Andy Naselli

Thoughts on Theology

Systematic Theology

40 Questions about Church Membership and Church Discipline

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This book releases this week:

Jeremy M. Kimble. 40 Questions about Church Membership and Church Discipline. 40 Questions. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2017.

My endorsement:

This handbook concisely explains the why and how of church membership and church discipline. Jeremy Kimble, who serves as a pastor and who wrote his PhD dissertation on church discipline, is a faithful guide.

I read this book twice—first last summer as a prepublication draft and then last month as the final version. I mostly agree with how Jeremy answers the 40 questions, and on a few minor issues where I might differ a bit (e.g., age of baptism), I appreciate his calm, generous tone.

The book’s most impressive endorsement comes from Jonathan Leeman, editorial director of 9Marks and an expert on ecclesiology:

Every pastor needs this resource, which is sound exegetically, theologically, and pastorally. The 40-question format makes it so readable and easy to use. I’ve written a few things on church membership and discipline, yet still found myself learning throughout. An excellent work.

Andy and Jason Drive It Home

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Here’s a 4-minute video with my brother Jason DeRouchie:

Some background:

Jason and I recently wrote companion volumes on how to understand and apply the Old and New Testaments.

We asked Rick Segal if he would be willing to help us spread the news with a short video. Rick is Vice President of Advancement for Bethlehem College & Seminary, and prior to coming to our school he was president and CPO of a successful global marketing and advertising agency. He used to have about $250,000 to work with when preparing a promotional video, and he got creative with ours with only about $100.

Jason and I commute together, and Rick recorded one of our commutes and titled the video “Andy and Jason Drive It Home.” Our assignment was to get 90 seconds of unscripted footage on our 25-minute drive home.

I confirmed that show business is not my calling.

It felt awkward to record, but it gives viewers a little taste of our camaraderie.

Here’s what I say about Jason in the acknowledgements of my book:

It’s a joy to serve shoulder to shoulder with Jason DeRouchie at Bethlehem College & Seminary. He embodies Ezra 7:10. I can’t think of another Old Testament seminary professor I’d rather team up with. We spend about three hours together each week while commuting, and the better I get to know him, the more I thank God for him. I especially love coteaching a fourth-year graduate course with him on biblical theology. Jason is both an Old Testament scholar and a biblical theologian. He helps me see Jesus more clearly in the Old Testament. It was an honor to collaborate with Jason as I prepared this book and he prepared the companion volume How to Understand and Apply the Old Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology.

Update: I refer to “normal people” in the video, and some friends teased me on Facebook by referring to themselves as normal people. I don’t mind the teasing, but I should clarify something: I didn’t mean to be condescending in any way by using the phrase “normal people.” It’s shorthand for non-specialists—that is, lay people as opposed to academics and scholars. I’m a normal guy for the vast number of domains of knowledge—like European history or economics or criminal law or automobile mechanics or whatever. I’m grateful when specialists communicate in a way that non-specialists can understand. (I write a little more about my philosophy of publishing here and here.)

How to Understand and Apply the New Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology

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Here’s my attempt to explain how to interpret and apply the Bible:

Andrew David Naselli. How to Understand and Apply the New Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2017. xxx + 384 pages.

Contents

The book’s structure is simple. It begins by introducing exegesis and theology, which I break down into twelve steps. Those twelve steps are the book’s twelve chapters. [Read more…] about How to Understand and Apply the New Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology

The Collected Works of John Piper

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This new set releases on March 31:

John Piper. The Collected Works of John Piper. Edited by David Mathis and Justin Taylor. 13 vols. + one volume of indexes. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017. 8,464 pages. Available from Amazon  and Westminster Bookstore .

Both Justin Taylor and David Mathis have spent years serving as John Piper’s assistant, and they know Piper and his publications unusually well. Justin wrote his fascinating PhD dissertation on Piper, and David is the executive editor for Desiring God.

The editors explain in the introduction to volume 1, [Read more…] about The Collected Works of John Piper

John MacArthur’s 1,000-Page Systematic Theology

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This book officially releases on January 31:

John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue, eds. Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017.

My endorsement:

In addition to presenting orthodox theology common to historic Protestants, MacArthur and Mayhue defend an unusual combination of views that evangelicals debate, such as young-earth creationism, Calvinist soteriology, credobaptism, elder-rule polity, complementarianism, cessationism, and traditional dispensationalism (or what they call futuristic premillennialism). They argue in a clear and orderly way that is worth engaging even if you disagree.

God the Son Incarnate: The Doctrine of Christ

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wellum“If you only have time for one Christology,” says Jonathan Leeman, “start here. I commend it without reservation.”

Stephen J. Wellum. God the Son Incarnate: The Doctrine of Christ. Foundations of Evangelical Theology. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2016.

Here’s what Don Carson says about it: [Read more…] about God the Son Incarnate: The Doctrine of Christ

“Free Grace” Theology: 5 Ways It Diminishes the Gospel

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freeThis book recently released:

Wayne Grudem. “Free Grace” Theology: 5 Ways It Diminishes the Gospel. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2016. 159 pp.

This 42-page PDF excerpt includes the endorsements (by Darrell Bock, Ligon Duncan, Kent Hughes, John MacArthur, J. I. Packer, Tom Schreiner, Sam Storms, Dan Wallace, and Bruce Ware), a detailed outline of the book, the introduction, and chapter 1.

When I was in college, the church and school I was a part of embraced both Keswick theology and aspects of “free grace” theology. It led me to write a dissertation-turned-book on Keswick theology, which touches on the so-called “Lordship salvation” debate and its ramifications for false assurance. So I read Grudem’s latest book with great interest. His theology is sound, and his tone is just right.

Update on 8/23/2017: My latest book attempts to survey and analyze “let go and let God” theology:

No Quick Fix

Are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper Only for Churches?

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baptismThat’s question 4 in this book:

John S. Hammett. 40 Questions about Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. 40 Questions. Grand Rapids: Kregel, 2015.

(I love the 40 Questions series. It’s clear, concise, and thoughtful.)

So it is proper to baptize a child in, say, a bathtub in a family’s private home? Or to observe the Lord’s Supper when hanging out with a few Christian friends at the beach? Or for a Christian school to practice baptism or the Lord’s Supper in chapel? Here’s how Hammett concludes his answer to the question “Are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper Only for Churches?” (p. 44, formatting added): [Read more…] about Are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper Only for Churches?