the swiss reformation god’s providence providence, according to noah webster’s original 1828...

THE SWISS REFORMATIONGod’s Providence

• Providence, according to Noah Webster’s original 1828 dictionary, is “the care and superintendence which God exercises over His creatures. He that acknowledges a creation and denies a providence involves himself in a palpable contradiction; for the same power which caused a thing to exist is necessary to continue its existence. ..A belief in divine providence, is a source of great consolation to good men. By divine providence is often understood God Himself.”

• Webster’s definition and explanation of Providence closely followed both Zwingli and Calvin, who emphasized that the doctrine of Providence flowed from the fact that God is Creator. This theme is found repeatedly in Scripture. Psalm 104 is an excellent example. vs. 1-9 describe God’s creative power. From this flows God’s Providential workings throughout His creation. After reading Psalm 104, list some examples of God’s Providence.

• vs. 1-9 God’s creative powers in the earth


• vs. 10-15 God’s provision of food and drink• vs. 16-18 God’s arrangement for dwelling

places• vs. 19-23 God’s plans for creature activity• vs. 24-30 God’s universal and providential care

of all His creatures• What is your response to God’s Providence?

– vs. 31-35 Man’s response of praise to God’s Providence (Interesting note: the first use of “Praise the Lord” in the psalms is here in response to God’s Providence!)


• The Bible is clear that God not only created the natural world, but He is active in continuing to sustain His creation. Read the following Scriptures and list the specific areas of nature God is said to actively control:

• Matthew 5:45• Exodus 19:13• Matthew 6:28-30• Psalm 107:25, 29• Matthew 10:29• Amos 4:9• John 10:13; II Kings 20:11• Psalm 136:25• Psalm 146:9


• Matthew 5:45 (NASB95) so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

• Exodus 19:13 (NASB95) ‘No hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot through; whether beast or man, he shall not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain.”

• Matthew 6:28-30 (NASB95) “And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin, 29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.30 “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!

• Psalm 107:25 (NASB95) 25 For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind, Which lifted up the waves of the sea.

• Psalm 107:29 (NASB95) 29 He caused the storm to be still, So that the waves of the sea were hushed.


• Matthew 10:29 (NASB95) “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.

• Amos 4:9 (NASB95) “I smote you with scorching wind and mildew; And the caterpillar was devouring Your many gardens and vineyards, fig trees and olive trees; Yet you have not returned to Me,” declares the Lord.

• Josh 10:13 So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies. Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.

• 2 Kings 20:11 (NASB95) Isaiah the prophet cried to the Lord, and He brought the shadow on the stairway back ten steps by which it had gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.

• Psalm 136:25 (NASB95) Who gives food to all flesh, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

• Psalm 146:9 (NASB95) The Lord protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, But He thwarts the way of the wicked.


• Not only the great events in life, but also the small, both good and bad, are ordered by God’s Providence. Zwingli wrote that “Not even the mosquito has its sharp sting and musical hum without God’s wisdom.” Is this difficult to understand? Discuss.

• NOTE: Zwingli did not claim that Christians could understand or rationalize God’s providential doings. To ask why God created the flea, gadfly, hornet or wasp is to display a ‘vain and useless curiosity.’ Rather they were to contemplate with reverence what God had disclosed to them and not impudently desire to touch what He had left hidden.


• 4. Not only the natural worlds, but the affairs of men are also under God’s Providential control. Read the following Scriptures and list specific ways God is actively involved in human affairs:

• Psalm 107:25, 29; Matthew 10:29; Amos 4:9; John 10:13; II Kings 20:11; Psalm 136:25; Psalm 146:9; Psalm 66:7; I Samuel 2:6-8; Proverbs 21:1; Ezra 7:27; Exodus 3:21; Psalm 76:10; [from Reformation Workbook]

• 1 Peter 5:7• Acts 17:24-31 [R.W.]• Genesis 37 - 50 • Romans 8:28, 29


• Psalm 136:25 (NASB95) Who gives food to all flesh, For His lovingkindness is everlasting.

