John Calvin was a famous Christian theologian who lived from 1509-1564. The school of thought he spawned, known as Calvinism, is somewhat controversial in theological circles today, most notably for its views on predestination. But Calvin himself is still regarded highly for his role in the Protestant Reformation of the Sixteenth Century.
In his most significant work, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin compares the Word of God to a pair of spectacles (or reading glasses), that enables us to properly interpret everything we see in the world around us each and every day (1.6.1):
“For as the aged, or those whose sight is defective, when any books however fair, is set before them, though they perceive that there is something written are scarcely able to make out two consecutive words, but, when aided by glasses, begin to read distinctly, so Scripture, gathering together the impressions of Deity, which, till then, lay confused in our minds, dissipates the darkness, and shows us the true God clearly.”
I share this this thought because it has stayed with me for over thirty years, ever since I first encountered it in a class I took on the life and teachings of John Calvin while in seminary. In fact, so impressed was I by this simple illustration that it has pretty much become a way of life for me. As a preacher of the Gospel, I have learned to see the world through the lens of Scripture.
Once a believer embraces this notion, he or she cannot help but see biblical truth almost everywhere he or she looks. I thought I would cite one such example for my blog post today.
The national news carried s story fork San Francisco about a window washer who fell 11 stories from a bank building Friday morning onto a moving car, crushing its roof and sending shattered glass flying into the street, police and witnesses said. Witnesses described seeing a falling blue streak and the man's shadow as he fell.
The window washer, who was not immediately identified, was heard to be screaming all the way down. This was followed by a crashing sound as he hit a car and then rolled onto the ground. He suffered critical injuries, but he was conscious, police said. He was taken to San Francisco General Hospital and is now listed in stable but critical condition.
About 20 other people ran to the man, who was on his back. He was described as lucid, understanding that others were with him. What saved his life was the fact that he fell onto a moving car that was passing by underneath. In some miraculous way, the moving car appears to have helped to absorb the impact and dissipate some of the devastation that would surely have resulted if the man had landed squarely on the pavement. The driver of the car was also spared serious injury.
For my part, I am thankful that this man’s life was spared. I cannot imagine what was going through his mind as he was falling. Nor can I imagine what has gone through his mind since he has been in the hospital. But in all of this, I cannot help but be reminded of a great truth communicated in the Bible.
In Genesis, chapter 3, the Bible records the story of what is often termed the fall of mankind. Men and women, created in the image of God, and placed in the Garden of Eden, fell prey to temptation, sinned against God, and suffered the consequence of eternal death as a result. Unbeknownst to Adam and Eve, however, God loved them and their offspring so much that He was already undertaking the process of redemption.
The unfolding story of the Bible shows us that God’s own son, Jesus Christ, was already moving toward the rescue. And before mankind was forever destroyed by spiritual death as a result of its fall away from Almighty God, Jesus Christ absorbed the impact of that fall by sacrificing Himself on a cross. In so doing, He saved us, making it possible for us to experience eternal life rather than eternal death.
And thus, the Bible declares (in the Apostle Paul’s New Testament Letter to the Romans, 5:19 New Living Translation): “Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.”
The consequences of falling away from God can be terrible. But, praise God, we do not have to suffer those consequences. As Paul further states that same Letter (Romans 10:9-13):
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
My own desire is that all men and women everywhere will call out to God in Christ and find salvation and eternal life as a result. More importantly, so does God Himself. For, as His word says (2 Peter 3:9): “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
That promise is for everyone, including you and me. I can only that hope you have found Jesus. I hope that you have found life. I myself have, and the knowledge of that great truth has brought me more peace than anything else I have ever experienced.
I leave you with these words from wonderful song that Christians often sing…
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
To reach out and touch Him
And say that we love Him
Open our ears, Lord
And help us to listen
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
He paid a debt He did not owe
I owed a debt I could not pay
I needed someone to wash my sins away
And now I sing a brand new song:
“Amazing grace” (amazing grace)
Christ Jesus paid the debt that I could never pay
Open my eyes, Lord
I want to see Jesus
To reach out and touch Him
And say that I love Him
Open my ears, Lord
And help me to listen
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
SOURCES:
The news story is available widely on the web. Cf.: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2014/11/21/sanfrancisco
-window-washer-11-story-fall-survives/19352725/.
Calvin’s Institutes can also be found online at: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/institutes.iii.vii.html.
