Status: Available
Book Description
For most readers, holding this new edition of The Church of God represents their first encounter with Stuart Robinson. By comparison, the major contributors to the ongoing discussion of Presbyterianism are readily recognized: the cornerstone Calvin, the Socratic Turretin, the erudite Bavinck, and the inexhaustible Bannerman. Thornwell defended church power in theory, but Robinson defined it in particulars. Hodge traveled the landscape of ecclesiology extensively, but Robinson traversed its terrain proficiently. Bannerman expounded Presbyterianism comprehensively, but Robinson explained it concisely. Although one can understand why historians give more attention to better known thinkers, Robinson was regarded as an equal among and by his contemporary Presbyterian ecclesiologists. He should be given his due when discussing the area of his recognized strength.
In recent years, ecclesiology (the doctrine of the church) has surged ahead of other loci of theology. Many works on ecclesiology have appeared in the developing academic areas of comparative and historical ecclesiology and in the ever-expanding postmodern theologies, particularly the Emergent wing. But not all of these contributions can be regarded as enriching. Despite apparent efforts to revive an ancient faith, some contemporary ecclesiologists betray an eclectic historical consciousness that tends to skip over the Reformation. Inserting The Church of God back into the ecclesiological narrative helps to address the existing need to become better acquainted with what has been said before—and, above all, with what has been said wisely.
Where some have seen weakness, Robinson saw strength. Calvin wedded his doctrine of the church to the doctrine of predestination. Some have viewed this as a serious ‘methodological error.’ But Robinson viewed it as a brilliant insight…In the unsearchable counsel of the triune God, the ‘ideal church’ lies anterior to the ‘actual church’ in the history of redemption, preeminently in the Abrahamic covenant. Reformed ecclesiology has been powerful and united because it has insisted on seeing the church in the big picture, through the perspective of God’s eternal decree, and consequently in the sweep of redemptive history. Taking this ‘ideal’ angle inevitably led Robinson to stress the centrality of Christology in ecclesiology and Christ’s ongoing ministry in his threefold office.
This volume was originally published in 1858 and has been retypeset and augmented to include a foreword by Dr. A. Craig Troxel and Thomas E. Peck’s “Memorial of the Life and Labors of the Rev. Stuart Robinson.”
Table of Contents
Introduction
Part I: The Relation of the Idea of the Church to the Eternal Purpose of Redemption
Part II: The Relation of the Idea of the Church to the Manifestation of the Divine Purpose as Revealed in the Scriptures
Part III: The Relation to the Idea of the Church of the Principles of Church Government Set Forth in Scripture
Part IV: The Relation to the Idea of the Church of the Ordinances of Worship Set Forth in Scripture
Concluding Observations
Appendix
Stuart Robinson (1814-1881)
About the Author
Stuart Robinson graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1841. He was licensed and ordained by Greenbrier Presbytery and served pastorates in Malden (West Virginia), Frankfort (Kentucky), Baltimore, and Louisville. Robinson also taught at the Presbyterian Seminary in Danville, Kentucky from 1856-1858. Along with these pastoral and academic positions, Robinson edited the Presbyterial Critic, the True Presbyterian, and the Free Christian Commonwealth. In 1869 he was elected moderator of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in the United States. After twenty-three years as pastor of Second Presbyterian Church in Louisville, Robinson died on October 3, 1881.
About the Editor
A. Craig Troxel (PhD, Westminster Theological Seminary) is the pastor of Bethel Presbyterian Church in Wheaton, Illinois, and serves as Adjunct Professor of Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Troxel has contributed numerous articles to a variety of publications, including the Westminster Theological Journal, Calvin Theological Journal, New Horizons, and Modern Reformation
Source: WTS Books
Hardcover, 229 pages
Publisher: The Committee on Christian Education of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church
Publication Date(s): 1858, Reprinted 2009
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