Institutes of the Christian Religion is one of the most important and straightforward works of theology ever written, yet so few people actually read it. The Christian Heritage Series presents all four books of the Institutes in complete, unabridged, easy-to-read volumes. John Calvin certainly writes good theology, but he also writes with beauty and clarity-and both these aspects are captured in Beveridge's translation. Calvin is concerned that readers not be puffed up with new knowledge, rather he wants us to be drawn to the majesty and holiness of God in order to know our sin and our need for grace. Read this classic to grow closer to God. Book 4 of the Institutes is about the external helps by which God brings us in fellowship with Christ, three of the most notable being the Church, the sacraments, and the civil government. For Calvin, the Christian walk is never something an individual does in isolation, but involves pastors, elders, and deacons who preach the word, administer the sacraments, and exercise church discipline. Furthermore, God uses the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper to remind us of His grace towards us, and uses the magistrate as His deacon, taking vengeance on evil-doers and rewarding the righteous. The authors in the Christian Heritage Series paid a high price for the words you see before you. Not all paid with blood, but each spent his life fighting for the truth. This faithful sacrifice has become a rich inheritance for the Church in our day, even though it is often neglected. The Christian Heritage Series aim to put these important theological classics on every Christian's bookshelf in colorful, well-crafted, and affordable volumes, with introductions written by those that love the books and their heritage. Book jacket.