Author: DONALD JOHN MACLEAN
Publisher: Christian Focus Publications
ISBN: 978-1-52710-649-9
In many ways this excellent small volume could be summarised by the injunction given in 2 Timothy 4:5: ‘Do the work of an evangelist.’ Ministers, elders, and all church members are to be better equipped to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to a lost and dying world, and this book aims to contribute to that noble purpose.
The author lays a basic theological foundation in the first two chapters, and then the real action and excitement enters in the third, called ‘What is the Gospel Offer?’ My favourite section is a sub-heading called ‘The Gospel as an Invitation’. Here MacLean presents this magnificent picture of a royal wedding invitation from our Lord Jesus Christ, which is to be extended to all. The author draws us into the drama of Christ’s words in Matthew 22:1-14 and his glorious gospel call in Matthew 11:28: ‘Come to me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest’ (NKJV).
Chapters 4–5 centre on ‘Who Gives and Receives the Gospel Offer?’ and ‘Encouragement to Accept the Offer’. The pages are filled with rich details and citations by many able Reformed theologians. The material is competently laid out with further chapters to answer objections to what has been historically labelled hyper-Calvinism.
Beyond this though, any reader will be sharpened and equipped. Above all they will be refreshed in the thrill of the gospel – a message of good news that is to be delivered in its fullness and freeness. This book will require a second or third reading to glean all of its message, and to that I look forward eagerly.
Kevin Bidwell
