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In his book Christ and the Decree, Richard Muller was very effective in defending Theodore Beza (1519-1605) against those who caricatured him as a rationalist systematizer who imposed synthetic theological catagories on Calvin's theology, forever changing "Calvinism" into a cold rationalistic system that is centered on predestination rather than on Christ. Muller took great pains for example to show the extent to which Beza was christocentric, nevertheless, he was compelled to admit that in Beza,we encounter...hardly a trace of Calvin's teaching concerning Christ as the ground of assurance. There is a strong christological center in all of Beza's attempts at systematic formulation and we sense everywhere the connection between Christ and the decree, but on the problem of assurance, which must always relate causally to the decree, there is little christological discussion.1
This also did not escape the attention of John S. Bray who in addition to discussing this lack of christocentrism, wrote that, "Beza's doctrine of assurance was based far more upon works and the doctrine of predestination than was the case in Calvin's thought."2 R.T. Kendell too argues along these lines, suggesting particularly that for Beza, "The ground of assurance...must be sought elsewhere than in Christ. Beza knows this. He works out his theology with this in mind and comes up with the solution: we look inside ourselves"3
In this paper we will be investigating the theology of Theodore Beza on this matter of faith and assurance. Does Beza make a noticable shift away from Calvin by highlighting predestination rather than the work of Christ? Does he teach the practical syllogism, that we gain assurance of our election based on our own good works? These are the questions we will be tackling in this presentation.I will be arguing throughout this paper that one can in fact find in Beza, expressly clear examples of christocentric thinking relating to the doctrine of assurance, and that though his emphasis diverges at points, he is on essentials in agreement with Calvin about Christ being the ground of our assurance. Finally, I will attempt to show that though Beza does point to good works for assurance, he does not ground assurance in these works, but rather, highlights them as testimonies which point, along with other things, to our sure election in Christ.
In his famous work Tabula Praedestinationis (1555), a work dedicated to the proper understanding of the docrine of election, Beza writes, "when the Scripture will confirm the children of God in full and perfect hope, it doth not rest in alledging the testimonies of the second causes, that is to say, in the fruits of faith, nor in the second causes themselves, as faith, and calling by the Gospel..."4 He goes on to argue that we move on higher to Christ himself, who is our head, and in whom we are elected and adopted, and that we ascend higher still by understanding God's eternal purpose in election. Notice here how Beza is thinking of assurance. Scripture, he argues, confirms our hope by "alledging testimonies" such as 1) the fruits of faith, 2) faith itself and our calling by the Gospel, 3) Christ himself, and 4) understanding God's eternal purpose. These testimonies are presented as rungs in a ladder, not in their level of importance (understanding election is not more important than understanding Christ) but rather in terms of cognition. That is to say, Beza starts with the most accessible things (things felt, things experienced) and moves higher to things not seen and finally to things incomprehensible. Nevertheless, all of these things, according to Beza, point us to the confirmation of our hope. It cannot be denied therefore that Beza did, at least in 1555, teach that we could be assured of our salvation by contemplating our faith in Christ and our acceptance of the gospel message. Muller acknowldeges this when he writes that "Beza, clearly, had no concern to press toward the syllogismus practicus in 1555."5
In his Confession de la Foy Chrestienne (1558), however, we have a document which does contains a number of clear arguments pointing to the fact that one can gain assurance of election and salvation by an examination of good works. But before we look at such examples, we first need to take a look at how Beza defines faith itself, as it relates to assurance. For example, early in the volume Beza comes right out and suggests that to be "assured" our of salvation by faith alone is the only way to take all pride from ourselves and ultimately to give all glory to God. "For," Beza writes, "faith alonely teacheth us to go our of our own selves, and to know that there is nothing in us but matter of damnation, and sendeth us to Jesus Christ, by whose only justice it teacheth and assureth us that we shall find salvation before God."6 Here it appears that assurance is linked exclusively with faith in Christ. This is because faith in this passage is not being described as a sign or a testimony for the believer to consider, but rather, is being presented as the ground of salvation itself; it is linking us to the justice of Christ in whom we are saved. It is on the basis of faith alone, that "all that which is in Jesus Christ (that is to say, all righteousness and perfection) is counted as properly our own..."7 In sum, faith teaches us to look away from ourselves to Christ, and it is his righteousness ultimately that assures us of our salvation. Thus, when faith and assurance are considered as being grounded in the imputed righteousness of Christ, Beza points us away from our selves, for in them "there is nothing in us but damnation."
