John Calvin: For a New Reformation

calDerek W.H. Thomas and John W. Tweeddale, Ed. John Calvin: For a New Reformation (Wheaton: Crossway, 2019), 608 pp.

Over two thousand years of church history have produced a wide assortment of Christian leaders, theologians, and churchmen.  One man who exerted an enormous amount of influence in his day was John Calvin. In recent years, theologians and pastors have revived an interest in Calvin including, A Godward Gaze: The Holy Pursuit of John Calvin, by yours truly.

The most recent and comprehensive offering is an edited volume by Derek W.H. Thomas and John W. Tweeddale. This massive volume that spans over 600 pages includes contributions from well-known scholars such as Stephen Nichols, Steven Lawson, Burk Parsons, Paul Helm and others. The afterward by R.C. Sproul is a fitting conclusion from the man who should be credited for restoring an interest in Reformed theology in the twentieth-century church. Dr. Sproul’s words are especially moving and significant, since this is his last published writing before his death in 2017.

John Calvin: For a New Reformation is arranged in two parts. Part 1 explores the life and work of John Calvin. The contributors share a wealth of biographical information on Calvin including his early years, conversion, and friendships. Especially significant is the piece by Steven Lawson that summarizes the expository preaching of Calvin.

Part 2 explores the teaching of John Calvin. The contributors weigh in on several doctrinal subjects including the providence of God, the person and work of Christ, predestination, the sacraments, perseverance of the saints, and Calvin’s approach to eschatology. Edward Donnelly’s chapter, The Christian Life stands out the most. Donnelly helps readers see the pastoral heart of Calvin, which is undergirded by four central features of the Christian life: self-denial, cross—bearing, meditation on the future life, and the present life. Donnelly shows how Calvin lived an authentic and transparent Christian life, which inspired thousands of people in the sixteenth century and continues to inspire people in our day.

Additionally, Donnelly shows readers how Calvin lived in constant fellowship with the Lord and submitted daily to his lordship. “We are God’s,” writes Calvin. This acknowledgment was the very essence of Calvin’s Christian life. Also, Calvin was committed to mortifying idolatry and serving other people.

Over the years, I have read dozens of books about the French Reformer, John Calvin. This book is among the best. Thomas and Tweeddale should be commended for assembling such a worthy team of writers who celebrate a man that continues to wield a mighty influence on individual lives and the church of Jesus Christ.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Encouragement for the Depressed – C.H. Spurgeon

Charles H. Spurgeon, Encouragement for the Depressed (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2020), 102 pp.

He was the greatest preacher of the nineteenth century. And he is only of the most important preachers in the history of the church. Heralded as the Prince of Preachers, this man was also afflicted with a host of physical ailments for most of his adult life. He was also a victim of depression. His name – Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Encouragement for the Depressed by C.H. Spurgeon is one of the recent titles in Crossway’s Short Classics series. Designed to preserve classic texts from some of the most well-known Christian writers, the series also aims to gain some new readers.

Spurgeon’s essay is an exposition of Zechariah 4:10a, which says, “For whoever has despised the day of small things …” The work is divided into two distinct parts.

Encouragement for the Depressed

The first part sets out to encourage Christians who battle depression. Spurgeon, as noted above, fought depression throughout his life. Yet, he is quick to remind his readers to refuse to be governed by feelings. “He that lives by feelings,” writes the preacher from London, “will be happy today and unhappy tomorrow; and if our salvation depended upon our feelings, we should be lost one day and saved another, for they are all as fickle as the weather, and go up and down like a barometer.”

Spurgeon assures the despondent that God is with them. “Satan trembles when he sees the weakest saint upon his knees, “ writes William Cowper. Indeed, the grace of God abounds when the people of God are drowning in sorrow. And Zechariah affirms, “Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the LORD.”

The Minister’s Fainting Fits

Part two speaks candidly about the propensity for depression, even among God’s people. Spurgeon specifically notes that pastors fall prey to this vicious monster. Always the realist and biblicist, Spurgeon says, “Glory be to God for the furnace, the hammer and the file.”

