Crossway Studies on Justification and Salvation (11 vols.)
Overview
This collection of theological works on justification and salvation clarifies nuanced theological positions about the nature of salvation, defends penal substitutionary theories of the atonement, and shows why Christians can have full confidence in the perseverance of the salvation Christ bought for for them. Notable authors—including R.C. Sproul, John Piper, Sam Storms, and Jerry Bridges–join others to provide a wealth of pastoral experience and theological acumen on the perennially critical discussion of “justification by grace through faith.” Authors examine key biblical texts, engage historical theology, illuminate complex theology, and draw out the implications of justification in the life of the believer with skill and clarity. These varied and relevant volumes lead readers on an educational journey regarding justification and salvation, explaining these central, but often misunderstood doctrines.
Key Features
- Examines the doctrines of justification and salvation from biblical, historical, and theological perspectives
- Buttresses substitutionary-penal theories of the atonement
- Adresses complex theological questions while providing practical guidance for Christian life
Product Details
- Title: Crossway Studies on Justification and Salvation (10 vols.)
- Publisher: Crossway
- Volumes: 11
- Pages: 2,603
- Christian Group: Evangelical
- Resource Type: Monographs
- Topic: Soteriology
Individual Titles
- The Great Exchange: My Sin for His Righteousness by Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington
- Justified by Faith Alone by R.C. Sproul
- Jonathan Edwards and Justification edited by Josh Moody
- Salvation Applied by the Spirit: Union with Christ by Robert A. Peterson
- Does God Desire All to Be Saved? by John Piper
- God in the Dark: The Assurance of Faith Beyond a Shadow of Doubt by Os Guinness
- Jesus’ Blood and Righteousness: Paul’s Theology of Imputation by Brian Vickers
- One with Christ: An Evangelical Theology of Salvation by Marcus Peter Johnson
- Kept for Jesus: What the New Testament Really Teaches about Assurance of Salvation and Eternal Security by Sam Storms
- Pierced for Our Transgressions: Rediscovering the Glory of Penal Substitution by Steve Jeffery, Michael Ovey, and Andrew Sach
- By Faith Alone: Answering the Challenges to the Doctrine of Justification edited by Gary L.W. Johnson and Guy Prentiss Waters
Partially includedIn the Logos editions, these volumes are enhanced by amazing functionality. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Perform powerful searches to find exactly what you’re looking for. Take the discussion with you using tablet and mobile apps. With Logos Bible Software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.
Believers may often take for granted their salvation through Jesus Christ. Beginning with the Old Testament sacrifices and the prophecies that foreshadowed Christ, authors Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington guide readers through a biblical overview of Christ’s atonement. The Great Exchange helps believers see how the Old Testament practices tie in with the New Testament discussion of Christ’s great work of salvation.
As believers work through these principles, they will begin to recognize that even though we deserve condemnation and punishment from a holy God, he has given us the opportunity to experience his great riches through his Son, Jesus Christ. The clear gospel message presented throughout the entire book offers a great appreciation of Christ for believers and an opportunity for salvation for unbelievers.
As Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington have shown, the cross brings a timely and unparalleled message of costly love and forgiveness. Their work is a thorough examination of this rich truth in the Scriptures, and you will be richer for their biblical insights.
—Ravi Zacharias, founder and president, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
Men who have taught us so much about God’s transforming grace now marshal their resources to defend and define the glorious blessings of Christ’s atonement, which exchanges our sin for his righteousness. No truth is more important; no book more needed.
—Bryan Chapell, president emeritus, Covenant Theological Seminary
The next time I am asked for my top-ten reading list, this will be included! Clear and comprehensive, it leaves the reader in no doubt that this ’great exchange’ is not only the heart of biblical theology but also the pivotal event of human history.
—Alistair Begg, senior pastor, Parkside Church, Chagrin Falls, Ohio
Jerry Bridges (1929–2016) is a long time staff member of the Navigators and currently serves with their collegiate ministry. In addition to his international speaking ministry, he has authored ten books, including The Pursuit of Holiness, The Discipline of Grace: God’s Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness, and Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate.
Luther said that the doctrine of justification by faith alone is “the article upon which the church stands or falls.” R.C. Sproul follows Luther’s lead in his concise and compelling work, now repackaged and republished. Justified by Faith Alone surveys the main tenets of the doctrine of justification in Roman Catholicism and evangelicalism. Sproul is careful to accurately represent Catholic beliefs and observes that while both traditions agree that faith is necessary for justification, the difference lies in whether faith alone is sufficient. He explores problems with the Catholic doctrine and champions the sole sufficiency of Christ for our salvation.
