Grant J. Retief

Biblical Theology in the Life of the Church

Theology

“I am grateful that this book has been written. It’s an ambitious book—broad in scope and simultaneously rich in insight. Its biblical, systematic and pastoral theology are presented in a lucid and accessible way, its case studies are pastorally helpful, and its polemics are thought-provoking and penetrating. Michael has done us a great favor by grounding his subject material in the cut and thrust of ordinary pastoral ministry while at the same time stimulating us intellectually. His unshakable commitment to propositional revelation, the centrality of the Bible in church ministry, and his unflinching belief that God works by his Word are a great foil to much theology in vogue in the church today. This book is a bell ringing in the fog of American Christianity—with its extremes of prosperity, market-driven, and emergent theology—that we at the ends of the earth in South Africa have sadly not escaped. It calls us back to the old fashioned, tried and tested practices of exegesis, hermeneutics, and preaching that have fed the Christian church for centuries. May God use it to nourish his church, which often seems undernourished both in sub-Saharan Africa and elsewhere.”

Discipling

Christian Living

“Here is a church-strengthening book full of down-to-earth advice about the nuts and bolts of discipling. Dever’s love for Jesus and his people shines throughout, and his firm placement of discipleship within the context and bounds of the local church is vintage Dever ecclesiology. He has a keen eye for pastors, addressing them about their role with warmth and clarity. I was personally challenged by Dever, who himself has a track record of prioritizing discipleship in the midst of all his other responsibilities. If Mark does it, I can do it!”