Encouragement for the Depressed is a powerful antidote. This short book is a call to arms for Christians who battle despondency. There are no therapeutics here. Spurgeon only offers the cure which is nothing less than the Lord Jesus Christ and his gospel.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Strange New World – Carl R. Trueman

Carl R. Trueman, Strange New World (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2022), 204 pp.

The sexual revolution of the 60’s fundamentally changed the cultural landscape in North America. Yet, percolating beneath the surface was an even more diabolical worldview; a worldview that many are unfamiliar with. Even those who have engaged with the history of Western civilization may be jolted when the implications become clear.

The Strange New World by Carl R. Trueman pulls back the veil and alerts us to the underlying ideologies that have catapulted our current views about self and sexuality in the Western world. Trueman shows readers in a precise and shocking way how men have forgotten God and presents reasons for their tragic decision. This book is essentially a retooling of Trueman’s remarkable work, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. It will serve the needs of a wider reading audience and provide a more accessible platform, which in the end should reach more people.

The driving argument of Trueman’s work is this: “The issues we face today in terms of sexual politics are a symptom or manifestation of the deeper revolution in selfhood that the rise and triumph of expressive individualism represents.” The goal of the author is achieved and is undergirded by meticulous research from multiple angles – theological, sociological, psychological, and beyond.

Strange New World should be celebrated for its candor and penetrating analysis of the human condition. It sufficiently lays the groundwork for more study and deeper discussions in the coming days.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

The Bucket List

The Bucket List, starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson is about two very different men who are both diagnosed with terminal diseases. One of the men, upon learning of his condition, decides to draft a “bucket list.” The list would include achievements and things to see before he “kicks the bucket.” After viewing the film, I began to re-visit my bucket list:

  • Attend a baseball game at every major league park in America
  • Visit the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London
  • Walk the streets of Geneva where John Calvin ministered
  • Stand at the Castle Door in Wittenberg
  • Climb the stairs of the Lincoln Memorial

A bucket list is an important tool because it helps a person discern what is most important in life. What is on your bucket list? Who would you want to see? What would you want to accomplish? Where would you travel?

We know that the Apostle Paul had some important goals in his life. But if Paul had a bucket list, what would be on it? Philippians 1:12-18 is a window into the heart of Paul:

I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel, so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will. The latter do it out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice …

At the top of Paul’s “bucket list” is that the gospel of Jesus Christ would spread to every man and woman and every boy and girl in great power to the glory of God. And indeed, the gospel spread like wildfire in the ancient world. The gospel would eventually explode in Europe and Africa and China. The gospel would ignite all around the world! What caused this gospel to progress with such great power?

The Gospel Progressed Because of Ferocious Persecution

The Method God Used

Imagine serving on a team that was commissioned to help promote the flourishing of the gospel. What methodology would you employ? Would you initiate a massive advertising campaign? Would you pump money into a missions program? Or perhaps you enlist the help of an army of volunteers?

In the first century, God providentially used Paul’s imprisonment to cause the powerful spread of the gospel. This persecution came as no surprise to the apostle and should not surprise us either. Jesus told the disciples,

Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour” (Matt. 10:16–19, ESV).

One of the methods that God used and continues to use to advance the gospel is persecution.

The Meaning Behind God’s Method

Paul refers to the advance of the gospel. The word advance comes from the Greek term prokopei which refers to the progress of an army. It comes from a verb that means “to cut down in advance.” It describes the removing of any barriers which would hinder the progress of an army.1 Paul’s imprisonment took place so that the gospel might advance in a mighty way. The end result is that people would benefit greatly and God would be greatly glorified.

Verse 13 describes a flourishing gospel; one that became known “thought the whole imperial guard.” “The praetorian guard,” writes John MacArthur, was likely a group of nearly ten thousand soldiers who were stationed throughout Rome to keep the peace and protect the emperor.”2 Paul glories in this gospel which became known “to all the rest” for the great name sake of Jesus, his Savior.

