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The True Church: Mother of All the Godly | John Calvin · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome to Reformed Thinking. This is the deep dive, and you,
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our listener, have given us a really compelling collection of
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sources on a topic right at the heart of the Christian faith,
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the church. Our aim today is well to sift
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through these insights, especially pulling from John
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Calvin's significant writings. We want to uncover how God
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establishes, how he nurtures, and how he keeps his people
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through this foundational institution.
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Yeah, that's right. We really want to clarify these
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concepts, make them clear, and maybe uncover some, you know,
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remarkable facts along the way. Indeed, we'll be looking at the
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nature of the church itself, both as God views it, you know,
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from his perspective, and also how we experience it right here
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on earth. OK, we'll explore how it grows,
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it's vital place in our lives. It's really the discussion about
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God's chosen way, His method for gathering and upholding his
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people. And that's a truth that gives a
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lot of assurance and, well, direction for our faith.
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So, OK, let's open up this idea then.
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The church as a spiritual mother.
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It's quite a striking image, isn't it?
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It is, yeah. What does that truly mean for
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us? You know, for the believer?
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Well, it speaks to a really deep truth about how God cares for
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us, his children, our sources, they share that God knowing our
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inherent limitations, you know, our human ignorance, our
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tendency towards spiritual sluggishness, that drift.
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Right, that laziness we all feel sometimes.
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Exactly. And the way our minds can
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wander. He provides external aids for
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faith. These helps are meant to sort of
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initiate faith, foster its growth, and then sustain it
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until it reaches its full completion.
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And the church is precisely where God gathers his children.
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It offers a kind of maternal care, tending to them until they
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reach spiritual maturity. It's a method thoughtfully
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designed to draw us to God, gently, gentlier, rather than
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overwhelming us with his his sheer majesty.
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I mean, think of it this way. Yeah, we are shut up in the
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prison of the body, as our sources put it.
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We're not yet perfect beings or angels.
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So God meets us where we are, providing these external helps
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to assist us in our spiritual walk.
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That makes perfect sense. So the Church is really a divine
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provision kind of tailored for our human frailty.
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Absolutely. The church's role is likened to
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a mother who nourishes babes and children, guiding them
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progressively to manhood and the perfection of faith.
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This conveys A continuous, tender type of care, you know, a
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constant spiritual development that happens within the church's
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provision. The fundamental idea is pretty
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clear. Just as a child needs a mother
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for its very life and healthy development, so believers need
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the church. The sources state this directly.
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If God is our Father, then the church must also be our mother,
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and this relationship highlights a vital spiritual outcome.
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Our connection to God is closely tied to our connection to his
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gathered people. It really challenges that common
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notion that you can be a Christian just in isolation.
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Yeah, that just me and Jesus idea.
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Exactly. It asserts instead that God's
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plan involves a family, a community.
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OK, here's where it becomes particularly thought provoking.
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I think our sources make a very strong declaration.
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They say beyond the pale of the church, no forgiveness of sins,
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no salvation can be hoped for. That sounds quite unyielding
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when you first read it. It does, yeah.
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Can you help us grasp that statement's intent?
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It does sound unyielding and, well, I think it's meant to
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convey the seriousness of God's chosen way.
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This declaration doesn't mean that salvation is earned by mere
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membership, right? Like joining a club guarantees
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heaven. OK, not like paying dues.
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No, not at all. Instead of He declares that God
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has established the Church as the ordinary context, the
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primary means through which his saving grace and forgiveness are
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dispensed. The.
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Ordinary context. The ordinary context, yeah.
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The sources reference prophets like Isaiah and Joel who speak
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to this truth, noting that God's paternal favor and special
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evidence of spiritual life are confined to his peculiar people.
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They show us that those who cultivate true piety are said to
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inscribe their names among the citizens of Jerusalem.
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So it's really about God's chosen method then, not some
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strict limitation on God himself, like he can't save
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outside it. Precisely.
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It's about his ordained way. The abandonment of the church is
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viewed as fatal, almost a denial of God in Christ.
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Wow. Strong.
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Words very strong because it means actively turning away from
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the very structure God has appointed for our spiritual
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nurture and for our progress towards salvation.
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It's not about God being unable to act outside of his ordinary
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methods. He's God.
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He can do what He wills. Rather, it's about our
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accountability, our responsibility to embrace the
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means He has graciously provided for us.
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And this pattern is consistent throughout the biblical
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narrative. For instance, Ezekiel further
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states that those outside God's assembly will not be written in
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the writing of the House of Israel.
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This consistently links one's spiritual life and standing with
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God to the community of his people.
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It makes it clear that salvation and forgiveness are
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fundamentally tied to being part of this community as God
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intended. The sources are quite explicit
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here. The benefit of forgiveness of
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sins, which is tied to salvation, is peculiar to the
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Church. Peculiar meaning specific to the
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Church. Specific to it, yes, meaning we
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cannot enjoy it unless we continue in the communion of the
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church. We are instructed to seek
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forgiveness of sins only where the Lord has placed it, which is
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within this community of believers.
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It's a real challenge to the idea of a purely individualistic
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faith that tries to bypass God's chosen instruments.
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OK, so if the church is so essential, then how do we go
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about identifying it? I mean, practically, our sources
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present a helpful distinction, an invisible and invisible
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church. Can you help us distinguish
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between these two? Yeah, this distinction is really
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important for understanding how the church operates and how we
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as individuals relate to it. So the invisible church first
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refers to all those whom God truly knows as His own, all the
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elect of God throughout history, including those who have already
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passed on to glory. This Church is manifest to the
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eye of God only. Only God sees it fully.
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Exactly. God alone knoweth them that are
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His, holding them, as it were, enclosed under His seal.
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His secret election forms the foundation of this true Church.
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Our limited human perception simply cannot fully grasp who
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belongs to it. So this is really a matter of
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God's perfect knowledge, something we accept by faith.
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Exactly right. Because we can't perceive this
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church with our physical senses, we are called to believe it.
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This means we are to be persuaded in our hearts that we
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are truly engrafted into this body, this body which is united
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in Christ as its head and by the Holy Spirit in one faith, 1 hope
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and one love. This invisible Church is truly
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Catholic or universal. Meaning worldwide, all time.
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Yes, universal in that sense, spanning all times and places.
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Because, as the sources say, two or three cannot be invented
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without dividing Christ, which is simply impossible.
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And this invisible church, resting on God's eternal
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election and Christ's steadfastness, provides a firm
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foundation for our salvation that cannot change or fail.
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It offers a source of real assurance for believers, knowing
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their place in this divinely established, unshakable body.
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It's a comfort, you know, to know that even when the visible
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church might seem to falter, which it does, which it often
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does. Yeah, God's true church remains
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secure. That makes clear sense for God's
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outlook. But for us here on earth, how do
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we understand the visible church?
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What is it and how do we believe it in a practical sense?
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Right, the visible church. This is the external community.
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We can actually observe the whole body of mankind scatter
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throughout the world who profess to worship one God and Christ.
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So the people we see in church on Sunday.
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Generally, yes. Membership in this visible
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church includes those initiated by baptism who share in the
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Lord's Supper, profess shared doctrine and love, and follow
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the ministry Christ appointed for preaching His Word.
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Now a crucial point the sources make is that this visible church
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often contains a very large mixture of hypocrites.
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OK, there it is. Yeah, along with ambitious,
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avaricious, envious, evil speaking men, some also of
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impure lives. These individuals are tolerated
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for a time, either because their guilt can't be legally
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established or maybe because strict discipline isn't always
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consistently applied. This sounds like a really
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practical challenge for believers then, trying to
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discern the true church amidst such a mixed group.
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It is a challenge, and our sources highlight a careful
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distinction to help us navigate this.
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We believe the Church as a truth.
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Believe the Church. Meaning we acknowledge its
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existence and its role as divinely instituted.
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We recognize it as a factor, reality because God brought it
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forth. But, and this is key, we do not
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believe in the church as we believe in God.
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Oh, OK, Big difference. Huge.
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Difference. Because our ultimate trust and
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confidence must be reserved for God alone.
