To say that John Calvin (1536–64) was a prolific and important author is to say the obvious. What is remarkable, however, is how much of what he wrote remains not only useful for the church but even vitally important. Two of his more important treatises were his brief work, The Necessity of Reforming The Church (1544) in defense of the Reformation and A Reply to Cardinal Sadoleto (1538). He wrote the latter to defend the Reformation of Geneva, even though the Genevan authorities had chased him out of Geneva. A lesser man might have told the Genevans to pound sand but Calvin was devoted to recovering two things: pure worship and the pure gospel (as he says in Necessity). So, he was unwilling to allow Cardinal Sadoleto to seduce Geneva away from the gospel and back to Rome. Among Calvin’s many treatises and letters these two are outstanding and deserve your close attention. They were written at a turning period in his ministry and at a crucial point in the history of the Reformation. They reveal his gifts as a humanist scholar, as a defender of the Reformation, and as a pastor who cared for the spiritual well being of the flock. He knew that the Reformation had recovered the gospel and that Rome sought to persuade evangelicals to sell their birthright for a pottage of salvation by grace and works. These are truths we need to hear and learn again. The Western church (and to the degree the West has exported her modern errors, the global church) needs a new  Reformation. The most radical, the most counter-cultural thing the church could do in 2021 is to embrace heartily and put to practice the theology, piety, and practice of the Reformation as embodied in these two works. If she is to take a first step in that direction, these two treatises will be invaluable.

Available from Reformation Trust. Both works have been translated by my friend and colleague Casey Carmichael, who does excellent work. They are accompanied by a series of videos by Bob Godfrey, who has forgotten more about Calvin than most of us will know and who has an unparalleled gift for explaining things briefly and clearly (and with humor).

This volume, with the accompanying videos, will work well for a small group study, an adult Sunday School or Christian education course, or for your personal or family study.

Resources

• How to subscribe to Heidelmedia
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• Heidelblog Resources
• W. Robert Godfrey, John Calvin: Pilgrim and Pastor.
• “‘Subtle Sacramentarian’ or Son? John Calvin’s Relationship to Martin Luther” Southern Baptist Journal of Theology 21.4 (2018): 35–60.
• “Calvin’s Principle of Worship,” in ed. David Hall, Tributes to John Calvin: A Celebration of his Quincentenary (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2010), 247–69.
• “Election and Predestination: Sovereign Expressions of God,” in David Hall and Peter Lillback, ed. A Theological Guide to Calvin’s Institutes: Essays and Analysis (Phillipsburg: P&R Publishing, 2008), 90–122
• “Calvin and the Lex Naturalis,” Stulos Theological Journal 6 (1998): 1–22.
• The “Calvin As Tyrant Meme”
• Office Hours With Sujin Pak On Calvin’s Hermeneutics And More
• Arminius Did Not Marry Calvin’s Daughter
• Of Calvin, Social Justice, And The Theology Of The Cross
• Audio: Calvin as Theologian of Comfort
• Calvin As A Theologian of Comfort
• Calvin Didn’t Say Ecclesia Reformata, Semper Reformanda
• The Gentle Genevans: Reversing The Myth Of The Persecution Of Witches In Calvin’s Geneva
• Was Calvin A Homosexual Convict?
• Does The Westminster Confession Contradict Calvin On Assurance And Faith?
• Does Calvinism Lead To Domestic Violence?
• Weber, Election, Capitalism, And Betsy DeVos
• Calvin Birthday 2016: Resources For Understanding Calvin

Post authored by:

• R. Scott Clark

  

  R.Scott Clark is the President of the Heidelberg Reformation Association, the author and editor of, and contributor to several books and the author of many articles. He has taught church history and historical theology since 1997 at Westminster Seminary California. He has also taught at Wheaton College, Reformed Theological Seminary, and Concordia University. He has hosted the Heidelblog since 2007.

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