A Gospel Primer for Christians: Learning to See the Glories of God's Love (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 97 pages
• Publisher: Focus Publishing (MN) (February 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1885904673
• ISBN-13: 978-1885904676
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #19,030 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Besides the Bible, I've given away more copies of this book than any other., November 6, 2008

By	William Petruzzo (Annapolis, MD) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

A Gospel Primer for Christians by Milton Vincent is not one of those books you pick up, nod to yourself, lightly discuss with friends, then put back on your shelf. A Gospel Primer is a great deal more useful than that.

This little, under-100-page, book is a bible-complimenting tool for the mind and heart that, in the hands of the faithful, stands to cause the powers of darkness and the sinful flesh alike tremble! Truthfully, I cannot extol the usefulness and quality of this book enough.

A Gospel Primer has one basic purpose: help Christians to clearly, confidently and consistently "rehearse" the Gospel to themselves. What does it mean to "rehearse", well, in short, it means to stir yourself up, by way of reminder. Remind yourself of the Gospel. The whole Gospel. And just as is characteristic of the Gospel, allow the truth of that Gospel to change us as we dwell and meditate on it.

The book is broken up into four sections. The first one being the longest. It is the full explanation of the Gospel and the reasons why it's so important to rehearse it regularly. The second and third sections are where we meet the real toolbox of this work. The second and third sections are the actual articulations of the Gospel, the Gospel "Narrative", written in first person. For example:

"My God is immense beyond imagination. He measured the entire universe with merely the span of His hand. He is unimaginably awesome in all of His perfections, absolutely righteous, holy and just in all His ways. He has also been unbelievably good and merciful to me as the Creator and Sustainer of my life."

The Narrative section is broken down into four parts. Each part representing a different a major piece of the Gospel. The first about God. Who God is, his profound attributes. The second about my sin and my profound failure before a holy God. The third about the heroic work of Christ Jesus on the Cross. And finally, the life I now live to the glory of God because of the all sufficient work of Christ.

The third section of the book is a repeat of the Gospel narrative, but in the form of poetry, and a beautiful poem it is.

The final section of the book is extremely brief and is used to describe how Mr. Vincent came upon writing this book. In it he shares his testimony as well as his deep conviction to love and live the Gospel of Jesus. Less important to the whole of the text, but worth reading for the sake of encouragement.

The best thing about this book, is it's extremely heavy use of scripture references. Every page of text is only half way down the page, because the bottom half of the page is used for scripture citations. Not only reference numbers but the entire quotation. This is not only helpful for confidence in knowing the Word of God, but also for the sake of meditation.

Over the past few weeks reading and using this book, I've found deep comforts in rehearsing the Gospel. I often read the narrative aloud to myself and as a specific truth shines before me, I stop and meditate on the scripture reference. The more I am using the tool, I am finding it easier to move away from the tool and rehearse the Gospel on my own, unaided.

At this point, A Gospel Primer is a book that I think every Christian should own and read and heed. Pick it up on Amazon.com, it's only $5 used.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Weary Mom's This Is For You!, June 22, 2008

By	Free in Jesus (MoVal, CA) - See all my reviews

Are you a mom with little kids and not enough sleep? If so this is the book for you. I was tired and my traditional study methods were just not working. I tried hiding but no matter where I hid the kids always seemed to find me! This material was one piece God used to encourage me to stay the course in this "season of life" that seemed to bring out the worst in me. Praise God for His Son and the beautiful cross.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Joy to Read and Consider, March 1, 2008

By	M. Scott Bashoor "Godspeed" (Orange County, CA) - See all my reviews

I absolutely love this little book. It was just released from Focus Publishing, and hopefully it will be available on Amazon soon. I've used beta-editions of it in Men's Bible studies, one-on-one discipleship, and for my own personal encouragement. I find Milton's insights refreshing, challenging, and thoroughly biblical. The gospel isn't just for unbelievers. It's good news for Christians everyday. Read it, savor it, live it.