Saturday, October 31, 2009

REFORMATION WEEK, part 13: Declaring and Celebrating God's Providential Works in and through our Fathers throughout History

[Please see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, and Part 12 of the Reformation Week posts.]

We previously examined biblical commands to multi-generationally remember and declare God's covenant, commandments, and works of providence in history. To reaffirm, the message of Scripture is unequivocal: We must not forget but must remember God's covenant and commandments, learning from our fathers and teaching future generations.

I now wish to take this a step further and examine the implications of this biblical theme and how we can apply God's commandment to remember His providence in history.

I. Studying history teaches us to hope in God's providential mercy and to fear His judgment.

 "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope" (Rom. 15:4). We learn from Scripture, especially from the testimonies of saints who came before us and, chiefly, from the example of Christ our Lord. As we follow their example of patiently enduring trials and afflictions, we gain hope through the promises and providence of God in His Word and in His government of history. "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world" (Acts 15:18).

First Corinthians 10 shows us that Scripture is also given partly to warn us:
"[11] Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. [12] Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. [13] There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. [14] Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry."
We learn from Scripture both how to hope in God's mercy and how to fear His judgments with all humility of mind. Scripture is given to us as a revelation of God's redemptive plan in history through our Savior. Our Lord Jesus Christ is at the beginning, center, and end of all Scripture. We also see God's merciful providence and fearsome judgments in non-inspired studies of history through original source documents and analysis by historians with a providential perspective.

General Robert E. Lee stated this not long before his death:
"My experience of men has neither disposed me to think worse of them, or indisposed me to serve them; nor in spite of failures, which I lament, of errors which I now see and acknowledge; or of the present aspect of affairs; do I despair of the future. The truth is this: The march of Providence is so slow and our desires so impatient; the work of progress so immense and our means of aiding it so feeble; the life of humanity is so long, that of the individual so brief, that we often see only the ebb of the advancing wave and are thus discouraged. It is history that teaches us to hope" (emphasis added).
Devoid of a providential perspective and an understanding of the biblical flow of redemptive history, we can too easily despair upon reading headlines or observing the depravity that daily besets us. However, Calvin in his commentary on Isaiah 9:7 admonishes us:
"Though the kingdom of Christ is in such a condition that it appears as if it were about to perish at every moment, yet God not only protects and defends it, but also extents its boundaries far and wide, and then preserves and carries it forward in uninterrupted progression to eternity. We ought firmly to believe this, that the frequency of those shocks by which the Church is shaken may not weaken our faith, when we learn that, amidst the much outcry and violent attacks of enemies, the kingdom of Christ stands firm through the invincible power of God, so that, though the whole world should oppose and resist, it will remain through all ages. We must not judge of its stability from the present appearances of things, but from the promise, which assures us of its continuance and of its constant increase" (emphasis added; quoted in Daniel F.N. Ritchie's A Conquered Kingdom: Biblical Civil Government [pp. 82-83]).
We learn these truths about God's providence from wise men of God in ages past who studied and carefully wrote a summary of this biblical doctrine:
"God the good Creator of all things, in His infinite power and wisdom does uphold, direct, dispose, and govern all creatures and things, from the greatest even to the least, by His most wise and holy providence, to the end for the which they were created, according unto His infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of His own will; to the praise of the glory of His wisdom, power, justice, infinite goodness, and mercy" (Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689, V.I: Of Divine Providence).
History -- foremost those testimonies contained in Scripture and secondarily the insights we gain from reading and studying non-inspired yet excellent resources that show forth and assess God's providence -- teaches us, in short, to hope and to fear.

II. God provides a "cloud of witnesses" (Heb. 12:1) in the Hebrews 11 "faith hall of fame" that ultimately points us to Christ (Heb. 12:2). As we give God alone all glory, we are to remember their examples, God's providence in their lives, and recognize that they are all fallible, sinful men and women whom God used to mightily advance His Kingdom.

Hebrews 11 most prominently teaches us the role of faith in the lives of our heroes:
"[1] Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. [2] For by it the elders obtained a good report. [3] Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. [4] By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. [5] By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. [6] But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."
After recounting the faith of many heroes and the providence of God in sanctifying His people through affliction and using them to advance His Kingdom for His own glory, we read about those heroes ...
"[33] Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, [34] Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. [35] Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: [36] And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: [37] They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; [38] (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. [39] And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: [40] God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect."
J.H. Merle D'Aubigne, author of many noteworthy volumes on Christian history, including History of the Reformation in Europe in the Time of Calvin, wrote the following in vol. 1: Geneva and France:
"The work of the historian is neither a work of the imagination, like that of the poet, nor a mere conversation about times gone by, as some writers of our day appear to imagine. History is a faithful description of past events; and when the historian can relate them by making use of the language of those who took part in them, he is more certain of describing them just as they were" (Sprinkle Publications, p. xv).

...

"The history which exhibits men thinking, feeling, and acting as they did in their lifetime, is of far higher value than those purely intellectual compositions in which the actors are deprived of speech and even of life" (Ibid., p. xvi).
D'Aubigne's description of well-written history is apt for his own work, as well as for the biblical narratives that describe real and ordinary men and women whom God used in His providence to do extraordinary things for His glory and Kingdom.

We render no measure of credit to the men and women themselves for any faithfulness or obedience and results, for it was God who worked in and through them to do His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13), and we are not to glory in fallible, finite, fallen humans. Indeed, in their testimonies, God sets before us a great "cloud of witnesses" whose example we follow when we run patiently the race that is set before us. And we look beyond them unto Jesus, "the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Heb. 12:1-2). Our explorations of history point us to Christ, His sacrifice and atonement at the cross, and His sovereign reign at the right hand of the Father as His Kingdom advances to defeat all His foes (Ps. 110:1, I Cor. 15:25).

In all of these things, no glory belongs to man. Soli Deo Gloria -- to God alone belongs all glory, now and forever, world without end.
"Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD" (Jer. 9:23-24).

I Corinthians 1 -- "[26] For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: [27] But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; [28] And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: [29] That no flesh should glory in his presence. [30] But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: [31] That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord."

I Corinthians 3 -- "[19] For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness. [20] And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. [21] Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; [22] Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; [23] And ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's."

"For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?" (I Cor. 4:7)

"But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (II Cor.10:17).

"To whom [Christ, who gave Himself for our sins] be glory for ever and ever. Amen" (Gal. 1:5).

"But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" (Gal. 6:4).

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen" (Eph. 3:20-21).

"Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen" (Phil. 4:20).
III. God requires us to honor our physical and spiritual fathers and mothers.

