Deus Misereatur

  Back in 2012 – gasp! So long ago! Carl Trueman wrote “The Creedal Imperative” which has now been updated and repackaged in this 216-page hardback, “Crisis of Confidence: Reclaiming the Historic Faith in a Culture Consumed with Individualism and Identity.” In classic Trueman-Esque fashion, it can be a bit wordy, but these are not words to fill up pages and columns for higher sales value. It takes ink and space to bring out clear and clarifying thoughts and rationale. For a book thoughtfully arguing that “creeds and confessions are consistent with biblical teaching,” that their existence and use are “strongly implied” in Scripture, and that the church’s long history “demonstrates that they have frequently been of great help in the maintenance and propagation of the Christian faith” (pg. 143), it takes some time, space and verbiage. Trueman hits the target repeatedly, making this a respectable manuscript for those who care about creeds, confessions, the Church, their congregations, ...

  Blessed are you, O Sovereign Lord, God of our ancestors: to you be praise and glory forever. You called the patriarchs and matriarchs to live by faith and to journey in the hope that you are the God of your word. May we, similarly, be obedient to your call, be ready and watchful to receive your Son and live forward in hope-filled trust and joy. Thank you that in the fullness of time you sent your Son, born of a woman, born under the law, born into a low condition, who underwent the miseries of this life. Therefore, we implore you to look in on those who find this time of year a grief and hardship due to painful memories, sorrowful losses, adversarial family relations, broken promises, and impending privations (…). May the Gospel-hope ricocheting and resounding in the Christmas carols, lift their hearts and faces to look up to you and rejoice in Spirit-birthed confidence. As your Son was born in a time of great conflict, of oppression, of “might-makes-right,” of faith and religion...