A Nugget Worth Mining

There is a lot of baggage with the term "Calvinism". It actually pains me at times to hear what people are calling Calvinism. The more I grow as a Christian, and the more I grow as a reformed thinker, one thing is quite clear. Many of the people who claim "Calvinism" as their label, really have no idea exactly what Calvin stood for. The scope of Calvin's theology is not summed up in the doctrine of predestination, it is much broader and bigger than that. I am no expert on Calvin, but I have studied him quite a bit, and I think we really see Calvin's heart in his sermons, and in his systematic theology, "Institutes of the Christian Religion". Today I came across a quote that I wanted to share:

"Our Savior having shown, in the parable of the Samaritan, that the term neighbor comprehends the most remote stranger, there is no reason for limiting the precept of love to our own connections. I deny not that the closer our relation the more frequent our offices of kindness should be. For the condition of humanity requires that there be more duties in common between those who are more nearly connected by the ties of relationship, or friendship, or neighborhood. And this is done without any offense to God, by whose providence we are in a manner impelled to do it. But I say that the whole human race without exception are to be embraced with one feeling of charity: that here there is no distinction of Greek or barbarian, worthy or unworthy, friend or foe, since all are to viewed not in themselves, but in God. If we turn aside from this view, there is no wonder that we entangle ourselves in error. Wherefore, if we would hold the true course in love, our first step must be to turn our eyes not to man, the sight of whom might more often produce hatred than love, but to God, who requires that the love which we bear to him be diffused among all mankind so that our fundamental principle must ever be, let a man be what he may, he is still to be loved because God is loved."

This came from the pen of Calvin as he was commenting on the Moral Law (Ten Commandments). Contrary to popular thought, Calvin taught the universal nature of love as the clearest expression of man abiding by divine law. In other words, Christians don't get to pick and chose who they will love based on who is in the Body of Christ. We have clear instruction to love all because all are made in the image of God. And in so doing, we live faithfully to God's law.