The purpose of this series is to show that Bible covenants cause the Old and New Testaments to have unity; and that since the Fall, Genesis 3, salvation has only been by faith in Christ.
Christ was presented to the Patriarchs via types, see the last post for an explanation of biblical ‘types,’ (posts that precede and follow a given post are automatically linked).
The Old and New Testaments, are the revelation of One God to a people He is calling out of this world. One can easily see the truth of that statement if he/she looks at God’s plan of redemption via the covenants He entered into with mankind in order to restore him, to redeem him.
Many theologians have come to this understanding by studying God’s word. Even I came to the beginning of that understanding by writing an article against the Baha’i Faith, as the subject of my article was Abraham, Moses and Christ: the major covenants of the Old and New Testaments were established by God, via these men. My article was linked to the last post.
I will be excerpting sections of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion to show readers how he viewed the Testaments.
As I copy and paste his words, I will put some explanatory notes in square brackets to help readers, who are not familiar with Calvin, to understand his manner of presenting material. I still find it a bit confusing, therefore I am taking precautions that should facilitate understanding.
[Any bracketed statement, and all underscoring and emboldening are mine. Many of Calvin’s paragraphs are divided for ease of reading.]
All of Calvin’s words, in my posts for this series, come from the following source:
Calvin, John. Institutes of the Christian Religion. Hendrickson Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Calvin’s words begin now:
INSTITUTES OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, BOOK SECOND
[Book Second, has a total of 17 chapters; just below, Calvin explains what each of those chapters considers.]
Of the knowledge of God the Redeemer, in Christ, as first manifested to the fathers, under the law, and thereafter to us under the gospel.
[The above sentence is the purpose of the Book Second, of the four books that make up the entirety of his Institutes of the Christian Religion; therein is also hinted that he sees God’s revelation to be of one kind, but given differently in each testament.]
Argument
The first part of the Apostles’ Creed, i.e., the knowledge of God the Creator, being disposed of, we now come to the second part, which relates to the knowledge of God as a Redeemer in Christ. The subjects treated of accordingly are, first, the occasion of redemption, i.e., Adam’s fall; and, secondly, redemption itself.
The first five chapters are devoted to the former subject, [Adam’s fall] and the remainder to the latter. [Redemption itself]
Under the occasion of redemption, the fall is considered not only in a general way, but also specially in its effects.
Hence the first four chapters treat of original sin, free will, the corruption of human nature, and the operation of God in the heart. The fifth chapter contains a refutation of the arguments usually urged in support of free will.
[As Calvin gives 5 major points of Book Second, below, he provides an overview of the contents of the 17 chapters of that book; the abbreviation ‘c’ is used below to signify chapter. Chapters are further divided into sections, I will explain those in a few moments.]
The subject of redemption may be reduced to five particular heads:
[My series will be excerpting Calvin’s thoughts from chapter one, described above; and from chapters mentioned in the initial two heads described below.]
One: The character of him [Christ] in whom salvation for lost man must be sought, 6.
Two: How he was manifested to the world, namely, in a twofold manner. First, under the Law. Here the Decalogue is expounded, and some other points relating to the law discussed, c. 7 and 8. Secondly, under the Gospel. Here the resemblance and difference of the two dispensations are considered, c. 9, 10, 11.
Three: What kind of person Christ was, and behooved to be, in order to perform the office of Mediator, i.e., God and man in one person, c. 12, 13, 14.
Four: For what end he was sent into the world by the Father. Here Christ’s prophetical, kingly, and priestly offices are considered, c. 15.
Five: In what way, or by what successive steps, Christ fulfilled the office of our Redeemer, c. 16. Here are considered his crucifixion, death, burial, descent to hell, resurrection, ascension to heaven, and seat at the right hand of the Father, together with the practical use of the whole doctrine. Chapter 17 contains an answer to the question, Whether Christ is properly said to have merited the grace of God for us.
CHAPTER 1
[Since covenants have to do with redemption from sin, this portion of Calvin’s treatise must be covered, in case you were wondering.]
Through the Fall and Revolt of Adam, the Whole Human Race Made Accursed and Degenerate. Of Original Sin
One: How necessary the knowledge of ourselves is, its nature, the danger of mistake, its leading parts, 1, 2, 3. [‘s’ signifies section, as in sections 1, 2, and 3; each chapter has a different number of sections; this post is about those 3 sections only]
Two: The causes of Adam’s fearful fall, s. 4.
