By Pastor Matthew Everhard
You don’t have to attend a Presbyterian, Reformed, or
evangelical church very long before you hear the name John Calvin bandied
about. In fact, this stalwart hero of Christian history is honored in most
protestant churches still today, five hundred years after his death. Dozens of
denominations trace their spiritual lineage through this man in some way or
another. In fact, in a recent Time Magazine article, the “New Calvinism” was heralded
as one of the most influential movements in the world today. Period! In other words, a renewed interest in
this man and his teaching is energizing the Christian movement worldwide.
We recently celebrated the 500th birthday of John Calvin.
But why is this man so significant? Why is he so popular? Why is he still so
influential? Hopefully this article will help you to understand more about this
monumental figure in Christian history and why the present writer (a pastor
myself) gravitates toward him.
Personal Life
John Calvin was born in Noyon France in 1509. Like most in France at that
time Calvin was raised as a Roman Catholic. Displaying a sharp mind from his
youth, Calvin was reared and groomed by his father to attain a career as a
churchman, perhaps a priest or even bishop. Later, his father changed his mind
and switched the young Calvin to the pursuit of a career in law. Calvin had
many privileges as a young man, perhaps the most important of which was his
formal education at the University
of Paris, and the College
de Montaigu among others. His acumen for intellectual precision would serve him
well in his later years as a theologian, but we can’t get ahead of ourselves
just yet.
During his college years, the ideas of a certain German
named Martin Luther were sweeping through Europe.
One generation younger than Luther, Calvin was soon swept up on the coattails
of the Reformation. Of course at the time, Luther did not want to create any
new “denomination,” he merely sought the restructure and purity of the existing
church. It is difficult to pin down, but at some time during his university
years, Calvin would become inflamed with the gospel truths put forth by Luther
and his followers. In his own words, he experienced a “sudden conversion.” In a
controversial moment, one of Calvin’s dear friends, Nicholas Cop was asked to
give an address at the University
of Paris. In the address,
this bold young man took the opportunity to promote the Reformation gospel.
Some suspect, due to the brilliance of the essay, that Calvin himself may have
written it for him!
In any case the address
was highly controversial and Calvin bolted town, feeling the heat. As you may
imagine, to be counted among the “reformed” Christians was a deeply
controversial thing in a profoundly Roman Catholic nation such as France. Due to
political pressures, many of the Reformed sought out other havens to escape the
increasing persecution. Calvin too would soon be seeking refuge elsewhere. In
January of 1535, he arrived in Basel Switzerland, a
safe haven.
Calvin became increasing consumed by knowing the Scriptures
in a comprehensive way. No surface familiarity with Scripture would do. He
needed to master them. He was driven by His love for God and His Word. He soon
rose above his peers in his ability to know, understand, and articulate the
Scriptures. Calvin acquired an immense knowledge of the Biblical languages,
Greek and Hebrew (as well as Latin) and began penning a work that would truly
become one of the most important Biblical works of theology of all time. He
called it “The Institutes of the Christian Religion.” At first, The Institutes
was a simple book, six chapters. With parallel versions in French and Latin,
Calvin’s goal was to show the world (especially the King of France to whom he
addressed the preface) that the Reformers taught a biblically pure
doctrine—certainly no heresy as they were often accused of propagating. It must
be remembered that Calvin wrote to defend the biblical doctrine for which many
of his brothers in the faith were literally dying at the stake. To isolate The
Institutes from its historical context is to rob it of much of its power today.
Well, to make a long story short, the Institutes were a
smashing success. Since Luther was a bold, outspoken (and often brash) man—who
spent most of his time putting out the fires of controversy—Calvin neatly
stepped into the role of the Reformation’s most excellent, precise, and
Spirit-filled theologian. Philip Melanchthon, Luther’s immediate successor and
closest friend, called Calvin simply “The Theologian.” Luther himself, who
never met Calvin, read one of his works on the Lord’s Supper and was deeply
impressed, “This is a work that has hands and feet!” Luther boasted in rare
fashion.
As with all great men, history would soon foist itself upon
Calvin. Enjoying some success with his hot little book, Calvin determined to
retire and live the “ivory tower” life of a professional theologian, away from
the controversy and excitement of the day. His goal was to move to Strasbourg, a German
protestant city. Serendipitously, Calvin was literally and physically deterred
from his path to retirement and ease as a scholar. On his way, Calvin was
forced to take a detour through Geneva—the
armed conflict between France and the German emperor literally blocked his
path. He never intended to stay, but on that night a fiery redhead named
William Farel heard of Calvin’s brief stop in the equivalent of a Genevan Motel
6. Having heard of Calvin’s now famous
work, Farel immediately went to Calvin’s room and proceeded to call down the
fires of heaven cursing Calvin’s retirement unless he should stay in Geneva to help establish
the Reformation there. Farel himself had already persuaded the city counsel in Geneva of the worth of
the Reformed movement; he needed only a partner.
Because of Farel’s insistence (and not a little bit of fear
from his imprecation!) Calvin agreed. Here in Geneva, he would find his most important
pastoral work. He was made pastor of the Church of St. Peter.
There, he worked tirelessly preaching as many as five sermons a week to the
gathered people, hungry for God’s Holy Word. One might hope that Calvin could
have found the peace he had longed for to work on his Biblical commentaries and
the constant revisions of his burgeoning Institutes. Unfortunately, this could
not be. Embroiled in a political power struggle with the City Council, Calvin
and Farel were both soon kicked out of the very city they loved! In Easter of
1538, they were sent away.
For a couple of years, Calvin labored as a pastor to the
French refuges in Strasbourg.
Surprisingly in 1541, the city counsel of Geneva
abruptly changed course and invited the Reformers back, admitting the error
of their ways! Famously, when Calvin returned to Geneva after his expulsion, he resumed his
preaching—on the very next verse of the text in which he had left off those
months ago!
Soon Calvin became increasingly more powerful in his
authority as a Bible expositor. By 1559 The Institutes had reached their full
potential and Calvin had now become satisfied at their final form. The
once-small pamphlet had become a massive tome that encompasses over 1,300 pages
of miniscule type-font in my bedside edition! Each page, of course, was stocked
full of the most precise biblical exposition and application imaginable,
unfolding a truly comprehensive systematic theology of the Christian faith.
Calvin continued to do a few things very well: he preached, taught, instructed
seminary students, helped plant churches, and of course, wrote fervently.
Calvin wrote massive commentaries of nearly all of the books of the Bible. Just
to get an idea: my collection of his works, when setting next to each other on
a book shelf, are longer than my leg!
As for his personal life, Calvin married a widow and mother
named Idelette de Bure. His bride, however, died leaving him with the
step-children that he had gained through marriage. I think it interesting that
the world’s most excellent theologian in the last 500 years was also a
step-father! Physically, Calvin was born with a frail physique and suffered
from his weak condition most of his life. Remaining portraits of Calvin present
a man often gaunt and emaciated. Like most men of his era, Calvin suffered
immensely with physical conditions that could not be countered by the medical
technology of his day. For this reason, working through pain, his production in
his writings is absolutely amazing.
See part 2/3.
See part 3/3.
Matthew Everhard is the Senior Pastor of Faith Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brooksville, Florida.