Effective and engaging, Sproul does not shy away from difficult theological terms and ideas, but capably guides readers through this famous doctrinal dispute. To those who decry the doctrines of imputation and justification by faith alone as "legal fiction," Sproul warns that nothing less than the central message of the gospel is at stake.
R.C. Sproul serves as senior minister of preaching and teaching at Saint Andrew’s Chapel in Sanford, Florida, and is the founder and president of Ligonier Ministries. He has taught at numerous colleges and seminaries, has written over seventy books, including The Holiness of God, Chosen by God, The Mystery of the Holy Spirit, and Essential Truths of the Christian Faith.
Josh Moody has assembled a team of internationally reputed Edwards scholars to ask and answer the question: What is Jonathan Edwards’ doctrine of justification? The contributors also examine the extent to which Edwards’ view was Reformational while addressing some of the contemporary discussions on justification. This volume helps us look at justification through the eyes of one of America’s greatest theologians, and speaks credibly and winsomely to the needs of the church and the academy today. Contributors include Douglas A. Sweeney, Kyle Strobel, Samuel T. Logan, and Rhys Bezzant.
This superb collection of essays provides insight and guidance not only for understanding the thought of Jonathan Edwards in his historical context, but for wrestling with the current debate regarding the doctrine of justification by faith. This volume will prove to be richly rewarding, theologically engaging, and spiritually edifying for students and scholars alike. Josh Moody is to be commended for bringing together this outstanding group of scholars for such a timely and thoughtful exploration of this important subject. I highly recommend this book.
—David S. Dockery, president, Trinity International University
In 1734, at the beginning of the Connecticut Valley revival that ushered in the Great Awakening, Jonathan Edwards preached on the controversial doctrine of justification. Critics found ‘great fault’ with him for ‘meddling’ with it, and he ‘was ridiculed by many elsewhere.’ So today, those who engage in discussions about the nature of justification may find themselves the objects of criticism and ridicule, but the subject is a vital one, precisely because it has been and remains divisive. And it is particularly important in understanding Edwards, because his view on justification has been hotly debated. This volume combines informed historical context and contemporary appropriation, with the aim of considering Edwards ‘responsibly and correctly.’ What emerges is a balanced assessment of Edwards as an orthodox thinker, yet one with ‘creativity, spice, and derring-do.’
—Kenneth P. Minkema, executive editor and director, Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale University
A significant work that advances the growing scholarship on Jonathan Edwards and contributes to the current debates on justification. These lucid essays demonstrate that the great biblical and Reformation teaching on justification is not a stale, dusty doctrine, but has ramifications for the vitality of the Church and the reform of society.
—Dennis P. Hollinger, president and Colman M. Mockler Distinguished Professor of Christian Ethics, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
Josh Moody is senior pastor of College Church, Wheaton, Illinois, in the Chicago area. He is the author of several books, including The God-Centered Life and No Other Gospel, and blogs at GodCenteredLife.org.
The doctrine of believers’ union with Christ has undergone a renaissance in recent years. Evangelicals are rightly fascinated by this previously neglected doctrine—a doctrine with wide-ranging implications for the whole of Christian theology and the Christian life.
Drawing on his extensive teaching and research experience, theologian Robert Peterson has written one of the most comprehensive theological treatments of union with Christ to date, highlighting the Spirit’s crucial role in uniting God to his people.
Peterson offers readers a marvelous survey of the union-with-Christ theme by exploring the concept in every major portion of Scripture. Having carefully placed this important theological subject within the overall biblical story, Peterson helps readers understand the rich meaning and wide-ranging implications of this important theme for the church and the Christian life. It is a privilege to commend this carefully organized and well-written volume. Joyful, uplifting, and doxological.
—David S. Dockery, president, Trinity International University
This book is a wonderful gift to God’s people as it recovers the significant biblical doctrine of union with Christ. To be saved is to be united with Christ, and Peterson’s treatment of this truth is exegetically and systematically exemplary.
—Bruce Ashford, provost and associate professor of theology and culture, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
This is a welcome addition to recent literature on the theme of union with Christ. Peterson pursues the theme through the whole of Scripture, reflects on the theological connections and implications of our union with Christ, and draws pastoral applications for the sake of the church. The result is an accessible, penetrating, and full-orbed contribution that will be of theological and spiritual benefit to all its readers.
—Constantine Campbell, associate professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
Robert A. Peterson (PhD, Drew University) is professor of systematic theology at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. He is the author and editor of numerous books and articles, including The Glory of God and The Deity of Christ.
In this short, theological essay, John Piper builds a scriptural case that God’s unconditional election unto salvation is compatible with God’s genuine desire and offer for all to be saved. Helping us to make sense of this seemingly paradoxical relationship, Piper wisely holds both truths in tension as he explores the Bible’s teaching on this challenging topic, graciously responds to those who disagree, and motivates us to passionately proclaim the free offer of the gospel to all people.
John Piper is the founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and the chancellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary. He served for 33 years as the senior pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is the author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, The Supremacy of God in Preaching, rev. ed., and The Justification of God: An Exegetical and Theological Study of Romans 9:1-23, 2nd ed.. Piper has also preached thousands of sermons, many of which can be found in the The John Piper Sermon Archive (1980–2014).
Do you have significant doubts about God? Are you afraid to doubt, much less admit to anyone that you aren’t fully convinced of God’s faithfulness? Are you so torn by your questions that life is losing its meaning?
This forthright but compassionate book works to tear away the layers of misunderstanding about doubt to reveal not only its dangers but its great value. As author Os Guinness explains: “If ours is an examined faith, we should be unafraid to doubt... There is no believing without some doubting, and believing is all the stronger for understanding and resolving doubt.”
For those who are unsure of God’s trustworthiness—and for those who are in a dark place, wanting to know “Why?” or “How long, O Lord?”—God in the Dark is a must. It puts a human face on the problem of doubt and examines it thoroughly. In a way that will respond to your questions, settle your fears, and strengthen your faith.
Os Guinness was born in China, raised and educated in England, and moved to the United States in 1984. He directs the Trinity Forum and is a former fellow at the East-West Institute in New York. His books include The Last Christian on Earth: Uncover the Enemy’s Plot to Undermine the Church and Dining with the Devil: The Megachurch Movement Flirts with Modernity.
The question of whether Paul teaches that Christ’s righteousness is imputed to the believer has been debated for roughly four hundred years. Some of the questions that arise are: What is the connection between Adam and the rest of the human race? How did Christ fulfill the role of the second or new Adam? How can the “ungodly” stand before a righteous God?
In Jesus’ Blood and Righteousness, Brian Vickers investigates the key Pauline texts linked historically to the topic of imputation. Though Vickers spends a good deal of time on the particulars of each text, he keeps one eye on the broader biblical horizon; like any doctrine, imputation must be investigated exegetically and synthetically. This book, and its conclusion that the imputation of Christ’s righteousness is a legitimate and necessary synthesis of Paul’s teaching, is a valuable contribution to the ongoing debate on imputation.
Vickers’s work is sure to be one of the most significant contributions to the ongoing discussion of the nature of the imputation of Christ’s righteousness. For the sake of one’s own soul, and for richer biblical and theological understanding, I recommend to Christians that they read with care this excellent work.
—Bruce A. Ware, professor of Christian theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Accessible to any intelligent reader with an interest in theology, exegesis, and doctrine, but especially helpful to pastors, teachers, and seminarians.
—J. Ligon Duncan, chancellor and CEO, Reformed Theological Seminary, Jackson, Mississippi
With great clarity Dr. Vickers bases his theological conclusions on careful, contextual study of the Scriptures. And he does all of this with a gentle spirit that refuses to demonize those who disagree with him. I heartily commend this volume as a needed, constructive, and helpful piece of theological exegesis.
—Robert A. Peterson, professor of systematic theology, Covenant Theological Seminary
Brian Vickers serves as assistant professor of New Testament interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also serves as an elder at Clifton Baptist Church. Through Southern Seminary, he is involved in leading missions trips and in teaching on the mission field. Vickers lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with his wife and daughter.
Despite our love for the Bible, emphasis on the cross, and passion for evangelism, many evangelicals ironically neglect that which is central to the gospel. In our preaching, teaching, and witnessing, we often separate salvation from the Savior.
Looking to the Scriptures and church history, Marcus Johnson reveals the true riches of our salvation by reintroducing us to the foundation of our redemption—our mysterious union with the living Christ.
Theologian Johnson is a Reformed thinker who restates for us Luther’s and Calvin’s Bible-based insistence that union with Christ is the framing fact within which, and whereby, all the specifics of salvation reach us. His book merits careful study, for he does his job outstandingly well.
—J.I. Packer, Board of Governors’ Professor of Theology, Regent College
Johnson has produced an excellent discussion of union with Christ. I am sure it will be consulted widely and contribute effectively to the church’s understanding of salvation.
—Robert Letham, director of research and senior lecturer in systematic and historical theology, Wales Evangelical School of Theology
Evangelicals certainly love Jesus, but for too long they have loved him from a distance. He is the beloved man of the Gospels who did great deeds ‘back then,’ or the glorious Christ who reigns on his throne ‘up there.’ Marcus Johnson puts the Savior back where he belongs: in our midst as the one to whom we are truly united. This book is a timely reminder that our union with Christ is actual, mystical, and sacramental. Are we ready for that?
