Calvin on Apostasy and Temporary Faith (2 of 3)

Theological Letters

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The following is not a letter but some research that I never got around to publishing. Common amongst contemporary “Calvinists” is the view that those whom God has predestined to salvation also persevere in the faith. That is to say, having been predestined to be saved, God brings them to faith and does so in such a way that they persevere to the end. On this view, it is impossible that one might come to saving faith, then fall away from faith and be damned. For this reason, contemporary “Calvinists” tend to see New Testament warnings to not fall away as “problem passages” (i.e., passages that appear to run counter to their doctrine and must therefore be explained in a way that coheres with the doctrine of predestination so understood). The most common approach to such passages today is something like the following. Paul assures his readers that they have been saved, but he places this statement in the conditional, indicating that if they fall away, they have believed in vain (e.g., 1 Cor. 15:2). Many “Calvinists” read such passages as applying a conditional to Paul’s understanding of the reader’s faith — they have believed and are saved, unless they fall away; in which case, their faith was not genuine, and they were never saved. I am no “Calvinist” nor am I Reformed. Nonetheless, from a purely historical perspective, I find it intriguing that the contemporary approach to such problem passages by contemporary “Calvinists” is divergent from Calvin’s own view. In what follows, I offer part 2 of a three part look at what Calvin has to say about such passages and highlight the differences between his approach and the more contemporary approach.

Calvin on the Phenomenon of Temporary Faith

What is the cause of temporary faith in Calvin’s view? He is quite clear that the will of man is so thoroughly corrupt as to be incapable of choosing the good on its own. As he puts it in the Institutes, “Because of the bondage of sin by which the will is held bound, it cannot move toward good, much less apply itself thereto; for a movement of this sort is the beginning of conversion to God.”¹ Yet, if Simon was genuinely inclined toward Christ so as to “willingly enlist under him,”² was this not a movement toward the good? How is this possible if Simon is a reprobate? Calvin’s answer differentiates Simon’s contribution to the event from God’s contribution.

Beginning with Simon’s contribution, Calvin affirms that Simon willfully participated in temporary submission to Christ. As mentioned earlier, Calvin speaks of Simon as willingly enlisting himself under Christ, “for when he was convicted he gave Christ his hand in earnest.”³ But Calvin also blames Simon for withholding his heart from Christ during this time of transitory faith: “And yet [Simon] giveth not himself over sincerely to Christ.”⁴ In this sense, Simon is ultimately credited with the faulty nature of his faith and its eventual falter—though he willingly gave himself over to Christ, it was Simon who withheld his heart and refused “the denial of himself.”⁵

Nevertheless, Calvin does not attribute the whole of the matter to Simon. For even a faulty faith in Christ is a good that comes from God alone. As Calvin puts it, “it is the Lord who pierces the ears, (Psalm 40:7) and that no man obtains or accomplishes this by his own industry.”⁶ Calvin’s talk of Simon’s transient conversion describes it as a winning over, overcoming, or overwhelming. As for the means for achieving this overwhelming, Calvin highlights both the preaching of the gospel by Philip—“the very doctrine which is contained in his word shall purchase authority for itself”⁷—and the miracles that accompanied the message—“there was also another prick whereby they were pricked forward, and that was miracles.”⁸ In these testimonies, we find the instruments for the winning over of Simon. Calvin writes, “conquered by the majesty of the gospel, he showed a certain sort of faith, and thus recognized Christ to be the author of life and salvation.”⁹ And again, Simon was “enforced to give glory to the true miracles.”¹⁰ Language of winning over is common to Calvin’s talk of temporary faith. We find similar language in Calvin’s comments on Psalm 106, for example, which recounts the temporary faith of the Israelites who, after witnessing God’s miracles and “believing,” eventually abandoned their faith. Calvin speaks of these temporary believers as “being convinced by such indubitable testimony,” and being “Overpowered by the grandeur of God’s works.”¹¹

For Simon and these Israelites, their temporary faith arose in response to the work of the word and the Spirit; yet, this work was a “lower” work of the Spirit when compared with the work of regeneration. What these reprobates experienced was a winning over to the truth by the miraculous works of God, but this winning over did accompany regeneration. Simon, therefore, “had not tasted the first principles of godliness.”¹² His experience was a genuine experience of illumination by the Spirit and tasting of divine grace, despite this taste falling short of regeneration.

