Tag: Carl R. Trueman Page 1 of 2

Reformation Sunday Repost: The Freedom of a Christian by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb: A Pastoral Gem from the Reformer

By

On October 27, 2024

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

This worked last year, might has well give it a whirl this year…It’s Reformation Sunday—a totally made-up holiday (but which one isn’t?) to commemorate the day in 1517 when Martin Luther inadvertently started a revolution/reformation/revival. So, hey, while I continue to fight off this cold, let me repost this about one of my favorite of Luther’s works:

The Freedom of a ChristianThe Freedom of a Christian: A New Translation

by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb Carl R. Trueman (Foreward)

DETAILS:
Series: Crossway Short Classics Series
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: February 21, 2023
Format: Paperback
Length: 86 pg.
Read Date: February 26, 2023
Buy from Bookshop.org Support Indie Bookstores

Some Thoughts on the Series as a Whole

The point of this series is to take classic short works—sermons, tracts, articles—package them attractively, edit a bit (modernize language, eliminate footnotes, tweak grammar, etc.), and make them widely available. Each is given a short introduction to help the reader get the context and a bit of information about the author.

They published seven books in this series last year, and I discussed them here. Two have come out this year (so far), but I’m hoping for more.

What’s The Freedom of a Christian About?

A Christian is a free lord of everything and subject to no one.

A Christian is a willing servant of everything and subject to everyone.

This is Luther (early in the Reformation) laying out his vision for good works for the believer–how they are to be performed, why they are to be performed, and their place in the life of the believer. I’m sure there’s more to say, but that’s basically it.

That quotation gives his two theses–the rest of the book is his working out the thinking behind them. It’s penetrating, it’s convicting, and it’s inspiring to watch him work. Whoops, I seem to have stumbled into the next section.

So, what did I think about The Freedom of a Christian?

From all of this comes the conclusion that a Christian lives not in himself but in Christ and in his neighbor, in Christ through faith, in the neighbor through love. Through faith he rises above himself in God, from God he descends under himself through love, and remains always in God and in divine love. It is as Christ said in John 1[:51]: “You will see heaven standing open and the angels ascending and descending over the Son of Man.” Behold, that is the proper, spiritual Christian freedom, which liberates the heart from all sins, laws, and commands. This freedom exceeds all other freedoms, as high as heaven is over the earth. May God grant us that we truly understand that and retain it.

I wasn’t sure about reading this–it’s one of those works I’ve read so much about. I’ve seen it cited, heard descriptions of it in lectures, and read about it, but I haven’t gotten around to reading it. A lot of the times I read something that I know about like this, it doesn’t work out (I’ve never been able to get past page 40 of Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death, for example). But this is exactly what it should’ve been.

Martin Luther being pastoral is just great. Luther coming alongside those believers so often neglected in the Church and saying, here’s what to do–free of burden, free of guilt, free to live and love as they ought, as they’ve been called to.

This little read is a gem. I’m glad I took the chance on it and so glad that Crossway’s series brought it to us.

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.

Crisis of Confidence: Reclaiming the Historic Faith in a Culture Consumed with Individualism and Identity by Carl R. Trueman: Why The Church Needs Creeds

By

On April 14, 2024

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Crisis of ConfidenceCrisis of Confidence:
Reclaiming the Historic Faith
in a Culture Consumed
with Individualism and Identity

by Carl R. Trueman

DETAILS:
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: February 6, 2024
Format: Hardcover
Length: 173
Read Date: March 17-25, 2024
Buy from Bookshop.org Support Indie Bookstores

What’s Crisis of Confidence About?

This is a new and slightly updated version of Trueman’s 2012 book, The Creedal Imperative. The updates don’t change the overall thesis of the book, but a new nuance or two are added. The first edition focused on contrasting the point of view of “No creed but the Bible” with the Protestant traditions that embrace the Ecumenical Creeds and Confessions of Faith. This time, the focus is on maintaining Ecclesiastical positions and individual convictions via the Creeds/Confessions in a rapidly changing culture—particularly in light of what Trueman calls “expressive individualism.”