—Bryan M. Litfin, professor of theology, Moody Bible Institute
Marcus Peter Johnson is assistant professor of theology at Moody Bible Institute. Along with writing his doctoral dissertation on union with Christ in the theology of John Calvin, he is also the author of One with Christ: An Evangelical Theology of Salvation and the coauthor (with John C. Clark) of The Incarnation of God: The Mystery of the Gospel as the Foundation of Evangelical Theology.
This question has perplexed—and distressed—believers for centuries. When faced with our sin and shortcomings, sometimes we’re tempted to conclude that we’ve strayed too far and that God no longer loves us.
In Kept for Jesus, pastor Sam Storms addresses common concerns that Christians have related to their eternal security, offering hope and assurance from the Bible. Examining every New Testament passage that speaks to this important issue, this book charts a biblical course between those who say that Christians can lose their salvation and those who carelessly declare, “Once saved, always saved.”
I have wrestled with the issue of assurance of salvation not just as a pastor counseling timid souls but as a sinner trusting in God. What a great help is Kept for Jesus, then! Handling the relevant biblical texts with clarity and precision, Sam Storms has crafted real ministry with this book, working by the Spirit to plant the security of union with Christ in the believer’s heart.
—Jared C. Wilson, Director of Content Strategy, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
With care and compassion, Sam engages in a wide-ranging discussion of the love of God, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, spurious faith versus saving faith, human dignity and human depravity, the nature of eternal security, God’s preserving power in faithful Christians, the problem of apostasy, and much more. Not shying away from the controversial nature of his topic and tackling head-on dozens of difficult passages, Sam offers an engaging book that deals biblically, theologically, and practically with the all-important matter of assurance of salvation.
—Gregg R. Allison, Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Is your errant friend unsaved or simply backslidden? This book contains a great overview of what the Bible teaches about eternal security, the perseverance of the saints, God’s sovereignty and free will. Clear, readable, and compelling. A must for anyone who wants to understand the Reformed view on the assurance of salvation.
—Mary A. Kassian, professor of women’s studies, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Sam Storms has spent more than four decades in ministry as a pastor, professor, and the author of more than two-dozen books. He was visiting associate professor of theology at Wheaton College from 2000 to 2004, and is currently senior pastor at Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He is the founder of Enjoying God Ministries and the author of numerous books, including Convergence: Spiritual Journeys of a Charismatic Calvinist, Chosen for Life: The Case for Divine Election, and Tough Topics: Biblical Answers to 25 Challenging Questions.
The belief that Jesus died for us, suffering the wrath of his own Father in our place, has been the wellspring of hope for countless Christians through the ages. However, with an increasing number of theologians, church leaders, and even popular Christian books and magazines questioning this doctrine, which naysayers have described as a form of “cosmic child abuse,” a fresh articulation and affirmation of penal substitution is needed. And Jeffery, Ovey, and Sach have responded here with clear exposition and analysis.
They make the case not only that the doctrine is clearly taught in Scripture, but that it has an impeccable pedigree and a central place in Christian theology, and that its neglect has serious consequences. The authors also systematically analyze over twenty specific objections that have been brought against penal substitution and charitably but firmly offer a defining declaration of the doctrine of the cross for any concerned reader.
Steve Jeffery is a pastor at Holy Trinity, Lyonsdown, in North London. He has a MS and PhD in experimental physics from Oxford University.
Michael Ovey is principal of Oak Hill Theological College. He has a PhD in Trinitarian theology from King’s College, London.
Andrew Sach studied theology at Oak Hill and is now on the staff of St Helen’s, Bishopsgate, in central London. He has a PhD from York University.
The Reformation swept across Europe with a God-glorifying gospel of grace. Now the doctrine of grace cherished and proclaimed by the Reformers is under renewed assault from an unexpected place—the evangelical church itself.
With the help of several theologians, Gary L.W. Johnson and Guy P. Waters trace the background and development of two seemingly disparate movements that have surfaced within the contemporary church-the New Perspective(s) on Paul and the Federal Vision-and how they corrupt the truth of salvation by faith alone. By regaining a focus on the doctrine of grace, pastors, seminarians, and future leaders can regain the cohesion, coherence, and direction to truly build the church to withstand the attacks of false and empty doctrines.
Gary L.W. Johnson (PhD, Westminster Theological Seminary) is the senior pastor of Church of the Redeemer in Mesa, Arizona. He has written for Table Talk, Modern Reformation, and the Westminster Theological Journal.
Guy Prentiss Waters (PhD, Duke University) is the James M. Baird Jr. Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary, and was formerly an associate professor of biblical studies at Belhaven University in Jackson, Mississippi. Guy and his wife, Sarah, have three children.
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