Steven J. Lawson

Steven Lawson's Foundations of Grace is the first volume in the A Long Line of Godly Men series. Volume 2, Pillars of Grace will be released in March and after diving into this text I am even more excited than I already was. The series traces the Doctrines of God's Sovereign Grace throughout history. Foundations of Grace deals with the doctrines as found in Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation....literally, Lawson traces these doctrines as presented by Moses in Genesis, John in Revelation show more and just about every book in between.
John Macarthur gives a foreword, Divine Immutability and the Doctrines of Grace, for the book that follows in the pattern of JI Packer's introduction to Owen's Death of Death. By that I mean, Macarthur's foreword is of such high quality that you somewhat fear it will outshine the text itself. However, just like with Death of Death, that fear is unwarranted. As great as both forewords are, the main texts both live up to the quality that is found in these first few pages.
Foundations of Grace feels much like a Steven Lawson sermon: extensive, organized, enjoyable and understandable.
Lawson has become one of my favorite theology writers of this generation, in large part due to the fact that his writing is very pastoral rather than academic. It is always fun to dive into some Edwards, Owen, Sproul, Horton, etc... but oftentimes I need to go to more pastoral sources; Piper, Baxter, Lawson, etc... From those examples I hope it is clear that you do not lose depth with these men, but they definitely are blessed with a way of putting complex concepts into simplistic terms and repeating/rephrasing without being boring or repetitive.
The basic structure of the book is to isolate a biblical author, beginning with Moses and to see the Doctrines of Grace as presented in these books. As you go through this, Lawson will interject a more specific look at certain doctrine. These “Doctrine in Focus” sections cover all the Doctrines of Grace, beginning with God's Sovereignty, Radical Depravity,Sovereign Election, Definite Atonement, Irresistible Call and Preserving Grace. Lawson draws out all the passages from these Biblical books that lay out these God-exalting, man-diminishing truths of God's Word.
He also does a great job in presenting God's Sovereignty as the overarching, all-encompassing truth of this theological system. “The Doctrines of Grace are a cohesive system of theology in which the Sovereignty of God is clearly displayed in the salvation of elect sinners.”(page 30) As JI Packer has been known to say, there is not 5 points to Calvinism. There is one point:God is sovereign. Once you honestly embrace this truth of Scripture, all of the rest fall neatly into place.
With all of the current interest in reformed theology, and the controversy that seems to inevitably surround it, a text like Foundations of Grace is much needed. For those who hold to these doctrines, Foundations of Grace is a great refresher and encouragement that these truths date much further back than Calvin or Augustine. For those opposed to these truths, Lawson presents a wonderfully organized, clear, and Bible-based arguments for the Doctrines of Grace. This book needs to be in everyone's library because the truths it so wonderfully presents are, dare I say, foundational! show less

Much of modern preaching is awful.

This assessment of the contemporary pulpit is sad, but I stand by it. Sound theological preaching has been replaced with gimmicky sermonettes. Sturdy, expository preaching has been deemed culturally irrelevant. We are left with preachers who move from one topical, man-centered sermon series to the next. Is it any wonder that the American church is so anemic?

Steven Lawson's short book, The Kind of Preaching God Blesses, gets right at the heart of the issue. show more An adaptation of one of his sermons from 1 Corinthians 2:1-9, this book is an easy read you can devour in one sitting. He calls pastors to abandon the hoopla that drives so many ministries and to return to committed expository preaching. Lawson makes the case that not only is the message we are to proclaim ensured by Scripture, but the method we use is also addressed. Such a thought flies in the face of the oft-cited ministry mantra, "Message is singular. Methods are many." Lawson does a masterful job of basing his opinions on exegesis of the text. If one disagrees with his conclusions, they are forces to find a different understanding of the text addressed.

Undoubtedly, the most controversial point of Lawson's book comes in chapter six, "A Sovereign Wisdom." In this chapter, he argues from a decidedly Reformed theological perspective. With Calvinism being such a hot-button issue for many, this will be more than many Arminian-leaning readers can stomach. However, they must deal with the fact that Lawson builds his conclusions from Scripture.

All in all, this book is needed today. Much of what masquerades as preaching is nothing more than spiritualized platitudes driven by the needs of man. We need men who will boldly stand in the pulpits of America and proclaim cross-centered messages driven by the text of Scripture. This is the only hope the church has.

GREAT QUOTES:

"As the pulpit goes, so goes the church. Never has this been more true than it is in this present hour. The fact remains, no church can rise any higher than its pulpit. The spiritual life of any congregation and its growth in grace will never exceed the high-water mark set by its pulpit" (16).

"The most diabolical ploy of Satan would be for churches to be bulging at their seams, but no proclamation of Christ and Him crucified. With this deadly silence, people would never learn of Christ. Thus, they could never know or follow Him" (21).

"Pulpits must be myopically focused upon declaring the sinless humanity, sovereign deity, and saving purposes of the Lord Jesus Christ. Otherwise, what comes from pulpits is not preaching, but simply tame religious talk" (24).

"To an alarming degree, an increasing amount of preaching these days can only be described as 'slick schtick.' By this I mean that form of communication in which the preacher has little to say, but tragically, says it very well" (35).

