|
|
Religious Book Store > Religious books beginning with L
|
Let the Nations Be Glad! 2nd Edition |
Author: John, Piper
Published: 2003-02-01 |
List price: $14.99
Our price: $10.19
|
Usually ships in 24 hours
As of: December 04th, 2008 12:57:47 AM
|
|
|
Customer comments on this selection.
 Piper wants it both ways
Briefly Piper (and others) want to write books about evangelism and missions. Fine. But in the books they use words like "salvation is at stake" and the "urgency of our mission" (120, 159, 165). This is a bit hypocritical for Calvinists.
As an absolutist, he is hypocritical to say (p. 62)"God's ultimate goal will come only through prayer....and he will be engaged to do it through prayer."
Man's prayer engages God? This is not Piper's Calvinism.
Page 63 has a heading "Prayer releases the power of the Gospel." Woah. No prayer, no power....Piper is putting man in control?
Still in the context of human prayer, (p.64) he says, "If the proclamation of the word aborts the purposes of God fail." "That purpose wont happen without prayer." (66)
He makes a hero out of Mueller (69) for praying for 19 years for several people to be saved. What if it is not God's Calvinistic will that those people be saved? You are praying against God's, eternal, deterministic will. How can he laud such a thing (as a Calvinist)?
He later (93ff) tells many stories of people who preach randomly that "Christ died for you that you might find forgiveness." How can he appreciate such a sermon since the persons preaching don't know (according to Piper) if Christ DID actually die for them
One last thought. On page 188, Piper quotes Jonah 3:10 saying, "God repented of the evil he said he would do to them, And he did not do it."
Over 40 times in the OT is says that God changed his mind (the two passages where it says he does not change his mind refer specifically to lying). But Piper cannot have a God who changes his mind. Another inconsistency in the book. I am disappointed
 Incredible Zeal, Yet on a Somewhat Questionable Foundation
Piper is a very interesting writer and if you are a Reformed Baptist, I'm sure you have enjoyed his writings. More broadly speaking, I'm sure that if you have been even remotely involved in church ministry, you have either heard of him in some capacity, read his books, or both. This book, dealing with missions, was an interesting read for me. I was required to complete a critical analysis paper on the missiological and theological implications in this book, set forth for the fulfillment of Christian missions. This was completed for my World Missions course at Dallas Theological Seminary; this obviously is not the paper, only a few notes.
The Great:
Piper's book, 'Let the Nations Be Glad!' excels in a few areas throughout the book. Its strength is found in his passion for Christ and its love of God. I also found Piper's views on prayer, suffering, and even 'worship as the fuel of missions' very refreshing and encouraging. His treatment of the question of eternal, conscious torment in hell for unbelievers was excellent as he primarily engages with the Annihilationism of Anglican Evangelical John R.W. Stott. I also enjoyed his brief explanation of the 'essence of missions and worship' towards the end of the book. In these areas, Piper is excellent.
Piper, being a "7-pt." Calvinist (as he describes himself to be), truly is an interesting one at that. He is one of the most passionate people you can read and I believe that is why so many people enjoy his writing, even if his writing style is relatively weak at times and his writings reflect the particular views of a Reformed Baptist (though it's been accurately questioned how faithful he truly is to Reformed Theology, and Protestant distinctives at that). I believe his overall passionate approach is thoroughly engaging to the reader which makes for quick read of his work.
The Concerned:
Piper's desire is to pursue missions for the 'entire world', yet His entire world is seen as 'the Elect'. His 7-pt. Reformed theology is devastating at times and truly problematic to many areas of theology (especially Soteriology/Missiology). He has so many assumptions already formulated that his best motivating point on missions (essentially to 'the elect' alone) is that we should be incredibly motivated to bring this message to them, so that those already elect 'will come' (though we never truly know who they are until the end). I honestly find this central principle difficult to be motivating, unless you are coming from a theological system where that is essentially the best motivation.
I find his presuppositions of these motivations to be problematic. I understand that this work is one of missional practicality to some extent, but it must also be rooted in exegesis. On this point you will find little done, only page after page of scripture meant to back his beliefs. Unless you've already concluded your beliefs, this type of proof-texting does little to convince. Some will react and say - 'No, but His greatest motivation is God's glory!' Yes, but it's God's glory by the 'ingathering of the Elect'; so thus, the best motivation seen here is in bringing the message of salvation to 'the elect'. Thus, God's glory is seen strictly within the framework of soteriology.
Concerning God's glory being most revealed in man's redemption: I find this statement much less problematic then the first concerning his understanding of 'the elect', but it still remains an issue because God's glory is more concerned here with 'Man's salvation' than His own personal glory through rulership in the Son. I see the greatest purpose in scripture as 'God revealing His glory' through the Rule of His Son, Jesus Christ, on Earth and Eternity.
This view sees God's Glory as less concerned with the Redemption of Mankind and more concerned about His personal rulership in the Millennial Kingdom and the Eternal State. Am I saying that God is not concerned about people's salvation? No, not at all. God is extremely concerned about everyone coming to a saving knowledge of Him, but what seems to be of greater concern in God's glory is the Rulership of His Son, Jesus Christ, as Lord, and the faithful redeemed ruling with Him over the New Heavens and New Earth for all of eternity.
Clearly, this is a much smaller disagreement here, but still, I disagree. It's God's glory through the rule of the Son in the outworking of His Universal Kingdom, not essentially God's glory bracketed through the Redemption of man. Both of these are interrelated in many facets, but the promises/covenants are powerfully connected to the rule of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. We simply benefit from these in our redemption, which is clearly subservient to the purpose of God's Glory, best understood in the eternal rule of Christ as King over the Kingdom of God. The rule of the Son is certainly primary to the concern and expression of Piper both theologically and missiologically. If asked these specific questions, Piper may respond favorably to some of this, but because of his theological views (seen through his writings), I doubt he would frame it as such. However, even though I disagree here, these are areas of smaller concern within view of the whole.
The Questionable & Very Concerned:
When it comes to telling the elect 'The Gospel' message, Piper sets forth no less than 10 different messages that are apparently 'The Gospel' throughout this book. I find it hard to be motivated to 'bring the message to the elect' when I'm confused on what the message(s) is/are. Piper is so unclear at times I actually question if he understands what the Gospel message/response is. I do not say this pejoratively, I say it very concerned. Throughout his book, if you're looking for a central Gospel message/response, you will not find one. It is very blurry here, to put it kindly.
I do find that Piper deals with the minor tensions in His missiological convictions well ('to all peoples', not just 'nations', he dialogues this in beautiful detail and has an excellent word study on this in the book). However, as stated before, he does not interact with his major theological assumptions, such as Election to Salvation/Reprobation ('in the same manner'), Predestination within the Person of God and His Decree, Hypothetical and Effective Call, Limited Atonement, Perseverance of the Saints, etc. All these assumptions cannot merely be overlooked and passed by as one discusses missions. This is clearly too much to overlook for the undiscerned reader.
In conclusion, if you already know about these issues concerning Piper its a good read because its filled with passion for God, for us to become less, and for Him to be ultimately lifted up in our lives. However, I would not recommend this book for undiscerned readers. I say this because the lack of discussion concerning his theological assumptions are so minimal, one could easily be lead to believe this is the position all evangelicals agree on for theology and its missiological implications, when it certainly is not.
Am I saying that Piper is absolutely wrong? No. What I am saying is that since we serve a missional God, a God always on mission, it should be important to explain what is foundational for our belief in doing them. Piper can hold to his own views, that's fine, but he must explain and exegete the scriptures as well when coming to these types of views. These are very important points which he should clarify, since the majority reading this book will not understand the foundational theological conclusions he's already come to. I would read his deeper theological books, with a bible in hand, before I begin reading his books on missions. I would think this is the best way to approach an accurate evaluation of someone's work (not just Piper) in comparison to the bible.
So, before reading a more practical book like this, I would first read his most theological book on these issues: 'The Justification of God', his exposition of Romans 9. This is a very academic book, so if it's too much, try a few of his others, such as 'The Future of Justification', a bit easier to read. I would then read a few other books such as 'Future Grace', 'Counted Righteous in Christ', and his classic, 'Desiring God'. I think these books paint a clearer picture of where he's coming from. However, while doing this I would read from other works outside his own convictions on these same issues. A couple are 'Chosen But Free' (by Dr. Norman Geisler), 'The Other Side of Calvinism' (by Dr. Laurence Vance), 'The Dark Side of Calvinism' (by George Bryson), 'God's Strategy in Human History' by Roger Forster, 'Election and Predestination' by Samuel Fisk, and 'Beyond Arminianism and Calvinism: An Inductive Mediate Theology of Salvation' (by C. Gordon Olson). The last book has an extensive section on these implications for the area of missions, as Dr. Olson was a professor of missions for over 30 years and worked in Islamic countries for nearly a decade. Let Christ Be Praised.
"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life." (John 5:24)
 Book Review: Let the Nations Be Glad! by John Piper
I want to take this opportunity to urge you to read this book. In my opinion, this is the most important book on missions available today outside of the biblical texts dealing with missions and evangelism. Let the Nations Be Glad is richly theological, and saturated with biblical expositions of related texts. Piper's theological understanding of missions is constant and applicable. Not only that, but he also reminds us that missions is ultimately about the glory of God.
Piper's strengths in Let the Nations Be Glad are similar to his strengths in God is the Gospel and Desiring God. He is passionately committed to God's supremacy in all aspects of missions. In Let the Nations Be Glad, he seeks to help us understand God's love and compassion for the nations. But more importantly, he helps us to understand how we should view God's mission. I highly recommend Let the Nations Be Glad for anyone wanting to read a thorough biblical theology of missions.
"Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is."
I am thankful to God for allowing me to have read "Let the Nations be Glad" by John Piper. In it, Piper immediately draws the reader in by stating that "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is." Piper affiliates missions to the supremacy of God by insisting that worship is the chief end of the church and not missions. He demonstrates this by stating that worship is ultimate and not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. Piper explains that missions are temporary while worship abides forever and goes on to say that worship is the fuel and goal of missions.
In my opinion this book is completely consistent with the Scriptures. This book is supremely God centered, Biblical, and Christ exalting in nature. It is also very accessible and practical to the average Christian reader like myself while simultaneously possessing scholarly and theological depth. In chapter one, subsequent to providing the Biblical texts which show God's zeal for His own glory, Piper wisely addresses the anticipated question on how self exaltation can be a loving act. I found Piper's answer to be both Biblical and helpful. I also enjoyed Piper's exhortation to evangelism when love for the lost is weak. I agree with Piper and Dawson who say that our primary motive for evangelism should not stem from compassion for the lost but out of a love for God and a passion for His glory. In chapter two I enjoyed the parallels between the Christian life and warfare, with prayer being the wartime walki-talkie for the mission of the church. In chapter three I was moved by the role suffering plays in relation to mission efforts. It is amazing to understand that the suffering missionaries face is not unforeseen by the Lord but rather appointed by Him for specific reasons. Chapter four is theological sound as it shows the necessity for the atoning work of Jesus Christ for the salvation of all men. Chapter five is the culmination of the book which encourages missionary work and demonstrates the supremacy of God among the nations. In it Piper makes a good argument from the Greek language to show that we are to make disciples of all people groups (panta ta ethne) and not just individuals.
Upon reading this book my entire outlook on missions has changed. I now realize that missions are not God's ultimate goal, worship is. As Piper stated, "The deepest reason why our passion for God should fuel missions is that God's passion for God fuels missions." In other words: God's passion for God should be the foundation for our passion for Him. Perhaps the most striking point in this book is the idea that God is passionate for His own Glory. The goal of missions, according to Piper is the gladness of the peoples in the greatness of God. This book has been very informative on my understanding of missions and convicting considering the time I spend on my walki-talkie for missionaries abroad. There is no greater cause in the entire world than the glory of God and Piper eloquently describes how missions are intimately connected to that cause. Piper is correct when he says the doctrine of unconditional election is the missionary's great hope. Missions cannot fail because election cannot fail.
Awesome Service
This was my first time purchasing an item from Amazon and I was completely satisfied with my purchase. I received the book with-in a few days, including a holiday and weekend for shipping. The book was in great shape and I got it for a good price. I would use this provider again!!
|
|
Our Religious book picks:
|
|
Search the Religious Products Store
LCS Amazon Store 2.5 © 2008
|
|
|