(Part 1)

JBTM Book Reviews
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Chapter 7 is Pinson’s argument that “it is consistent for one to be orthodox, confessional,
Baptist, and Arminian” (154). He concludes with a statement on the importance of Arminian
Baptists to apprehend their past, their connection with the “tradition of the Reformation,
and the Reformation’s rooting of itself in and appropriation of the consensual orthodoxy of
the creeds, councils, and fathers of the early church” (173). He warns against watering down
doctrine in order to make Christianity pleasing to the culture of the day.
The nature and structure of this book is both a strength and a weakness. Each chapter
is a coherent whole that can stand on its own. This characteristic is inherent in the fact that
each chapter was originally a journal article. However, the book as a whole can be seen as
somewhat disjointed. If the author had set out to write on main subject matter of the book,
one would expect to see a unified flow from beginning to end. At the end, however, Pinson
does an admirable job of providing a unified framework for his previously published articles.
Pinson includes book reviews of Introduction to Classical Arminianism, by F. Leroy Forlines;
Whosoever Will: A Biblical-Theological Critique of Five-Point Calvinism, edited by David L. Allen
and Steve W. Lemke; and Arminian Theology: Myths and Realities, by Roger E. Olson. Also
included are subject, name, and Scripture indices. One item that would have enhanced the
book would be a bibliography of all the works cited in the various essays.
This book is highly recommended to those who desire to grow in their understanding of
the underpinnings and support for a position as a Baptist that lies between Calvinism and
classical Arminianism. This book is not an apologetic for Arminianism, but a study in the
history that led to the doctrines formulated and promulgated by the General Baptists that led
to today’s evangelical Baptists. This work is not an extensive development of Arminianism
in all its flavors and branches, but is a good introduction to the history of the branch that
has come to be known as Reformed Arminianism. This book is recommended for the layman
who desires to know more about Reformed Arminianism. Also, Pinson’s study will benefit
the scholar who is beginning to study some of the major figures that led to its development
and the relevant doctrinal issues.
- Robert Littlefield, New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, New Orleans, Louisiana
Baptist Foundations: Church Government for an Anti-Institutional Age. Edited by Mark
Dever and Jonathan Leeman. Nashville: B&H Academic, 2015. 432 pages. Hardcover,
$44.99.
Mark Dever serves as senior pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D. C.,
and as president of 9Marks Ministries. He received a PhD from the University of Cambridge
and has authored a number of works on ecclesiology, including Nine Marks of a Healthy