The book begins with a chapter arguing against Creeds and Confessions, which is followed by a chapter providing the Scriptural basis for their creation and use. We then get two chapters looking at the history of them in the Church—one chapter for the development of the Ecumenical Creeds in the first few centuries of the Church, and one looking at the development of Confessions during the Protestant Reformation (with some discussion of non-Reformed Confessions as well).

Trueman wraps up with a chapter on the use of Creeds/Confessions in the worship of the church—to form and frame it, their use in a church’s worship, and how they serve an integral role in both. From there he offers a final chapter with a non-exhaustive list of ways creedal material is useful for particular congregations, denominations, and individuals.

So, what did I think about Crisis of Confidence?

Now, I’d intended on re-reading The Creedal Imperative back in January, but the time got away from me and then this dropped in my lap quite unexpectedly—so I was able to tackle that re-read, in a sense. For that, I’m glad I read this.

I’m not sure it was worth the new edition—and the minor updates didn’t add that much to the book as a whole. It was probably a good move from a publishing/selling point of view—the design makes it fit with Trueman’s last couple of books, and the new focus fits those, too. This is a good way to get people who’ve only read his last two books to read his older material (especially because those books are likely to have been attractive to people who wouldn’t be interested in a book about Creeds/Confessions without that connection).

Did that new material and the updates hurt the book? Nope. It’s still a strong apologetic for the use of them—not just that creedal documents are allowed by the Scriptures, but Trueman argues that they’re necessary, even expected for the Church (and shows indications that the First Century Church employed them). In the anti-Creedal cultures (both secular and ecclesiastical) that the Western Church finds itself in, we need as many of these defenses and arguments for that as we can get.

Trueman delivers those in his typical learned, engaging, and clear style. He doesn’t come out swinging as he does in some contexts—but you don’t walk away wondering what he really thinks about something, either.

I recommend this book and encourage you to read it if you haven’t read the original. if you have—it’s not a bad idea to read this (or just re-read the original), who doesn’t need a refresher on topics like this from time to time?

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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Reformation Sunday Repost: The Freedom of a Christian by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb: A Pastoral Gem from the Reformer

By

On October 29, 2023

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

It’s Reformation Sunday–a totally made-up holiday (but which one isn’t?) to commemorate the day in 1517 when Martin Luther inadvertently started a revolution/reformation/revival. So, hey, while I continue to fight off this cold, let me repost this about one of my favorite of Luther’s works:

The Freedom of a ChristianThe Freedom of a Christian: A New Translation

by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb Carl R. Trueman (Foreward)

DETAILS:
Series: Crossway Short Classics Series
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: February 21, 2023
Format: Paperback
Length: 86 pg.
Read Date: February 26, 2023


Some Thoughts on the Series as a Whole

The point of this series is to take classic short works—sermons, tracts, articles—package them attractively, edit a bit (modernize language, eliminate footnotes, tweak grammar, etc.), and make them widely available. Each is given a short introduction to help the reader get the context and a bit of information about the author.

They published seven books in this series last year, and I discussed them here. Two have come out this year (so far), but I’m hoping for more.

What’s The Freedom of a Christian About?

A Christian is a free lord of everything and subject to no one.

A Christian is a willing servant of everything and subject to everyone.

This is Luther (early in the Reformation) laying out his vision for good works for the believer–how they are to be performed, why they are to be performed, and their place in the life of the believer. I’m sure there’s more to say, but that’s basically it.

That quotation gives his two theses–the rest of the book is his working out the thinking behind them. It’s penetrating, it’s convicting, and it’s inspiring to watch him work. Whoops, I seem to have stumbled into the next section.

So, what did I think about The Freedom of a Christian?

From all of this comes the conclusion that a Christian lives not in himself but in Christ and in his neighbor, in Christ through faith, in the neighbor through love. Through faith he rises above himself in God, from God he descends under himself through love, and remains always in God and in divine love. It is as Christ said in John 1[:51]: “You will see heaven standing open and the angels ascending and descending over the Son of Man.” Behold, that is the proper, spiritual Christian freedom, which liberates the heart from all sins, laws, and commands. This freedom exceeds all other freedoms, as high as heaven is over the earth. May God grant us that we truly understand that and retain it.

I wasn’t sure about reading this–it’s one of those works I’ve read so much about. I’ve seen it cited, heard descriptions of it in lectures, and read about it, but I haven’t gotten around to reading it. A lot of the times I read something that I know about like this, it doesn’t work out (I’ve never been able to get past page 40 of Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death, for example). But this is exactly what it should’ve been.

Martin Luther being pastoral is just great. Luther coming alongside those believers so often neglected in the Church and saying, here’s what to do–free of burden, free of guilt, free to live and love as they ought, as they’ve been called to.

This little read is a gem. I’m glad I took the chance on it and so glad that Crossway’s series brought it to us.

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.

SICK DAY REPOST: The Essential Trinity by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

By

On October 22, 2023

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

A cold derailed my ability to think today, so here’s a blast from the past.

The Essential Trinity The Essential Trinity: New Testament Foundations and Practical Relevance

by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

Paperback, 273 pg.
Inter-Varsity Press, 2016

Read: July 31 – August 14, 2016

As far as consistency of quality amongst edited volumes goes, Crowe and Trueman have assembled one of the stronger line-ups I’ve read in a while — men from a spectrum of persuasions of Evangelical-ish thought have given the Church fourteen articles (approximately 20 pages each) to deepen our thinking about the Trinity. The aim was for a volume that “eschews overly technical discussion and focuses attention on the importance of the doctrine for every Christian.”

In Part 1, the articles look at the “trinitarian contours of every corpus of the New Testament, along with a chapter reflecting on the Old Testament roots of trinitarian doctrine.” If there are weak chapters in the volume, they’re in this part — but they aren’t that weak, either. Crowe’s chapter on Matthew is excellent, but the chapters on the Mark, Luke-Acts and John aren’t far off that Mark. Brian S. Rosner’s chapter on “Paul and the Trinity” is worth the price of the book. The chapters on the rest of the epistles are very helpful (particularity Hebrews). Mark S. Gignilliat’s article, “The Trinity and the Old Testament: real presence or imposition?” is very helpful and insightful — and as an added bonus, it’s the most stylistically entertaining and engaging piece in the book.

Benjamin Gladd’s chapter exploring Daniel’s influence on Revelation’s view of the Trinity is the biggest mental workout you’ll get in the book. I appreciated the material covered and the argument Gladd makes, but I’m going to have to read it a few more times before I think I have a good handle on it.

Part 2 addresses the importance of the Trinity for everyday living — many would say the doctrine is impractical and only belongs in Statements of Faith and academia. The authors here show the fallacy of that. It begins with a brief, but excellent, description of the doctrine by Scott R. Swain. Carl Trueman has the next chapter, “The Trinity and prayer,” which is probably as valuable as Rosner’s — it’s actually about more than prayer, but the material specifically on prayer is great — hugely indebted to John Owen (but not uncritically so). Robert Letham’s chapter on “The Trinity and worship” also draws deeply from Owen; if he doesn’t move you to worship as you understand the work of the Trinity in it, you aren’t paying attention (I probably have more problems with some of what he says than anything else in the book). Michael Reeves, typically, made me chuckle in his chapter on preaching — but he did more than that, too.

Timely, convicting, thoughtful and inspiring, this examination of the Trinity in Scripture and Life should be a great benefit to any believer ho reads it. It may not be the easiest thing read all year (but really, it’s not that difficult), but it’ll be one of the most rewarding.

—–

4 Stars

The Freedom of a Christian by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb: A Pastoral Gem from the Reformer

By

On March 12, 2023

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

The Freedom of a ChristianThe Freedom of a Christian: A New Translation

by Martin Luther, Translated by Robert Kolb Carl R. Trueman (Foreward)

DETAILS:
Series: Crossway Short Classics Series
Publisher: Crossway
Publication Date: February 21, 2023
Format: Paperback
Length: 86 pg.
Read Date: February 26, 2023


Some Thoughts on the Series as a Whole

The point of this series is to take classic short works—sermons, tracts, articles—package them attractively, edit a bit (modernize language, eliminate footnotes, tweak grammar, etc.), and make them widely available. Each is given a short introduction to help the reader get the context and a bit of information about the author.

