[Editor’s note: This post is from 2009 and might include additional books if written today. But these are important works to know about.]
J.I. Packer, in his classic book Knowing God, states that the study of God is the greatest study that a Christian can come to when they study the Word of God, for the study of God examines nearly every part of the Bible, every doctrine of the Bible, and exposes ourselves before God. In the light of who God is, we see ourselves and we see our great need for His grace and His mercy. Further, the study of God is a lifelong study since God cannot be truly understood by our finite minds (Romans 11:33-36). God is simply too holy, too wonderful, too awesome, too infinite, too glorious, too transcendent for us to comprehend.
Yet Jesus said that to know God is to know life eternally (John 17:3). God Himself said that we are not to boast in strength or riches or wisdom but in knowing Him (Jeremiah 9:23-24). In the Bible God has exposed Himself (to quote Philip Yancey from his book The Jesus I Never Knew) to us and has made certain parts of Himself known to us. Obviously the Bible itself cannot fully reveal who God is but it does reveal enough for us to know Him, understand His gospel, and be in a relationship with Him. Unlike the Muslims, for instance, who believe Allah has revealed himself in the Quran but believe that Allah is too distant from man for us to have an intimate relationship with him, Yahweh has revealed Himself that we might not just know things about Him such as His attributes or His creation but to actually know Him (Philippians 3:8-11). In the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, God came near to us (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7) to reveal Himself to us (John 1:14; 14:8-9). Jesus emptied Himself and has become a Man (Philippians 2:5-11) and now He sits in glory at the right hand of God on high to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25).
Now Packer’s book is simply one of the best books on the study of God that one can read. Yet it got me thinking what books could I recommend on the study of God from an Arminian perspective. So here are a few titles I suggest for an Arminian study of God.
1. What The Bible Says About God Trilogy by Dr. Jack Cottrell
Dr. Cottrell’s series has three titles to it. The first is What the Bible Says About God the Creator, followed by What The Bible Says About God The Ruler, and finally What The Bible Says About God the Redeemer. I have read only the second title mentioned and loved it!
The books are obvious studies of God beginning with God’s work in creation. The second book focuses on the sovereignty of God and His rule over His creation. In this Dr. Cottrell presents an Arminian view of God’s sovereignty and His providence as well as covering doctrines such as election and predestination. Finally, the last title focuses on the gospel of God (Romans 1:1) and Dr. Cottrell shows us how the gospel is not about man but about God Himself! While God begins in the garden of Eden preparing the way for His Son and His salvation (Genesis 3:15), the gospel is not about humanity as much as its about the glory of God.
Along the way, you will lean much about God and His Word. I loved reading What The Bible Says About God the Ruler simply for the fact that Cottrell focuses on the Bible as the main text. While he might quote a few theologians here and there, he mainly presents a biblical view of God and seeks to stay within the framework of the Scriptures since they were given to us by God to reveal His glory to us (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:21).
2. The Attributes of God by A.W. Tozer, Volume 1 & 2.
These, like Cottrell above, are two books. Dr. Tozer (who never even went to Bible college and had an honorary doctorate) is one of my favorite authors. Like Cottrell, Tozer seeks to expound on the glorious teachings about God by staying within the Scriptures. In fact, you will hardly get any quotes from any other authors at all in any of Tozer’s books. Tozer was a man after God’s own heart and he had a passion for the Word of God and this shows in his books.
I read both of these titles in college but recently picked up the second volume of these books and read it through. Tozer’s writing style is one of conviction and yet compassion. On one page you will study, for instance, God’s grace, and even there be convicted by Tozer but then turn around and read about God’s wrath and find comfort from Tozer. Few writers can do this like Tozer could.
The books focus on the attributes of God from His omniscience to His justice and everything in between. These books are great devotional reading!
I would also recommend Tozer’s book The Knowledge of the Holy which is even quoted by Calvinists!
3. The Living God by Thomas Oden.
This is the first volume in Dr. Oden’s Systematic Theology. This is not easy reading and while I would not say that Oden writes with a 100% Arminian perspective, I would say that he is much closer to Arminianism than he is to Calvinism. In the preface Oden states that his purpose is to have an ecumenical consensus. Oden thus draws from Arminian, Calvinist, Eastern Orthodox, and even Catholic perspectives.
The books are deep! These are not easy reading. I bought the books thinking I would be able to just read through them but I was wrong. This book takes time to read through and study. I found the books to be refreshing. Oden will cite the Scriptures but he will cite hundreds of authors from various backgrounds to back up his points. Overall, his view of God is orthodox based and few evangelicals will have a problem with Oden’s work.
The drawbacks to this book are twofold. First, Oden holds to the authority of Scripture but not to inerrancy. I am not sure how you can derive a view of authority from a view that does not hold to inerrancy. Oden, being Methodist, has been influenced by liberal Methodist theologians who reject inerrancy. This is the reason for the quoting of various theologians from all different backgrounds. Simply put, the Bible is not enough it seems. While I actually enjoyed reading the quotes from even Catholic backgrounds on the doctrine of God, I would rather hear from the Bible than from any theologian on the issues. Second, Oden’s book is aimed at college trained theologians. This book is not easy reading as I stated earlier. You can’t just pick up this book and read it for fun. While I do think there is a place for deeper studies of God, I find that I enjoy it when a theologian is able to take the biblical teaching about God and make it plain to even the youngest disciple.
The one place, however, in Oden’s book that is worth you reading is his study of the character of God and God’s providence. Arminians will find Oden is Arminian in his view of God’s sovereignty and Oden does cover such subjects as election, predestination, sovereignty, and even open theism. Oden presents strong arguments for God creating humans with limited free will and he presents arguments for prevenient grace in regard to election, depravity, and salvation.
[Link to original post and comments at Roy Ingle’s website.]
