By R. Albert Mohler, Jr.
Theology and Christian Thought
For years, some have predicted that the age of systematic theologies is over. Thankfully, this is not the case. Norman Geisler completes his four-volume systematic theology with Systematic Theology: Church and Last Things (Bethany House). Geisler, one of evangelicalism’s best known theologians and apologists, has written a work that will prompt both appreciation and lively debate. Robert Duncan Culver has produced a significant one-volume work in Systematic Theology: Biblical and Historical (Mentor/Christian Focus). “Sustained study of doctrines of the Word of God cannot avoid organized, coherent arrangement of the doctrines, nor should it,” Culver argues. “Meaningful study of botany, zoology, law, history, medicine, agriculture, or any other topic cannot proceed without organized, coherent arrangement of the data.” Culver’s systematic theology is both organized and coherent — and thus, very useful.
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R. C. Sproul has written an insightful volume, Scripture Alone: The Evangelical Doctrine (P & R Publishing). “The church of the twentieth century not only demands an apologia for the authority of her sacred Scriptures, but an apologia for the apologia,” Sproul explains. As he adds: “Such a defense needs to be defended.” Sproul has also released The Unexpected Jesus: The Truth Behind His Biblical Names (Christian Focus).
Far as the Curse Is Found: The Covenant Story of Redemption by Michael D. Williams (P & R Publishing) is a model of theological engagement and the study of Scripture. Contending for the Faith: Lines in the Sand That Strengthen the Church by Robert L. Reymond (Mentor) brings together some of Reymond’s most constructive essays and reviews.
William C. Placher has edited a wonderful collection of writings on the doctrine of vocation, drawn from the expanse of Christian history. Callings: Twenty Centuries of Christian Wisdom on Vocation (Eerdmans) includes selections from figures ranging from Ignatius of Antioch to contemporary figures. “Downthe centuries, Christians have looked for definitions of ‘vocation’ somewhere between the trivial sense of ‘just a job’ and the hard-to-believe image of a miraculous voice from heaven,” Placher observes. This book is a feast for reflection.
Marva Dawn, an author who never fails to serve as a catalyst for serious thinking,has written Talking the Walk: Letting Christian Language Live Again (Brazos Press). “This book is my response to a crisis in the churches — the frequent corruption or rejection of key words in biblical faith for reasons that oftenseem to be merely ‘quick fixes’ of, instead of genuine solutions to, deeperproblems,” Dawn explains. “Some words like father, lord, or creed have gotten a bad reputation these days. Some words, like Hell,are corrupted by being ignored; some, like Awesome, by being overused; some, like Heaven, by being dismissed as irrelevant to (post)modern times.”