Concerning the True Care of Souls

Concerning the True Care of Souls
Publisher: Banner of Truth
Author: Bucer, Martin
ISBN-13: 9780851519845
Binding: Hardcover

Sample Pages

Publisher’s Description: First time ever available in English, this “Reformation handbook of pastoral theology … sets out in a vivid and persuasive way, biblical principles for church life, ministry, and discipline.”

For more than twenty-five years Martin Bucer was the undisputed leader of the Protestant Reformation in the city of Strasbourg. Yet he never managed to achieve all that he wished due to the opposition of the city’s political leaders. In 1548 he moved at the invitation of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer to England, where he spent the last few years of his life as Regius Professor of Divinity at Cambridge.

Ten years earlier, in 1538, Bucer produced what he called ‘this little book’. A Reformation handbook of pastoral theology, it sets out his ideal of a godly Christian society, and was ‘written solely for the Lord’s glory and the improvement of his church at this time when Christ’s sheep are so deplorably scattered’. He commended it ‘to the Christian consideration of all God’s children, asking only that nothing should be judged according to carnal standards, but everything according to the word of the Lord.’ And added, ‘May the Lord grant that it will be of much use for his kingdom.’ Although largely rejected by the government of Strasbourg, Bucer’s Concerning the True Care of Souls met with much more success further afield and was to exercise a vast influence in later history. In Hesse, for example, a church order was introduced based on Bucer’s ideas, and in Strasbourg itself they were implemented in the French refugee community pastured from 1538 to 1541 by the young John Calvin, who had a great respect for Bucer and worked closely with him.

Nearly 500 years later we can still benefit greatly from Bucer’s spiritual wisdom as he sets out, in a vivid and persuasive way, biblical principles for church life, ministry, and discipline. Translated into English for the very first time through the labours of Peter Beale, the publishers send it forth, reechoing Bucer’s prayer: ‘May the Lord grant that it will be of much use for his kingdom.’

258 pages
Published January 2009

“This is THE pastoral theology that John Calvin implemented in his own pastorate in Strasbourg, from 1538 to 1541. Nearly 500 years later we can still benefit greatly from Bucer’s spiritual wisdom as he sets out, in a vivid and persuasive way, biblical principles for church life, ministry, and discipline. Never before available in English, until now!”
- Steve Burlew, Manager, The Banner of Truth North America

Filed under: Banner of Truth, Book Recommendations, Books, Books and Resources, Pastors

Special Offer from Banner of Truth

In Recognition of the 500th Anniversary of the Birth of John Calvin, Banner of Truth is Pleased to Release

Tracts and Letters of John Calvin – 7 Volume Set
Author : John Calvin
Special Offer Price: $ 80.00 – List Price: $170.00
ISBN#: 9780851519876
Binding: Clothbound
Page Count : 7 Volume Set
Description: Long unavailable the republication of Calvin’s Tracts and Letters will delight all who have come to delight in the writings of the sixteenth-century reformer of Geneva.

3 Vols of Tracts

Three volumes of Tracts comprise some of Calvin’s most important writings. Volume 1 begins with the Life of Calvin written by his close friend and colleague, Theodore Beza. An outline of Calvin’s life and work by an eye-witness and intimate friend, it will never be entirely superseded by any other biography. There follows several miscellaneous Tracts relating to the reformation, which all have a strong bearing on the leading points at issue between Roman Catholics and Protestants. Among them is the famous exchange with Cardinal Sadaleto and The Necessity of Reforming the Church.

Filed under: Banner of Truth, Book Recommendations, Books, Books and Resources, John Calvin

The Christian Lover

The Christian Lover: The Sweetness of Love and Marriage in the Letters of Believers

Publisher: Ligonier Ministries
Author: Haykin, Michael A. G
ISBN-13: 9781567691115
Binding: Hardcover

Dr. Michael A. G. Haykin declares that “reading expressions of love from the past can be a helpful way of responding to the frangibility of Christian marriage in our day.” To that end, he brings together letters from one or both parties in twelve significant relationships from church history. The correspondents include such notables as Martin Luther (writing to his wife Katie), and John Calvin (expressing to friends his grief over the death of his wife Idelette). Lesser-known writers include Helmuth von Moltke, who wrote to his wife as he faced execution as the hands of the Nazis in 1945. The contents range from courtship communications to proposals of marriage to final words before dying, but most have to do with the events of everyday life. Dr. Haykin, professor of church history and biblical spirituality at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky., provides an introduction to each set of letters and draws practical applications for today’s believers based on the expressions of love made by the correspondents. In the end, The Christian Lover is a celebration of marriage, an intimate window into the thoughts of men and women in love with both God and one another.

About the Author: Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin is currently the Director of The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, located on the campus of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is also Professor of Church History and Biblical Spirituality at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and the editor of Eusebeia: The Bulletin of The Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies.

Filed under: Book Recommendations, Books, Books and Resources, Letters

Journey Towards Heaven

For years I have desired a daily devotional written by Jonathan Edwards that exceeded just a few lines. I wanted a devotional of theological depth. Something that would lift my affections to heights of splendor as I beheld the majesty and holiness of God that Edwards so passionately proclaimed.

In order to enjoy such a devotional I decided to compile one myself in the sincere hope that many would benefit from its pages. With the initial consideration in view it took some time to decide in which direction of Edwards’ writings I would proceed. The Yale edition of Edwards works had just been published online by the Jonathan Edwards Center and provided a vast wealth of material in which to draw. Would I draw from his weighty theological treatises’? Would I develop something from his endless Miscellanies? Then it hit me, what a better place for true devotional reading than the life-labor of his sermons. I wanted to sit in the pew as those in New York, Northampton, and Stockbridge. Excerpts from Edwards’ sermons would also provide the opportunity for a wider audience, for those who read such a work enjoy and learn from sermons each week.

Reading over countless sermons I came to see that Edwards was first and foremost a preacher par excellence. This was his calling, his passion and his desire. The sermons of Edwards personify the essence and life of Puritan preaching. Filled with exhortation, exposition, and serious application; Edwards sought to lift the hearts and minds of his hearers in the truth of the Word of God.

Filed under: Books, Jonathan Edwards

Concise Reformed Dogmatics – NEW PRICE!

Concise Reformed Dogmatics

Read inside (PDFs):
Key Features | Table of Contents | Chapter 3

Publisher: P and R Publishing Company
Author: Van Genderen, J.; Velema, W. H.
ISBN-13: 9780875525778
Binding: Hardcover
List Price: $59.99
Westminster Bookstore: $37.79 – 37% Off

This is not what you think!

…it is NOT a dry, impenetrable, scholastic tome.

It IS:
• a strikingly clear and readable systematic theology
• built on the Dutch Reformed tradition of Calvin and Bavinck
• up-to-date; interacts with contemporary theological issues

Publisher’s Description: Doctrine and life form a unity, the authors believe, and the knowledge and study of theology are of direct importance to ethics, preaching, and the life of faith.

This full treatment of Reformed systematic theology is accessible to church officers and interested lay readers, as well as teachers and students of theology. As in the celebrated Dutch edition, it is formatted with two visually distinct levels of discussion for use either as an introduction to theology or in advanced study.

Filed under: Book Recommendations, Books, Books and Resources, Systematic Theology