When The Deity of Christ, a book sent by Crossway for me to review, was delivered to my house I was in the backyard roasting coffee. I was in process of creating a blend to commemorate a friend’s wedding. A blend in the world of coffee is a mixture of coffees from multiple origins and is typically blended to produce a balanced cup. As I perused the volume that had just arrived I was intrigued by the concept behind the book and the similarities between that and the coffee blend I was working on. The Theology in Community series “assembles teams of scholars to explore key theological themes and apply them to contemporary themes.” It seems this series of books is a blend of authors, from various origins, that would result in a balanced book on a particular topic. I generally enjoy these types of books as they expose one to multiple authors with multiple perspectives. With coffee beans cracking in the heat of the roaster, I cracked open The Deity of Christ.

The deity of Christ, in the eyes of the editors, is a topic of paramount import; “The deity of Christ is vital to Christian faith and practice. In fact, nothing is more important than whether or not Jesus Christ is God. If Jesus is not God incarnate, then Christianity is not true; if he is, then it is true. The critical importance of Christ’s deity is sufficient reason for this book.” (20) Though no further defence for a book of this sort is needed, the editors share several other reasons this volume is important; an increase in popularity of ‘gospels’ denying the divinity of Christ, the worldwide expansion of Islam which denies Christ is God, religious pluralism which undermines the exclusivity of Christ’s salvation, and the proliferation of cults whose status as cults is a result of their denial of the central doctrine of Christ’s deity.

With so much at stake, a book of this sort is more than a nicety; it is a necessity. And though there have been many written works on this topic, a fresh, contemporary look at this integral doctrine should not be overlooked.

A Standard

It occurred to me that the editors and others of this volume, in producing this book, are raising a standard. A quick glimpse in a dictionary for the definition of standard resulted in over 30 definitions. Nevertheless, several of them pertain directly to this book. The deity of Christ, and hence this book, is a doctrine that embodies several of the definitions I came across. The editors and authors of The Deity of Christ employ this doctrine as a standard for the Christian church. How is this doctrine a ‘standard’? The doctrine of Christ being divine is a standard in the sense that is something to conform to and a basis for comparison. A Christian church, to be truly Christian, must conform to this doctrine and if an individual Christian’s beliefs are found lacking when compared to this doctrine, the designation of Christian is speculative at best. A standard is also a flag representing a sovereign which one can rally to, and the writers call the church to rally to Christ, the second person of the trinity, our sovereign Redeemer. Finally, the truth of Christ’s divinity is a standard as in a support; Christ as God provides an unfaltering practical support to the believer and to the church. Practically speaking, Christ’s divinity is a necessity for our daily walk of faith.

The Deity of Christ as a book raises a standard in the multifaceted ways described above and presents a myriad of applications. The various authors serve their purpose well in providing a collection of chapters that rally Christians around their King and Saviour, explain and elucidate the doctrine which historic Christianity has used as a means of comparison and conformity, and strategically support the saints in their safeguarding of this tenet of their faith. This book, and the others in this series, attempt this this by approaching the topic through biblical, historical, systematic and practical perspectives.

A Biblical Viewpoint

The deity of Christ as it is revealed to us in Scripture is deftly handled by Ray C. Ortlund Jr., Stephen J. Welllum, and Andreas J. Kostenberger. Of the three, I had only read work by Ortlund, but recognized Kostenberger and Wellum by name and looked forward to their contributions. If this book is to be considered a significant contribution on the subject at hand, then a solid and insightful dealing with the doctrine as it is presented in the Bible is essential. Ortlund, pastor of Immanuel Church in Nashville, provided the chapter on the deity of Christ in the Old Testament.

