2017 ECPA Christian Book Award winner!
Christians should evaluate philosophy by biblical criteria. This will shed greater light on the developments in the history of philosophy and better prepare us for the intellectual challenges of our time. The fall of Adam brought intellectual as well as moral corruption on the human race, and the effects of the fall can be seen in the work of philosophers, most of whom try to understand the world autonomously through reasoning apart from God’s revelation. Some philosophers have appealed to God’s revelation, but their work has often been compromised with the wisdom of the world. Revelation should inform reason, and not the other way round. In the past, even Christian theology was corrupted by the movement toward intellectual autonomy, creating the tradition of liberalism, which has unhappily dominated academic theology down to the present day. But there is hope as a new generation of Christian thinkers take God’s Word seriously. Frame’s unique new contribution augments that process.
Ichthus is the Greek word for a fish. Its five Greek letters form the first letters of the early Christian confession that ‘Jesus Christ is the Son of God and Saviour’. To draw a fish sign meant: ‘I am a Christian.’
To be a Christian, according to the New Testament is to know Christ. But who is he, and what is the meaning of his life? In Ichthus, Sinclair Ferguson and Derek Thomas answer these questions by taking us on a tour of nine key events in Jesus’s life and ministry. Their aim is to help us both understand and share the confession of those early Christians who drew the fish sign.
Ichthus is a book for everyone and anyone. It will help readers who are already Christians because of what it says about their Master. Those who are wondering exactly what it is Christians believe about Jesus should find many of their questions clearly answered. And those honest enough to admit that they have ignored, or even rejected Christianity but really could not explain what Christians believe about Jesus, will find these pages both clear and challenging.
Written by two friends who, between them, have been following Jesus Christ for a total of almost a hundred years, Ichthus will encourage you to share their faith in him.
Did the Protestant Reformers understand Paul correctly? Has the church today been unduly influenced by Reformation-era misreadings of the Pauline epistles? These questions―especially as they pertain to Martin Luther’s interpretation of the Pauline doctrine of justification―have been at the forefront of much discussion within biblical studies and theology in light of the New Perspective on Paul. But that leads to another question: Have we understood the Reformers correctly? With that in mind, these essays seek to enable a more careful reading of the Reformers’ exegesis of Pauline texts. Each chapter pairs a Reformer with a Pauline letter and then brings together a historical theologian and a biblical scholar to examine these Reformation-era readings of Paul. In doing so, this volume seeks a better understanding of the Reformers and the true meaning of the biblical text.
Preparation For Ministry deals with important issues relating to a call to the Christian ministry, theological training, and entry into pastoral work.
The author has written it out of his own rich experience as a student, a pastor, and a seminary teacher. Those contemplating entry into the Christian ministry will benefit greatly from his practical advice on such subjects as coming to faith, the call to the ministry, pre-theological study, and choosing a theological college or seminary.
Those already in theological training or who have recently entered into ministry will also find much to help them within these pages on such topics as the theological course, early ministry, and staying fresh.
A brief bibliography is provided, and the book also contains useful appendices, including:
- a guide to preparatory reading
- a short guide to sermon preparation
- C. H. Spurgeon’s The Minister’s Self-Watch
- B. B. Warfield’s The Religious Life of Theological Students
Originally published in 1955 and reprinted dozens of times over the years, John Murray’s Redemption Accomplished and Applied systematically explains the two sides of redemption — its accomplishment through Christ’s atonement and its application to the lives of believers.
Murray explores the biblical passages dealing with the necessity, nature, perfection, and extent of the atonement in order to establish its relationship to our justification, sanctification, and glorification. He goes on to identify the distinct steps in the Bible’s presentation of how the redemption accomplished by Christ is applied progressively to the life of the redeemed, including the role of faith and repentance.
Concise, precise, and accessible, Murray’s classic doctrinal study will now reach and benefit a new generation of readers.
In God’s School (A L’ Ecole de Dieu) is foundational Christian instruction. It follows the outline of John Calvin’s Geneva Catechism along with the Heidelberg Catechism. According to the ancient practice of the church, In God’s School instructs in doctrine, expounding the Apostles’ Creed. It enriches common evangelical treatments of these subjects by including fine sections on the church and the ministry of Word and sacraments as means of grace. It lays out basic Christian ethics by expounding the Ten Commandments. It teaches Christian worship by explaining the Lord’s Prayer.
This book may be used over the course of a school year. Students read a chapter each week. It also familiarizes students with the fine catechetical materials of the Protestant Reformation. Each chapter is divided into daily readings that include Scripture, so the student receives doctrinal teaching along with daily Bible study.
Perhaps the greatest strength of In God’s School is the presentation of the Commandments and Prayer. John Calvin’s stress on the grace of God shines through ethical exhortation. Maturity in Christ comes from a growing knowledge of God through the gospel of his Son, a clearer understanding of the life he calls us to walk before him, and the Spirit’s love and strength. With spiritual wisdom and rigor, Pierre Marcel leads us in knowing God.
