Thoughts on Theology Books

[ryanb6]

I was thinking about buying "Systematic Theology" by Wayne Grudem. does anybody think that's a good idea, and if not, who would you recommend?

 

[JMRE5150]

I was thinking about buying "Systematic Theology" by Wayne Grudem. does anybody think that's a good idea, and if not, who would you recommend?

Grudem's Systematic Theology is THE quintessential theology book. Grab it immediately. As a theology major, Grudem is in constant use in my studies.

Great choice. Everything else is secondary.

 

[ryanb6]

Grudem's Systematic Theology is THE quintessential theology book. Grab it immediately. As a theology major, Grudem is in constant use in my studies.

Great choice. Everything else is secondary.

thanks, i feel better about it now. what school are you at?

 

[MrJim]

systematic theologies are overrated~i've got Berkhof's here on the shelf, guess it's considered a "classic", still it's just his opinions on the things of God. If you're into it get more than just one dude's opinion even within the denom/theological group.

 

[ryanb6]

yes it is opinion, but it is opinion of those who have studied much longer than me. i'm not looking for a man who's writing is perfect. i'm looking for someone who is as biblical as he can humanly be.

 

[MrJim]

yes it is opinion, but it is opinion of those who have studied much longer than me. i'm not looking for a man who's writing is perfect. i'm looking for someone who is as biblical as he can humanly be.

Most all those authors believe they are as biblical as possible, funny how they come out with some very different findings...

 

[ryanb6]

true

 

[MrJim]

Tell ya what since you are a young scholar, PM me your addy and I'll send ya Berkhof's Systematic Theology~freebie, it's just takin' up space, and maybe it'll help ya on your journey.

He's Calvinist/Reformed Theology, but you still might be able to scrape some truths out of it (just kiddin' guys, put those torches down)...

 

[PrincetonGuy]

I was thinking about buying "Systematic Theology" by Wayne Grudem. does anybody think that's a good idea, and if not, who would you recommend?

Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine is written at a very popular level to help the lay person learn the essentials of Wayne Grudem’s personal theological beliefs. If you are a studying Wayne Grudem and his theology, and you already have a very solid education in Christian theology, this book would be an excellent choice. If you do not already have a very solid education in Christian theology, this book would be of little use to you and may very well lead you astray.

Systematic theologies dump the contents of the Bible into a box, vigorously shuffle the contents, analyze them according to the theological preferences of the the author, and organize them them in such a manner as to support the author’s personal theology. Very many systematic theologies have been writen by very many different men representing a very wide range of theological and denominational belief, and the large majority of them have done a good if not excellent job of prooving that their author’s personal theology is what the Bible teaches, whether they be an Anglican, a Baptist, a Lutheran, a Methodist, a Presbyterian, or whatever.

Much worse, however, systematic theologies also dump God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit into a box and attempt to close the lid of it. Typically, they find it necessary to sit on the box or stand on it to compact God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit into smaller forms and when They begin to squeeze through the corners of the box, the systematic theologies attempt to keep Them boxed up through the use of several rolls packageing tape very tightly wrapped around the box.

My persoal view is that God is too glorious, too majestic, too wonderful, and too great to be confined to any box or stystematic theology and that the student of the Bible can learn much more about God, and learn about God much more accurately, by very carefully and prayerfully reading and studying the Bible using a Bible study program that greatly assists him in his studies without indoctrinating him. And such a Bible study program is available for free to anyone who wants it and owns a PC to run it on. This Bible study program can be downloaded here:

http://www.e-sword.net/index.html

Most of the modules are free, but some extra ones require the payment of a small fee.

After the Bible student has spent a few years of his life in the Bible itself, he may then benefit substantially by reading commentaries on the individual books of the Bible written by scholars who have spent more than a few years of their lives in the book of the Bible that they have commented upon. After the Bible student has thus studied each of the individual books of the Bible, he may find some ammusement in reading some systematic theologies. If his appetite for learning has not yet been satiated, he may find the reading of theological works on each of the individual branches of theology to be an interesting and profitable endeavor. But never stop reading the Bible itself; and never stop praying everyday from the heart for God to teach you His truths and to protect you from error.

 

[MrJim]

ya see Ryanb6, the PrincetonGuy explains things WAY better than I can...listen closely to what he has to say about things

 

[ryanb6]

yep i'm listening and i've never heard it explained like this so thank you.

 

[spiritwarrior37]

I prefer James Petigru Boyces Abstract of Systematic Theology. Here is a link to read it for free.

http://www.founders.org/library/boyce1/toc.html

Here is the main page for lots of free reads.

http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/books/onlinebooks.html

 

[DeaconDean]

In my Systematic Theology collection, I have:

The Moody Handbook of Theology, by Paul Enns

Introduction to Christian Doctrine, by Millard Erickson

Abstract of Systematic Theology, by James P. Boyce

Manual of Theology, by John L. Dagg

Systematic Theology, by Charles Hodge

Systematic Theology, by Robert L. Dabney

A Body of Practical Divinity, and A Body of Doctrinal Divinity, by John Gill

Institutes of Christian Religion, by John Calvin

A Body of Divinity, by Thomas Watson

And I even have:

Augustines Works.

