Jonathan Edwards stands tall in America's historical memory. A great philosopher, a great preacher, a great theologian. Edwards was a complex and gifted person, one who defies easy characterization. He intimidates us, and we distance ourselves from him because at the most fundamental level, he's just not like us.It is of course true that Jonathan Edwards was a combination of many rare things: an exceptional intellectual, a masterly preacher, a cavernous theologian, a devoted husband and father, a college president, and much more. But all of these roles flowed out of one simple and essential reality: Jonathan Edwards was a Christian. He was a believer who followed Jesus Christ in repentant faith. He loved God, and he sought to live for Him.This book celebrates the unique life and ministry of Jonathan Edwards. It peels back the cover of his life, to show us what a life devoted to our sovereign Lord can look like. It causes us to use our own God-given gifts for the salvation of sinners, the strengthening of God's church, and the glory of God. You do not need to be a scholar to enjoy and benefit from the story and rich lessons about Edwards' life.
Jonathan Edwards Lover of God
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"When it comes to Jonathan Edwards's writing, where does an average reader (like me!) begin? Right here with The Essential Edwards Collection. Strachan and Sweeney provide a doorway into the life and teaching of one of church's wisest theologians. The authors have included notes of personal application to help us apply the life and teaching of Edwards to our own lives. I've read no better introduction to Jonathan Edwards." - C.J. Mahaney, President, Sovereign Grace Ministries
"A great resource! Edwards continues to speak, and this series of books is an excellent means to hear Jonathan Edwards again live and clear. Pure gold; be wise and invest in it!" - Josh Moody, Senior Pastor, College Church, Wheaton, Illinois
"These primers on Jonathan Edward's life and thought - his passion for God - provide an excellent glimpse into a life lived unto God. And they help the rest of us slake our thirst for the majesty of our Savior. We owe a great debt to Owen Strachan and Douglas Sweeney for making Edwards and his vision of God so accessible to the rest of us thirsty pilgrims." - Thabiti Anyabwile, Pastor of First Baptist Church of Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands
"Everyone says Jonathan Edwards is important. Quite frankly, however, his writing style is pretty dense by contemporary standards, so few pastors and other Christian leaders have invested much time reading him. This new series tackles the problem. Here is the kernel of much of Edwards's thought in eminently accessible form." - D.A. Carson, Research Professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School
"In The Essential Edwards Collection, Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney point with knowledge and excitement to clear and searching sections that illuminate God's truth and search our hearts. In this collection, Edwards is introduced to a new generation of readers. His concerns are made our concerns. This is a worthy effort and I pray that God will bless it." - Mark Dever, Senior Pastor, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, DC.
"This series is a fantastic introduction to the heart, mind, and ministry of the greatest theologian America has ever produced." - Mark Driscoll, Pastor of Mars Hill Church, President of the Acts 29 Church Planting Network.
"Let Strachan and Sweeney serve as your guides through the voluminous writings of America's greatest theologian. They have been shaped by his godly counsel and moved by his passion for Christ. By God's grace, Edwards can do the same for you. Start your journey with The Essential Edwards Collection. - Collin Hansen, Author of Young, Restless, Reformed
"Owen Strachan and Douglas Sweeney have done us all a great service by remixing and reloading the teaching of Jonathan Edwards for a new generation. They do more than introduce us to his writing: they show us how his biblical teaching relates to a modern world and leave us hungry for more. I am very impressed and very grateful for The Essential Edwards Collection." - Joshua Harris, Senior Pastor of Covenant Life Church
"Why hasn't this been done before? The Essential Edwards Collection is now essential reading for the serious-minded Christian. Doug Sweeney and Owen Strachan have written five excellent and accessible introductions to America's towering theological genius - Jonathan Edwards. They combine serious scholarship with the ability to make Edwards and his theology come alive for a new generation. The Essential Edwards Collection is a great achievement and a tremendous resource. I can't think of a better way to gain a foundational knowledge of Edwards and his lasting significance." - R. Albert Mohler Jr., President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
"You hold in your hands a unique resource: a window into the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards, a man whose life was captured by God for the gospel of Jesus Christ. In these pages you'll not only learn about Edwards, but you'll be able to hear him speak in his own words. This winsome and accessible introduction is now the first thing I'd recommend for those who want to know more about America's greatest pastor-theologian. - Justin Taylor, Managing Editor, ESV Study Bible.
