It is a fine example of his Christ- centredness and his mix of theological rigour and pastoral concern. In it he aims to show from Scripture that, in all his heavenly majesty, Christ is not now aloof from believers and unconcerned, but has the strongest affections for them.Goodwin begins with the beautiful assurances given by Christ to his disciples, taking as an example of that love Christ’s washing of his disciples’ feet (John 13). The heart of his argument, however, lies in his exposition of Hebrews 4:15, in which Goodwin shows that in all his glorious holiness in heaven, Christ is not sour towards his people; if anything, his capacious heart beats more strongly than ever with tender love for them. And in particular, two things stir his compassion: our afflictions and—almost unbelievably—our sins.How we need Goodwin and his message today! If we are to be drawn from jaded, anxious thoughts of God and a love of sin, we need such a knowledge of Christ.

    This is the book that helped abolish the slave trade in the United Kingdom, and called Christians to live a more authentic life of faith more than 200 years ago. The timeless truths it contains will speak to readers in fresh ways today. Christians who eschew cultural Christianity in favor of a real faith in Christ will find the principles here thought-provoking and applicable. The social justice orientation will appeal to readers of Jim Wallis, Os Guinness, Charles Colson, Shane Claiborne, John Perkins, Bono, and Nancy Pearcy. Readers will also find the book is a good litmus test of the authenticity of their own faith.

    But to live as a true Protestant -- well, that's another matter. This book is a jeremiad against “new” versions of evangelicalism -- marketers and emergents -- and a summons to return to the historic faith, defined by the Reformation solas (grace, faith, and Scripture alone) and by a high regard for doctrine. Wells argues that historic, classical evangelicalism is marked by doctrinal seriousness, as opposed to the new movements of the marketing church and the emergent church. He energetically confronts the marketing communities and their tendency to try to win parishioners as consumers rather than worshipers, advertising the most palatable environment rather than trusting the truth to be attractive. He takes particular issue with the most popular evangelical movement in recent years -- the emergent church. Emergents, he says, are postmodern and postconservative and postfoundational, embracing a less absolute understanding of the authority of Scripture than traditionally held.The Courage to Be Protestant is a forceful argument for the courage to be faithful to what Christianity in its biblical forms has always stood for, thereby securing hope for the church's future.

    Many churches have adopted this mind-set in their practice of membership and discipline-if they have not done away with such structures entirely. "Yet God's love and God's gospel are different than what the world expects," writes Jonathan Leeman. They're centered in his character, which draws a clear boundary between what is holy and what is not. It's this line that the local church should represent in its member practices, because the careful exercise of such authority "is God's means for guarding the gospel, marking off a people, and thereby defining his love for the world."So how should churches receive and dismiss members? How should Christians view their submission to the church? Are there dangers in such submission? The Church and the Surprising Offense of God's Love responds with biblical, theological, and practical guidance-from both corporate and individual perspectives. It's a resource that will help pastors and their congregations upend worldly conceptions and recover a biblical understanding and practice of church authority.

    A popular-level introduction to presuppositional apologetics and its biblical underpinnings.