Would you like to read a modern summary of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion online? Dr. C. Matthew McMahon has written two of them.
“A Condensed Summary of Calvin’s Institutes“ is a shorter overview of John Calvin’s magnum opus – the equivalent of about 14 pages in Word. Outline 1 below itemizes the contents of Dr. McMahon’s shorter summary.
“A Longer Overview of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion” is the equivalent of about 44 pages in Word. Outline 2 below itemizes the contents of Dr. McMahon’s longer summary.
Some readers might disagree at various points with the author’s summary of Calvin’s thought – as they might with anyone else’s summary. Yet, in my view, these provide a helpful point of departure to gain a better understanding of the sweeping contents of this important work.
In order to make these documents even more accessible, I copied them to Word, then sent them to my Kindle application for offline reading.
Outline 1 of the shorter overview.
Part 1- Knowledge of God the Creator:
Section 1 – The whole Sum of Wisdom
Section 2 – Still-born Knowledge of God
Section 3 – The Fruitful Teaching of Scripture
Section 4 – God the Creator
Section 5 – God’s Creatures
Section 6 – Providence
Part 2- Knowledge of God the Redeemer in Christ:
Section 1 – Man the Total Sinner
Section 2 – Christ in OT & NT
Section 3 –The Mediator
Section 4 –Christ The Redeemer
Part 3- The Way We Receive Christ’s Grace:
Section 1 – The Holy Spirit and Faith
Section 2 – Regeneration to Life
Section 3 – Justification by Faith Alone
Section 4 – On Prayer
Section 5 – Eternal Election
Section 6 – The Final Resurrection
Part 4- The Outward Means:
Section 1 – The True Church
Section 2 – The Church’s Ministry
Section 3 – The Church’s Authority
Section 4 – The Sacraments
Section 5 – Civil Government
Link to Shorter Summary of Calvin’s Institutes
Outline 2 of the longer overview.
BOOK 1: Knowledge of God the Creator
Chapter 1: The Knowledge of God and That of Ourselves Are Connected
Chapter 2: What It Is to Know God
Chapter 3: Knowledge of God Has Been Naturally Implanted in the Minds of Men
Chapter 4: This Is Either Smothered or Corrupted, Partly by Ignorance and Malice
Chapter 5: The Knowledge of God Shines Forth in the Fashioning of the Universe
Chapter 6: Scripture Is Needed as Guide and Teacher
Chapter 7: Scripture Must Be Confirmed by the Witness of the Spirit
Chapter 8: The Credibility of Scripture
Chapter 9: Fanatics, Abandoning Scripture Cast Down Principles of Godliness
Chapter 10: Scripture Sets the True God Alone over Against All Other Gods
Chapter 11: It Is Unlawful to Attribute a Visible Form to God
Chapter 12: God Is Distinguished from Idols, so That He Alone May Be Worshiped
Chapter 13: God is One Essence, Which Contains Within Itself Three Persons
Chapter 14: Scripture Marks Distinguishes the True God from False Gods
Chapter 15: Discussion of Human Nature as Created
Chapter 16: God Nourishes and Maintains the World by His Providence
Chapter 17: How We May Apply the Doctrine of Providence to Our Greatest Benefit
Chapter 18: God Uses the Works of the Ungodly, and He Remains Pure
BOOK 2: Knowledge of God the Redeemer in Christ
Chapter 1: Human Race Delivered to the Curse
Chapter 2: Man Has Now Been Deprived of Freedom of Choice
Chapter 3: Just Damnable Things Come from Man’s Nature
Chapter 4: How God Works in Men’s Hearts
Chapter 5: The Knowledge of God Shines Forth in the Fashioning of the Universe
Chapter 6: Fallen Man Ought to Seek Redemption in Christ
Chapter 7: The Law was Given to Foster Hope of Salvation in Christ
Chapter 8: Explanation of the Moral law (The Ten Commandments)
Chapter 9: Christ Was at Length Clearly Revealed Only in the Gospel
Chapter 10: The Similarity of the Old and New Testaments
Chapter 11: The Difference between the Two Testaments
Chapter 12: Christ Had to Become Man in Order to Fulfill the Office of Mediator
Chapter 13: Christ Assumed the True Substance of Human Flesh
Chapter 14: How the Two Natures of the Mediator Make One Person
Chapter 15: Christ’s Offices – the Prophetic Office, Kingship, and Priesthood
Chapter 16: How Christ Has Fulfilled the Function of Redeemer
Chapter 17: Christ Has Merited God’s Grace and Salvation for Us
BOOK 3: The Way We Receive Christ’s Grace
Chapter 1: Christ Profits us by the working of the Holy Spirit.
Chapter 2: Faith: Its definition and properties explained
Chapter 3: Our Regeneration by Faith: Repentance
Chapter 4: Discussion of Confession and Satisfaction
Chapter 5: The Supplements they Add to Satisfaction – Indulgences and Purgatory
Chapter 6: The Life of the Christian Man
Chapter 7: The Sum of the Christian Life – The Denial of Ourselves
Chapter 8: Bearing the Cross – Part of Self denial
Chapter 9: Meditation on the Future Life
Chapter 10: How we must use the Present Life and its Helps
Chapter 11: Justification by Faith: First the Definition of the Word and the Matter
Chapter 12: Lift our minds to God’s Judgment Seat to Understand Justification
Chapter 13: Two Things to Be Notes in Free Justification
Chapter 14: The Beginning of Justification and its Continual Progress
Chapter 15: What Boasting About Good Works Does to Us
Chapter 16: Refutation of the False Accusations by the Papists
Chapter 17: The Agreement of the Promises of the Law and of the Gospel
Chapter 18: Works-Righteousness Is Wrongly Inferred from Reward
Chapter 19: Christian Freedom
Chapter 20: Prayer
Chapter 21: Eternal Election
Chapter 22: Confirmation of this Doctrine from Scriptural Testimonies
Chapter 23: Refutation of the False Accusations Against Predestination
Chapter 24: Election is Confirmed by God’s Call
Chapter 25: The Final Resurrection
BOOK 4: THE Outward Means
Chapter 1: The True Church
Chapter 2: A Comparison of the False and True Church
Chapter 3: The Doctors and Ministers of the Church
Chapter 4: The Condition of the Ancient Church in Government
Chapter 5: The Ancient Form of Government Overthrown by the Papacy
Chapter 6: The Primacy of the Roman See
Chapter 7: The Origin and Growth of the roman Papacy
Chapter 8: The Power of the church with respect to the Articles of Faith
Chapter 9: Councils and Their Authority
Chapter 10: The power of Making Laws
Chapter 11: The Jurisdiction of the Church and its Abuse
Chapter 12: The Discipline of the Church
Chapter 13: Vows
Chapter 14: The Sacraments
Chapter 15: Baptism
Chapter 16: Infant Baptism
Chapter 17: The Sacred Supper of Christ
Chapter 18: The Papal Mass a Sacrilege to the Lord’s Supper
Chapter 19: The Five Other Ceremonies.
Chapter 20: Civil Government
Link to Longer Overview of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion
Shorter Summary of Calvin’s Institutes
Longer Overview of Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion
Categories: Articles, Reformed theology
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