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This guards against misplaced faith, stopping us from putting
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our trust in an institution, even a divinely ordained one,
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rather than in God himself. So for humans recognizing this
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visible church operates by what the sources call a judgement of
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charity. Judgement of charity, what that
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mean? It means that while God sees the
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heart, we as humans have to charitably assume someone is
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part of the visible church if they outwardly profess faith,
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exhibit regularity of conduct, and participate in its
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ordinances like baptism and the Lord's Supper.
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So we give them the benefit of the doubt, basically.
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Essentially, yes. We don't have the divine insight
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to perfectly discern true belief, so we extend grace and
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assume the best, avoiding judge mentalism and recognizing that
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only God knows the true state of a soul.
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It's a pragmatic recognition of our human limitations in judging
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another's heart. OK, so if the visible church has
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this mixture of genuine believers and, well, others, how
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do we know which gatherings are actually the church?
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Our sources provide marks or symbols to guide us.
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What are they and what makes them reliable?
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Right. To accommodate our
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understanding, our capacity, God has given us clear, discernible
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signs by which we can recognize where the Church of God truly
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has an existence. The two primary marks are first,
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the sincere preaching and hearing of the Word of God.
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OK, the word Preach. And second, the administration
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of the sacraments according to the institution of Christ.
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Word and Sacrament, the classic Reformed.
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Marks exactly wherever God's Word is sincerely preached and
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heard, the church exists. This is fundamental because, as
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the Scriptures tell us, faith comes by hearing the gospel.
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God chooses to use the mouths and tons of men consecrated to
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His service, making His own voice heard through them.
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The Church in this role serves as the pillar and ground of the
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truth and it's faithful guardian through this pure preaching.
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So it's not just any preaching, right?
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It has to be sincere, pure preaching of God's Word.
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Precisely sincere, pure, faithful to the Scriptures and
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alongside the Word, the proper observance and administration of
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the sacraments like Baptism and the Lord's Supper are equally
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essential. They are called most useful
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helps in fostering and confirming our faith.
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Useful help, yes. And when these are properly
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administered according to Christ's original institution,
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our sources claim they cannot anywhere exist without producing
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fruit and prospering by the blessing of God.
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These two elements, the pure preaching of the Word and the
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proper administration of the sacraments, are the symbols by
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which the Church is discerned. They're not just arbitrary
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signs. They are active means through
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which God works. And these aren't merely outward
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rituals then, are they? There's a distinct spiritual
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efficacy of power connected to them.
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That's a vital point, yes. These marks are described as a
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fit pledge in earnest that allow us to safely recognize a church
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in any society where both are present.
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Where these are found, God's promise stands firm.
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Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I
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in the midst of them. The presence of these marks aims
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for edification, building up the body of Christ.
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The Church is edified by external preaching, and the
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practice of these marks serves as the only bond by which the
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Saints can be kept together. This promotes holy consent in
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the faith and to right order within the community of
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believers. And there's a danger in
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rejecting these a. Serious danger?
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Yes, to contumaciously alienate themselves from any Christian
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society in which the true ministry of His Word and
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sacraments is maintained is viewed by God as deserters of
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religion. Contumaciously, that means like,
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stubbornly, defiantly. Exactly.
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Stubbornly or defiantly withdrawing from a healthy
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Church where the Word is faithfully preached and
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sacraments administered. Such rejection violates the
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Church's unity and risks falling into pestiferous errors,
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destructive, poisonous delusions.
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Our sources clearly indicate that Satan constantly works to
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destroy and efface these marks or bring them into contempt to
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cause revolt from the Church, aiming to hinder its spiritual
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growth. This brings up a thought then
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why does God choose to use human ministers?
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I mean, why not simply speak directly to us, or work
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exclusively through other, perhaps more divine means?
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Yeah, that's a great question and it really reveals God's deep
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wisdom and accommodating our limits as human beings.
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We are as the sources described in the prison of the body, and
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our ignorance, sloth and the vanity of our minds stand in
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need of external helps. God addresses us after the
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manner of men by means of interpreters that He made us
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allure us to Himself instead of driving us away by a Thunder.
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Allureus not drive us away. That's interesting phrasing.
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It is. Think about it.
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God, in his infinite majesty, could simply overwhelm us with
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his presence, like a blinding flash of lightning, right?
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Yeah. Terrifying.
