Chapter 18
institutes of the christian religion book three by john calvin translated by henry beveridge chapter nine of meditating on the future life the three divisions of this chapter first the principal use of the cross is that it in various ways accustoms us to despise the present and excites us to aspire to the future life sections one and two second in withdrawing from the present life we must neither shun it nor feel hatred for it but desiring the future life gladly quit the present at the command of our sovereign master sections three and four 3. Our infirmity in dreading death described. The Correction and Safe Remedy.
Section 6. Sections. 1. The design of God in afflicting His people. 1. To accustom us to despise the present life, our infatuated love of it. 2. Afflictions employed as the cure.
2. To lead us to aspire to heaven. 2. Excessive love of the present life prevents us from duly aspiring to the other, hence the disadvantages of prosperity, blindness of the human judgment, our philosophizing on the vanity of life only of momentary influence, the necessity of the cross. 3. The present life an evidence of the divine favour to his people, and therefore not to
be detested. On the contrary, should call forth thanksgiving, the crown of victory in heaven after the contest on earth. 4. Weariness of the present life, how to be tempered. The believer's estimate of life. Comparison of the present and future life.
How far the present life should be hated. 5. Christians should not tremble at the fear of death. 2 reasons. Objection. Answer.
Other reasons. 6. Reasons continued. Conclusion. Section 1. Whatever be the kind of tribulation with which we are afflicted, we should always consider the end of it to be that we may be trained to despise the present, and thereby stimulated to aspire to the future life.
For since God well knows how strongly we are inclined by nature to a slavish love of this world, in order to prevent us from clinging too strongly to it, he employs the fittest reason for calling us back and shaking off our lethargy. every one of us indeed would be thought to aspire and aim at heavenly immortality during the whole course of his life for we would be ashamed in no respect to excel the lower animals whose condition would not be at all inferior to ours had we not a hope of immortality beyond the grave but when you attend to the plans wishes and actions of each you see nothing in them but the earth hence our stupidity our minds being dazzled with the glare of wealth power and honours that they can see no farther the heart also engrossed with avarice ambition and lust is weighed down and cannot rise above them in short the whole soul ensnared by the allurements of the flesh seeks its happiness on the earth to meet this disease the lord makes his people sensible of the vanity of the present life by a constant proof of its miseries thus that they may not promise themselves deep and lasting peace in it
he often allows them to be assailed by war tumult or rapine or to be disturbed by other injuries that they may not long with too much eagerness after fleeting and fading riches or rest in those which they already possess he reduces them to want or at least restricts them to a moderate allowance at one time by exile at another by sterility at another by fire or by other means that they may not indulge too complacently in the advantages of married life he either vexes them by the misconduct of their partners or humbles them by the wickedness of their children or afflicts them by bereavement but if in all these he is indulgent to them lest they should either swell with vain-glory or be elated with confidence by diseases and dangers he sets palpably before them how unstable and evanescent are all the advantages competent to mortals we duly profit by the discipline of the cross when we learn that this life estimated in itself is restless troubled in numberless ways wretched and plainly in no respect happy that what are estimated its blessings are uncertain fleeting vain and vitiated by a great admixture of evil
from this we conclude that all we have to seek or hope for here is contest that when we think of the crown we must raise our eyes to heaven for we must hold that our mind never rises seriously to desire and aspire after the future until it has learned to despise the present life section two for there is no medium between the two things earth must either be worthless in our estimation or keep us enslaved by an intemperate love of it therefore if we have any regard to eternity we must carefully strive to disencumber ourselves of these fetters moreover since the present life has many enticements to allure us and great semblance of delight grace and sweetness to soothe us it is of great consequence to us to be now and then called off from its fascinations for what pray would happen if we here enjoyed an uninterrupted course of honor and felicity when even the constant stimulus of affliction cannot arouse us to a due sense of our misery that human life is like smoke or a shadow is not only known to the learned there is not a more trite proverb among the vulgar considering it a fact most useful to be known they have recommended it in many well-known expressions still there is no fact which we ponder less carefully or less frequently remember
for we form all our plans just as if we had fixed our immortality on the earth if we see a funeral or walk among graves as the image of death is then present to the eye i admit we philosophize admirably on the vanity of life we do not indeed always do so for those things often have no effect upon us at all but at the best our philosophy is momentary it vanishes as soon as we turn our back and leaves not the vestige of remembrance behind in short it passes away just like the applause of a theatre at some pleasant spectacle forgetful not only of death but also of mortality itself as if no rumour of it had ever reached us we indulge in supine security as expecting a terrestrial immortality meanwhile if any one breaks in with the proverb that man is the creature of a day we indeed acknowledge its truth but so far from giving heed to it the thought of perpetuity still keeps hold of our minds who then can deny that it is of the highest importance to us all i say not to be admonished by words but convinced by all possible experience of the miserable condition of our earthly life
