Customer Reviews

A History of the Work of Redemption (The Works of Jonathan Edwards Series, Volume 9) (v. 9)

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It is hard to give anything lower than 5 stars to our great theologian, Jonathan Edwards. A quick read of this book takes me a few months to complete. However, the time is definietly well spent. Edwards powerfully showed how the work of redemption was carried on through the time from the fall to the end of the world. It is truly amazing how edwards cover the redemptive history with a strong link on the destruction of Jerusalem, the time of constantine, reformation, the rise of anti-christ, etc. You must not miss this book if you want to have a good perspective of biblical history. Don't settle for anything less.

In 1739 Jonathan Edwards preached a series of thirty sermons in his church at Northampton, Massachusetts-sermons based on one scriptural passage, Isaiah 51:8. Apparently he later intended to develop this discourse into a major treatise construing God's redemption of the world as the most basic doctrine of theology. Unfortunately, he died before he could undertake this project. The sermon series, however, was later transcribed and then published in Edinburgh in 1774. There were numerous editions in Britain and the United States, and it was enormously influential in popular evangelical circles of the nineteenth century. This edition presents a modern, authoritative text that firmly established the place of Work of Redemption in the literary and historical tradition of puritan New England

History of Christianity - No Saving Grace, No Social Grace (Dr. Ram Munjal, Georgia, USA)

I first came across a series of sermons given by Jonathan Edwards of New England on the "History of the Work of Redemption" when I had purchased in 1990 his two volume work published by Banner of Truth. Since that time I have read this sermon several times. Jonathan Edwards was indeed filled with the Holy Spirit of Messiah and obviously had tremendous grasp of the Holy Scriptures and was soaked in Scriptures. He divided the work of Redemption that God carried on from the fall of Adam and Eve to the end of the world into three periods.

Period I - from the fall of man to the incarnation of the Messiah,
Period II - from Messiah's incarnation to His resurrection, and
Period III - from Messiah's resurrection to the end of the world.

His knowledge of the Holy Scriptures shines forth in his covering of the first two periods. Indeed it is Masterly, Magisterial and Superb. Period III beginning with Messiah's resurrection to the end of the word he works out in ten parts.
Part I. The success of redemption from the resurrection of the Messiah
to the destruction of Jerusalem
Part II The success of redemption from the destruction of Jerusalem
to the time of Constantine
Part III The success of Redemption from the time of Constantine to the
rise of Anti-Christ
Part IV The success of redemption from the time of Anti-Christ to the
Reformation
Part V The success of Redemption from the reformation to the Present
time
Part VI Improvement of Past Events
Part VII Improvement of redemption from present time to the fall of
Anti-Christ
Part VIII The success of Redemption through that Space wherein the
Christian Church shall for the most part be in a state of
peace and prosperity
Part IX General Judgment
Part X Improvement of the whole

Part I and Part II are also authoritative. Up until now I will give his sermons ten stars.

However I strongly feel that part III to part X of period III should be read critically keeping in mind Apostle Paul's warning that he gave in his first epistles to the Thessalonians: "Prove all things, Uphold that which is good", 1 Thessalonians 5;21.
Jonathan Edwards looses me from Part III onwards when he says that:

"following Constantine's coming to throne... the Christian Church was brought into a state of great peace and prosperity. Now all heathen magistrates were put down, and only Christians were advanced to places of authority over the empire. They had now Christian presidents, Christian governors, Christian judges and officers, instead of their old heathenish ones".

Lord Eshoo Messiah (Aramaic name of Lord Jesus Christ) said in the Gospel of John:

"My kingdom is not of this world; if my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have fought so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but my kingdom is not from here", John 18;36. "

This earth will become the kingdom of our LORD Eshoo Messiah only after he would have put down all His enemies under His feet. His enemies are Satan that serpent of old, and Satan's three allies identified in the book of Revelation as:
1. Ruling powers (Beast out of the sea),
2. False prophets and Anti-Christ (Beast out of the earth) and
3. The world of godless man and women (Babylon the great).

" Then will come the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power, for he must reign till he has put all enemies under his feet.", 1 Corinthians 15:24-25.

Only Then
"The earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the water covers the sea. (Habakkuk 2:14).

Only Then
"Shall I be able to sing the Song of the Lamb of God":

"Great and marvelous are Thy works, LORD GOD Almighty; just and true are Thy ways, O King of ages, who shall not revere Thee, O LORD, and glorify Thy name? For Thou only are holy. All nations shall come and worship before Thee, for Thy righteous acts have been revealed. Revelation 15:3-4"

In the light of above verses I would have to say that Jonathan Edwards talking about the Church enjoying peace and prosperity was premature.
Let me elaborate. Rather let me improve upon the work of redemption as carried on by "Church folks" to date.
History of Christianity is written in mankind's blood punctuated by violence. We must why? I ask myself, what Reformation? What Great Awakening? What Enlightenment? What Renaissance? The TV documentaries, "Holocaust" and "Roots" speak volumes about reformation, great awakening, enlightenment, and renaissance.
We are witnessing the bloodiest 20th century known to mankind. In addition I am reminded of: The crusades carried out in the name of Eshoo Messiah in middle ages burning Jewish villages on the way and drafting children who were either killed or enslaved, Catholics and Protestants killing each other, 30 years war, Crimean war, Bartholomew day massacre, World War I and II, Nagasaki and Hiroshima, Vietnam war, and now Iraq war. Eshoo had left us with 70 nations today because of wars we now have 193 nations.
Add to all this is the ungodly behavior of the Roman Catholic Priests(2 Peter 2:2) who have been molesting children thus trashing the Gospel of Lord Eshoo Messiah. Add to this the recent resigning of the Presidents of the National Association of Evangelicals who called himself a "liar" and a "deceiver" and has brought Lord Eshoo Messiah's name in disrepute( 2 Peter 2:2, Jude 18,19).

Let me end this review of the work of redemption to date with the following exhortation from the Psalms 69:6:

Let not them that trust in Thee be ashamed through me, O Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek Thee be dishonored through me, O God of Israel. Amen
Dr. Ram Munjal, Israel of God (Galatians 6:16)