As Bates argues, the gospel can’t be reduced to the formula “Jesus died for our sins,” since the gospel centers on the truth that Jesus is King. He’s the resurrected and enthroned Lord over all, and we’re called to express our allegiance to him as our Lord. According to Bates, there are eight elements to the... Continue Reading

“What would become that Little Book first appeared in 1539, in the Latin second edition of Calvin’s magnum opus the Institutes of the Christian Religion. At that time it was a chapter titled De vita hominis Christiani (on the life of the Christian man).”   There are far more Calvinists in the world than there... Continue Reading

Is the Bible Good for Women? doesn’t just equip women to interpret Scripture correctly; it helps us gain a right understanding of a woman’s value. God made all of humanity in his image, and his ultimate purpose for his creation is to live in a world where both man and woman are mutually responsible to each other and their Creator. Crafted in... Continue Reading

“This seems rather strange for a book that so confidently states that God has spoken to us by the Son. Wouldn’t this mean that Jesus’ words are God’s words? And if so, shouldn’t the author of Hebrews be quoting Jesus right and left to make his case? The fact that the book of Hebrews doesn’t... Continue Reading

“In Adam and the Genome: Reading Scripture after Genetic Science, Dennis Venema and Scot McKnight contest my way of thinking. These are two authors at the top of their game—Venema a biology professor at Trinity Western University in British Columbia, who has written widely on evolutionary biology from a Christian perspective, and McKnight a New Testament... Continue Reading

“There are many reasons that ignorance pervades today’s church. For decades, Christians have focused on felt needs rather than doctrinal truth. We have focused on immediately-applicable topical sermons rather than verse-by-verse exposition that unleashes the whole truth of God’s whole Word.”   For over a decade, I have been reviewing books that are of particular... Continue Reading

Because the problem appears to be so massive, it is easy to throw up our arms in despair and conclude that individuals can do nothing to help. However, we can help in many ways. In our book, we discuss the importance of praying faithfully, studying diligently, giving generously, living modestly, volunteering enthusiastically, investing and shop... Continue Reading

“There is much more to this book. It is both profound and provocative. And, while unabashedly Roman Catholic, it is, to adapt a phrase from Henry VIII, a book for me and all Protestants to read.”   I recently had the privilege of recording an hour-long conversation with Archbishop Charles Chaput, reflecting on the current... Continue Reading

"Of what avail, without the redeeming acts of God, are all the lofty ideals of Psalmists and Prophets, all the teaching and example of Jesus? In themselves they can bring us nothing but despair. We Christians are not interested merely in what God commands, but also in what God did; in a triumphant indicative; our salvation depends squarely upon history; the Bible contains that history, and unless that history is true the authority of the Bible is gone and we who have put our trust in the Bible are without hope”

Does William Young really intend to replace the historic vision of God and salvation with a new picture, or is this review simply nitpicking? At countless points throughout the story, we find Mack amazed at what he is learning. The reason is because this vision of God is so very different from everything Mack used to think about God: the things he learned, for instance, in family catechism as a boy (p. 107) and in seminary as a young man (pp. 9, 65, 198). This constant refrain on Mack’s “retraining” is significant, because it tells us that the author knows he is confronting us with a new vision of God to replace the one we grew up with.