•Sunday, May 20, 2012
Without the gospel
............everything is
useless and vain;
without the gospel
............we are not
Christians;
without the gospel
............all riches is
poverty,
............all wisdom
folly before God;
............strength is
weakness,
............and all the
justice of man is under the condemnation of God.
But by the knowledge of the gospel we
are made
............children of
God,
............brothers of
Jesus Christ,
............fellow
townsmen with the saints,
............citizens of
the Kingdom of Heaven,
............heirs of God
with Jesus Christ, by whom
........................the poor are
made rich,
........................the weak
strong,
........................the fools
wise,
........................the sinner
justified,
........................the desolate
comforted,
........................the doubting
sure,
........................and slaves
free.
It is the power of God for the
salvation of all those who believe.
It follows that every good thing we
could think or desire is to be found in this same Jesus Christ alone.
For, He was
............sold, to buy
us back;
............captive, to
deliver us;
............condemned, to
absolve us;
He was
............made a curse
for our blessing,
............[a] sin
offering for our righteousness;
............marred that
we may be made fair;
He died for our life; so that by him
............fury is made
gentle,
............wrath
appeased,
............darkness
turned into light,
............fear
reassured,
............despisal
despised,
............debt
canceled,
............labor lightened,
............sadness made
merry,
............misfortune
made fortunate,
............difficulty
easy,
............disorder
ordered,
............division
united,
............ignominy
ennobled,
............rebellion
subjected,
............intimidation
intimidated,
............ambush
uncovered,
............assaults
assailed,
............force forced
back,
............combat
combated,
............war warred
against,
............vengeance
avenged,
............torment
tormented,
............damnation
damned,
............the abyss
sunk into the abyss,
............hell
transfixed,
............death dead,
............mortality
made immortal.
In short,
............mercy has
swallowed up all misery,
............and goodness
all misfortune.
For all these things which were to be
the weapons of the devil in his battle against us, and the sting of death to
pierce us, are turned for us into exercises which we can turn to our profit.
If we are able to boast with the
apostle, saying, O hell, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting? it
is because by the Spirit of Christ promised to the elect, we live no longer,
but Christ lives in us; and we are by the same Spirit seated among those who
are in heaven, so that for us the world is no more, even while our conversation
is in it; but we are content in all things, whether country, place, condition,
clothing, meat, and all such things.
And we are
............comforted in
tribulation,
............joyful in
sorrow,
............glorying
under vituperation,
............abounding in
poverty,
............warmed in our
nakedness,
............patient
amongst evils,
............living in
death.
This is what we should in
short seek in the whole of Scripture: truly to know Jesus Christ, and the
infinite riches that are comprised in him and are offered to us by him from God
the Father.
- John Calvin's preface to Pierre Robert Olivtan's 1534 translation
of New Testament
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