By This Standard: The Authority of God's Law Today

by Greg Bahnsen

Publisher:

American Vision

, 2008

Overview

God’s Law is Christianity’s tool of dominion. This is where any discussion of God’s law ultimately arrives: the issue of dominion. Ask yourself: Who is to rule on earth, Christ or Satan? Whose followers have the ethically acceptable tool of dominion, Christ’s or Satan’s? What is this tool of dominion, the biblically revealed law of God or the law of self-proclaimed autonomous man? Whose word is sovereign, God’s or man’s?

Millions of Christians, sadly, have not recognized the continuing authority of God’s law or its many applications to modern society. They have thereby reaped the whirlwind of cultural and intellectual impotence. They implicitly denied the power of the death and resurrection of Christ. They have served as footstools for the enemies of God. But humanism’s free ride is coming to an end. By This Standard serves as an introduction to this woefully neglected topic.

Since By This Standard is fully integrated with Logos, Scripture passages are linked to your favorite translation for quick reference and to your Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts for original-language study! You can also read this volume along with your Bible dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the wealth of other Bible study tools in your digital library.

Key Features

• Prologue by David Bahnsen
• Foreword by the author
• Discussion of God’s law

Contents

Top Highlights

“Fundamental to the position taken herein is the conviction that God’s special revelation—His written word-is necessary as the objective standard of morality for God’s people. Over against the autonomous ethical philosophies of men, where good and evil are defined by sinful speculation, the Christian ethic gains its character and direction from the revealed word of God, a revelation which harmonizes with the general revelation made of God’s standards through the created order and man’s conscience.” (Pages 1–2)

“Obedience to God’s law is not the way a person gains justification in the eyes of God; salvation is not by meritorious works but rather by grace through faith. And while the law may be a pattern of holy living for sanctification, the law is not the dynamic power which enables obedience on the part of God’s people; rather, the Holy Spirit gives us new life and strength to keep God’s commands.” (Page 5)

“The goal of By This Standard was to provide laymen readers a synopsis of the great exegetical and ethical claims of its predecessor (Theonomy in Christian Ethics): that God’s law is a reflection of His character, that God’s character never changes, and consequently, his eternal expectations for His people never change.” (Page ix)

“Consequently, true Christian obedience to the law of God will take us beyond a concern for ourselves to a concern for the obedience of those around us. Churches which preach (either intentionally or by default) ‘moral individualism’ are failing to proclaim the whole counsel of God. The sins of our society cannot be ignored or swept under the church carpet.” (Page 25)

Praise for the Print Edition

Back in print after several years, this is the best layman’s guide to the application of God’s Law to our society available.

—Gary DeMar, president, American Vision

Product Details

• Title: By This Standard: The Authority of God’s Law Today
• Author: Greg L. Bahnsen
• Publisher: American Vision
• Publication Date: 2008
• Pages: 265

About Greg Bahnsen

Greg Bahnsen (1948–1995) was the scholar in residence at The Southern California Center for Christian Studies where he taught Apologetics from a distinctly Reformed perspective. Bahnsen followed the lead of his mentor Cornelius Van Til and reasoned that, apart from the Christian faith, the unbeliever cannot account for his knowledge. Bahnsen earned a B.A. in Philosophy from Westmont College, his M.Div and ThM from Westminster Theological Seminary (1973), and a PhD in epistemology (the theory of knowledge) from the University of Southern California (1978).