Three: The effects of the fall extending to Adam’s posterity, and all the creatures, s. 5, to the end of the chapter, where the nature, propagation, and effect of original sin are considered.
SECTIONS
[Chapter 1 has 11 sections. I am only pasting in three sections because that is all that will be considered in this post.]
[Each section is summarized below; after that, he will provide an explanation of each section that corresponds to the following numbered summaries.]
- The knowledge of ourselves most necessary. To use it properly we must be divested of pride, and clothed with true humility, which will dispose [incline] us to consider our fall, and embrace the mercy of God in Christ.
- Though there is plausibility in the sentiment which stimulates us to self-admiration, the only sound sentiment is that which inclines us to true humbleness of mind. Pretexts for pride. The miserable vanity of sinful man.
- Different views taken by carnal wisdom and by conscience, which appeals to divine justice as its standard. The knowledge of ourselves, consisting of two parts, the former of which having already been discussed, the latter is here considered.
[Explanation of the above numbered sections]
1 It was not without reason that the ancient proverb so strongly recommended to man the knowledge of himself. For if it is deemed disgraceful to be ignorant of things pertaining to the business of life, much more disgraceful is self-ignorance, in consequence of which we miserably deceive ourselves in matters of the highest moment, and so walk blindfold.
But the more useful the precept is, the more careful we must be not to use it preposterously, as we see certain philosophers have done.
For they, when exhorting man to know himself, state the motive to be, that he may not be ignorant of his own excellence and dignity.
They wish him to see nothing in himself but what will fill him with vain confidence, and inflate him with pride.
But self-knowledge consists in this, first,
When reflecting on what God gave us at our creation, and still continues graciously to give, we perceive how great the excellence of our nature would have been had its integrity remained, and, at the same time, remember that we have nothing of our own, but depend entirely on God, from whom we hold at pleasure whatever he has seen it meet to bestow; secondly,
When viewing our miserable condition since Adam’s fall, all confidence and boasting are overthrown, we blush for shame, and feel truly humble.
For as God at first formed us in his own image, that he might elevate our minds to the pursuit of virtue, and the contemplation of eternal life, so to prevent us from heartlessly burying those noble qualities which distinguish us from the lower animals, it is of importance to know that we were endued with reason and intelligence, in order that we might cultivate a holy and honorable life, and regard a blessed immortality as our destined aim.
At the same time, it is impossible to think of our primeval dignity without being immediately reminded of the sad spectacle of our ignominy [public shame or disgrace] and corruption, ever since we fell from our original in the person of our first parent.
In this way, we feel dissatisfied with ourselves, and become truly humble, while we are inflamed with new desires to seek after God, in whom each may regain those good qualities of which all are found to be utterly destitute.
- In examining ourselves, the search which divine truth enjoins, and the knowledge which it demands, are such as may indispose us to everything like confidence in our own powers, leave us devoid of all means of boasting, and so incline us to submission.
This is the course which we must follow, if we would attain to the true goal, both in speculation and practice. I am not unaware how much more plausible the view is, which invites us rather to ponder on our good qualities, than to contemplate what must overwhelm us with shame—our miserable destitution and ignominy.
There is nothing more acceptable to the human mind than flattery, and, accordingly, when told that its endowments are of a high order, it is apt to be excessively credulous [to believe the flattery]. Hence it is not strange that the greater part of mankind have erred so egregiously [outstandingly badly] in this matter.
Owing to the innate self-love by which all are blinded, we most willingly persuade ourselves that we do not possess a single quality which is deserving of hatred; and hence, independent of any countenance from without, general credit is given to the very foolish idea, that man is perfectly sufficient of himself for all the purposes of a good and happy life.
If any are disposed to think more modestly, and concede somewhat to God, that they may not seem to arrogate [claim, without justification to do so] everything as their own, still, in making the division, they apportion matters so, that the chief ground of confidence and boasting always remains with themselves.
Then, if a discourse is pronounced which flatters the pride spontaneously springing up in man’s inmost heart, nothing seems more delightful. Accordingly, in every age, he who is most forward in extolling the excellence of human nature, is received with the loudest applause.
But be this heralding of human excellence what it may, by teaching man to rest in himself, it does nothing more than fascinate by its sweetness, and, at the same time, so delude as to drown in perdition all who assent to it.
For what avails it to proceed in vain confidence, to deliberate, resolve, plan, and attempt what we deem pertinent to the purpose,
and, at the very outset, prove deficient and destitute both of sound intelligence and true virtue,
though we still confidently persist till we rush headlong on destruction?
But this is the best that can happen to those who put confidence in their own powers.
