The commentaries of M. John Calvin upon the Acts of the Apostles, faithfully translated…The commentaries of M. Iohn Caluin vpon the Actes of the Apostles, faithfully translated…

He entreateth of the kingdom of God. He telleth us again that the Apostles themselves were well taught, before such time as they took upon them to teach others. Therefore whatsoever things they uttered & brought to light, either by word or by writing, touching the kingdom of god, they are those speeches which Christ himself uttered. And hereby doth he briefly set down the end of the doctrine of the Gospel: namely, that God may reign in us. Regeneration is the beginning of this kingdom, & the end thereof is blessed immortality: the middle proceedings are in a more ample going forward & increase of regeneration. But that this thing may appear more evidently, we must first note, that we are borne, and that we live aliens and strangers from the kingdom of God, until such time as god doth fashion us again unto a new life. Therefore we may properly set the world, the flesh, & whatsoever is in mans nature, against the kingdom of God, as contrary to it. For the natural man is wholly occupied about the things of this world, and he seeketh felicity here. In the mean season we are as it were banished from god, & he likewise from us. But Christ by the preaching of the gospel doth lift us up unto the meditation of the life to come. And to the end he may the better bring this to pass, he reformeth all our earthly affections, & so having stripped us out of ⟨p. 5⟩the vices of our flesh, he separateth us from the world. And like as eternal death is prepared for all those which live after the flesh; so in as much as the inward man is renewed in us, that we may go forward in the spiritual life, we draw nearer unto the perfection of the kingdom of God: which is the society of the glory of God. Therefore God will reign in and amongst us now, that he may at length make us partakers of his kingdom. Hereby we gather that Christ did principally entreat of the corruption of mankind; of the tyranny of sin, whose bondslaves we are; of the curse & guiltiness of eternal death, whereunto we all are subject, & also of the means to obtain salvation, of the remission of sins; of the denying of the flesh, of spiritual righteousness, of hope of eternal life, and of such like things. And if we will be rightly instructed in Christianity, we must apply our studies to these things.

He intreateth of the kingdome of God. He telleth vs againe that the Apostles themselues were well taught, before such time as they tooke vpon thē to teach others. Therfore whatsoeuer things they vttered & brought to light, either by word or by writing, touching the kingdom of god, they are those speeches which Christ himselfe vttered. And heereby doth he briefly set downe the end of the doctrine of the Gospel: namelie, that God may reigne in vs. Regeneration is the beginning of this kingdome, & the end therof is blessed immortalitie: the midle proceedings are in a more ample going forward & increase of regeneratiō. But that this thing may appeare more euidently, we must first note, that we are borne, and that we liue aliants and strangers from the kingdome of God, vntil such time as god doth fashion vs again vnto a new life. Therfore we may properly set the world, the flesh, & whatsoeuer is in mans nature, against the kingdome of God, as contrary to it. For the natural man is wholly occupied about the things of this world, and he seeketh felicitie here. In the mean season we are as it were banished from god, & he likewise from vs. But Christ by the preaching of the gospel doth lift vs vp vnto the meditation of the life to come. And to the end he may the better bring this to passe, he reformeth all our earthly affections, & so hauing stript vs out of