Ortlund develops this topic by considering eight significant passages from the Old Testament. Ortlund’s careful handling of the topic is evident as he provides three categories to distribute the passages under consideration to: passages inaccurately construed to reveal the deity of Christ, passages accurately construed to reveal his deity, and passages that are unclear concerning Christ’s deity. Ortlund’s cautious approach sets a serious tone for the biblical perspectives and he leads us into consideration of the New Testament declaring “the deity of the Christ is unmistakably, if mysteriously, revealed in the Old Testament texts.” (58)

Wellum grabs the reigns with his look at the Synoptic Gospels and further on in the book deals with Apostolic witness. Having never read Welllum before, I was unsure of what to expect. I must admit, I was quite pleased. He has organized his chapters in a manner that aids in understanding and his easy-to-read style adds to their readability. I would not hesitate to read more of him in the future. Wellum examines the divinity of Christ in the Synoptics by discussing the implicit and explicit clams to deity. Wellum shows how these gospels implicitly present Jesus as the incarnate God in his fulfilment of the Old Testament, his baptism, his life and ministry, and his own understanding of his death and resurrection. Wellum continues by showing how the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke explicitly portray Jesus as understanding himself to be God through his use of Abba, his self-identity as the Son and the Son of Man, and his statements that declare he does the to works of God.

Wellum also provides an analysis of the evidence of the deity of Christ in the Apostolic witness. This is accomplished by looking at four crucial texts; Romans 1:3-4, Philippians 2:5-11, Colossians 1:15-20, and Hebrews 1:1-4. The thorough explanations of the passages are both enlightening and enjoyable. Again, Wellum’s organizational choice of focusing on significant passages, as opposed to categories he used in the earlier chapter, was a welcome change that I found encouraged me to keep reading.

The writings of John are left in the capable hands of Kostenberger. Though I had not read any of his materials, his expertise on Johanine writings is well-known and I anticipated his chapters more than any of the other writers. He did not disappoint. With chapters entitled The Deity of Christ in John’s Gospel and The Deity of Christ in John’s Letters and the Book of Revelation, Kostenberger completes this book’s biblical perspective on the deity of Christ. Kostenberger writes in an engaging manner and I read both of his chapters without putting the book down. Richard Baxter has said, “It is, at best, a sign that a man hath not well digested the matter himself, if he is not able to deliver it plainly to others.” Contrary to the quote, it is clear Kostenberger has digested this material and his command of it results in a clear and comfortable read. Topics covered in the investigation into the gospel of John include Jesus as the Word, the One and Only Son, Son of God, Son of Man, the I Am, Lord and God, the resurrection, and Jesus’ foreknowledge. The other chapter by this Johanine scholar looked at relevant passages and concepts from the letters of John and in Revelation he considers depictions of Christ-trinitarian, the first and last, the eschatalogical king/judge/warrior, returning judge and saviour-which are thoroughly convincing. I will definitely be reading more books from this author.

As people of the Book, Christians should expect the biblical evidence for the deity of Christ to be the backbone of any inquiry into the doctrine of the incarnate God. The Deity of Christ definitely emphasizes the Word as it pertains to this topic. It is full of biblical passages and their explanations. These chapters alone would suffice for a book on this topic. Their handling of the deity of Jesus in the Bible is not exhaustive, as that would require many volumes, but it is convincing.

A Historical Viewpoint

The Deity of Christ in Church History is the chapter dedicated to a historical look into the deity of Christ. This was a fascinating look at some of the pivotal issues in church history pertaining to the Son of God. Gerald Bray takes the reader through various eras and errors. The eras include those around the Nicene and Chalcedonian creeds. The errors the church confronted include Arianism, Apollinarianism, and kenoticism. Bray reminds us that despite the fact that “ none of the fathers of the church ever believed that, in confessing the deity of Christ, he was adding anything to the teachings of Jesus himself” (176), the fight for Christ’s divinity is an ongoing battle, with a long history, that resurfaces regularly. This chapter was an interesting perusal of the issue in the annals of the church’s history.

A Systematic Viewpoint

In an effort to synthesize and systematize the earlier investigations concerning the deity of Christ, Robert A. Peterson arrays five arguments: 1) Jesus is identified with God, 2) Jesus receives devotion due to God alone, 3) Jesus brings the age to come, 4) Jesus saves us when we are spiritually united to him, and 5) Jesus performs the works of God. I found Peterson’s categories interesting and in particular his explanation of how Jesus’ inauguration of the age to come proves he is God was unexpected and stimulating. This chapter does an efficient job of providing the reader a summary of issues discussed in the book. It also provides the reader a framework with which to harmonize the various strands of argument and evidence promoted.

