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God's Good World: Reclaiming the Doctrine of Creation
The doctrine of creation has often been neglected in Christian theology. Distinguished evangelical theologian Jonathan Wilson exposes what has been missing in current theological discourse and offers an original, constructive work on this doctrine.
The book unites creation and redemption, showing the significance of God's work of creation for understanding the good news of redemption in Jesus Christ. Wilson develops a trinitarian account of the life of the world and sets forth how to live wisely, hopefully, peaceably, joyfully, and generously in that world. He also shows how a mature doctrine of creation can help the church think practically about contemporary issues, including creation care, sexuality, technology, food and water, and more.
304 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2013
About the author
Jonathan R. Wilson
13 books4 followersJonathan R. Wilson (PhD, Duke University) is Pioneer McDonald Professor of Theology at Carey Theological College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He previously taught at Acadia Divinity College and Westmont College and has served as a pastor. He currently serves as Senior Consultant for Theological Integration with Canadian Baptist Ministries and is a Teaching Fellow at Regent College. He is the author of numerous books, including Living Faithfully in a Fragmented World, A Primer for Christian Doctrine, and God So Loved the World.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 25, 2021
This book motivates the need for a solid Christian doctrine of creation, provides the basics of such a doctrine, and then reviews a few areas where this will play out in modern life. Dr. Wilson provides reasoned arguments and solid examples to support each of those points. The book is not a light read, and dragged (for me) a bit in the first half, but there was a lot of inspiration and solid advice for living out God's purpose for us and for creation.
I originally thought there would be a strong emphasis on origins (creationism vs. evolution and the related issues), but Dr. Wilson is clear that he thinks that topic has been well covered elsewhere, so he does not address it here.
In Christian academic studies, there is a tension between theology and Biblical exegesis. My personal bent earlier in life was more academic, hence I leaned toward the theology side. More recently, my life journey and studies have inclined me to the Biblical side. I fully acknowledge that both are important and deeply interrelated. Dr. Wilson spends the first six chapters on theology, with some references to Biblical grounding. Chapter 7 does provides a solid Biblical exegesis for his theology, with the interesting twist that he follows the Biblical story from the end (Revelation) to the beginning (Genesis), to solidly keep the ultimate purpose for creation in mind. My personal preference would have been to lead with Chapter 7, then build the theological case. However, I completely respect Dr. Wilson's approach.
I couple recurring ideas I really liked were the idea that God's purpose is for us to "live with the grain of the universe," while the fall caused much of our lives to be at cross-purposes with the universe. I also liked the idea that God created to showcase life, while the fall introduced death to the creation. So the ultimate goal is for life to overflow across the whole creation.
Several ideas from later chapters, such as the negative impacts of technology and our current ideas of consumption could easily become whole books.
There is much to chew on here.
I originally thought there would be a strong emphasis on origins (creationism vs. evolution and the related issues), but Dr. Wilson is clear that he thinks that topic has been well covered elsewhere, so he does not address it here.
In Christian academic studies, there is a tension between theology and Biblical exegesis. My personal bent earlier in life was more academic, hence I leaned toward the theology side. More recently, my life journey and studies have inclined me to the Biblical side. I fully acknowledge that both are important and deeply interrelated. Dr. Wilson spends the first six chapters on theology, with some references to Biblical grounding. Chapter 7 does provides a solid Biblical exegesis for his theology, with the interesting twist that he follows the Biblical story from the end (Revelation) to the beginning (Genesis), to solidly keep the ultimate purpose for creation in mind. My personal preference would have been to lead with Chapter 7, then build the theological case. However, I completely respect Dr. Wilson's approach.
I couple recurring ideas I really liked were the idea that God's purpose is for us to "live with the grain of the universe," while the fall caused much of our lives to be at cross-purposes with the universe. I also liked the idea that God created to showcase life, while the fall introduced death to the creation. So the ultimate goal is for life to overflow across the whole creation.
Several ideas from later chapters, such as the negative impacts of technology and our current ideas of consumption could easily become whole books.
There is much to chew on here.
June 13, 2019
For how long it is, it's incredibly shallow. This would be an important read for an Evangelical Christian who does not care for the environment, but everyone else who's serious about the theology should check out "From Nature to Creation" by Norman Wirzba.
January 29, 2026
1st 3rd was a slog. There were a lot redundancy in the delivery, but the 2nd and 3rd parts of the book were insightful presentations of how and why creation matters.
January 1, 2016
The author invites readers to look through the lens of creation/re-creation in order to gain perspective that seems to be lacking in the church, the academy, and society in general. From the author's perspective, a fresh look from the context of creation/re-creation would affect our view of the "dialect of the kingdom," the way we read Scripture, the world, as well as what it means to be human, and it would affect praxes of worship, conducting ourselves outside the grip of "worldliness," etc.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first half of this book; the second half was not as arresting (with a few exceptions), since it seemed like recapitulation of many of the ideas in the first half, but there were still good points to be found.
As with any book that focuses on a single topic and views the world from that paradigm, this work occasionally felt a little bit narrow; however, I did find many of his ideas to be compelling and thought-provoking, particularly his exposition on teleology and what he calls "dysteleology." I also appreciated his vulnerability talking about the problem of evil, especially in light of his wife's passing.
It seemed odd, after stressing the seventh-day Sabbath throughout the book, that at the end, the author gives a single heading explanation for the transference of the "Christian Sabbath" from the seventh day to Sunday, calling it the "8th day of creation." That seemed like an anemic justification for such a dramatic departure for the seven day creation week, especially since he provides no biblical support, and the thread of Sabbath keeping was so strong throughout the rest of the book.
The book does provide an interesting read with many good points, especially the first half.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first half of this book; the second half was not as arresting (with a few exceptions), since it seemed like recapitulation of many of the ideas in the first half, but there were still good points to be found.
As with any book that focuses on a single topic and views the world from that paradigm, this work occasionally felt a little bit narrow; however, I did find many of his ideas to be compelling and thought-provoking, particularly his exposition on teleology and what he calls "dysteleology." I also appreciated his vulnerability talking about the problem of evil, especially in light of his wife's passing.
It seemed odd, after stressing the seventh-day Sabbath throughout the book, that at the end, the author gives a single heading explanation for the transference of the "Christian Sabbath" from the seventh day to Sunday, calling it the "8th day of creation." That seemed like an anemic justification for such a dramatic departure for the seven day creation week, especially since he provides no biblical support, and the thread of Sabbath keeping was so strong throughout the rest of the book.
The book does provide an interesting read with many good points, especially the first half.
August 16, 2013
Jonathan Wilson believes that Christians, especially evangelical Christians, lack a robust doctrine of creation. This leads to inaction and inattention to creation. This isn't a book of science or a biblical commentary, though both are touched upon. This is first and foremost a theological account of creation and redemption. For Jonathan, without an understanding of redemption as the telos of creation, we will have missed the boat.
It's a good book, though the writing at times is dense. Thus, it's not an easy read. But there is much here to commend it. It is definitely evangelical -- though not of a conservative evangelical perspective.
It's a good book, though the writing at times is dense. Thus, it's not an easy read. But there is much here to commend it. It is definitely evangelical -- though not of a conservative evangelical perspective.
November 22, 2014
This is probably a better book that what I experienced it as. It was not always clear to me however, and I think maybe that's just because it's written from a perspective that I'm not familiar with and so could not identify. While it might be the right book for another place/age, I think maybe a different book is needed for people who have grown up immersed in language and practices of "creation care."
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews