There are doubtless those who live by the law and don’t quite get grace, but is that the world most of the readers of this book inhabit?   Maybe it is, but maybe it has just become the accepted norm to repeat that there are lots of people out there drowning in legalism endorsed by... Continue Reading

Throughout his prolific ministry, Spurgeon was consumed with a gospel zeal. He made it his practice to isolate one or a few verses as a springboard to proclaim the gospel. He asserted, “I take my text and make a beeline to the cross.” Every time Spurgeon stepped into the pulpit, he set his gaze intently... Continue Reading

“There were always wars in human history—new ones, generation after generation—because wars spring from the human heart itself,” Novak writes, citing St. Augustine. “Peace never lasts.” He eventually turned against “progressivism” because it “overrates human innocence and goodness and underrates human weakness and preference for getting things for free rather than as a result of... Continue Reading

What is the takeaway for publishers? “It’s counterintuitive, because you’d think success is good, but the problem is too much success,” Le Peau said. “Every product has a bell curve, and all bell curves have a downslope.”   The Message, published in 2002, is still the ninth best-selling Bible translation, according to the Evangelical Christian... Continue Reading

According to Duguid, we live in a Disney-deluded world in which we are taught to believe that we can be and do anything we please. But this make-believe fairy tale inevitably collides with reality. We are limited, weak and sinful people whose default mode it is to live for self.  Just like the Barbie doll,... Continue Reading

We can be thankful for MacArthur’s longtime passion for the truth of the gospel and for his unswerving commitment to the Word of God. He rightly reminds us that we must be bold and courageous in renouncing false teaching. At the same time, the charismatic movement is painted with too broad of a brush in Strange... Continue Reading

Christians get divorced too. And it is horrible. Oftentimes friends, family, and church members don’t know how to help. Sometimes divorced Christians are treated like leprosy in biblical times. That’s why I really appreciate how Greco shows us how the gospel is applied in even this devastation. He shows that while God’s purpose in marriage... Continue Reading

I also appreciate the ways Byrd interacts with cultural values. She does a good job of distinguishing between cultural standards of beauty and God’s values, calling us to embrace aging with grace. She points out ways in which the self-absorption and self-esteem that seem so prevalent inhibit a wholehearted pursuit of God where we seek... Continue Reading

Ginsberg does offer good information in his chapter on “The Realpolitik of Race and Gender,” showing how the “moral imperatives” of the professoriate give administrators the opportunity to grab hiring decisions from the faculty by forging “tactical alliances with representatives of minority groups.” But neither Worthen nor Ginsberg apparently grasps how corrupt academia has become.... Continue Reading

I started reading Wright’s book on the Psalms a few days ago, not really expecting much from it, and was immediately overwhelmed by the power of his prose, the force of his arguments, the startlingly fresh insights, and especially the beauty of his writing. I posted a couple of quotes on social media and within... Continue Reading