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Exactly. But instead, out of his immense
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love and wisdom, he chooses to speak to us through human
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voices, through ministers, in a way that is familiar and
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approachable. This allows him to allure us to
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himself, drawing us in gently rather than terrifying us with
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his Thunder. This familiar mode of teaching
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is well suited to us, especially given the awe that divine
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majesty justly inspires. So it's really a display of his
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grace making himself accessible to us in our weakness.
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Exactly. That's a good way to put it.
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God chooses not to bring his people to manhood, you know, to
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spiritual maturity in any other way than through the education
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of the Church. The education of the Church.
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Yes, which is primarily carried out through pastors and teachers
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who preach celestial doctrine. This ministry helps us learn and
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make progress in our faith. And by requiring us to listen to
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His ministers as we would to Himself, God actually proves our
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obedience. It's a test of obedience, too.
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In a way, yes. Those who reject this spiritual
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food offer by the hands of the church risk perishing from
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spiritual hunger, having refused the means God provided for their
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sustenance. God uses human mouths and
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tongues for His service, making His own voice to be heard in
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them. This brings dignity and respect
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upon the ministry of heavenly doctrine, stopping it from being
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cheapened by the appearance of an insignificant human being.
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The treasure and earthen vessels idea.
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Precisely. The treasure is held in earthen
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vessels, as the apostle Paul puts it, but its value is
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inestimable because God's authority and presence stand
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behind it. Ministers are given authority
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not for their own sake, but to promote holy consent in the
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faith and to write order within the community.
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Rejecting public meetings and preaching can loose or burst the
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sacred bond of unity, leading to those pestiferous errors we
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mentioned earlier. It is by these very human, yet
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divinely appointed means that God preserves and nourishes
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faith among His people. OK, this is often a real
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sticking point for many people, I think.
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If the visible church contains hypocrites and those with impure
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lives, as the sources say, why should we stay?
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Why not just leave and seek a church that seems more pure,
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maybe one with no visible flaws? Yeah, and that's a very common
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concern, an understandable one. Our sources speak directly and
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well forcefully to this. They argue strongly against
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abandoning the Church due to the imperfections of its members or
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even minor doctrinal differences.
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Christ himself illustrated this with parables.
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Remember to show that the Church will contain a mixture of good
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and bad until the very end. It's like a net with all kinds
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of fish not separated until brought ashore.
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Right, the dragnet. Or a field of good seed mixed
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with tares. Weeds not to be removed until
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the harvest, or a thrashing floor where weed is concealed
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under chaff until the final cleansing.
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These illustrations clearly demonstrate that the church will
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be burdened with a multitude of wicked until the day of
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judgement. So seeking a church all together
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free from blemish is actually a vain pursuit.
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It's an unrealistic expectation that goes against Christ's own
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teachings. And are there historical
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examples that back this up from the sources besides the
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parables? Oh yes, absolutely.
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The sources bring forward historical evidence.
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They point out that even the church in Jerusalem during the
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prophets time was full of corruption, so much so it was
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like into Sodom and Gomorrah. Yet the prophets did not
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separate from it. They continued to minister
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within it, calling it to repentance.
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In Christ's and the Apostles time, despite the desperate
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impiety of the Pharisees, A widespread dissolute
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licentiousness among the people, Christ and the apostles
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participated in the same sacred rites and public exercises of
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religion in the common temple. They didn't start a pure temple
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down the street. Right, they stayed engaged.
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They're stayed engaged. And even the Corinthian church,
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which Paul addressed, I mean it was marked by execrable crimes,
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horrible immorality, and serious doctrinal issues like denying
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the resurrection. Yeah, First Corinthians is quite
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a list. It really is.
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Yet Paul still recognized it as a Church of Christ.
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Why? Because the ministration of Word
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and sacrament is not rejected. The core marks were still
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present, however imperfectly. This reveals A remarkable
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tolerance. Not tolerance for sin, mind you,
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but tolerance for the presence of sin and sinners in the
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visible community. So the core message is that we
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are to tolerate such imperfections within the
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community. We stick with it.
