He opens his most hallowed lips - 2 November 2009 |
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Here are the remaining questions for week 4 of the Guided Reading Course.
John Calvin, Institutes, I.i-vi
1. How, in Calvin’s view, are the knowledge of God and the knowledge of ourselves related? (I.i.1-2) Do you agree with everything he says here? If not, why not?
2. What is meant by ‘the knowledge of God’, as Calvin describes it in I.ii.1-2?
3. What kind of knowledge of God do all people have ‘by natural instinct’? What, in practice, do we do with this knowledge? (I.iii.3) Where in Scripture might Calvin find support for these claims?
4. Where, in Calvin’s view, do the religions of the world originate? What do the variety and prevalence of such religions tell us about human nature? (I.iii.2-3)
5. How do human beings tend naturally to respond to the knowledge of God implanted within us? How would Calvin respond to the claim that some non-Christians genuinely seek to worship and serve God? (I.iv.1-3)
6. What further form of irreligion does Calvin describe in I.iv.4?
7. In what ways does God make himself known to humanity? (I.v.1-3, 6-8) How do we naturally respond? (I.v.4-5, 9-13).
8. What key points does Calvin make in the course of summarising his argument in I.v.14-15?
9. What has God done to ‘direct us aright’ to him? What, precisely, is the nature of the knowledge of God that Calvin is discussing at this point? (I.vi.1-2) How should this affect how believers look at and interpret the world? (I.vi.3-4)
Posted by Steve Jeffery · Topics: Guided Reading Course, Minister's Blog