In the wake of the New Calvinist (sometimes called the “Young, Restless, and Reformed”) movement, the adjective Reformed gets slapped on seemingly everything. What does it mean to be Reformed? Is it simply people who hold to a Calvinistic soteriology? Is it . . . Continue reading →
Books
Review: Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy By Gavin Ortlund
It was in seminary that a certain Church history professor (and President of the HRA) taught me about the technical theological distinction between lumpers and splitters. If you are unfamiliar, let me clue you in. There are people who group things together . . . Continue reading →
Review: A New Song: Biblical Hebrew Poetry As Jewish And Christian Scripture, Edited By Stephen D. Campbell, Richard G. Rohlfing Jr., And Richard S. Briggs
And thou, sweet Poetry, thou loveliest maid, Still first to fly where sensual joys invade; Unfit in these degenerate times of shame, To catch the heart, or strike for honest fame; 1 In general, it is accurate to notice that poetry has . . . Continue reading →
Review: Poetry Of Redemption: An Illustrated Treasury Of Good Friday And Easter Poems By Leland Ryken
For a long time I have noticed that I have two sides to my interests and personality. I can be very rational and analytical in my approach to faith and life. I also have a love of the arts, particularly literature and . . . Continue reading →
Review: Grounded In Heaven: Recentering Christian Hope And Life On God By Michael Allen
I remember seeing my first one. It was beautiful, and I could barely take my eyes off of it. There before me on a simple piece of paper lay the answers to so many of my questions. This was the secret, the . . . Continue reading →
Review: The Search For Christian America By Mark A. Noll, Nathan O. Hatch, And George M. Marsden
Christians often mimic the tactics of non-Christians in the social and political realms. For example, the “cancel culture” found in legacy media and social media is also found in evangelical media and Christian social media. American politicians and pundits use scare tactics, . . . Continue reading →
Review: Thoughts on Preaching: Classic Contributions to Homiletic By James W. Alexander
James Waddel Alexander (1804–59) was a Presbyterian pastor and professor who served churches in Virginia, New Jersey, and New York, and labored for a time as a professor at the College of New Jersey. Like his father Archibald, James also served as . . . Continue reading →
Letter and Spirit: Law and Gospel in Reformed Preaching
Preaching begins with Bible reading and interpretation. Before a minister can preach a given text, he must decide what it says. To interpret a passage, the preacher necessarily brings to bear his broader reading of Scripture, a system of doctrine, and the history of interpretation. Continue reading →
Review: The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism By Tim Alberta
The apostle John ended his first letter with a simple command for believers: keep yourselves from idols. Idols, of course, take various forms and shapes. For many American evangelicals today, common idols are political and cultural ones. So argues journalist Tim Alberta . . . Continue reading →
New: Reformed Covenant Theology: A Systematic Introduction By Harrison Perkins
Covenant is an unavoidably and obviously important category in Scripture. Throughout the history of the church, beginning in the very earliest years of the post-apostolic church, there have been numerous attempts to account for the covenants, but it was not until the . . . Continue reading →
Review: Persistent Prayer By Guy Richard (Blessings Of The Faith Series)
“If you want to almost-instantly humble any Christian, ask him about his prayer life,” or so the maxim goes. Prayer is one of those practices of the Christian life which every Christian will affirm in importance; in practice, however, many will struggle . . . Continue reading →
Review: The Case for Christian Nationalism By Stephen Wolfe
The rise of Donald Trump, the renewed call for a “Christian America,” the novel promotion of Christian nationalism—these three things are recent realities in the American political and religious scenes. Indeed, they are related realities. Furthermore, these three realities are not helping . . . Continue reading →
Review: C. S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces, 1956 (Part 4)
This story, much like the story of every man, does not end with Orual’s confrontation with the divine as a judge—reciting her case as a wannabe plaintiff and being given (supposedly) no answer, or worse, divine judgment—as the only possible outcome of her meeting with God. Continue reading →
Review: C. S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces, 1956 (Part 3)
In the first two parts of this analysis of C. S. Lewis’ Till We Have Faces, I laid a foundation by providing a brief summary of the original myth of Cupid and Psyche and noted the similarities between this myth and so . . . Continue reading →
Review: Covenantal Baptism By Jason Helopoulos (Blessings Of The Faith Series)
Another book on baptism? Well, yes. And while this volume may not be the polemical tour de force you were hoping to use to answer every last objection from your questioning Baptist friend, this short book will be an incredibly useful resource . . . Continue reading →
Review: Wisdom for Life, 52 Old Testament Meditations By Michael P. V. Barrett
In 2018, a megachurch pastor wrote, “When it comes to stumbling blocks to faith, the Old Testament is right up there at the top of the list.” This sentiment reflects one of the dangers of not understanding the Old Testament, which is . . . Continue reading →
Review: The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host By David Gibson
“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” Thus begins Psalm 23 in the old King James Version. In an age of ever-decreasing biblical literacy, Psalm 23 remains one of the most well-known passages in Scripture. One gets the sense that, besides being . . . Continue reading →
Review: Expository Preaching By David Strain (Blessings Of The Faith Series)
Upon first glance (and given the title), readers might assume this little book is yet another how-to manual on homiletics and expository preaching. But while this volume is a brief treatment on the subject of expository preaching, it is not written primarily . . . Continue reading →
Review: The Trial of the 16th Century: Calvin and Servetus By Jonathan Moorhead
Jonathan Moorhead (PhD, Dallas Theological Seminary) has taught at The Master’s Academy International in Russia and the Czech Republic. He specializes in church history, theology, and apologetics. Drawing from his expertise, his recent monograph on the trial of Michael Servetus and Calvin’s . . . Continue reading →
Review: Arminius and the Reformed Tradition: Grace and the Doctrine of Salvation By J. V. Fesko
In his work Arminius and the Reformed Tradition: Grace and the Doctrine of Salvation, J. V. Fesko, the Harriet Barbour Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary, Jackson, Mississippi, makes a narrow yet explosive claim—namely, that Jacob Arminius’s (1560–1609) . . . Continue reading →