While I don't advocate them, I even have the complete works of James Arminus, Church Dogmatics, by Karl Barth, and I even took the time to read Lectures on Systematic Theology by Charles Finney.

All of these I have in my own personal collection.

God Bless

Till all are one.

 

[BBAS 64]

In my Systematic Theology collection, I have:

The Moody Handbook of Theology, by Paul Enns

Introduction to Christian Doctrine, by Millard Erickson

Abstract of Systematic Theology, by James P. Boyce

Manual of Theology, by John L. Dagg

Systematic Theology, by Charles Hodge

Systematic Theology, by Robert L. Dabney

A Body of Practical Divinity, and A Body of Doctrinal Divinity, by John Gill

Institutes of Christian Religion, by John Calvin

A Body of Divinity, by Thomas Watson

And I even have:

Augustines Works.

While I don't advocate them, I even have the complete works of James Arminus, Church Dogmatics, by Karl Barth, and I even took the time to read Lectures on Systematic Theology by Charles Finney.

All of these I have in my own personal collection.

God Bless

Till all are one.

Good Day, DD

Can I be green with envy.. and not sin?

In Him,

Bill

 

[jive4005]

I vote for James Allen. Here is a link where you can read/find much of his published works. The best "make you think!" books I've ever read.

rev

http://james-allen.in1woord.nl/

 

[MatthewDiscipleofGod]

I was thinking about buying "Systematic Theology" by Wayne Grudem. does anybody think that's a good idea, and if not, who would you recommend?

Grudem's book is pretty good. I took a free online class led by people from Dallas Theological Seminary that use that book. I also like Christian Theology by Erickson. My wife used that book for her seminary class. Ryrie's A Survey Of Biblical Doctrine is well done as well.

 

[PrincetonGuy]

In my Systematic Theology collection, I have:

The Moody Handbook of Theology, by Paul Enns

Introduction to Christian Doctrine, by Millard Erickson

Abstract of Systematic Theology, by James P. Boyce

Manual of Theology, by John L. Dagg

Systematic Theology, by Charles Hodge

Systematic Theology, by Robert L. Dabney

A Body of Practical Divinity, and A Body of Doctrinal Divinity, by John Gill

Institutes of Christian Religion, by John Calvin

A Body of Divinity, by Thomas Watson

And I even have:

Augustines Works.

While I don't advocate them, I even have the complete works of James Arminus, Church Dogmatics, by Karl Barth, and I even took the time to read Lectures on Systematic Theology by Charles Finney.

All of these I have in my own personal collection.

God Bless

Till all are one.

That is an exceptionally good collection. I have numerous systematic theologies in my home library, most of which are multi-volume sets representing many theological points of view, and I have hundreds of volumes on the individual branches of theology, some of which are also multi-volume sets written by world-class scholars of the past and present. I also have numerous volumes on Old and New Testament biography written to help the student to know what is available to him and which authors and books have been the most important in shaping theological thought and which authors and books are of the greatest academic merit.

The late Wilbur Morehead Smith (1894-1977), a Professor of English Bible at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago and subsequently a teacher at Fuller Theological Seminary (1947-1963), had more than 25,000 volumes in his personal library. He grew up in a Presbyterian home and was a Presbyterian all of his adult life. His greatest contribution to the Christian faith, however, was not his theology but his commitment to and advocacy for the conservative approach to the study of the Bible. In 1945, his book, Therefore Stand —A Plea for a Vigorous Apologetic in the Present Crisis of Evangelical Christianity, was published in opposition to the change in course taken by Princeton Theological Seminary and other outstanding seminaries towards a more liberal approach to the study of the Bible, but it did very little to change that course except in the lives of many of the individuals who read the book. Dr. F. D. Whitsell of the Northern Baptist Theological Seminary in Chicago wrote of this book, “the ablest defense of evangelical Christianity in many years” and encouraged students of the Bible everywhere to “sell your bed, if necessary, in order to buy and read this book.” Wilbur M. Smith did not become the man that he was by reading a systematic theology; he became the man that he was through his love for Christ, the Bible, and his fellow Christians.

Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology teaches a Calvinistic soteriology. Shortly after my call to the pastoral ministry, a Presbyterian acquaintance of mine bought two brand new books and gave them to me, The Five Points of Calvinism by David N. Steele and Curtis C. Thomas and The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination by Loraine Boettner. It wasn’t Christmas, my birthday, or the day of my ordination, so I asked him why he bought these books for me. I shall never forget his answer, “Because you will never learn these things from the Bible.” Truer words have never been spoken!

Books are important, but they can be a source of either truth or error. Read and study the Bible, praying as you read it that God will teach you His truths and protect you from error. Pray for God to lead you and guide you in your selection of books to purchase and read.

Psalms 37:3. Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4. Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. (NASB, 1995)

 

[ryanb6]

well said

 

[MrJim]

Hey Ryan, the Paul Enns book The Moody Handbook of Theology in DD's list is really good, gives an overview of all kinds of theological approaches; you can't probably find it used somewhere like amazon.

 

[ryanb6]

oh ok thanks