Exegesis and Theology

The Blog of Brian Collins

Archives for September 2011

Calvin on Christian Liberty and the Law

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Christian liberty seems to me to consist of three parts. First, the consciences of believers, while seeking the assurance of their justification before God, must rise above the law, and think no more of obtaining justification by it. For while the law, as has already been demonstrated (supra, chap. 17, sec. 1), leaves not one man righteous, we are either excluded from all hope of justification, or we must be loosed from the law, and so loosed as that no account at all shall be taken of works. For he who imagines that in order to obtain justification he must bring any degree of works whatever, cannot fix any mode or limit, but makes himself debtor to the whole law. Therefore, laying aside all mention of the law, and all idea of works, we must in the matter of justification have recourse to the mercy of God only; turning away our regard from ourselves, we must look only to Christ. For the question is, not how we may be righteous, but how, though unworthy and unrighteous, we may be regarded as righteous. If consciences would obtain any assurance of this, they must give no place to the law. Still it cannot be rightly inferred from this that believers have no need of the law. It ceases not to teach, exhort, and urge them to good, although it is not recognized by their consciences before the judgment-seat of God. The two things are very different, and should be well and carefully distinguished. The whole lives of Christians ought to be a kind of aspiration after piety, seeing they are called unto holiness (Eph. 1:4; 1 Thess. 4:5). The office of the law is to excite them to the study of purity and holiness, by reminding them of their duty. For when the conscience feels anxious as to how it may have the favor of God, as to the answer it could give, and the confidence it would feel, if brought to his judgment-seat, in such a case the requirements of the law are not to be brought forward, but Christ, who surpasses all the perfection of the law, is alone to be held forth for righteousness.

Calvin, Institutes (trans. Beveridge), 3.19.2.

Books and Articles Finished in August

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Books

Lewis, C. S. Perelandra.

  • An enjoyable and insightful read about temptation and much, much more.

Metaxas, Eric. Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy. [Audio book]

  • The book has been criticized by Bonhoeffer scholars for trying to make Bonhoeffer too much of an evangelical. This is probably a valid criticism. But Mexaxes likely got the broad outlines of the story correct, and he is a masterful storyteller. For a free audio-book, not bad.

O’Brien, Robert C. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh . New York: Scholastic, 1971.

  • Never read this one as a child. Enjoyed it.

Stevenson, Robert Louis, The Black Arrow.

  • I really enjoyed this book as a boy and had fun revisiting it with my wife.

Articles

Bolt, John. “Grand Rapids Between Kampen and Amsterdam: Herman Bavinck’s Reception and Influence in North America.” Calvin Theological Journal 38 (2003): 263-280.

  • An interesting article that deals with Bavinck’s separatist heritage and with its effects on the present-day theological location of Calvin Theological Seminary.

Stek, John. “A New Theology of Baptism? Baptism: A Sign of Grace or of Judgment?” Calvin Theological Journal (1966):69-73.

  • An early, positive review of Kline’s defense of paedobaptism. Kline’s view’s have most recently been expounded in J. V. Fesko’s new book on baptism.

Bauder’s articles on Fundamentalism

Bell, Theo. “Calvin and Luther on Bernard of Clairvaux.” Calvin Theological Journal 34, no. 2 (November 1, 1999): 370-395.

  • Despite a number of errors on Bernard’s part, Calvin saw Bernard as a preserver of true doctrine in the middle ages and a demonstration that Calvin was not an innovator.

Wright, N. T. “Justification: Yesterday, Today, and Forever.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 54, no. 1 (March 2011): 49-63.

  • Wright needs to stop two things: claiming that he stands in the true spirit of the Reformation because Scripture, not tradition, determines his viewpoint and misrepresenting and then distancing himself from the Reformer’s teaching on justification. The Reformers gave tradition an important, if ancillary and non-authoritative, role in their theologizing. If Wright paid it more heed, perhaps he would avoid mis-representing what the Reformers actually taught about justification. At various points, if I read him charitably, it seems that Wright may be approaching aspects of the Reformation doctrine of justification. But he insists that the Reformers are wrong. Should I take him at his word or insist on reading him more charitably than he reads the Reformers?

