TO ALL THE SAINTS OF GOD
By Jonathan Edwards
Soli Deo Gloria. 401 pages. ($28.95)
ISBN 1 57538 143 7
What would Jonathan Edwards have made of the church today? Don Kistler has compiled, edited and re-typeset this collection of 12 sermons of the New England divine for easier reading.
In this book, Edwards opens a window into his pastoral heart and how he views the relationship between the minister and his flock. Topics covered range from ecclesiological and membership issues (when did you last read a sermon on excommunication?), to the sovereignty of God, right down to personal duties. In our age of self-fulfilment, his sermon on "the necessity of self-examination" does not make for comfortable reading. Edwards's concern throughout is to earth doctrine and set forth Christ; many of the sermons conclude with an 'application' section, making it impossible to escape the force of what he is saying.