The Model Prisoner

The apostle Paul was chained to a Roman guard (Acts 28:16). Consequently, the guards circulated in and out as their shifts changed which gave Paul a remarkable opportunity to bear witness to Christ. No doubt, the guards would have witnessed his body language and learned things about him that would have otherwise been difficult if not impossible. In short, God used this model prisoner to serve as an ambassador for Christ.

No less than one hundred years later (A.D. 155), Polycarp of Smyrna would also serve as a model prisoner and give his life for his Savior. After his arrest, the judge ordered Polycarp to renounce Jesus. The judge promised that if he would swear by the emperor and curse Christ, he would be set free. Polycarp’s response is priceless: “For eighty-six years I have served him, and he has done me no evil. How could I curse my king, who saved me?”3When the judge threatened to burn him in the pyre, Polycarp simply answered that the fire would only last a moment, whereas the eternal fire would never be extinguished. After Polycarp was tied to the post in the pyre, he gazed into the heavens and prayed aloud, “Lord Sovereign God … I thank you that you deemed me worthy of this moment, so that, jointly with your martyrs, I may have a share in the cup of Christ … I bless and glorify you.”4The gospel progressed because of ferocious persecution. Notice two principles that will serve us in our generation.

First, remember to maintain an eternal perspective. God’s in his providence permits persecution so that Christ might be proclaimed. We may reason, “In order for the gospel to progress in a country like China, communism must be rooted out.” But the reality is this: Communism continues and the underground church is flourishing! God’s providence may close doors that open others doors. Paul maintained an eternal perspective. He maintained his passion for the spread of the gospel and made the best of every opportunity.

Second, allow persecution to strengthen your resolve for proclaiming the gospel of Christ. When you are ridiculed for believing in a personal Creator who fashioned the world, be encouraged. Continue to proclaim the truth, despite the ferocious persecution. When you are mocked for believing in absolutes, be encouraged in that truth and proclaim it despite the ferocious persecution. And when you are challenged for believing that Jesus is the only One who can forgive sin, be encouraged in that truth and proclaim it, despite the ferocious persecution.

How did the gospel progress in the first century? It progressed in large measure because of ferocious persecution. But the gospel also progressed because it was fearlessly proclaimed.

The Gospel Progressed as it was Fearlessly Proclaimed

The persecution of Paul not only helped advance the cause of the gospel; it strengthened the resolve of Christians to preach the uncompromising message of the gospel.

The Definition of Proclamation

The Greek term for preach in verse 15 means “to be a herald; to proclaim with authority.” This message must be listened to and obeyed. Paul sets forth this imperative to herald the truth in 2 Timothy 4:2-4. He writes,

Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.

Martin-Lloyd Jones says, “The most urgent need in the Christian church today is true preaching; and as it is the greatest and most urgent need in the church, it is the greatest need of the world also.”5 And Steven Lawson adds, “True biblical preaching is authoritative in nature and body proclaims God’s Word without compromise or apology.”6 Such is the call of every Christ-follower who fearlessly proclaims the truth.

The Defining Marks of Proclamation

Two marks, in particular, emerge in Philippians 1:14-17. First, proclamation must be confident. Peithō, the Greek term which is translated, confident means “to have faith; to be persuaded of a thing concerning a person – in this case, the Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 8:38-39 highlights the confidence that believers enjoy: “For I am sure (peithō) that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38–39).

Second, proclamation must be bold and fearless. Paul stresses the importance of speaking the word boldly without fear (Phil. 1:14). The word translated bold means to “endure; to have courage.” Dr. Luke refers readers to the courage of Paul the apostle, who proclaimed the truth “with all boldness and without hindrance” (Acts 28:31). Such a ministry marks the one who is committed to the proclamation of God’s Word.

William Tyndale was a man who modeled the marks of bold proclamation. Born in 1494, he attended Oxford, Magdalen Hall, and Cambridge Universities. A student and adherent of the Protestant Reformation, Tyndall engaged in numerous debates with Roman Catholics. One Catholic leader mocked Tyndale: “We are better to be without God’s laws than the Pope.” Never content to put up with heresy, Tyndale replied, “I defy the Pope and all his laws. If God spare my life ere many years, I will cause the boy that drives the plow to know more of the scriptures than you.”

Tyndale was a confident, bold, and fearless theologian and scholar who translated the Bible into an early form of Modern English, likely with Luther’s help in Wittenberg. But he was arrested and imprisoned for 500 days. He was tried for heresy and treason in a kangaroo court and ultimately convicted. He was sent to be strangled and burnt at the stake in the prison yard on October 6, 1536. The final words were, “Lord, open the king of England’s eyes.”

Unfortunately, not everyone has the courage of Tyndale. In fact, Paul tells us that there are two different kinds of preachers.

The Different Kinds of Preachers

Some preach Christ “from envy and rivalry” (v. 15). Paul explains that this man proclaims Christ out of selfish ambition. Such a man is not sincere and proves to be unfaithful in the final analysis (v. 17).

Some preach Christ from “good will.” Paul says the motivation of this man is love (v. 16). Such a man understands that the apostle was providentially placed in prison for the defense of the gospel.

The Gospel Progressed as it was Faithfully Proclaimed

“What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in that I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice” (Phil. 1:18).

The gospel refers to the “glad tidings of the kingdom of God” or the “good news.” It is the proclamation of the grace of God which is manifest and pledged in Christ.

Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary. He lived a perfect life and was tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). He perfectly kept the law of God. Jesus died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; he was buried and raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3). Jesus was glorified and seated at the right hand of the Father. He bore the wrath of God on the cross for everyone who would ever believe (Rom. 3:25). He redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (Gal. 3:13). Jesus became our substitute on the cross (2 Cor. 5:21). He reconciled us to God by making peace by the blood of his cross (Col. 1:20). He made us right with God so that we might have peace with God (Rom. 5:1). And Jesus forgives sinners and enables them to stand holy in the very presence of God.

CONCLUSION

In the first century, the gospel progressed because of ferocious persecution, fearless proclamation, and faithful preaching. It was the gospel of Jesus Christ that motivated the apostle Paul. Proclaiming Christ and hearing that Christ was being preached was his passion. The apostle writes, “But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).

I had the pleasure of visiting a small church in a former communist country a few years ago. The pastor was so proud of the little structure which was smaller than most elementary school classrooms. I noticed a sign above the pulpit, written in a language unfamiliar to me. I asked the pastor, “What does that sign say?” With a smile on his face, he said through a translator, “We preach Christ crucified!”

What would it look like if each one of us committed ourselves to fearlessly and faithfully proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ? What would it look like if we committed ourselves to fearlessly and faithfully proclaiming the gospel in the sphere where God has placed us?

The gospel progressed because of ferocious persecution, fearless proclamation, and faithful preaching. Will you make it a goal to proclaim the gospel of Jesus fearlessly and faithfully, despite the persecution that surrounds you? May gospel proclamation become a part of every Christ-followers bucket list!

  1. See William Barclay, The Letters to the Philippians, Colossians, and Thessalonians (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1975), 20. ↩
  2. John F. MacArthur, Philippians (Chicago: Moody Press, 2001), 61. ↩
  3. Cited in Justo L. Gonzalez, The Story of Christianity – Vol. 1 (San Francisco: Harper Collins Publishers, 1984), 44. ↩
  4. Ibid, 44. ↩
  5. Martin Lloyd-Jones, Preaching and Preachers (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1971), 9. ↩
  6. Steven J. Lawson, Famine in the Land: A Passionate Call For Expository Preaching (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2003), 42. ↩

Susie: The Life and Legacy of Susannah Spurgeon – Ray Rhodes

Ray Rhodes Jr, Susie: The Life and Legacy of Susannah Spurgeon (Chicago: Moody Press, 2018), 294 pp.

Behind every great man is a great woman – or so the saying goes. The same could be said about the mighty men of God: “Behind every godly man is a godly woman.” Such is the case of the Prince of Preachers, Charles Haddon Spurgeon. In his book, Susie: The Life and Legacy of Susannah Spurgeon, Ray Rhodes Jr. introduces Spurgeon’s wife and reveals how this godly woman stood behind the famous Baptist pastor.

