Synopses & Reviews
In The Expository Genius of John Calvin, Dr. Steven J. Lawson delves into the practices, commitments, and techniques that made John Calvin, the great Reformer of the sixteenth century, such an effective preacher during his long pastorate at Saint Pierre Cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland. Dr. Lawson identifies thirty-two distinctives of Calvin s preaching, providing comments from Calvin s writings, quotations from Reformation scholars, and examples from Calvin s own sermons to reinforce his points. In the end, Dr. Lawson finds in Calvin a strong model for expository preaching and calls on modern pastors to follow the Reformer s example.
Review
Effective Evangelism is humanly impossible. To take truth from the Bible, get it into your heart, cause it to burst into flames of love, and then carry it's living coals into another heart- no man has the power to do this. It requires an anointing from heaven. God gave that anointing to George Whitefield and used him to ignite thousands of souls. Steven Lawson draws us close to feel the fire in this stirring and informative book. May many read it and cry up to heaven for the flame to descend again! --Dr. Joel R. Beeke: President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Grand Rapids, MichiganWhat I love about Steve Lawson's books is that he writes as a preacher, with a keen eye and ear for details that show what a vital role great preaching has played in the advance of the gospel, the growth and strengthening of the church, and the collective testimony of the Evangelical movement. This volume on George Whitefield is another superb example of Dr. Lawson's approach to history and biography. He highlights the key doctrinal nuances, character qualities, natural talents, and spiritual gifts that help explain why Whitefield was such a powerful preacher and such a monumental figure in church history. The book is written in an engaging, personal way that brings Whitefield to life. It's hard to put a book like this down. -- --Dr. John MacArthur: Pastor, Grace Community Church; President, The Masters College and Seminary Sun Valley, California
Review
Through an introductory study of John Calvin's preaching, Steve Lawson provides a practical Homiletics I refresher course that can be read in one evening, but should be read annually for lifelong impact. Factual yes stimulation, simple yet penetrating, The Expository Genius of John Calvin contains many scriptural and theocentric golden nuggets and hands-on practical tips for beginning expositors and seasoned preachers alike. May God use it to revitalize Christ-centered and Spirit-empowered applicatory preaching in our needy day --Dr. Joel R. Beeke President, Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary Grand Rapids, MichiganAn infectious appreciation of the preaching of John Calvin from the pen of Steven Lawson. No one reading this volume can fail to appreciate the debt we owe to the 'Genevan Reformer.' Lawson has consulted the best of current scholarship and has produced a comprehensive distillation of the contours of the Reformer's preaching and, with it, a compelling advocacy of consecutive expository preaching. A magnificent achievement. --Dr. Derek W. H. Thomas: Associate Minister First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, SCIn this book, Dr. Steve Lawson has masterfully presented us with thirty-two keynotes that made Calvin the best preacher of the Reformation, all of them centered around the Word of God preached expositorily. He describes for us in a powerful as well as profound way how Calvin brought his congregation upward to gaze upon God's glory as he preached verse by verse, then ended his sermons with prayer filled with the Word! Dr. Lawson is right in saying that because of the spiritual bankruptcy of our time, we need Calvins once again. I would make this book recommended reading in courses such as homiletics and missions for any serious pastor and student of theology --Dr. Alonzo Ramirez: Professor, Biblical Reformed Seminary, PeruAn infectious appreciation of the preaching of John Calvin from the pen of Steven Lawson. No one reading this volume can fail to appreciate the debt we owe to the 'Genevan Reformer.' Lawson has consulted the best of current scholarship and has produced a comprehensive distillation of the contours of the Reformer's preaching and, with it, a compelling advocacy of consecutive expository preaching. A magnificent achievement. --Dr. Derek W. H. Thomas: Associate Minister First Presbyterian Church, Columbia, SCIn this book, Dr. Steve Lawson has masterfully presented us with thirty-two keynotes that made Calvin the best preacher of the Reformation, all of them centered around the Word of God preached expositorily. He describes for us in a powerful as well as profound way how Calvin brought his congregation upward to gaze upon God's glory as he preached verse by verse, then ended his sermons with prayer filled with the Word! Dr. Lawson is right in saying that because of the spiritual bankruptcy of our time, we need Calvins once again. I would make this book recommended reading in courses such as homiletics and missions for any serious pastor and student of theology --Dr. Alonzo Ramirez: Professor, Biblical Reformed Seminary, Peru
Synopsis
George Whitefield was called the Grand Itinerant for his unprecedented preaching ministry, he crossed the Atlantic Ocean numerous times and lit fires of revival on two continents. Yet, as Dr.Lawson illustrates in this latest entry in the Long Line of Godly Men Profiles series, we must note that Whitefield was a man whose extraordinary evangelistic fervor was marked by remarkable piety and deep theology, and whose unswerving devotion to his God led him to risk all that he had to preach the name of Christ.
About the Author
Dr. Lawson is the senior pastor of Christ Fellowship Baptist Church in Mobile, Alabama. He is a teaching fellow for Ligonier Ministries and a visiting professor for the Ligonier Academy of Biblical and Theological Studies, as well as a member of the board of directors for The Master s College and Seminary. He is also president of OnePassion Ministries, a ministry designed to bring about biblical reformation in the church today.