The apologetic character of this first theological treatise of Calvin, which he expanded constantly till 1559, is evident throughout this and every other part of the Institutes. Since it was written primarily in defense of the reformed religion against the attacks and slanders of its enemies, the abuses and idolatries of the Roman Church are [...]
Archive for the ‘Calvinism’ Category
Last Friday I was able to work from home on a number of things that needed to be done. During my lunch hour I began to read and came across an article in which I am sure most have read that read my blog – yet I had never. There are often times those who claim [...]
Adoption makes the believer an heir of salvation through Christ
Posted: April 12, 2011 by Michael Dewalt in Adoption, Calvinism(Guest post by Maarten Kuivenhoven) Adoption makes the believer an heir of salvation through Christ. The adopted child of God becomes the recipient of salvation through Christ, for “the name of Christ excludes all merit, and everything which men have of their own.” Christ’s merits, through His obedience, death and resurrection, are what secure the believer’s [...]
From the knowledge of God, furnished by the Law, we learn that God is our Father and Ruler. Righteousness is pleasing, iniquity is an abomination in his sight. Hence, how weak soever we may be, our duty is to cultivate the one, and shun the other. Taken from 2.8.2, “It is now easy to understand [...]
Adoption assures the believer of God’s Fatherly electing grace
Posted: April 1, 2011 by Michael Dewalt in Adoption, Calvinism(Guest post by Maarten Kuivenhoven) At the heart of John Calvin’s theology and undergirding his development of the ordo salutis is the doctrine of adoption. Many scholars note that Calvin does not treat adoption as a separate locus in his systematic theology and magnum opus, The Institutes of the Christian Religion. This is due in part to the [...]
The Law was committed to writing, in order that it might teach more fully and perfectly that knowledge, both of God and of ourselves, which the law of nature teaches meagrely and obscurely. Proof of this, from an enumeration of the principal parts of the Moral Law; and also from the dictate of natural law, [...]
The New extended the Old’s promises beyond the present life, and held out a sure hope of immortality
Posted: November 8, 2010 by Michael Dewalt in Calvinism, John CalvinJohn Calvin writes, “In the same way we infer that the Old Testament was both established by the free mercy of God and confirmed by the intercession of Christ. For the preaching of the Gospel declares nothing more than that sinners, without any merit of their own, are justified by the paternal indulgence of God. [...]
Written by Francis Beattie, Philosophy is reflection, the thinking consideration of things. It is the search for causes, the inquiry after reasons. Each age has its own peculiar philosophical tendency. The pendulum of speculation swings from one system to another through the ages. It may be safely said that the tendency of the noblest philosophical [...]
Calvinism and Modern Thought: In the Sphere of History
Posted: August 16, 2010 by Michael Dewalt in CalvinismFrancis Beattie writes, Historical research in modern times has made wonderful advances. It is no longer a matter of mere annals and statistics. It has acquired a distinct method of its own, which is well known as the historical method, and which has also been carried into many other spheres of inquiry. The historian is no [...]
John Calvin’s Teaching on the Fourth Commandment
Posted: August 15, 2010 by Michael Dewalt in Calvinism, John Calvin, SabbathHT: From the Geneva Catechism (ca. 1560) 168. Let us come to the fourth commandment. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy [...]