Very little has been written about Susannah Spurgeon. This makes Rhodes’ book somewhat of a landmark book that will educate and encourage students of Spurgeon. The book is an inside look at the Spurgeon’s marriage and ministry and helps readers understand how they navigated their way through trials, including physical suffering and persecution.

The book reveals the stalwart faith of Susannah Spurgeon and highlights her rock-solid support of her husband. It also shows how she ministered to poor pastors in London and around the world through her Book Fund and was instrumental in planting a church in the memory of her beloved husband.

This work is best summed up in Susie’s timeless words, “Look to Jesus.” “This message,” writes the author, “she offered to non-Christians and Christians alike. She would say to every Christian grieving over, fighting against, and hating their sin, or suffering through physical or emotional pain to look to Christ for help.”

Susie: The Life and Legacy of Susannah Spurgeon is a deeply moving book – one that is sure to inspire many and encourage anyone who is enduring the loss of a loved one. Susannah Spurgeon is a model of Christian maturity who lived Coram Deo, ”before the face of God.”

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality – Nancy Pearcey

pNancy Pearcey, Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions About Life and Sexuality Grand Rapids: Baker, 2018, 337 pp.

The publication of Nancy Pearcey’s book, Total Truth: Liberating Christianity From Its Cultural Captivity sent shockwaves throughout the evangelical world and help equip a new generation of apologists. Total Truth confronted the notion that scientific knowledge and moral knowledge are separated into two domains. The lower story includes objective truths that are public and valid for all people. This is the realm of empirical science. These truths are true and verifiable. The upper story includes the realm of moral knowledge which is private, relative, and subjective. Hence, the so-called unified concept of truth was obliterated and separated into two domains.

Pearcey’s previous works, Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, and Meaning and Finding Truth: 5 Principles for Unmasking Atheism, Secularism, and Other God Substitutes have also left an indelible mark on the church and culture at large. The impact of these books on me personally, cannot be overstated. My suspicion is that many people would concur.

Nancy Pearcey’s newest offering, Love Thy Body: Answering Hard Questions about Life and Sexuality pick up where the other titles left off. The overarching goal of Love Thy Body is to “uncover the worldview that drives the secular ethic.” Ultimately, the book is designed to “show that a secular morality doesn’t fit the real universe.”

Readers familiar with Pearcey will quickly see the influence of Francis Schaeffer on her thought. It was Schaeffer who originally exposed the so-called “fact/value” split which has created a fractured epistemology that continues to be propagated today.

Pearcey shows the practical outgrowth of this fragmented worldview (or the two-story worldview) by pointing to several contemporary culture matters including abortion, euthanasia, “same-sex marriage,” and transgenderism. She helps readers understand how these various worldviews have been smuggled into our culture and links each of them to the two-story dichotomy.

Readers will be encouraged and challenged to walk through the argument of Love Thy Body and will be better equipped to not only contend with culture but also reach out to people who have been deceived by a pagan worldview.

Readers will discover that Pearcey’s argument is not combative. Rather, her heart cries for people who have been co-opted by this deviant worldview. She pleads with readers to reach out and love people with Christ-centered love: “Christians must present biblical morality in a way that reveals the beauty of the biblical view of the human person so that people actually want it to be true.”

Love Thy Body is a book that is filled with description and prescription. Facts and figures run through the book but the author is not content to leave her readers with data alone. She sets forth a workable prescription which is set on helping people and healing them at the deepest level. Therefore, “We must work to educate and persuade on a worldview level,” writes Pearcey. Such an approach is imperative if Christ-followers have any hope of reaching a lost world with the saving message of the gospel. Running through the book is a mindset that Pearcey, no doubt, learned from Schaeffer, namely, sharing the gospel with a tear in one’s eye.

