×

Book Review- God’s Glory Alone

gods glory aloneIt is a bit ironic that the subject of the glory of God could become so familiar that we miss its importance. If we have been in churches for over a month or two we have probably figured it out that we are to do all things to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). But, when we ask people what this means there is often confusion or at least a lack of depth. This is what I mean about ironic. The glory of God is of utmost importance to God and therefore to us. But when it gets reduced to the common language without substantive explanation and careful application we can unwittingly be swinging and missing on a very important pitch.

In his new book God’s Glory AloneDavid VanDrunen writes to help a new generation better understand and therefore set their compass to live for the glory of God. The book divides into three sections, the glory of God in Reformed theology, the glory of God in Scripture, and living for God’s glory today. And this is where you see the value of a careful theologian like VanDrunen. He writes in such a way that he integrates historical theology (how the church has seen this topic in church history), systematic theology (what the Bible says about this particular topic), and pastoral theology (how to apply this doctrine).

In terms of the historical theology, VanDrunen writes from the Reformed Protestant perspective to help us see how the various Reformers prioritized the glory of God. In fact, writes VanDrunen, “Soli Deo gloria can be understood as the glue that holds the other solas in place, or the center that draws the others solas into a grand, unified whole…By holding for soli Deo gloria as the lifeblood of the solas, we remind ourselves that the biblical religion recaptured b the Reformation is not ultimately about ourselves, but about God.” (p.15-16). It was helpful to see how the various figures in church history rang the bell of the glory of God alone. This was done loudly, in unison and with great joy.

This systematic study was particularly beneficial for me. I couldn’t put it down. You may think that a seminary professor writing on a topic like this might get dry, but I assure you it was not. With precision VanDrunen walks readers through the Bible to see the glory of God in the cloud in the Old Testament and then to see the glory of God in the life and ministry of Jesus. But he did not stop there. VanDrunen continued on in chapter 5 to show the glory of Christ in the glorification of his people. In short this chapter is teaching that “the story of divine glory runs not only through Calvary but also through Christ’s transformation of sinners through his Holy Spirit.” (p.88) In this we see again and again the the glory of God is a Trinitarian priority.

In the third section of practical application VanDrunen writes about a couple of areas that are particularly relevant: distraction and narcissism. I figure that after wringing out the doctrine in the previous 5 chapters that he has the right to do what he wants. At the same time, I was not as fond of the end of the book as I was the previous sections. VanDrunen interacts with some of the symptoms of our failure to glorify God in our day. No doubt distraction, technology and shallowness are prevailing problems facing Christians, however, I would have preferred them to be smaller sections of a single chapter rather than 2/3 of the final section. Nevertheless the reader will be blessed to read the chapters and glean from VanDrunen’s time thoughtfully engaging with the some contemporary authors on these subjects while also thinking biblically about the glory of God.

Since the topic of the glory of God is so important and so often misunderstood and misapplied, this book is a welcome resource. I learned and was provoked to worship as I read. To cover all of this ground in under 175 pages demonstrates a remarkable level of understanding and familiarity with the topic. Readers will be blessed as they read.

You can pick up discounted copies of God’s Glory Alone at Amazon (kindle).

LOAD MORE
Loading