Biblical Theology: Past, Present, and Future (I)
Southwestern Journal of Theology
Volume 55, No. 2 – Spring 2013
Managing Editor: Terry L. Wilder
Edited by Bruce A. Little and Mark D. Liederbach. Nashville, TN: B&H, 2011. 266 pages. Paperback, $24.99.
Having the correct answer at the right time is a vital tool for all religious adherents and leaders. For those who follow “the Way, the Truth, and the Life,” having the correct answer can be life changing. In Defending the Faith: Engaging the Culture, Christian theologians and philosophers honor the late Baptist philosopher, L. Russ Bush, by writing timely essays that seek to give answers to a skeptical culture.
Russ Bush finished his career at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary as professor of apologetics and philosophy. Bruce Little and Mark Liederbach write, “L. Russ Bush was a noted apologist, author, professor, pastor, and friend to many people, and he left a wonderfully rich legacy in terms of his personal story, his intellectual integrity, and his personal devotion to his Lord. He spent his life serving the church as a staunch defender of the Christian faith within the organizational framework of the Southern Baptist Convention” (xiii).
This book is a compilation of essays in memory and honor of Bush’s superior intellectual and apologetic works. Each essay is written by an evangelical academic defending the orthodox beliefs of Christianity. Some of the authors were students of Bush’s, while others were friends and co-workers. The editors of the book, Bruce A. Little and Mark D. Liederbach, are professors at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary (at the time of this writing). Additionally, Little was also the director of the L. Russ Bush Center for Faith and Culture at Southeastern.
The book is organized into four sections; each section focuses on a particular aspect of Christian apologetics. Section one, titled “Christianity and the Bible,” concentrates on defending the Bible against a reductionist or liberal ideology. It begins with a chapter by Russ Bush arguing for the inspiration and validity of Scripture. Other authors in the section are Daniel L Akin, Paige Patterson, and Thomas Nettles. Akin discusses the connection between Jesus and the Bible. He argues that one’s view of the Bible is logically inferred from one’s view of Jesus. Patterson composes a chapter that discusses the necessity of the atonement and liberal theology’s distortion of what the atonement entails. Nettles, in a style apropos of a historian, presents a chapter discussing the ancient church’s system of apologetics, specifically the church’s method of defending Scripture.
Section two discusses Christian apologetics simpliciter, beginning with an article by Russ Bush in which he details a 10-step pattern to Biblical apologetics. Other contributors to this section are Norman Geisler, Gary R. Habermas, and David P. Nelson. Geisler gives simple, yet clear, arguments for the need and benefit of Christian apologetics. Habermas discusses his token topic: the resurrection of Christ. He expands the focus by also discussing Paul’s encounter with the resurrected Christ on the road to Damascus. Nelson offers reflections upon the grand Biblical narrative of Scripture and its impact upon apologetics and missions.
Section three branches off into philosophy of science by discussing the impact of modern science upon the orthodox Christian faith. Again, as with every section in the book, an article by Bush begins the section. In the chapter titled “Is Evolution True?” Bush questions naturalistic evolution and points out certain incompatible features of evolution and the Christian faith. Other contributors to this section are James K. Dew Jr., Kenneth D. Keathley, and Robert B. Stewart. Dew writes on the current status of natural theology, specifically focusing on the work of Alister McGrath. Dew generally respects McGrath, though he has several concerns regarding McGrath’s stance that theistic evolution is concurrent with an orthodox view of Scripture. The next chapter by Ken Keathley looks at the fine-tuning argument for the existence of God. Keathley argues that the parameters for life to exist as it does are so narrow that the best explanation for its existence is an intelligent designer. Stewart’s chapter titled “How Science Works and What It Means for Believers” is a detailed dissemination on the limitations of modern science.
The last section of Defending the Faith best embodies the purpose of the book by focusing on Christianity’s role in the culture. The purpose of the section is to argue that the church must engage the culture and the culture’s array of ideas. The contributors are Russ Bush, Mark Coppenger, Richard Land, and Udo W. Middelmann. Bush’s chapter hones in on cultural aesthetics and the place of art in Christianity. Coppenger’s chapter discusses virtue ethics in relation to friendliness. Land’s chapter is one of applied ethics, discussing nuclear weapons and why America must possess such arms. Middelmann’s chapter, the last of the book, details the development of culture—both secular and Christian.
Defending the Faith is a popular level book that is readable by anyone inter-ested in argumentation that defends orthodox Christianity against an onslaught of secular and humanistic philosophies. In this reviewer’s opinion, Defending the Faith fulfills its purpose by disseminating thoughtful, yet readable, essays on the truthfulness of Christianity and its impact on the world.