Love Thy Body is riveting, challenging, educational, a shot to the heart, a challenge for the mind, and bold push for the feet. It will spark controversy in some venues and may even precipitate debate in the local church. Surely, this kind of debate is necessary as Christians seek to influence culture for God’s glory.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Nothing But the Truth

Scripture warns, “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ” (Col. 2:8, ESV). As followers of Christ, we need to be vigilant, constantly on guard, and discerning good from evil. One of the ways that the worldly system “takes us captive” is by marginalizing truth or eliminating it altogether. It is important to understand that the worldly system militates against the Christian view of truth. Is it any wonder, then, that the importance of truth is highlighted so much in Scripture?

David Understood the Importance of Truth

King David acknowledged that since God is truth, he expects his people to live truthful lives. He writes, “Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being, and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart” (Ps. 51:6, ESV).

The implications of David’s words are massive as we consider our inward motivations, conversations, and the way we conduct our lives. Ask yourself, “Am I a person that is committed to the truth?” “Does the love for truth undergird my life and worldview?”

Paul Spoke Often About the Truth

The apostle begins the book of Titus with these revealing words: “Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, for the sake of the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth, which accords with godliness” (Titus 1:1, ESV) . Notice the relationship between truth and godliness. Indeed, they are intimately connected. “The truth of the Gospel,” writes Warren Wiersbe, “changes a life from ungodliness.”1 As Christians, we unapologetically adhere to the truth. We must not only adhere to the truth; it must stand at the very center of our lives.

Additionally, Paul referred to the church as ” … a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15, ESV). The church, then, is God’s appointed means of declaring the word of God to the nations. Ask yourself, “How is God using me to declare the truth to my community?” “How is God using me to declare the truth to the nations?”

Paul Warned People Who Abandon the Truth

Scripture is packed with examples of people who abandoned the truth. Paul writes, “This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth” (Titus 1:13–14, ESV). Tragically, this trend continues in our generation. Young people are turning away from the truth by the thousands. College students are manipulated and deceived by professors who peddle a worldview that opposes historic Christianity. Hearts are cold to God’s revealed truth. Ask yourself, “Am I pursuing the truth or am I fleeing from the truth?” “Do I have a sinful unbelieving heart that is turning away from the living God?” (Heb. 3:12).

Peter Pressed Home the Importance of Truth.

Peter is an interesting character to be sure. Here is a man who denied Jesus, the very embodiment of truth – three times! Yet, he was forgiven and restored and was used in a mighty way to spread a passion for the truth of God:

Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart … (1 Peter 1:22, ESV).

Ask yourself, “Do I obey the truth?” “Am I established in the truth?”

John Had a Passion for the Truth.

The apostle John was a warm-hearted Christian thinker who had a passion for the truth. Listen to how this God-centered man expressed his love for the truth:

Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth (1 John 3:18, ESV).

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth (3 John 4, ESV) .

Jesus Spoke Plainly About the Truth

Finally, we turn our attention to Jesus, the One who made the startling claim that he was in fact the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). The importance that Jesus attaches to truth cannot be denied:

Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth (John 17:17, ESV).

… and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:32, ESV)

Conclusion

All spiritual growth is based on a knowledge of truth. Yet countless people, even people in the church are discarding truth and walking down paths that fail to honor and glorify God. Al Mohler warns, “Departing a Christian worldview leads to a distrust of final truth and a rejection of universal authority, which then hides the way back to the God of the Bible.”2 As followers of Jesus Christ, may we cling to the truth, proclaim the truth, and defend the truth. May we stand with the men and women throughout redemptive history who were willing to lay their lives down for the great cause of truth. May the cry of our hearts be, “nothing but the truth!”

  1. Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 260). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. ↩
  2. Albert Mohler, The Gathering Storm: Secularism: Culture, and the Church (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2020), 11. ↩

The Expulsive Power of a New Affection – Thomas Chalmers

Thomas Chalmers, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2020), 72 pp.

“The heart is not so constituted, and the only way to dispossess it of an old affection is by the expulsive power of a new one.” So says Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847), professor of philosophy and theology at the University of St. Andrews and the University of Edinburgh.

The heart is the target of Chalmers in his short book, The Expulsive Power of a New Affection. Part of the Crossway Short Classics, this work shows the inner workings of Chalmers and the solution he proposes for sinners. The author uses 1 John 2:15 as a launching pad that will be of immense help for his readers:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.

