August 2023 New Releases
New Books
Below is a list of the new and notable resources releasing this month from Crossway. Titles include Impossible Christianity by Kevin DeYoung and Help for the Hungry Soul by Kristen Wetherell.
Impossible Christianity: Why Following Jesus Does Not Mean You Have to Change the World, Be an Expert in Everything, Accept Spiritual Failure, and Feel Miserable Pretty Much All the Time
Impossible Christianity reassures readers that they don’t need to feel a collective sense of guilt for sins in the past and solve every societal problem in the present. Through biblical wisdom and engaging personal stories, Kevin DeYoung challenges the misconception that we need 40 hours in the day just to be good Christians. By reflecting on what Jesus actually taught about Christian discipleship, readers will be newly encouraged to pursue single-minded devotion to God and find lasting joy in a life of sincere and simple obedience.
“I’ve been reading Kevin DeYoung since we were both young and restless. Over countless articles and books, he’s helped me mature in my view of the world and understanding of God’s word. Impossible Christianity challenged some of my assumptions and corrected some of my misconceptions. I know it can help you enjoy the pleasure of God in a quiet and dignified life.”
—Collin Hansen, Executive Director, The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics
Help for the Hungry Soul: Eight Encouragements to Grow Your Appetite for God's Word
Help for the Hungry Soul offers 8 encouragements to spur an appetite for God’s word. Through searching questions, practical ideas, and moving testimonies, author Kristen Wetherell will help readers to reflect on their journey with their Bible and uncover how it is possible to treasure God’s word. For those feeling discouraged or guilty about a waning desire for Scripture, Wetherell will spark excitement in their spiritual life—ultimately encouraging them to put God and his word at the center of it all.
“I pray almost every day that the Lord would create in me a greater hunger for his word and his ways. But for that to happen, my appetites must be reoriented. In Help for the Hungry Soul, Kristen Wetherell reveals our deepest hunger pains as she points us to the only source of true satisfaction. So pick up this book, and you will taste and see that the Lord is good.”
—Courtney Doctor, Director of Women’s Initiatives, The Gospel Coalition; Bible teacher; author, From Garden to Glory and In View of God’s Mercies
Courage: How the Gospel Creates Christian Fortitude
In Courage, author Joe Rigney explores the Christian virtue of fortitude and its connection to the gospel. From a theological perspective, Rigney argues that courage—used in the proper context—is a sign of God’s salvation and a believer’s faith in Christ. In this concise and practical book, readers will defeat feelings of anxiety, anger, and fear as they gain boldness from God to endure all of life’s circumstances.
“Joe Rigney’s Courage is a bellwether, defining and defending a virtue that every Christian will need in abundance in our anti-Christian age. Rigney’s book is a gem and a must-read. It is surely a book that I will be rereading often.”
—Rosaria Butterfield, former Professor of English and Women’s Studies, Syracuse University; author, The Gospel Comes with a Housekey and Five Lies of Our Anti-Christian Age
All That Jesus Commmanded: The Christian Life according to the Gospels
In All That Jesus Commanded, John Piper walks through Jesus’s commands, in 50 short chapters, explaining their context and meaning to help readers understand Christ’s vision of the Christian life and what he still requires today. The result is a helpful guide for thoughtful inquirers and new Christians, as well as veteran believers, whether for their own study or as a resource in disciple-making.
“Scholars, popularists, and now even novelists are falling over each other today in a blind passion to discover an alternative Jesus to the One so magnificently portrayed in the biblical Gospels. In stark and refreshing contrast John Piper clear-sightedly demonstrates that the only Jesus worth living for and worth dying for is the biblical Jesus.”
—Sinclair B. Ferguson, Chancellor’s Professor of Systematic Theology, Reformed Theological Seminary; Teaching Fellow, Ligonier Ministries
Beauty Is Your Destiny: How the Promise of Splendor Changes Everything
In Beauty Is Your Destiny, Philip Ryken provides readers with an introduction to the theology and practice of beauty, striving to awaken a longing for beauty that he explains “can only be satisfied in the face of Jesus Christ.” Adapted from chapel messages given at Wheaton College, Ryken considers key topics on Christian thought—including the Trinity, the incarnation, sexuality, and racial diversity—through the lens of beauty, showing how beauty illuminates each of these biblical principles in our world today.