• Psalm 146:9 (NASB95) The Lord protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, But He thwarts the way of the wicked.

• Psalm 66:7 (NASB95) He rules by His might forever; His eyes keep watch on the nations; Let not the rebellious exalt themselves.Selah.


• 1 Samuel 2:6-8 (NASB95) “The Lord kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up. 7 “The Lord makes poor and rich; He brings low, He also exalts. 8 “He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the ash heap To make them sit with nobles, And inherit a seat of honor; For the pillars of the earth are the Lord’s, And He set the world on them.

• Proverbs 21:1 (NASB95) The king’s heart is like channels of water in the hand of the Lord; He turns it wherever He wishes.

• Ezra 7:27 (NASB95) Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who has put such a thing as this in the king’s [Artaxerxes] heart, to adorn the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem,

• Exodus 3:21 (NASB95) “I will grant this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians; and it shall be that when you go, you will not go empty-handed.

• Psalm 76:10 (NASB95) For the wrath of man shall praise You; With a remnant of wrath You will gird Yourself.


• 1 Peter 5:7 (NASB95) casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.• Acts 17:24-31 (NASB95) “The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of

heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, 27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’ 29 “Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. 30 “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

• Genesis 37 – 50 6. God’s Providence includes evil as well as good. Though God is not the author of evil (James 1:13, 17), a proper understanding of His Providence includes the recognition that He can work through evil to accomplish His purposes. The story of Joseph as told in Genesis 37-50 illustrates this. Review the story and note all the bad things that happened to Joseph. How did God use these for good (Genesis 50:20)?

• Romans 8:28 (NASB95) And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. 29 For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;


• 5. Romans 8:28 is one of the most meaningful verses of Scripture for the believer, yet this verse is meaningless without God’s Providence. Why?


• Francis Schaeffer has explained that man is a free moral being. He is not an animal preconditioned nor is he a machine preprogrammed. Neither the depravity of man nor the sovereignty of God has absolve Man from the responsibility to repent or to seek after God.

• Explain how the sovereignty of God and the free will of Man can coexist equally true.


• It is our faith that evokes and unleashes the power of God within our circumstances!

• What do you think of this statement?

• Eph 2:8 see MacArthur’s and Daniel Wallace’s view

THE INSTITUTESOF CHRISTIAN RELIGION

• John Calvin was the leading theologian of Reformed Protestantism, and his Institutes constitutes the most important single work of Reformed theology ever written. This work consists of eighty chapters divided into four books. The purpose of his Institutes wa to provide a simple handtbook of basic Christian doctrine, and guide to understanding the whole of the Bible. The subtitle to the first edition reads: `Embracing almost the whole sum of piety and whatever is necessary to know the doctrine of salvation: A work most worthy to be read by all persons zealous for piety.' This book wa to be read by all Christians as a practical guide to understanding the Christian life.

• His works have had a profound influence upon European and American history. Therefore, to understand this work is to understand much of the thinking of Protestant Europe and America.

• The following outline reveals the major sections of the Institutes. Become very familiar with the overall structure of his argument as you study the fine details. Focus on what he believes concerning the seven basic world view questions.


• If you find portions of The Institutes of Christian Religion that disagree with what you understand the Bible to teach, then state your position and give Biblical passages to support your belief.

THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD, THE CRΕΑTΟR

• Book OnePART 1: KNOWING GOD ΑΝD OURSELVES

• THE LINK BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE OF GODΑΝD OURSELVES AND THE NATURE OF IT

1. Wisdom Consists of Two Part: Knowledge of ...God Knowledge of ..ourselves.

2. How Does Man Come to a True Knowledge of Himself? ” it is evident that man never attains to a true self-knowledge until he have previously contemplated the face of God, and come down after such contemplation to look into himself. ”– What is the Nature of God? Perfect holiness– What is the Nature of Man? Steeped in sin

3. How is the Knowledge of God and the Knowledge of Ourselves Bound Together? “ . . . men are never duly touched and impressed with a conviction of their insignificance, until they have contrasted themselves with the majesty of God.”


Chapter 2 WHAT IS IT TO KNOW GOD AND WHERE THAT LEADS1. What Does He Mean by the `Knowledge of God'? “By the

knowledge of God, I understand that by which we not only conceive that there is some God, but also apprehend what it is for our interest,”

• Describe the Character and Nature of God. He is the source of all good gifts, He created and sustains the world, and the source of all justice and truth.

• To Voluntarily Submit to God, What Must Man Believe? He is Father and Author of all our blessings

2. Α Proper Knowledge of God Leads Man to ... Not like Epicurus’ view, [Dante placed in the 6th ring of Hell], but we are created by God, and owe Him everything, we have confidence in God and a genuine fear. Piety is the unity of reverence and love.


CHAPTER 3 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD HAS BEEN NATURALLYIMPLANTED IN THE HUMAN MIND

1. What Proof Does Calvin Give that Some Awareness of God's Existence is in the Human Mind? Savages preserve a belief in god, even idols attest to the knowledge of God.

CHAPTER 4 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD IS SUPPRESSED ORSPOILED, INADVERTENTLY OR DELIBERATELY

1. What Does He Mean by Inadvertent? Superstitious which involves vanity and pride. Man does not rise above himself, but makes god like him. Rom 1:22.

2. What Does He Mean by Deliberate? Ps. 14:1; 36:1; 10:11. Blatant disregard for God.

3. Why do People Set Uρ False Worshiρ? Gal 4:8, Eph 2:12 they did not know the truth, and did not want to try to know the truth.

4. Why do People Turn to Some Kind of Religious Observance? Rather than serve God in integrity and holiness they make some trifle sacrifice to placate their fears.


CHAPTER 5 THE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD IS EVIDENT IN ΗΙS CREATION AND CONTINUAL RULE OF THE WORLD Sections 1, 11, 14, 15

• The Creation His nature is incomprehensible, but His glory is etched on creation, Ps 104:2-3; Heb 11:3; Ps 19:1; Rom 1:19-20

• His Providence God gives rain and by acts of love demonstrates himself to man. Act 14:16-17.

• Why Can Man Not Plead Ignorance? Man’s conscience is lazy and filled with ingratitude. Even the created world of animals can teach us, so we are without excuse.

PART 2: GOD'S WORD AND GOD'S SPIRIT

CHAPTER 6 WE NEED SCRIPTURE, AS A GUIDE AND TEACHER,IN COMING TO GOD AS CREATOR

1. What is Needed Beyond the Natural Revelation of God? Bible• What Does Scripture Do For Us? “For, seeing how the minds of men were carried to and

fro, and found no certain resting-place, he chose the Jews for a peculiar people, and then hedged them in that they might not, like others, go astray. And not in vain does he, by the same means, retain us in his knowledge, since but for this, even those who, in comparison of others, seem to stand strong, would quickly fall away.”

2. What is Man's First Step Toward True Knowledge? take hold of the witness God has borne of Himself

3. Why Did God Give Us His Word? To leave us with true knowledge to root out error. Something that would not change or fade.

CHAPTER 7 THE WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT IS NECESSARY TOMAKE CERTAIN THE AUTHORITY OF SCRIPTURE

1. What is Meant by the Phrase: `Full Authority'? Inspired, as though God spoke from heaven

4. How Does a Person Become Convinced that the Bible is the Accurate Word of God. The Holy Spirit must enlighten a persons heart, just as the prophets spoke these words

5. Explain the Conviction that the Bible is the Word of God. Isa 54:13, the elect of God has this special revelation.

PART 2: GOD'S WORD AND GOD'S SPIRIT

CHAPTER 9 ALL THE PRINCIPLES OF GODLINESS ARE UNDERMINED ΒΥ FANATICS WHO SUBSTITUTE REVELATIONS FOR SCRIPTURE.

1. Describe the Work of the Holy Spirit. Not new doctrines, but to sear on our minds the Gospel

2. Is It Necessary For Us To Read And Hear Scripture? Why? 2 Pet 1:19; it is good to read Scripture; and any work of the Spirit should have its image stamped in Scripture.

