Why God Created the World: A Jonathan Edwards Adaptation - Softcover

Stevens, Ben

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1612915868 ISBN 13: 9781612915869

Publisher: NavPress, 2014

Synopsis

"For most of my life, I never thought to ask myself why God created the world. I had asked myself the question, 'why did God create me specifically,' which seemed like a more practical thing to wonder. But the answers I found to that question always struck me as shallow. I think that's because it's impossible to understand what part we play in a story if we have never grasped what the story is about in the first place."

"As far as I know, there has only ever been one book written on this subject by a Christian. It was a monumental treatise by the former president of Princeton University, the 18th century theologian Jonathan Edwards, called A Dissertation Concerning the End for Which the World Was Created (1765). Edwards gives a great answer to the question, but his tone and grammatical acrobatics make the original text nearly impossible to read."

Now Ben Stevens' remarkable new adaptation of the book brings Edwards' powerful arguments to life in fresh, contemporary language. In addition, thought-provoking questions at the end of each chapter invite readers to engage with the concepts and begin to apply them.

About this title

Review

"Ben Stevens is to be thanked for this herculean effort. This is arguably Edwards's most influential text among contemporary Christians, yet few have the patience and ability to wade through the original." —Dr. Douglas A. Sweeney, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, co-author of The Essential Edwards Collection

"It's not every day that a book about the meaning of everything is written. It's also not every day that you find an understandable and downright fun guide to such a momentous text. Why God Created the World by Ben Stevens is just such a book. It's brainy but eminently accessible, and I know it will help many hungry Christians to dig into the meat of Edwards's original text, which is quite simply one of the most important books ever written." 

—Dr. Owen Strachan, Assistant professor of Christian theology and church history, Boyce College, co-author of The Essential Edwards Collection

"The moment 'why' passes our lips, we are doing theology. With the mind of a scholar and the heart of a pastor, Ben Stevens directs the voice of Jonathan Edwards to this allimportant question. Substantive and clear, this book provides concepts with which to articulate an intelligent answer." 

—Chris Castaldo, Director of the Ministry of Gospel Renewal, Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College; author of Holy Ground: Walking with Jesus as a Former Catholic

Edition details

• Publisher: NavPress
• Publication date: 2014
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1612915868
• ISBN 13: 9781612915869
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 160