In A Method For Prayer, great devotional commentator and pastor Ligon Duncan shows that Christians benefit from discipline just as much as talking freely with God.
Readers will discover the methods Jesus taught, look at styles of prayer, and see helpful examples. Duncan also incorporates some of Matthew Henry’s other work on prayer.
Dubbed at his death “Doctor Fundamentalis,” J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937) was one of the most significant defenders of evangelical Christianity in the early twentieth century. Raised in American Presbyterianism, he wrestled deeply with the challenge of Protestant Modernism and provided some of the most significant responses to it, particularly his classic book Christianity and Liberalism. He pointed the way forward toward a Christianity that was both intellectually rigorous and spiritually satisfying, one that was rooted in a trustworthy Bible and in a confessional tradition which in turn produced a genuine faith in Christ. As a result, Machen continues to provide lessons today for those who desire to be valiant for truth in the midst of a hostile world.
In this extensively redeveloped and expanded version of Apologetics to the Glory of God (1994), renowned theologian John Frame sheds light on the message and method of genuinely Christian apologetics in terms of proof, defense, and offense.
Anger is widespread; it is even a major problem among professing Christians. While people express anger in different ways, controlling it is a challenge for each of us. Some feel powerless as anger rises. Others try to justify themselves. The question that must be addressed is how a sinfully angry person can become a person of grace. This mini-book provides the answer and gives us hope by directing our attention to the power of Christ to transform angry people into gracious people.
In this timely book, award-winning author Kevin DeYoung challenges each of us―the skeptic and the seeker, the certain and the confused―to take a humble look at God’s Word regarding the issue of homosexuality.
After examining key biblical passages in both the Old and New Testaments and the Bible’s overarching teaching regarding sexuality, DeYoung responds to popular objections raised by Christians and non-Christians alike, making this an indispensable resource for thinking through one of the most pressing issues of our day.
The often fragmentary Aramaic texts preserved by the Qumran community represent a large collection of well edited texts, whose publications have triggered numerous contributions that have brought a significantly clearer understanding of them. Little attention, however, has been devoted to the poetic structure of these Aramaic texts, much less on Aramaic literature as a whole. This study presents a model for the analysis of Aramaic poetry as well as a detailed poetic discussion of six Aramaic texts within the Qumran collection. These texts are: 1) 4Q246, “The Son of God” text; 2) 4QLevia, a portion of the wisdom poem in the Aramaic Levi Document; 3) 4Q534, “The Elect of God” text; 4) 4Q542, The Testament of Qahat; 5) 4Q541, two fragments from the Apocryphon of Levi; 6) 1QapGen, the beauty of Sarai in the Genesis Apocryphon.
Questioning the truth of Genesis 1-3 puts more than just Adam in jeopardythe repercussions are enormous. Noted pastor-scholars Joel R. Beeke, Kevin DeYoung, Liam Goligher, Richard D. Phillips, Derek W. H. Thomas, and Carl R. Trueman argue for the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture, unpacking the implications of Genesis 1-3 for human nature, original sin, the gospel, Gods intent for human sexuality, redemption, and more.
The Reformation Study Bible (2015) has been thoroughly revised and carefully crafted under the editorial leadership of R.C. Sproul and the contributions of 75 distinguished theologians and pastors from around the world. Over 1.1 million words of new, expanded, or revised commentary represent 40% more content faithfully presented to emphasize the need for the grace of God to lead out of darkness and into the light of Scripture.
Faithful Commentary
- New theological notes from general editor, R.C. Sproul
- Commentary from 75 distinguished theologians from around the world
- New topical articles to enrich additional study of Scripture
Thoroughly Revised & Expanded Study Aids
- Over 1.1 million words of verse-by-verse and topical explanations
- Over 20,000 new, revised, or expanded study notes
- Historical creeds and confessions from 2,000 years of church history
New Study Tools & Visual Helps
- Includes over $400 of digital resources (eBooks, videos) from Ligonier Ministries and 6 months of Tabletalk Magazine
- 16 pages of high-resolution full color maps at back of Bible
- Embedded maps provide quick references as you read
- Concordance, table of weights and measures, and more
This Bible features Smyth-sewn binding, protective slip case, and 32-page Welcome Guide.
Genesis – the book of beginnings, the creation of the universe, the formation of mankind, the establishment of the covenant and the founding of the people of Israel. Many Christians regard the Old Testament as a source of interesting Sunday School stories that have little application for today, but the truth is that almost every Christian doctrine is found in seed form in Genesis. With skill and scholarship John Currid advocates the Mosaic authorship of Genesis and a literal six-day creation. He highlights the importance of the text for Christians and in doing so has produced a Christ-exalting study that will stand the test of time.
Twenty-one contributors, including some leading Calvin scholars, provide a groundbreaking section-by-section analysis of John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion. They supply essential background information; further develop Calvin’s discussions of topics including prayer, ethics, faith, assurance, and church and state government; and conclude with a valuable bibliography of Calvin resources.
A long-needed work, this volume serves as the natural companion to Calvin’s magnum opus for classes, students, pastors, and others.