since even when convinced we scarcely cease to gaze upon it with vicious stupid admiration as if it contained within itself the sum of all that is good but if god finds it necessary so to train us it must be our duty to listen to him when he calls and shakes us from our torpor that we may hasten to despise the world and aspire with our whole heart to the future life section three still the contempt which believers should train themselves to feel for the present life must not be of a kind to beget hatred of it or ingratitude to god this life though abounding in all kinds of wretchedness is justly classed among divine blessings which are not to be despised wherefore if we do not recognize the kindness of god in it we are chargeable with no little ingratitude towards him to believers especially it ought to be a proof of divine benevolence since it is wholly destined to promote their salvation before openly exhibiting the inheritance of eternal glory god is pleased to manifest himself to us as a father by minor proofs that is the blessings which he daily bestows upon us
therefore while this life serves to acquaint us with the goodness of god shall we disdain it as if it did not contain one particle of good we ought therefore to feel and be affected towards it in such a manner as to place it among those gifts of the divine benignity which are by no means to be despised were there no proofs in scripture they are most numerous and clear yet nature herself exhorts us to return thanks to god for having brought us forth into life granted us the use of it and bestowed upon us all the means necessary for its preservation and there is much higher reason when we reflect that here we are in a manner prepared for the glory of the heavenly kingdom for the lord hath ordained that those who are ultimately to be crowned in heaven must maintain a previous warfare on the earth that they may not triumph before they have overcome the difficulties of war and obtained the victory another reason is that we here begin to experience in various ways a foretaste of the divine benignity in order that our hope and desire may be whetted for its full manifestation when once we have concluded that our earthly life is a gift of the divine mercy of which agreeably to our obligation it behoves us to have a grateful remembrance we shall then properly descend to consider its most wretched condition and thus escape from that excessive fondness for it to which as i have said we are naturally prone
section four in proportion as this improper love diminishes our desire of a better life should increase i confess indeed that a most accurate opinion was formed by those who thought that the best thing was not to be born the next best to die early for being destitute of the light of god and of true religion what could they see in it that was not of dire and evil omen nor was it unreasonable for those who felt sorrow and shed tears at the birth of their kindred to keep holiday at their deaths but this they did without profit because devoid of the true doctrine of faith they saw not how that which in itself is neither happy nor desirable turns to the advantage of the righteous and hence their opinion issued in despair let believers then in forming an estimate of this mortal life and perceiving that in itself it is nothing but misery make it their aim to exert themselves with greater alacrity and less hindrance in aspiring to the future and eternal life when we contrast the two the former may not only be securely neglected but in comparison of the latter be disdained and contemned if heaven is our country what can the earth be but a place of exile
if departure from the world is entrance into life what is the world but a sepulchre and what is residence in it but immersion in death if to be freed from the body is to gain full possession of freedom what is the body but a prison if it is the very summit of happiness to enjoy the presence of god is it not miserable to want it but whilst we are at home in the body we are absent from the lord two corinthians five first six thus when the earthly is compared with the heavenly life it may undoubtedly be despised and trampled under foot we ought never indeed to regard it with hatred except in so far as it keeps us subject to sin and even this hatred ought not to be directed against life itself at all events we must stand so affected towards it in regard to weariness or hatred as while longing for its termination to be ready at the lord's will to continue in it keeping far from everything like murmuring and impatience for it is as if the lord had assigned us a post which we must maintain till he recalls us paul indeed laments his condition in being still bound with the fetters of the body and sighs earnestly for redemption romans seven verse twenty four