Schreiner, Thomas R. “Justification: The Saving Righteousness of God in Christ.” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 54, no. 1 (March 2011): 19-34.

  • Excellent exposition. Clear. Biblical.

Akin, Daniel L. “Bernard of Clairvaux : evangelical of the 12th century (an analysis of his soteriology).” Criswell Theological Review 4 (March 1, 1990): 327-350.

  • Highlights “evangelical” aspects of Bernard’s soteriology. It’s probably too much to call him an evangelical, but the continuities show why the Reformers liked Bernard.

Manetsch, Scott M. “Is The Reformation Over John Calvin Roman Catholicism And Contemporary Ecumenical Conversations.” Themelios 36, no. 2 (2011): 185-202.

  • An excellent and needed article about the continuing errors in the Roman church that Protestants must protest. See also his helpful critique of Noll’s book, “Is the Reformation Over?”

Peckham, John C. “Intrinsic Canonicity and the Inadequacy of the Community Approach to Canon-Determination.” Themelios 36, no. 2 (2011): 2-3-15.

What is the Mission of the Church: A Brief Review

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DeYoung, Kevin and Greg Gilbert, What Is the Mission of the Church?: Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission. Wheaton: Crossway, 2011.

DeYoung and Gilbert argue that the mission of the church is the Great Commission: “the mission of the church is to go into the world and make disciples by declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit and gathering those disciples into churches, that they might worship and obey Jesus Christ now and in eternity to the glory of God the Father” (p. 241). Much of the book provides helpful responses to those who extend the mission of the church so broadly that the core of the Great Commission is minimized or lost. They convincingly argue that the missio dei and the mission of the church do not necessarily coincide, that incarnation is not the best metaphor for church ministry, and that Stott’s interpretation of John 21 is not the most accurate. They could have made their argument stronger, however, be canvassing Acts and the Epistles for further indications of the church’s mission.

According to DeYoung and Gilbert, the gospel can refer to all the good that results from God’s plan of redemption, but they rightly center the gospel on the provision of atonement and how it may be received by individual humans for salvation. They tell the story of Scripture as centered on humans and sin rather than on creation and corruption. This is basically correct, but there does seem to be some overcorrection on this point. The Creation Blessing/Mandate gets little play in the redemptive historical survey chapter. In a later chapter it is reduced to something that Adam failed to do, that no other human is tasked with doing, and that the Second Adam will accomplish apart from our work. This incorrectly ties the Creation Blessing with Adam’s probationary test. Genesis 1 and 9 present the Creation Blessing as something that all humans have, even though it is now twisted by the Fall. It is not uniquely Adamic.

DeYoung and Gilbert view the kingdom of God as a spiritual reign of God in men’s hearts. While Ladd, whom they draw on, is correct that “reign” rather than “realm” is foremost in the NT concept of kingdom, it is difficult to reduce the NT teaching about the kingdom to the spiritual realm alone. Involved is the regeneration of all things. They do get this right in their chapter about the new heavens and the new earth, in which they carefully delineate what we can and cannot say about continuity and discontinuity between the two. DeYoung and Gilbert rightly correct loose talk about building the kingdom or bringing in the kingdom and instead point out that Christians await the kingdom. Even so, there ought to be an emphasis on living consistently with the anticipated kingdom in one’s present vocations.

Two chapters cover the important topic of social justice, and a third deals with doing good works. They show both what social justice passages demand and they correct sloppy interpretations and applications of these passages. DeYoung and Gilbert helpfully show how to avoid pitfalls that equate social justice with particular political programs. They distinguish between the institutional church and the organic church and note that Christians as individuals sometimes must do certain things that the institutional church is either forbidden or permitted but not required to do.

Overall, DeYoung and Gilbert have tackled a complex subject and gotten a great deal right. What is more, they have offered a correction to common misconceptions. They could make their argument stronger in the future by reconsidering their treatment of the extent of the Creation Blessing and of the nature of the kingdom. In the end, however, they have provided a useful, readable contribution to a complex subject.