After Darkness . . . Light

Video of John Piper in Geneva

Article by

Founder & Teacher, desiringGod.org

Dear Friends,

Today is Reformation Day. Martin Luther posted his explosive 95 theses October 31, 1517. In the wake of Luther’s life, an army of Reformers soon emerged. Foremost among them was John Calvin. Together they recovered for the church the supreme authority and clarity of the Scriptures. Grace-erasing tradition had buried the glory of the gospel. But now light was breaking out. So the Reformers took up a Latin phrase to describe the wonder: “Post Tenebras Lux”—“After Darkness... Light.”

In honor of Calvin’s ministry and, even more, in celebration of the God who restored the gospel to his church, we are making this video available today. My prayer is that it would stir in your heart a fresh passion for the majesty of the word of God.

In spite of his flaws, the essential meaning of Calvin's life and preaching is that he recovered and embodied a passion for the majesty of God and his word. The labor of exposition through preaching was the supreme work of his life.

I am no John Calvin. But I do stand with him as a fellow preacher of the majesty of God’s word. Preaching has been the central labor of my life. I pray that God will give me a mind and voice that enables me to preach this word as long as I live. What a gift and privilege that would be.