Review of Dr. Renihan’s new exposition of the 1689

Hey, my name's Alan Nelson.

I'm the pastor of Perryville Second Baptist Church in Central Arkansas.

What I wanted to do today is just give a quick review of James Renahan's new book, To the

Judicious Judicious, that's hard to say, An Impartial Reader, his exposition

on the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession of Faith.

First thing I want to do is is go over some of the aesthetics.

So I read the first volume on the First London Baptist Confession, and that's a smaller

book, so I expected this one to be like that too, but if you notice, it's like over 600 pages.

This baby is a tome, and I love

the outside cover, well designed, but also, man, this is

this is legit.

I love the white hardback as well.

So this really is a beautiful book, great for the shelf, but more importantly,

great for the reading.

So let me talk a little bit about the content of the book.

So as pretty as this book will look on your coffee table or shelf or

somewhere in your home, don't buy this book and just set it somewhere as a

beauty piece or whatever.

This book is well worth its weight in gold.

This is a book that I've told some people I think for the next 100 years, this thing will be

referenced and studied and read.

Dr. Renahan's argument is that the confession should not be read

just chapter 1 to chapter 32 or whatever, but that it should be read sideways, that the chapters are

dependent on one another, that they connect to one another, and it really is in many ways.

I'm a Baptist.

I'm not disparaging Presbyterian brothers here, but it really is an upgrade.

It's better than both the Savoy and the Westminster Confession of Faith.

The Baptists had those resources at their disposal and they really used those resources

well, and then they updated them in better ways, made them better, and so Dr. Renahan

does a great job of just walking through all of that in chapter by chapter.

It really is a marvelous exposition in the historical insight and the context and quote after quote after

quote.

He depends heavily on John Owen, but others obviously as well.

Obviously you're going to have Hansard Knowles and Hercules Collins and Benjamin Keech is

a big one.

It's just a really, really well historically researched.

I felt as I was reading it that I was sitting alongside these Baptist brothers.

Of course John Owen's not a Baptist, but I was sitting alongside these Baptist brothers, these Puritans

who love theology, who love sound doctrine, who love the church, and I was learning from them as well as

Dr. Renahan's exposition and explanation.

So I cannot recommend this resource highly enough.

If you're in a 1689 church, get this book.

Have your elders read it.

Encourage them to read it.

Teach your people.

If you just want to know more about what the Reformed Baptist belief is as

adhered to the 1689, grab this book.

I think it's useful for seminary classes.

I think it's useful for personal study.

I think it's useful to to teach a class at your church.

I think it's useful just to learn more about the 1689.

Now, any book besides the Bible, I'm not going to agree in 100 percent with.

This is true of this one too.

I mean there's a few places that I wrote like in the margins and just curious about maybe

Dr. Renahan's interpretation as such, but I mean it far outweighs any sort of

questions or disagreement.

The exposition and explanation far outweighs.

The benefit far outweighs any questions that may be.

I mean I would give this this thing five out of five stars.

So grab this book.

I'm tremendously grateful to Founders for putting it out and go order one or two or 15 copies

today and have folks in your church read it.

God bless.

Hope it's helpful.