Exodus 20:12, the Fourth Commandment, says this: "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee." We later see this commandment explicitly re-affirmed: "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;) That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth" (Eph. 6:1-3).

Clearly, this divine command applies to children of physical fathers and mothers, as we also see in commandments and testimonies throughout Scripture, most notably the Proverbs. But this ordinance to render honor goes beyond parents, extending to the ecclesiastical realm (Heb. 13:7) and even to civil magistrates (Rom. 13:7). Furthermore, we observe the apostolic testimony of Paul toward Timothy, his "son in the faith" (I Tim. 1:2). This son had Paul as a spiritual father, and so we have fathers through the Gospel (I Cor. 4:14-15). We are exhorted to remember "all our fathers" of the Hebrew nation (I Cor. 10:1), and we are to continue in the faith of Abraham, the father of us all (Rom. 4:16). Additional commandments and patterns, both positive and negative (e.g., Psalm 78:8), demonstrate the spiritual as well as physical nature of the Fourth Commandment in Exodus 20:12.

We are to listen to the testimonies of our physical and spiritual parents, remember God's providence in history, and pass these truths to future generations. We are not to forget or neglect to tell of His mighty deeds, but rather to remember and declare them (Ps. 78).

Our generation faces great challenges and struggles -- as much or more so than many previous generations -- and we must not faint in the day of adversity (Prov. 24:10). We must be “be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (II Tim. 2:1) and be even more rigorously deliberate than our spiritual and physical fathers and mothers. William Bradford writes in Of Plymouth Plantation about the initial objections and fears many Pilgrims had in coming to America:
"It was replied that all great and honourable actions are accompanied with great difficulties, and must be both met and overcome with answerable courage. It was granted the dangers were great, but not desperate; the difficulties were many, but not invincible. For, many of the things feared might never befall; others by provident care and the use of good means might in a great measure be prevented; and all of them, through the help of God, by fortitude and patience, might either be borne or overcome. True it was that such attempts were not to be undertaken without good ground and reason, rashly or lightly; or, as many had done, for curiosity or hope of gain. But their condition was not ordinary; their ends were good and honourable; their calling, lawful and urgent; therefore they might expect the blessing of God on their proceedings. Yea, though they should lose their lives in this action, yet might they have the comfort of knowing that their endeavor was worthy" (pp. 22-23).
They were marked by a firm recognition of God’s sovereignty: His predestination of His people to salvation; His providential governance of all creatures, actions, and things, from the greatest to the least; His unquestioned right as Lawgiver through His inspired, sufficient, and authoritative Word, Holy Scripture; and His inevitable victory through the triumph of Christ’s Kingdom in time and history, as well as in eternity. To summarize, in the words of William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation:
"Last and not least, they cherished a great hope and inward zeal of laying good foundations, or at least of making some way towards it, for the propagation and advance of the gospel of the Kingdom of Christ in the remote parts of the world, even though they should be but stepping stones to others in the performance of so great a work" (p. 21).
Following Bradford and the Pilgrim's courage, Robert E. Lee's insight that history teaches us to hope, and Calvin's comments on Isaiah 9:7 -- all of which were referenced above -- we do not know the extent to which we will witness visible progress in our lifetimes. All of the great movements in history, though we often forget this, culminated after several preceding generations of men and women had lived faithfully and obediently, by God's grace and strength, for His glory alone. These men and women shared confidence in God’s faithfulness to a thousand generations. They did not labor for themselves in vain but for Christ, His Kingdom, and future generations.

The predecessors to generations in which God visibly performed great works did not make headlines for noteworthy achievements; more often, these predecessors followed in the footsteps of the great cloud of witnesses from Hebrews 11. They were perhaps even visibly defeated in their lifetimes -- whether by sword, by lion, by wandering, by famine -- but these our spiritual fathers and mothers built good and stable foundations, establishing a worthy precedent for future generations and for the advancements of God's Kingdom toward victory in His time, according to His providential will.

IV. Various Scriptures (especially in the OT) provide for celebrations -- often for the purpose of remembering God's providence.

"Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!" (Ps. 107:8; cf. verses 15, 21, and 31).

We examined in a previous post God's commandment for His people to celebrate the Passover for a perpetual memorial throughout the generations; and similar feasts and celebrations He commanded to be observed perpetually and multi-generationally, that they would not forget their Lord and pursue after idols. In addition, we understand that God commanded His people to remember His covenant, commandments, and providence, through memorials and landmarks that were not to be removed. How can we apply these patterns in our day?

It is right and appropriate for believers to gather corporately for a time of celebration in remembrance of God's providence through faithful men and women in history, whom we honor as our spiritual fathers and mothers. We glory in Christ, not in creatures, and we base our unity and fellowship in Him, not in fallen, sinful man. We recognize that He providentially works and blesses toward His ordained eternally decreed ends through His appointed means of faithfulness and obedience. We encourage each other not to forget His wondrous deeds of old, but rather to declare them to their children and children's children -- that all might set their hope in God and faithfully obey Him.

We can learn from the sacrificial, humble obedience and faithfulness of our Hebrews 11 heroes. This, we assert, applies no less to our 16th Century and 18th Century and 20th Century heroes. They have left us quite a deposit of spiritual capital that we must not foolishly set aside through neglect and forgetfulness. We may remember them on Reformation Day, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July, and Lee-Jackson Day, among other special days of celebration and thankfulness to God.

We are well aware of the divine instruction concerning setting aside special days:
"One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks" (Rom. 14:5-6).
We conclude from this that none are obliged to set aside special days such as Reformation Day, and we do not violate the Regulative Principle regardless of whether we celebrate or refrain from celebrating on days that God has not specifically designated for worship and rest. God has expressly provided patterns of celebrations and remembrances, and He has commanded us to declare His works of providence multi-generationally, with praise and glory toward Christ alone. A Reformation Day Celebration is one very legitimate and blessed way to fulfill this duty.

CONCLUSION

To God alone be all glory! Wondrous things He has done. May we learn to hope in His mercy and fear before Him in remembrance of His righteous judgments in history. History teaches us to hope, not in noting what is seen by the natural gaze of man's wisdom, but in surveying the wonderful providences of God by a perspective gained solely through His divine Word. God's Kingdom advances toward triumph in history, and He governs all things providentially according to His own good will and pleasure, for the good of His people, and for His own glory.

As we study and declare God's providential works, we seek not to glory in our heroes but to rather remember and celebrate God's mighty deeds in and through ordinary, fallen yet redeemed men and women -- our spiritual fathers and mothers whose unshakable faith in Christ we follow. We stand upon their shoulders and seek to build upon the foundations they have laid for us, advancing even farther down the trail they have begun to blaze.