They published seven books in this series last year, and I discussed them here. Two have come out this year (so far), but I’m hoping for more.

What’s The Freedom of a Christian About?

A Christian is a free lord of everything and subject to no one.

A Christian is a willing servant of everything and subject to everyone.

This is Luther (early in the Reformation) laying out his vision for good works for the believer–how they are to be performed, why they are to be performed, and their place in the life of the believer. I’m sure there’s more to say, but that’s basically it.

That quotation gives his two theses–the rest of the book is his working out the thinking behind them. It’s penetrating, it’s convicting, and it’s inspiring to watch him work. Whoops, I seem to have stumbled into the next section.

So, what did I think about The Freedom of a Christian?

From all of this comes the conclusion that a Christian lives not in himself but in Christ and in his neighbor, in Christ through faith, in the neighbor through love. Through faith he rises above himself in God, from God he descends under himself through love, and remains always in God and in divine love. It is as Christ said in John 1[:51]: “You will see heaven standing open and the angels ascending and descending over the Son of Man.” Behold, that is the proper, spiritual Christian freedom, which liberates the heart from all sins, laws, and commands. This freedom exceeds all other freedoms, as high as heaven is over the earth. May God grant us that we truly understand that and retain it.

I wasn’t sure about reading this–it’s one of those works I’ve read so much about. I’ve seen it cited, heard descriptions of it in lectures, and read about it, but I haven’t gotten around to reading it. A lot of the times I read something that I know about like this, it doesn’t work out (I’ve never been able to get past page 40 of Postman’s Amusing Ourselves to Death, for example). But this is exactly what it should’ve been.

Martin Luther being pastoral is just great. Luther coming alongside those believers so often neglected in the Church and saying, here’s what to do–free of burden, free of guilt, free to live and love as they ought, as they’ve been called to.

This little read is a gem. I’m glad I took the chance on it and so glad that Crossway’s series brought it to us.

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.

REPOSTING JUST CUZ: The Essential Trinity by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

By

On October 30, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

(the title’s not entirely true…there’s another re-run because I couldn’t stay awake Saturday to finish a new post. But there’s no event correlating with selecting this book. I’ve got three books to post about in the Sunday evening slot, hopefully you’ll see one of them here next week.)

The Essential Trinity The Essential Trinity: New Testament Foundations and Practical Relevance

by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

Paperback, 273 pg.
Inter-Varsity Press, 2016

Read: July 31 – August 14, 2016

As far as consistency of quality amongst edited volumes goes, Crowe and Trueman have assembled one of the stronger line-ups I’ve read in a while — men from a spectrum of persuasions of Evangelical-ish thought have given the Church fourteen articles (approximately 20 pages each) to deepen our thinking about the Trinity. The aim was for a volume that “eschews overly technical discussion and focuses attention on the importance of the doctrine for every Christian.”

In Part 1, the articles look at the “trinitarian contours of every corpus of the New Testament, along with a chapter reflecting on the Old Testament roots of trinitarian doctrine.” If there are weak chapters in the volume, they’re in this part — but they aren’t that weak, either. Crowe’s chapter on Matthew is excellent, but the chapters on the Mark, Luke-Acts and John aren’t far off that Mark. Brian S. Rosner’s chapter on “Paul and the Trinity” is worth the price of the book. The chapters on the rest of the epistles are very helpful (particularity Hebrews). Mark S. Gignilliat’s article, “The Trinity and the Old Testament: real presence or imposition?” is very helpful and insightful — and as an added bonus, it’s the most stylistically entertaining and engaging piece in the book.

Benjamin Gladd’s chapter exploring Daniel’s influence on Revelation’s view of the Trinity is the biggest mental workout you’ll get in the book. I appreciated the material covered and the argument Gladd makes, but I’m going to have to read it a few more times before I think I have a good handle on it.