A Practical Viewpoint

The practical perspective that the affirmation of the divinity of Jesus Christ brings us to as presented by The Deity of Christ is twofold. The first issue of application pertains to the relation between the deity of Christ and cults. This chapter, written by Talbot School of Theology professor Alan W. Gomes, presents a repository of information on Christian Cults and their deficient stance on Christ as God. His method is inviting. He considers the different historical christologies and then classifies modern cults in relation to the cristologies advanced. By explaining polytheism, dynamic monarchianism, gnosticism, Arianism, and modalistic monarchianism, Gomes exposes Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Unitarianism, Oneness Pentecostalism, Christian Science and other belief systems as cults for it becomes evident that all these belief systems undermine a central doctrine of the Christian faith; the deity of Christ. This chapter is an excellent initial resource for further study on the cults.

The second practical perspective concerns itself with missions, world religions, and pluralism. I found this chapter by J. Nelson Jennings the most difficult to read. I think this was because the author brings some unexpected, yet provocative, outlooks and insights into these topics. This is a chapter which I need to re-read, but it was intriguing enough that I will re-read it. Of particular interest to me was the paradigm through which to consider other religions. Jennings suggests that a healthy approach when considering other religions is threefold; consider how sin is involved, consider how Satan is involved, and consider how searching for truth is involved. That concept alone will be very helpful.

‘Bonus’ Material

One of the positives that I have yet to mention is that many of the chapters have “bonus” material. Whether it is Wellum explaining the Promise-Fulfilment Motif, Kostenberger’s overview of First-Century Jewish Monotheism, or Gomes’ defining of cults, this book contains plenty of helpful material beyond what might be expected. I have also failed to touch upon Stephen J. Nichols chapter which the book essentially begins with. This is an honest look at the contemporary condition of the church’s view of the deity of Christ. Like a good doctor, Nichols observes some symptoms of what ails us, diagnoses the problem, and then prescribes a remedy. I suggest you read this chapter before you decide to buy the book. You’ll buy the book if you do.

Some books are classics that you will read many times over your lifetime. This is not that book. Some books are barely worth reading, and having read them, you’ll never crack them open again. This is not that type of book either. But, some books are valuable in that they provide you with a resource for future reference that you will consult at different times for different reasons at many times. That is this book. Though I do not foresee myself reading this book from cover to cover again, I am quite certain I will revisit this book for numerous reasons on various occasions. Like a good cup of your favourite blend of coffee, this book will always leave you wanting another sip.

Thanks to Jude St. John for this guest post. You can visit the original post here: Roasting Coffee and Reviewing Books and Jude’s blog here: www.quercuscalliprinos.blogspot.com

The man is a dynamo. Knowing as I now do how much heartache and mental effort can go into just one book, the many volumes that Piper has produced are a monumental achievement. Most of us find it hard to even keep up with reading all of them. They are all good, but some of his works stand out as exceptional. I believe that his book on Ruth called A Sweet and Bitter Providence (Crossway, 2010) is one that it is important you do not miss. Piper crams a lot of teaching into a short book, which also includes the full text of the biblical book. He shows us the sovereignty of God and portrays the value and dignity of women. He shows how, when God calls us to suffer, there is always both bitter and sweet components to the experience. Here are a couple of extracts:

[Ruth] is different from most people today. We have a sense of entitlement. We expect kindness and are astonished and resentful if we don’t get our “rights.” But Ruth expresses her sense of unworthiness by falling on her face and bowing to the ground. Proud people don’t feel amazed at being treated well. They don’t feel deep gratefulness. But humble people do. In fact, they are made even more humble by being treated graciously. They are so amazed that grace came to them in their unworthiness that they feel even more lowly. But they receive the gift. Joy increases, not self-importance. Grace is not intended to replace lowliness with pride. It’s intended to replace sorrow with joy. (Page 64-65)

Here Piper explains why it is that some people can honestly say that they are humbled by great success. I pray that I will always be amazed at how well I am treated. Certainly my recent trip to the USA with its warm welcomes from so many people, and so many people opening their homes to me, was an incredible blessing. I thank God for how he has directed my paths, and for how graciously I have been received. It was far greater than I deserve.  May we all learn to drop our idea that we have “rights” and our sense of entitlement.

