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The Golden Book of Christian Life

John Calvin

Historical Theology I, Shepherds Theological SeminaryRuss White, April 2012

At first appearance, Calvins Golden Book of Christian Life is yet another collection of

sayings, perhaps modeled on the Proverbs, on living the Christian life. A deeper look, however,

reveals a larger pattern radiating from the pen of Calvin. Here the reader can find a reflection of

Calvins strong taste for order in the realms of theology and government in the meaning and

living out of Christianity through everyday life.

Calvin begins with a simple thesis: the goal of the Christian life is to live in harmony

with Gods melody, and the only true way to find the right harmony to offset Gods law is

through obedience. This immediately raises the question, obedience to what? Saying, be

obedient to God, is too broad to be useful. Calvins answer is immediate and sure obedience

to God is founded in humility before the Scriptures, in accepting the Scriptures as the true and

absolute Word of God. He compares the Scriptures to works of philosophy, showing how they

are different from these works in both their thrust and their effect.

But what does obedience to the Scriptures look like? How can one be humble before the

Scriptures? Again, Calvin has a set of ready answers to this question, beginning with self-denial.

We are not our own, therefore neither our reason nor our will should guide us in our thoughts

and actions. We are not our own, therefore we should not seek what is expedient to the flesh. We

are not our own, therefore let us forget ourselves and our own interests as far as possible. But we

are Gods own; to him, therefore, let us live and die. We are Gods own; therefore let his wisdom

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and will dominate all our actions. We are Gods own; therefore let every part of our existence be

directed toward him as our only legitimate goal.

He continues his treatise with Patience in Crossbearing, where he argues that in order to

truly hold yourself in humility before the Scriptures, you must also be patient in the cross God

has given you to bear. He carries this thought forward by pointing out that there is crown without

a Cross in Hopefulness for the Next World. Finally, he considers the practical implications of

living the Christian life in The Right Use of the Present Life. This last section is the most

practical of the work, specifically focusing on how the Christian should use this present life to

the glory of God, accepting where God has put him , and realizing that God has his own purposesthat are being fulfilled, no matter what might appear to be. For instance, Calvin has very helpful

words for all those who feel they are laboring in the background.

Anyone who is not in the front ranks should be content to accomplish his private task,

and should not desert the place where the Lord has put him. It will be no small comfort for his

cares, labors, troubles, and other burdens, when a man knows that in all these matters God is his

guide. In a world where popularity is the only measure of success, where there are actually

services designed to measure social influence, this is a crucial lesson for the Christian to learn.

While Calvins work is a solid place to look for a challenging view of the Christian life,

particularly one that will force the reader to step outside the modern culture of immediate

gratification, there are still issues with the Golden Booklet. First, and foremost, while much of

the language is focused on God, there is still an undertone of what I can do to please God. This

may have been a breath of fresh air in Calvins day, but in the current me centered culture, it

might be all too easy to take this entire work as just another self-help book intent on giving rather

self-centered advice.

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At the same time, there is a strong undertone of fatalism. Again, this undertone was

probably not so strongly recognized within Calvins own culture in fact, its quite possible that

his work was seen as almost frivolous at the time this was written. In a world where it was

common for half the children born to a family to die before reaching adulthood, and entire

families to be wiped out in wars on a regular basis, the insistence that Gods providence works to

the good might have seemed almost euphoric in tone.

The one real weakness in Calvins work is the buried contradiction between the all-

pervasive providence of God on the one hand, and the need for personal works of spiritual

growth and moral acts on the other. Calvin doesnt seem to bring these two things together in anymeaningful way, nor does he bring to the front the problem of personal works for spiritual

growth while holding a belief that all spiritual growth is really based on the effort of God, rather

than the individual believer. It might be a bit much to expect this sort of theological depth in a

work that is clearly designed to be more practical, however.

This little book is well worth reading for the average Christian, especially if the culture

and worldview of the time in which it was written are taken into account.