"I am deeply impressed with the vision that has brought together this splendid library of volumes to introduce Jonathan Edwards to a new generation. Owen Strachan and Douglas Sweeney have provided an incredible service by making the often challenging writings of America's greatest theologian accessible for seasoned theologians, pastors, and students alike with their five-volume Essential Edwards Collection. This series is properly titled the "essential collection." - David S. Dockery, President, Union University
"Jonathan Edwards was a preacher of the Word, a pastor of souls, a philosopher of first rank, and the greatest theologian America has ever produced. In this wonderful new anthology of Edwards's writings, the great Puritan saint lives again. I can think of no better tonic for our transcendence-starved age than the writings of Edwards. But beware: reading this stuff can change your life forever!" - Timothy George, Founding Dean of Besson Divinity School of Samford University
"From a course he taught at Yale and in personal friendship, Doug Sweeney has tought me much about Edwards. Possessing a command of the academic field, he and Owen Strachan nevertheless write this collection with pastoral concern, showing the relevance of Edwards for our Christian faith and practice today. It's a rare combination of gifts and insights that Sweeney and Strachan bring to this task." - Michael Horton, J. Gresham Machen Professor of Systematic Theology and Apologetics, Westminister Theological Seminary California
"Jonathan Edwards is surely one of the most influential theologians of the eighteenth century. Now, at last, we have a wide-ranging and respresntative sample of his work published in an attractive, accessible and, most important of all, readable form. The authors are to be commended for the work they have put into this set and I hope it will become an important feature of the library of many pastors and students of the Christian faith." - Carl R. Trueman, Academic Dean, Westminster Theological Seminary
About the Author
OWEN STRACHAN is the Managing Director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and a Ph.D. student in Historical Theology at TEDS. He has served as a teaching assistant and has worked for the White House and the presidents of Bowdoin College and Southern Seminary. Having worked at Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Strachan is preparing to serve as an urban pastor-theologian. He lives on Chicago’s North Shore with his wife, Bethany, and their daughter. Strachan enjoys interacting with theology and culture on his blog, www.owenstrachan.com.
DOUG SWEENEY is professor of Church History and the History of Christian Thought and director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He formerly served as a lecturer at Yale University, as an adjunct professor as Aquinas College, and as a visiting professor at both Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary. Sweeney is the author of a number of books and articles about religious history and the American theologian, Jonathan Edwards. He resides with his wife, Wilma, and their son in Lindenhurst, Illinois.
DOUG SWEENEY is professor of Church History and the History of Christian Thought and director of the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He formerly served as a lecturer at Yale University, as an adjunct professor as Aquinas College, and as a visiting professor at both Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary. Sweeney is the author of a number of books and articles about religious history and the American theologian, Jonathan Edwards. He resides with his wife, Wilma, and their son in Lindenhurst, Illinois.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great summary of Edwards' life. The application sections weren't as useful.,
This review is from: Jonathan Edwards Lover of God (The Essential Edwards Collection) (Paperback)
This 5-volume collection by O. Strachen and D. Sweeney serves as a helpful introduction to Jonathan Edwards' life and thought.