God’s sovereignty even over our sin is nicely explained in the next quote I also want to share with you:

In fact, during the time of the judges, it was sin to demand a king. Nevertheless, near the end of this period, the people asked for a king . . . Asking for a king meant that they were rejecting God as their king. This, Samuel says, was a great wickedness . . .

Nevertheless, the book of Ruth is written with a clear sense of joy that Ruth and Naomi and Boaz are the forebears of the king of Israel. So in the same period when it was a “great wickedness” to ask for a king, God was preparing to give the people a king. We are meant to conclude that, without approving of sin, God governs the sinful acts of men for his own good and wise purposes. He was planning that Israel would have a king, though it was sin for the people to demand one. (Page 114)

Knowing God rules,  even over my mistakes, gives me great confidence that he will make sure I finish the race well. I am confident to trust my life into Jesus’ hands and to ask him to guide me and mold me into what he wants me to be. He will make sure I become the man I was meant to be.

Piper has also written a companion volume, which is a collection of poems dramatizing the story. I read this first and it reminded me how full of life and fresh the story of Ruth really is. Seen through the eyes of the great-great grandson of Ruth and Boaz, it is a fresh reminder that King David would surely have grown up hearing the remarkable story of his ancestors. No wonder he had such a confidence in the sovereign hand of God at work in his life to protect and guide him, even through difficulties. This story should inspire us, as it no doubt inspired him.

“Have I been born again?” is not a question to be answered hastily. In John Piper’s new book, Finally Alive, expect to be challenged. Piper strips away our complacency, arguing that many people falsely believe they are Christians. He begins by arguing that many who claim to be “born again” today are actually not, and that statistics demonstrating that so-called born again Christians are morally indistinguishable from unbelievers only demonstrate that many who think they have been regenerated actually are still on their way to hell.

Have you carefully examined yourself lately to see if YOU are truly saved? Being wrong about this issue will have eternal consequences and Jesus warned us that there will be those in that day who will have thought they were his followers but actually were not:

Matthew 7:21-23
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

By examining the Bible’s teaching on the new birth, John Piper shows us how to be certain our faith is genuine. Because no issue could be more critical, I believe this is the most important book Piper has written. It could be the most important book outside of the Bible that you or your loved one will ever read. I was privileged to have the opportunity to read this prior to launch and it moved me profoundly, challenging me once more to be sure of my own salvation and to appreciate more fully what God has done for me.

This book is being published first in the UK. However, it is now possible to pre-order it, and I understand it can also be delivered to the USA and other countries. It’s worth the cost of international postage. If you move quickly (i.e. before December 4th), your order will be free of delivery charges in the UK.

A single copy is now available on pre-order for just £8.99 (which is approximately $14), dropping to £7.64 each if you buy a box of twenty. Buy several copies! Delivery, however, is not possible before Christmas.

My buddy Mike shared this video of his new ESV Study Bible. Enjoy.

You can purchase an ESV Study Bible online.

My friends at Crossway continue to outdo themselves in the area of excellence. I sometimes think I should just issue a blanket recommendation—buy ANYTHING they print. But for some specifics, I thought I’d post some mini-reviews today. They have also recently started a book blog which has already had some great posts, so I’ve decided to award them a “Warnie Award,” which means that their headlines will appear in my sidebar from now on.

Here are a few Crossway books that have helped me as I have dipped into them in recent months:

THE SUPREMACY OF CHRIST IN A POSTMODERN WORLD
Each year the Desiring God Ministries Conference seems to spawn a book. This is one of them, and in it John Piper, D. A. Carson, Tim Keller, Mark Driscoll, Voddie Baucham, and David Wells all interact with the vital issues of how we can be both faithful to Scripture and relevant to the culture. Avoiding the extremes of compromise and alienation, this book charts a course we would be wise to follow carefully. Here is a quote to whet your appetite:

“This culture basically says that there is no rhyme or reason, so we’re here to make the most of it. Consume. Enjoy. That’s why we’re here. That is the overarching mentality in our culture, both inside and outside the Church, resulting in an unquenchable materialism and causing us to look at children as a blight and as a burden. While many in the poorest nations of the world talk about the number of children with which they can be blessed, we talk about the number of children we can afford. We have houses that are larger than they’ve ever had and families that are smaller than they’ve ever had…. Why? Because they get in the way of our consumption and our enjoyment” (page 60).

