Here is the table of contents:

Preface: Our Man Godfrey—R. Scott Clark

I. Historical

1. Christology and Pneumatology: John Calvin, the Theologian of the Holy Spirit—Sinclair B. Ferguson

2. Make War No More? The Rise, Fall, and Resurrection of J. Gresham Machen’s Warrior Children—D. G. Hart

3. God as Absolute and Relative, Necessary, Free, and Contingent: the d Intra-Ad Extra Movement of Seventeenth-Century Reformed Language About God—Richard A. Muller

4. “Magic and Noise:” Reformed Christianity in Sister’s America—R. Scott Clark

5. Karl Barth and Modern Protestantism: The Radical Impulse—Ryan Glomsrud

II. Theological

6. Reformed and Always Reforming—Michael S. Horton

7.  Calvin, Kuyper, and “Christian Culture”—David VanDrunen

8. History and Exegesis: The Interpretation of Romans 7:14–25 from Erasmus to Arminius—Joel E. Kim

9. John Updike’s Christian America—John R. Muether

III. Ecclesiastical

10. The Reformation, Luther, and the Modern Struggle for the Gospel—R. C. Sproul

11. The Reformation of the Supper—Kim Riddlebarger

12. Preaching the Doctrine of Regeneration in a Christian Congregation— Hywel R. Jones

13. Integration, Disintegration, and Reintegration: A Preliminary History of the United Reformed Churches in North America—Cornelis P. Venema

14. Epilogue: The Whole Counsel of God: Courageous Calvinism for a New Century—W. Robert Godfrey

Bibliography

Index

Contributors

Blurbs:

Through his teaching at, and leadership of, Westminster Seminary in California, Robert Godfrey has had a significant impact both on the confessional Reformed churches at large and upon the lives and ministries of many pastors and leaders. These essays, by an esteemed group of friends and colleagues, are a fitting tribute to his life‘s work and, indeed, a helpful resource on the history, theology, and practice of the faith which he himself has done so much to promote.”

— Carl R. Trueman, Professor of Historical Theology and Church History, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia

Most great theologians and historians of the past are moving targets, so that we speak of the ‘early’ and the ‘later’ man. John Calvin is a notable exception. In this, as in many other ways, Dr. W. Robert Godfrey emulates his sixteenth-century mentor. In the decades that I have known him, Dr. Godfrey has been a consistent Calvinist, a worthy mentor, and an engaging friend and conversationalist with a fascinating array of diversified interests. His doctrine and life are a seamless piece of his seminary vision for comprehensive, consistent, Christocentric, and committed Calvinism. Editors Scott Clark and Joel Kim, together with the prestigious Reformed authors of this unusually insightful and provocative festschrift, have done a marvelous job in showcasing this vision from a variety of angles….Bob is eminently worthy of this page-turning festschrift, and it is worthy of him. If you are interested in growing on issues that relate to the cutting edge of the Reformed faith today, read this book. You will be informed, edified, challenged, and inspired.”

— Joel R. Beeke, President of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids

Preaching Like Calvin is the newest addition to the Calvin 500 Series from P&R Publishing. These 289-pages contain 16 sermons which were (all but one) originally delivered at the Commemorating Calvin Conference, July 9-11, 2009 in Geneva, Switzerland. The sermons cover a variety of topics—from Predestination and The Christian Life, to The Offices of Christ and Calvin’s Cherished Text—by a host of speakers including Iain D. Campbell, Edward Donnelly, Sinclair B. Ferguson, Martin Holdt, Hywel R. Jones, Steven J. Lawson and Derek W. H. Thomas. As is said in the book’s introduction, “Preaching Like Calvin faithfully preserves the original sixteen sermon texts, including their original ‘shape’ and, in some cases, brief preaching notes and preaching outlines.” Editor David W. Hall notes that the “goal has been for the written versions of the sermons to mirror the oral form in which they were delivered, thus ensuring, as much as possible, that the written word is a facsimile of the spoken word.” Because of this, the reader is able to experience the sermons to their fullest, in book form.

Preaching Like Calvin begins with a foreward by Rev. Eric Alexander, which, though brief, outlines three great characteristics of John Calvin—a man of “Gigantic Intellect,” “Extraordinary Industry,” and “Remarkable Godliness.” This 3-page forward succeeds in whetting the appetite for the readings to come. Beginning the sermons, David W. Hall opens with a message which summarizes Calvinism under three points (“The Glory and Sovereignty of God,” “The Fall of Man,” and “Calling to the World”). In the third sermon of the book, Henry Luke Orombi examines the question, “Who is the faithful servant whom the Master has set over his household?”—a message laced with the urging passion to proclaim the Word of God; followed by Bryan Chapell, who looks at the doctrine of predestination with the focus on its blessings—reminding us that “predestination is meant to bless believers’ hearts.” In chapter 6, Peter A. Lillback discusses All the Glorious Offices of Christ “as taught by the apostle Paul and explained by Calvin;” while W. Robert Godfrey’s follows up with his message which focuses on Calvin’s Cherished Text—John 17:3. In chapter 12, Joel R. Beeke discusses Cherishing the Church by examining The Church’s Status, The Church’s Substance, and The Church’s Success. Martin Holdt addresses John Calvin and Psalm 110, and Edward Donnelly looks at what it means to be More Than Conquerors. The book finishes with a message delivered by Derek W. Thomas entitled Bowing Before the Majesty of God—a very powerful message which looks at God’s Incomprehensibleness, God’s Sovereignty, and God’s Glory—a perfect ending thought for this collection of sermons.

Initially upon hearing about these sermons, which were preached at the 500th Anniversary celebration of John Calvin, I wasn’t sure what to expect, thinking that perhaps they would all be messages about Calvin himself. I realized immediately upon beginning Preaching Like Calvin that this wasn’t the case! These messages, though celebrating Calvin’s life and what he has done in contribution to Christianity, focus on many different aspects of the doctrines he taught—but most of all, focus on the Christ he loved and lived for. Because of this, these messages not only give us a glimpse into Calvin’s life, but also bring to us thoughts and applications for every man’s Christian walk. With so many sermons on such a variety of topics, this book is great to pick up and read at any given time, and also serves as being a great resource for the doctrines and teachings of Calvinism.

Preaching Like Calvin is a fantastic book, full of engaging expositions, thoughts, and truths that are applicable to any Christians’ life. You don’t have to be an expert on Calvin to be able to appreciate what is presented through these sermons. Although “these messages provide a current apology for the vitality of Calvinism, and are exemplars to modern audiences of what living Calvinism looks like and sounds like today” (David W. Hall), they are not delivered in a way that is hard to understand or “over one’s head.” Some hear the name Calvin and think they are about to read a whole lot of hard-to-grasp theological terms; but in this collection, we are clearly presented gospel truths in an applicable and comprehensive way. Because of this, I would feel confident recommending this book to anyone—student, parent, preacher or layman. Overall, Preaching Like Calvin will prove to be a great addition to anyone’s collection.

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Introduction: Lukan Authorship of Hebrews is the newest addition (volume eight) in the New American Commentary Studies in Bible and Theology published by B&H Publishing, bringing much discussion to whom the authorship of the book of Hebrews should be given. Who wrote The Letter to the Hebrews is a question that will most certainly go unanswered and will continue to cause much debate until the second coming of Jesus Christ. A number of respected theologians have differed in opinion on the authorship of Hebrews since the letter was written. Some have argued for the authorship of Paul—including Pantaenus, Clement of Alexandria, Augustine, and Jerome. While others in the early church—such as Terullian—disagreed and fought for the authorship of Barnabus. Other theologians, like the German Reformer Martin Luther, brought a new idea of authorship penned by Apollos; then some years later in the Reformation the great biblical exegete John Calvin would note the stylistic similarities between Luke’s writings and Hebrews. Calvin was persuaded that Luke note only wrote the letter to the Hebrews, but did it with no Pauline influence. Over the past 500-years, more articles and essays have been written on the topic of Hebrews authorship than the previous 1,500 years before the Reformation of the protestant church. Yet still it seems that scholars continue to add something new to the debate of who is was that wrote one of the greatest sermons of all time, The Letter to the Hebrews.

Summary: Although newly published this year, Dr. Allen’s book was started over 25-years ago when he was just a sophomore student. When asked to write a 10-page paper, which was supposedly to show his writing creativity, Dr. Allen chose to write on the authorship of Hebrews. Little did his English professor know that such a paper would intrigue his thought for the rest of his life and his future studies.  In 1983 Dr. Allen entered The University of Texas to study under linguist Dr. Robert Longacre to write on “The Authorship of Hebrews.” Although Dr. Allen would graduate just years later, it would take him another 20-years to continue his study on the authorship of Hebrews which finally morphed into this book, Lukan Authorship of Hebrews and the forthcoming title (to be released later this year) Hebrews: The New American Commentary.

The book is broken down into seven chapters. It begins by giving the historical survey of the authorship of Hebrews, as Dr. Allen starts his development of the Lukan theory. In chapter two, Dr. Allen reviews the arguments for Barnabus, Apollos and Paul, as he examines the vocabulary used within the letter to the Hebrews and notes its differences from Pauline writing. Following this, chapter three deals with the linguistic argument. It is here that Dr. Allen moves from arguing against Pauline authorship to making his argument for Lukan authorship. He does this in three ways—that is, by showing the lexical, stylistic and text linguistic evidence that Luke was the author of Hebrews. Moving on into chapters four and five is the heart of the book, as Dr. Allen compares the books of Luke and Acts to Hebrews. Chapter six deals with the identity of Luke, which I found most intriguing, as Dr. Allen argues that Luke has a Jewish—not a Gentile—background. He does so using Luke’s previous writings of his gospel account in the book of Acts. From there, Dr. Allen ends with giving a historical reconstruction of Lukan authorship for the book of Hebrews.

The ramifications of this possibility (Lukan authorship) are done in depth, to the point that Dr. Allen’s theory gives a totally new lens to how Hebrews informs the interpretation of the books of Luke and Acts.

Analysis: In my opinion, the best part of David Allen’s book is his treatment on the writing style similarities between Hebrews, Luke, and Acts. This is best seen in the middle section of Dr. Allen’s book—namely chapters 4-6. Here Dr. Allen deals with what he sees to be the three main comparisons within Luke’s writings—which are, the purpose of Luke’s writings, the theology within Luke’s writings, and the identity in Luke’s writings. It is within these three chapter that Dr. Allen compares Hebrews with what  we already know are Luke’s other New Testament writings—his Gospel and the book of Acts.

Conclusion: If you are at all interested in sitting down and reading a book that will take your time and a whole lot of your mind, this is it. I could not see myself wanting to read material like this all the time, however my favorite book of the Bible is Hebrews, so I had a particular interest in this title. After reading Dr. Allen’s Lukan Authorship of Hebrews, I have truly second-guessed my views on who really wrote Hebrews. Since 1976 there has not been one—not one single new theory concerning the provenance of Hebrews combining authorship, recipients, and date. But here Dr. Allen has written an incredibly intriguing book, adding to the theories of authorship to the Letter to the Hebrews.

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As most people in the Reformed faith know, July 10th is equivalent to an International Holiday for those that are Calvinists. In 2010 it will have been 501 years ago that John Calvin – possibly the greatest of all Theologians – was born in Noyon, France. 500 years later, in 2009, twenty-three leading Calvin scholars spoke from the international symposium in the historic Auditoire in Geneva, Switzerland (July 6-9, 2009). Here, those that gathered would enjoy listening to stimulating lectures, current research, and in-depth analyses from some of the finest experts on John Calvin during this Calvin500 Tribute Conference.

For those who missed this once in a lifetime opportunity and were not able to attend the Calvin500 conference, P&R Publishing – with the editing of Dr. David W. Hall – has made available the 23 lectures which were delivered by Calvin scholars, dealing with three main subjects:

Calvin’s Times: Wiiliam A. McComish, Robert M. Kingdon, John Witte Jr., Henri A. G. Blocher, Isabelle Graessle, Hughes Oliphant Old, Terry L. Johnson, George W. Knight III, and James Edward McGoldrick.

Calvin’s Topics: Douglas F. Kelly, Richard Burnett, R. Scott Clark, Anthony N.S. Lane, David H. Hall, Jae Sung Kim, A. T. B. McGowan, and Michael Horton.

Calvin Today and Tomorrow: Richard C. Gamble, Darryl G. Hart, William Edgar, Jae Sung Kim, Bruce L. McCormack, and Herman J. Selderhuis.

Theses scholars gathered to speak for one week, presenting their lectures in historic environs to celebrate the contributions of the Genevan Reformer. Their articles cover John Calvin’s theology, soteriology, and ecclesiology, as well as his doctrines of assurance, worship in the pulpit, church discipline, and his high view of the Scriptures. They go on to further examine John Calvin as a Frenchman, his political thought, Calvin the liturgist, and Calvin’s view of eternal life. Other articles explore Calvin’s impact on the arts, Calvinism in Asia, and the influential women in Calvin’s life. As Dr. Al Mohler writes in the forward to this book, “The gathering of scholars in Geneva in 2009 was not occasioned by merely antiquarian interests, but by a sense of Calvin’s continuing relevance.”

The positive side of this title is that it is meant for the scholar who wants to really dig in deeper to specific topics of Calvin’s life, thought, and legacy. This collection of lectures is ideal for people wanting to know more about Calvin’s life, his influence in society during his time, and how he still influences society throughout the entire world today.

If one is looking to know more than just the five-points of Calvinism, I’d recommend first reading Calvin’s Institutes. Following that, I would recommend volume one of the Calvin500 Series by P&R Publishing (Theological Guide to Calvin’s Institutes: Essays and Analysis Edited by, David W. Hall and Peter A. Lillback), before coming to this collection. However, for anyone ready for this book, they are in for a fantastic read and can prepare themselves for enlightening analyses by some of the world’s greatest scholars on John Calvin. An additional bonus, of course, is that the reader can sit in awe while reading, and be spending only $30 for this book, as opposed to the $6,000 it cost to hear these lectures live. Along with simply being a great read, this book also helps serve as a resource for years to come – for students in seminaries, pastors in churches, and scholars that teach, or for those that just want to better understand the man named John Calvin – this book is a perfect resource for all.

Out of any current books I have read, Tributes to John Calvin provides one of the most comprehensive, informed, and rounded assessments of Calvin’s thought and theology today. This anthology commemorates John Calvin the way the reader today should know Calvin. More than five-points, more than just one of the Reformers, and more than just a guy that wrote a lot, Calvin was a man of the Word – a scholar like no other – who left a legacy that the church needs to know more of. For scholasticism, Tributes to John Calvin adds 23 more lectures to your library of Calvin; and is perfect for those particularly hard to find issues one may come across in research, making this a much-recommended book for anyone – be it teacher, preacher, scholar, student or layman.

Salvation to the Ends of the Earth: A Biblical Theology of Mission by, Andreas J. Köstenberger and Peter Thomas O’Brien, InterVarsity Press, P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515, 2001, 351 pages, $26.00.

