Tag: None Greater

Catch-Up Quick Takes None Greater by Matthew Barrett; Alive by Gabriel N.E. Fluhrer; The Song of Songs by G. I. Williamson; The Ten Commandments of Progressive Christianity by Michael J. Kruger

The point of these quick takes post sto catch up on my “To Write About” stack—emphasizing pithiness, not thoroughness.

None Greater

None Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God

by Matthew Barrett
Kindle Edition, 304 pg.
Baker Books, 2019
Read: December 22-29, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

(the official blurb)
This is a popular-level, very approachable introduction to the Attributes of God—Incomprehensibility, Aseity, Simplicity, Immutability, Impassibility, Eternity, Omnipresence, Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omnisapience, and a few others. He does so using the works of Augustine, Anselm,— and Aquinas to define Classical Theism—with help from Charnock and Bavinck.

Tackling all that in 300 accessible pages is no mean feat. I cannot tell you how many times I thought as I read this that this is the book that R.C. Sproul would have written about the Attributes of God. Sure, the illustrations aren’t the ones that Sproul would’ve used—but they’re of a kind. In my books, that’s a high compliment—we need someone who can communicate like Sproul. Barrett will do fine if he continues to put out this kind of work.

This is a really helpful and useful work—I recommend it strongly to everyone.
4 Stars

Alive

Alive: How the Resurrection of Christ Changes Everything

by Gabriel N.E. Fluhrer
Kindle Edition, 167 pg.
Reformation Trust, 2020
Read: April 5-12, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

(the official blurb)
The book starts with a look at the evidence for the Resurrection of Christ, and why it’s important to wrestle with it and to be ready to defend it in our current culture. Then Fluhrer moves on to looking at the way the Resurrection was foreshadowed in the Old Testament, described in the Gospels, preached in Acts, explained in the rest of the New Testament, and serves as the basis for our sure hope. He covers all the bases and does so well.

Fluhrer has an apologetic goal for this book, it’s not as compelling as he seems to think it is. Which really describes the book as a whole. In the end, it’s too surface-level. It’s helpful, the theology behind it is the kind of thing we need more of—a robust Redemptive-Historical approach à la Vos and Gaffin—and it’s approachable. I just couldn’t sink my teeth into it. I liked it, I just wanted to like it more.

3 Stars

Song of Songs

The Song of Songs

by G. I. Williamson
Kindle Edition, 112 pg.
P&R Publishing, 2020
Read: April 26, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

(the official blurb)
This is a great and helpful collection of sermons. This particular book of the Bible is often misinterpreted, so having someone bring careful clarity to the text is valuable. It’s not the final word—Williamson would never claim to be. But it’s helpful.

It’s also Christ-centered. Something far too often neglected when approaching this text. Yes, there’s a focus on love, marriage, sexuality. But with the goal of bringing glory to God through that.

I really appreciated this book and will be returning to it.
3.5 Stars

The Ten Commandments of Progressive Christianity

The Ten Commandments of Progressive Christianity

by Michael J. Kruger
Paperback, 54 pg.
Cruciform Quick, 2019
Read: May 24, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

(the official blurb)
There’s part of this that’s a tribute to Machen and Christianity & Liberalism, while being an update to it, too. To see how Liberalism is alive and well (running under the moniker of “Progressive” now), he uses two contemporary works to respond to. He stresses repeatedly that the tenents taught in these books aren’t wholesale departures from the faith. However, these half-truths are so misleading they amount to the same. Being half-truths, they’re all the more dangerous and will easily fool some.

The analysis and critique are sharp, spot-on, and easy to read. Well worth your time.

But…

I know that the point of this imprint is “quick,” but this was just too brief to be really valuable. I’d have liked some more depth, for Kruger to use more than just the two works he’s critiquing, that sort of thing. It was an appetizer—and it turns out that after a couple of bites, I wanted a meal.
3.5 Stars

This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from any of them, I will get a small commission at no additional cost to you. As always, opinions are my own.

My Favorite Theology/Christian Living Books of 2020

I read a lot of good, inspirational, thoughtful and devotional work this year, but these were the ones that stuck out in my mind. I’d encourage the careful reading of all of them.

(in alphabetical order by author)

None GreaterNone Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God

by Matthew Barrett

I haven’t had a chance to write about this book yet, but it’s great. Barrett provides a wonderful tool to introduce believers of all ages/background to the main attributes of God to shape belief and practice. It’s a corrective, but not scoldy. It’s deep, but not hard to understand. It appreciates mystery and doesn’t try to overexplain anything but it also grapples with what we’re given to understand. I’ll say more in a week or two, but for now, just know it’s one of the best things I read last year.

