“According to [John] Calvin, God decreed, before he created the universe, that you would read my words at this moment. It is thus God’s will that you do so. Alas, it by no means follows that that is what you ought to be doing.”
Stephen Westerholm, Perspectives Old and New on Paul, 42.
Archive for the ‘Calvin’ Category
It is ordained that you…
Posted in Calvin, Theology on October 4, 2007 | 1 Comment »
The Sum of the Matter: John Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (Part 10)
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Theology on June 20, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
For the last several months–on and off and on again–we’ve been looking at the Lord’s Supper through the teaching of John Calvin in his Institutes, Book IV, chapter 17 (with a brief look at chapter 14 on the sacraments in general). By no means did we exhaust his material, though we hit some of the [...]
Eating the Lord’s Supper in a Worthy Manner – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper Part 9
Posted in Calvin, Cross, Lord's Supper, Sanctification, Theology on June 10, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
During my senior year in high school I spent a nervous two weeks between Dec 1st, when my college early application was due, and Dec 14th, when they said they would tell the applicants whether they were accepted or denied–or deferred to the normal application process later that school year. I had made my one [...]
The Lord’s Supper as a Seal – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper Part 8
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Theology on May 23, 2007 | 1 Comment »
We’ve all had the experience of looking at a new pair of pants, or a new mattress, or a new mp3 player, and seen somewhere in the packaging, “Inspected by #403,” or something comparable. This “seal” means that someone has examined the product and seen that it meets the standards for quality established by the [...]
What do we “proclaim” in the Lord’s Supper? Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 7)
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Sanctification, Theology on May 15, 2007 | 1 Comment »
Paul explained to the Corinthians that, “as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes” (1 Cor 11:26). This famous statement is really a famous understatement. “Proclaiming the Lord’s death” means so much to us who have died with Christ and now live with him [...]
The Lord’s Supper and How We Partake of Christ – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 6)
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Theology on May 1, 2007 | 6 Comments »
One of the ancient controversies of the church has been how exactly a believer partakes of Christ in the Lord’s Supper. The Catholic Church has embraced the doctrine of transubstantiation, which is the affirmation that the elements themselves are changed in their substance to become the actual body and blood of Christ. In this way [...]
The Lord’s Supper as a Sign – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 5)
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Sanctification, Sin, Theology on April 27, 2007 | 1 Comment »
On long road trips mile markers feel like your worst enemy for most of the time, and then your best friend at the very end; they give you what feels like bad news for so long, and hold off the good news just when you feel you can’t take anymore asphalt and traffic. Mile markers [...]
The Lord’s Supper a Picture of the Gospel – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 4)
Posted in Calvin, Cross, Lord's Supper, Sanctification, Theology on April 19, 2007 | 1 Comment »
In the Institutes (IV:17:3) John Calvin calls the Lord’s Supper a “full witness” of the gospel. That is his descrption of the words of Jesus cited by Matthew: “Take, eat; this is my body….Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” [...]
The Lord’s Supper a Feast for Hungry Souls – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 3)
Posted in Calvin, Lord's Supper, Sin on March 22, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
Matthew 26:26-28 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” 27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for [...]
The Lord’s Supper a Reminder – Calvin and the Lord’s Supper (part 2)
Posted in Bible, Calvin, Cross, Lord's Supper, Sanctification, Sin on March 16, 2007 | Leave a Comment »
“Godly souls can gather assurance and delight from this Sacrament…”
Calvin’s second section on the Lord’s Supper from the Institutes explores the “assurance” that comes with the Lord’s Supper. It is a “witness of our growth into one body with Christ,” that gives a confident hope that “whatever is his may be called ours.”
Surely our sins and [...]