Song lyrics from: http://lyrics.astraweb.com/display/913/
hymns..unknown..open_our_eyes.html.
In his most significant work, The Institutes of the Christian Religion, Calvin compares the Word of God to a pair of spectacles (or reading glasses), that enables us to properly interpret everything we see in the world around us each and every day (1.6.1):
“For as the aged, or those whose sight is defective, when any books however fair, is set before them, though they perceive that there is something written are scarcely able to make out two consecutive words, but, when aided by glasses, begin to read distinctly, so Scripture, gathering together the impressions of Deity, which, till then, lay confused in our minds, dissipates the darkness, and shows us the true God clearly.”
I share this this thought because it has stayed with me for over thirty years, ever since I first encountered it in a class I took on the life and teachings of John Calvin while in seminary. In fact, so impressed was I by this simple illustration that it has pretty much become a way of life for me. As a preacher of the Gospel, I have learned to see the world through the lens of Scripture.
Once a believer embraces this notion, he or she cannot help but see biblical truth almost everywhere he or she looks. I thought I would cite one such example for my blog post today.
The national news carried s story fork San Francisco about a window washer who fell 11 stories from a bank building Friday morning onto a moving car, crushing its roof and sending shattered glass flying into the street, police and witnesses said. Witnesses described seeing a falling blue streak and the man's shadow as he fell.
The window washer, who was not immediately identified, was heard to be screaming all the way down. This was followed by a crashing sound as he hit a car and then rolled onto the ground. He suffered critical injuries, but he was conscious, police said. He was taken to San Francisco General Hospital and is now listed in stable but critical condition.
About 20 other people ran to the man, who was on his back. He was described as lucid, understanding that others were with him. What saved his life was the fact that he fell onto a moving car that was passing by underneath. In some miraculous way, the moving car appears to have helped to absorb the impact and dissipate some of the devastation that would surely have resulted if the man had landed squarely on the pavement. The driver of the car was also spared serious injury.
For my part, I am thankful that this man’s life was spared. I cannot imagine what was going through his mind as he was falling. Nor can I imagine what has gone through his mind since he has been in the hospital. But in all of this, I cannot help but be reminded of a great truth communicated in the Bible.
In Genesis, chapter 3, the Bible records the story of what is often termed the fall of mankind. Men and women, created in the image of God, and placed in the Garden of Eden, fell prey to temptation, sinned against God, and suffered the consequence of eternal death as a result. Unbeknownst to Adam and Eve, however, God loved them and their offspring so much that He was already undertaking the process of redemption.
The unfolding story of the Bible shows us that God’s own son, Jesus Christ, was already moving toward the rescue. And before mankind was forever destroyed by spiritual death as a result of its fall away from Almighty God, Jesus Christ absorbed the impact of that fall by sacrificing Himself on a cross. In so doing, He saved us, making it possible for us to experience eternal life rather than eternal death.
And thus, the Bible declares (in the Apostle Paul’s New Testament Letter to the Romans, 5:19 New Living Translation): “Because one person disobeyed God, many became sinners. But because one other person obeyed God, many will be made righteous.”
The consequences of falling away from God can be terrible. But, praise God, we do not have to suffer those consequences. As Paul further states that same Letter (Romans 10:9-13):
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
My own desire is that all men and women everywhere will call out to God in Christ and find salvation and eternal life as a result. More importantly, so does God Himself. For, as His word says (2 Peter 3:9): “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
That promise is for everyone, including you and me. I can only that hope you have found Jesus. I hope that you have found life. I myself have, and the knowledge of that great truth has brought me more peace than anything else I have ever experienced.
I leave you with these words from wonderful song that Christians often sing…
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
To reach out and touch Him
And say that we love Him
Open our ears, Lord
And help us to listen
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
He paid a debt He did not owe
I owed a debt I could not pay
I needed someone to wash my sins away
And now I sing a brand new song:
“Amazing grace” (amazing grace)
Christ Jesus paid the debt that I could never pay
Open my eyes, Lord
I want to see Jesus
To reach out and touch Him
And say that I love Him
Open my ears, Lord
And help me to listen
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus
SOURCES:
The news story is available widely on the web. Cf.: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2014/11/21/sanfrancisco
-window-washer-11-story-fall-survives/19352725/.
Calvin’s Institutes can also be found online at: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/calvin/institutes.iii.vii.html.
Song lyrics from: http://lyrics.astraweb.com/display/913/
hymns..unknown..open_our_eyes.html.