Positively

First and foremost, the most positive side to Köstenberger and O’Brien’s book is the section which focuses on the biblical books of Luke and Acts.  Oftentimes theologians look at the man of missions – the Apostle Paul – as their number one example.  They look at his work, who he was, what he did, how he related to the cultures, and of course what his mission to the Gentiles was, in order to come up with their definitions of mission.  In Salvation to the Ends of the Earth, I thoroughly enjoyed the time spent looking at the writer of both Christ’s and Paul’s missions – the Apostle Luke.  This section on the Lukan writings does a great job describing God’s mission through the coming of Jesus Christ, and how that was applied to the church’s mission (namely through the historical records of the New Testament Church found throughout the book of Acts). Köstenberger and O’Brien also key in on the important passages that played a role in the transition of the mission of God in the Old Testament to that of the New.  Looking at Lukan books this way lays out a historical time-line for the reader to see what took place during Christ’s incarnational ministry here on earth, and how it brought about the mission that would then be done by the church.

Another point of great importance is found in the authors’ dealing with the book of Acts, specifically, looking at how the mission of the gospel was spread among Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria.  In this, Köstenberger and O’Brien concentrate on how Luke focused on the promises that were given to Abraham, and how this then ran throughout Luke’s writings (p. 137-8).  This is then broken down further in the sermons of Peter, Stephen, and Paul, throughout the key passages which they highlight.

What is most important overall in this section is the understanding that the Gospel of Luke cannot be read without Acts, and likewise, that Acts cannot be read without the Gospel of Luke; they go hand-in-hand if you are looking for a proper biblical theology of mission (p. 111-2). For example: the writers do a great job of explaining that you cannot properly understand Jesus Christ’s command in Acts 1:8 without first reading Luke’s account of Christ’s mission (p. 111). Furthermore, understanding that the early church’s mission is found in what Christ did Himself during His earthly mission (that is, what He did in order to give the Spirit), Luke’s books – both his Gospel and the book of Acts – must be seen as a historical record of the mission of Christ, and the giving of the mission to the New Testament church. In all, Köstenberger and O’Brien seem to see that the book of Acts and the Gospel of Luke are the most helpful and clearest perspectives of the mission of God during Christ’s time, and also for that of the New Testament church today.

Another positive side of this title is the section on John. It seems that over the past 10 years both the Gospel of John, and John himself, have gotten much flack for “not being missional.” Köstenberger and O’Brien hit right at that point – that John is missional in his Gospel. They seem to understand that this mistake of viewing John as non-missional is mostly because of Matthew’s Great Commission, and Luke’s Gospel, which is then followed by the historical value that Acts brings to the theology of mission. Köstenberger and O’Brien see the importance in what John is writing, and also see John’s focus on Jesus’ mission here on earth. In this section, instead of dealing with certain passages the way they did in their previous chapters, the authors lay out the events and topics of Christ’s earthly work, and how they relate with mission. In doing so, they focus on Christ’s humanity while on earth, and how He played out the mission of His Father in the bringing about what was to come. They do this by focusing on the truth that the gospel’s primary interest lies in Christ’s relationship with His Father, and not the ontological nature (p.204).

After dealing with this, the focus is then turned from Christ’s mission to the community of His disciples, to the disciples then going out and living what Christ gave them for their communities (p. 204-22).  A key point in this section is found as the authors point out that the Gospel of John never once focuses on the disciples’ work, signs, etc., in the way the other Gospels do. Instead, John focuses on Christ’s mission – both His own earthly mission (John 1-13) and the giving of His mission (John 14-21).   

Negatively

Like most biblical theologies I come across, this book seems to have purposely (or unknowingly) neglected the Old Testament.  Time and time again biblical scholars spend countless words in their writings dealing with the New Testament, and do not spend enough time dealing with the Old Testament.  Here, Köstenberger and O’Brien have spent barely 50 pages looking at the Old Testament’s theology of what mission is, and well over 200 on the New Testament’s theology of mission. Why is this happening so commonly? Is there a lack of mission in the Old Testament? Or is it the lack of dealing with the whole canon equally? It most certainly is not the lack of God’s mission in the Old Testament. For example: if one is looking for a proper understanding of a biblical theology of Mission in the Old Testament, Christopher Wright spends more than 75% of his massive 581-page book The Mission of God looking at the Old Testament.

Another negative aspect of Köstenberger and O’Brien’s title is that they say that Jonah is not a missionary (p.44-5) – something I personally do not agree with. They believe that saying Jonah was a missionary is “going too far.” To me, I feel as though the prophets were, in some way, missionaries to Israel and even to other nations from time to time. Regardless, the authors spent barely one page defending their argument that Jonah is not a missionary, and were therefore quite lacking to convince me of their view.

Lastly, Köstenberger and O’Brien seem to be in disagreement with many Missiologists as they do not believe that the second-temple period of Judaism was missional (p.55-71), nor had a mission at all. I completely disagree with this. I personally felt that their statement, “while the Christian canon itself provides little (if any) information regarding mission in the second-temple period” (p.55) is absurd. Were there not still thousands of synagogues carrying out the same purpose, and countless priests carrying out the same mission they were called to? Furthermore, why in Acts 2 did Peter have to defend the new mission of Pentecost against that of the Old mission, which the Jews were still trying to carry out? I could be wrong, but it seems that this distinction they make is largely due to their separation in eschatology – that is, the Old Testament and New Testament having separate eschatology (p.232-250). I say this based on how they conclude their ending sections on “The Second-temple Period” and how they conclude Revelation as well. It seems that they see the second-temple period as the ending times for Israel; and also see that both the nation of Israel and the New Testament church have separate ends in their missions. In this, they then separate eschatology. How this affects their Old Testament interpretation is that it then creates first-temple mission and second-temple eschatology, which I personally do not see as clear as they try to make it.

Another flaw in thinking that second-temple Judaism was not missional is that it hints that the mission that was given by God was not carried out. God’s mission that started in Genesis 3:9 and Genesis 3:15 was still existing, and yet saying second-temple Judaism was not missional argues whether or not God’s covenant people were still in His mission (Genesis 10). Were not the Lord’s people still waiting for their Kingdom (Psalm 72)? Was not Israel looking for their expansion and shalom (Isaiah 45:22)? Just because they did not keep their covenant with the Lord did not mean that the Lord (and some of the Lord’s chosen nation) did not continue to keep covenant. On this subject, I’d personally rather spend the time reading Walter Kasier’s Mission in the Old Testament: Israel as a Light to the Nations.

Jesus Christ relentlessly divides the world into two. There are houses built on a rock, and on sand. There are sheep, and there are goats. There is wheat and there are tares. There are trees that bear fruit, and there are thorns and thistles. And, according to Jesus in Matthew chapter 25, there are wise virgins, and there are foolish virgins; and the one you are makes all the difference here now, and in eternity.

I first came across the name Thomas Shepard while reading Jonathan Edward’s classic Religious Affections. Edwards quotes Shepard in Religious Affections more than he quotes any other author—in all of Edward’s books combined. However, it was not this recommendation from Edwards that inspired me to read Shepard’s book. The words that Edwards quoted struck my heart particularly deep, and revealed to me that I tended to trust God wrongly; that I tested myself according to my culture, that I would often times try to make my election sure by mental assent and not a full, vibrant faith and love towards the Lord. It was Thomas Shepard that revealed to me by the scriptures that a foolish virgin could have just as easily passed my tests, and then the fear of God drove me to get a deeper understanding of the differences between those beloved by God and regenerated by His Spirit, and those who—as Shepard says—love the Lord Jesus only from the teeth outward.1

At first, the size of the book and the language both make it appear that reading it may seem like a burdensome task, but I would like to propose that it shouldn’t be. Dr. John Gerstner in the foreword says, “Don’t read it. Study it, a few pages at a time; decipher it… It may not save you, but it will leave you in no doubt if you are saved, and even less if you are not!” We ought not try to just read through The Parable of The Ten Virgins. When your motive is to finish the book rather than understand it—it does become burdensome. But if your motive is to learn from the faithful expositions of God’s Word, and if your motive is to have assurance about the things of God, and if your motive is to fight to enjoy Christ here and to be prepared in the hereafter then this book is not a burden; it’s a blessing.

