More Thoughtful Books

While there are many introductions to the Reformed faith, I would like to recommend Joel Beeke’s new volume Living For God’s Glory: An Introduction to Calvinism. This is an excellent well-rounded portrait of the Reformed faith that covers both TULIP and so much more. This is the book to give to family and friends who wonder what the big deal is that you are a Calvinist. It is thorough and winsome.

I also want to suggest a book by apologist William Lane Craig. You may be wondering how a Van Tillian could recommend a classical apologist’s work, but this should be no mystery. I read many books where I disagree with the author, even in fundamental matters. In other words, I find the desire to only read books we know we are going to agree with strange.

My point is that I often learn useful things from apologists in the other schools (classical, evidentialist, cumulative case, and Reformed Epistemology/Warrantism) and I am kept sharp. We Van Tillians do ourselves no favors when we ignore what other apologists are doing. Reasonable Faith is worth reading as Craig is one of the most accomplished apologists in our day. Some of the most interesting discussions about the cosmological argument can be found in his writings (especially the Kalaam argument) and he is probably unsurpassed in the area of examining the historical foundations for belief in the resurrection. Does he say all that needs to be said. No. But some of what he does say is still useful for us Van Tillians.

Please note that I am not arguing for an eclectic approach to apologetics. I am committed 100% to what has been called presuppositional apologetics but which I think would be better called Reformed covenantal apologetics. But we can take the nuggets of truth found in other apologetic methods and put them in their proper context. I am recommending what Augustine called “pludering the Egyptians” and what Scott Oliphint in his book The Battle Belongs to the Lord calls untwisting twisted truth. Now Oliphint is talking about truth embedded in unbelieving systems of thought. But if we can untwist the truth found in unbelieving systems of thought we can certainly untwist truth found in less consistent Christian thought. I am not ashamed to gain truth wherever I can find it.

At the end of the day, my concern is that Jesus Christ be magnified, that the Triune God of Scripture be vindicated. But also I want to see unbelievers brought to faith in Christ and my less consistent brothers and sisters brought to the only consistent form of Christianity in this world, the Reformed faith.

Soli Deo Gloria!