and gave its form and power to the whole Reformation movement--which was, as from the spiritual point of view a great revival of religion, so from the doctrinal point of view a great revival of Augustinianism. There was, accordingly, no difference among the Reformers on this point; Luther and Melanchthon and the compromizing Butzer were no less zealous for absolute predestination than Zwingli and Calvin. Even Zwingli could not surpass Luther in sharp and unqualified assertion of this doctrine; and it was not Calvin but Melanchthon who paused, even in his first preliminary statement of the elements of the Protestant faith, to give it formal assertion and elaboration.

Just as little can the doctrine of justification by faith be represented as specifically Lutheran. It is as central to the Reformed as to the Lutheran system. Nay, it is only in the Reformed system that it retains the purity of its conception and resists the tendency to make it a doctrine of justification on account of; instead of by, faith. It is true that Lutheranism is prone to rest in faith as a kind of ultimate fact, while Calvinism penetrates to its causes, and places faith in its due relation to the other products of God's activity looking to the salvation of man. And this difference may, on due consideration, conduct us back to the formative principle of each type of thought. But it, too, is rather an outgrowth of the divergent formative principles than the embodiment of them. Lutheranism, sprung from the throes of a guilt-burdened soul seeking peace with God, finds peace in faith, and stops right there. It is so absorbed in rejoicing in the blessings which flow from faith that it refuses or neglects to inquire whence faith itself flows. It thus loses itself in a sort of divine euthumia, and knows, and will know nothing beyond the peace of the justified soul. Calvinism asks with the same eagerness as Lutheranism the great question, "What shall I do to be saved?" and answers it precisely as Lutheranism answers it. But it cannot stop there. The deeper question presses upon it, "Whence this faith by which I am justified?" And the deeper response suffuses all the chambers of the soul with praise, "From the free gift of God alone, to the praise of the glory of His grace." Thus Calvinism withdraws the eye from the soul and its destiny and fixes it on God and His glory. It has zeal, no doubt, for salvation but its highest zeal is for the honour of God, and it is this that quickens its emotions and vitalizes its efforts. It begins, it centres and it ends with the vision of God in His glory and it sets itself; before all things, to render to God His rights in every sphere of life-activity.

If thus the formative principle of Calvinism is not to be identified with the points of difference which it has developed with its sister type of Protestantism, Lutheranism, much less can it be identified with those heads of doctrine--severally or in sum--which have been singled out by its own rebellious daughter, Arminianism, as its specially vunerable points. The "five points of Calvinism," we have no doubt learned to call them, and not without justice. They are, each and every one of them, essential elements in the Calvinistic system, the denial of which in any of their essential details is logically the rejection of the entirety of Calvinism; and in their sum they provide what is far from being a bad epitome of the Calvinistic system. The sovereignty of the election of God, the substitutive definiteness of the atonement of Christ, the inability of the sinful will to good, the creative energy of the saving grace of the Spirit, the safety of the redeemed soul in the keeping of its Redeemer,--are not these the distinctive teachings of Calvinism, as precious to every Calvinist's heart as they are necessary to the integrity of the system? Selected as the objects of the Arminian assault, these "five-points" have been reaffirmed, therefore, with the constancy of profound conviction by the whole Calvinistic world. It is well however to bear in mind that they owe their prominence in our minds to the Arminian debate, and however well fitted they may prove in point of fact to stand as a fair epitome of Cavinistic doctrine, they are historically at least only the Calvinistic obverse of "the five points of Arminianism." And certainly they can put in no claim, either severally or in sum, to announce the formative principle of Calvinism, whose outworking in the several departments of doctrine they rather are--though of course they may surely and directly conduct us back to that formative principle, as the only root out of which just this body of doctrine could grow. Clearly at the root of the stock which bears these branches must lie a most profound sense of God and an equally profound sense of the relation in which the creature stands to God, whether conceived merely as creature or, more specifically as sinful creature. It is the vision of God and His Majesty, in a word, which lies at the foundation of the entirety of Calvinistic thinking.