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Indeed, we are not to abandon a Church, even if a team with
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numerous faults in conduct or has defects in administration,
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as long as, and this is the condition, as long as it
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retains, quote, sound and unimpaired, that doctrine in
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which the safety of piety consists, and keep the use of
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the sacraments. So the essentials have to be
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there. Word and Sacrament need to be
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basically right. Exactly the essentials must
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remain differences on non essential doctrines.
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Things which don't destroy the substance of religion shouldn't
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cause dissension or separation. Perfect agreement on every minor
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point is simply not possible due to human limits and ignorance,
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and the sources stress individual accountability.
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Here. Paul's instruction for believers
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to examine himself before partaking of the Lord's Supper,
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rather than requiring examination of the entire
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church, shows that one is not tainted or defiled by another's
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unworthiness. My participation isn't
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invalidated by someone else's sin next to me.
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Precisely the responsibility for one spiritual state rests on the
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individual. Now, the right of admitting or
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excluding members belongs to the whole church or its appointed
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officers, not to individuals deciding to leave just because
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of someone else's behavior. Right, that's church discipline,
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a corporate function. Correct.
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And often, the sources argue this desire to separate, to find
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a pure church, comes from pride and a false idea of sanctity
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rather than genuine zeal for God.
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Ouch, that's challenging. It is.
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Those who separate unnecessarily risk cutting himself off from
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the Communion of Saints and falling into those pistiferous
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errors again. The call is rather to bear
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patiently with what they cannot correct, lamenting the flaws
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until God either reforms or corrects them.
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Or, you know, the final harvest roots up the tears.
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That paints a picture, then, of the church's holiness, not as a
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static arrived at perfection, but more like a process, a
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dynamic growth. That's a fine way to put it
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exactly. The church makes daily progress
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but is not yet perfect. It daily advances but as yet has
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not reached the goal. Still under construction.
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Very much so. Lord is daily smoothing its
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wrinkles and wiping away at spots.
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It's a continuous work of purification that will culminate
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only at His return. The purity attributed to
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believers now is by the kindness of God as they aspire after
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holiness and perfect purity. It is a dynamic, ongoing work of
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God within the community of His people, not an instantaneous,
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static state for the visible body and understanding.
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This encourages patience and persistent effort within the
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Church rather than disillusionment and abandonment.
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This raises A crucial point. Then following on from that, if
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the church is imperfect and we continually struggle with sin
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even as believers, how does forgiveness work within this
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whole framework? Is it just a one time spiritual
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transaction at conversion or something ongoing?
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Great question. Forgiveness of sins is presented
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as a constant and uninterrupted grace.
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It's called a benefit peculiar to the Church, again specific to
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it, and the only anchor of salvation for our consciences.
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The only anchor. Yes, it's clearly not a one time
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event like initial regeneration or justification.
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Believers carry about with us the remains of sin throughout
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their lives. Our sources explained that we
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could not continue in the church one single moment were we not
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sustained by the uninterrupted grace of God and forgiving our
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sins. We be disqualified immediately.
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Constantly, yes. The Lord requires His Saints to
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confess sins, daily think the Lord's Prayer and continually
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promises pardon. This pardon is always ready for
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God's people because of Christ's.
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It's finished work on the cross. And how is this continuous
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forgiveness received through the church?
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What's the mechanism? Well, this forgiveness is
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dispensed to us by the ministers and pastors of the Church,
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either in the preaching of the Gospel or the administration of
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the sacraments. This is where the power of the
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keys, that authority to declare and impart forgiveness based on
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Christ's work, is especially manifested.
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So hearing the Gospel preach, participating in the sacraments,
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these are means of receiving assurance of forgiveness.
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Exactly. We are given instruction to seek
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forgiveness of sins only where the Lord has placed it, which is
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within the context of the Church's ministry.
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Using these means, our sources specifically refute those who
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deny ongoing pardon for serious sins committed after baptism,
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groups like the ancient ovations or some Anabaptists of Calvin's
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day. Right.
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Those who taught you lose salvation if you sin badly after
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baptism. Precisely.
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And that idea is labeled A pestilential opinion, a truly
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destructive viewpoint. Why?
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Because it would plunge believers into utter despair If
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there were no forgiveness for post baptismal sin, who among us
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could possibly stand? No one.
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No one at all. And what biblical backing do
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they provide for this idea of continuous, ongoing pardon?
