Who says I never have anything positive to say about Jason and the Callers? Sometimes Bryan’s obsession with logic has advantages.
Take the case of the Baylys and their Rousers. Craig French seems to believe he has scored a decisive put down of 2k by showing that the church’s spiritual power is temporal and will not exist in the world to come (an interesting case for the pro-continuity, post-millenial neo-Cals to consider since the place where Christ’s every-square-inch rule is most evident will not have its marks in the new heavens and new earth). On the way to making his point, French still fails to answer a logical conundrum for critics of 2k: if you want the magistrate to enforce the sixth and seventh commandments, why not the third and fourth? Craig answers the question by going after the spirituality of the church. I’m sure Bryan could find a logical fallacy in there somewhere. I’d call this exactly what a husband does when his wife learns he just wasted 45 minutes blogging — change the question.
At the same time, French shows that he doesn’t understand the spirituality of the church. Spirituality, as Presbyterians have understood it, should be contrasted not with temporal but civil, as in the OPC’s description of church power:
All church power is wholly moral or spiritual. No church officers or judicatories possess any civil jurisdiction; they may not inflict any civil penalties nor may they seek the aid of the civil power in the exercise of their jurisdiction further than may be necessary for civil protection and security.
Conversely, civil power (the magistrate) is not spiritual. This accords with the Confession of Faith:
Synods and councils are to handle, or conclude nothing, but that which is ecclesiastical: and are not to intermeddle with civil affairs which concern the commonwealth, unless by way of humble petition in cases extraordinary; or, by way of advice, for satisfaction of conscience, if they be thereunto required by the civil magistrate. (31.4)
So the reason the spirituality of the church is such a threat to the Baylys and the Rousers is that they conflate the spiritual and civil. They want the magistrate to do something that only the church can do.
And the uniqueness of the church is well articulated by Calvin (yes, the same minister who believed the magistrate should enforce both tables).
That the strength and utility of the kingdom of Christ cannot, as we have said, be fully perceived without recognising it as spiritual, is sufficiently apparent, even from this, that having during the whole course of our lives to war under the cross, our condition here is bitter and wretched. What then would it avail us to be ranged under the government of a heavenly King, if its benefits were not realised beyond the present earthly life? We must, therefore, know that the happiness which is promised to us in Christ does not consist in external advantages—such as leading a joyful and tranquil life, abounding in wealth, being secure against all injury, and having an affluence of delights, such as the flesh is wont to long for—but properly belongs to the heavenly life. As in the world the prosperous and desirable condition of a people consists partly in the abundance of temporal good and domestic peace, and partly in the strong protection which gives security against external violence; so Christ also enriches his people with all things necessary to the eternal salvation of their souls and fortifies them with courage to stand unassailable by all the attacks of spiritual foes. Whence we infer, that he reigns more for us than for himself, and that both within us and without us; that being replenished, in so far as God knows to be expedient, with the gifts of the Spirit, of which we are naturally destitute, we may feel from their first fruits, that we are truly united to God for perfect blessedness; and then trusting to the power of the same Spirit, may not doubt that we shall always be victorious against the devil, the world, and every thing that can do us harm. To this effect was our Saviour’s reply to the Pharisees, “The kingdom of God is within you.” “The kingdom of God cometh not with observation,” (Luke 17:21, 22). It is probable that on his declaring himself to be that King under whom the highest blessing of God was to be expected, they had in derision asked him to produce his insignia. But to prevent those who were already more than enough inclined to the earth from dwelling on its pomp, he bids them enter into their consciences, for “the kingdom of God” is “righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost,” (Rom. 14:17). These words briefly teach what the kingdom of Christ bestows upon us. Not being earthly or carnal, and so subject to corruption, but spiritual, it raises us even to eternal life, so that we can patiently live at present under toil, hunger, cold, contempt, disgrace, and other annoyances; contented with this, that our King will never abandon us, but will supply our necessities until our warfare is ended, and we are called to triumph: such being the nature of his kingdom, that he communicates to us whatever he received of his Father. Since then he arms and equips us by his power, adorns us with splendour and magnificence, enriches us with wealth, we here find most abundant cause of glorying, and also are inspired with boldness, so that we can contend intrepidly with the devil, sin, and death. In fine, clothed with his righteousness, we can bravely surmount all the insults of the world: and as he replenishes us liberally with his gifts, so we can in our turn bring forth fruit unto his glory.(Institutes, II.15.iv)
As Calvin would surely teach French, the contrast involved in the spirituality of the church not only concerns the church’s relationship to the civil magistrate, but also the believer’s relationship to earthly well being. When the Baylys can say that eternal life doesn’t require law and order in this life (though it is clearly desirable, but is it required?), the Rousers may have finally grasped the spirituality of the church.
Old Life 