The exact formulation of the formative principle of Calvinism, as I have said, has taxed the acumen of a long line of distinguished thinkers. Many modes of stating it have been proposed. Perhaps after all, however, its simplest statement is the best. It lies then, let me repeat, in a profound apprehension of God in His majesty, with the poignant realization which inevitably accompanies this apprehension, of the relation sustained to God by the creature as such, and particularly by the sinful creature. The Calvinist is the man who has seen God, and who, having seen God in His glory, is filled on the one hand, with a sense of his own unworthiness to stand in God's sight as a creature, and much more as a sinner, and on the other hand, with adoring wonder that nevertheless this God is a God who receives sinners. He who believes in God without reserve and is determined that God shall be God to him, in all his thinking, feeling, willing--in the entire compass of his life activities, intellectual, moral, spiritual--throughout all his individual, social, religious relations--is, by the force of that strictest of all logic which presides over the outworking of principles into thought and life, by the very necessity of the case, a Calvinist.

If we wish to reduce this statement to a more formal theoretical form, we may say perhaps, that Calvinism in its fundamental idea implies three things. In it, (i) objectively speaking, theism comes to its rights; (ii) subjectively speaking, the religious relation attains its purity; (iii) soteriologically speaking, evangelical religion finds at length its full expression and its secure stability. Theism comes to its rights only in a teleological view of the universe, which recognizes in the whole course of events the orderly working out of the plan of God, whose will is consequently conceived as the ultimate cause of all things. The religious relation attains its purity only when an attitude of absolute dependence on God is not merely assumed, as in the act, say, of prayer, but is sustained through all the activities of life, intellectual, emotional, executive. And evangelical religion reaches its full manifestation and its stable form only when the sinful soul rests in humble, self-emptying trust purely on the God of grace as the immediate and sole source of all the efficiency which enters into its salvation. From these things shine out upon us the formative principle of Calvinism. The Calvinist is the man who sees God behind all phenomena, and in all that occurs recognizes the hand of God, working out His will; who makes the attitude of the soul to God in prayer the permanent attitude in all its life activities; and who casts himself on the grace of God alone, excluding every trace of dependence on self from the whole work of his salvation.

I think it important to insist here that Calvinism is not a specific variety of theistic thought, religious experience, evangelical faith, but the perfect expression of these things. The difference between it and other forms of theism, religion, evangelicalism, is a difference not of kind but of degree. There are not many kinds of theism, religion, evangelicalism, each with its own special characteristics, among which men are at liberty to choose, as may suit their individual tastes. There is but one kind of theism, religion, evangelicalism, and if there are several constructions laying claim to these names they differ from one another, not as correlative species of a more inclusive genus, but only as more or less good or bad specimens of the same thing differ from one another.

Calvinism comes forward simply as pure theism, religion, evangelicalism, as over against less pure theism, religion, evangelicalism. It does not take its position then by the side of other types of these things; it takes its place over them, as what they too ought to be. It has no difficulty thus, in recognizing the theistic character of all truly theistic thought, the religious note in all really religious manifestations, the evangelical quality of all actual evangelical faith. It refuses to be set antagonistically over against these where they really exist in any degree. It claims them in every instance of their emergence as its own, and seeks only to give them their due place in thought and life. Whoever believes in God, whoever recognizes his dependence on God, whoever hears in his heart the echo of the Soli Deo gloria of the evangelical profession--by whatever name he may call himself; by whatever logical puzzles his understanding may be confused--Calvinism recognizes such as its own, and as only requiring to give full validity to those fundamental principles which underlie and give its body to all true religion to become explicitly a Calvinist.