In his treatment of Hebrews 6:4, Calvin reiterates the point: “He calls it illumination a tasting of the heavenly gift; … He calls it participation of the Spirit; … He calls it a tasting of the good word of God; … And lastly, he calls it a tasting of the powers of the world to come.”¹³ Such language, when applied to the apostate, raises the question for Calvin, “how can it be that he who has once made such a progress should afterwards fall away?”¹⁴ Calvin answers, “That God indeed favors none but the elect alone with the Spirit of regeneration.”¹⁵ What we see, then, is Calvin’s willingness to affirm the work of the Spirit in those who fall away; their final reprobation is no reason to deny God’s work in transient faith: “But I cannot admit that all this is any reason why [God] should not grant the reprobate also some taste of his grace, why he should not irradiate their minds with some sparks of his light, why he should not give them some perception of his goodness, and in some sort engrave his word on their hearts.”¹⁶

Here, we can see how Calvin couples Simon’s subtle “hypocrisy” and the divine act of illumination. Simon’s experience of divine illumination was sufficient to prompt a superficial belief, but it was insufficient for the transformation of his will. His belief was genuine and genuinely brought about by the Spirit, but in his lack of regeneration, his depravity was equally genuine: “it appeareth that he is a profane man, and such as had not tasted the first principles of godliness; for he is touched with no desire of God’s glory.”¹⁷ Calvin sees Simon’s lack of concern for God’s glory in his attempt to purchase the Holy Spirit. This failing, thinks Calvin, was a manifestation of vain ambition. It demonstrates, to Calvin’s mind, that Simon merely saw the apostolic powers as superior to his own magic; hence, his submission to Christ was driven by vain glory and greed: “For that ambition which was hidden before breaketh out now, when as he desireth to be equal with the apostles. This is now one vice; another is, because while he thinketh that the grace of God is to be sold, he will get some greedy gain thereby.”¹⁸

Calvin offers a similar narrative in his comments on Psalm 106. After making clear that the Israelites had been won over by the power of God, Calvin writes,

… [T]hey yet instantly resumed their wonted disposition of mind, and began to rebel against God, as if they had never beheld his wonderful works…. Overpowered by the grandeur of God’s works, they were, he says, in spite of themselves, compelled to believe in God, and give glory to him, and thus the criminality of their rebellion was increased; because, although their stubbornness was overcome, yet they immediately relapsed into their former state of unbelief.¹⁹

In short, Calvin takes the falling away of the apostate to demonstration, not a disingenuous experience, but an insufficient experience: They were never regenerated. And without a transformed will, apostasy is inevitable.

What we are left with is the conclusion that the reprobate is won over to transient faith by the power of God—Simon is forced to glorify the works of the Spirit; yet, the sin that follows in apostasy is not the work of God in a direct sense. Simon willed his own demise. Put otherwise, God is the efficient cause of faith, while Simon is the deficient cause of apostasy. Of course, for Calvin, without the work of regeneration, Simon can do no other. Man sins out of necessity. For without regeneration, “the will is held bound, it cannot move toward good, much less apply itself thereto.”²⁰ This necessity should not be taken to mean that Simon did not will his demise, however. Calvin is quite clear on this point, “For man, when he gave himself over to this necessity, was not deprived of will.”²¹ Indeed, the will is an inalienable feature, or essential property, of humanity—“to will is of man.”²² The Fall does not deprive man of the faculty of will, but it does deprive man of a good will. Thus, while the power of choice remains within us, excluded from that power is the choice to change our corrupt condition. Hence, fallen man is given over to the necessity of evil: “to will ill, [is] of a corrupt nature.”²³

Now, it is important to note Calvin’s distinction between the necessity of sin that follows from the Fall and compulsion. According to Calvin, we sin out of necessity—apart from regeneration, we are incapable of raising our affections to God—but this does not mean that we sin out of compulsion. The sins we commit, we choose.²⁴ We are bound to will in accord with, what Calvin calls, our “corrupt affections.”²⁵ Here we see a certain form of compatibilism emerge. Though our will is crippled by the Fall, resulting in a narrowed spectrum of choice, our choosing is still free because we choose in accord with our desires.²⁶ For Calvin, we voluntarily follow our corrupt affections, but our choosing is free: “For that which is voluntary is also free.”²⁷ In short, “man, as he was corrupted by the Fall, sinned willingly, not unwillingly or by compulsion; by the most eager inclination of his heart.”²⁸

In light of this nuance, however, we might wonder in what sense Simon was forced to glorify the miracles of God, and whether this forcing is an exception to Calvin’s general rule that the will is not moved by compulsion.