John Calvin was known as the “theologian of the Holy Spirit.” Today, however, the Holy Spirit seems to be more closely associated with churches that emphasize miraculous gifts and healings. This is unfortunate because the result has been that many people associate Christians who talk about the Holy Spirit as a little crazy, helplessly naïve or less than trustworthy.

Calvin is someone I like to read because I haven’t found any other author who uses the Bible more completely or with a thoroughly rational mind. Most Evangelical Christians like to claim that they are “biblical” but that rarely shows itself true in their use of the Bible. John Calvin, on the other hand, not only quoted from but commented on and referenced almost every chapter of every book of the Bible in his writing. Almost no other theologian can claim this.

That’s why I check to see what Calvin has to say on a topic first. He tends to be better informed than anyone I’ve come across, not only in how much he quotes from the Bible, but also in how well he uses the Bible. He was a man profoundly shaped by Scripture. I think that’s why he came to be known as the “theologian of the Holy Spirit.” He emphasized what the Bible itself emphasized and left alone topics on which Scripture itself is silent.

So what does Calvin have to say about the Holy Spirit? Here are four things that come from book 3, chapter 1 of his magnum opus The Institutes of the Christian Religion:

1. The Holy Spirit is the bond that unites us to Christ

Calvin points out where Paul and Peter agree about the role of the Spirit. He speaks about the “testimony of the Spirit” being a seal engraved on our hearts “with the result that it seals the cleansing sacrifice of Christ. Go to 1 Peter 1:2 and 1 Corinthians 6:11 to see how the Spirit is involved in our union with Christ.

2. Christ came with the Spirit for two reasons

Calvin points out two things Christ sends the Holy Spirit to accomplish. One is to separate his people from the world. The other is to gather them into the hope of an eternal inheritance. Those are broad categories that define the work of the Spirit sent by Jesus.

3. The Bible gives several titles to the Spirit

One of my favorite titles that Calvin mentions is “guarantee and seal.” The Holy Spirit is called this “because from heaven he so gives life to us, on pilgrimage in the world and resembling dead men, as to assure us that our salvation is safe in God’s unfailing care.” He is also called “water” and “fire.”

4. Faith is the principal work of the Spirit

In Ephesians 1:3 Paul tells us that we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise.” Most Christians believe that faith is the gift of God as the Bible teaches. Calvin puts together several Scriptures that show this. He also has this to say: Paul shows the Spirit to be the inner teacher by whose effort the promise of salvation penetrates into our minds, a promise that would otherwise only strike the air or beat upon our ears.

This is a tiny sample of the depth of the way Calvin combines both good doctrine and deep devotion in his writing. The best way to experience a deeper life in Christ is to combine your head and heart—the truth of the Bible with the fire of the heart put there by the Spirit. Reading Calvin helps me when I seek to do this. Maybe his writing can encourage you too.

In Him,

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