Whosoever, therefore, gives heed to those teachers, who merely employ us in contemplating our good qualities, so far from making progress in self-knowledge, will be plunged into the most pernicious ignorance.
[Such teachers currently include: Osteen; the Pope; Rick Warren; all prosperity preachers…. These do not preach on sin, but encourage hearers to pursue fleshly and worldly desires; tell hearers that they should speak the worldly things they want into existence; that all people will go to heaven no matter whether they believe in Christ or not, and a host of other un-biblical notions that will ruin their souls.
Calvin discusses other factors that block true self-knowledge as he unfolds his points. But I wanted to emphasize, in modern language, that growth in the Christian life necessitates fighting sin. To fight sin, one must be able to identify it in his life, as scripture defines it; and to be willing to own it; then to put on the armor of God to fight against it. That armor mostly amounts to abiding in the word, hearing preaching of the true gospel and prayer: the appointed means of grace.]
- While revealed truth concurs with the general consent of mankind in teaching that the second part of wisdom consists in self-knowledge, they differ greatly as to the method by which this knowledge is to be acquired.
In the judgment of the flesh man deems his self-knowledge complete, when, with overweening [excessive] confidence in his own intelligence and integrity, he takes courage, and spurs himself on to virtuous deeds, and when, declaring war upon vice, he uses his utmost endeavor to attain to the honorable and the fair.
But he who tries himself by the standard of divine justice, finds nothing to inspire him with confidence; and hence, the more thorough his self-examination, the greater his despondency.
Abandoning all dependence on himself, he feels that he is utterly incapable of duly regulating his conduct.
[That ‘struggle of faith’ explained by Jonathan Edwards is herein indicated. That is, one cannot arrive at the conclusion that he is helpless and must depend upon God for deliverance UNLESS he has been at war with his sin and has seen that it is impossible for him, in his own strength, without prayerful dependence upon Christ’s Spirit for the necessary grace and strength, to prevail against it. I am not done figuring this out for myself, but a recent series by my pastor, on James, wherein he talked about the ‘exercising of one’s faith’ helped me grow a bit more. I will link the Edwards ‘struggle of faith’ concept, for those who have not yet seen it.]
It is not the will of God, however, that we should forget the primeval dignity which he bestowed on our first parents—a dignity which may well stimulate us to the pursuit of goodness and justice.
It is impossible for us to think of our first original, or the end for which we were created, without being urged to meditate on immortality, and to seek the kingdom of God. But such meditation, so far from raising our spirits, rather casts them down, and makes us humble.
For what is our original? One from which we have fallen. What the end of our creation? One from which we have altogether strayed, so that, weary of our miserable lot, we groan, and groaning sigh for a dignity now lost.
When we say that man should see nothing in himself which can raise his spirits, our meaning is, that he possesses nothing on which he can proudly plume himself.
Hence, in considering the knowledge which man ought to have of himself, it seems proper to divide it thus, first, to consider the end for which he was created, and the qualities—by no means contemptible qualities—with which he was endued, thus urging him to meditate on divine worship and the future life; and, secondly, to consider his faculties, or rather want of faculties—a want which, when perceived, will annihilate all his confidence, and cover him with confusion.
The tendency of the former view is to teach him what his duty is, of the latter, to make him aware how far he is able to perform it. We shall treat of both in their proper order.
End of Calvin’s words for this post.
[In Matthew 5, Jesus declared the states of blessedness, the first is ‘poverty of spirit.’ One who possesses the first blessed attitude would seem to have also come to the conclusions of which Calvin spoke of above = spiritual bankruptcy.]
[In latter points, Calvin clarifies other things that hinder believers from acquiring true self-knowledge.
Link post on Sinner’s prayer, 5-stage struggle of faith:
Link Pastor Ramsey’s series on James:
Link to Pastor Ramsey’s New Sermons (those above from James are among the new sermons, but if you want the complete series after it is preached, then the link I gave on will be shy of some sermons, those which have not yet been preached:
Link to purchase Calvin’s Institutes:
For Kindle, hard and softback versions: Prices: Kindle, $1.99; Hardback, $19.99; Softback, $21.41
For Audible: currently $20.44; at this link, Kindle, $0.99; Paperback, $10.24
I have the Institutes on Audible, which I use most; Kindle, which I use to blog; and Hardback. I like to listen as I read along. I find that to be easier and more beneficial than merely reading or listening.
Featured Image: Institutes of the Christian Religion Audiobook, written by John Calvin …downpour.com