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posted by C.S. Hayden @ 2:30 AM 0 Comments

Friday, October 30, 2009

REFORMATION WEEK, part 12: "Post Tenebras Lux" -- After Darkness, Light: A Theme of the Reformation

[Please see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, and Part 11 of the Reformation Week posts.]

First Peter 2:9 assures us that God has called His chosen people, the royal priesthood, out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Christ is the light of the world (Jn. 8:12), and we who were in darkness (Eph. 5:8) have now seen the light (Mt. 4:16). Psalm 36:9 teaches that God's light is the very source of our light or understanding.

Light vs. darkness is a consistent theme throughout Scripture from the very first verses all the way to the end. Here is a representative sampling that is by no means exhaustive, which will demonstrate this point:
"And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day" (Genesis 1:5).

"For thou wilt light my candle: the LORD my God will enlighten my darkness" (Psalm 18:28).

"For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light" (Psalm 36:9).

"O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles" (Psalm 43:3).

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. ... The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple" (Psalm 119:105,130).

"But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day" (Proverbs 4:18).

"For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life" (Proverbs 6:23).

"To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them" (Isaiah 8:20).

"The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined" (Isaiah 9:20).

"The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up" (Matthew 4:16; cf. Luke 1:79).

John 1:1-5 -- "[1] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] The same was in the beginning with God. [3] All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. [4] In him was life; and the life was the light of men. [5] And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."

John 3:19-21 -- "[19] And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. [20] For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. [21] But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."

"Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life" (John 8:12).

"Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light. These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them. ... I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness" (John 12:35-36,46).

Paul recounts in Acts 26:18 what Jesus had told him on the road to Damascus: "To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me."

"The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light" (Romans 13:12).

"For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ" (II Corinthians 4:6).

"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?" (II Corinthians 6:14)

"For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light ... And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Ephesians 5:8,11).

"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12).

"Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son" (Colossians 1:13).

I Thessalonians 5:4-8 -- "[4] But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. [5] Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. [6] Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. [7] For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. [8] But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation."

"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light" (I Peter 2:9).

"This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth" (I John 1:5-6).

"Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now" (I John 2:8-9).

"And there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither light of the sun; for the Lord God giveth them light: and they shall reign for ever and ever" (Revelation 22:5).
The late Dr. Greg Bahnsen writes:
"Our knowledge of God is not just like the rest of our knowledge. The psalmist wrote, 'In Thy light we see light' (Ps. 36.9). The knowledge that all men have of God because of natural revelation provides the framework or foundation for any other knowledge they are able to attain. The knowledge of God is the necessary context for learning anything else. One can gain enlightenment ('see light') about the world or oneself only in terms of the more fundamental revelation of God about Himself ('in Thy light')" (Van Til's Apologetic, p. 181).
The theme of light vs. darkness has implications, not merely for our lives as individuals within God's Kingdom or for epistemology, but indeed, for our understanding of all God's providential workings to advance the Kingdom of Christ toward triumph in history. R.J. Rushdoony notes:
"...Christian histiography termed everything outside of Christ 'the dark ages.' Petrarch ... [called] the thousand years of Christianity by that title. ... [But] the dark ages of history are ... the non-Christian eras and areas, because Jesus Christ is the light of the world" (emphasis added; source: The Philosophy of the Christian Curriculum, pp. 40, 42)
Post Tenebras Lux, "after darkness, light," became the motto for Geneva when the Reformation gained ground and swept away the darkness of Romanism (cf.: The Rallying Cries of the Reformation). Tom Browning states:
"Now when the phrase 'post tenebras lux' is used, it is normally used in reference to the recovery of the doctrine of justification and to the principle of 'sola fide' but there is a sense in which the phrase refers to other things associated with the Reformation as well. It refers to the reformation of worship and to the reformation of clerical orders. It refers to the accessibility of Scripture and to the reformation of the sacraments and it even refers to the reformation of the concepts of work and family.

"You can see now, I think, how the phrase was used. That which was dark was illuminated by Scripture and by Christ’s great redemptive work…by the gospel. People were no longer held in the bondage of superstition and idolatry. They were no longer held in bondage and ignorance of what Christ had accomplished on their behalf. They could see at last what Christ had accomplished on their behalf. They were a little like the man who had been born blind but who could now see for himself.

"... Men came to see their lives as having meaning in Christ. Men came to see their vocations as having meaning in Christ. Men who had been cobblers were suddenly grateful that God had granted them a vocation and calling. They were no longer ashamed of having menial positions in life. They no longer looked with jealously and envy upon those called to other or higher vocations. Instead, they rejoiced in what others had been called to even as they rejoiced in their own vocation and calling."
We should remember several key points:
  • God has called His people out of darkness and into light. We should forever praise Him that, having been liberated from slavery to sin, rebellion, ignorance, foolishness, and darkness, we now see light, truth, wisdom, and righteousness in the Kingdom of Christ.
  • The Christian worldview asserts that Christ is the light of the world, in God's light we see light, and every place or person outside of Christ is in darkness. Antithetically, humanism declares that man's reason, devoid of faith in Christ the Creator but foolishly vesting all faith in the creature, is the source of light and understanding -- that Christianity is rather the source of darkness and slavery.
  • Between these two extremes, Christianity vs. humanism, there can be no fellowship or compromise. Light and darkness cannot make peace but must perpetually be at war. Christians do well to keep this antithesis always in view rather than pretending that neutrality is possible.
  • The biblical philosophy of history anticipates light triumphing over darkness. Christ will prevail and crush the forces of evil. We do not despair when forces of darkness arrogate power and wage war against the righteous. We know that we must pursue the battle more fervently, step up the march against Christ's enemies, and wield our armor and weapons, even as the bullets of persecution fly toward us.
  • May we embrace and apply in our day the rallying cries and themes from the Reformation: the five Solas, Post Tenebras Lux, Semper Reformanda, and others.

posted by C.S. Hayden @ 3:45 PM 1 Comments

REFORMATION WEEK, part 11: Boettner, Calvin, & Gregory I vs. the "Universal Pope" (a.k.a., "Antichrist," as per the WCF and LBCF)

[Please see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, and Part 10 of the Reformation Week posts.]

Twentieth Century Christian writer and teacher Loraine Boettner provides a helpful overview concerning the emergence of a "universal pope" in the Roman Church, which did not take place until the Seventh Century after Gregory I:
The word “pope,” by which the head of the Roman Church is known, and the word “papacy,” by which is meant the system of ecclesiastical government in which the pope is recognized as the supreme head, are not found in the Bible. The word “pope” comes from the Latin papa, meaning “father.” But Jesus forbade his followers to call any man “father” in a spiritual sense: “And call no man your father on the earth: for one is your Father, even he who is in heaven” (Matthew 23:9). For centuries this term was applied to all priests, and even to the present day it is so used in the Eastern Church.