Part 2 addresses the importance of the Trinity for everyday living — many would say the doctrine is impractical and only belongs in Statements of Faith and academia. The authors here show the fallacy of that. It begins with a brief, but excellent, description of the doctrine by Scott R. Swain. Carl Trueman has the next chapter, “The Trinity and prayer,” which is probably as valuable as Rosner’s — it’s actually about more than prayer, but the material specifically on prayer is great — hugely indebted to John Owen (but not uncritically so). Robert Letham’s chapter on “The Trinity and worship” also draws deeply from Owen; if he doesn’t move you to worship as you understand the work of the Trinity in it, you aren’t paying attention (I probably have more problems with some of what he says than anything else in the book). Michael Reeves, typically, made me chuckle in his chapter on preaching — but he did more than that, too.

Timely, convicting, thoughtful and inspiring, this examination of the Trinity in Scripture and Life should be a great benefit to any believer ho reads it. It may not be the easiest thing read all year (but really, it’s not that difficult), but it’ll be one of the most rewarding.

—–

4 Stars

REPOSTING JUST CUZ: Grace Alone–Salvation as a Gift of God by Carl R. Trueman

By

On July 10, 2022

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Grace Alone--Salvation as a Gift of GodGrace Alone–Salvation as a Gift of God: What the Reformers Taught…and Why It Still Matters

by Carl R. Trueman
Series: The 5 Solas Series
Paperback, 243 pg.
Zondervan, 2017
Read: October 8 – 22, 2017

After struggling through three books in this series, I will admit to some trepidation about this one — thankfully, Carl Trueman is an author I have a bit of experience with, so I figured it’d be worth the effort. Thankfully, there wasn’t that much effort, and the book was absolutely worth the time.

Trueman organizes this book differently than the others — in Part 1, he considers Sola Gratia in Scripture and Church History. Trueman surveys the idea of grace alone through both Testaments (it’s easier than some would lead you to think to find it in the Old Testament), looking at individual texts as well as themes throughout the books. I would have liked this to be a bit longer — but I really can’t complain about it. Following that, Trueman focuses on the teachings of the Church throughout history about Grace — starting with the early church, focusing on Augustine and his Confessions as emblematic of the first centuries of the church. Then he continues to focus on Augustine but shifts the focus to the controversies sparked by the Confessions with Pelagius and his followers as the prism through which the (Western) Church discusses and teaches Grace since those days. In the next chapter, Trueman focuses on Medieval theology about grace using Aquinas as the example. Following that we get chapters on Luther and Calvin (and those who’d be allied to Calvin’s branch of the Reformation), shaking off the accumulated tradition and misunderstandings to get back to the core of Scriptural and Augustinian teaching (with help from Aquinas). Would I have appreciated another chapter or two about post-Reformational history? Sure. But they weren’t necessary to fulfill Trueman’s aims, and we get a taste of what they’d offer in Part 2.

Part 2 is titled “Sola Gratia in the Church.” Grace is communicated to Christians via The Church, Preaching, Sacraments, and Prayer and so Trueman a. defends that idea and then proceeds to discuss how God goes that in chapters devoted to each of those. For those of the Reformed tradition, there is nothing ground-breaking or controversial here, although Protestants from other traditions might find some of the ideas challenging. These are solid chapters of the kind of teaching I expected from this series, and I appreciated them.

In the book’s Conclusion, Trueman attempts to address the questions: “What would a ‘grace alone’ church look like today? What would characterize its life as a church? How might we recognize such a church when we see it?” The answers to these questions are a mix of doctrinal and practical ideas that he lists in ten points showing the interconnections between them. This conclusion (in building on what came before) is worth at least half the price of the book — just fantastic stuff.

I still have one to go in the series, so I may have to modify this, but this one is by far the best of the bunch — accessible, pastoral, and thorough without sacrificing depth. Trueman doesn’t seem to get distracted by pet details, nor to just beat the same obvious deceased equines on this topic. If you’re going to read just one of the five, let this be it. Alternatively, if the some of the others have left you wanting, give this one a shot, I think you’ll appreciate it.