In another section of this same book, Beza gives pastoral comfort to those who may be struggling with various temptations of Satan. And one of these temptations put in the mouth of Satan is that Jesus did not die for all, for not all are saved. Beza suggests we answer him thus:
true it is, none but believers do receive the fruit of this passion and satisfaction of Jesus Christ, but this in stead of dismaying us doth rather establish us. For that we do know in our hearts, that we have faith whereby...it is not enough only to believe that Jesus Christ came to save sinners, but we must particularly every man apply and appropriate Jesus Christ to himself in such wise that he do conclude with himself, I am in Jesus Christ by faith, and therefore I cannot perish, but am sure of my salvation.8
Thus when tempted with the idea that Christ's atonement is limited, and that one's sins may not actually be covered, Beza points us again to our faith in Christ, a faith which is not mere assent but personal trust. Those who thus "appropriate" Christ as their own can know in their hearts of this faith, and can have surety and confidence therefore of their own salvation. Interestingly enough, R. T. Kendall seized on Beza's docrine of limited atonement to explain how Beza deviates from the theology of Calvin:
Beza's doctrine of faith substantially diverges from that of Calvin: the difference is not quantitative but qualitative. The origin of this departure is linked to Beza's doctrine of limited atonement; when Christ is not held forth to all men as the immediate ground of assurance, the result is not only introspection on our part but a need to assure ourselves upon the very grounds Calvins warns against.9
It appears that Kendall may have overstated his case, for in the example above Beza seems to have an identical view of faith as Calvin, and this in a passage dealing in some respects with limited atonement. Here Beza is not introspective but extraspective, focusing our attention not on ourselves, but on Christ who is appropriated by faith. It appears that Richard Muller, too, may have overstated things when he writes that "we encounter in Beza hardly a trace of Calvin's teaching concerning Christ as the ground of assurance."10
Beza does, however, continue his discussion of the remedies with which we may arm ourselves when tempted by Satan. He argues that in order to be assured that we have overcome our adversary, "we must examine ourselves whether we have this faith or not. The means is to ascend by the effects unto the knowledge of the cause which worketh them."11 It is important to note that Beza has shifted gears here. Faith in Christ is no longer being viewed as the ground of assurance, but rather as an external reality which has certain effects. He continues:
Now the effects which Jesus Christ worketh in us, when we have apprehended him by faith, be of two sorts. The first is, the testimony of the holy Spirit...Secondly we must understand when we join and appropriate to ourselves Jesus Christ by faith...his virtue then bringeth and showeth forth his force and virtues, the which are understood in the Scriptures by these words regeneration and sanctification...12
The two testimonies or effects of faith are thus 1) the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and 2) the external manifestation of sanctification in our lives. Again, these are not the grounds of faith, but are effects that can be apprehended which point us to the cause (to true faith in Christ, and even higher up the ladder, to our election in Christ). Richard Muller correctly points out that "The syllogismus practicus appears in Beza's thought as, at most, a partial solution to the problem of assurance."13 It is partial because Beza points both to the internal witness of the Spirit and to external effects such as faith and good works. Thus, it can be argued that Beza teaches the practical syllogism, but only partially.