In Italy the term “pope” came to be applied to all bishops as a title of honor, and then to the bishop of Rome exclusively as the universal bishop. It was first given to Gregory I by the wicked emperor Phocas, in the year 604. This he did to spite the bishop of Constantinople, who had justly excommunicated him for having caused the assassination of his (Phocas’) predecessor, emperor Mauritius. Gregory, however, refused the title, but his second successor, Boniface III (607) assumed the title, and it has been the designation of the bishops of Rome ever since.

Likewise, the title “pontiff” (as also the term “pontificate,” meaning to speak in a pompous manner), which literally means “bridge builder” (pons, bridge, and facio, make), comes not from the Bible but from pagan Rome, where the emperor, as the high priest of the heathen religion, and in that sense professing to be the bridge or connecting link between this life and the next, was called “Pontifex Maximus.” The title was therefore lifted from paganism and applied to the head of the Roman Catholic Church. As the high priest of the Old Testament was the mediator between God and men, so the pope also claims to be the mediator between God and men, with power over the souls in purgatory so that he can release them from further suffering and admit them to heaven, or prolong their suffering indefinitely.

But Christ alone is the mediator between God and men: “For there is one God, one mediator also between God and men, himself man, Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). And He alone is the true Head of the church. It was He who founded the church and redeemed it with His own blood. He promised to be with His church always, even unto the end of the world. He alone has the perfect attributes needed to fill that high office, for “in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9). “He put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body” (Ephesians 1:22‑23). “And he is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). For the pope or any other man to claim to be the head of the church and the mediator between God and men is arrogant and sinful.

The papal system has been in process of development over a long period of time. Romanists claim an unbroken line of succession from the alleged first pope, Peter, to the present pope, who is said to be the 262nd member in that line. But the list is in many instances quite doubtful. The list has been revised several times, with a considerable number who formerly were listed as popes now listed as anti‑popes. It simply is not true that they can name with certainty all the bishops of Rome from Peter to the present one. A glance at the notices of each of the early popes in the Catholic Encyclopedia will show that they really know little or nothing about the first ten popes. And of the next ten only one is a clearly defined figure in history. The fact of the matter is that the historical record is so incomplete that the existence of an unbroken succession from the apostles to the present can neither be proved nor disproved.

For a period of six centuries after the time of Christ none of the regional churches attempted to exercise authority over any of the other regional churches. The early ecumenical councils were composed of delegates from the various churches who met as equals. There is not a scholar anywhere who pretends to show any decree, canon, or resolution by any of the ecumenical councils which attempts to give preeminence to any one church. The first six hundred years of the Christian era know nothing of any spiritual supremacy on the part of the bishops of Rome. The papacy really began in the year 590, with Gregory I, as Gregory the Great, who consolidated the power of the bishopric in Rome and started that church on a new course. We quote two contemporary church historians, one a Protestant and the other a Roman Catholic, concerning the place of Gregory in this development. Says Professor A. M. Renwick, of the Free Church College, Edinburgh, Scotland:
“His brilliant rule set a standard for those who came after him and he is really the first ‘pope’ who can, with perfect accuracy, be given the title. Along with Leo I (440‑461), Gregory VII (1073-1085), and Innocent III (1198-1216), he stands out as one of the chief architects of the papal system” (The Story of the Church, p. 64).
And the Roman Catholic, Philip Hughes, says that Gregory I...
“...is generally regarded as the greatest of all his line. ... It was to him that Rome turned at every crisis where the Lombards [the invaders from the North] were concerned. He begged his people off and he bought them off. He ransomed the captives and organized the great relief services for widows and orphans. Finally, in 598, he secured a thirty years’ truce. It was St. Gregory who, in these years, was the real ruler of Rome and in a very real sense he is the founder of the papal monarchy” (A Popular History of the Catholic Church, p. 75, 1947. Used by permission of The Macmillan Company).
Calvin, writing in the Sixteenth Century in his Institutes of the Christian Religion (IV.vii.4: Gregory was vehement in opposition to the title when claimed by the Bishop of Constantinople, and did not claim it for himself), expands the historical analysis of Gregory I:
The controversy concerning the title of universal bishop arose at length in the time of Gregory, and was occasioned by the ambition of John of Constantinople. For he wished to make himself universal, a thing which no other had ever attempted. In that controversy, Gregory does not allege that he is deprived of a right which belonged to him, but he strongly insists that the appellation is profane, nay, blasphemous, nay the forerunner of Antichrist. “The whole Church falls from its state, if he who is called universal falls” (Greg. Lib. 4 Ep. 76). Again, “It is very difficult to bear patiently that one who is our brother and fellow bishop should alone be called bishop, while all others are despised. But in this pride of his, what else is intimated but that the days of Antichrist are already near? For he is imitating him, who, despising the company of angels, attempted to ascend the pinnacle of greatness” (Lib. 4 Ep. 76). He elsewhere says to Eulogius of Alexandria and Anastasius of Antioch: “None of my predecessors ever desired to use this profane term: for if one patriarch is called universal, it is derogatory to the name of patriarch in others. But far be it from any Christian mind to wish to arrogate to itself that which would in any degree, however slight, impair the honour of his brethren” (Lib. 4 Ep. 80). “To consent to that impious term is nothing else than to lose the faith” (Lib. 4 Ep. 83). “What we owe to the preservation of the unity of the faith is one thing, what we owe to the suppression of pride is another. I speak with confidence, for every one that calls himself, or desires to be called, universal priest, is by his pride a forerunner of Antichrist, because he acts proudly in preferring himself to others” (Lib. 7 Ep. 154). Thus, again, in a letter to Anastasius of Antioch, “I said, that he could not have peace with us unless he corrected the presumption of a superstitious and haughty term which the first apostate invented; and (to say nothing of the injury to your honour) if one bishop is called universal, the whole Church goes to ruin when that universal bishop falls” (Lib. 4 Ep. 188). But when he writes, that this honour was offered to Leo in the Council of Chalcedon (Lib. 4 Ep. 76, 80; Lib. 7 Ep. 76), he says what has no semblance of truth; nothing of the kind is found among the acts of that council. And Leo himself, who, in many letters, impugns the decree which was then made in honour of the See of Constantinople, undoubtedly would not have omitted this argument, which was the most plausible of all, if it was true that he himself repudiated what was given to him. One who, in other respects, was rather too desirous of honour, would not have omitted what would have been to his praise. Gregory, therefore, is incorrect in saying, that that title was conferred on the Roman See by the Council of Chalcedon; not to mention how ridiculous it is for him to say, that it proceeded from that sacred council, and yet to term it wicked, profane, nefarious, proud, and blasphemous, nay, devised by the devil, and promulgated by the herald of Antichrist. And yet he adds, that his predecessor refused it, lest by that which was given to one individually, all priests should be deprived of their due honour. In another place, he says, “None ever wished to be called by such a name; none arrogated this rash name to himself, lest, by seizing on the honour of supremacy in the office of the Pontificate, he might seem to deny it to all his brethren” (Gregor. Lib. 4 Ep. 82) [emphasis added].
The learned Seventeenth Century divines who assembled to compile the Westminster Confession of Faith must have studied Gregory and, of course, Calvin in advance because Chapter XXV: Of the Church closely echoes Gregory and Calvin's denouncements upon the "universal pope." Paragraph VI says this:
There is no other head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ: nor can the Pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof; but is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ, and all that is called God [emphasis added].
Not surprisingly, the Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689 has a nearly identical reference (XXVI.IV):
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the church, in whom, by the appointment of the Father, all power for the calling, institution, order or government of the church, is invested in a supreme and sovereign manner; neither can the Pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof, but is that antichrist, that man of sin, and son of perdition, that exalts himself in the church against Christ, and all that is called God; whom the Lord shall destroy with the brightness of his coming [emphasis added].
ADDENDUM:

