A Review of “Reformation” by Carl R. Trueman
By Todd D. Baucum
This is an explosive book. Trueman who teaches at Westminster Seminary in Philadelphia, argues for the ongoing relevance of the theology of the Reformation for the 21st Century. Coming out of the conservative orthodox box of the Reformed tradition, one would expect Trueman to flaunt the enduring values of the 16th Century Protestant movement. Against the onslaught of opinions that such arguments are passé and our ecumenical dialogues have matured beyond those issues, there have been many rejoinders that the Reformation is here to stay. The conservative benefactors of Reformed theology have made their case over issues of justification by faith and the authority of the Bible. Trueman is not simply offering another rebuttal of this type. His contribution in this short book is of another category. He goes deeper and aims not so much at those on the outside, as those who wear the badge of ownership in this history. Watch your sacred cows, as Trueman takes aim.
He is orthodox and not seeking a progressive agenda to ply down the rough edges of Luther and Calvin into a palatable vanilla flavor. Yet, neither is he another conventional critic offering just another predictable tirade against liberals and sacramentalist. Trueman is in the true sense a radical, and here are the cogent and winsome ravings of a radical who loves and just as important, understands the history of the Reformers and its practical relevance for today.
Moral verses Theological ReformationThe book begins with Trueman underscoring the central difference between the Protestant Reformation and those in the Roman Church who wanted the reformation of morals and the spiritual life. “…the Catholic Reformation focused on practical, moral abuses; it did not seek to reform the theology of the church.” The irony of all that is that now the typical evangelical Christian is now focused more on these “practical and moral” issues than the deeply important theological ones which were at the core of the Reformation. Trueman is not one to simply see the 16th Century without historical context; neither does he hold up the Reformers as idols to bow down to. Hence he writes, “Idolatry, the cult of the saints, and uncritical deference to the authority of tradition are not things from which Protestants are immune (pg.37).
A Theology of SufferingThe second major theme Trueman develops is Luther’s theology of the Cross, which he laments, was neglected by later Reformers. It is this area of theology and preaching that postmodern evangelicals are so glaringly superficial. Here the Cross centered theology of Luther and the understanding of the Gospel in the context of suffering and redemption is radically opposed to all forms of “theologies of glory”. Our pulpits are full of the later and we seldom here about the former, giving us an inadequate view of how God works to bring redemption through humility, weakness and suffering. This cuts the grain of our culture and sadly our evangelical preaching. Trueman names the idols of our day, such as morphing “free market capitalism” into a spiritual value of pragmatism; “the gospel as therapy” and the selling of the gospel for “entertainment”. These soul sicknesses are draining the life out of the evangelical church. We preach and sing about a victorious king who has saved us, but forget his kingdom is one of following the way of suffering.
The Centrality of the WordThe book ends with a reminder of the enduring importance of the written Word of God even in our digital, image driven age. This is an important part of the book because Trueman makes clear and plain an issue that has become so debated in recent decades that people think the issue is settled. We just pick sides. Trueman states the importance of the Bible, the way it is misunderstood and how to avoid the confusion. Here is a sample of one of his winsome quips: “..Scripture does not just contain God’s word, it is God’s Word. This does not mean that it replaces Christ anymore than a love letter replaces my wife” (pg. 75).
The last section is advice for pastors and insights for training pastors. Personally, I find this part very insightful into the mind of a theologian training future ministers. Twice in the book he mentions the evangelical biblical scholars from Moore Theological College in Australia. Men like Goldsworthy have had a profound influence on me in my reading the Bible. I hope such biblical thinking of that nature infiltrates the evangelical church. It leaves me hopeful, that is, if such advice is more than just wishful thinking.
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