Chalmers maintains that there are two approaches for Christians who seek to obey this first. They may either flee from the world or foster godly affections. The second approach is not only preferred; it is the approach that renders power to followers of Christ. Chalmers holds that the former approach is “altogether ineffectual” while “the latter method will alone suffice for the rescue and recovery of the heart for the wrong affection that domineers over it.”

The author develops this theme as prescribes the expulsive power of a new affection. In other words, only a heart that has been regenerated may move in the direction of obedience. And by definition, a regenerate heart is one that is being renewed day by day (2 Cor. 3:18). The regenerate heart is being sanctified by the Spirit.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.

Blackout: How Black America Can Make Its Second Escape from the Democrat Planation

Blackout: How Black America Can Make Its Second Escape from the Democrat Plantation by Candace Owens will irritate and offend many people. But this is a book that needed to be written. More importantly, this is a book that deserves to be read and internalized.

Owens explores how liberals have consistently manipulated and marginalized black Americans. She tackles controversial subjects ranging from family, faith, and feminism. But she also focuses her attention on socialism, education, media, culture, and slavery.

Owens is an unashamed black conservative woman. She has a dizzying intellect and a charismatic personality. But the most impressive thing about Owens is that she is bold and courageous. She is willing to tell the truth about the liberal elites and is more than prepared for the fallout.

The author is deeply in touch with the plight of the black community. And she links that plight to the purposeful ploy of leftists who have and continue to pander to blacks and hold them captive to their liberal worldview and ideology.

Owens passionately encourages black America to stand and be counted. She urges black America to make its second escape from the Democrat plantation: “If black America finds its free voice; if there is a blackout from the liberal establishment, and if the occasional voices of those freed from the mental slavery of the left turn instead into a chorus, then black America will finally find that its suffering may turn a corner …”

Owens raises the banner and admonishes black America to reclaim their freedom and move forward with bold and courageous resolve:

The gates of the castle are under attack. We must now batter them down and storm the fortress of the liberal order. Join the ideological battle now. Let us turn the lights off in the liberal establishments of America as we shut the door behind us. Let us make this blackout a reality.

Blackout should be required reading for every thinking American – both black and white and everyone in between. It should certainly be read by every high school and university student. Those who read with an open mind will be challenged and moved to action.

Thanks to Candace Owens for courageously wielding the sword of truth in these perilous times!

The Mission of the Triune God – Patrick Schreiner

Patrick Schreiner, The Mission of the Triune God: A Theology of Acts (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2022), 179 pp.

The Mission of the Triune God by Patrick Schreiner traces the work of the gospel through the book of Acts. “It functions,” writes Schreiner, “as the hinge canonically, bridges the Gospel and Epistles. It recounts the birth of the church age. And its content has no parallel in the New Testament.

The author carefully demonstrates how God the Father works sovereignly in the book of Acts. He shows how Christ lives and rules through the Holy Spirit, which causes the word of God to explode in the hearts and minds of people. Salvation comes as a result of the mighty ministry and forms the church, all of whom are called to serve as witnesses to every ethne to the four corners of the earth.

The author highlights the proactive nature of God in the book of acts, a mindset that followers of Christ must emulate. Dr. Schreiner writes with emphasis, “Witnessing and mission are tasks not complete until Jesus returns. We too are called to be God’s servants, his ambassadors, his delegates, who tell everyone we meet about the hope we have found. Mission is not one of the many ‘programs’ of God’s people but the very telos of God.”

The various themes that Schreiner focuses on in the book help share the theology in the book of Acts. “All doctrine flows from, through, and to this reality,” writes the author. In the end, the Triune God takes center stage and invites the people of God to join him on mission.

The Mission of the Triune God: A Theology of Acts is a riveting and thought-provoking book. The writing is clear and the challenges are pointed. The most recent contribution in Crossway’s New Testament Theology series is being greatly used to encourage and equip Christian leaders. Soli Deo gloria!

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review.