—–

4 Stars

A Matter of Perspective

By

On December 19, 2017

In Books, News/Misc., Quotations

A couple of weeks ago, I read Between Wittenberg and Geneva: Lutheran and Reformed Theology in Conversation by Robert Kolb and Carl R. Trueman. In his discussion of Reformed worship, Carl Trueman wrote:
Nevertheless, there is a sense in which beauty is in the eye of the beholder. The Reformed worship service with its simple aesthetics focused on the basic elements of prayer, preaching, singing, and sacraments has an austere beauty of its own, as anyone who has ever attended, for example, a traditional service of worship in a Presbyterian congregation on Scotland’s Outer Hebrides will affirm. The unadorned human voice and the air of tranquil and reverent piety possess their own peculiar and often powerful beauty. Simplicity has its own aesthetic and can indeed have its own unadorned beauty.
I couldn’t help thinking of that passage yesterday when I read the following passage from Peter May’s The Blackhouse:
No colourful stained glass in this austere Calvinistic culture. No imagery. No crosses. No joy.

. . . A cheerless place, with worn floorboards and dark, varnished wood. It smelled of dust and damp clothes and time. . . .

Fin traced his childhood footsteps through the left-hand door and into the church itself, rows of unforgiving wooden pews flanking two aisles leading to the raised and railed area at the far end, from which sombre elders would lead the psalm-singing. . . .

In his head, Fin could almost hear the singing of the Gaelic psalms. A strange, unaccompanied tribal chanting that could seem chaotic to the untrained ear. But there was something wonderfully affecting about it. Something of the land and the landscape, of the struggle for existence against overwhelming odds. Something of the people amongst whom he had grown up. Good people, most of them, finding something unique in themselves, in the way they sang their praise to the Lord, an expression of gratitude for hard lives in which they had found meaning.
Different perspectives on Scottish Presbyterianism, to be sure — written with different aims, in very different kinds of books, but if you look hard enough, you can see them describing the same thing. It was a little striking running into those so close together.

Grace Alone–Salvation as a Gift of God by Carl R. Trueman

By

On November 5, 2017

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Grace Alone--Salvation as a Gift of GodGrace Alone–Salvation as a Gift of God: What the Reformers Taught…and Why It Still Matters

by Carl R. Trueman
Series: The 5 Solas Series
Paperback, 243 pg.
Zondervan, 2017
Read: October 8 – 22, 2017


After struggling through three books in this series, I will admit to some trepidation about this one — thankfully, Carl Trueman is an author I have a bit of experience with, so I figured it’d be worth the effort. Thankfully, there wasn’t that much effort, and the book was absolutely worth the time.

Trueman organizes this book differently than the others — in Part 1, he considers Sola Gratia in Scripture and Church History. Trueman surveys the idea of grace alone through both Testaments (it’s easier than some would lead you to think to find it in the Old Testament), looking at individual texts as well as themes throughout the books. I would have liked this to be a bit longer — but I really can’t complain about it. Following that, Trueman focuses on the teachings the Church throughout history about Grace — starting with the early church, focusing on Augustine and his Confessions as emblematic of the first centuries of the church. Then he continues to focus on Augustine, but shifts the focus to the controversies sparked by the Confessions with Pelagius and his followers as the prism through which the (Western) Church discusses and teaches Grace since those days. In the next chapter, Trueman focuses on Medieval theology about grace using Aquinas as the example. Following that we get chapters on Luther and Calvin (and those who’d be allied to Calvin’s branch of the Reformation), shaking off the accumulated tradition and misunderstandings to get back to the core of Scriptural and Augustininan teaching (with help from Aquinas). Would I have appreciated another chapter or two about post-Reformational history? Sure. But they weren’t necessary to fulfill Trueman’s aims, and we get a taste of what they’d offer in Part 2.

