Personal Relationship Directly With God

“For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities – all things were created through him and for him.” Colossians 1:16

Reformed scholar Abraham Kuyper has made the point that one of the beauties and benefits of Calvinism is that it offers a “life system.” Martin Luther started the Protestant Reformation. In heroic fashion, he stood up against the bureaucratic weight of an imposing Roman Catholicism. The “Hero of Wittenberg” was a creative genius who worked out and fought for the basic principles of Protestantism.

While Luther fired the canon blasts that broke Christianity away from the ecclesiastical hold Roman Catholicism had on the religious landscape, it was John Calvin, the “Thinker of Geneva,” who would mold the basic principles of Protestantism into a system of thought that could govern all of life. While Luther focused on justification by faith, Calvin realized that the sovereignty of God provided a principle from which to think about the interaction of faith and life. Calvin saw, more clearly than anyone had up to that point, that Christianity provided people with direct access to God. No longer, as in Roman Catholicism, were the church, priests, and sacraments necessary as intermediaries between us and God. A Christian believer, through the power and presence of the Holy Spirit, had immediate access to the presence, favor, and power of the living God.

This meant several important things. One was that all of life was to be lived in God’s presence. That God has access to us and we have access to God means that he is present in all spheres of life, not only in what happens on Sunday mornings. For that reason, work, leisure, family, community, and nation are the places of God’s presence and influence, along with the fellowship of believers in the church.

One important implication of this was that human relations were an arena in which God’s will and presence were to be experienced. Social life was the place of God’s activity and presence. It followed from this that all people, men and women, rich and poor, strong and weak, simple and gifted were members of God’s family. For that reason, no person should lord himself over another. All people are equal in God’s sight and worthy of respect and honor. It is not surprising that this principle should lead to a democratic understanding of how church and society ought to be governed.

Calvin believed that there was not only a particular grace that led to salvation but also common grace given by God to all people. It is through this common grace that scientists discover and create, merchants sell goods that benefit others, and artists create. It was not the world but sinful behavior that was under God’s curse. Instead of fleeing to the monastery, people should serve God in the world in whatever occupation God has called them. Since human beings are called to serve God in every area of their lives, it is important that every person be free. One cannot serve God unless one is free to do so. No government or ruler has the right to inhibit a person’s ability to serve God as he calls them by infringing on their freedom.

Kuyper’s estimate of the impact of Calvinism is that everywhere its principles have taken hold, society has advanced and flourished. When people are free to serve God in the world, they engage in activities that improve the conditions of others, harness nature for good purposes, and promote freedom, peace, and good will. Today we take many of these principles for granted. Let us not forget their importance for our nation and world today.