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PUB DAY REPOST: Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People by Nicholas G. Piotrowski: Looking At The Heart of the Bible’s Narrative

DETAILS:
Series: Short Studies in Biblical Theology
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: March 18, 2025
Format: eARC
Length: 224 pg.
Read Date: January 19-26, 2025

What’s Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People About?

I’m not going to do better, or be more succinct, than the Publisher’s Description:

God’s people, once resting in his divine presence, now toil in exile. The theme of humanity’s expulsion and wandering begins with Adam and Eve, but echoes in events throughout the Bible. Emphasizing the pain of separation from God, exile stories also highlight the hope of resurrection and creation’s imminent restoration back to the Edenic state.

In this addition to the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series, Nicholas G. Piotrowski traces the theme of exile throughout Scripture, giving readers a renewed appreciation for redemptive history and atonement in Christ. Sharing from his 15 years of study, Piotrowski connects the journeys of Abraham, Joseph, and Jesus with tabernacle imagery and other types to illustrate recurring themes of exile from Genesis until the new creation. This accessible volume helps believers understand their own exile and rejoice with the hope that they will one day worship in God’s holy presence.

Part 1: Exile and Death

The first part of the book traces the theme of Exile—beginning in Adam and Eve being exiled from the presence of God and the mountain garden/temple of Eden. Then several expulsions/exiles (with returns) are looked at as recapitulations of these themes, over and over up to the Babylonian exile.

In the last chapter of this section, “Chapter 5: Israel out of the Land,” there’s an extended discussion of the Psalms’ discussion of Exile/Return, seeing it even in the structure of the Psalter. This section (and the footnotes that accompany it for follow-up) is one of the highlights of Part 1 (actually, of the whole book, as I think about it).

Piotrowski does a fantastic job of drawing out the Redemptive-Historical threads running through this part of the canon and tracing their development.

Part 2: Return and Resurrection

For reasons that are generally obvious, the tone and manner of discussion shift a bit—as does the focus—here in the second part, which focuses on the pivotal, epoch-making event in this narrative—the Death/Resurrection/Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He begins with the Gospel accounts of Christ’s life—he applies the metaphor of “foreshocks” to these—his life, his teachings, and his miracles, how they point to the fulfillment of the Old Testament in the “mainshock” of his Death/Resurrection/Ascension. This is followed by the “aftershocks” of the returns from exile experienced by His people in the inter-advental period, leading to the ultimate “ultrashock” of the New Heavens and the New Earth, where the Return to the Garden Temple is complete.

It’s hopeful, it’s encouraging, it keeps the reader focused on the assurance we can gain from the Gospel events while we anticipate the Last Day and Return of Christ.

It’s easy to take John 3 for granted—or to avoid it due to “overuse” (or a perception of it) in contemporary Evangelical writings. But Piotrowski’s discussion in this part of the book was excellent—as was the final chapter on the close of the narrative arc.

So, what did I think about Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People?

Am I wholly convinced by the thesis that the principal drama of Scripture is best understood in the Exile because of Adam’s sin and the Return due to Christ terms? No. But I’m not going to argue against it. And even if I were to do that, it’d be half-hearted at best, because it’s a fantastic way to frame things, and any alternative I could suggest is easily compatible with it. I only mention this because I think some of Piotrowski’s insistence on it being “the” way to read Scripture is a bit too strong.

I do appreciate his use (and frequent footnoting) of some titles from the Essential Studies in Biblical Theology series (particularly, and unsurprisingly, Harmon’s Rebels and Exiles), if only because I couldn’t help thinking of that series as I read this (a common occurrence for books in this series). At the same time, I do admit to preferring this to Harmon’s book. I can’t put my finger on why, but Piotrowski’s discussion better resonated with me (this might also be my favorite book in this series).

My main complaint—and this is not one that most readers will have to put up with—is that the eARC doesn’t come with any of the figures/tables that will be in the published versions. It would’ve been so helpful to see them—or at least it would satisfy my curiosity. That’s such a niche (and self-centered) complaint that you should probably disregard this—I just wanted to whinge about it a bit. Just know if you buy a copy, you’re going to have a fuller experience than I did.

Like the other books in this series, there’s an emphasis in Piotrowski’s work to be accessible—and he really succeeds with that. But that shouldn’t be read as saying that there’s no depth, no challenge to the reading. There is, but the little bit of effort is greatly rewarded and it’ll carry you through the book. There’s plenty to chew on, but plenty of help to do that.

I took more notes that I expected to while going through this book—even now as I look over them, I’m surprised at the ratio of notes to pages. It’s higher than usual for a book of this depth and length. I got a lot out of reading this (and think a re-read would be equally rewarding), and I fully expect I won’t be alone in that.

I strongly recommend this for your personal study and encouragement.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Crossway via NetGalley in exchange for this post which contains my honest opinion—thanks to both for this.

4 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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God of All Things by Andrew Wilson: Ordinary Stuff also tells of the glory of God

By HCNewton

On March 3, 2025

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

God of All Things: Rediscovering the Sacred in an Everyday World

by Andrew Wilson

DETAILS:
Publisher: Zondervan
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
Format: Paperback
Length: 202 pgs.
Read Date: January 12-19, 2025

But instead [God] made a universe filled with things. Objects. stuff Planets, weather, colors, animals, vegetables, minerals. People, complete with noses and kidneys and bodily fluids. It is Curious: an immaterial and entirely spiritual God created a thoroughly material and physical world. Perhaps it should surprise us more than it does…

For Paul in Romans 1, creation reveals God’s invisible power and divine nature. Few of us can stand in front of the Grand Canyon or see a high-definition picture of the Horsehead Nebula without wanting to praise somebody or something for the majesty of what is before us. Some of us will suppress that urge. But those of us who don’t and allow the song of gratitude to swell within us like a storm will find ourselves concluding all sorts of things about our Maker. The God of the Sahara must be vast, boundless, and expansive. The God of quarks must have an unimaginable eye for detail. The God of wombats must have a sense of humor. Everything in creation has theological implications, and one of the joys of being human is figuring out what they are.

What all of these answers have in common is the fact that creation points beyond itself. Things ‘exist not for their own sakes but to draw us back to God. In Augustine’s image, the gifts of God in creation are like a boat which takes us back to our homeland: a means of transport which we can {and should} celebrate but never mistake for the destination itself. C. S. Lewis talks about following the sunbeams back to the sun so that we enjoy not just the object of goodness but the source of good. Creation preaches to us. The things of God reveal the God of things.

What’s God of All Things About?

That extended quotation from the Introduction is basically the foundation for this whole book (he does expand it a little from there). God made things. He uses those things to point to Him in various ways. This book takes 30 of the common, everyday things in this world and shows us (some of) the ways that they pointed to God and His redemptive work in Scripture—fifteen items per testament.

I won’t list all thirty things that get a short chapter devoted to them, but to give you an idea some are: earthuqakes, tools, honey, donkeys, flowers, pots, viruses, and flowers.

An Example

I really don’t know the best way to describe how Wilson approaches these items (although I don’t want to sound like every chapter follows the outline), so here’s a paragraph and change from Chapter 3, “Pigs: The Welcome of God”:

As gentiles, by nature unclean and separated from Israel ourselves, we can feel a certain sympathy for [pigs].

That is not where the similarity between pigs and gentiles stops. The first person who ever preached the gospel to gentiles was the apostle Peter, and he did so only because he saw a vision of a sheet full of unclean animals (Acts 10:9~16)—a vision in which, we may assume, pigs played a starring roleand heard a voice telling him to eat them, since “what God has made clean, do not call common” (v. 15). Non-Jewish people like me got baptized only because Peter saw a bunch of pigs and other unclean animals, and then saw a bunch of gentiles, and then saw the resemblance. “You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with or to visit anyone of another nation,” he explained to the gentiles who had invited him over for a visit, “but God has shown me that I should not call any person common or unclean” (v. 28). That’s a nice way of putting it. Even Peter, not always the most diplomatic of the apostles, had the good manners not to mention that his hosts were the equivalent of a sheet full of pigs, scallops, and snakes.

Not only does that give you a little hint of Wilson’s voice, but it gives a flavor of his approach. That’s from the Old Testament portion, but he’s invoking Peter and events from the New Testament. He looks at the use of whatever item throughout the canon, showing how they’re used in the primary texts he’s considering, what they say about God, they say about redemption and people.

Strengths

There are several, really. Some of the chapters (like Rainbows) seem pretty obvious in the aim and content. The chapter on the Wind, on the other hand, went in directions I wasn’t expecting. But beyond that, what he did in a few pages to describe the work of the Spirit—particularly the discussion of “being filled with the Spirit”—was so rewarding.

The chapter on Salt was also helpful—if only for the discussion of how metaphors can have several interpretations and meanings at the same time. As anyone who has ever heard more than one sermon on Matthew 5:13 knows too well, it’s ripe for interpretation. Wilson wisely encourages readers to embrace the probability that Jesus meant more than one thing by the metaphor of salt.

So, what did I think about God of All Things?

We worship a God of things. The cosmos is filled with them: everyday, mundane, quotidian, humdrum, ordinary things. Sometimes they delight, sometimes they exasperate, and sometimes they escape detection altogether, but whether quietly or loudly, they insistently point beyond themselves to the God who made physical stuff. Everything in creation tells us something about our Creator.

More than once on The White Horse Inn, I heard Rod Rosenbladt say, “God likes stuff [or matter], he made it.” It’s this notion—reflected in this quotation here, or the one that kicked off this post—that is too easily forgotten by modern Christians who (like many others in the last 100+/- years) have adopted a quasi-Gnostic attitude toward matter and spirit. So any book that seeks to remind anyone of that deserves attention.

In many ways, this reminded me of Finding God in the Ordinary by Pierce Taylor Hibbs. But where Hibbs looked at things around him and used them to launch his thoughts God-ward, WIlson looks at things around people in the Bible and uses them to take in the themes from Scripture and launch thoughts God-ward from there. Similar ends, similar means—just slightly different starting points. I’m not suggesting one is superior to the other in any way. In fact, I’m trying to work both exercises into my own life.

It’s a quick read, it’s a fun read (Wilson’s gentle wit and fairly mainstream pop culture references are nice for that), it’ll likely cause you to think of a few things you haven’t before, or will be a reminder that it’s not just the big things in nature that testify to the glory of God (the heavens, stars, and so on), it’s the little things, too (salt, lilies, sparrows, falling hairs)—and things in-between. I recommend this for your attention, it’s fit for High School (maybe younger) and up. Which probably includes you, reader.

3 Stars

The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis: What Can Happen When a Bad Review Copy Falls Into the Right Hands

By HCNewton

On February 23, 2025

In C.S. Lewis, Further Up and Further In, Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Further Up and Further In A Year with C.S.Lewis

The Abolition of Man: Reflections on Education with Special Reference to the Teaching of English in the Upper Forms of Schools

by C. S. Lewis

DETAILS: 
Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Company
Publication Date: September 1, 1978 
Format: Paperback
Length: 91 pg.
Read Date: February 2, 2025

This thing which I have called for convenience the Tao, and which others may call Natural Law or Traditional Morality or the First Principles of Practical Reason or the First Platitudes, is not one among a series of possible systems of value. It is the sole source of all value judgements. If it is rejected, all value is rejected. If any value ts retained, it is retained. The effort to refute and raise a new system of value in its place is self-contradictory. There never has been, and never will be, a radically new judgement of value in the history of the world.

What’s The Abolition of Man About?

This starts off with starts off as a review of a textbook or two, “Teaching of English in the Upper Forms of Schools” (to quote the subtitle). He has strong objections to the direction (and the foundation) these books are taking. From there he shifts into English schooling/thinking in general, and the deficiencies he sees in it and what he fears it means for the nation as a whole.

This centers on the idea that English teachers and schools are abandoning objective truth, which he mounts a defense of while writing about what he thinks will happen to a society that abandons it.

English Education

This begins, as I said (as does the subtitle) by reviewing a couple of textbooks used in English classes in the upper grades. Lewis had been sent review copies of them and took issue with a lot of what he said.

Lewis (in a move I could never duplicate) doesn’t want to seem ungrateful for these copies, so disguises the authors and titles before he starts explaining the problems. I don’t know if his original audience could see through his thin disguises—or if that just became clearer later. I suspect the former.

From what he tells us about these books, I think he was being too generous in his appraisal. This was some lousy curriculum.

I’d have appreciated more along these lines—but I get why Lewis moved on to other things.

The Tao

As Lewis begins to leave the realm of English education toward looking at education—and thinking—as a whole, he begins to utilize and develop his concept of a Tao:

It is the doctrine of objective value, the belief that certain attitudes are really true, and others really false, to the kind of thing the universe is and the kind of things we are.

As the quotation that opened this post indicates, this comes in many names—Natural Law, Natural Revelation, “Traditional Morality,” and so on.

With the Tao, as assumed and/or believed throughout the world for most of human history, we get absolutes. We get objective values, objective truth. As we begin to neglect or throw off the concept of objective truth for subjectivity—or, worse yet, “pure” Reason on its own. We lose the basis of all civilization, the basis of the value of life and individual rights, and so much more.

