Sermons of M. John Calvin upon the Epistle of Saint Paul to the GalatiansSermons of M. Iohn Caluine vpon the Epistle of Saincte Paule to the Galathians

We see that without faith there should be no bond to knit any Church together, nor any assurance whereby to know which is the seed of Abraham, or to discern it from the rest of the world, but by resorting to the head, that is too wit to our Lord Jesus Christ. Ye see then that the union of the body dependeth upon the head, that is to wit upon the Redeemer. Seeing it doth so, not without cause doth Saint Paul say that it was not spoken of many seeds, but that we must come too one man, if we will have the spiritual people: that is to say, if we will have the Church of God, our Lord Jesus Christ must be the mark that we must begin to look at, and we must be gathered unto him: and those that are of his body and cleave unto him by faith are the folk that are reckoned for Gods children and household, and are verily the seed of Abraham, as he discourseth more at large in the Epistle to the Romans,¹ where he saith that all they which come of the seed of Israel after the flesh, are not therefore Israelites. And why? For there was but one promised child, which was Isaac.² So then we must come to our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom all Gods promises are Yea and Amen, and in whom they have their substance. For without him there is nothing else but scattering. And therefore it is said in the first Chapter, to the Colossians,³ that our Lord Jesus Christs office is, to gather together all things that were scattered, as well in heaven as in earth, and that without him all should go to wreck. But now we see more clearly how Saint Pauls meaning is, that before the law was published to the world, (wherevp•• was put and added this condition, that ⟨p. 147⟩it behoved us to fulfil all that is contained therein) God had yielded a record of his will before hand: which was, that because he saw mankind damned and forlorn, he intended to draw out a chosen sort to himself, and to be merciful to them. And that was not for one linage alone, but for all nations as the scripture expresseth. And there of the foundation was laid in our Lord Jesus Christ. Forasmuch then as our Lord Jesus Christ was already in the time of Abraham, ordained to be a mediator to make atonement between God and us, so that if we go in his name to seek favour, it is ready for us, and we cannot be disappointed of our hope: