Veritas et Lux

JOHN NEWTON: ANGRY SAILOR – Kay Marshall Strom (2012)

Angry Sailor tells the tale of the 18th century British slave trader, John Newton. The story sets sail with Newton, an eleven year old boy aboard his father’s ship. The author traces Newton’s life from a simple sailor to a life of debauchery aboard a slave trading ship. It is well-known that Newton lived a life of sin for many years, hating God and hating mankind – until the sovereign hand of God rescued him by his grace. God not only delivered Newton from the horrible slave trade industry; more importantly, he rescued him from the slave market of sin.

Kay Marshall Strom writes this short historical narrative with children in mind. And she does a worthy job. The story telling is good and God’s sovereign grace is clearly articulated. A must read for children of all ages!

SEVEN MEN AND THE SECRET OF THEIR GREATNESS – Eric Metaxas (2013)

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Spy by Eric Metaxas stands head and shoulders above most biographies. Indeed, it is one of the best biographies I have ever read. The new work by Metaxas, Seven Men and the Secret of Their Greatness is filled with the rich historical detail that readers have grown accustomed to from the author.

Metaxas sets out to survey the lives of seven men; men who have influenced his life – men he considers to be great. The seven men that the author presents include the following: George Washington, William Wilberforce, Eric Liddell, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Jackie Robinson, Pope John Paul II, and Charles Colson.

The biographical sketches are fascinating in their own right. However, the most helpful part of the book is actually found in the introduction. Here the author explores real manhood, most notably – God’s intended benchmarks for manhood. Metaxas argues that there are two distorted ideas about manhood. The first false notion of manhood is the “macho mentality” where men intimidate others using strength, fear tactics, and intimidation.

The second false notion of manhood is “to be emasculated – to essentially turn away from your masculinity and to pretend that there is no real difference between men and women. Your strength as a man has no purpose, so being strong isn’t even a good thing.” Clearly, the author has hit the bullseye in his assessment here.

Metaxas proceeds to describe God’s ideal for manhood: “God made us in his image, male and female, and it celebrates masculinity and femininity. And it celebrates the differences between them … All blessings and every gift – and strength is a gift … to be used for his purposes, which means to bless others. So men are meant to use their strength to protect and bless those who are weaker.”

Additionally, men are called to be servant leaders. Metaxas continues, “The true leader gives himself to the people he leads … So God’s idea of masculine strength gives us the idea of a chivalrous gentleman toward women, not a bully or someone who sees no difference between himself and them.”

Finally, the author discusses the need for men to be strong men; men of courage: “The courage to do the right thing when all else tells you not to do it. The courage to rise above your surroundings and circumstances. The courage to be God’s idea of a real man and to give of yourself for others when it costs you to do so and when everything tells you to look out for your self first.”

Metaxas notes the humanitarian work of Pope John Paul II. I would urge readers to see an alternative perspective on the papacy in general by Tim Challies at http://www.challies.com/articles/the-humble-pope.

7 Men and the Secret of Their Greatness should not be confused with a full-fledged biography. Readers can go elsewhere and should be encouraged to check out Metaxas’ excellent work on Bonhoeffer as well as William Willberforce. The book under consideration should be considered “biographical cliff notes” that coax readers to move into deeper waters. To this end, 7 Men has achieved its intended aim of guiding readers to and handful of men who exemplify true greatness.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review.

YOUNG STALIN – Simon Sebag Monteriore (2007)

The Hebrew Scriptures paint a clear portrait in the book of Proverbs that promise wisdom for the prudent and suffering for the foolish: “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm” (Proverbs 13:20, ESV). Josef Vissarionovich Djugashvili, the man whom the world recognizes as Joseph Stalin chose the latter path; indeed, he paid no attention to the Old Testament wisdom. Rather, chose the way of rebellious autonomy and self-centeredness as he surrounded himself with thugs and robbers, not to mention his friendship with the evil henchmen, Vladimir Lenin.

Young Stalin by Simon Sebag Monteriore is a book that stands alone. Indeed, it is totally unique. For instead of chronicling the Great Terror that was spearheaded by Stalin (like most books do), Monteriore begins with Stalin’s birth and traces the path of wickedness which culminates in the Revolution (October, 1917). Several features make Young Stalin a noteworthy book, most of which have to do with Stalin’s biographical data.

Stalin’s Unmistakable Leadership Ability

The leadership ability in Stalin emerged early in his days as a young man. He had a powerful magnetism that drew people his direction and in most cases paid dividends that Stalin gladly cashed. His was a lure that attracted a wide variety of people, including women – but especially people who were on ruinous paths, similar to his own.

Stalin’s leadership ability was seen in his ability to motivate people to action. Clearly, he stirred people up – even as a young man. Later in life, he would stir the masses. One friend reports, “Soso was a philosophical conspirator from the start …” The author adds, “The secret police and the workers regarded this ex-seminarist as an ‘intellectual …'” Stalin used his leadership ability to his own ends and was proud of his manipulative ways.

Stalin’s Genius

Stalin intellectually ability was remarkable to be sure. While he was ultimately expelled from Seminary, his keen mind gave him the wherewithal to synthesize concepts, understand difficult subject matter, and write compelling poetry.

Stalin had an uncanny ability to read people. One friend admits, “He could look at someone and see right through them.” The author refers to numerous instances where Stalin recognized a traitor – and in most cases, anyone who betrayed Stalin paid with his or her life.

Stalin’s Ego

It should come as no surprise that Stalin’s ego was usually out of control and reckless. The author notes, “Stalin’s character, damaged yet gifted, was qualified for, and fatally attracted to, such pitiless predations. Afterwards, the machine of repression, the flint-hearted, paranoid psychology of perpetual conspiracy and the taste for extreme bloody solutions to all challenges, were not just ascendant but glamorized, institutionalized and raised to an amoral Bolshevik faith with messianic fervor.” Any man who has at least 60 nicknames or aliases must be committed to narcissism at some level. The Scripture speaks clearly to anyone who is committed to selfishness and pride: “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6, ESV).

Stalin’s Black Heart

Even as a young man, Stalin showed signs of unmitigated evil and a heart that was hell-bent on depravity. The author admits this throughout: Stalin was a “creature of covert but boundless extremism … and malevolent darkness …” Before the Great Terror ever fell on Eastern Europe, the heart of Stalin proved to be a bubbling cauldron of depravity and wickedness. The author reports, “This most un-Christian of gentlemen had moved far from Christianity.” The robberies, extortions, and violence are just the tip of the iceberg for this Georgian rebel. For instance, Stalin commented, “My greatest pleasure is to choose one’s victim, prepare one’s plans minutely, slake an implacable vengeance, and then go to bed. There’s nothing sweeter in the world.” With a heart that was black with sin, the man of Steele would help usher in a period of unmistakable evil in a few short years.

Young Stalin is a carefully researched book; it is filled with details about the megalomaniac we know as Joseph Stalin. It is a vivid reminder that leadership ability and intellect can be used for good or evil. Stalin, like Lenin used his magnetism for malevolent purposes. He used his sharp intellect as a tool to manipulate the masses. Even the young Stalin had blood on his hands – both figuratively and literally. But as history would reveal, the bloodshed would reach epic proportions. For soon the Red Tsar would dominate Eastern Europe with an iron fist and a cold-stone heart. One man was about to shred the fabric of a nation and wreak havoc on millions of innocent people.

One is reminded that ideas have consequences. In the case of Stalin, who left his mark on history as a murderous tyrant, his ideas led to the slaughter of millions, economic disaster, political tyranny – all the result of a worldview that banked on dialectical materialism – rooted in dogmatic commitment to atheism. Charles Darwin and Karl Marx continue to spew forth their godlessness from the grave.

Monteriore captures the nature of the nefarious partnership between two wicked men as the schemed together just days before the October revolution of 1917: “… These scruffy, diminutive figures (Lenin and Stalin), who now walked the streets of Petrograd disguised and unrecognized, seized the Russian Empire. They formed the world’s first Marxist government, remained at the peak of the state for the rest of their days, sacrificed millions of lives at the pitiless altar of their utopian ideology, and rule the imperium, between them, for the next thirty-six years.”

4 stars

SIMPLY JESUS – N.T. Wright (2011)

Simply Jesus: A New Vision of Who He Was, What He Did, and Why He Matters, by N.T. Wright surveys the historical background of Jesus and presents our Savior from a variety of angles. There are a few features that make it worthwhile.

The Emphasis on the Kingdom of God

Wright’s focus on the kingdom of God is refreshing as he promotes an all-ready, not yet framework. For instance, he adds, “The Beatitudes are the agenda for kingdom people. They are not simply about how to behave, so that God will do something nice to you. They are about the way in which Jesus wants to rule the world.” He continues, “The Sermon on the Mount is a call to Jesus’s followers to take up their vocation as light to the world, as salt to the earth – in other words, as people through whom Jesus’s kingdom vision is to become a reality.”

The emphasis on good works is refreshing component that emerges in Wright’s eschatological framework: “In the New Testament, ‘good works’ are what Christians are supposed to be doing in and for the wider community. That is how the sovereignty of Jesus is put into effect.”

Rejecting the Platonic Vision of Heaven

I especially enjoyed Wright’s frustration with the so-called Platonic vision of heaven that is embraced by so many evangelicals. In many ways, he picks up where Randy Alcorn left off in his magnificent work, Heaven. Wright helpfully notes, “Heaven in biblical thought is not a long way away from ‘earth.’ In the Bible, ‘heaven’ and ‘earth’ overlap and interlock, as the ancient Jews believed they did above all in the Temple … Most people in today’s Western world imagine that ‘heaven,’ by definition, could not contain what we think of as a solid, physical body. That’s because we are Platonists at heart, supposing that if there is a ‘heaven,’ it must be nonphysical, beyond the reach of space, time, and matter.”

While much of the work in Simply Jesus is helpful and encouraging, as a premillenialist, I found the ammillenial eschatological framework interesting but not very helpful, in the final analysis. Wright has a way of making his readers think, especially readers that disagree with him. His writing is winsome, thought-provoking and worthy of a careful read.

GALILEO – Mitch Stokes (2011)

“On February 19, 1616, at the behest of the pope, the Holy Office of the Inquisition asked a panel of eleven theologians to judge the following Copernican theses.” The thesis was stated as follows:

The sun is the center of the world and hence immovable of local motion.

The earth is not the center of the world, nor immovable but moves according to the whole of itself, also with a diurnal motion.

The papal lynch mob responded in kind by suggesting that the immobility of the sun, was “foolish and absurd in philosophy, and formally heretical, inasmuch as it expressly contradicts the doctrine of the Holy Scripture in many passages, both in their literal meaning and according to the general interpretation of the Fathers and Doctors.”

The second thesis was judged in similar fashion:

“… To receive the same censure in philosophy and, as regards theological truth, to be at least erroneous in faith.”

These are the matters before the Roman Catholic Church in the early 17th century, just over 100 years after the thunderbolt that struck when Luther hammered his 95 thesis on the castle door for public dispute. Luther’s action was considered treasonous and heretical and was consequently labeled as a heretic and labeled by the Pope Leo XV as a “wild boar in the vineyard.” As a result, Luther is hunted for the remainder of his days. Evidently, bad habits die hard because Rome is still on the hunt in the 17th century – only this time, their target is the brilliant scientist, Galileo.

Galileo by Mitch Stokes is a fascinating account of a man who sought to reconcile the universals and the particulars. He was not only a sharp scientist (some consider him to be the most influential in the history of western thought), he also had a keen philosophical mind and a heart for the Scriptures.

Stokes guides readers on a fairly comprehensive tour of the Italian genius. He chronicles his days as a boy and discusses the influence of his father, his life as a university student, and ultimately his career as a university professor. But the most interesting part of the tale has to do with Galileo’s defense of Copernicus, the German astronomer who set forth a heliocentric vision of the universe. This vision bravely displaced the earth from the center and moved the sun to “center” stage.

Initially, Rome was content to simply put up with the heliocentric model, (even though the church essentially prohibited the promotion of Copernicanism in a 1616 edict), so long as it was presented as mere “mathematical tool.” Galileo was not content was this clever arrangement – even as his friend made his ascent to the papal throne – Pope Urban VIII.

The publication of Galileo’s book, Dialogue prompted a firestorm that led the Pope to order a special Commission to investigate the contents of the book. The controversy eventually escalated which resulted in “an outburst of rage” from the Pope who remarked that Galileo had “entered the most dangerous ground there was.” Ultimately, Pope Urban accused Galileo of betraying his trust. As a result, he refused to allow Galileo to speak to him personally. Evidently, Galileo forgot that the Pope speaks ex cathedra!

On October, 2, 1632 the Pope ordered Galileo to stand before a Tribunal in Rome (think Luther at the Diet of Worms – here we go again!). When the cardinals weighed in and convicted Galileo, three of the ten refused to sign the verdict which was rendered as “vehemently suspected of heresy.” While he managed to walk away rather than endure the fiery pyre, Galileo was basically placed under house arrest, where he would live out the remainder of his days.

The author is to be commended for writing such an illuminating biography that includes the good, the bad, and the ugly. One astonishing feature is Rome’s passion for supposedly upholding the authority of Scripture (even though they clearly landed on the wrong side of this issue in their refusal to recognize Copernicanism) but their refusal to embrace the Sola Scriptura principle which led to a host of heretical views including the doctrine of purgatory, the assumption of Mary, and the Mass – to name a few.

Galileo is a real inspiration and a quality educational tool – a welcome addition to the Christian Encounters Series.

THE KIND OF PREACHING GOD BLESSES – Steven J. Lawson (2013)

There is a crisis in the church, a crisis of preaching that is both expository and biblical. Dr. Steven Lawson identifies this crisis in his newest book, The Kind of Preaching God Blesses. And while Lawson takes time to uncover the preaching crisis, the lion’s share of the book is a measured antidote; an antidote that is soaked in Scripture and is focused on the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Kind of Preaching God Blesses is an expanded sermon based on 1 Corinthians 2:1-9 that Dr. Lawson has preached in several settings. The book is comprised of six headings and are summarized as follows:

1. Everything Except the Main Thing

The author reminds preachers that their task is to proclaim Christ crucified. Lawson writes, “Sadly there is enough dust on the average pulpit Bible to write Ichabod upon it.” Indeed, the glory has departed! What is needed is a new Reformation in the pulpit today: “To fulfill this sacred duty, every preacher must proclaim the full counsel of God. Every doctrine in Scripture must be delivered. Every truth must be taught. Every sin must be exposed. Every warning must be issued. And every promise must be offered.”

I can bear witness after serving in pastoral ministry for over 20 years that Lawson’s challenge comes with a price tag. As one who has sought to preach the full counsel of God’s Word, it is a sad thing to admit that the greatest criticism has come when I have proclaimed the doctrines of God’s sovereignty, predestination and reprobation, radical depravity, monergistic regeneration, and of course – the doctrine of hell. But price tag or not, preachers have this mandate before them: “Preach the Word!”

2. Slick Schtick

“To an alarming degree, an increasing amount of preaching these days can only be described as ‘slick schtick.’ By this I mean that form of communication in which the preacher has little to say, but tragically, says it very well.”

Here the author opposes the postmodern trend to tickle the ear and attract seekers by watering down the message. He notes, “Carnal ears will always want to be charmed and not confronted, captivated and not challenged. Those who stand in pulpits must not cave in to these demands, but maintain the apostolic standard of preaching.”

Chapter two is a primer on how not to preach. Using Paul’s model to the Corinthians, the author warns pastors to refuse to preach with superior speech or lofty speech. He repudiates the use of gimmicks in the pulpit. And he warns against the use of worldly wisdom and so-called human wisdom.

3. One Master Theme

The master theme that must resound in every sermon is the person and work of Jesus Christ. For “to preach the Bible means, chiefly, to preach Christ and him crucified.”

In one of my several visits to the former Soviet Union, I walked into a village church and noticed a sign with Russian characters inscribed above the pulpit. I asked the pastor, “What does it say?” He responded with a huge smile, “Oh, David – it says ‘We preach Christ crucified.'” And so must every man who steps up the preacher’s desk on a weekly basis.

Lawson pounds home the importance and necessity of preaching Christ crucified. He notes, “By His vicarious death, Jesus did not merely make salvation hypothetically possible based upon man’s response. He actually saved a definite number of sinners. True preaching declares the cross as the only way of salvation. Those in bondage to sin have been redeemed by the blood of Christ.”

And the author boldly challenges pastors: “Is Jesus Christ the dominant theme in your preaching? In the pulpit, do you magnify His sovereign lordship and saving work? In your ministry, do you continually point your listeners to him? Do you call people to commit their lives to him?”

4. Strength in Weakness

The focus of chapter four is the role of the Holy Spirit as He empowers the preacher. Paul writes emphatically, “And I was with you in weakness and in fear and much trembling, and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (1 Corinthians 2:3–5, ESV).

So pastors must rely exclusively on the Holy Spirit to receive power when proclaiming the truth of God’s Word. Preachers who are empowered by the Spirit, therefore have a God-dependence about them. Additionally, they are passionate about the truth they proclaim. No passion – no preaching.

5. A Sovereign Wisdom

The kind of preaching God blesses is grounded in sovereign grace. Lawson remarks, “There is a foundational truth in preaching that must undergird every message – namely, that God is sovereign over all things. With all Spirit-empowered exposition, God must be proclaimed as the Supreme Ruler over all the affairs of human history.” So biblical preaching entails a strong message of God’s sovereign control over all things which finds its culmination in the cross work of Christ which was foreordained before the foundation of the world.

This chapter is especially encouraging to me – for over the years I have been challenged by some who questioned my emphasis on sovereign grace. Indeed, the proclamation of sovereign grace is not a mere footnote to the ministry of proclamation; it stands at the very center of a solid preaching ministry!

6. Marching Orders

Dr. Lawson concludes with an exhortation to preach with distinctly Trinitarian messages. Faithful pastors proclaim Christ crucified, emphasize the ministry and power of the Holy Spirit, and draw the attention of listeners to the predestinating work of the Father. This is the kind of preaching that God blesses.

Summary:

The Kind of Preaching God Blesses is not a typical homiletics text, however it does speak to the topic of homiletics. Most preaching texts will prescribe specific nuts and bolts of biblical exposition. Lawson’s work serves as more of a stimulus – a “holy shove” if you will. It is less of a play book and more of a prescription book. Indeed, this book is the book that pastors everywhere need to read and re-read, absorb, study, and take the contents to heart. It is not a “t.v. dinner” that serves up empty calories that refuses to satisfy. Rather, this work is something akin to a prime rib feast with all the trimmings. Some will be put off by Lawson’s approach. Others will discount it as old and archaic. But those who ignore the message of this book, do so to their own detriment. This little book is destined to explode in the hearts and minds of hundreds of pastors around the world.

This little book is destined to explode in the hearts and minds of hundreds of pastors around the world. I am excited to see how God will use this valuable book; one that should be in the library of every pastor as a forceful reminder that concerns the magnitude of the preaching task.

5 stars

RECKLESS – Jeremy Camp (2013)

From time to time, a Christian artist will release an album that is special – one the grabs the hearts and inspires. Jeremy Camp’s new release, Reckless is such an album. Anyone that follows Jeremy Camp will confess that he is the real deal. Camp is an authentic man of God with a heart for young people. While he continues to remain musically relevant, the lyrics in his songs keep getting better and better. There is a depth of transparency, boldness for Christ, that is layered in gospel-centered tones.

The title track thunders with conviction as Camp wears his gospel-centeredness on his sleeve:

I wanna be reckless
Cause You are endless
I wanna be shameless
And shout Your greatness
I will not be afraid
To surrender my way
And follow who You are
I wanna be reckless, reckless

The Way You Love Me points listeners to the sovereign King who died for the sins of everyone who would ever believe:

Beautiful
The servant and creator
The Son of Man
Born to die for strangers

We learn to love one another
Through the love of the Father
Who gave a righteous King

Free is a fast-moving gospel anthem that celebrates the freedom that Christ brings:
Covered by Your mercy
Captured by a hope that will always remain
I can stop and breathe now
Resting in the shelter of Your name
You reached out to me
And now I sing

And I am free
And I am free
My sin was wrapped around me
Trying to drown me
You have set me free
And I am free
And I am free
The chains that held me tightly
Are finally lifting
You took this weight from me

We Must Remember, in my mind is the most moving track on the album. Camp glories in the penal subsitutionary atonement that is set to slow driving rock that builds throughout the song which ends in a crescendo that gives glory to God:

We must remember
That You have forgotten
And You don’t remember our sins anymore
We must remember
That You have forgotten
And You, You died once and for all

You are the God that bore our shame
You are the taker of our pain
And we know that You are, yes You are
The one true life we need

You are the pure and spotless Lamb
You are the only Great I Am
And we know that You are, yes You are
The God of the redeemed

Reckless is an album worth getting. I anticipate it to be used is a great way to the glory of God in the months to come!

CHURCH ZERO: Raising 1st Century Churches Out of the Ashes of the 21st Century Church – Peyton Jones (2013)

Here’s one I almost missed – and I would have missed out big time! The cover looks emergent – not interested. The promo line reads something like this: “a punk-rock approach to the pressing issue of gaining ground as rapidly as the early church” – not interested. However, a quick scan in the acknowledgments caught my attention. One of the author’s heroes is Martyn-Lloyd Jones. Now I’m interested. Then I learn that the author is a church planter in the U.K. Now I’m really interested. With family roots in the U.K. and a deep admiration for men like John Bunyan, John Owen, and C.H. Spurgeon, my heart has been saddened for many years to see the decline of the church in the land of my forefathers. Anyone who has a passion to reach these people for Christ has my attention!

Church Zero: Raising 1st Century Churches Out of the Ashes of the 21st Century Church by Peyton Jones is a warning to the church; it is a warning to stop playing church. Much like a fired-up football coach on the sidelines, Jones tosses the challenge flag and alerts the church to some dangers he sees; dangers that have plagued the church for quite some time. One danger is the propensity for pastors to build their own “personal empires.” Scripture demands something altogether different, namely – the expansion of God’s kingdom. The author confronts the typical model found in many mega church structures (and I would argue that this same mentality is smoldering in the hearts of many smaller churches as well):

1. Get more people

2. More people = more money

3. More money = more toys

4. More toys – more ways to get people

5. Get more people (rinse and repeat)

Some churches clean up this formula by exchanging “toys” for “tools.” Now the model is “sanctified” so to speak. If the formula for success doesn’t ring a bell, perhaps the formula for failure will:

“Fewer people = less money = fewer toys = less ability to get people, which equals less money again.” Jones rightly argues, “Church can become a pastor’s own personal tower of Babel in which he refuses to spread out and multiply to the glory of God. Babel teaches us that bigger is not always better.”

Jones essentially argues that we need to stop quibbling over the meaning of the word “apostle” and get busy doing the work of apostles – which means church planting. He stands alongside Paul the apostle in pleading with churches to do the work of the ministry fully equipped with apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers.

The author maintains, “The pastor-only club is killing the leadership of the church. Guys are burning out, losing their families, sabotaging their marriages, or simply going back to selling used cars. It’s time those of you in ministry got your life back.” So Jones proceeds to unpack the essence and make-up of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers – each of which “pulls on the average believer to do something that he wouldn’t normally be equipped or constrained to do.” The takeaway is this: People must be mobilized for ministry. Part of that mobilization involves recognizing the giftedness in people and releasing them to minister to the flock and reach lost people.

Church Zero is earthy and even a bit crude at time – so was Martin Luther. This book will make some people mad – sometimes John Calvin upset people (sometimes he still upsets people!) Church Zero will convict – much like Spurgeon sermon. Some will question the approach and tone of the author. Some may even assign false motives. But at the end of the day, when all the chips have been played, readers will be thankful that Peyton Jones wrote this book. He asks the right questions and gives solid biblical answers. His heart for church planting is on every page. My hope is that God will use this book for his purposes and awaken a new breed of church planters who proclaim God’s truth without apology and spark a new reformation in our generation; a reformation that is fueled by revival that is generated exclusively by the Holy Spirit.

Church Zero concludes with these stirring words: “Every church reformation has turned the tide of battle so that the church was charging through the barbed wire on the offensive, instead of hiding in foxholes on the defensive, praying that the shelling would stop … All church reformers shared on thing in common with every man who has ever spilled hid blood on the field of battle; they valued victory for the cause more than their own lives … I believe that the church’s final hour will be its finest hour if it has the stomach for waging war to drive back the gates of hell.”

HOW SHOULD I LIVE IN THIS WORLD? – R.C. Sproul (1983)

How Should I Live in This World by R.C. Sproul is a primer on ethics. The author settles the chief ethical question at the beginning of the book: “There is a right and there is a wrong. The difference between them is the concern of ethics … Ultimately we seek a knowledge of the character of God, whose holiness is to be reflected in the patterns of our behavior. With God there is a definite and absolute black and white.” Sproul’s approach is refreshing in a world that is awash with moral relativism, situational ethics and pragmatism.

The author makes it clear that the basis for Christian ethics is divine revelation: “We assert boldly that God has revealed to us who He is, who we are and how we are expected to relate to Him.” He continues by demonstrating the consequence of abandoning God’s Word: “The departure from divine revelation has brought our culture to chaos in the area of ethics. We have lost our basis of knowledge, our epistemological foundation, for discovering the good.” This commitment to autonomy is the seed bed of sin. When the creature rebels and declares independence from the Creator, he commits cosmic treason.

The remainder of the book examines several ethical questions of special concern to Christ-followers including materialism, capital punishment, abortion, and the conscience. How Should I Live in This World is a needed reminder in a day that is drowning in ungodly worldviews. Students especially should be encouraged to read Sproul’s short book and interact with these crucial questions. One will be challenged to embrace the principle of Sola Scriptura. Indeed, Scripture is our highest authority.

SIMPLY CHRISTIAN: Why Christianity Makes Sense – N.T. Wright (2010)

N.T. Wright has generated some controversy over the last several years. That’s putting it mildly. His views concerning the so-called new perspective on Paul have drawn the attention and criticism of well-known authors like John Piper. But his book Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense jettisons that whole debate. I found the book to be thought-provoking and helpful on many levels.

Wright explores what he calls the “echoes of a voice,” a yearning for justice, spirituality, relationships, and beauty. Each one of these quests, while basic to the human condition eludes us and appears to be just beyond our grasp, yet each will be attainable one day as Christ makes all things new. This is the essence of Part One. He takes each theme and likens them to the “opening movements of a symphony” which alert readers to echoes that are still to come.

Part Two seeks to set forth the basic theological framework about God and the revelation of his Son, Jesus Christ and his plan to rescue sinners from their sin and renew or reshape creation. Wright explores themes the relate to the kingdom of Christ and living by the Spirit.

Part Three explores what it means to follow Jesus, lean into the Holy Spirit and ultimately “advance the plan of this creator God.” Wright dispels the notion that the main purpose of the Christian faith is to live, die, and then go to heaven. Rather, we are called to be “instruments of God’s new creation, the world-put-to-rights which has already been launched in Jesus and of which Jesus’s followers are supposed to be not simply beneficiaries but also agents.”

One of the things I appreciate most about Wright’s work is his interaction with other worldviews. In Schaeffer-like fashion, he contrasts historic Christianity with deism, pantheism, and panentheism – to name a few. He sorts through various options and shows how the Christian faith is the only viable option. In many ways, Simply Christian is an introduction to biblical theology with strong apologetic arguments along the way. In other ways, it is an introduction to spiritual formation – alerting readers to the riches found in Christ and the power of his resurrection and beckoning them to find their satisfaction in Christ.

The author concludes by challenging readers: “We are called to be part of God’s new creation, called to be agents of that new creation here and now. We are called to model and display that new creation in symphonies and family life, in restorative justice and poetry, in holiness and service to the poor, in politics and painting … Christians are called to leave behind, in the tomb of Jesus Christ, all that belongs to the brokenness and incompleteness of the present world. It is time, in the power of the Spirit, to take up our proper role, as agents, heralds, and stewards of the new day that is dawning.” This is a book that deserves careful attention. Like a child who longs to explore the countryside, I plan to return for another visit — for there is more to explore and understand.

4 stars