Calvinism is born, we perceive, of the sense of God. God fills the whole horizon of the Calvinist's feeling and thought. One of the consequences which flow from this is the high supernaturalism which informs at once his religious consciousness and his doctrinal construction. Calvinism indeed would not be badly defined as the tendency which is determined to do justice to the immediately supernatural, as in the first so in the second creation. The strength and purity of its apprehension of the supernatural Fact (which is God) removes all embarrassment from it in the presence of the supernatural act (which is miracle). In everything which enters into the process of the recovery of sinful man to good and to God, it is impelled by the force of its first principle to assign the initiative to God. A supernatural revelation in which God makes known to man His will and His purposes of grace; a supernatural record of the revelation in a supernaturally given Book, in which God gives His revelation permanence and extension ,--such things are to the Calvinist matters of course. And above all things, he can but insist with the utmost strenuousness on the immediate supernaturalness of the actual work of redemption; this of course, in its impetration. It is no strain to his faith to believe in a supernatural Redeemer, breaking His way to earth through a Virgin's womb, bursting the bonds of death and returning to His Father's side to share the glory which He had with the Father before the world was. Nor can he doubt that this supernaturally purchased redemption is applied to the soul in an equally supernatural work of the Holy Spirit.

Thus it comes about that monergistic regeneration--"irresistible grace," "effectual calling," our older theologians called it,--becomes the hinge of the Calvinistic soteriology, and lies much more deeply imbedded in the system than many a doctrine more closely connected with it in the popular mind. Indeed, the soteriological significance of predestination itself consists to the Calvinist largely in the safeguard it affords to the immediate supernaturalness of salvation. What lies at the heart of his soteriology is absolute exclusion of creaturely efficiency in the induction of the saving process, that the pure grace of God in salvation may be magnified. Only so could he express his sense of men's complete dependence as sinners on the free mercy of a saving God; or extrude the evil leaven of synergism, by which God is robbed of His glory and man is encouraged to attribute to some power, some act, some initiative of his own, his participation in that salvation which in reality has come to him from pure grace.

There is nothing therefore, against which Calvinism sets its face with more firmness than every form and degree of auto-soterism. Above everything else, it is determined to recognize God, in His son Jesus Christ, acting through the Holy Spirit whom He has sent, as our veritable Saviour. To Calvinism, sinful man stands in need, not of inducements or assistance to save himself; but precisely of saving; and Jesus Christ has come not to advise, or urge, or woo, or help him to save himself; but to save him; to save him through the prevalent working on him of the Holy Spirit. This is the root of the Calvinistic soteriology, and it is because this deep sense of human helplessness and this profound consciousness of indebtedness for all that enters into salvation to the free grace of God is the root of its soteriology, that election becomes to Calvinism the cor cordis of the Gospel. He who knows that it is God who has chosen him, and not he who has chosen God, and that he owes every step and stage of his salvation to the working out of this choice of God, would be an ingrate indeed if he gave not the whole glory of his salvation to the inexplicable election of the Divine love.

Calvinism however, is not merely a soteriology. Deep as its interest is in salvation, it cannot escape the question--"Why should God thus intervene in the lives of sinners to rescue them from the consequences of their sin?" And it cannot miss the answer--"Because it is to the praise of the glory of His grace." Thus it cannot pause until it places the scheme of salvation itself in relation with a complete world-view in which it becomes subsidiary to the glory of the Lord God Almighty. If all things are from God, so to Calvinism all things are also unto God, and to it God will be all in all. It is born of the reflection in the heart of man of the glory of a God who will not give His honour to another, and draws its life from constant gaze upon this great image. And let us not fail punctually to note, that "it is the only system in which the whole order of the world is thus brought into a rational unity with the doctrine of grace, and in which the glorification of God is carried out with absolute completeness." Therefore the future of Christianity--as its past has done--lies in its hands. For, it is certainly.true, as has been said by a profound thinker of our own time, that "it is only with such a universal conception of God, established in a living way, that we can face with hope of complete conquest all the spiritual dangers and terrors of our times." "It, however," as the same thinker continues, "is deep enough and large enough and divine enough, rightly understood, to confront them and do battle with them all in vindication of the Creator, Preserver and Governor of the world, and of the Justice and Love of the divine Personality."

