First of all – *Dr. James Montgomery Boice (He could have easily been a theologian – with degrees from Harvard and Basel – but chose to be the senior pastor at the Historic Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, PA) was a theologian/pastor extraordinaire. All his writings are worth reading for their clarity, depth of theological insight and precision, cogent exposition of the Scriptures, and exaltation of Christ. I have read everything Dr. Boice has written and I can’t recommend him highly enough. Heaven’s gain was certainly our loss (he died of cancer in 2000) – but at least we can still benefit from his many books on theology and various books of the Bible that have been left behind.
This “Systematic Theology” was originally released as four distinct books on: 1) The Sovereignty of God; 2) God the Redeemer; 3) Awakening to God; and 4) God and History. Dr. Boice was a tremendous gift to the Body of Christ. He was one of the few Biblical Expositors and Scholars that had the ability to build bridges among the Dispensational and Reformed camps and do so with scholarly and pastoral integrity. There is virtually no discussion of angels, demons, or Satan in this book. The weakest part of this book is in the area of eschatology – but I think his intent was merely to focus on the Sovereignty of God in salvation and history with the emphasis on being primarily on God’s redemptive plan for mankind. I hope that IVP or some other publishing company reprints this book – its simply too good to miss – it’s God-centered; practical; concise; clear and elevates and exalts Jesus Christ like few theologies today. I can’t recommend Boice’s theology highly enough. I have included below all that Dr. Boice covers in these four books in one place, so you can see what a big bang for your buck you are getting.
BOOK 1: THE SOVEREIGN GOD
PART I – The Knowledge of God
Chapter 1 – On Knowing God
Chapter 2 – The Unknown God
PART II: The Word of God
Chapter 3 – The Bible
Chapter 4 – The Authority of the Scriptures
Chapter 5 – The Proof of the Scriptures
Chapter 6 – How True is the Bible?
Chapter 7 – Modern Biblical Criticism
Chapter 8 – How To Interpret the Bible
PART III: The Attributes of God
Chapter 9 – The True God
Chapter 10 – God in Three Persons
Chapter 11 – Our Sovereign God
Chapter 12 – Holy, Holy, Holy
Chapter 13 – The God Who Knows
Chapter 14 – God Who Changes Not
PART IV: God’s Creation
Chapter 15 – The Creation of Man
Chapter 16 – Nature
Chapter 17 – The Spirit World
Chapter 18 – God’s Providence
BOOK 2: GOD THE REDEEMER
PART I – The Fall of the Race
Chapter 1 – The Fall
Chapter 2 – The Results of the Fall
Chapter 3 – The Bondage of the Will
PART II – Law And Grace
Chapter 4 – The Purpose of God’s Law
Chapter 5 – The Ten Commandments: Love of God
Chapter 6 – The Ten Commandments: Love of Others
Chapter 7 – The Wrath of God
Chapter 8 – Salvation in the Old Testament
PART III – The Person of Christ
Chapter 9 – The Deity of Jesus Christ
Chapter 10 – The Humanity of Jesus Christ
Chapter 11 – Why Christ Became Man
PART IV – The Work of Christ
Chapter 12 – Prophet, Priest, and King
Chapter 13 – Quenching God’s Wrath
Chapter 14 – Paid In Full
Chapter 15 – The Greatness of God’s Love
Chapter 16 – The Pivotal Doctrine: Resurrection
Chapter 17 – Verifying The Resurrection
Chapter 18 – He Ascended Into Heaven
BOOK 3: AWAKENING TO GOD
PART I – The Spirit of God
Chapter 1 – Personal Christianity
Chapter 2 – The Work of the Holy Spirit
Chapter 3 – Union With Christ
PART II – How God Saves Sinners
Chapter 4 – The New Birth
Chapter 5 – Faith And Repentance
Chapter 6 – Justification By Faith: The Hinge of Salvation
Chapter 7 – Justification By Faith: The Place of Works
Chapter 8 – The Tests of Faith
Chapter 9 – A New Family
Chapter 10 – The Upward Way
PART III – The Life of the Christian
Chapter 11 – Embrace The Negative
Chapter 12 – Freedom, Freedom
Chapter 13 – Knowing The Will of God
Chapter 14 – Talking To God
Chapter 15 – God Talking To Us
Chapter 16 – Serving
PART IV: The Work of God
Chapter 17 – Called By God
Chapter 18 – The Keeping Power of God
BOOK 4: GOD AND HISTORY
PART I – Time And History
Chapter 1 – What’s Wrong With Me?
Chapter 2 – The March Of Time
Chapter 3 – Christ, The Focal Point of History
PART II: The Church of God
Chapter 4 – Christ’s Church
Chapter 5 – The Marks Of The Church
Chapter 6 – How To Worship God
Chapter 7 – Salvation’s Signs And Seals
Chapter 8 – Spiritual Gifts
Chapter 9 – Equipping The Saints
Chapter 10 – Church Government
Chapter 11 – Body Life
Chapter 12 – The Great Commission
PART III: A Tale Of Two Cities
Chapter 13 – The Secular City
Chapter 14 – The Secular Church
Chapter 15 – God’s City
Chapter 16 – Church And State
PART IV: The End of History
Chapter 17 – How Will It End
Chapter 18 – Home At Last
Subject Index
Scripture Index
*Dr. James Montgomery Boice, just 8 weeks after being diagnosed with a fatal liver cancer, died in his sleep on June 15, 2000. The senior pastor of Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, he was a world-famous Bible teacher, author, and statesman for Reformed theology. He informed his congregation of 32 years of his condition on May 7, proclaiming his complete confidence in God’s sovereignty and goodness.
In the past 72 years, historic Tenth Presbyterian Church has had two senior pastors, Donald Grey Barnhouse and James Montgomery Boice. Founded in 1828, the church itself predates their tenure by another hundred years. Tenth Presbyterian Church lies in the very heart of the city and today has about 1,200 members.
James Montgomery Boice accepted the position as senior pastor in 1968, and was the teacher of the Bible Study Hour since 1969 and the more recent God’s Word Today broadcast as well. Dr. Boice held degrees from Harvard, Princeton Theological Seminary, and the University of Basel, Switzerland. He had written or contributed to nearly 50 books, including Foundations of the Christian Faith, Living by the Book, and exegetical commentaries on Genesis, Psalms, Acts, and Romans.
He was no less involved in the preserving of the fundamentals of the faith than his predecessor, Dr. Barnhouse. In 1985, Boice assumed the presidency of Evangelical Ministries, Inc., the parent organization of the Bible Study Hour, Bible Study Seminars, Bible Studies magazine, and other teaching ministries. In 1997, Evangelical Ministries merged with Christians United for Reformation and the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, taking the latter as the new organization’s name, and Dr. Boice assumed the presidency. In 1997, he was a founding member of, and chaired, the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy.
Of particular concern to Boice was the matter of the church and her relationship to and engagement of society. His recent book, Two Cities, Two Loves, maintains that Christians are citizens of the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of heaven and that they have responsibilities in each. He urged Christians to “participate in secular life rather than merely shoot from the sidelines at secular people.”
Dr. Boice is survived by his wife, Linda, and three daughters. Characteristic of his ministry was his pushing Christians to commit themselves to staying in one place. He lived what he preached, committing to the church and his downtown neighborhood for 30 years. A gifted pastor and leader, he turned down many attractive opportunities in order to build a sense of permanence and belonging. And he urged his parishioners to do the same.
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