Journal: Bibliotheca Sacra
Volume: BSAC 147:585 (Jan 1990)
Article: Book Reviews
Author: Anonymous

BSac 147:585 (Jan 90) p. 109

Book Reviews

So Great Salvation: What It Means to Believe in Jesus Christ. By Charles C. Ryrie. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1989. 166 pp. $12.95.

Once again Ryrie has demonstrated his great skill in being pointed, clear, and succinct. Writing in view of the lordship salvation debate, the author begins with a brief chapter that explains the meaning and significance of grace and points to the importance of precision of meaning in language and the gospel. Then he describes four straw men set up by those who hold to lordship salvation. Each of these is refuted as inaccurate and incorrect presentations of Ryrie’s viewpoint.

In a chapter entitled “What Is the Gospel?” the writer says the issue of the gospel is how one obtains forgiveness of sin and eternal life. It is received by faith and as a gift. In two critical chapters he says all Christians will bear fruit (at least some fruit at some time), and carnality is possible (though not desirable) for a Christian. The seventh chapter affirms the truth that Jesus is Lord. However, “subjective lordship” as a necessity for salvation is skillfully refuted. The account of the rich young ruler’s failure to be saved is skillfully considered in chapter 8. The next chapters are excellent definitions of key terms—repentance, discipleship, faith, justification, security, assurance, and sanctification. The volume concludes with an index of definitions of key terms, a Scripture index, and a subject index.

This is Ryrie at his best. This volume is highly recommended for its balance, clarity, scriptural bases, and irenic spirit. It is hoped this brief work will bring to an end this critically important debate over the terms of salvation.

Stanley D. Toussaint

The Origin of Species Revisited. 2 vols. By Wendell R. Bird. New York: Philosophical Library, 1989. xvi + 551 pp. and xix + 563 pp. $65.

The author of this massive two-volume work is a distinguished Christian attorney who lives in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a Yale Law School graduate and a member of the American Law Institute. He has studied meticulously

BSac 147:585 (Jan 90) p. 110

the scientific and legal aspects of various theories of the origin of the universe and the presence of complex forms of life. He has argued the major case on the issue before the U. S. Supreme Court.

The Origin of Species Revisited is the most exhaustive, even-handly written, thoroughly researched work this reviewer has seen on this subject. Its sheer size reveals not wordiness but depth of treatment. The work includes over 5,500 footnotes, covering a vast amount of scientific, legal, and technical literature on this subje...