The book is a collection of Shepard’s sermon notes on the Parable of The Ten Virgins found in Matthew 25:1-13. He takes you verses by verse, sentence by sentence, and word by word. Though the work is a little over six-hundred pages, Shepard does not repeat himself. The points of doctrine always seem reasonable, and are never forced. It is never boring, especially when you realize his sermons are directed to you.

The Parable of the Ten Virgins is a parable that covers much of the Christian life. This is precisely the reason why Shepard has written so much concerning it. It affects how we view the church, sin, wasting our time, and assurance of salvation. It affects how we view the most important of things.

Lastly, I think this book has a prophetic message to our current generation. In every church there are foolish virgins who believe they await our Lord and it will be well with them. But the Lord knows them not, and the foolish virgins will be shut out at last—and they don’t know it! They lack oil in their vessels, but they either don’t notice, or know where to buy without price! We must not let them perish in ignorance by our slumbering. Oh, that we would wake, and pray that we ourselves do not fall into temptation, and that the knowledge of the Lord would spread through our churches and the earth—in hope that some foolish virgins would wake and get oil in their vessels before he comes to them in death or at the end of time.

The Earnest Communicant

Retail Price: $6.00/RHB Price: $4.00 Paperback, 48 pages

ISBN 978-1-60178-069-0

Available by October 31

Publisher’s description:

This booklet provides devotional material, aimed to prepare one’s heart for partaking of the Lord’s Supper. It is designed for daily preparation the week before Communion service. Each day contains a brief meditation, several points for self-examination, a number of challenging resolutions, and a prayer. Over the course of the week, you will cover topics such as repentance, faith, holiness, God’s Word, prayer, Christ’s sufferings, and love.

Endorsements:

“Through warm meditations, searching examinations, heartfelt resolutions, and moving prayers, Ashton Oxenden presents us with just what we need as earnest communicants to seek God’s face in Christ with passion for each day of the week preparatory to Communion.” —Joel R. Beeke

“For those who do, The Earnest Communicant will be our great help. Gently and graciously it will lead you to see your need afresh—but also to see that Jesus Christ is more full of grace than you are of sin. Ashton Oxenden knew this well and teaches us afresh that, at the Lord’s Supper, Christ stands at the door and knocks. If anyone opens the door, He will come in and share the supper with them. Our Lord Jesus Christ welcomes and receives sinners at His Table!” —Sinclair B. Ferguson

Author Information: ASHTON OXENDEN (1808–1892) was evangelical minister in the Church of England, and served as the Bishop of Montreal.

Here of recent I have gotten into the Theism, anti-thesim, creation, etc. type books. This book however caught my eye (not only because it is one of EP’s only few “good covers”) but the table of contents seemed quite amusing. Chapters like;

Sooty and the universe (Who made God?); Yogurt, cereal and toast (Can science explain everything?); Stringing it all together (Searching for a theory of everything); Pouring concrete (Foundations and hypotheses)/ Ferrets and fallacies (A brief critique of God, the failed hypothesis); Defining God (What do we mean by ‘God’?); Starting with a bang (Cosmic origins);Steam engine to the stars (Time and the hypothesis of God); Peeling onions (law in conscience, nature and society); Cosmic chess (The origin of the laws of nature); Over the moon (Natural law and miracles); Information, stupid! (The origin of life); Life in a cake mixer (The origin of living organisms); The tidy pachyderm (A critique of neo-Darwinianism); The mighty mutation? (Can mutations create?); The second shoe (Man and his mind); Man and his Maker (Man, morality and redemption).

You get the picture. However the book although humorous, goes against the claims of scientific atheism, and does it well.

Reviewed by Rev. David H. Kim, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York  said the following,

“It has been a pleasure to read this book. I don’t mean to sound overly flattering, but Dr Andrews has done the world a great service by adding this to our shelves. I am impressed by the way he has maintained the integrity of both science and theology, revealing comfort in both fields. I have been waiting for a book just like this to recommend to others – one that I don’t feel compromises theological or scientific integrity and truth.     The “God hypothesis” will be unpalatable to many, but to those who have sincere questions this book will provide an invaluable apologetic. There is so much science and theology in the book and yet the writing style makes difficult and complex concepts accessible. While there were a few sections that were challenging to understand, the book as a whole is easy to read and well-written.