Luther's Smalcald Articles of 1537 state this:
Therefore, just as little as we can worship the devil himself as Lord and God, we can endure his apostle, the Pope, or Antichrist, in his rule as head or lord. For to lie and to kill and to destroy body and soul eternally, that is wherein his papal government really consists.
The second sentence sounds like a reference to Christ's words: "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10).

Dr. Francis Nigel Lee, a Reformed and postmillennial scholar whom I greatly admire, subscribes to historicism, as distinct from futurism and preterism in eschatological hermeneutics. He presented a fascinating biblical and historical analysis of the rise of the papacy, which has been historically understood by Reformational thinkers as "Antichrist." Even for those of us who do not subscribe to historicism, this is well worth reading and considering, especially to understand the historical references to the papacy as "Antichrist."

posted by C.S. Hayden @ 10:00 AM 0 Comments

Thursday, October 29, 2009

REFORMATION WEEK, part 10: John Calvin's global influence in spreading the Gospel of the Kingdom of Christ

[Please see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, and Part 9 of the Reformation Week posts.]

[Please note: This post is intended as a work in progress, and I need to spend a lot more time on it. Lord willing, over time, I will add more quotes by Calvin and statements from others concerning his influence. Please let me know of good sources to add to the list at the end!]




(This is a fairly long post, so just for fun, here is a nice long Beethoven Symphony to enjoy while you're reading. My recommendation: Make yourself a cup of Swiss or French or German or English or Scottish or American tea; listen to Beethoven; and read quotes by/about Calvin and his influence.)

As this year marks the 500th anniversary of Calvin's birth, it is appropriate that we spend time during this Reformation Week to reflect upon how God mightily and providentially used Calvin as an instrument to advance the Gospel of the Kingdom of Christ in the hearts and lives of men, families, churches, cultures, and nations. Lord willing, this post will be a work in progress, as I would like to add quotes, accounts, and analysis over time regarding Calvin's influence.


"The nature of the apostolic function is clear from the command, 'Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature,' (Mark 16: 15.) No fixed limits are given them, but the whole world is assigned to be reduced under the obedience of Christ, that by spreading the Gospel as widely as they could, they might every where erect his kingdom. Accordingly, Paul, when he would approve his apostleship, does not say that he had acquired some one city for Christ, but had propagated the Gospel far and wide - had not built on another man's foundation, but planted churches where the name of his Lord was unheard. The apostles, therefore, were sent forth to bring back the world from its revolt to the true obedience of God, and every where stablish his kingdom by the preaching of the Gospel; or, if you choose, they were like the first architects of the Church, to lay its foundations throughout the world (I Cor.3:10)." -John Calvin (Institutes, IV.iii.4) [emphasis added]

Calvin influenced ecclesiology (doctrine and practices of the church)

"There is communion with God, but only in entire accord with his counsel of peace from all eternity. Thus there is no grace but such as comes to us immediately from God. At every moment of our existence, our entire spiritual life rests in God Himself. The 'Deo Soli Gloria' was not the starting-point but the result, and predestination was inexorably maintained, not for the sake of separating man from man, nor in the interest of personal pride, but in order to guarantee from eternity to eternity, to our inner self, a direct and immediate communion with the Living God. The opposition against Rome aimed therefore with the Calvinist first of all at the dismissal of a Church which placed itself between the soul and God. The Church consisted not in an office, nor in an independent institute, the believers themselves were the Church, inasmuch as by faith they stood in touch with the Almighty. Thus, as in Paganism, Islamism and Romanism, so also in Calvinism is found that proper, definite interpretation of the fundamental relation of man to God, which is required as the first condition of a real life-system." -Abraham Kuyper, Lectures on Calvinism: Calvinism as a Life System (pp. 21-22)

Philip Schaff, in his History of the Christian Church, writes:
Luther’s public career as a reformer embraced twenty-nine years, from 1517 to 1546; that of Zwingli, only twelve years, from 1519 to 1531 (unless we date it from his preaching at Einsiedeln in 1516); that of Calvin, twenty-eight years, from 1536 to 1564. The first reached an age of sixty-two: the second, of forty-seven; the third, of fifty-four. Calvin was twenty-five years younger than Luther and Zwingli, and had the great advantage of building on their foundation. He had less genius, but more talent. He was inferior to them as a man of action, but superior as a thinker and organizer. They cut the stones in the quarries, he polished them in the workshop. They produced the new ideas, he constructed them into a system. His was the work of Apollos rather than of Paul: to water rather than to plant, God giving the increase.

... History furnishes no more striking example of a man of so little personal popularity, and yet such great influence upon the people; of such natural timidity and bashfulness combined with such strength of intellect and character, and such control over his and future generations. He was by nature and taste a retiring scholar, but Providence made him an organizer and ruler of churches.

... Calvin, a native Frenchman, a patrician by education and taste, studied law as well as theology, and by his legal and judicial mind was admirably qualified to build up a new Christian commonwealth.

... The correspondence between Calvin and Melanchthon, considering their disagreement on the deep questions of predestination and free-will, is highly creditable to their head and heart, and proves that theological differences of opinion need not disturb religious harmony and personal friendship.

