Welcome to Marscast, the official podcast of MidAmerica Reform Seminary, where faculty and friends explore the depths of faith, unpack biblical truth, and engage with the critical issues of our time. In this final episode of 2024, Dr. J. Mark Beach continues his exploration of John Calvin's insights on the Christian life, and more particularly, the concept of self-denial. Drawing from the Institutes of the Christian Religion, Dr. Beach unpacks what it truly means to deny oneself, both in relation to our neighbors and to God. Kelvin presents a challenging vision of Christian living, a life marked by humility, love, and a radical reorientation away from self-centeredness. How do we esteem others above ourselves? What does it mean to resign our possessions and will to God's purpose? Well, Dr. Beach is going to guide us through Calvin's theological landscape in this episode, offering rich insights into taking up our cross and finding grace in our human frailty. Once again, we return to an examination of Calvin's Institutes of the Christian Religion. We've been looking at his Doctrine of the Christian Life, and last time we did a little bit, and clearing the way what is not to be confused in the Christian life. is that though our Christian life is quite imperfect and there's slow progress, that still is not the same as a fake Christianity or a name-only sort of Christian nod. No, this is genuine loving Jesus, fighting the good fight of the faith, but often feeling like perhaps we're losing the fight. Where Calvin bids us, using the words of Jesus to follow him, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross. So we're into this expression of self-denial, and as this calls us then to have an interest toward neighbor, an interest toward God, he first takes us to what it means to have a self-denial exercise toward our neighbor. In practicing self-denial, we discover there's three kinds of parts to it, if you will. A soberness, which calls us to temperance, a righteousness that would practice equity toward others, a godliness, a pursuit of separating ourselves from the world's transgressions, because we're pilgrims in this life. So this denial of self then directs us partly to fellow human beings and then the other to God himself. And starting with fellow human beings, God, or rather scripture, bids us to esteem others above ourselves. Think of that one. Those are words we easily agree with, but how seldom do we actually think it's so that others are above us. And perhaps the more gifted you are, or the more educated you are, or maybe the more moneyed you are, you find this harder to do. But this is part of Christian living. Because I know myself, and God knows me, I should esteem others above myself. But Calvin knows the problems with this. We're incapable of hating these exhortations to do well to others, to think of them over ourselves. Incapable unless our mind be previously emptied of its natural feelings, and natural feelings are sinful feelings here. The blindness with which we all rush into self-love," says Calvin, so that each of us seems to himself to have just cause to be proud and despise others in comparison. If God has conferred upon us, Calvin tells us, of things that we need to repent of, say. He's convicted us. We still rely upon our own minds. We're still puffed up with pride, almost with bursting. and we find excuses for our failings. The very vices that infest our lives, we take pains to hide, or we flatter ourselves that they're slight, or there's extenuating circumstances, or they're somehow insignificant. Sometimes we even indulge our sins as virtues. And if others manifest endowments we admire, says Calvin, we find a way to belittle them, or make light of their gifts, or treat them with some contempt. A kind of jealousy manifests itself. This is our depravity come to fruition, and so we need to examine ourselves. Our faults call us to humility. A Christian life isn't done repenting of sins. It continues to repent and be humbled because the sins are there in all their ugly manifestation. But a heart imbued with lowliness, says Calvin, and has reverence for others, finds the true path, a gentle path, and that's a self-denying path. So self-denial calls us to seek our neighbor's benefit, to see how we may help, how we may edify them, lift them up, because the church is supposed to be a well-functioning a healthy body in which all the members do their part. It says, Calvin, unless you give up all thought of self, now think about this, give up all thought of self and get out of yourself, so to speak, you will accomplish nothing here. For how can you perform those works which Paul teaches us to be works of love unless you renounce yourself and give yourself wholly to others. It's very important we realize this. We must also remember the image of God in others, and we are to love them as God's image bearers. Self-denial is 1 Corinthians 13, the way of love. And it's also the opposite of the devil's way, because he would treat others as contemptible and worthless or as enemies. He would call us to bear grudges, to be helpful, to repay evil for evil, and to even, well, even worse. But Scripture calls us to repay evil deeds with benefits, to return blessings for reproaches, to love those who hate us. This is self-denial. Self-denial carries with it the grace of mercy, the grace of generosity toward others, the denial of self. Now, the self-denial also manifests toward God himself. It's to be directed to him. And this is the foremost aspect for Calvin. So he saves the foremost for the second place here. We really reinforce this in our minds. He says we must resign ourselves and our possessions to the Lord's will. We're prone, as I think many listeners would know, especially if we're driven by mad lust or a desire to covet wealth and honors. and authority and recognition and to gather goods which can very much clutter our lives. These, says Calvin, this is a walk of life that's folly because it's a life that's looking for magnificence and pomp. It's the very opposite of denial of self. Instead, we desire the Lord to prosper and care for us. Now, the Lord might indeed prosper us much, but if we're not prospered that