The Finished Work of Christ: The Truth of Romans 1-8

Rating:
Summary: Great explanation of Romans
Review: Francis A. Schaeffer was one of the foremost philosophical thinkers of this century, a theologian that enfleshed the Christian life and taught many in the faith to use their brains, not to attack and 'debunk' truth, but to use their grey matter to think logically and spiritually, honoring Truth. The author has influenced countless millions, directly and indirectly. His philosophy and thinking was based on the scripture and maybe most of all on the Letter to the Romans from Paul the Apostle. The letter is the main document that links the Old Testament Torah to the revelation of Jesus.

Rating:
Summary: This would be a great resource for small group Bible studies
Review: I've really been enjoying the simple exposition of the Word. This commentary seems to be a good balance between light-and-fluffy and those texts that are plagued with academic fog. Schaeffer's honest and conversational approach really brings the message of Romans to an understandable level.Schaeffer, because of his systematic approach, does tend to over-simplify -- so if you are looking for an indepth word study, this is not the commentary to get. If you are looking for an introduction to Romans or want a refreshing breeze of thoughts from a modern mind, this is the book for you.

Rating:
Summary: A clear, cogent, and timely commentary on Romans 1-8.
Review: This book comes several years after Dr. Schaeffer's death in 1984 at the age of 72. It was transcribed and from tapes made of Bible studies on Romans 1-8 in the 1960s and edited. The writing is smooth and clear, despite the unorthodox route to publication. They are not scraping the bottom of the barrel for material. This is vintage Schaeffer.

Francis A. Schaeffer is most known as an evangelical apologist, evangelist, and social critic, but he was firmly rooted in Scripture and the historic (and biblical) doctrines of the Reformation: justification by faith, solo scriptura, and the priesthood of all believers. He was also experientially rooted in the life of Christ. For Schaeffer, doctrine should live in the life of the follower of Christ.

I found these studies to be refreshing and encouraging theologically and spiritually. One who is familiar with his other work will find salient Schaefferian themes throughout; but they are never superimposed on the biblical text itself.

Those who desire to understand the Christian gospel and world view should read this book. Those already committed to Christ and his cause should savor this book in order to delve deeply into the transformative truths of the gospel and how it applies to our needy world.

Douglas Groothuis