4 Stars

Reformed Dogmatics, Volume 1: Theology ProperReformed Dogmatics, Volume 1: Theology Proper

by Geerhardus Vos, Richard B. Gaffin, Jr. (Translator and Editor)

My original post
Yeah, it’s only a picture of one of the volumes (but they all pretty much look alike). This set concisely, yet comprehensively, discusses the major theological loci in a way that’s scholarly and yet warm and practical.

5 Stars

Saving the Reformation: The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of DortSaving the Reformation: The Pastoral Theology of the Canons of Dort

by W. Robert Godfrey

My original post
This look at the Synod of Dort, as well as the Canons produced by it, is well-researched, careful, encouraging and pastoral—this is not dry and dusty history, nor dry and dusty doctrine. This book, like the Synod it focuses on, seeks to defend, protect and further the cause of the Protestant Reformation, the Gospel itself. As such, it succeeds and you’d do well to study it.

5 Stars

 Grace Worth Fighting ForGrace Worth Fighting For: Recapturing the Vision of God’s Grace in the Canons of Dort

by Daniel R. Hyde

My original post
Is a fantastic companion to the previous book. Hyde focuses on the Canons themselves and what they’re getting at, showing how Church History developed those ideas to this point and how the Reformed church built on them. I didn’t expect anything to beat the Godfrey volume in this year where we got multiple books (thanks to the Canons’s anniversary), but this one did. it’s warm, pastoral and approachable. Anyone over 13 should have no problem with it. Sure, some of the topics will leave some scratching their heads and pondering for a while, but that’s because these are weighty, thought-provoking topics, not because of Hyde’s text. I may have read a better theological book this year, but I can’t think of it off the top of my head. This is simply excellent—rich theology, rich application, solid history, smartly writing, occasionally stirring.

5 Stars

Beyond Authority and SubmissionBeyond Authority and Submission: Women and Men in Marriage, Church, and Society

by Rachel Green Miller

My original post
This book made me re-examine a lotand will probably continue to do so as I mull on what she has to say (and I’ll probably find a lot to disagree with ultimately, and a lot to agree withas it ought to be). How much of what I think about how women and men should interact with each other (in the home, Church and society) comes from Scripture and how much from the culture? How much of what I think it means to be a man or what it means to be a woman has more to do with Ancient Greek culture or the Victorians? (more than it should). The core of the message should be heard and weighed, and hopefully, after the hubbub around its publication has died down a bit, we can start to deal with it.

4 Stars

Theological Retrieval for EvangelicalsTheological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future

by Gavin Ortlund

My original post
A fantastic mix of theory and practice—showing why and how Evangelicals should mine the treasures of the past to shape the theology of today and tomorrow.

4 Stars

The Imputation of the Active Obedience of Christ in the Westminster StandardsThe Imputation of the Active Obedience of Christ in the Westminster Standards

by Alan D. Strange

I was sure I’d written a post about this book, and was embarrassed to discover that I hadn’t—I somehow let this not be included in the November Retrospective, too. This is why I don’t get paid for this blog, folks.

Anyway, Strange packs a lot into this 176 page tome. It is dense. But somehow, it’s also an easy read. He explores the historical debate—particularly around the Westminster Assembly—around this doctrine and explains why the Standards express things the way they do. Then he applies it to contemporary debate in a straightforward manner. Pound for pound, possibly the most helpful book I’ve read this year.

4 Stars

Grace & GloryGrace and Glory: Sermons Preached in the Chapel of Princeton Theological Seminary

by Geerhardus Vos

My original post
This is exactly what a collection of sermons ought to be—the language is clear, precise and almost lyrical. You can almost hear them as you read them. Solid theology, warm application and gospel-centered. My only problem with this collection is that it was so short.

5 Stars

Books that almost made the list (links to my original posts for those I wrote about): The Future of Everything: Essential Truths about the End Times by Willaim Boekestein, The Whole Armor of God: How Christ’s Victory Strengthens Us for Spiritual Warfare by Iain M. Duguid, Rediscovering the Holy Spirit: God’s Perfecting Presence in Creation, Redemption, and Everyday Life by Michael S. Horton, The Prayers of Jesus by Mark Jones, and Baptism: Answers to Common Questions by Guy M. Richard.

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