nevertheless he declared that in obedience to the command of god he was prepared for both courses because he acknowledges it as his duty to god to glorify his name whether by life or by death while it belongs to god to determine what is most conducive to his glory philippines one verses twenty to twenty four wherefore if it becomes us to live and die to the lord let us leave the period of our life and death at his disposal still let us ardently long for death and constantly meditate upon it and in comparison with future immortality let us despise life and on account of the bondage of sin long to renounce it whenever it shall so please the lord section five but most strange to say many who boast of being christians instead of thus longing for death are so afraid of it that they tremble at the very mention of it as a thing ominous and dreadful we cannot wonder indeed that our natural feelings should be somewhat shocked at the mention of our dissolution but it is altogether intolerable that the light of piety should not be so powerful in a christian breast as with greater consolation to overcome and suppress that fear
for if we reflect that this our tabernacle unstable defective corruptible fading pining and putrid is dissolved in order that it may forthwith be renewed in sure perfect incorruptible in fine in heavenly glory will not faith compel us eagerly to desire what nature dreads if we reflect that by death we are recalled from exile to inhabit our native country a heavenly country shall this give us no comfort but everything longs for permanent existence i admit this and therefore contend that we ought to look to future immortality where we may obtain that fixed condition which nowhere appears on the earth for paul admirably enjoins believers to hasten cheerfully to death not because they would be unclothed but clothed upon two corinthians five verse two shall the lower animals and inanimate creatures themselves even wood and stone as conscious of their present vanity long for the final resurrection that they may with the sons of god be delivered from vanity romans eight verse nineteen and shall we
endued with the light of intellect and more than intellect enlightened by the spirit of god when our essences in question rise no higher than the corruption of this earth but it is not my purpose nor is this the place to plead against this great perverseness at the outset i declared that i had no wish to engage in a diffuse discussion of commonplaces my advice to those whose minds are thus timid is to read the short treatise of cyprian de mortellitate unless it be more accordant with their deserts to send them to the philosophers that by inspecting what they say on the contempt of death they may begin to blush this however let us hold as fixed that no man has made much progress in the school of christ who does not look forward with joy to the day of death and final resurrection to timothy four verse eighteen titus two verse thirteen for paul distinguishes all believers by this mark and the usual course of scripture is to direct us thither whenever it would furnish us with an argument for substantial joy look up says our lord and lift up your heads for your redemption draweth nigh
luke twenty one verse twenty eight is it reasonable i ask that what he intended to have a powerful effect in stirring us up to alacrity and exaltation should produce nothing but sadness and consternation if it is so why do we still glory in him as our master therefore let us come with a sounder mind and how repugnant so ever the blind and stupid longing of the flesh may be let us doubt not to desire the advent of the lord not in wish only but with earnest sighs as the most propitious of all events he will come as a redeemer to deliver us from an immense abyss of evil and misery and lead us to the blessed inheritance of his life and glory section six thus indeed it is the whole body of the faithful so long as they live on the earth must be like sheep for the slaughter in order that they may be conformed to christ their head romans eight verse thirty six most deplorable therefore would their situation be did they not by raising their mind to heaven become superior to all that is in the world and rise above the present aspect of affairs one corinthians fifteen verse nineteen
on the other hand when once they have raised their head above all earthly objects though they see the wicked flourishing in wealth and honour and enjoying profound peace indulging in luxury and splendour and revelling in all kinds of delights though they should moreover be wickedly assailed by them suffer insult from their pride be robbed by their avarice or assailed by any other passion they will have no difficulty in bearing up under these evils they will turn their eye to that day is i twenty five verse eight revelation seven verse seventeen on which the lord will receive his faithful servants wipe away all tears from their eyes clothe them in a robe of glory and joy feed them with the ineffable sweetness of his pleasures exalt them to share with him in his greatness in fine admit them to a participation in his happiness but the wicked who may have flourished on the earth he will cast forth in extreme ignominy will change their delights into torments their laughter and joy into wailing and gnashing of teeth their peace into the gnawing of conscience and punish their luxury with unquenchable fire
he will also place their necks under the feet of the godly whose patience they abused for as paul declares it is a righteous thing with god to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you and to you who are troubled rest with us when the lord jesus shall be revealed from heaven two the one verses six and seven this indeed is our only consolation deprived of it we must either give way to despondency or resort to our destruction to the vain solace of the world the psalmist confesses my feet were almost gone my steps had well-nigh slipped for i was envious at the foolish when i saw the prosperity of the wicked psalm seventy three verses three and four and he found no resting-place until he entered the sanctuary and considered the latter end of the righteous and the wicked to conclude in one word the cross of christ then only triumphs in the breasts of believers over the devil and the flesh sin and sinners when their eyes are directed to the power of his resurrection end of section eighteen
