Preaching Christ from Psalms: Foundations for Expository Sermons in the Christian Year
Preaching Christ from Psalms: Foundations for Expository Sermons in the Christian Year. By Sidney Greidanus. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2016. 595 pp. Paper, $40.00. Sidney Greidanus is professor emeritus of preaching at Calvin Theological Seminary. He is well known for advocating a redemptive-historical approach to preaching, and has a series of books showing how to […]
The Whole Christ: Legalism, Antinomianism, and Gospel Assurance—Why the Marrow Controversy Still Matters
The Whole Christ: Legalism, Antinomianism, and Gospel Assurance—Why the Marrow Controversy Still Matters. By Sinclair B. Ferguson. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2016. 256 pp. Hardcover, $24.99. This book is about the Marrow Controversy. It began in 1716, when William Craig, a candidate for ordination in the presbytery of Auchterarder, Scotland, could not agree with the following […]
A Vast Difference: M. R. DeHaan on Salvation and Discipleship
By Shawn Lazar The vast majority of Christians believe you must be a disciple in order to be saved. They have it exactly backwards. You have to be saved in order to be a disciple. The problem with saying you must be a disciple in order to be saved is that it makes salvation depend […]
Reactive vs. Proactive
By Shawn Lazar A few months ago I was contemplating advertising in Charisma, the flagship magazine for the Pentecostal and Charismatic movement. Usually, that wouldn’t be the first venue to come to mind. But in this case, I thought it was appropriate. Bob had just published A Gospel of Doubt: The Legacy of John MacArthur’s […]
Will God Be Merciful?
by Shawn Lazar Many Christians say they believe in God’s mercy, but the truth is they really don’t. In fact, the mercy they’re expecting from God is the exact opposite of the mercy God offered to give. Why would I say that? Most Christians don’t believe in God’s mercy, because most believe in some form […]
The Current Crisis in Assurance: An Interview with Prof. David J. Engelsma
by Shawn Lazar, originally published in the November/December, 2014 issue of Grace in Focus. The original article may be accessed here. Doubt. For some of us, it is momentary feeling of anxiety that eventually passes when our circumstances change. For others, it is a way of life born out of the barrage of insecurities created […]
Deacons: Servants of Mercy (Acts 6:1-7)
In his book, Ministers of Mercy: The New Testament Deacon, Alexander Strauch writes, “During the last three decades, a major revival of interest in deacons has taken place. In nearly every denomination and branch of Christianity, efforts are underway to discover God’s design for deacons” (p. 8). However, he suggests that much of that interest […]
Wayne Grudem on Genuine Faith
Wayne Grudem is one of the best-known Evangelical theologians writing today. His Systematic Theology has sold over 400,000 copies. It’s a model for making academic theology accessible and often the first systematic theology I consult from my library. When Grudem speaks, people listen, including me. That’s why I’m grateful he wrote a critique of Free […]
Are You Getting Paid to Help Others?
By Bob Wilkin Let’s say that every Christian was paid daily by God for the work he did that day. He’d be paid for use of his time, talent, and treasure to help the poor and needy, love his spouse and kids, be hospitable, let in other drivers, defer to others, be kind, etc. […]
A Critical Examination of Seven More Bible Translations
By Shawn Lazar In two articles, “A Critical Examination of Seven Bible Translations, Parts I and II” (Jan/Feb and March/April 2015, Grace in Focus Magazine), Bob Wilkin reviewed the KJV, NKJV, NASB, NIV, NET, HCSB, and ESV from the perspective of five test passages that are important for Free Grace theology, namely Jas 2:14; 1 […]