The co-operative friendships between Luther and Melanchthon, between Zwingli and Oecolampadius, between Farel and Calvin, between Calvin, Beza, and Bullinger, are among the finest chapters in the history of the Reformation, and reveal the hand of God in that movement.
Calvin influenced culture

"Calvin, however, saw more clearly [than Luther] that religion and culture cannot be separated without suffering loss. For Calvin, grace was not a supplementation of nature as in Catholicism, not merely a spiritual power alongside of nature leaving the latter intact, but salvation to him was the renewal of the whole man and the restoration of all the works of God. At the same time, no one could accuse Calvin of cultural optimism, for the negative virtues of cross-bearing and self-denial indeed receive ample emphasis in his exposition of the Christian's duty in this world [Calvin's Institutes, III.6-10 is cited here]. But whereas the German Reformation was primarily the restoration of true worship and the office of the ministry, Calvin sought the restoration of the whole of life, in home, school, state and society. For Luther the Bible was indeed the source of saving truth, but for Calvin Scripture was the norm for the whole of existence." -Henry Van Til, The Calvinistic Concept of Culture (p. 20)

"[In] France the Protestants were called 'Huguenots,' in the Netherlands 'Beggars,' in Great Britain 'Puritans' and 'Presbyterians,' and in North America 'Pilgrim Fathers,' yet all these products of the Reformation which on your Continent and ours bore the special Reformed type, were of Calvinistic origin." -Abraham Kuyper, Lectures on Calvinism: "Calvinism as a Life System" (p. 16)

"In Lutheran countries, the interference of the magistrate has prevented the free working of the spiritual principle. Hence of Romanism only can it be said that it has embodied its life-thought in a world of conceptions and utterances entirely its own. But by the side of Romanism, and in opposition to it, Calvinism made its appearance, not merely to create a different Church-form, but an entirely different form for human life, to furnish human society with a different method of existence, and to populate the world of the human heart with different ideals and conceptions." -Ibid., p. 17

"Thus I maintain that it is the interpretation of our relation to God which dominates every general life system, and that for us this conception is given in Calvinism, thanks to its fundamental interpretation of an immediate fellowship of God with man and of man with God. To this I add that Calvinism has neither invented nor conceived this fundamental interpretation, but that God Himself implanted it in the hearts of its heroes and its heralds. We face here no product of a clever intellectualism, but the fruit of a work of God in the heart, or, if you like, an inspiration of history. This point should be emphasized! Calvinism has never burned its incense upon the altar of genius, it has erected no monument for its heroes, it scarcely calls them by name. One stone only in a wall at Geneva remains to remind one of Calvin. His very grave has been forgotten. Was this ingratitude? By no means. But if Calvin was appreciated, even in the 16th and 17th centuries the impression was vivid that it was One greater than Calvin, even God Himself, who had wrought here His work. Hence, no general movement in life is so devoid of deliberate compact, none so unconventional in which it spread as this. Simultaneously. Calvinism had its rise in all the countries of Western Europe, and it did not appear, among those nations. because the University was in its van, or because scholars led the people, or because a magistrate placed himself at their head: but it sprang from the hearts of the people themselves, with weavers and farmers, with tradesmen and servants, with women and young maidens; and in every instance it exhibited the same characteristic: viz., strong Assurance of eternal Salvation, not only without the intervention of the Church, but even in opposition to the Church. The human heart had attained unto eternal peace with its God: strengthened by this Divine fellowship, it discovered its high and holy calling to consecrate every department of life and every energy at its disposal to the glory of God: and therefore, when those men or women, who had become partakers of this Divine life, were forced to abandon their faith, it proved impossible, that they could deny their Lord; and thousands and tens of thousands burned at the stake, not complaining but exulting, with thanksgiving in their hearts and psalms upon their lips. Calvin was not the author of this, but God who through His Holy Spirit had wrought in Calvin that which He had wrought in them. Calvin stood not above them, but as a brother by their side, a sharer with them of God's blessing. In this way, Calvinism came to its fundamental interpretation of an immediate fellowship with God, not because Calvin invented it, but because in this immediate fellowship God Himself had granted to our fathers a privilege of which Calvin was only the first to become clearly conscious. This is the great work of the Holy Spirit in history, by which Calvinism has been consecrated, and which interprets to us its wondrous energy." -Ibid., pp. 24-25

Calvin influenced the doctrine of the biblical family

"[E]very family ... ought to be a church." -John Calvin, Commentary on Genesis, as quoted by Scott Brown in Family Reformation: The Legacy of Sola Scriptura in Calvin's Geneva (p. 304)

Dan Ford, in his article The Reformed Christian Legacy of Dominion, writes:
Calvin himself had also drawn richly from the Book of Isaiah in seeing God’s mandate to plant the Kingdom of Christ throughout the earth. The Prophecy of Isaiah expressed the means of spreading Christ’s Kingdom abroad by the metaphor of planting vineyards. In vivid terms, Isaiah 65:21 explained, “they shall build houses, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.” Calvin then explained the implications of that Isaiah blessing:
[T]he prophet speaks not only of life, but the peaceful conditions of life; as if it had said, You shall plant vineyards, and shall eat the fruit of them; and you shall not be removed from this life before receiving the fruit, which shall be enjoyed not only by yourselves, but your children and your posterity. [John Calvin, Commentary on the Book of Isaiah, Vol. 4 (Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2005), p. 402.]
Thus, for Calvin and the Reformed Christians, the metaphor of planting vineyards was associated with the planting of families abroad unto the ends of the earth. And, although properly speaking, the Biblical metaphor of planting vineyards was a picture of the spiritual kingdom of Christ, the means by which the Lord accomplished that end was seen by Reformed Christians as generations of families spreading themselves abroad by extending the private dominion of the home. The establishment of household dominion, then, was the means of advancing both the spiritual dominion of Christ and establishing propertied dominion of families by one and the same Biblical metaphor of a “planting.” And, the idea of a colonial plantation in America originally had far deeper theological implications than we now tend to recognize.
Calvin influenced civil government

“Those who consider Calvin only as a theologian fail to recognize the breadth of his genius. The editing of our wise laws, in which he had a large share, does him as much credit as his Institutes. … [S]o long as the love of country and liberty is not extinct amongst us, the memory of this great man will be held in reverence.” -Jean Jacques Rousseau

"We owe church liberty to Calvin under God because he was the first to insist on independence of the church from the state. The church was separated from the state and self-governing, which was new with Calvin. Both institutions were to be separate, but neither was to be neutral toward God. The church was to be republican and presbyterian, with elders elected by the people. This ecclesiastical republicanism is the model for later civil republicanism." -Summary of a portion of Dr. Joe Morecraft's lecture, John Calvin: Man of the Millennium