"The entree Bible is focused on the Lord Jesus Christ, who came into the world to save sinners" (57).

"Being a herald is entirely different than being an orator. A herald is judged solely on the basis of faithfully delivering the message exactly as it has been entrusted to him. He is not responsible for the listener. Rather, his job is to faithfully dispatch his message" (65).

"No man is too weak for God to use, only too strong. The more one recognizes his own weakness, the more he will rely upon God for strength" (76).

"There is a foundational truth in preaching that must undergird every message - namely, that God is sovereign over all things" (91).

"The preaching that God blesses must faithfully represent a proper understanding of any passage of Scripture. God will bless only that which rightly interprets the true meaning of the text" (115). show less

The Unwavering Resolve of Jonathan Edwards is the second in Lawson’s “A Long Line of Godly Men Profile,” series. In this edition, Lawson follows what is clearly one of the most influential theologians of the Reformation (John Calvin) with Jonathan Edwards, who “is still widely regarded as the most distinguished minister ever to grace the American church” (1). And while students of history may recognize him as the hellfire and damnation prophet they read about in history books as show more they study “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” Lawson presents another, broader portrait of Edwards.

Though Jonathan Edwards “was intellectually brilliant and theologically commanding, his true greatness lay in his indefatigable zeal for the glory of God” (4). Thus, in this volume Lawson leads the reader to a better understanding of the Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards, using Edwards’ own diaries and Miscellanies as helps along the way. These resolutions would show themselves to be Edwards’ “spiritual compass,” throughout his life, and the earnestness with which he sought to fulfill them is laid before the reader as a wonderful example to emulate.

The amazing aspect of these Resolutions is that they were written at a very young age. They were written, likely, during the end of his master’s degree studies at Yale, throughout his term as an interim pastor in New York City, and, “then during a brief stay at home prior to receiving his master’s degree in September 1723” (29). During Edwards’ transition between boy and man – during a time that many opt to exhaust all remaining desires for boyhood – Edwards laid the course for his pursuit of holiness for the entirety of his life. This in and of itself is fascinating.

Lawson then guides the reader to understanding the nature of these Resolutions, by helping display the relations between each various point and encouraging the reader to take upon themselves the practice of such a pursuit. The bulk of the book a sort of commentary on the Resolutions, and reveals aspects of Edwards that may be less than obvious to the student who merely reads his seminal sermon and moves on dismissively.

While those who read of Edwards Resolutions may find themselves unable to relate to a figure so fully enveloped in his devotion to God, Edwards diaries reveal the humanity of “America’s Theologian.” His diaries show his struggle with doubts of his salvation, his struggle to be peaceable and patient, and his struggle with the discipline that so characterized his life. Lawson masterfully weaves the diaries and Resolutions together to form a more developed picture of Edwards, rather than the flat, two-dimensional puritanical prophet.

This is a fantastic introduction to Jonathan Edwards and his Resolutions. show less

Steven Lawson begins his excellent book with a dire diagnosis of modern, evangelical Christianity. His diagnosis is that in spite of all the impressive numbers, political clout, and booming press and music industries within evangelicalism, there is a spiritual famine in the land. The cause of the famine? “A dearth of biblical preaching has left the evangelical movement weak, starving for spiritual truth, and susceptible to the ravages of the enemy” (John MacArthur in the Forward, p.11). show more Lawson laments that many preachers use the Bible “like the singing of the national anthem before a ball game--something merely heard at the beginning, but never referenced again, a necessary preliminary that becomes an awkward intrusion into the real event” (82).

The majority of the book is an appeal for what Lawson believes to be the only effectual solution: “A return to preaching--true preaching, biblical preaching, expository preaching--is the greatest need in this critical hour. If a reformation is to come to the church, it must be preceded by a reformation of the pulpit. As the pulpit goes, so goes the church” (17).
This is truly “a passionate call for expository preaching.” The book is divided into four addresses: The PRIORITY of biblical preaching; the POWER of biblical preaching; the PATTERN of biblical preaching; and the PASSION of biblical preaching. Of special benefit is the fact that the addresses are themselves expository in nature (though thematically arranged and presented). He deals consecutively with Acts 2:42-47 (priority of preaching); Jonah 3:1-10 (power of preaching); Ezra 7:10 along with Nehemiah 8:1-8 (pattern of preaching); and 1 Timothy 4:13-16 (passion of preaching). Each text is developed contextually and applied to the modern preacher.

One of the emphases I particularly appreciated was the place that the reading of Scripture is to have in preaching (see pp. 94-95, 112-13). “The preacher, as the worship leader, should follow Paul’s instruction to read the Scriptures publicly, and not allow other activities to crowd it out” (113). He demonstrates that the practice of the public reading of Scripture is seen throughout the pages of the Bible.

If, as a pastor, you are seeking to be “fired up” about the study and preaching of God’s Word, this book will not be disappointing. It is permeated with a high view of Scripture and will bolster your faith in the God-ordained means of preaching: “One God-called man armed with one God-sent message, committed to one God-prescribed method--preaching--is always sufficient for any situation” (62). show less