This is the system of doctrine to the elaboration and defence of which John Calvin gave all his powers nearly four hundred years ago. And it is chiefly because he gave all his powers to commending to us this system of doctrine, that we are here today to thank God for giving to the world the man who has given to the world this precious gift.

Secret will! Still you trot out this graying canard, endlessly chuckling at your three-syllable knee-slapper. "God's secret will" refers to the knowledge known by God and not by you or me.

No, it refers to knowledge not revealed by God in His Scriptures.

Thus, it is the sword that cuts the Gordian knot when Calvinists run into contradictions like Calvin did in 2Pet.3:9 and Spurgeon did in 1Tim.2:4.

When they can't explain why God says one thing (He wants all men saved) but is not doing so, then out comes the 'secret will' or unrevealed will' of God, that explains why Scripture says one thing but God is really doing something else.

Like Jn.12:32!

Unless perhaps you think you know everything God knows. In which case, remember what happened to John Nash.

See, I do not know everything that God knows, since I do not even know who John Nash is!

I do know the Scripture does not contradict Scripture.

And clear scripture defines obscure scripture.

Now that we are over our (ecumeno)pause, we need to address some real concerns. i agree with your first two statements, God does not lie, He does not make insincere offers.

The unfortunate part is that the idea that God wants all men (and just what do you mean by "all men") to be saved. If we find apparent contradictions, it means that our interpretation of one or more passages is wrong (both cannot be right at the same time and in the same relationship.)

The controversy in that particular verse is that for one side or the other to be correct, both must postulate something. The one who believes in the universal offer must postulate that the word translated "all" (get this Greek font from crosswalk.com, no time to post the link), or paÖß, means "all without any exception". Since it is a self-evident truth that all men are not saved, and a revelation of scripture that God's will cannot be resisted, the other extreme must postulate multiple aspects to the will of God, with absolutely no scriptural warrent to do so.

It is imperative that we train our laymen to reason from the Scriptures, and be encouraged to learn the original languages, (trust me, it's not that tough, i taught myself Greek over 20 years ago, and read it fluently, next task, Hebrew) because quite a few sincere, execelent bible Scholars disagree with that assessment (that all, as used in that verse, means all without any exception) for excellent gramatical, syntactical, and contextual reasons, not preconcieved theological reasons.

I see in Acts 10-11 an unsaved man seeking God... "...No one seeks for God." [Romans 3:11]

Cornilus did in Acts.10!

Maybe Romans 3:11 is hybolic to make a point that both Jews and Gentiles are both equally in sin.

After all, not all men are as wicked as the description of those who follow in vs 13-18.

I know that verse is one of the Calvinist key proof texts, but the fact is men do seek God even if blindly, needing God's light (Acts.17:27,30)

That was the point Paul was making to the Greeks with their worship of idols, that they were seeking but needed the truth.

The Jews likewise were seeking,but had 'zeal without knowledge' seeking to work their way to God and rejecting faith as a means of salvation.

Exactly. Man cannot surprise God. And Satan did not surprise God. All word games aside, God cannot be surprised.

Now, that is a surprise! :>)

Enough with the puns already! My head still hurts from improvising false doctrine that i did not believe at the spur of the moment, and improvising "arguements" to support it from the scriptures, and trying to sound convincing, just to make a point. (and they say i'm not flexible enough, HA!)

Only man's rejection can...negate God's goodness." Yep, that's exactly where your faulty logic takes you. Powerful man; inept God; ineffectual grace.

Not if it is how God wanted it!

If God wants to give man the ability to say 'no' as well as 'yes' who are to answer back to God?

And ineffectual grace is a forced grace since grace is an aspect of Love (not power as the Calvinists would have it) and a forced love is a contradiction.