WHAT JESUS DEMANDS FROM THE WORLD
For a religion founded on the God-man Jesus, it is amazing how little attention we tend to give to what he said. John Piper’s book goes a long way to correcting this omission. If you thought commands and demands were only found in the Old Testament, this book will surprise you. Far from making things easier for us, Christ actually lays out a set of demands that far exceed the Old Testament law in their reach and challenge to us. Of course, he does this to show us our need for him, but nonetheless, empowered by the Spirit, we are intended to live as Jesus tells us. After all, he commanded us to make disciples of all nations and teach them to obey whatever he has commanded us (see Matthew 28). This book will help you understand and obey these commands.

IN MY PLACE CONDEMNED HE STOOD
We can never have too many books helping us to understand the glory of the cross and everything it accomplished for us. Mahaney recommends reading a book on the cross every year, so it’s no wonder he encouraged his friends in this endeavor, which brings together short essays from Mark Dever and J. I. Packer.

One other fantastic thing about Crossway is that they have published 29 books by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. I can’t comment on this author enough. Although based on sermons he preached decades ago, the books sound like they were written for the 21st century. More and more of his talks continue to be adapted for publication. They are supreme examples of what preaching should be like, but also function very well as books. If you haven’t discovered the Doctor yet, where have you been? His sermons are also available at mlj.org.uk. Here is an extract from one recent book, Compelling Christianity, based on Acts 8:

“The Christian message does not stop at the mere proclamation of the forgiveness of sins and reconciliation to God. It goes on to say say that this Gospel changes men and women. . . . Christ came into the world not only to bear my punishment and to reconcile me to God, but also to fit me for heaven. He came to do something to me that enables me to enjoy God even in this world. What is it? I must be “born again”….

That is it! We must be made anew, we need a new nature, a new heart, a new mind, we must be new persons. And he has come to do this for us. This is the wonderful, amazing, astounding doctrine of regeneration and rebirth.

This new creation is the act of God. The God who made the world and made man at the beginning makes us anew in Christ. Get rid forever of the notion that becoming a Christian simply means being forgiven or trying to be a little bit better than you were before; you cannot be….

He is there! I am not left to myself. I have a new nature. The Spirit is working in me, getting rid of the pollution, sanctifying me, preparing me for Glory; and even before I get there I have, in Christ, access to God” (pages 59-63).

Finally, I should not neglect to mention a commentary I found helpful when preparing my talks from Philippians earlier this year. It’s a slim volume that nevertheless manages to get to the pith of the message of this vital book. The “Preaching the Word” series deserves to be read.

1. John Piper, N. T. Wright, and Gracious Discernment

2. John Piper Challenges N. T. Wright on Justification
3. Piper Explains the Classic View of Justification Versus N. T. Wright’s View
4. Piper and Wright: Does Justification by Faith Save Us?
5. John Piper: Is N. T. Wright Preaching Another Gospel?
6. Legalism Versus Grace in First Century Judaism
7. Hard and Soft Legalism
8. Legalism, Racism, and the First Century Jew
9. 2 Corinthians 5 and Romans 5—Two Critical Passages on Justification
10. The Christian and the Law
11. Piper Gets Passionate with the ETS on Justification
12. Tom Wright’s Response to John Piper
13. Does Piper Neglect the Resurrection?

I would like to conclude by sharing a great summary quote from Dr. Piper which is a fitting climax to what, at least to me, has been an interesting journey through an important book. I hope many of you will go out and buy this book, but remember, buy Pierced for Our Transgressions first! This book will stretch you, but to be stretched is sometimes a good idea!

So, what is the crux of the doctrine of justification, according to Piper?