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Well, the biblical evidence for ongoing pardon is abundant.
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The sources point immediately to that daily petition.
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Forgive us our debts. In the Lord's Prayer, which
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Christ himself taught his disciples to pray daily, they
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offer numerous examples from Scripture.
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Think of the fratricide and subsequent sins of the
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patriarchs like Jacob. Think of David's murder and
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adultery. Pretty serious stuff, yeah.
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Definitely. Peter's threefold denial of
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Christ right at a crucial moment.
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And even whole churches like Corinth and Galatia that were
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steeped in grossest sins yet were mercifully extricated by
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Paul through his ministry of word and correction, calling
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them back to grace. God's clemency, his merciful
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disposition, the sources argue, is in much greater exuberance
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under the New Testament than the Old.
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No sin of a believer, no matter how grievous it seems to us, is
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beyond the scope of Christ's one.
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All sufficient sacrifice which avails to remit the voluntary
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sins of believers. This constant provision ensures
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that believers can persevere in faith within the Church.
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Knowing they're standing before God isn't dependent on their own
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perfection goodness, but on His daily reliable grace.
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So pulling this all together, what does this mean for the
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church's long term endurance? How does it survive?
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How does it continue to accomplish God's purposes
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despite all these challenges? It's human flaws, the attacks of
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spiritual adversaries, our own imperfections as believers.
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Yeah, How does it keep going? Well, the church is upheld by
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God's providential design and his ongoing action.
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It displays both an invisible foundational stability and
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visible external means of maintenance.
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It's true foundation rests upon God's secret election.
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Back to the invisible church. Exactly that ensures its
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constant nature, as it cannot change or fail any more than is
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eternal Providence. Even when the church may seem
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hidden, maybe devastated by persecution or internal
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corruption, God wondrously preserves His Church.
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Think of Elijah thinking he was alone, right?
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The 7000 who hadn't bowed the knee.
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Precisely. God always preserves His
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remnant, His true Church. So it's ultimate survival is
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fundamentally a divine work, not primarily a human achievement.
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Absolutely. All the elect are joined
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together in Christ, depending on Him as their one head compacted
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into one body. The church is united with the
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stability of Christ, who will no more allow his faithful
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followers to be separated from Him, that he would allow his own
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members to be torn to pieces. That's a strong guarantee.
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And while ministers plant in water, echoing Paul's words in
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the 1st Corinthians 3 right, it is God that give it the
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increase. God claims for Himself alone
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both the commencement and the whole course of faith, being
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fully responsible for the illumination of the mind and
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renewal of the heart. He's the one who effectively
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calls and saves and keeps. He starts it, he sustains it, he
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finishes it. That's it.
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And God continues to use the external ministry of Word,
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sacraments, and the constant granting of forgiveness to
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nourish His people and guide them toward that perfection of
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faith. This is why God gradually raises
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His people to heaven. It's a daily process happening
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within the Church. The Church's purpose is to
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nourish us at her breasts and in short, keep us under her charge
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and government until we attained the perfection of faith.
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This divine sustenance ensures its persistence through every
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age and against every opposition.
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Wow. We've had a really comprehensive
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deep dive into the church today. Seeing it as God's chosen means
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our spiritual mother, identifiable by, well, the
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faithful preaching of God's Word and the proper administration of
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the sacraments. We've also really dug into why
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we remain in it despite its imperfections, understanding it
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as the place, the context, where God continually dispenses His
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grace and forgiveness to us. Indeed, And understanding these
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truths really had to promote both humility and, I think, a
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deep sense of gratitude within us.
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We learned to depend on God's chosen methods, His ways right,
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rather than our own potentially prideful ideas of perfection.
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And we learn to cherish the means He has provided for our
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spiritual growth and our perseverance.
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So a concluding idea perhaps for you, our listener, to consider,
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if the Church is truly this indispensable Mother, nurturing
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us through Word, sacrament and the daily gift of forgiveness,
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what practical step might you take this week to more fully
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embrace or maybe engage with the life and ministry of your local
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assembly, your local church? Yeah, that's a good challenge.
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Thank you for joining us for this deep dive into Reformed
26:57
thinking. May you be blessed as you
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continue to seek and understand God's glorious truths.