New Books You Should Know About

David B. Garner, ed. Did God Really Say? Affirming the Truthfulness and Trustworthiness of Scripture. Phillipsburg, NJ: 2012.

The doctrine of inerrancy continues to be attacked in our own day. In this new book, seven scholars from Westminster Theological Seminary, Covenant Theological Seminary, and Reformed Theological Seminary respond to many of the objections to the authority of Scripture.

Here is the publisher’s description:

“Did God really say?” is a fundamental theological question. If God has not spoken clearly, truly, trustworthily, and in human words, then anything goes: believe what you will, act as you wish—no one can fault you.

The church’s historical belief in the truthfulness and trustworthiness of Scripture as God’s written Word is being assaulted from without and from within. In this book, seven scholars from Covenant Theological Seminary, Reformed Theological Seminary, and Westminster Theological Seminary confront and repel many of these attacks. Reasoning clearly, cogently, and carefully, they show that the historical doctrine of Scripture is what Scripture teaches about itself, and that this teaching can meet and defeat the ungodly intellectual schemes brought against it.

Here are the chapters:

“N. T. Wright and the Authority of Scripture.” -John M. Frame

“Did God Really Say?” -David B. Garner

“Deconstructing Canon: Recent Challenges to the Origins and Authority of he New Testament Writings.” -Michael J. Kruger

“Because It Is the Word of God.” -K. Scott Oliphint

“God and Language.” -Vern S. Poythress

“The Church, a Pillar of Truth: B. B. Warfield’s Church Doctrine of Inspiration.” -Michael D. Williams

“Inerrancy’s Complexities: Grounds for Grace in the Debate.” -Robert W. Yarbrough

Richard D. Phillips. 1 Samuel. Reformed Expository Commentary. Phillipsburg, NJ: 2012.

The most recent addition to the Reformed Expository Commentary series has been published, 1 Samuel by Richard D. Phillips. This volume focuses specifically on King David with an eye towards David as a type of Christ. What I also appreciate about this series is its accessibility to pastors and lay leaders from a Reformed vantage point. The series also seeks to focus on Christ through the lens of redemptive history.

Here are some commendations:

“Faithful expositions of God’s Word instruct and transform, disturb and comfort–edifying us through godly exhortations and gospel proclamation. That is precisely what I have found in Richard Phillips’s commentary on 1 Samuel.”
–Michael Horton, J. Gresham Machen Professor, Westminster Seminary California

“Phillips provides scripturally faithful, satisfyingly readable, and spiritually challenging expositions that will strengthen the believer’s soul. Like a diver, Phillips has gone deep down to uncover the pearls of heaven.”
–Michael A. Milton, Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer, James M. Baird Jr. Chair of Pastoral Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary

 

Kevin DeYoung. The Hole in our Holiness: Filling the Gap between Gospel Passion and the Pursuit of Godliness. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012.

What is the hole in our holiness? Kevin DeYoung argues in his recent book that it is that “we don’t seem to care much about holiness.” Or “we don’t understand it.” DeYoung addresses Christians who have typically thought of holiness as legalistic and the emphasis on “effort” as unspiritual. He also seeks to help Christians who feel like they are just failing at being holy. DeYoung writes to motivate Christians to start taking holiness seriously!

Justin Taylor sat down with DeYoung to talk to him about his book:

The Hole in Our Holiness from The Gospel Coalition on Vimeo.

 

John Piper. Love Your Enemies: Jesus’ Love Command in the Synoptic Gospels and the Early Christian Paraenesis. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012.

This book is John Piper’s doctoral dissertation from the University of Munich! The dissertation was previously published as #38 in the Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series. Piper looks at different critical theories when it comes to this command by Christ, as well as examines how the early church interpreted this command in the midst of a world antagonistic to the gospel.

Here is a clip from Piper on this very subject:

Lee Gatiss, ed. The Sermons of George Whitefield. 2 vols. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012.

Finally! Finally we have a very accessible two-volume edition of George Whitefield’s sermons in a attractive format. These two volumes, edited by Lee Gatiss, will be a treasure for preachers and historians alike. Also, Lee has written a helpful introduction that will familiarize readers with this important preacher.

Tom Nettles says of these two volumes:

“I have read some comments on the printed sermons of Whitefield that say these sermons don’t translate well to the written medium. Well, I am sure it would have been amazing to hear him preach; but, given that, I find the written sermons to have an intrinsic fervor, power, clarity, and theological pungency that still leaps off the page into the conscience and affections in a gripping and edifying way. This publication is welcome; it will do us good and demonstrates once again that God’s truth transcends all generations and cultures and that God only rarely gives gifts to the church as transparently good as George Whitefield. Thanks to Lee Gatiss and thanks to Crossway.”
—Tom J. Nettles, Professor of Historical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

Hint: Keep your eye out for a future interview with Lee Gatiss in Credo Magazine.

Ajith Fernando. Deuteronomy: Loving Obedience to a Loving God. Preaching the Word. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012.

Ajith has written a very large commentary on the book of Deuteronomy in the ongoing Preaching the Word series (edited by R. Kent Hughes). Ajith Fernando preaches in Sir Lanka and is the teaching director of Youth for Christ.

Here is the publisher’s description:

The book of Deuteronomy is a call to obedience–the proper response to God’s faithfulness and love. Consisting primarily of speeches that Moses gave to the Israelites shortly before they entered the Promised Land, Moses’ words proclaimed God’s covenant faithfulness in hopes of motivating the Israelites to obey God despite the coming temptation to conform to the Canaanite culture.

The challenges they faced then are remarkably parallel to those facing Christians today as we grapple with the issue of obedience in a world that offers other attractive ways of life. We wonder: How can we be faithful to God? And how do we help our children and the people we lead to be faithful? This book tells us how Moses tackled these challenges and, as Paul confirms in the New Testament, Deuteronomy serves “as an example…written down for our instruction” (1 Cor. 10:11).

Ajith Fernando unpacks the relevance of Deuteronomy and captivates us with rich anecdotes from his thirty-five years of ministry to first-generation Christians in Sri Lanka. He offers concrete examples of how the truths contained in Deuteronomy can be applied, and he teaches us that obedience is the necessary response to the God who loves and saves us.

Matthew Barrett (Ph.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Assistant Professor of Christian Studies at California Baptist University (OPS). He is also the founder and executive editor of Credo Magazine. Barrett has contributed book reviews and articles to various academic journals, and he is the editor of Whomever He Wills: A Surprising Display of Sovereign Mercy, as well as the author of several other forthcoming books. He is married to Elizabeth and they have two daughters, Cassandra and Georgia.