3. Describe The Interrelationship Between The Word Of God And The Spirit Of God. The Spirit illumines the Word so we may see the face of God; the Spirit confirms the Word already established by the Spirit Himself. 1 Thess 5:18 -20

• Write a brief statement regarding God's Word and God's Spirit: The Word of God is spoken by the Spirit of God, just as hearing the Word is enabled by the Spirit.

– 1 Peter 1:10-12 (NASB95)10 As to this salvation, the prophets who prophesied of the grace that would come to you made careful searches and inquiries,11 seeking to know what person or time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He predicted the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow.12 It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been announced to you through those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.

– 2 Peter 1:20-21 (NASB95) But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

PART 3: GOD THE TRINITY AND HIS CREATION

CHAPTER 13 SCRIPTURE TEACHES FROM THE BEGINNING THATGOD'S ONE ESSENCE CONTAINS THREE PERSONS

Give the Proof for the Divinity of the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Use Bible References.

The Word is Christ -- John 1:3. This is c/w the creative work in Gen 1, Heb 1:2. God has been at work in creation and so has the Son John 5:17.

Ephesians 4:5 (NASB95) one Lord, one faith, one baptism,

“because there is one faith he infers that there is one God; and because there is one baptism he infers that there is one faith. Therefore, if by baptism we are initiated into the faith and worship of one God, we must of necessity believe that he into whose name we are baptised is the true God. And there cannot be a doubt that our Saviour wished to testify, by a solemn rehearsal, that the perfect light of faith is now exhibited, when he said, “Go and teach all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” (Mt. 28:19), since this is the same thing as to be baptised into the name of the one God, who has been fully manifested in the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.”

There is a distinction of persons in the Godhead. (John 1:18; 14:6, 15:26; 14:16)


CHAPTER 14 SCRIPTURE SHOWS THAT EVEN IN THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE, THE TRUE GOD IS DΙSTINGUΙSΗΕD FROM FALSE GODS ΒΥ CERTAIN MARKS

• 20 and 21. The First Sign of Faith: everything is made by God• 22. When We Understand God for Who He Really Is, What Affect Does that have

upon Us? When we know that God has destined everything for our good, that prompts us to love, praise and pray to God.

• CHAPTER 15 THE STATE IN WHICH MAN WAS CREATED1. The Knowledge of Ourselves Helps Us Know God in Two Ways

– First — our condition before the fall– Second — our condition after the fall– Man as He was Created to be Immortal spirit

2. The Nature of Man– body– Soul (see section 7 also) conscience is proof of a soul, spirit and soul can be

interchangeable terms; fear of eternal punishment can only originate from the soul• Intellect – determines what is good or bad• Will – gives the ability to do good, or lack of will to do evil

• 4. The Concept of Man in the Image of God – marred by the fall almost obliterated, but the image can be seen to some extent in the elect.


– Christians agree that man's nature consists of two interlocking parts: a visible and an invisible.

– Calvin taught this to be body (visible) and soul (invisible).

– Others understand the Bible to teach that man consists of body (visible), soul and spirit (invisible).

– Ask your parents and pastor to explain their understanding of our nature.

PART 4: GOD'S PROVIDENCECHAPTER 16 GOD ΒΥ ΗIS POWER SUPPORTS AND MAINTAINS THE

WORLD WHICH HE CREATED. HE RULES EACH AND ALL OF ITS PARTS BY ΗIS PROVIDENCE

1. God is First Seen as ... Temporary Creator, everything maintained by the energy infused at creation

– 'But Faith Must Go Far Deeper.' God Must be Seen as both ... Governor and Preserver

• List Bible Passages Confirming This: Ps. 104:27-30; Act 17:28; Heb 1:3; Col 1:17; John 1:3

3. God is Accepted as OmnipotentNot Because ... “he can act though he may cease or be idle, or because by a general instinct he continues the order of nature previously appointed; but because, governing heaven and earth by his providence, he so overrules all things that nothing happens without his counsel. For when it is said in the Psalms, “He has done whatsoever he has pleased,” (Ps. 115:3), the thing meant is his sure and deliberate purpose.”