I appreciated the exposing of the reductionistic tendencies that atheists are forced to adopt, thus limiting their ability to conceive the wonder and beauty of the material universe. I also appreciated how unscientific “science” can be and how we should be wary of those who use/abuse the name of science to promote unscientific assumptions and conclusions. I really appreciated the explanation of quantum physics and how the author makes complex physics understandable and entertaining. This was one of my favorite chapters.”

Reviewed by Rev. Abraham Cho, Fellowship Group Director, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York.

“If you have been looking for a thoughtful, cogent and accessible counterpoint to the recent flurry of publications by the so-called New Atheists, you need look no further than Edgar Andrews’ Who Made God? Rather than offering an ad hoc response to the assertions made by Richard Dawkins and the like, Dr. Andrews instead asks us to consider a different way in to the conversation – to approach belief in the biblical God as a thesis in and of itself, one that is worthy of our thoughtful consideration.

He asks us to apply the methodology of hypothesis to the question of God to see how it fits – and, in fact, it proves to fit remarkably well. With great clarity and rousing humour, Dr. Andrews applies the thesis of God to questions like the problem of time, the nature of humanity and the question of morality – and demonstrates how belief in God has both simple elegance and far-reaching explanatory power.”

Reviewed by Daniel Webber, Director, European Missionary Fellowship.

“Starting with the hypothesis of God, Professor Andrews sets out to demonstrate that the existence of the God of the Bible makes better sense of what we can actually learn from science than does atheism. On his way to this conclusion he also points out the scientific and logical inadequacies of evolutionism. He succeeds in doing so with a deceptively light touch – but there is nothing lightweight about either his analysis or the rigour with which he pursues his case. This is apologetics at its best: immensely instructive for the Christian and utterly devastating for the atheist.”

My Thoughts: If you are looking for a short little book that is to the point on the Lord’s Prayer R.C. Sproul’s newest little title goes through it line by line. Dr. Sproul goes through the model of Christ example in how we believers are to pray to our Father. My Favorite part of the whole book is chapter one dealing with, “How Not to Pray.” The chapter deals with: Avoiding Hypocritical Practices, A Facade of Hypocrisy, Avoiding Pagan Practices, and Praying to a God Who Already Knows.

In a day and age that Christians can often try to pray like they are some “holy-roller” or show themselves as if they know more then the guy next to them in their prayers, Dr. Sproul starts by showing exactly what not to do before dealing with Christ example in what to do. No matter for the young convert in learning how to pray, or the seminary student that studies all day, the book is a great reminder of the example from Scripture that christ has given his church to follow.

NEWLY PUBLISHED – FIRST, AND ONLY, ENGLISH TRANSLATION

John Calvin is generally thought of as the greatest theologian of the Protestant Reformation or as a gifted Bible commentator whose insights into the text of Scripture are still highly valued today. Yet it is not widely known that the greatest obligation Calvin felt was not to his fellow scholars, nor even to his students, but to the ordinary people – citizens of Geneva and persecuted refugees, shopkeepers and merchants, the young and the old – who crowded St. Peter’s Church no less than ten times a fortnight to listen to his sermons in French.

Calvin’s sermons have lain for too long in the shadow of his commentaries. In seeking to correct this imbalance, it should be remembered that a sermon serves a very different purpose from a commentary. While explanation and interpretation are enough for students, they are never enough for a congregation of sinners. That is why Calvin’s sermons always combine the essential elements of all true preaching – exposition, exhortation and practical application. So let the reader be warned: this volume contains lively preaching! Calvin aims to awaken the conscience and also demands life-changing action. Is it any wonder that such preaching was used by God to bring spiritual renewal on an unprecedented scale to the people and nations of sixteenth-century Europe?