I must be insane for even trying this one…what can I possibly say about this? But it’s been over a month since I finished this, and I’ve got to pull the trigger on this now before I overthink it any more than I already have.
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The Wonderful Works of GodHardcover, 549 pg. Read: January 3-August 8, 2021 |
Thus the confession of the trinity is the sum of the Christian religion. Without it neither the creation nor the redemption nor the sanctification can be purely maintained. Every departure from this confession leads to error in the other heads of doctrine…We can truly proclaim the mighty works of God only when we recognize and confess them as the one great work of Father, Son, and Spirit.
In the love of the Father, the grace of the Son, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit is contained the whole salvation of men.
What’s The Wonderful Works of God About?
Over a century ago, Herman Bavinck gave the world a gift when he abridged his magnum opus, Reformed Dogmatics (a four-volume set) into one volume—simplified for the laity. It was translated into English in the 1950s and published under the title Our Reasonable Faith. In 2019, that same translation was re-typeset and republished as The Wonderful Works of God (a better translation of the original title) with a new translation of Bavinck’s Foreword—which was left out of the original English edition, for some reason.
And wow—what a treasure this is. Over 24 chapters—none that are terribly long—Bavick covers all the necessary topics—Revelation (General and Special), Scripture, the Nature of God, the Trinity, Creation, Sin, Redemption, Eschatology, and so on. You can read each chapter in one sitting pretty easily, but they’re deep enough that you might not want to.
Strengths and Weaknesses
It’s my habit to talk about strengths/highlights of a book along these lines, as well as things I think the author could’ve done better at. When it comes to Bavinck (or the writer of any systematic theology), I’d be punching above my weight as a reader and as a blogger to do that. Instead, I’m limiting myself to the experience of reading the work.
I’ll talk more about the strengths in the next section. As for weaknesses? One of the best parts of this book is that it’s primarily positive/constructive–here’s how the Church has understood and developed its ideas about X. He rarely spends time critiquing/criticizing a teaching or a group. When he does, he does so effectively (for example, see his comments on Chiliasm). I would’ve liked to have seen a bit more of that–I’m all for following a writer/teacher down a path, I just like a little warning when I’m about to stray off of it while I’m at it.
So, what did I think about The Wonderful Works of God?
Under the title of Magnalia Dei, the wonderful works of God, I wish to give a simple explanation of the Christian faith in a book of modest scope, as confessed by the Reformed churches (Gereformeerde Kerken) in all times and lands.
Many contemporary readers will roll their eyes at the “simple explanation” and “modest scope” that Bavinck mentions in the first paragraph of this Foreword. But really, it kind of is. Ambitious and complex would describe his Dogmatics. Contemporary readers being flummoxed has more to do with educational standards and the other ways we’ve let our minds rot.
I should stress—by “simple” I don’t mean easy, I just mean not that complex. This is readable by anyone who’s willing to put a little work into it, Bavinck’s point is being something that anyone can understand and profit from it.
The book is steeped in Scripture and you can sense it on every page—following that Bavinck will explain the catholic* understanding of the doctrine—and then narrows the focus of the chapter to a Reformed understanding. It’s a pastoral work, a compassionate work, and one that will repeatedly point to the Gospel as well as the Majesty of the Triune God.
* Catholic=universal, that is. Small “c” catholic, not capital “c.”
While I’d recommend people put the effort into Reformed Dogmatics this is a far easier place to start reading Bavinck. (I made the mistake of coming at those works in the wrong way). There’s plenty to chew on in these pages, but it’s nothing to be daunted by. I’ve read a few single-volume systematics like this—none compare to the depth, clarity, and usefulness of this one.
If you’ve yet to read this, it’s time to fix that.