– How Does This View of God Comfort the Believer? Everything we endure is from God

– What do Unbelievers Shift the Control of the World To? Astrology

PART 4: GOD'S PROVIDENCE• 4. Providence —• What it is Not “one by which the Deity, sitting idly in heaven, looks on at what is taking place

in the world, but one by which he, as it were, holds the helms and overrules all events. Hence his providence extends not less to the hand than to the eye.133 When Abraham said to his son, God will provide (Gen. 22:8), he meant not merely to assert that the future event was foreknown to Gods but to resign the management of an unknown business to the will of Him whose province it is to bring perplexed and dubious matters to a happy result. Hence it appears that providence consists in action. What many talk of bare prescience is the merest trifling. Those do not err quite so grossly who attribute government to God, but still, as I have observed, a confused and promiscuous government which consists in giving an impulse and general movement to the machine of the globe and each of its parts, but does not specially direct the action of every creature. It is impossible, however, to tolerate this error. For, according to its abettors, there is nothing in this providence, which they call universal, to prevent all the creatures from being moved contingently, or to prevent man from turning himself in this direction or in that, according to the mere freedom of his own will. In this ways they make man a partner with God,—God, by his energy, impressing man with the movement by which he can act, agreeably to the nature conferred upon him while man voluntarily regulates his own actions. In short, their doctrine is, that the world, the affairs of men, and men themselves, are governed by the power, but not by the decree of God. I say nothing of the Epicureans (a pest with which the world has always been plagued), who dream of an inert and idle God,134 and others, not a whit sounder, who of old feigned that God rules the upper regions of the air, but leaves the inferior to Fortune. Against such evident madness even dumb creatures lift their voice.” What it is “that single events are so regulated by God, and all events so proceed from his determinate counsel, that nothing happens fortuitously (I, xvi, 4).”

PART 4: GOD'S PROVIDENCE

What Would Calvin Say to a Person Who Believed that God was Only Involved in a General Way? Pests to the will of God

8. How is Calvin's belief Regarding Providence Different from Fate? God’s will is established in eternity past, and now is being carried out by His will. It is not the same as fate since that is an endless series of events.

CHAPTER 17 HOW TO USE THIS DOCTRINE FOR OUR BENEFIT

PART 4: GOD'S PROVIDENCE1. 3 Reasons Why Scripture Teaches that Everything is Ordained:

– Past and the future– Works in a variety of ways– Cares for all of humanity, but especially the Church

• What Should You Say to a Christian Whose Life is in Turmoil. God is “either to train his people to patience, correct their depraved affections, tame their wantonness, inure them to self-denial, and arouse them from torpor; or, on the other hand, to cast down the proud, defeat the craftiness of the ungodly, and frustrate all their schemes. (I, xvii, 1).”

• 3, 4, 9. How is Man's Choice Reconciled with Divine Providence? God may provide warnings, knowledge or remedies that may aid a person. Why would one pray if there was no responsibility for man. “nor charge him with the blame of their own wickedness, as Homer’s Agamemnon does.—ʼΕγω δʼ οὺκ ἁίτιός ειμι, ἀλλὰ Ζεὺς και μοι�ρα. “Blame not me, but Jupiter and fate.” (I, xvii, 3).”

• 11. What Comfort Does a Christian Draw from a Proper View of Divine Providence? Our compassionate Father cares for us, and no harm can come to me except that which is good

• NOTE: This weeks study is continued on the follow pages: Reformation: Pages 69 - 94 and Pages 133 -137.

• See the PDF files• What do the Pilgrim Fathers, the Scotch Presbyterians,

the French Huguenots, the “Beggars” of Holland, and the English Puritans all have in common? They are all part of the Reformed faith which arose out of the Reformation in Switzerland.