Enough with the puns already! My head still hurts from improvising false doctrine that i did not believe at the spur of the moment, and improvising "arguements" to support it from the scriptures, and trying to sound convincing, just to make a point.

Anytime my head begins to hurt from improvising false doctrine that I do not believe to support with scripture to sound convincing, I just....whooops!

We've both read enough Scripture (you probably much more than me) to know that there are plenty of "dueling Scriptures."

And God has instructed us that He will open our eyes and ears to the truth as we read and understand that Scripture.

Part of God's grace upon us as we read the Bible is our human logic. So when Scripture seems to contradict, God intends for us to logically seek His meaning.

For me, a Reformed perspective helps answer those profound questions most clearly and righteously and positively.

John Nash was the nutso game-theory Princeton RAND CIA Nobel Prize winning mathematician in "A Beautiful Mind."

Really ?!? That's kind of exciting for me. I've been sort of theological wanderer. I've spent time learning about a variety of Christian denominations (dare I admit, even the Witnesses and Mormons) and each seems to have its own Biblical conflicts.

A time ago, I thought I found my home with Calvinism. How exciting to find a group that reckognized and sought to rationalize the omniscient God with a creation capable of exercising his will even to the disgrace of his Maker! But I could not -- and I mean no disrespect to any Calvinist here; we have all excepted Jesus' gift of redemption, we will are all redeemed -- I could not be satisfied with the Biblical conflict Calvinism has with what I found in the Bible regarding God's efforts that none should perish.

Most recently I am learning about a very old-fashioned Lutheran synod. I have a great respect for these people, it almost feels like home. However, I was surprised to learn that in reforming the Church, Luther downplayed the necessity of "works" to almost non-existence. And I really have a hard time accepting the practice of close/closed communion. As Jesus created communion, I feel it is a sacrament intended for all who have faith in Him and is above denominational separation. But, they do make an honest effort to understand the very letter of the Word and put their actions where their mouths are. I find that very admirable.

I confess that I don't know a thing about Arminism. I'll have more homework to do now :-) Regardless I am very pleased to be your friend, Doc.

...a forced love is a contradiction.

You're stealing lines from Hallmark again.

Not if it is how God wanted it

Whatever God wants, He will get. So we agree on that. Good.

You say God wants all men to be saved.

But He doesn't get that. All men are not saved.

Maybe your supposition is incorrect and God doesn't intend for every man to be saved.

If God wants to give man the ability to say "no"...

Even Lucifer didn't have the ability to thwart God's holy plan.

He may have said "no" but that's just what God intended. Nothing happens that is not God's intent. Nothing surprises God.

He's God. He has the final cut.

Luther down-played the necessity of works to almost non-existence...

And thank God he did, or we'd all be Catholics.

Sola Fide. Salvation through faith alone. Works are of man; they do not earn merit badges in heaven.

The only way to heaven is through God's grace. It flows from Him to us; not the other way around.

Re: "none should perish." Do you think any perish?

God does not lie. He does not make insincere offers. He states clearly that he wants all men to be saved. If you have to change the words of the Bible to fit your theology, then it is time to change theologies. When all the scriptures are balanced it is clear that God so loved THE WORLD that he gave his only begotten Son and that God truly wants all men to be saved.

Again, I would agree with you. I would go so far as to say, that because God did give his creation free will, He *doesn't* always get what He wants with respect to His creation. That includes the salvation of everyone; many will indeed perish.

For those here who feel strongly that, because God has forordained all things, He empirically gets everything He desires, I submit Luke 13:34

"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!"

Jesus, Himself, indicates His displeasure with the creation denying the will of the Maker.

There is still a paradox with an omniscient Creator give the creation "true" free will. I understand how the Calvinists try to resolve this paradox. I understand how I try to resolve this paradox. How do you try to resolve this paradox and are your views representative of the Arminian position?

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