Customer Reviews

Across the Spectrum: Understanding Issues in Evangelical Theology

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Eddy and Boyd are not so insecure in their theological foundations that they insist dogmatically that all Christians believe a particular viewpoint in every case. They (and, hopefully, we) want to know all the possible theological options and they also seem to wish us to think through biblically what we believe to be true and accurate.

In the one instance of predestination, I do not believe that they teach that God does not even know who will choose salvation and who will not. Nor do they claim that God either chooses arbitrarily some for eternal bliss and others for eternal damnation and agony. Some things are better left for God to sort out according to a wisdom that is as greater than ours as is an acorn to a limitlessly massive redwood.

Personally, I like that fact that the authors lay out the options as clearly and without bias as they can and allow us to think for once and study out what we believe as saints. A fine book.

Overall thoughts:
I use this book as a text for an introductory theology class I teach for a discipleship school. At the beginning of the class I tell my students that one of my main goals in the class is to help us all see that it is possible that the Bible may support views other than the ones we automatically assume it does. It seems that many followers of Jesus assume that the Bible "obviously" teaches the doctrines they happen to have been raised with (or introduced to when they first devoted their lives to Christ). However, the very fact that many of these debates have been raging for so long--among people who are undoubtedly sincere in their faith--must show that there is something to be said for more than one viewpoint. This book helps me to illustrate that fact--that a solid argument can be made, based on Scripture, to support a variety of doctrinal understandings.

I attend a church where people hold to many distinct theological views. We come together, however, in our love for Jesus and our faith in his death and resurrection. We are able to look at one another and say, "I completely disagree with your understanding of , but we can still be united, because we are not saved by our understanding of <said theological doctrine>." It is my goal to help my students get to a place where they can not only say that, but also say, "I understand Scripture differently from you, but I can see how you can love Jesus and believe what you believe, how you can hold to Scripture as your authority but understand it differently than I do. I can at least see where you're coming from." This book is a great help in helping them arrive at that point.

Jesus' prayer was that his followers would be united. He said the world would know we follow him based on our love for one another. This book, I believe, is a wonderful tool in helping us live out the fulfillment of his prayer... but only if we are willing to consider that Scripture might say something we are not used to, or even that we are uncomfortable with. If we are open to that possibility, then we can see in this book how people who uphold the authority of Scripture can come to different conclusions about it and still love Jesus, serve and follow him, and even help usher in his Kingdom.

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A practical note:
I find the book extremely well-written. Boyd and Eddy have a gift for expressing a great depth of information in a very concise and accessible manner. And despite the reviews claiming that it is simply propaganda for a particular viewpoint, I find each view very equally- and well-defended. If you don't know what the authors believe, I think you would be hard-pressed to guess based on the text. It really does allow readers to consider each side and come to their own conclusions.

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A closing thought:
For what it's worth, I also happen to know one of the authors personally, and anyone who feels that Christendom is somehow deteriorating because of people like these men would, I believe, be ashamed of those thoughts if they met him in person. His heart beats with a passionate love for the Lord, and his wisdom and humility are an inspiration to me.

Across the Spectrum is the book I am using for a Theology class and it has been very intense. The thing I like is it gives both pro's and con's, it is not one sided. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to dig deeper into Theology.

This is one of the most helpful books that provides explanations of some of the most common theological controversies.

Boyd is always a clear writer/thinker. This summary book of relevant evangelical debates/issues is readable, informative, vital. It was a good investment leading to thinking and rethinking issues. It is not an exhaustive treatment, but a sufficient overview.

This book is a great primer for anyone interested in the diversity of theological opinion among Christian Evangelicals. It is easy to read and the authors make clear distinctions about beliefs on many theological topics. There is a Glossary at the end of the book which is very helpful.

The book came in the condition in which it was stated and in the time it was supposed. I would purchase from this supplier again.