• The Lutherans, then, allowed more medieval practices and beliefs to remain than the Reformed Christians. The Reformed worship services were less liturgical and their churches were free of images and Catholic symbols. Expository preaching was central to Reformed worship, and an educated ministry became a key characteristic of the Reformed faith.

• The Reformed churches had an independent church with more of a congregational government. The laity had important positions in church government. Historians generally agree that the Calvinistic congregational or Presbyterian church govern ment was preparatory to modern movements towards democracy in the secular realm. Reformed Christians emphasized the sovereignty of God over His creation and men’s affairs as well as the importance of the Holy Spirit in sanctifying the believer. Good works were important evidences of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in the believer’s life, and the Reformed Christians emphasized an ethical, active, almost crusading Christian life.

• MARBURG COLLOQUY• Landgrave Philip of Hesse hoped an alliance of the various Protestant

leaders might be orga nized to oppose the emperor’s plans. The Swiss and German Protestants had major differ ences over the eucharist, however. Philip proposed a conference at his castle in Marburg in October, 1529, to see if the differences between the two Protestant groups could be over-come. Luther and Melancthon attended as well as Ulrich Zwingli, Johann Oecolampadius, and Martin Bucer. After four days of debate these Reformation leaders agreed on fourteen of fifteen major points of the Christian faith, but one they could not agree on was the meaning of the Lord’s Supper.

• Both sides rejected the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation. Luther, however, believed that the body of Christ was “in, with, and under” the bread of communion. Zwingli taught that Christ was spiritually present in the Lord’s Supper and that the bread and wine were symbols of the body and blood of Christ. Luther and Zwingli could not come to an agreement. They did not shake hands, and the Protestant camp remained divided. When the two sides parted, Zwingli tearfully said, “There are no people on earth with whom I would rather be at one than the Wittenbergers.”

• CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY• The ministries of Zwingli and Calvin are both intimately associated

with the cities in which they ministered—Zurich and Geneva. The Swiss cities were independent government units much like the ancient Greek city-states. The Reformed teaching of Zwingli and Calvin led the city councils of Zurich and Geneva to make changes in the city government which would support the Reformed faith. Salvation was for individuals, but there were important social effects as well. Calvin especially taught that though people are not saved by keeping the Old Testament Mosaic law, once they are saved they will keep the moral aspects of the law by the power of the Holy Spirit. Society itself would then be transformed. City councils of Zurich and Geneva began to make rulings to encourage the citizens to follow the Scriptures more closely in their daily lives.

• AN INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT• Geneva in Calvin’s day became an international training center for the Reformed faith. Refugees

from throughout Europe fled religious persecution in their own lands and flocked to Geneva for the Biblical teaching they could find nowhere else. In 1559 Calvin established the Genevan Academy, and 900 students enrolled at its opening—French, English, German, Scotch, Swiss, and others came to learn the Scriptures. Many, including John Knox, later returned to their homelands and brought back with them Calvin’s distinctive teaching. According to C.S. Lewis, sixteenth century Calvinism had a freshness, progressiveness, and audacity. It was a break with the obsolete medieval and feudal past. Where monasticism had been the spiritual ideal of the medieval period, Calvinism claimed all of life as under God’s sovereign rule. One historian called this the “secularization of holiness,” every sphere of human existence was brought under God’s authority. The Christian should not be of the world, but he should be living his Christian life immersed in the affairs of the world, bring ing all under the rule of Christ. Work became part of a Christian’s calling under God. Since the world was God’s creation, the believer could serve God in every sphere of worldly exis tence. Even the most mundane, routine activities in this way had religious significance. All of life was to be lived before God.

• Such a perspective deeply influenced the Puritans in England, many of whom immigrated to become colonists in North America. Through the Puritans, Calvinism had a strong impact on developing attitudes in America, so much so that recent studies of contemporary American cul ture continue to discern Calvin’s impact on our culture, though in an increasingly secular form.