“I have been studying beauty and teaching my students about it for years. Finally, Beauty Is Your Destiny is here, a lovely and compelling book that gathers up a treasure trove of insights on one of the most essential qualities of our Christian faith and our very humanity. I will return to these pages again and again and will encourage others to do the same.”
—Karen Swallow Prior, author, The Evangelical Imagination: How Stories, Images, and Metaphors Created a Culture in Crisis
The Atonement: An Introduction
Treat demonstrates that the death of Christ is a multi-dimensional work within the story of the kingdom of God. While the accomplishments of the cross are unending (including forgiveness, victory, and renewal), the heart of the cross is substitution—Jesus dying on behalf of sinners. Christ’s atoning work reconciles believers to God and to one another, calling them to a life of obedience. This book presents a kingdom-framed, substitution-centered, Trinitarian, integrated, communal, and life-changing approach to the doctrine of atonement.
“Jeremy Treat wants us to reflect deeply on the beauty of the cross. He wants us to see that the good news is much bigger than we thought, that reconciliation is further flung than we dared imagine, that the Savior to whom we are united is no less than the victorious King of all things. I can’t imagine a more trustworthy guide to show us this view. With the skill of a scholar and the prose of a pastor, he takes us to the mountaintop and invites us to gaze on our great assurance.”
—Jen Wilkin, author; Bible teacher
Christianity and Science
Herman Bavinck
Edited by N. Gray Sutanto
James Eglinton
Cory C. Brock
Christianity and Science explores the pros and cons of Christian science and features brief, informative sections on the natural sciences, the humanities, theological science and religious studies, the doctrine of revelation, the benefits of Christianity for scholarship, and what it means to develop a Christian university. Responding to the challenges of the modern age, Bavinck recognizes the significance of faith in education. Edited and translated in English for the first time by N. Gray Sutanto, James Eglinton, and Cory C. Brock, this fundamental work will inspire Christian teachers, practitioners, and seminarians in their pursuits.
What Did the Cross Achieve?
In this famous essay, late theologian J. I. Packer analyzes Scripture and the works of early Reformers to defend the truth of Christ’s substitutionary suffering and death, the heart of the Christian gospel. Considered one of the most significant short works on penal substitutionary atonement from the 20th century, this careful, concise essay has influenced prominent theologians and is essential reading for students, pastors, and laypeople.
Apostasy from the Gospel (Volume 14)
John Owen
Edited by Joel R. Beeke
Regarded as one of the greatest theologians in history, 17th-century pastor John Owen remains influential among those interested in Puritan and Reformed theology. The Complete Works of John Owen brings together all of Owen’s original theological writing, including never-before-published work, reformatted for modern readers in 40 user-friendly volumes.
Volume 14, Apostasy from the Gospel, features Owen’s book-length treatise on the threat of heresy, the need for repentance, and the importance of preserving biblical purity of doctrine, holiness, and worship. With extensive introductions by editor Joel R. Beeke, this volume also includes outlines, footnotes, and other supporting resources.
“Owen ranks at the top of the classic Reformed writers whose reading of Scripture have most shaped my own faith and practice. He discloses points that I often miss, and he does so in a heart-igniting way that makes truth both enjoyable and edifying. Until now, trudging through the outdated format of Owen’s work has been a daunting task. I am thrilled to see this new edition of his complete works. If you want a faith that is as much for the heart as the mind, then read Owen!”
—Michael Horton, J. Gresham Machen Professor of Systematic Theology and Apologetics, Westminster Seminary California
ESV Scripture Journal, Study Edition: Romans
This ESV Scripture Journal, Study Edition is designed to facilitate in-depth study of Romans, providing the guidance, tools, and space needed to dig deep into the biblical text—all in a single volume.
This journal features the full ESV text of Romans, study notes adapted from the ESV Student Study Bible, spacious margins, and a full blank page for notes opposite each page of Bible text. Great for personal study time, small-group study, or taking notes through a sermon series, this ESV Scripture Journal, Study Edition is a useful resource for seasoned Christians and new believers alike.