Part 2 is title “Sola Gratia in the Church.” Grace is communicated to Christians via The Church, Preaching, Sacraments and Prayer and so Trueman a. defends that idea and then proceeds to discuss how God goes that in chapters devoted to each of those. For those of the Reformed tradition, there is nothing ground-breaking or controversial here, although Protestants from other traditions might find some of the ideas challenging. These are solid chapters of the kind of teaching I expected from this series, and I appreciated them.

In the book’s Conclusion, Trueman attempts to address the questions: “What would a ‘grace alone’ church look like today? What would characterize its life as a church? How might we recognize such a church when we see it?” The answers to these questions are a mix of doctrinal and practical ideas that he lists in ten points showing the interconnections between them. This conclusion (in building on what came before) is worth at least half the price of the book — just fantastic stuff.

I still have one to go in the series, so I may have to modify this, but this one is by far the best of the bunch — accessible, pastoral and thorough without sacrificing depth. Trueman doesn’t seem to get distracted by pet details, nor to just beat the same obvious deceased equines on this topic. If you’re going to read just one of the five, let this be it. Alternatively, if the some of the others have left you wanting, give this one a shot, I think you’ll appreciate it.

—–

4 Stars

Pub Day Repost: The Essential Trinity by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

By

On March 31, 2017

In Non-Fiction, Theology/Christian Living

Slightly different Pub Day Repost than I usually do — I usually post something I read an advanced copy of, but this time it’s being published by a different publisher. Still, content is the same, just a new cover, etc. Hopefully, this helps it find a larger audience.

The Essential Trinity The Essential Trinity: New Testament Foundations and Practical Relevance

by Brandon D. Crowe and Carl R. Trueman, eds.

Paperback, 320 pg.
P&R Publishing, 2017

Read: July 31 – August 14, 2016

As far as consistency of quality amongst edited volumes goes, Crowe and Trueman have assembled one of the stronger line-ups I’ve read in a while — men from a spectrum of persuasions of Evangelical-ish thought have given the Church fourteen articles (approximately 20 pages each) to deepen our thinking about the Trinity. The aim was for a volume that “eschews overly technical discussion and focuses attention on the importance of the doctrine for every Christian.”

In Part 1, the articles look at the “trinitarian contours of every corpus of the New Testament, along with a chapter reflecting on the Old Testament roots of trinitarian doctrine.” If there are weak chapters in the volume, they’re in this part — but they aren’t that weak, either. Crowe’s chapter on Matthew is excellent, but the chapters on the Mark, Luke-Acts and John aren’t far off that Mark. Brian S. Rosner’s chapter on “Paul and the Trinity” is worth the price of the book. The chapters on the rest of the epistles are very helpful (particularity Hebrews). Mark S. Gignilliat’s article, “The Trinity and the Old Testament: real presence or imposition?” is very helpful and insightful — and as an added bonus, it’s the most stylistically entertaining and engaging piece in the book.

Benjamin Gladd’s chapter exploring Daniel’s influence on Revelation’s view of the Trinity is the biggest mental workout you’ll get in the book. I appreciated the material covered and the argument Gladd makes, but I’m going to have to read it a few more times before I think I have a good handle on it.

Part 2 addresses the importance of the Trinity for everyday living — many would say the doctrine is impractical and only belongs in Statements of Faith and academia. The authors here show the fallacy of that. It begins with a brief, but excellent, description of the doctrine by Scott R. Swain. Carl Trueman has the next chapter, “The Trinity and prayer,” which is probably as valuable as Rosner’s — it’s actually about more than prayer, but the material specifically on prayer is great — hugely indebted to John Owen (but not uncritically so). Robert Letham’s chapter on “The Trinity and worship” also draws deeply from Owen; if he doesn’t move you to worship as you understand the work of the Trinity in it, you aren’t paying attention (I probably have more problems with some of what he says than anything else in the book). Michael Reeves, typically, made me chuckle in his chapter on preaching — but he did more than that, too.

Timely, convicting, thoughtful and inspiring, this examination of the Trinity in Scripture and Life should be a great benefit to any believer ho reads it. It may not be the easiest thing read all year (but really, it’s not that difficult), but it’ll be one of the most rewarding.

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4 Stars

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