The Christian Lover

"The Christian Lover" by Michael A.G. Haykin with Victoria J. Haykin is a compilation of love letters written by believers. It contains the correspondence of  Martin and Katharina Luther, Adoniram and Ann Judson, along with many others. 

The idea of the book is extremely interesting, it allows the reader to see a different perspective of people like John Calvin through the letters he wrote to friends and family about the death of his wife. It grants one to see closely what a marriage whose center is Christ ought to look like- to see the husband loving his wife as Christ loved the church and also to see the wife submitting to her husband as Christ submitted his will to the Father's. 

The outline of the book is simple, each chapter is a different marriage and begins with a brief history of each writer, which is then followed by a few personal letters. The writing style is uncomplicated and gives a very brief overview- almost a little too short. The difficult thing about reading letter's written by and to other people is that at times it is difficult to understand the context behind the letters. Although that is perhaps one of the negative things about this book, it could be used in a positive sense as well- to encourage the reader to look into other biography's about the marriages found in "The Christian Lover". Although it is filled with many famous believers that you might have heard of before, there are few that I didn't recognize and was in fact encouraged to look into the lives of the couples to find out the background of the letters that I was reading.  

It is a shorter book and will only take a little time to read through the letters. I would recommend the book to any couple as it is encouraging and uplifting.

*I will receive a hard copy of the book for writing a blog review. 

Are We Together

"Are We Together" by R.C. Sproul analyzes the relationship between Protestants and Catholics. With the formation of the term "Evangelicals" both are commonly grouped together, so are we together? This book attempts to prove the differences between the two groups and the importance of why "evangelicals" need to know what they believe and why they believe it.
Sproul begins with the introduction; At Stake: The Gospel. Strong words for a topic of utmost importance. It is not just a talk about differing denominations there is something at stake in all of this- the person and work of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is divided into two sides, subjective and objective. The objective side envelopes things, such as, the divinity of Jesus or the virgin birth- to this side there is no disagreement between Protestants and Catholics; however, the subjective side envelopes how the benefits of Christ are applied to the believer and this is where the disagreement exists.
The disagreement begins with the question "What must a man do to be justified?" Both the Protestant and Roman Catholic would answer that justification is through faith; however, the Protestant would say through faith alone while the Roman Catholic would say that a person can have real faith but not be justified, that a person's justification depends on their sanctification. Whereas, the Protestant believes that justification is based on the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the believer.
R.C. Sproul argues against the idea that the Reformation has ended because he defines the Reformation as "a commitment to biblical truth, and as long as there are departures from biblical truth, we have to be involved in the task of reformation." (pg.8).
In Chapter One: Scripture, the topic underlined is the formal cause of the Reformation. Although the disagreement focused on justification, it began with a more serious argument. What or who has the authority? This issue is not easily described in a few sentences and the author has worked hard to show clearly why the two side differ in matters of canon, inspiration, and authority.
Chapter Two: Justification takes a closer and more in-depth look at the crucial difference between Protestants and Roman Catholics.
Chapter Three: The Church seeks to emphasize the different beliefs that Roman Catholics and Protestants have over the relationship of the church to salvation.
Chapter Four: The Sacraments highlights the variance between the Roman Catholic view and Protestant view of the sacraments. However, the author is clear to point out that even admist Protestant churches there is disagreement over the nature, function, and significance of the various sacraments.
Chapter Five: The Papacy covers the formal definition of papal infallibility. It contains valuable information on the history and beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church.
Chapter Six: Mary speaks of the agreements and disagreements that Roman Catholic's and Protestant's have about Mary the mother of Jesus.
The book is filled with valuable historical and doctrinal information about Protestants and Roman Catholics. In a world that desires to put all "Evangelicals" it is always important to remember the differences that are between the two groups. Although there may be important social views that are held in common, but for those we cannot sacrifice the truth of the gospel.


*I will receive a hard copy of the book for writing a blog review.