The first volume, Lover of God, is a nice summary of the life of "the greatest preacher America has ever known" (120). Lover of God introduces you to Jonathan, fifth born son of Rev. Timothy and Esther Edwards and grandson to the legendary Rev. Solomon Stoddard. The reader moves from Jonathan's happy beginning in East Windsor, Connecticut, to his conversion at Yale through the ups and downs of the First Great Awakening to his untimely ejection as pastor of his grandfather's Congregationalist Church in Northampton at the age of 46. Through this story the reader is introduced to important historical figures such as Esther Edwards (one of Jonathan's daughters, wife of Aaron Burr Sr., President of Princeton, and mother of Aaron Burr Jr., US Vice President) and the Rev. David Brainerd (missionary to the Stockbridge Indians of MA). The sections of Jonathan's pastoral and family leadership are especially helpful as well as the short section on his relationship to the young evangelist Rev. George Whitefield. The authors add a section on "Applying Edwards" at the end of every chapter. These sections feel a bit elementary and "preachy" and are not as useful. This is a great introduction to Edwards' life. But if you are already familiar with this important figure, this is not likely the book for you.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lover of God, Thankful to Strachan and Sweeny.,
By Bobby Harnist (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Jonathan Edwards Lover of God (The Essential Edwards Collection) (Paperback)
Strachan and Sweeney's aim in "Lover of God" is to make Edwards more accessible so that the reader will "experience the joy of deepened theology and enlivened spirituality" (p. 21). They do not wish to supplant Edwards's original work but rather point us to them in order that "even a little effort in reading his original writings will yield a bountiful spiritual payoff" (p. 21). I have found "Lover of God" to do just those two things. By having a greater understanding of the greatest American Theologian/Pastor it has piqued my interest in his original works. In "Lover of God" Edwards is not written about as if he was free from sin or fault, but it is an honest attempt to display a man who struggled with sin, but also relied on Christ. Another aspect of "Lover of God" that I enjoyed was the "applying Edwards's life and ideas" sections at the end of each chapter. They helped me to think critically about Edwards and how I could learn from him. I am thankful that Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeney took the time to create this work and I highly recommend this to anyone interested in Jonathan Edwards, especially those who are intimidated by this great man.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review on Essential Edwards on True Christianity,
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This review is from: Jonathan Edwards Lover of God (The Essential Edwards Collection) (Paperback)
Book Review
By Jason Scott The Essential Edwards Collection: Jonathan Edwards Lover of God By Owen Strachan and Doug Sweeny This is one volume in a five-volume set. These volumes are not numbered in any particular order, but this would be probably the best one to start with. The reason for this is that this is more biographical than the others. This book begins with the birth and early life of Edwards, including his educational background. Edwards formal education ended with him giving the valedictorian address at Yale, in Latin! "Jonathan's master's work placed him squarely in the camp of orthodox Protestantism. Some in his day challenged the idea that a sinner had to be saved by divine grace, asserting that people, in effect, completed their salvation by good works." Pg 46 The main thrust of this book, is that Jonathan Edwards truly and deeply loved his God. This is evident in the life he lived. The glory of God was his concern as he led his family, both as a husband and father, shepherd his flock, and mentored young men to become faithful servants for Christ. Edwards had his share of trials as well. He was not a very healthy man, often working himself so hard to the point of being bed ridden for long periods of time. Edwards also felt the deep pain of death, as his spiritual son( David Brainerd) and later daughter( Jerusha) succumbed to a young death. Edwards also had to face the humiliation of being a prominent pastor that was fired from his church after several years of faithful service. "The fact that America's greatest theologian was fired from his church is a source of historical shame. Edwards did not always make the right decision, and he was not free from sin, but his firing was a travesty." Pg 128 After this firing Edwards spent some years as a missionary to Native Americans. It was during this time that he was able to write many of his important works. In 1757, Edwards received a surprising call from the board of trustees at Princeton University; they wanted him to become the next president. Edwards accepted this call, but a month after his instillation, he died of small pox. Edwards life is one that is worth studying and this book helps in that study. "We who love and worship Jesus Christ will find Him just as satisfying in our modern era as Edwards did in his own day. May we learn from his example, glean his wisdom, and above all, devote ourselves to pursuing our great God on a daily basis just as Jonathan Edwards, lover of God, did so many years ago. Pg 150.
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