way, fine, I have the Lord. He'll care for me. It's not my bank accounts, my investments, it's not my retirement plan. I belong to the Lord. So all of us, Calvin would bid us, Do worldly cravings encompass you or do you treat them as nothing, so that even legitimate blessings are as nothing without the Lord's blessing on them? Not the least particle of happiness, says Calvin, is ours unless the Lord gives his blessing and turns away misfortune. So this means that we will not greedily strive after riches. So Calvin probably makes a materialistic culture like ours quite uncomfortable, but he's gonna say it, and he's not afraid to say it. We will not greedily strive after riches and honor, but for us, always look to the Lord so that by his guidance, we may be led to whatever lot he's provided for us. We will not strive with evil arts after those things which men customarily madly seek after. We're not going to use all our industry and finesse and intellectual know-how to get what we want. No, self-denial helps us bear adversity. Now, who doesn't have adversity? Who doesn't have hurts? Who hasn't had tears rolling down their cheeks? There's much adversity in this life. Loved ones that are lost to us. Financial catastrophes that come upon us. But with self-denial, we accept life's trials without complaint, knowing that they're governed by God's will. and we will not then become sour and ill-will in our disposition toward God. Calvin is not unaware of the hurts of life in the Christian life. Various diseases trouble us, calamities of war befall us, hell, ice can ruin crops, barrenness can come into people's lives, knowing only poverty. A wife or parents or children or neighbors are taken away by death. Sometimes houses burn down or burn down in other symbolic ways. Some people are so burdened by life, they loathe the day of their birth. They shake angry fists at God in heaven. even speak blasphemies, but in all these matters Calvin says the believer must look to God's kindness and fatherly indulgence so that whatever happens, yes, part of God's eternal ordained plan, but we can turn to him as a loving father with peaceful and grateful mind, not obstinately demanding answers from him. How do you do that? Deny yourself. Live for God. You are expendable and you live for his glory. So this rule of piety is unmistakable for Calvin. God's hand alone bestows and withholds gifts and trials only in according to his justice. Now, with all of that, he next turns to bearing the cross. Now, we might not get in this session through all of that, but let's take a start into it because bearing a cross is part of self-denial. You follow Jesus, take up your cross. You know, deny yourself, take up your cross. Follow me. Bearing a cross is a kind of dying. Although Calvin doesn't say it explicitly this way, but those who would take up a cross were going to their death. They were going to be crucified. And it is a kind of death, says Calvin. And we need to understand that for a Christian to take up his cross, he's dying to this life. He's dying to his sins. He's dying to his evil dispositions. He's dying to the old man. He's dying to former life, former ways. an in-Adam life, now he's coming alive in an in-Christ life. As Calvin says it explicitly, for whomever the Lord has adopted and deemed worthy of his fellowship ought to prepare themselves for a hard, toilsome, and unquiet life crammed with very many and various kinds of evil. Wow, that's very different than the health-wealth gospel of today. Believe in Jesus and get ready. Buckle up. Hard, toilsome, unquiet life crammed with many and various kinds of evil. And Calvin will even say, because we're God's children. Not because we're not, but because we're God's children, he puts us to definite tests. So what's the purpose of cross-bearing? Well, quickly here, God has very specific reasons. First, we have this tendency, we congratulate ourselves for our achievements. And so God unmasks our feebleness and our haughty hearts and our stupid competences in ourselves—all Calvin's phrases—to show how frail and feeble we are. He afflicts us to prove it to us. Disgrace, poverty, bereavement, disease, calamities, all these kinds of things expose us in our weakness and pride. Hypocrisy must learn humility. There's a line. I'm hypocritical, and I need to become humble. Believers must betake themselves to God's grace, and so bearing a perpetual cross in this life humbles you. It shows you you're small. You need God. Look up. Don't esteem your virtue. Don't overrate yourself. Don't think you have it all together. You have it in the bag. Romans 5, 3, and 4, tribulation works patience and patience. Experience, experience hope. Calvin writes rather passionately. And we'll end with this quote from Calvin. as our introduction to cross-bearing. It is of no slight importance for you to be cleansed of your blind love of self, that you may be made more nearly aware of your incapacity to feel your own incapacity that you may learn to distrust yourself, to distrust yourself that you may transfer your trust to God, to rest with a trustful heart in God, and that relying upon his help you may persevere unconquered to the end, to take your stand in His grace, that you may comprehend the truth of His promises, to have unquestioned certainty of His promises, that your hope may thereby be strengthened. Well, that's a wrap for 2024. We'll be taking the month of January off to rest, reflect, and prepare for another year of theological exploration. But don't worry, we'll continue to republish some of our most impactful past content for you to enjoy during this brief hiatus. Looking ahead, in February, Dr. Beach will round out his series on Calvin's view of the Christian life, looking closer into the insights that we've really only begun to unpack. And additionally, Dr. Alan Strange will be returning with a second installment of episodes exploring the complex topic of Christian nationalism. To all of our friends, supporters, and listeners, may you have a blessed and joyous New Year. We look forward to journeying with you in 2025. I'm Jared Luchaboard. This has been an episode of Marscast. Thank you for listening. We'll see you in the New Year.