• Zwingli’s conversion was marked by several key events which the video called “turning points” in Zwingli’s life. What were these turning points? (1) As a young priest he accompa nied the Swiss mercenary troops and saw over 6,000 young men killed at Marignano. (2) As a priest at Einsiedeln, a pilgrimage center to the Virgin Mary, he began to question forgive ness of sins through indulgences. (3) He began reading Erasmus ’ Greek New Testament. (4) The plague came to Zurich and Zwingli hovered near death for three months.

• The more Zwingli studied the Scriptures the more he questioned many of the teachings of the Catholic church. Which teachings did he question? Indulgences, purgatory, the position of Mary, the sacrifice of the Mass.

• When Zwingli began preaching in Zurich on January 1, 1519, his sermon was considered unusually bold. Why? He did not follow the lectionary, but began preaching straight through the book of Matthew.

• When the Zurich city council accepted the Reformation, what changes did it implement in the city? Rejected the Mass and transubstantiation; simple and unadorned communion cups and plates were used. Government took over the monasteries, transforming their buildings into schools and hospitals. The needy were provided for by the public; those who needed work were provided jobs. Statues, images, and the trappings of Catholic worship were removed, including the organ.

• What was the goal of the Marburg Colloquy? A meeting of Reformation leaders called by Philip of Hesse to try to bring about a statement of agreement about their beliefs.

• Was the goal attained? Luther and Zwingli agreed on 14 of 15 points, but they could not agree on the nature of the Lord’s Supper.

• What are two accusations made against Calvin? (1) Taught that God predestined some people to heaven and others to hell. (2) Had Michael Servetus burned at the stake

• How has Calvin influenced Christianity throughout the world even though his adult ministerial life wa mainly spent only in the city of Geneva?

World History (291-94)• See notes under the section of the

Reformation DVD and PDF files

Revolutions WV (226-35)• Calvin was a 2nd generation reformer

– Had an all pervasive worldview– Applied Sola Scriptura more consistently– Was a humanist scholar, his 1st work on Seneca– One of the greatest expositors and commentators on the Bible

• The Epistemology of Calvin was based on God’s self revelation in Scripture.– Man has a sensus divinitatis “awareness of God”– And a semen religionis “seed of religion”– The Bible serves as reading glasses to bring to our minds what we could not

understand– Our response to the knowledge of God is worship and piety

• The Sovereignty of God was central to Calvin’s theology.– Most consistent Biblical worldview in the reformed tradition– God is Lord of all: temporal and spiritual– Redemption is entirely of God’s sovereign electing grace– Saving faith is a gift of God

• The Church and Society – Invisible church of true believers, the visible was a mix of wheat and tares– True church celebrates the Lord’s Supper, baptism, and preaching the Word– Presbyterian government which influenced later democracies– Covenant between rulers and their subjects, and rulers and God

Ephesians 2:8• Eph 2:8 th|/ ga.r ca,riti, evste sesw|sme,noi dia. pi,stewj\ kai. tou/to ouvk evx

u`mw/n( qeou/ to. dw/ron for by grace you are saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of GodThis is the most debated text in terms of the antecedent of the demonstrative pronoun, tou/to. The standard interpretations include: (1) “grace” as anteced ent, (2) “faith” as antecedent, (3) the concept of a grace-by-faith salvation as antecedent, and (4) kai. tou/to having an adverbial force with no antecedent (“and especially”).

• The first and second options suffer from the fact that tou/to is neuter while ca,riti and pi,stewj are feminine. Some have argued that the gender shift causes no problem because (a) there are other examples in Greek literature in which a neuter demonstrative refers back to a noun of a different gender,51 and (b) the tou/to has been attracted to the gender of dw/ron, the predicate nomina tive. These two arguments need to be examined together.