Now in chapter four of the Confession de la Foy, Beza writes that "good works be certain testimonies of our faith, and also do assure us of our eternal election, for faith is necessarily joined to election."14 Notice that Beza in this selection does not suggest that good works are themselves the ground of assurance, but rather are mere "testimonies" of faith. These testimonies or signs assure us of the reality of our faith, and thus to the reality of our election, but the ground of our assurance is still faith in Christ, as Beza explains in the next few lines:
Faith is no other thing but an assurance which we have, that the promises of eternal life appertaineth unto us, because we were predestined and elected thereunto. Wherefore all that is spoken of faith and of the fruits of faith, is spoken in vain, and unprofitable, except we join this point of election, as the only foundation of all that is aforesaid. Now when Satan putteth us in doubt of our election, we may not search first the resolution in the eternal counsel of God, whose majesty we cannot comprehend: but on the contrary we must begin at the sanctification which we feel in ourselves to ascend up more higher, for asmuch as our sanctification from whence proceedeth good works, is a certain effect of the faith, or rather of Jesus Christ dwelling in us by faith. And whoever is united to Jesus Christ is necessarily called and elected of God to salvation, in such wise as he shall vever be rejected nor forsaken. So it appeareth that the sanctification with the fruits thereof, be as the first step or degree whereby we begin to ascend up to the first true cause of our salvation, to wit, of our free eternal election.15
Faith, for Beza is itself an assured confidence, because as he has explained earlier, it is grounded in the righteousness of Christ, but also because it takes into account that God is in control having elected and predestined those who believe. But what about those who begin to doubt their own election? Again, Beza displays his pastoral concern by extending a ladder all the way down to the doubter's feet. The doubter should not begin in heaven with God's eternal counsel, but rather with the tangeble effects felt down here below. Thus Beza points us to the "felt" effects of sanctification to begin with, and that we should move on from here to the consideration that sanctification itself is an effect of faith, and that it is in faith we find our union with Christ and our necessary election. Again, the good works of sanctification are not the ground of our assurance with Beza, but rather they are the first rung for one weak in faith to grasp should he require something tangeble to start with in gaining assurance on a practical level. But even these tangeble effects of sanctification are meant to point us to the causes (the higher rungs), such as true faith and election in Christ: "So it appeareth that the sanctification with the fruits thereof, be as the first step or degree whereby we begin to ascend up to the first true cause of our salvation, to wit, of our free eternal election." Beza uses this same ladder motif throughout his career. It appears also in his Book of Questions and Answers (1570):
Therefore that I am chosen, I shall perceive first by the holiness or sanctification begun in me, that is to say by my hating of sin and by my loving of righteousness. Here unto I shall add the witness of the holy Ghost comforting my conscience...Upon this sanctification and comfort of the holy Ghost, we gather faith. And thereby we rise up unto Christ, to whom whosoever is given, is of necessity chosen in him from before all worlds.16
This counsel is given to one who is doubting, so the tone is pastoral once again. Here Beza follows the typical pattern we have seen: True faith in Christ is discerned from 1) external effects of sanctification, and 2) the internal witness of the Spirit. These internal and external effects direct us to "rise up unto Christ" who is the cause of the effect, and to discover our true faith and election in him. This is simply put, not a doctrine of assurance which has been predominated by predestination to the exclusion of christocentric thinking, for according to Beza the signs direct us to Christ in whom we find our election.
It is instructive for us to consider the extent to which Beza comforted those with troubled hearts who wondered whether or not they were saved. For in some, the signs and effects of sanctification might be scarce. Beza writes therefore that:
...although both these operations and effects, be very feeble and weak, yet there is no cause to be discouraged. For it is not required of us to believe fully and perfectly, but to believe only, in such wise as if one little spark of faith, and so following one little motion of the working of it...it is sufficient to assure us of our salvation. The reason is that our salvation does not rest so much upon our faith...as it does upon him whom we apprehend by faith, that is to say, Jesus Christ. And faith is of such virtue, that according to the promise of God, one little spark thereof, however little it be, doth apprehend Jesus Christ fully and perfectly.17
This is an excellent example of why good works are not themselves the ground of assurance for Beza, for if they were, assurance would be as hard to discern as the spark of faith and and the small effects of piety themselves. As it is, our faith and its effects, regardless of their size or strength, are able to assure us of salvation just as a small street sign, if glimsed, is able to assure us that we are on the right path to our final destination. They are pointers to something else, and in salvation, that something else according to Beza, is the object of our faith. Jesus Christ, he argues, the one in whom our salvation rests (or is grounded) can thus be fully and perfectly apprehended by a mere spark of faith.
