5/9/19

Biblical Scripture is Edifying


Scripture is edifying and enlightening. John Calvin wrote a paper on every book of the Bible except the Revelation and cited scripture in thousands of sermons. Sermons may be built around explaining what the biblos (little books) mean.

Romans 8-28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

I found a free on-line course from the Univ of Geneva on John Calvin. He was a founder of the reformed movement who lived a little before the King James version was published. The course is in French with English subtitles and is very informative.


Calvin is a good roll model for Christian for his focus on scripture. One of the books he wrote was on the Gospel according to John. It is a brilliant work and is free to download as a pdf file here…


Calvin writes that God’s language in the Bible is accommodating to human beings and has a pedagogical character too. It is rather surprising in being illuminating as it is. The course instructors point out that Calvin wrote before modernism or its reaction-fundamentalism- existed. He wasn’t compelled to choose what sort of way to interpret the Bible as might moderns.

I hadn't heard of that before. It wasn't created by John Calvin. The idea of duty not being requisite- a deontological inference perhaps scripturally based- to be saved through belief on Christ- gets a bit convoluted and drifts away from dogmatics (Barthian). Calvin got involved in the persecution and execution by the town council of one Spanish heretic named Servetus- he was burned at the stake. So it could be that some people have formed a generalized movement about the concept of hyper-Calvinism as something like inquisition-level beliefs. Servetus if I recall, was somewhat like the Arians in denying the trinity aspect of God. The political problems of Geneva in separating from the Duke of Savoy's power as well as that of the Catholic Church (the Smalcaldian war following Luther for example-illustrates the volatility of the era and challenge for scholars and reformers in taking true yet neutral lines if possible instead of being politically charged. Giordano Bruno was a student at Calvin's Academy in Geneva- that is irony and should show scientists that use Bruno as an example of persecution by Christians that there is more than meets the eye to history.

Calvin died of natural causes in bed at age 55 in Geneva. The town council of Geneva burned to death a Spaniard named Servetus, who was a free scholar rather than a representative member of the Catholic Church of the day. The triune character of God (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit- three personalities of one true God- is/are Biblical. Numerous mentions of it can be found in the synoptic gospel. Constantine was Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire and famously converted to Christ before a battle. He made Christianity the official state religion of the Eastern Empire. In a sense he was the secular founder of the Orthodox Church. There were later theological scuffles about about the trinity in that era assuredly, yet valid exegesis and reasoning made the facts plain as it was in the time when Christ said to his disciples.

John 14:9-11 King James Version (KJV)

“9 Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?


10 Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself: but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works."

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