John Calvin: For a New Reformation

by Derek W. H. Thomas; John W. Tweeddale

Publisher:

Crossway

, 2019

Overview

More than 500 years ago, 16th-century Reformer John Calvin was born—a theologian whose teachings set the stage for reformation of the church around the world. The modern world is in continual need of his Christ-exalting doctrine and vision of the Christian life. In 20 essays by leading Reformed pastors and scholars, this primer explores Calvin’s life, teaching, and legacy for a new generation. This book is a clarion call to Christians everywhere to take seriously the ongoing need of theological reformation across the globe.

Key Features

• Explores Calvin’s life, teaching, and legacy
• Highlights the contemporary relevance of Calvin’s theological and pastoral emphases
• Comprised of essays written by leading Reformed pastors and scholars

Contents

Part One: The Life and Work of John Calvin

• The Young Calvin - Michael A. G. Haykin
• The Call to Geneva and the Struggle for Orthodoxy - Stephen J. Nichols
• Calvin the Pastor - David B. Calhoun
• Calvin and the Consistory - Douglas F. Kelly
• Calvin and Friends - W. Robert Godfrey
• The Expository Pulpit of John Calvin - Steven J. Lawson
• The Development of the Institutes from 1536 to 1559 - Derek W. H. Thomas

Part Two: The Teaching of John Calvin

• The Divinity and Authority of Scripture - K. Scott Oliphint
• Creation and Humanity - J. V. Fesko
• The Providence of God - Burk Parsons
• The Law of God - Guy Prentiss Waters
• The Person and Work of Christ - Paul Wells
• The Holy Spirit - Joel R. Beeke
• The Christian Life - Edward Donnelly
• Knowing God through Adversity - Derek W. H. Thomas
• Predestination - Paul Helm
• The Church as Mother - John W. Tweeddale
• The Sacraments - Keith A. Mathison
• God’s Preservation of His Saints - Robert A. Peterson
• The Last Things - Cornelis P. Venema

Afterword - R. C. Sproul

Appendix: Reading Calvin and His Interpreters - John W. Tweeddale

Contributors

• Derek W. H. Thomas
• John W. Tweeddale
• R. C. Sproul
• Michael A. G. Haykin
• Stephen J. Nichols
• David B. Calhoun
• W. Robert Godfrey
• K. Scott Oliphint
• J. V. Fesko
• Burk Parsons
• Douglas F. Kelly
• Guy Prentiss Waters
• Paul Wells
• Joel R. Beeke
• Paul Helm
• Steven J. Lawson
• Keith A. Mathison
• Robert A. Peterson
• Cornelis P. Venema
• Edward Donnelly

Praise for the Print Edition

Thomas and Tweeddale have brought together an impressive team of sympathetic scholars to provide us with this wonderful in-depth exposition of many important aspects of Calvin’s life and teaching. The contributors to John Calvin not only highlight but also understand the profound contemporary relevance of his theological and pastoral emphases. Here is a genuine Calvinian treat! May it encourage twenty-first-century pastors and teachers—indeed, all serious Christians—to think, worship, serve, and live in the kind of dependence on God and confidence in his word that Calvin so courageously exhibited in his day.

—Sinclair B. Ferguson, Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary; Teaching Fellow, Ligonier Ministries

If I have only one chance to influence the minds of my students with a voice from the past, I turn to John Calvin. No one marries biblical knowledge to systematic theology with an eye to Christian piety like Calvin. Unfortunately, many Christians today have never read Calvin, and their theological house is the less stable for it. Do not fear: John Calvin: For a New Reformation equips Christians to withstand the storms of theological compromise. By introducing Calvin’s theology, this book provides the church with a biblical and theological foundation that will not be shaken. Read this book, and then run to read Calvin himself. In doing so, you will discover an exegetical ally, a theological father, and a Christian friend whose life, teachings, and ministry will guide you into Christian godliness.

—Matthew Barrett, Associate Professor of Christian Theology, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary; Executive Editor, Credo Magazine; editor, Reformation Theology

Tweeddale, Thomas, and their team have produced a wonderful volume that will surely be a useful companion to Calvin scholars and students alike. Well-written pages rest on piles of densely packed notes, and for newcomers to Calvin, the bibliographic essay at the book’s close is worth half the price of the book. Best of all, Calvin himself emerges as the careful scholar, complicated friend, severe pastor, and brilliant theologian that he really was.

—Chad Van Dixhoorn, Professor of Church History, Westminster Theological Seminary; author, Confessing the Faith and God’s Ambassadors

Product Details

• Title: John Calvin: For a New Reformation
• Authors: Derek W. H. Thomas, John W. Tweeddale
• Publisher: Crossway
• Print Publication Date: 2019
• Logos Release Date: 2019
• Pages: 608
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Calvin, Jean, 1509-1564; Calvinism
• ISBNs: 9781433512810, 9781433523991, 9781433512827, 9781433512834, 1433512815, 143352399, 1433512823, 1433512831, 143352399X
• Resource ID: LLS:JHNCLVNNWRFRMTN
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-12-08T02:49:51Z

About the Editors

Derek Thomas (PhD, University of Wales, Lampeter) is the Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic and Practical Theology at Reformed Theological Seminary and senior minister at First Presbyterian Church (ARP) in Columbia, South Carolina. He is the author of many books, including Calvin’s Teaching on Job, and serves as a teaching fellow with Ligonier Ministries.

John W. Tweeddale (PhD, University of Edinburgh) is academic dean and professor of theology at Reformation Bible College. He is also a teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America. He is the author of John Owen and Hebrews and served as an assistant editor of the Reformation Study Bible.