Calvin's Institutes: June 8

Podcast SummaryIn this reading from John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 18, Sections 4–7, Calvin continues answering the claim that rewards promised in Scripture prove that believers merit salvation through their works. He argues that God speaks of rewards, wages, and recompense not because our works deserve eternal life, but because He graciously encourages His people as they endure suffering, self-denial, and the discipline of the Christian life. Eternal life is a recompense in the sense that God exchanges the trials of this present age for the blessings of the age to come, not because He is paying a debt owed to human merit. Calvin further explains that even the righteousness of believers' works depends upon God's pardon, since every work remains imperfect and acceptable only because God graciously overlooks its defects. He then addresses passages about storing treasure in heaven, showing that acts of charity are remembered and rewarded by God without becoming meritorious. Finally, he explains that suffering for Christ makes believers worthy of the kingdom not by earning it, but by conforming them to their Savior. Throughout these sections, Calvin insists that God's rewards flow from His faithfulness to His promises and His covenant of mercy, not from any worthiness found in human works.Today's ReadingJohn Calvin — Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Chapter 18, Sections 4–7Explore the Project:Through the Church Fathers – https://www.throughthechurchfathers.comPatreon – https://www.patreon.com/cmichaelpattonCredo Courses – https://www.credocourses.comCredo Ministries – https://www.credoministries.org#JohnCalvin #InstitutesOfTheChristianReligion #JustificationByFaith #GraceAlone #FaithAlone #GoodWorks #ChristianSuffering #Adoption #RewardAndMerit #ReformedTheology #HistoricalTheology #ChristianTheology #ThroughTheChurchFathers #ChurchHistory #CredoMinistries #ChristianDiscipleship #SolaFide #SolaGratia #CalvinStudies #TheologyInDepth