Book 4/Chapter 20 Force and piety (section 10) 1. What question does Calvin seek to answer in this section? 2. What answer does he give? 3. And why is this? 4. So what should they do if they want to be approved by God? 5. What defiles a magistrate’s hands? 6. What is the chief …
Cutting the Right Cloth
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, …
A Carnival of Pillage
“And thus all have confessed that no government can be happily established unless piety is the first concern; and that those laws are preposterous which neglect God’s right and provide only for men” (Calvin, Institutes 4.20.9). And, as we see unfolding in Congress right this minute, a group of men who have no fear of …
A Pre-existing Condition
Now that the brigands of the Senate have successfully doubled down in order to get their 60 votes for cloture, they can now amend the bill at their pleasure, and part of their pleasure will be double-crossing the people they bribed to get their cloture vote. Did we say the people of Nebraska would never …
Preposterous Laws
Book 4/Chapter 20 Governmental diversity (section 8) 1. Why is it difficult to say which form of government is superior? 2. What is an easy temptation in every form of government? 3. That said, the fall is easiest under what form? 4. What form of government does Calvin prefer? 5. But what is a Christian’s …
The Wise Men and the Nations
INTRODUCTION: This part of the Christmas story is not a stand alone story. In the narrative, we find a type of how all the rulers of this world will eventually come to kiss the Son. THE TEXT: “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there …
Just So Much Flailing
I said earlier that I knew next to nothing about the proposed homosexuality bill in Uganda. Here is an interesting interview with Bishop Zac Niringiye about it. There are all kinds of things going on in there. The main thing it shows is that apart from a sure word in Scripture, one that applies to all …
And He Called Them Gods
Book 4/Chapter 20 Ordained by God (section 4) 1. What is Calvin’s first argument that the office of magistrate is ordained by God? 2. What enables kings to reign in justice? 3. What different kinds of rule are ordained by God? So-called Christian perfection (section 5) 1. How does Calvin answer those who say that …
No Leverage for Sin
In the message today, we will be considering ways to prepare yourselves spiritually for your Christmas celebrations. That message will be addressing those who earnestly want to be a blessing to others, and who are grieved when they stumble in various ways. So I thought that it would be good to address just a few …
Justice, Mercy and Humility
Because God is the author of sacraments, He is the one who governs and regulates them. In some matters, He doesn’t care how we set the Table—He doesn’t mandate a white tablecloth, for example, or silver trays for distribution. He requires that what we do in this regard is filled with reverence and godly awe, …