"After Martin Luther had introduced into Germany the liberty of thinking in matters of religion, and erected the standard of reformation, John Calvin, a native of Noyon, in Picardie, of a vast genius, singular eloquence, various erudition, and polished taste, embraced the cause of reformation. In the books which he published, and in the discourses which he held in the several cities of France, he proposed one hundred and twenty-eight articles in opposition to the creed of the Roman Catholic church. These opinions were soon embraced with ardor, and maintained with obstinacy, by a great number of persons of all conditions. The asylum and the centre of this new sect was Geneva, a city situated on the lake anciently called Lemanus, on the frontiers of Savoy, which had shaken off the yoke of its bishop and the Duke of Savoy, and erected itself into a republic, under the title of a free city, for the sake of liberty of conscience. Let not Geneva be forgotten or despised. Religious liberty owes it much respect, Servetus notwithstanding. From this city proceeded printed books and men distinguished for their wit and eloquence, who spreading themselves in the neighboring provinces, there sowed in secret seeds of their doctrine. Almost all the cities and provinces of France began to be enlightened by it." -John Adams, one of America's Founding Fathers

J.H. Merle D'Aubigne writes the following in his History of the Reformation in Europe in the Time of Calvin, vol. V, ch. XVII: Calvin's Arrival at Geneva:
Calvin, coming after Luther and Farel, was called to complete the work of both. The mighty Luther, to whom will always belong the first place in the work of the Reformation, had uttered the words of faith with power; Calvin was to systematize them, and show the imposing unity of the evangelical doctrine. The impetuous Farel, the most active missionary of the epoch, had detached men from Romish errors, and had united many to Christ, but without combining them; Calvin was to reunite these scattered members and constitute the assembly. Possessed of an organizing genius, he accomplished the task which God had assigned him: he undertook to form a church placed under the direction of the Word of God and the discipline of the Holy Ghost. In his opinion, this ought to be — not, as at Rome, the hierarchical institution of a legal religion; nor, as with the mystics, a vague ideal; nor, as with the rationalists, an intellectual and moral society without religious life. It is said of the Word, which was God, and which was made flesh: In Him was life. Life must, therefore, be the essential characteristic of the people that it was to form. Spiritual powers must — so Calvin thought — act in the midst of the flock of Jesus Christ.

...

But he contributed still more forcibly by his direct teaching to scatter the seeds of a true and wise liberty among the new generations. Doubtless the sources of modern civilization are manifold. Many men of different vocations and genius have labored at this great work; but it is just to acknowledge the place that Calvin occupies among them. The purity and force of his morality were the most powerful means of liberating men and nations from the abuses which had been everywhere introduced, and from the despotic vexations under which they groaned. A nation weak in its morals is easily enslaved. But he did more. How great the truths, how important the principles that Calvin has proclaimed! He fearlessly attacked the papacy, by which all liberty is oppressed, and which during so many centuries had kept the human mind in bondage; and broke the chains which everywhere fettered the thoughts of man. He boldly asserted ‘that there is a very manifest distinction between the spiritual and the political or civil governments.’ He did more than this: the aim of his whole life was to restore the supremacy of conscience. He endeavored to re-establish the kingdom of God in man, and succeeded in doing so not only with men of genius, but with a great number of obscure persons.

...

Calvin did not confine himself to theories: he pronounced frankly against the despotism of kings and the despotism of the people. He declared that ‘if princes usurp any portion of God’s authority, we must not obey them;’ and that if the people indulge in acts of mad violence, we should rather perish than submit to them. ‘God has not armed you,’ he said, ‘that you may resist those who are set over you by Him as governors. You cannot expect He will protect you, if you undertake what He disavows.’ Nevertheless Calvin taught men to love such eternal blessings, and said that it was better to die than to be deprived of them. ‘God ’s honor,’ he declared, ‘is more precious than your life.’ And from that hour we see those in the Netherlands and elsewhere, who had learnt at Geneva to maintain freedom of conscience, acquiring such a love for liberty that they claimed it also for the State, sought it for themselves, and endeavored to give it to others. Religious liberty has been, and is still, the mother of every kind of liberty; but in our days we witness a strange sight. Many of those who owe their emancipation in great part to Calvin, have lost all recollection of it, and some of them insult the noble champion who made them free.

Still, the establishment of temporal liberty was not the reformer’s object: it flows only from his principles, as water from a spring. To proclaim the salvation of God, to establish the right of God — these are the things to which he devoted his life, and that work he pursued with unalterable firmness. He knows the resistance that men will oppose to him: but that shall not check his march. He will batter down ramparts, bridge over chasms, and unflinchingly trample under foot the barriers which he knows are opposed to the glory of God and the welfare of man. Calvin has a correct, penetrating, and sure eye, and his glance takes in a wide horizon.

... ‘We are called,’ he says, ‘to difficult battles; but far from being astonished and growing timid, we take courage, and commit our own body to the deadly struggle.’

...

Calvin teaches in Geneva, he writes to those far beyond its walls. And ere long we see something new forming in the world. A great work had been commenced by the heroic Luther, who had a successor worthy of him to complete it. Calvin gives to the Reformation what the pope affirms it does not possess. There is a noise and a shaking, and the dry bones meet together. The breath comes from the four winds, the dead live and stand upon their feet, an exceeding great army. The Church of Christ has reappeared upon earth. From the bosom of that little city goes forth the word of life. France, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, England, Scotland, and other countries hear it. A century later, that same word, borne by pious refugees or faithful missionaries, shall become the glory and strength of the New World. Later still, it shall visit the most distant isles and continents; it shall fill the earth with the knowledge of the Lord, and shall gather together more and more the dispersed families of the world round the cross of Christ in a holy and living unity.

...

"[A noted historian remarked:] 'In order that French protestantism [we might say 'protestantism' in general] should have a character and doctrine, it needed a city to serve as a center, and a chief to become its organizer. That city was Geneva, and that chief was Calvin.'"
Philip Schaff, in his History of the Christian Church, writes:
Melanchthon, himself the prince of Lutheran divines and "the Preceptor of Germany," called him emphatically "the Theologian."

...