“Our only hope for living the radical demands of the Christian life is that God is totally for us now and forever. Therefore, God has not ordained that living the Christian life should be the basis of our hope that God is for us. That basis is the death and righteousness of Christ, counted as ours through faith alone. On the cross Christ endured for us all the punishment required of us because of our sin. And in order that God, as our Father, might be completely for us and not against us forever, Christ has performed for us in his perfect obedience to God all that God required of us.

This punishment and this obedience are completed and past. They can never change. Our union with Christ and the enjoyment of these benefits is secure forever. Through faith alone, God establishes our union with Christ. This union will never fail, because in Christ, God is for us as an omnipotent Father who sustains our faith, and works all things together for our everlasting good. The one and only instrument through which God preserves our union with Christ is faith in Christ—the purely receiving act of the soul.” (p. 184)

Book photo courtesy of Tony S. Reinke, The Shepherd’s Scrapbook. Used by permission.

With this book Piper raises the bar. It is clearly his argument that Joy in God is the goal of the gospel itself. He really did mean it when he said the chief purpose of man is to glorify God BY enjoying him forever. Now, he makes plain that it is God himself who makes the gospel good news. Before we get into the review proper, why not

• Read the Introduction and Chapter 1
• Listen to the Audio introduction by John Piper

Piper’s book opens as follows:

From the first sin in the Garden of Eden to the final judgment of the great white throne, human beings will continue to embrace the love of God as the gift of everything but himself. Indeed there are ten thousand gifts that flow from the love of God. The gospel of Christ proclaims the news that he has purchased by his death ten thousand blessings for his bride. But none of these gifts will lead to final joy if they have not first led to God. And not one gospel blessing will be enjoyed by anyone for whom the gospel’s greatest gift was not the Lord himself.

“Gospel” means good news ?but what makes the good news good? What is the goal of the gospel, without which it is no longer good? It is that Christ’s death brings sinners to God! Were it to bring us anywhere else we would be left hopeless. But the gospel is that God gives us himself Christ died to give us Christ, and this self-giving is his highest mercy to us and the best news for us! The most profound, most exceedingly gracious, final and decisive good of the good news is Christ himself as the glorious image of God revealed for our endless satisfaction.”

This morning my pastor Tope preached on a similar theme. He said that the “one thing” that is necessary is God. We must seek presenceense and worship more than everything else. When we do this everything else will fit into its own place. By the end I was convicted. He challenged his hearers to respond by raising a hand if they wanted to recommitt to putting God first in their lives. It was only my foolish pride and the fact that he used the word “backslidder” in his description of the people he wanted to respond that stopped me from raising my own hand.

Foolishly we put many things above the “one thing” – work, family, even Gods good gifts can take the place of God. We can busy ourselves with much serving and miss the real presence of God in hurry. Even salvation itself is not the goal.

Piper says “The gospel is not a way to get people to heaven; it is a way to get people to God.”

When we have experienced the good news like this, it will thrill us and change our lives. Piper is eager that this gospel is proclaimed in all its fullness, and says that if we have heard it right it is inevitable we will want to share it. “That is what a person does who has heard good news. He tells it”

In support of his central thesis, Piper examines the use of the greek word euangelion and highlights that the biblical gospel includes at least the following (you may recognise some of this from my own attempts at summarising the gospel here and here.

• There is a God who created the world (Acts 14.15)
• God God reigns and his sovereign rule is being revealed (Ro 10.15, Mk 1.14)
• Jesus has arrived on planet earth (Lk 2.10-11) it is the gospel of Christ (Gal 1.7)
• Jesus paid a ransom for us with his life (Mk 10.45)
• Jesus was raised from the dead (1 Cor 15.1,3-4)
• The Holy Spirit has been sent to guarentee what is coming. (Lk 3.16,18)
• Salvation is available by the power of God for everyone who believes (Ro 1.16)
• True peace can be found only through Jesus (Acts 10.36)
• All types of people are to be blessed through the gospel (Gal 3.8)
• It is the gospel of the undeserved grace of God (Acts 20.24)

To Piper two 2 Cor 5.21 makes it very clear that substitutionary atonement and justification is the heart of the gospel. As it also says in 1 Pet 3.18 “Christ suffered once for sin, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God”

Piper is very clear in his statement though that “Until the gospel events of Good Friday and Easter and the gospel promises of justification and eternal life lead you to behold and embrace God himseld as your highest joy, you have not embraced the gospel of God”

He seems to imply that our churches might be full of false converts- something which obviously concerns Mark Dever as well.

