Person of Faith

John Calvin

Introverted French pastor in the sixteenth century whose quiet work awakened the world to see the truth in God's Word.

John Calvin
Meet
John Calvin

Meet John Calvin, an introverted Frenchman and author of one of the most influential books in Christian history, The Institutes of the Christian Religion. After becoming friends with some Reformers in his college years, the young intellectual put his faith in Jesus Christ and joined those who believed that God’s Word is the final authority in faith and life.  

He thought he would bring his faith in Jesus Christ and in the Word of God to his homeland. Calvin intended to fight for the truth with a pen, escaping the heat of the battle between Church and state. Instead, he was put on the front lines; he became a pastor, somewhat reluctantly. 

Ministry for Calvin wasn’t a cozy office job. He knew pain like any of us. Calvin was kicked out of a church and had to flee when the biblical truth he taught challenged the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church. He waded through many years of plague, getting into the grime in order to minster to the ill and grieving in his congregation. As for family matters, his only son died as a baby, and his wife died after only eight years of marriage.  

But Calvin loved the Lord and loved the Bible. He faithfully taught his congregation passage by passage until he died. Calvin was not motivated by a rebellious attitude against his government, nor for personal gain. He knew that the message of the Bible—that people can be reconciled to God by faith in his Son Jesus—was life to his hearers, and worth his own.

The Life of John Calvin

Birth
John Calvin was born in Noyon, France.
Education
At 14, Calvin began six years of studies at three French universities: Paris, Orleans, and Bourges.
Conversion
He left the Catholic faith, believing that God’s Word is our final authority and that faith in Jesus Christ alone could save him from his sin.
Crisis
Calvin fled France to Basil, Switzerland, because of persecution against Protestants in France.
Writing
At 27, Calvin wrote the first edition of Institutes of the Christian Religion.
Vocation
He accepted the request that he pastor a Protestant church in Geneva, and settled there.
Conflict
The city council banished Calvin from Geneva for three years over a disagreement about who could partake of communion.
Vocation
He pastored a French-speaking church in Strasbourg.
Publishing
Calvin published his Commentary on Romans.
Return
Calvin returned to Geneva at the request of the city council.
Related Event
Martin Luther, father of the Protestant Reformation, died.
Writing
Calvin wrote the last edition of Institutes of the Christian Religion.
War
The French civil wars, which lasted for 36 years, began between Catholics and Huguenots (French Protestants).
Death
Calvin died in Geneva at age 55, some say of sheer exhaustion.
1509
1523
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1535
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1536
1538
1538-1541
1540
1541
1546
1559
1562
1564
Testimony
Article: 5 Min

10 Things John Calvin Taught About the Bible

by Bibles.net
Article: 4 Min

What John Calvin Believed About the Bible

by Dale Cooper at The Banner

Article Series

The Life of John Calvin

by David Mathis at Desiring God

Image

By grace
you have been saved,
through faith-
and this is not from ourselves,
it is the gift of God.

Ephesians 2:8 NIV
Quote

What Has Jesus Accomplished for Those Who Believe?

Having become with us the Son of Man, he [Jesus] has made us with himself sons of God.  
By his own descent to the earth he has prepared our ascent to heaven.  
Having received our mortality, he has bestowed on us his immortality.  
Having undertaken our weakness, he has made us strong in his strength.  
Having submitted to our poverty, he has transferred to us his riches. 
Having taken upon himself the burden of unrighteousness with which we were oppressed, he has clothed us with his righteousness. 

by John Calvin | Source
Article: 15 Min

Practical Application of John Calvin’s Teaching

Prayer was incredibly important to John Calvin, and his reflections on prayer help us see why it is a central and vital part of life as a believer in Jesus.

by Raymond K. Anderson at Christian History Institute

Verse
1 Corinthians 15:10 ESV

But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 

Quote

What Does It Take to Trust in God?

Until men recognize that they owe everything to God, that they are nourished by his fatherly care, that he is the author of their every good, that they should seek nothing beyond him—they will never yield him willing service. No, unless they establish their complete happiness in him, they will never give themselves truly and sincerely to him. 

by John Calvin | Source
Sermon: 51 Min

On John

Calvin

by Kevin DeYoung

Impact
Article: 7 Min

Pastor of Geneva

Get acquainted with John Calvin's work as a pastor—which began at age 27—the work he did, and the unique troubles he faced as he shared God's Word with the town of Geneva.

by Olivier Fatio at Christian History Institute

Quote

Prayer
is the chief
exercise of faith. 

Verse
Acts 20:24 NLT

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God. 

Article: 4 Min

The Genius of Geneva

Here's how John Calvin came to pastor the church in Geneva for 28 years, and what drove his ministry.

by John Piper at Desiring God

Sermon: 75 Min

At Work and Worship in the Theater of God

by Julius Kim

Article: 3 Min

10 Distinguishing Marks of John Calvin’s Preaching

by Nathan Bingham at Ligonier Ministries

Verse
Acts 20:28 NKJV

Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.

Hymns

I Greet Thee, Who My Sure Redeemer Art

by John Calvin, arr. by Sovereign Grace Music feat. Bob Kauflin

10 TRUTHS
ABOUT PRAYER

Books
Video: 2 Min
by Derek Thomas at Banner of Truth
Books