In the 1589 English edition of the Confession de la Foy, titled A Briefe and Pithie Summe of Christian Faith, there is printed at the end of the volume a very short confession or summary of the Christian faith. In this shorter summary of doctrine, Beza discusses the matter of assurance and faith, and I think Beza's comments are significant because he does not delve into the pastoral issues such as how do deal with particular tempations when they arise, rather he outlines for us how we are to understand our faith, calling and assurance in a summary fashion:
For first the holy Ghost disposeth our intelligence, to the understanding of the doctrine of the gospel, which otherwise seemeth to the world mere foolishness..., and maketh our spirit believe, that this doctrine of salvation freely in Jesus Christ, is not only true...but also that it appertaineth to us: and this is it that is called faith, the which is so highly commended in the scripture, which is to be understood when a man doth persuade himself certainly, that salvation and eternal life doth properly and particularly appertain to himself, because Jesus Christ is declared to us in his word under this condition, that we do taste of him, and apply him to ourselves by faith. It followeth then, that faith is the only instrument by which salvation may be felt and taken in Jesus Christ. And therefore St. Paul said, that we be justified by faith alone, and also do live by it alone, not that faith is our righteousness and life, but because that by faith alone we embrace Jesus Christ and become certain that he is our righteousness and life.18
Beza here suggests that "faith is the only instrument by which salvation may be felt and taken in Jesus Christ," but how can he say this when in the larger exposition of doctrine he had argued otherwise, that not merely faith alone, but also the effects of faith such as good works could be gathered pointing us to assurance of our salvation. Beza can do this because the effects of faith are not the ground of assurance, but are signs pointing to a cause. A person who gains assurance from the effect of faith, for example, immediately moves higher realizing that faith caused the effects, and higher still that Christ's righteousness is our own. And here we find the ground of our assurance.
Conclusion
Theodore Beza does point to both internal and external effects which point us to our assurance. In some respects there is a practical syllogism to be found here, but this does not predominate his doctrine of assurance. Beza's use of external effects only in passages where there is a pastoral concern such as temptation or doubt. His goal is to throw down a ladder as far down as it can go, thus, he allows some individuals to begin their ascension by consideration of tangeble things. These effects are not meant to ground our assurance in themselves, but merely point us to higher rungs where we apprehend Christ, and find his righteousness by which we are assured of our salvation and election.Finally, Beza's doctrine of assurance is very much Christ centered. Those who overlook this have neglected the many passages where he has clearly linked assurance with faith in Christ, and have allowed Beza's pastoral advice in times of temptation to predominate their understanding of his doctrine of assurance.
NOTES
1) Muller, Richard, Christ and The Decree, (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1986), p. 85.
2) Bray, John S., Theodore Beza's Doctrine of Predestination,(Nieuwkoop: B. De Graaf, 1975), p. 110-111.
3) Kendall, R.T., Calvin and English Calvinism to 1649,(London: Oxford University Press, 1979), p. 32-33.
4) Beza, Theodore, A Brief Declaration of the Table of Predestination (Tabula Praedestinationis, 1555), english trans. by William Whittingham (London, 1575), chapter 2, pp. 3-4 (unnumerated).
5) Muller, p. 80.
6) Beza, Theodore, A Brief and Pithie Summe of Christian Faith (Confession de la Foy Chrestienne, 1558), english trans. by R. F. (London, 1589), p. 34.
7) Ibid.
8) Ibid., p. 47.
9) Kendall, p. 32-33.
10) Muller, p. 85.
11) Beza, Brief and Pithie Summe, p. 48.
12) Ibid.
13) Muller, p. 85.
14) Beza, Brief and Pithie Summe, p. 72.
15) Ibid.
16) Beza, A Book of Christian Questions and Answers (Quaestionum et responsionum Christianarum libellus,1570) english trans. by Arthur Golding (London: William How, 1578), p. 88.
17) Beza, Brief and Pithie Summe, p. 76.
18) Ibid., p. 333-335.