Calvin, Institutes, Vol.3, Part 17
(... continued from part 16)
Chapter 16.
16. Refutation of the calumnies by which it is attempted to throw
odium on this doctrine.
The divisions of this chapter are, - I. The calumnies of the
Papists against the orthodox doctrine of Justification by Faith are
reduced to two classes. The first class, with its consequences,
refuted, sec. 1-3. II. The second class, which is dependent on the
first, refuted in the last section.
Sections.
1. Calumnies of the Papists. 1. That we destroy good works, and give
encouragement to sin. Refutation of the first calumny. 1.
Character of those who censure us. 2. Justification by faith
establishes the necessity of good works.
2. Refutation of a consequent of the former calumny, viz., that men
are dissuaded from well-doing when we destroy merit. Two modes
of refutation. First mode confirmed by many invincible
arguments.
3. The Apostles make no mention of merit, when they exhort us to
good works. On the contrary, excluding merit, they refer us
entirely to the mercy of God. Another mode of refutation.
4. Refutation of the second calumny and of an inference from it,
viz., that the obtaining righteousness is made too easy, when
it is made to consist in the free remission of sins.
1. Our last sentence may refute the impudent calumny of certain
ungodly men, who charge us, first, with destroying good works and
leading men away from the study of them, when we say, that men are
not justified, and do not merit salvation by works; and, secondly,
with making the means of justification too easy, when we say that it
consists in the free remission of sins, and thus alluring men to sin
to which they are already too much inclined. These calumnies, I say,
are sufficiently refuted by that one sentence; however, I will
briefly reply to both. The allegation is that justification by faith
destroys good works. I will not describe what kind of zealots for
good works the persons are who thus charge us. We leave them as much
liberty to bring the charge, as they take license to taint the whole
world with the pollution of their lives. They pretend to lament,
that when faith is so highly extolled works are deprived of their
proper place. But what if they are rather ennobled and established?
We dream not of a faith which is devoid of good works, nor of a
justification which can exist without them: the only difference is,
that while we acknowledge that faith and works are necessarily
connected, we, however, place justification in faith, not in works.
How this is done is easily explained, if we turn to Christ only, to
whom our faith is directed and from whom it derives all its power.
Why, then, are we justified by faith? Because by faith we apprehend
the righteousness of Christ, which alone reconciles us to God. This
faith, however, you cannot apprehend without at the same time
apprehending sanctification; for Christ "is made unto us wisdom, and
righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption," (1 Cor. 1: 30.)
Christ, therefore, justifies no man without also sanctifying him.
These blessings are conjoined by a perpetual and inseparable tie.
Those whom he enlightens by his wisdom he redeems; whom he redeems
he justifies; whom he justifies he sanctifies. But as the question
relates only to justification and sanctification, to them let us
confine ourselves. Though we distinguish between them, they are both
inseparably comprehended in Christ. Would ye then obtain
justification in Christ? You must previously possess Christ. But you
cannot possess him without being made a partaker of his
sanctification: for Christ cannot be divided. Since the Lord,
therefore, does not grant us the enjoyment of these blessings
without bestowing himself, he bestows both at once but never the one
without the other. Thus it appears how true it is that we are
justified not without, and yet not by works, since in the
participation of Christ, by which we are justified, is contained not
less sanctification than justification.
2. It is also most untrue that men's minds are withdrawn from
the desire of well-doing when we deprive them of the idea of merit.
Here, by the way, the reader must be told that those men absurdly
infer merit from reward, as I will afterwards more clearly explain.
They thus infer, because ignorant of the principle that God gives no
less a display of his liberality when he assigns reward to works,
than when he bestows the faculty of well-doing. This topic it will
be better to defer to its own place. At present, let it be
sufficient merely to advert to the weakness of their objection. This
may be done in two ways. For, first, they are altogether in error
when they say that, unless a hope of reward is held forth, no regard
will be had to the right conduct of life. For if all that men do
when they serve God is to look to the reward, and hire out or sell
their labour to him, little is gained: he desires to be freely
worshipped, freely loved: I say he approves the worshipper who, even
if all hope of reward were cut off, would cease not to worship him.
Moreover, when men are to be urged, there cannot be a stronger
stimulus than that derived from the end of our redemption and
calling, such as the word of God employs when it says, that it were
the height of impiety and ingratitude not to "love him who first
loved us;" that by "the blood of Christ" our conscience is purged
"from dead works to serve the living God;" that it were impious
sacrilege in any one to count "the blood of the covenant, wherewith
he was sanctified, an unholy thing;" that we have been "delivered
out of the hands of our enemies," that we "might serve him without
fear, in holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our
life;" that being "made free from sin," we "become the servants of
righteousness;" "that our old man is crucified with him," in order
that we might rise to newness of life. Again, "if ye then be risen
with Christ, (as becomes his members,) seek those things which are
above," living as pilgrims in the world, and aspiring to heaven,
where our treasure is. "The grace of God has appeared to all men,
bringing salvation, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and
worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in
this present world; looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious
appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." "For God
has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our
Lord Jesus Christ." "Know ye not that ye are the temples of the Holy
Spirit," which it were impious to profane? "Ye were sometimes
darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as the children of
light." "God has not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness."
"For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye
should abstain" from all illicit desires: ours is a "holy calling,"
and we respond not to it except by purity of life. "Being then made
free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness." Can there
be a stronger argument in eliciting us to charity than that of John?
"If God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." "In this
the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil:
whosoever does not righteousness is not of God, neither he that
loveth not his brother. Similar is the argument of Paul, "Know ye
not that your bodies are the members of Christ?" "For as the body is
one, and has many members, and all the members of that one body
being many, are one body, so also is Christ." Can there be a
stronger incentive to holiness than when we are told by John, "Every
man that has this hope in him purifieth himself; even as he is
pure?" and by Paul, "Having, therefore, these promises, dearly
beloved, cleanse yourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and
spirit;" or when we hear our Savior hold forth himself as an example
to us that we should follow his steps?
3. I have given these few passages merely as a specimen; for
were I to go over them all, I should form a large volume. All the
Apostles abound in exhortations, admonitions and rebukes, for the
purpose of training the man of God to every good work, and that
without any mention of merit. Nay, rather their chief exhortations
are founded on the fact, that without any merit of ours, our
salvation depends entirely on the mercy of God. Thus Paul, who
during a whole Epistle had maintained that there was no hope of life
for us save in the righteousness of Christ, when he comes to
exhortations beseeches us by the mercy which God has bestowed upon
us, (Rom. 12: 1.) Andy indeed this one reason ought to have been
sufficient, that God may be glorified in us. But if any are not so
ardently desirous to promote the glory of God, still the remembrance
of his kindness is most sufficient to incite them to do good, (see
Chrysost. Homily. in Genes.) But those men, because, by introducing
the idea of merit, they perhaps extract some forced and servile
obedience of the Law, falsely allege, that as we do not adopt the
same course, we have no means of exhorting to good works. As if God
were well pleased with such services when he declares that he loves
a cheerful giver, and forbids any thing to be given him grudgingly
or of necessity, (2 Cor. 9: 7.) I say not that I would reject that
or omit any kind of exhortation which Scripture employs, its object
being not to leave any method of animating us untried. For it
states, that the recompense which God will render to every one is
according to his deeds; but, first, I deny that that is the only,
or, in many instances, the principal motive; and, secondly, I admit
not that it is the motive with which we are to begin. Moreover, I
maintain that it gives not the least countenance to those merits
which these men are always preaching. This will afterwards be seen.
Lastly, there is no use in this recompense, unless we have
previously embraced the doctrine that we are justified solely by the
merits of Christ as apprehended by faith, and not by any merit of
works; because the study of piety can be fitly prosecuted only by
those by whom this doctrine has been previously imbibed. This is
beautifully intimated by the Psalmist when he thus addresses God,
"There is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared," (Ps.
130: 4.) For he shows that the worship of God cannot exist without
acknowledging his mercy, on which it is founded and established.
This is specially deserving of notice, as showing us not only that
the beginning of the due worship of God is confidence in his mercy;
but that the fear of God (which Papists will have to be meritorious)
cannot be entitled to the name of merit, for this reason, that it is
founded on the pardon and remission of sins.
4. But the most futile calumny of all is, that men are invited
to sin when we affirm that the pardon in which we hold that
justification consists is gratuitous. Our doctrine is, that
justification is a thing of such value, that it cannot be put into
the balance with any good quality of ours; and, therefore, could
never be obtained unless it were gratuitous: moreover, that it is
gratuitous to us, but not also to Christ, who paid so dearly for it;
namely his own most sacred blood, out of which there was no price of
sufficient value to pay what was due to the justice of God. When men
are thus taught they are reminded that it is owing to no merit of
theirs that the shedding of that most sacred blood is not repeated
every time they sin. Moreover, we say that our pollution is so
great, that it can never be washed away save in the fountain of his
pure blood. Must not those who are thus addressed conceive a greater
horror of sin than if it were said to be wiped off by a sprinkling
of good works? If they have any reverence for God, how can they,
after being once purified, avoid shuddering at the thought of again
wallowing in the mire, and as much as in them lies troubling and
polluting the purity of this fountain? "I have washed my feet,"
(says the believing soul in the Song of Solomon, 5: 3,) "how shall I
defile them?" It is now plain which of the two makes the forgiveness
of sins of less value, and derogates from the dignity of
justification. They pretend that God is appeased by their frivolous
satisfactions; in other words, by mere dross. We maintain that the
guilt of sin is too heinous to be so frivolously expiated; that the
offense is too grave to be forgiven to such valueless satisfactions;
and, therefore, that forgiveness is the prerogative of Christ's
blood alone. They say that righteousness, wherever it is defective,
is renewed and repaired by works of satisfaction. We think it too
precious to be balanced by any compensation of works, and,
therefore, in order to restore it, recourse must be had solely to
the mercy of God. For the other points relating to the forgiveness
of sins, see the following chapter.
Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Vol. 3, Part 17
(continued in part 18...)
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