To Piper, the The gospel of Galatians and the rest of the New Testament can be summarised
by the declaration of Is 40.9 which in the LXX has two uses of the word we translate “evangelist”. Thus, the whole Gospel can be summed up in one catchphrase: “Behold your God”

The gospel is only good news because it brings us to God.

Piper puts his cards firmly on the table, declaring that he believes those who do not prize God above all things have not been truly converted. The gospel is only good news he says because it is the way back to a relationship with God.

Piper also refers to 2 Cor 4.4-6 to support the notion that the gospel is about seeing the glory of God. The gospel is the glory of Christ and a work of creation has occurred in our hearts causing us to see the light of Gods glory in the face of Jesus. Seeing that light is according to Piper
what liberates us from the power of Satan.

Says Piper “The gospel is Gods instrument for liberating people from exulting in self to exulting in Christ.”

Piper goes onto explain the work of the Holy Spirit in pursuading us of the truth of the gospel. Today many exponents of rerformed theology are curiously silent about the work of the Spirit. Not Piper, who quotes Calvin as follows “…the Word will not find acceptance in mens hearts
before it is sealed by the inward testimony of the Holy Spirit”.

He also believes that the work of the Holy Spirit in causing us to value Christ is essential to our lives as Christians. “The work of the Holy Spirit in changing us is not to work directly on our bad habits but to make us admire Jesus Christ so much that sinful habits seem foreign and distasteful”

Although in this book he doesn’t explicitly mention the Baptism in the Holy Spirit, he certainly has elsewhere. Like many others, it is clear he believes we need a clear, conscious and distinct experience of the Holy Spirits work in our lives.

As I read all this, it made me think of hero-worship. We have a natural tendancy to value our heroes so highly that we want to be like them. Thus, if we value Christ we will also want to be like him. This puts an interesting perspective, not explored by Piper on how we should relate to
those more mature than us in the Christian faith. Where our admiration of them points behind them to an admiration of Christ it would seem entirely reasonable to use the understandable desire to be like them as a motivation for life change. After all Paul says to his hearers “follow me as I follow Christ”

The passion that Piper feels is infectious. He could almost be a member of a pentecostal or charismatic church like mine. Yet, in his wisdom he ensures that his writings have a much wider impact than merely appealing to that growing section of the church. You will not feel alienated if you are a cessationist, although I challenge any “strict” cessationist to demonstrate the reality of a relationship with God as outlined here.

Piper is eager to point out, however, that with all his talk of delighting in God he is no triumphalist. He believes that for the Chrisitan sorrow and joy are actually entwined. Our joy in Christ produces regret and sorrow over sin which in turn produces the joy of forgiveness. According to Piper “life is a battle for joy in the midst of sorrow”. We are in the words of 2 Cor 6.10 “Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing”

A true understanding of the gospel “does not make a person presumptuous-it makes him meek. It produces brokenhearted joy.”

There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that this book is the most important I have read this year. I would urge everyone who can to read it. I feel it is the best book that Piper has written so far. Reading it will cause you to understand in a fresh way the gospel of Christ. No matter where you are on your Christian journey this book will be of great assistance.

I pray the book may unsettle us from our passivity and cause us not to want to settle for a flat, emotionless Christianity. I come away from this book, and my pastors sermon this morning with a fresh hunger for an encounter with the God I say I believe in.

It is a real challenge to us. Can we say truthfully to people who we meet that they should come to our church, or even look at our lives and in so doing see God’s activity. Is there a sense of awe in our meetings so that we could turn to each other and say “Behold your God”.

Do we really believe in a God who acts today? If so, lets cry out to God for more of his active presense in our personal lives, and in the lives of our churches.

I have no hesitation whatsoever in commending this book in the highest possible terms. It has been added to my list of books I feel every Christian should read. Go and buy yourself a copy as soon as you can. This book review was organised by diet of bookworms where you can read other bloggers views.

Books every Christian should read