• While it is true that on rare occasions there is a gender shift between antecedent and pronoun, the pronoun is almost always caught between two nouns of dif ferent gender. One is the antecedent; the other is the predicate nom. In Acts 8:10, for example (ou-to,j evstin h` du,namij tou/ qeou/), the pronoun is masculine because its antecedent is masculine, even though the predicate nom. is femi nine. In Matt 13:38 inverse attraction takes place (the pronominal subject is attracted to the gender of the predicate nom.): to. de. kalo.n spe,rma( ou-toi, eivsin oi` ui`oi. th/j basilei,aj (“the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom”).52 The construction in Eph 2:8, however, is not parallel because dw/ron is not the predicate nom. of tou/to, but of the implied “it” in the

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Ephesians 2:8• following clause. On a grammatical level, then, it is doubtful that either

“faith” or “grace” is the ante cedent of tou/to.• More plausible is the third view, viz., that tou/to refers to the concept of a

grace-by-faith salvation. As we have seen, tou/to regularly takes a conceptual antecedent. Whether faith is seen as a gift here or anywhere else in the NT is not addressed by this.53

• A fourth view is that kai. tou/to is adverbial, though this view has surprisingly made little impact on the exegetical literature.54 If adverbial, kai. tou/to is intensive, meaning “and at that, and especially,” without having any anteced ent. It focuses on the verb rather than on any noun. In 3 John 5 we see this usage: pisto.n poiei/j o] eva.n evrga,sh| eivj tou.j avdelfou.j kai. tou/to xe,nouj55 (“you do a faithful [deed] whenever you render service for the brothers, and especially [when you do it] for strangers”). If this is the force in Eph 2:8, the text means “for by grace you are saved through faith, and [you are saved] especially not by your own doing; it is the gift of God.”

• The issues here are complex and cannot be solved by grammar alone. Never theless, syntactical considerations do tend toward one of the latter two views.56





MacArthur Eph 2:8• Our response in salvation is faith, but even that is not of ourselves [but is]

the gift of God. Faith is nothing that we do in our own power or by our own resources. In the first place we do not have adequate power or resources. More than that, God would not want us to rely on them even if we had them. Otherwise salvation would be in part by our own works, and we would have some ground to boast in ourselves. Paul intends to emphasize that even faith is not from us apart from God’s giving it.

• Some have objected to this interpretation, saying that faith (pistis) is feminine, while that (touto) is neuter. That poses no problem, however, as long as it is understood that that does not refer precisely to the noun faith but to the act of believing. Further, this interpretation makes the best sense of the text, since if that refers to by grace you have been saved through faith (that is, to the whole statement), the adding of and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God would be redundant, because grace is defined as an unearned act of God. If salvation is of grace, it has to be an undeserved gift of God. Faith is presented as a gift from God in 2 Peter 1:1, Philippians 1:29, and Acts 3:16.

• John MacArthur, Ephesians (Chicago: Moody Press, 1996, c1986). 60.

LACTANTIUS (c. 240-c. 320)

• Christian apologist and historian; most frequently reported of the Latin Fathers of the Church

• Very little is known about Lactantius’s life. Born probably in North Africa, and said to have been a pupil of Arnobius, he was in mid-life appointed by the emperor Diocletian as a teacher of rhetoric in Nicomedia, the imperial capital. After Diocletian began to persecute Christians, Lactantius returned to the West about 305.

• His Divinae institutiones (seven volumes, c. 304-313), his principal work, is hailed as the first systematic Latin account of the Christian attitude toward life. It combats polytheism as the basis of all errors, identifies the demons as the source of error, and exposes the frailty of philosophy. The latter part of the work discusses fundamental ethical ideas, the proper way of worshiping God, and immortality. Although he was later called the "Christian Cicero" by Pico della Mirandola, Lactantius’s theology was considered somewhat superficial, perhaps because he became a Christian only in mature years. Other works of his that have survived include De Ira Dei, which upholds God’s punitive justice, and De Mortibus persecutorium, a product of his last years, which is a valuable historical source, though criticized for having dwelt overmuch on the terrible fates of persecuting emperors. About 317 Lactantius evidently came out of retirement to tutor Crispus, son of the emperor Constantine.

• J. D. Douglas, Philip Wesley Comfort and Donald Mitchell, Who's Who in Christian History (Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House, 1997, c1992).

the swiss reformation god’s providence providence, according to noah webster’s original 1828...

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