In this respect we may compare him to Pope Hildebrand, but with this great difference, that Hildebrand, the man of iron, reformed the papacy of his day on ascetic principles, and developed the mediaeval theocracy on the hierarchical basis of an exclusive and unmarried priesthood; while Calvin reformed the Church on social principles, and founded a theocracy on the democratic basis of the general priesthood of believers. The former asserted the supremacy of the Church over the State; the latter, the supremacy of Christ over both Church and State. Calvin united the spiritual and secular powers as the two arms of God, on the assumption of the obedience of the State to the law of Christ. The last form of this kind of theocracy or Christocracy was established by the Puritans in New England in 1620, and continued for several generations. In the nineteenth century, when the State has assumed a mixed religious and non-religious character, and is emancipating itself more and more from the rule of any church organization or creed, Calvin would, like his modern adherents in French Switzerland, Scotland, and America, undoubtedly be a champion of the freedom and independence of the Church and its separation from the State.

Calvin found the commonwealth of Geneva in a condition of license bordering on anarchy: he left it a well-regulated community, which John Knox, the Reformer of Scotland, from personal observation, declared to be "the most perfect school of Christ that ever was in the earth since the days of the Apostles," and which Valentin Andreae, a shining light of the Lutheran Church, likewise from personal observation, half a century after Calvin’s death, held up to the churches of Germany as a model for imitation.

It is by the combination of a severe creed with severe self-discipline that Calvin became the father of the heroic races of French Huguenots, Dutch Burghers, English Puritans, Scotch Covenanters, and New England Pilgrims, who sacrificed the world for the liberty of conscience.

... Calvinists fear God and nothing else. In their eyes, God alone is great, man is but a shadow. The fear of God makes them fearless of earthly despots. It humbles man before God, it exalts him before his fellow-men. The fear of God is the basis of moral self-government, and self-government is the basis of true freedom.
John Eidsmoe writes the following:
But Calvin also influenced law and government. His emphasis on Sola Scriptura led to his doctrine of the priesthood of all believers, stressing that all believers are priests and Jesus Christ is our great high priest, so we need no priest or bishop to intercede on our behalf. But if, as Calvin taught, every plowboy should be able to read and interpret the Scriptures for himself, then every plowboy must be taught to read. This led to widespread literacy, which made republican self-government possible.

Calvin’s emphasis on Sola Gratia led to a recognition of the total depravity of human nature. Because of man’s sinful nature, we cannot live in a state of anarchy; we need government to maintain law and order. But because those in authority have the same sinful nature as the rest of us, we cannot trust government with too much power. This led to the system of limited government, separation of powers, checks and balances, and reserved individual rights that characterize republican self-government.

...

But Leopold von Ranke, founder of the modern school of history in Germany, stated flatly, “John Calvin was the virtual founder of America.” And George Bancroft, the leading American historian of the first half of the 1800s, though not a Calvinist himself, called Calvin the “father of America” and added, “He who will not honor the memory and respect the influence of Calvin knows but little of the origin of American liberty.”
Non-exhaustive list of resources to consult:

posted by C.S. Hayden @ 9:30 PM 2 Comments

REFORMATION WEEK, part 9: James White defends "Sola Scriptura" against Roman Catholic arguments

[Please see Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, and Part 8 of the Reformation Week posts.]

Here are excerpts from one of James White's defenses of Sola Scriptura against the arguments of a Roman Catholic apologist:
"Sola scriptura says the Scriptures are the sole infallible rule of faith for the Church. It does not deny the existence of 'general revelation' in nature (hence the error of saying the 'sole source of revelation').

...

"[The Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689, ch. 1, par. 6, says:]
The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down or necessarily contained in Holy Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men. Nevertheless, we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word; and that there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and government of the Church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature, and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed.
"The sufficiency of Scripture is clearly asserted, but it is a sufficiency carefully defined. No one claims the Bible is an omnipedia of all knowledge. Nor does anyone claim the Bible can tell you, specifically, what color fabric to place upon the pews of your new church building. But all things that are 'necessary' for God's 'own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down or necessarily contained in Holy Scripture.' How like the words of Augustine:
What more shall I teach you than what we read in the apostle? For Holy Scripture fixes the rule for our doctrine, lest we dare to be wiser than we ought. Therefore I should not teach you anything else except to expound to you the words of the Teacher. (De bono viduitatis, 2)
...
You ought to notice particularly and store in your memory that God wanted to lay a firm foundation in the Scriptures against treacherous errors, a foundation against which no one dares to speak who would in any way be considered a Christian. For when He offered Himself to them to touch, this did not suffice Him unless He also confirmed the heart of the believers from the Scriptures, for He foresaw that the time would come when we would not have anything to touch but would have something to read (In Epistolam Johannis tractus, 2).
"The issue is not, and never has been, the validity of 'tradition' as a subordinate authority. I above cited from the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. It is a 'subordinate standard,' a 'tradition' if you wish, that gives expression to certain aspects of divine truth. But it is not revelational, nor is it infallible. It is subordinate to Scripture, and liable to correction on the basis thereof. The Lord Jesus gave us the example in Matthew 15: we are to subordinate all traditions, even those that men claim are 'divine' in origin, to the ultimate authority of Scripture. In this we agree with Basil of Caesarea:
The hearers taught in the Scriptures ought to test what is said by teachers and accept that which agrees with the Scriptures but reject that which is foreign. (Moralia, 72:1)
"And likewise with Cyril of Jerusalem:
In regard to the divine and holy mysteries of the faith, not the least part may be handed on without the Holy Scriptures. Do not be led astray by winning words and clever arguments. Even to me, who tell you these things, do not give ready belief, unless you receive from the Holy Scriptures the proof of the things which I announce. The salvation in which we believe is not proved from clever reasoning, but from the Holy Scriptures. (Catechetical Lectures 4:17)
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"One will search high and low for any reference in any standard Protestant confession of faith that says, 'There has never been a time when God's Word was proclaimed and transmitted orally.' You will never find anyone saying, 'During times of enscripturation—that is, when new revelation was being given—sola scriptura was operational.' Protestants do not assert that sola scriptura is a valid concept during times of revelation. How could it be, since the rule of faith to which it points was at that very time coming into being? One must have an existing rule of faith to say it is 'sufficient.' It is a canard to point to times of revelation and say, 'See, sola scriptura doesn't work there!' Of course it doesn't. Who said it did?

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"Sola scriptura speaks to the Church as she exists in her normative state. Times of revelation are not normative. They are now passed. So how does the Church have sure access to the truths of God today? By reference to nebulous, a-historical traditions, or to the sure and unchanging Word of God in the Scriptures? Sola scriptura says the Church always has an ultimate authority to which to turn: and the Church isn't that ultimate authority! The Church is in need of revelation from Her Lord, and that she finds in Scripture, not in 'traditions' that are uncertain."
The entire article is well worth reading; I did not even begin to quote from the portions that deal specifically with Acts 17:11, "These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so."

posted by C.S. Hayden @ 9:00 PM 0 Comments