While I think he could’ve been more thorough in his explanation of the Tao and in explaining his arguments—t’s hard not to look at the world around us today, as it’s developed (devolved?) since the early days of WWII when these lectures were delivered, and not think that Lewis was on to something.

One Issue that Troubles Me

In order to avoid misunderstanding, I may add that though I myself am a Theist, and indeed a Christian, I am not here attempting any indirect argument for Theism. I am simply arguing that if we are to have Values at all we must accept the ultimate platitudes of Practical Reason as having absolute validity: that any attempt, having become skeptical about these, to reintroduce value lower down on some supposedly more ‘realistic’ basis, is doomed. Whether this position implies a supernatural origin for the Tao is a question I am not here concerned with.

As good as this sounds—as reasonable, as open-minded, as whatever you might want to call it—I’m unconvinced that this is a position that a Christian can self-consciously hold (without trying to call into doubt Lewis’ faith, I just think he’s inconsistent on this point).

I have trouble holding that a consistent position regarding Practical Reason—or anything else, whatever “Values” you might choose—having absolute validity separate from the inspired Christian Scriptures is possible. I realize those of us who hold that kind of thinking are a minority in the history of the Church, but I can’t argue myself out of it. Lewis’ attempt to build his argument—his Tao—in this way is the part of this book that keeps me from getting super-excited about it.

The Appendix

The appendix features quotations from a variety of ancient (and less ancient) texts from around the globe illustrating that several civilizations held to certain positions on a variety of issues. This isn’t to prove the existence of his Tao (or whatever you want to call it); it’s to demonstrate that it exists in the way that “everyone” holds to something very much like each other in certain aspects.

I don’t know if I can take it as confidently as Lewis did—but I get what he’s trying to show, and can appreciate it

So, what did I think about The Abolition of Man?

I remember the first time I read this—in 1992 or 1993—and a few times since that this argument, this look toward the objective and the importance of it, while not absolutizing Science or much of anything else, hit me hard, impressed me, and really formed a lot of my thinking.

I wasn’t as impressed this time (at least a decade since my last reading)—don’t get me wrong, it’s good, and I share a lot of the concerns and convictions with Lewis. But I wonder if he goes as deeply as we need today. It’s not enough to argue for a vague absolute—we need to understand the absolute, and where it comes from. There’s also the question of what do we do when we cannot agree on absolutes in a civic society, how do we approach this with wisdom and grace. I believe Lewis would have a lot to teach us—even if I objected to some of it. I understand that given the nature of this book (written version of lectures), his cultural context, and the enemies (literal and figurative) he had in mind, why we don’t get that book here.

Also, even the English curriculum he critiqued is better than a lot of what is given today (by all sorts of stripes of schools).

That said—this is a superior work to The Problem of Pain that takes advantage of Lewis’ strengths in a way the other couldn’t while not exposing many of his weaknesses as the previous book did. He’s got better works waiting for me, and I’m eager to get to them.

3.5 Stars

Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People by Nicholas G. Piotrowski: Looking At The Heart of the Bible’s Narrative

By HCNewton

On February 16, 2025

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People

by Nicholas G. Piotrowski

DETAILS:
Series: Short Studies in Biblical Theology
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: March 18, 2025
Format: eARC
Length: 224 pg.
Read Date: January 19-26, 2025

What’s Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People About?

I’m not going to do better, or be more succinct, than the Publisher’s Description:

God’s people, once resting in his divine presence, now toil in exile. The theme of humanity’s expulsion and wandering begins with Adam and Eve, but echoes in events throughout the Bible. Emphasizing the pain of separation from God, exile stories also highlight the hope of resurrection and creation’s imminent restoration back to the Edenic state.

In this addition to the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series, Nicholas G. Piotrowski traces the theme of exile throughout Scripture, giving readers a renewed appreciation for redemptive history and atonement in Christ. Sharing from his 15 years of study, Piotrowski connects the journeys of Abraham, Joseph, and Jesus with tabernacle imagery and other types to illustrate recurring themes of exile from Genesis until the new creation. This accessible volume helps believers understand their own exile and rejoice with the hope that they will one day worship in God’s holy presence.

Part 1: Exile and Death

Piotrowski does a fantastic job of drawing out the Redemptive-Historical threads running through this part of the canon and tracing their development.

Part 2: Return and Resurrection

It’s hopeful, it’s encouraging, it keeps the reader focused on the assurance we can gain from the Gospel events while we anticipate the Last Day and Return of Christ.

So, what did I think about Return from Exile and the Renewal of God’s People?

I strongly recommend this for your personal study and encouragement.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Crossway via NetGalley in exchange for this post which contains my honest opinion—thanks to both for this.

4 Stars

The Problem of Pain by C.S. Lewis: His First Apologetic Work is a Mixed Bag

By HCNewton

On February 2, 2025

In C.S. Lewis, Further Up and Further In, Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Further Up and Further In A Year with C.S.Lewis

The Problem of Pain

by C. S. Lewis

DETAILS:
Publisher: HarperOne
Publication Date: April 28, 2015
Format: Paperback
Length: 159 pg.
Read Date: January 5-12, 2025

His Omnipotence means power to do all that is intrinsically possible, not to do the intrinsically impossible. You may attribute miracles to Him, but not nonsense. This is no limit to His power. If you choose to say ‘God can give a creature free will and at the same time withhold free will from it’, you have not succeeded in saying anything about God: meaningless combinations of words do not suddenly acquire meaning simply because we prefix to them the two other words ‘God can’. It remains true that all things are possible with God: the intrinsic impossibilities are not things but nonentities. It is no more possible for God than for the weakest of His creatures to carry out both of two mutually exclusive alternatives; not because His power meets an obstacle, but because nonsense remains nonsense even when we talk it about God.

What’s The Problem of Pain About?

This book is an attempt to answer the question, “Why do Bad Thing Happen to Good People?” as well as “Why do Bad Things Happen to Not-Good People, or Animals, or Pretty Much at All?” Why is there suffering among those beings and creatures that God created?

Lewis approaches these questions with a mix of Biblical wisdom, careful thought, compassion, and understanding. And the ability to not go too far (frequently) with his own insight, but to stop and say, “I don’t know.”

This is an honest, if imperfect, attempt to wrestle with these questions, put them in the right context, and assure the world and the Church that there are answers.

Some Weaknesses

This is the work of someone who is still relatively new to the Faith as he wrote it, and that shows. There’s a lot of vaguely Christian speculation. But not quite enough dealing with the text of Scripture to base this speculation on.

Chapter 5, “The Fall of Man,” is a great example of this. It contains a lot of nonsense—and by the end of the chapter, he’d lost me completely (not that I didn’t understand him, I just couldn’t stay with him). Still, I liked most of it, and given the presuppositions he started with and stated (as much as I’d want to tweak them), I could ride along with his argument and enjoy it. The last paragraph of the chapter was okay and went a good way to getting me to stick with the book.

A Few Good Points

I don’t know that I have the patience to work through these ideas—and this would post would end up going in a direction I try to avoid if I did. But I rather enjoyed these quotations and like thinking through these ideas, so let me just paste them here as an example of the highs that this book can hit—and the thoughts it can provoke.

From Chapter 3, “Divine Goodness.”

We want, in fact, not so much a Father in Heaven as a grandfather in heaven—a senile benevolence who, as they say, ‘liked to see young people enjoying themselves’, and whose plan for the universe was simply that it might be truly said at the end of each day, ‘a good time was had by all’. Not many people, I admit, would formulate a theology in precisely those terms: but a conception not very different lurks at the back of Many minds. I do not claim to be an exception: I should very much like to live in a universe which was governed on such lines, But since it is abundantly clear that I don’t, and since I have reason to believe, nevertheless, that God is Love, I conclude that my conception of love needs correction.

From Chapter 6, “Human Pain”:

Confessors as well as martyrs are saved, and some old people whose state of grace we can hardly doubt seem to have got through their seventy years surprisingly easily. The sacrifice of Christ is repeated, or re-echoed, among His followers in very varying degrees, from the cruelest martyrdom down to a self-submission of intention whose outward signs have nothing to distinguish them from the ordinary fruits of temperance and “sweet reasonableness’. The causes of this distribution I do not know; but from our present point of view it ought to be clear that the real problem is not why some humble, pious, believing people suffer, but why some do not. Our Lord Himself, it will be remembered, explained the salvation of those who are fortunate in this world only by referring to the unsearchable omnipotence of God.

From Chapter 7, “Human Pain Continued” (which might be my favorite chapter, although the preceding one is close)

But if suffering is good, ought it not to be pursued rather than avoided? I answer that suffering is not good in itself. What is good in any painful experience is, for the sufferer, his submission to the will of God, and, for the spectators, the compassion aroused and the acts of mercy to which it leads.

So, what did I think about The Problem of Pain?

If any real theologian reads these pages he will very easily see that they are the work of a layman and an amateur. Except in the last two chapters, parts of which are admittedly speculative, I have believed myself to be restating ancient and orthodox doctrines. If any parts of the book are ‘original’, in the sense of being novel or unorthodox, they are so against my will and as a result of my ignorance. I write, of course, as a layman of the Church of England: but I have tried to assume nothing that is not professed by all baptised and communicating Christians.

As this is not a work of erudition I have taken little pains to trace ideas or quotations to their sources when they were not easily recoverable. Any theologian will see easily enough what, and how little, I have read.

Despite many good things Lewis wrote in this work, these two paragraphs that close the Preface might be the truest. Lewis makes some serious errors here, misreading Scripture and showing an ignorance of theology (what he says about Total Depravity is the easiest illustration of this). He’s a layman, he’s allowed (many who read this will be quick to point the same is true of me—and I assure you, I’m just as aware as Lewis was). There’s a part of me that wishes he’d continued in his efforts to not write this.

Still, he did. And I do appreciate him wrestling with so many important ideas here—if nothing else, the way he framed the questions and thought through his answers demonstrates that “The Problem of Pain” can be responded to, can be shown to not be an insurmountable problem. Best of all, Lewis demonstrates that a thoughtful believer can have questions, can struggle, can find things difficult, and yet continue to believe.

Lewis has greater works ahead (I know because I’ve read some of these), and while I ultimately find his work here to be wanting—I respect the effort. I find a lot worthy of chewing on—but sadly, there’s a lot of it that must be ignored.

I do recommend it as a tool to make yourself consider some difficult ideas, and to find some good ways to think about them.

3 Stars

Broken Bonds by Amy Mantravadi: 16th Century Figures Come to Life in This Novel

By HCNewton

On January 26, 2025

In Chet and Bernie, Fiction, General Fiction/Literature, History, Theology/Christian Living

Broken Bonds

by Amy Mantravadi

DETAILS:
Publisher: 1517 Publishing
Publication Date: November 26, 2024
Format: Paperback
Length: 300 pg.
Read Date: December 15-22, 2024

What’s Broken Bonds About?

This is a work of historical fiction focusing on April 1524-January 1525, at what will prove to be a significant period in the German Reformation. The narrative focuses on three men: Desiderius Erasmus, probably the greatest scholar of the era, and a would-be reformer of the Church; Martin Luther, the Reformer (who went further than Erasmus would’ve), and Philipp Melanchthon, a promising young scholar with ties to them both.

The book follows their connections and interactions with each other—as theoretical as some of them might be—as leaders put pressure on all three to sway them one way or the other, to pick up their pen (or lay it down) for an end, to cease their efforts to reform the Church, to increase their efforts to reform the Church (in ways they cannot agree with), and so on.

Martin Luther

Luther is the most well-known of the trio today, for good reason. In this novel we see Luther trying to reason with his former friend Karlstadt as the latter continues to cause trouble for Luther and everyone in their area. Luther is also trying to get more compensation for and more opportunities to teach and write for Melanchthon—for the sake of the young man’s family and the University of Wittenberg, who could use him.

He’s also dealing with some personal issues—how far does he go himself? Does he give up the monastic robe for that of an academic? It’s so much of his identity, he still holds the vows he swore before him, it cost Luther so much personally to follow this path—and despite the upheaval in his life, is he prepared to lay it all aside? This was so excellently done.

We get some glimpses of some of Luther’s multiple medical issues, a little bit of his humor, and a delightful relationship with and interaction with his goddaughter, too. Mantravadi is careful to present us with a human Luther, not some superhero.

Looming over all that Luther does here is an impending intellectual showdown with the one man he’s not sure he wants to debate with, but is steeling himself to lock horns with:

Desiderius Erasmus

Before Luther burst on the stage, it was easy to think of Erasmus as the greatest Christian thinker, writer, and scholar of his time. Erasmus did try to push for some institutional reforms and had many of the same aims as Luther, but he went about things in a less inflammatory way.

He’s been dodging requests and pleas to interact with Luther for quite some time now—but the pressure is mounting and he’s not certain he can do so much longer. Reluctantly, he picks up his pen to compose On Free Will to directly counter some of Luther’s teachings.

We get a very sympathetic view of Erasmus and his interactions with friends and Protestants he interacts with daily. His health struggles are different than Luther’s but painted just as vividly here. One bout of kidney stones, in particular, almost triggered flashbacks to my last one. I found myself really liking Erasmus and pulling for him.

One of Erasmus’ greatest goals—to chill the Lutheran movement, to further promote diverse ideas in the Academy/Church, and to hand off his work to a brilliant scholar—is to get Melanchthon to come to work with him, and essentially assume his mantle when he’s gone.

Philipp Melanchthon

Melanchthon is a struggling academic, just trying to make enough money to provide for his wife and daughter. He loves to be in the classroom (and it shows), but he’s equally open to teaching in other places, too. He sides with Luther, just not as vociferously as some may want—but Luther appears to trust him.

Melanchthon is tempted to take Erasmus’ offer—it’s a dream situation for him, it’s exactly what he wants. But he’s afraid that he’d have to water down or abandon his Protestant convictions and he’s not ready to do that.

His depiction is easily the most relatable, the most appealing—between the way other characters (particularly Erasmus and Luther) talk about him and the way that Mantravadi shows him, you could make the argument that the others are supporting characters in a novel where the young man is the protagonist.

He does frequently seem too much like a 21st-century man rather than one from the 16th. Particularly when it comes to talking about his wife and daughter. But maybe that’s just me. I really liked it, so I don’t care. Hopefully, it’s close to the truth.

The last thing I want to say about Melanchthon is that there’s a scene with a bunch of students for a sort of study club (best way I can summarize it). It is one of my favorite fictional depictions of a teacher and a group of students since John Keating and that ill-fated group at Welton Academy. I don’t want to give you details, but more than I want his family life to be the way that Mantravadi depicts it, I want this to be true.

The S-Word

So, a lot of the subjects of this book—particularly when it comes to health, but even beyond it—are what some would call “earthy.” It wasn’t a pleasant time to live in many ways, particularly digestive. Anyone who’s read much of Luther’s daily life, humor, or personal history well knows that he can be somewhat scatological. The working of his bowels is a frequent topic for him.

Erasmus isn’t much different. Melanchthon, thankfully, is—but not the people he spends time with.

It’s likely not enough to put anyone off—if anything, it might recruit some younger readers But Mantravadi has her characters use vocabulary that Christians in the 16th Century would for these processes and products, even if most 20th/21st Christians would hesitate to use it. Just a word of warning for those who might be put off.

So, what did I think about Broken Bonds?

I went into this with some hesitation—the last two fictional works I read about this time period put me off in a serious way. (one was pre-blog, so I can’t point you at anything I wrote, and I don’t feel like picking on the other again). But I know that Mantravadi has a good reputation among some Church Historians—and even heard her interviewed by one a few years ago, so I felt safe.

I’m so glad that I did—these characters came alive to me in a way that two of them haven’t before (even if I think she handled Luther with kid gloves). She used their positions, arguments—sometimes even words—well in the progress of the novel. There are plenty of footnotes for those who want to dive more into their works. Which is always a bonus in this kind of work (also, footnotes—not endnotes).

The historical detail is there, but not so much of it that you get bogged down in it—the pacing keeps moving at a good clip throughout. Are some of these events overly-dramatized? Quite possibly. Are some of these under-dramatized? Equally possible. It is, in the end, a work of fiction and that needs to be remembered.

It’s a fast-paced read for something in this genre, it’s sympathetic to all its protagonists (even when they’re at odds), there’s good tension—even when it comes to talking about academic pursuits (not the easiest thing to dramatize), and there’s a heart and warmth to it all.

I think this would work for middle school-aged readers, and for most adults, too. You might even learn a little about history and theology while you’re at it. It’s definitely worth the investment of time. I’m more than ready for the second in this duology.

3.5 Stars

Institutes of Elenctic Theology Vol. 3: Eighteenth through Twentieth Topics by Francis Turretin: A Master Class on Theology and Methodology Concludes

By HCNewton

On January 19, 2025

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Yes, this is largely just a reworking of my post about Vols. 1 and 2. It’s not like I’m going to have a lot of different things to say about this, so why torture myself by trying? Still, it’s different enough to justify my time. Hopefully yours, too.

Institutes of Elenctic Theology
Vol. 3: Eighteenth through Twentieth Topics

by Francis Turretin, George Musgrave Giger (Translator), James T. Dennison, Jr. (Editor)

DETAILS:
Series: Institutes of Elenctic Theology, Vol. 3
Publisher: P & R Publishing
Publication Date: February 1, 1997
Format: Hardcover
Length: 637 pg.
Read Date: September 1-December 29, 2024

What’s Elenctic Theology Anyway?

Elenctic refers to a logical method involving asking questions, of defending a position (or arguing to persuade people to accept it) by proposing alternatives and asking a series of questions—practically cross-examing the alternatives, to show the problems of the alternatives. A good deal of what we call the “Socratic method” is elenctics.

Therefore, Elenctic Theology is a form of defending the truth of Christianity or Christian dogmas by suggesting alternatives and demonstrating their lack by way of asking and answering questions about them. Or by asking a question about a true dogma and asking questions that affirm them. Aquinas’ Summa Contra Gentiles is one example. This book is another.

What’s Institutes of Elenctic Theology Then?

For a long time, it was the standard textbook to train Presbyterian and Reformed ministers in various parts of the world—including the U.S.—until Charles Hodge’s systematic theology overtook it in popularity (Hodge, it should be noted had his students read Turretin’s Institutes).

Turretin wrote it at the height of Protestant Scholasticism, defending the Reformed understanding of Christianity in a post-Synod of Dordt and post-Westminster Assembly-era. He interacts with the best of Roman Catholic theology of the era, as well as Socinians, Remonstrants (read: Arminians), Lutherans, and others.

He examines the big issues of the time—and several smaller issues, as well. This set contains 20 topics and this book contains only the last three. Yes, the last three topics get an excess of 600 pages devoted to them—Turretin really digs down into these details. The topics in this volume are:
bullet The Church
bullet The Sacraments
bullet The Last Things

Turretin’s Method

I think the best way to show how Turretin approaches these discussions is to show you the list of questions from one of the topics. Here’s what he looks at in the roughly 76 pages of The Twentieth Topic: cThe Last Things:
I. Will there be a resurrection of the dead on the lase day? We affirm.
Il. Are the same bodies numerically which have died to be raised again? We affirm against the Socinians.
Ill. Besides the universal resurrection, is there a particular resurrection of saints or of the martyrs which will precede the last by a thousand years? We deny.
IV. Can anything certain and determinate be held concerning the time of the end of the world? And are certain signs to precede it? The former we deny; the latter we affirm.
V. What will the destruction of the earth be like? Will it be annihilated by the final conflagration or will it be restored and renewed?
VI. Is a final judgment to be expected and what will it be like?
VII. Is there a hell? And what are its punishments—whether only of loss or also of sense? We affirm the latter.
VIII. Will eternal life consist in the vision of God or in the love and enjoyment of him? And under what symbols is it usually described and why?
IX. What are the endowments and qualities of glorified bodies
X. Will there be degrees of glory? And will the glory in heaven be equal or unequal and unlike!
XI. Will the saints in the other world know one another? We affirm.
XII. What is the difference between the church militant and the church triumphant?
XIII. Will the saints glorify God not only with a mental, but also with a vocal language? And will there be a diversity of languages or only one?

Like I said last time, I texted a friend saying that I wish I could break down an idea like Turretin. He made me feel a little better by replying, “You and everyone else born in the 20th century.” Because from these questions, he’ll spend a few pages breaking down the idea further, systematically working his way through the question and seemingly every possible angle of it.

There’s part of me that wants to abandon this re-read and just focus on observing his method and trying to replicate it in my life. I’m not going to, but it’s a thought.

There are times, however, where I wonder why Turretin would spend time on something like part of that last question, “Will the saints glorify God not only with a mental, but also with a vocal language?” The answer is, obviously, that these were topics being discussed in the Church, and it seemed necessary to Turretin. It’s just so far out of our experience to think of.

So, what did I think about Institutes of Elenctic Theology Vol. 3?

Let me get this out of the way first: This is dry. Dry like a stale crouton. I know most people think that about Theology in general—and sure, bad theology is usually dry, but not the good stuff. This is one of those exceptions that proves the rule.

There are moments, I should note, that some of Turretin’s personality shows through, some moments expressing the awe appropriate to the topic, the emotions stirred by the Gospel, and even a little humor/snark at the thoughts of his opponents. But those moments are brief and rare.

As it’s dry, it’s a little harder to read than others (say, Calvin or Bavinck). But it’s absolutely worth the effort—and after a little while, you won’t notice the effort. It’s so crisp, so clear, so helpful that you relish getting to read it. Giger and Dennison likely are due as much credit for this as Turretin is. Giger’s also likely due some credit for the arid language (he was translating in the early Nineteenth Century, not one an era known for punchy prose).

A lot of this volume didn’t click with me as much as the others did. So much of The Sacraments topic just didn’t click with me–I didn’t need that many pages critiquing the Roman system (as good as the critiques were). But that’s not to say I didn’t profit from it, just not as much as the previous volumes.

I can’t recommend this set highly enough. It’s a classic in every sense of the word.

To thee, therefore, thou triune God, the best and the greatest, most merciful Father in Christ, I am indebted and give thanks, not which I owe, but the greatest which I am able, with my whole heart because thou didst not refuse to be so present with me, thine unworthy servant, in this work, begun by me with thy help; that I was able not only to begin and carry on, but to bring it at length to the desired end. I ascribe nothing to my industry, nothing to my powers. The whole of this work is thine, O Lord, who hast made perfect thy strength in my weakness and hast directed by thy Spirit me groping and slipping, to whose grace I give the entire credit, if anything has been done here by me for the illustration of the sacred truth delivered by thee to us. But because to no purpose does anyone plant and water unless thou givest the increase; grant, thou best Father, on account of Christ my precious Redeemer, that these endeavors of mine, whatsoever they may be, may contnbute to the glory of thy most holy name and the benefit of thy church. Grant char as much of the way and of life as still remains to me to be passed with thy divine mercy, | may be able to spend under thy favor and with the most gracious protection of thy Spirit in the exercise of my calling and in the pure and constant worship of thy name, until at length, the most troublesome journey of this life being finished, translated to eternal rest, I can celebrate with everlasting praises thee, my God and Savior, living and blessed for ever in the heavenly assembly of the firstborn. And to thee, the everlasting King, the only wise God, immortal, invisible, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, adorable Trinity, be honor and glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

5 Stars
This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, the opinions expressed are my own.
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Glorifying and Enjoying God by William Boekestein, Jonathan Landry Cruse, Andrew J. Miller: Heartfelt Application of the Classic Tool

By HCNewton

On January 12, 2025

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Glorifying and Enjoying God:
52 Devotions Through the Westminster Shorter Catechism

by William Boekestein, Jonathan Landry Cruse, Andrew J. Miller

DETAILS: 
Publisher: Reformation Heritage Books
Publication Date: October 16, 2023
Format: Hardcover
Length: 229 pg. 
Read Date: January 7-December 29, 2024

What’s Glorifying and Enjoying God About?

This is a devotional, as promised in the subtitle based on the Westminster Shorter Catechism. The authors, inspired by the organization of the Heidelberg Catechism into Lord’s Days, did the same here—organizing the 107 questions and answers of WSC into 52 weeks.

Each chapter begins with the question(s) for the week and then spends roughly four pages discussing the language of the answers or the topic addressed.

Strengths

Honestly, there’s at least a paragraph or two in each chapter where I could point to something and say “That right there justifies the rest of the chapter.” Not that any chapter was a miss—sure, some were stronger than others, but they were all helpful—but there was at least that paragraph that was better than the rest.

Sometimes it was a bit of insight that I hadn’t considered before or just the right bit of application to drive the point home. Either way, it really doesn’t matter.

I would say that the chapters covering the Law and the Ten Commandments might have been the strongest in the book—I thought that the authors brought a little extra clarity to their points here. Not in any sort of legalistic way or anything—I just thought they did a great job of showing how the commandments/Law revealed God’s character and pointed to the work and person of Christ in a way that they didn’t consistently achieve in other parts of the book.

Weaknesses

Not surprisingly, what I’m calling a shortcoming is actually part of the design. It’s not a bug, it’s a feature.

But the length, and therefore the depth, of each chapter just wasn’t enough for me. Now I realize many (most?) of these questions and answers could be the basis of a full-length book, and I’m not arguing we should’ve had 5200 pages or more in a devotional. But I think twice the length of each chapter wouldn’t have been that much to ask. Typically, these chapters were 3 1/2-4 pages in length—5-7 would’ve been much better.

But that would probably have taken the book out of what people expect from a devotional, and therefore would’ve hurt it. Still, I think it’d have been a stronger overall volume that way.

So, what did I think about Glorifying and Enjoying God?

Cruse and Boekestein have written books that I’ve written positively about before (I have another Cruse book to talk about soon, too), which is what drew me to this—along with the concept. I will continue to be drawn to books they author (and Miller, now, too). It’s difficult to tell who wrote what chapter (outside of the times they identified themselves)—they did a good job blending their voices (possibly they and an editor, I don’t know how the mechanics of it all worked).

The language is clear and accessible—it can be used for a family with fairly young children (with some help from mom and dad) or individuals of whatever level of education.

It is clear that the authors are pastors, the devotionals are directed for real people with real concerns, not mere theory—it might not be all “practical,” but it’s all useful.

The minutes a week I spent with this were typically helpful and edifying, and I’m going to miss this refresher in the Catechism (I’ve taken their 52 week breakdown and will be following it to keep that freshness). I look forward to returning to this devotional in a couple of years, expecting other things to jump out at me than did this time—but I expect I’ll find it as useful.

3.5 Stars

My Favorite Theology/Christian Living Books of 2024

By HCNewton

On January 5, 2025

In News/Misc., Theology/Christian Living

My Favorite Theology/Christian Living Books of 2024
It’s time for me to start with these lists, I guess. We’re going to start with my favorites in Theology and Christian Living (and related things). There’s some overlap in some of these titles, which just shows what kinds of things I was thinking about this year, I guess. I didn’t read as many books along these lines as I expected to/usually do–mostly because the ones I did read took some work to get through (and I had too many “project reads”). But these would’ve floated to the top in any year.

As always, re-reads don’t count for these lists.

(in alphabetical order by author)

On Classical Trinitarianism: Retrieving the Nicene Doctrine of the Triune God

edited by Matthew Barrett

My original post
This is simply a monumental work that the Western Church desperately needs. (at least from where I’m sitting) Barrett and the all-star group of contributors make the case that we need to remember, if not rediscover, the classical, Nicene doctrine of the Trinity (as well as that which led to it and from it). We ignore it at our own peril and play fast-and-loose with it today to the damage of our preaching, our sanctification (collectively and individually), and our mission. These 800 pages of articles define the essentials, expand upon those definitions, show where we’re falling and failing and point us to recover lost ground.

I read it far, far too quickly to get everything it was trying to do–I’m going to take another run at it soon and will read it slowly, with a notebook in hand.

5 Stars 4 1/2 Stars

The Marrow of Modern Divinity

by Edward Fisher, Thomas Boston

My original post
This is one of the most famous (or infamous) books in the Scottish Reformed tradition–Edward Fisher’s defense of the Gospel against the errors of legalism and antinomianism with (generally) helpful notes (as short as a phrase or as long as several paragraphs) by Thomas Boston that created a controversy in the Church of Scotland big enough that books are still being written about it.

The Marrow is so clear. It’s so helpful. It’s so full of Gospel truth and assurance. It’s so spot-on in describing the ditches of legalism and antinomianism that are so easy to fall into. And yet, it never gets nasty or harsh in the criticism of the errors, it just points at them and says, “Don’t go there, and here’s why.” So few books along these lines manage that (I’m not saying they’re wrong to show teeth, but Fisher/Boston show you don’t need to).

I cannot recommend this enough.

5 Stars

On the Unity of Christ

by Cyril of Alexandria, John Anthony McGuckin (Translator)

My original post
One thing that goes along with our problems with Trinitarian Theology is Christology–particularly the Unity of the Divine and Human natures of Jesus Christ. It’s not an easy thing to grapple with, make no mistake, but it’s not something we should take casually, either. Cyril of Alexandria’s On the Unity of Christ is one of the landmark works in the development/defense of this idea–and reading it you understand why it’s stood the test of time. The translation (and, I assume, Cyril’s original) flows easily, most of it can be understood by 21st Century readers (even those of us relatively unschooled in philosophy or technical theology). The case he’s making is easy to follow and profit from.

Sometimes it’s hard to understand why something is considered a classic outside of its age. On the Union of Christ is not one of those books.

5 Stars

The Water and the Blood: How the Sacraments Shape Christian Identity

by Kevin P. Emmert

My original post
I read this last January, and should probably schedule a re-read soon. It’s one of those books.

It’s is a confessional (from all over the Protestant spectrum) and theological look at the sacraments and their role in teaching Christians about Christ and forming their character and lives in Him. The book starts by talking about the dependence of the Sacraments on the Word, then moves to a look at the nature of the Sacraments and how they function generally to form Christians. The next two chapters look at each Sacrament specifically—what they tell us about those “who have been immersed into Christ and who commune with Him.” The last two chapters apply all this, how the Sacraments form and inform Christian morality and then how they equip and guide believers into the work of ministry in a variety of settings.

The focus of the book is our identity in Christ—the doctrine of Union with Christ—and how the sacraments shape us into better living out that identity. And I just wanted to marinate in that for days. I still do, really.

5 Stars

Word and Spirit: Selected Writings in Biblical and Systematic Theology

by Richard B. Gaffin, Jr.; edited by David B. Garner & Guy Prentiss Waters

My original post
This is a collection of most (if not all) of the shorter works of Richard Gaffin organized under the topics of: Hermeneutics, Biblical Theology, and Systematic Theology; Theology of Hebrews and Paul; Scripture, Epistemology, and Anthropology; Pneumatology; and The Law of God, Soteriology, and Eschatology.

If I were asked what was the best section, or the best piece in the book (or in each section), I’d balk. If pressed, I’d make an attempt and would end up arguing for just about every piece in the book. It’s probably the book on this list I profited the most from. I expect that to be true–or at least in the running–anytime I pick it up in the future.

5 Stars

Strange Religion: How the First Christians Were Weird, Dangerous, and Compelling

by Nijay K. Gupta

My original post
Gupta’s aim is to show how strange the early Christians appeared to their neighbors due to their practices, beliefs, and attitudes. Not as a call to “keep Christinity weird” or anything–but to remind us how odd we are compared to everyone around us, and we’ve always been that way.

There’s the implication that if we don’t seem weird to those outside the Church, maybe we’re doing something wrong. But that’s not his main point.

Also, the strange-ness of early Christianity was one of the things that attracted some to the Church. It was different, it was distinct, and that drew in people who saw the shortcomings of their culture.

It’s a somewhat humorous (but not jokey) and engaging read that educates and challenges. It’s well worth your time.

This could/should be read in conjunction with the books by Williams and Presley on this list, they describe some of the same time period in overlapping but distinct ways.

4 Stars

Cultural Sanctification: Engaging the World Like the Early Church

by Stephen O. Presley

My original post
While many look at the increasinly post-Christian world we seem to be living in and come up with plans for waging a Culture War of one form or another, Presley asks why not look to the Early Church, the pre-Constantinian believers who were in a situation very similar, but a pre-Christendom. How did they go about interacting with the culture? This book explores that idea by looking at the way Christians believed, taught, and acted (generally speaking, recognizing outliers and sins along the way) in the spheres of: Identity, Citizenship, Intellectual Life, Public Life, and Hope.

His position is, to over-simplify: through a focus on catechesis (or, if you prefer, discipleship) and liturgy (or, if you prefer, worship) the Church was able to build identity and community, able to live out the lives they were called to and to impact—slowly and organically—the culture around them.

It’s not a perfect book, but it’s so helpful that it’s easy to overlook what few problems/quibbles I might have had with the writing/examples. It’s a reminder that the Church ought to be the Church (see the book by Strange below), and focus on that.

This could/should be read in conjunction with the books by Williams and Gupta on this list, they describe some of the same time period in overlapping but distinct ways.

Oh, yeah, it hasone of the best indexes I encountered last year, too.

4 Stars

Empowered Witness: Politics, Culture, and the Spiritual Mission of the Church

by Alan D. Strange

My original post
This is an introduction to and defense of the Presbyterian doctrine of the Spirituality of the Church (essentially that the Church has a ministerial, not majesterial/legislative, calling). The book accomplishes its task primarily
by looking at the way Charles Hodge and some of this Southern Presbyterian opponents–who all held to this doctrine–dealt with the issue of slavery/The Civil War in the middle of the 19th Century.

It might seem like a strange approach, but it really works–keeping it from contemporary arguments, Strange is able to talk about these things without bringing in too many prejudices or getting distracted by trying to comment on contemporary issues.

There are few books (of any genre) that I’ve spent as much time talking about over the last year as I have this one. It’ll spark conversation for you, if nothing else. But you’ll profit from it greatly.

4 1/2 Stars

Redemptive History & Biblical Interpretation: The Shorter Writings of Geerhardus Vos

by Geerhardus Vos, edited by Richard B. Gaffin, Jr.

My original post
Like the Gaffin collection (above), this is a collection of much of Vos’ shorter works, largely focused on Biblical Theology. We get 270 pages of 20 +/- page articles, then several shorter works and addresses, and then a handful of Book Reviews (that provide as much as, if not more, to chew on than the shorter works).

This collection just knocked my socks off. I read an article a week and it was one of the highlights of the week for me to do so.

I learned a lot. Not just about Vos and his brand of theology, but about the Scriptures and the Lord who gave them to His Church so she would see Him and His glory in them.

The writing is fantastic. The thinking is even better. I had to think about a lot of this, to ponder and wrestle with it, and got to revel in it, too.

I can’t think of a reason to not read this book—it’ll reward careful reading (and casual reading, too—just not as richly). It’s just great stuff.

4 1/2 Stars

Cultural Christians in the Early Church: A Historical and Practical Introduction to Christians in the Greco-Roman World

by Nadya Williams

My original post
For Williams, Cultural Christians are “individuals who self-identify as Christians, but whose outward behavior, and, to the extent that we can tell, inward thoughts and motivations are largely influenced by the surrounding culture rather than by their Christian faith and teachings of Jesus.”

There are three driving concerns behind this book. The first is to combat the idea that the Early Church was too spiritual and correct to have to deal with these individuals—and because of that we can have some problematic ideas about the Church today. Secondly, because of our historical ignorance, we can fail to see how the Early Church was influenced by the culture around them. Third, if we see how the Early Church is susceptible to this, and that we are, too—we can more easily see the need to push beyond Cultural Christianity to the genuine article.

Williams does discuss some of the major theologians of the first few centuries of The Church (until around the time of Constantine), but her focus is on everyday believers. To get a real flavor of what life was like we don’t just need the theological tracts and creeds, we need to know what people ate, wore, did for a living, and so on.

We have the same feet of clay as our forefathers did—and the same challenges to overcome. Thankfully, we have the same Savior. This book helps us to remember that—and I encourage everyone to pick this up (and not just so you don’t have to hear me do it in person, as many of my friends have).

This could/should be read in conjunction with the books by Gupta and Presley on this list, they describe some of the same time period in overlapping but distinct ways.
4 Stars

A few books that almost made this list, and I want to be sure to mention one more time:
The Lord Jesus Christ: The Biblical Doctrine of the Person and Work of Christ by Brandon D. Crowe (My original post), The Two Kingdoms: A Guide for the Perplexed by W. Bradford Littlejohn (My original post), Saint Cyril of Alexandria and the Christological Controversy by John McGuckin (My original post), and The Hijacked Conscience: An Informed and Compassionate Response to Religious Scrupulosity by Debra Peck (My original post).

REPOSTING JUST CUZ: Who Is Jesus? Knowing Christ through His “I Am” Sayings by J. V. Fesko

By HCNewton

On December 29, 2024

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Who Is Jesus?:
Knowing Christ through
His “I Am” Sayings

by J. V. Fesko

Paperback, 93 pg.
Reformation Heritage Books, 2016

Read: December 5, 2021
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

What’s Who is Jesus? About?

This book does three things—at the same time—first and foremost, it looks at all fourteen times that Jesus uses the phrase “I am,” in the Gospel of John, and discusses the context and meaning of it. Fesko doesn’t just look at Christ’s meaning of “the door,” “the bread of life,” and so on, but the significance of the use of “I am” (ἐγώ εἰμι, ego eimi).

Secondly, it looks at the “seven signs of divinity” presented in John—and how they’re intertwined in the “I am” sayings. But Fesko doesn’t let the focus linger on these signs.

Lastly, and this is the unique part of this study, is to look at the Old Testament allusions and roots of the fourteen “I am”s. Seeing how Christ was self-consciously pointing to the Scriptures to show how he fulfills them is a real treasure.

Fesko concludes each chapter with a few paragraphs of application to the reader and some questions for further study.

So, what did I think about Who is Jesus??

This might not be the best comparison, but it’s the one that I kept thinking of as I read this, so…if you don’t like this, I’ll give you a full refund for the cost of your subscription.

In The West Wing, there were repeated worries about the President’s approach to things—the way he interacts with people, there’s “The President at his Best”/”The Professor” or “Uncle Fluffy.” Fesko’s books feel like they’re written the same way. For example, Death in Adam, Life in Christ: The Doctrine of Imputation or Word, Water, and Spirit: A Reformed Perspective on Baptism are products of “The Professor.” Who is Jesus? is pure Uncle Fluffy.

This is not a complaint. This is an observation. Well, okay, maybe a little of a complaint. I’m glad this was the Uncle Fluffy Fesko—I appreciated that this was an accessible, short read—but I think it could’ve used a little more of The Professor. Just a little more depth would’ve been great. But it’s good as it is, just could’ve been a bit better.

At the same time—you give me a version of this book by The Professor? I’m there in a heartbeat.

Who is Jesus? is a quick read (it’s very easy to be too quick about it, I had to tap my breaks a few times), but it’s a good read. There’s a richness to the study of the “I Am” sayings and a real reward to looking at their Old Testament roots. This is well-worth your time, it’d be good for Bible Studies, Sunday Schools—even Family Worship aids.

3 Stars

This post contains an affiliate link. If you purchase from it, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.