Grace Blog
Book Recommendation: The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety
During the “Ask the Pastor” time of discussion during Bible Study, the question of union with Christ was raised, at which time I mentioned a helpful little book called The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety: John Flavel’s Doctrine of Mystical Union with Christ by J. Stephen Yuille. Dr. Yuille has mined the woks of John Flavel and presented a powerful summary of this fundamental doctrine from one of the most eminent Puritans of the 17th century, John Flavel.
Here’s the Table of Contents:
1. The Covenant of Redemption
2. The Basis of Union with Christ
3. The Nature of Union with Christ
4. The Act of Union with Christ
5. The Blessings of Union with Christ
6. The Fruit of Union with Christ
7. The Evidence of Union with Christ
8. The Suffering of Union with Christ
9. The Joy of Union with Christ
10. The Practice of Union with Christ
11. The Hope of Union with Christ
Union with Christ was a central theological motif for John Calvin and many who followed in his train, not the least was such men as John Flavel and James P. Boyce. In the introduction, Yuille provides a probing quote by Flavel in which he asks:
How transcendently glorious is the advancement of believers, by their union with the Lord of glory? This also is an admirable and astonishing mystery; it is the highest dignity of which our nature is capable, to be hypostatically united; and the greatest glory of which our persons are capable is to be mystically united to this Lord of glory; to be bone of his bone, and flesh of his flesh. O what is this! Christian, dost thou know and believe all this, and thy heart not burn within thee in love to Christ? (4, emphasis original)
In a follow-up post, I refer to the research compiling a comprehensive listing of books and articles related to “union with Christ.”
Labels: John Flavel, Stephen Yuille, The Inner Sanctum of Puritan Piety, Union with Christ | posted by TimBrister at 6:24 pm | Categories: Books, Jesus, Recommended Reading, Resources, Theology |
