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The Gospel & Religious Liberty
One nation, under God .
Religious liberty isn’t a principle for Americans alone, though it certainly has played an important role in the history of the United States. Religious liberty is a matter of authority and allegiance for people of every land. To whom one owes ultimate allegiance is a matter of the conscience, and one that should be protected in every nation.
But what if religious liberty gives way, and church’s are faced with the difficult decision between allegiance to their country and allegiance to their conscience?
Editors Russell Moore and Andrew T. Walker of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) assemble leading voices to frame the issues with a gospel-centered perspective. The Gospel for Life series gives every believer a biblically-saturated understanding of the most urgent issues facing our culture today, because the gospel is for all of life.
Religious liberty isn’t a principle for Americans alone, though it certainly has played an important role in the history of the United States. Religious liberty is a matter of authority and allegiance for people of every land. To whom one owes ultimate allegiance is a matter of the conscience, and one that should be protected in every nation.
But what if religious liberty gives way, and church’s are faced with the difficult decision between allegiance to their country and allegiance to their conscience?
Editors Russell Moore and Andrew T. Walker of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) assemble leading voices to frame the issues with a gospel-centered perspective. The Gospel for Life series gives every believer a biblically-saturated understanding of the most urgent issues facing our culture today, because the gospel is for all of life.
128 pages, Hardcover
Published June 1, 2016
3 people are currently reading
81 people want to read
About the author
Russell D. Moore
54 books343 followersRussell D. Moore is President of the Southern Baptist Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the Southern Baptist Convention’s official entity assigned to address social, moral, and ethical concerns.
Dr. Moore earned a B.S. in history and political science from the University of Southern Mississippi. He also received the M.Div. in biblical studies from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and the Ph.D. in systematic theology from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
He blogs frequently at his “Moore to the Point” website, and is the author or editor of five books, including Tempted and Tried: Temptation and the Triumph of Christ, Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches, and The Kingdom of Christ: The New Evangelical Perspective. In addition to these, Dr. Moore is also the author of dozens of academic articles and essays within the field of systematic theology and Christian ethics. He also serves as Senior Editor of Touchstone: A Journal of Mere Christianity.
Dr. Moore earned a B.S. in history and political science from the University of Southern Mississippi. He also received the M.Div. in biblical studies from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, and the Ph.D. in systematic theology from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
He blogs frequently at his “Moore to the Point” website, and is the author or editor of five books, including Tempted and Tried: Temptation and the Triumph of Christ, Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches, and The Kingdom of Christ: The New Evangelical Perspective. In addition to these, Dr. Moore is also the author of dozens of academic articles and essays within the field of systematic theology and Christian ethics. He also serves as Senior Editor of Touchstone: A Journal of Mere Christianity.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
November 17, 2023
See my full review here: https://marcminter.com/2023/11/17/boo...
The Gospel & Religious Liberty is part of a series (The Gospel for Life) of short books published by B&H Publishing Group in 2016 and 2017. The series editors, Russell Moore and Andrew Walker, aimed to create concise and accessible resources for Evangelicals on a wide range of topics, including pornography, work, marriage, and racial reconciliation. Moore and Walker were both Southern Baptists at the time of these publications, but they have collected a pretty wide range of authors to contribute to these short books. The authors might collectively be described as broadly Evangelical, though they are clearly writing from a baptistic perspective in this particular book on religious liberty, but there is not a specific reference in the book to a distinctively Baptist ecclesiology or political theology.
Overall, this book is an easy to read and light introduction to the topic of religious liberty. There is nothing in this book that is not stated more comprehensively, consistently, and/or precisely in other books, but it was not published as comprehensive, consistent, or precise book. The Gospel & Religious Liberty was published as an introduction to the topic from a variety of perspectives within the Evangelical tradition. And it was published for a reading audience already within that same Evangelical tradition, especially Southern Baptists. With such an aim in mind, one might find this book to be a helpful conversation starter among fellow church members who are rethinking their own perspective of religious liberty in an American culture and political scene that has changed so much since the publication of this book.
Critiques of this book can fit under three headings: 1) diversity among the authors; 2) silence on areas of major disagreement; and 3) the lack of connecting ecclesiology to political theology.
If you already know a good deal about the meaning and practice of religious liberty, as we have it in America today, and you want to start a conversation with a fellow Christian who knows nothing on the subject, then this book is an unintimidating resource that might help. But if you want to learn the meaning of religious liberty, then I recommend First Freedom, edited by Jason Duesing, Thomas White, and Malcolm Yarnell. If you want to learn more about how religious liberty was debated in the founding of America, then I recommend The Founding Fathers and the Debate Over Religion in Revolutionary America, edited by Matthew Harris and Thomas Kidd. If you want to learn about how Baptists argued for religious liberty in the American colonies when the Congregationalists and Anglicans still maintained compulsory religious establishments in the land, then I recommend Let Men Be Free by Obbie Tyler Todd.
The Gospel & Religious Liberty is part of a series (The Gospel for Life) of short books published by B&H Publishing Group in 2016 and 2017. The series editors, Russell Moore and Andrew Walker, aimed to create concise and accessible resources for Evangelicals on a wide range of topics, including pornography, work, marriage, and racial reconciliation. Moore and Walker were both Southern Baptists at the time of these publications, but they have collected a pretty wide range of authors to contribute to these short books. The authors might collectively be described as broadly Evangelical, though they are clearly writing from a baptistic perspective in this particular book on religious liberty, but there is not a specific reference in the book to a distinctively Baptist ecclesiology or political theology.
Overall, this book is an easy to read and light introduction to the topic of religious liberty. There is nothing in this book that is not stated more comprehensively, consistently, and/or precisely in other books, but it was not published as comprehensive, consistent, or precise book. The Gospel & Religious Liberty was published as an introduction to the topic from a variety of perspectives within the Evangelical tradition. And it was published for a reading audience already within that same Evangelical tradition, especially Southern Baptists. With such an aim in mind, one might find this book to be a helpful conversation starter among fellow church members who are rethinking their own perspective of religious liberty in an American culture and political scene that has changed so much since the publication of this book.
Critiques of this book can fit under three headings: 1) diversity among the authors; 2) silence on areas of major disagreement; and 3) the lack of connecting ecclesiology to political theology.
If you already know a good deal about the meaning and practice of religious liberty, as we have it in America today, and you want to start a conversation with a fellow Christian who knows nothing on the subject, then this book is an unintimidating resource that might help. But if you want to learn the meaning of religious liberty, then I recommend First Freedom, edited by Jason Duesing, Thomas White, and Malcolm Yarnell. If you want to learn more about how religious liberty was debated in the founding of America, then I recommend The Founding Fathers and the Debate Over Religion in Revolutionary America, edited by Matthew Harris and Thomas Kidd. If you want to learn about how Baptists argued for religious liberty in the American colonies when the Congregationalists and Anglicans still maintained compulsory religious establishments in the land, then I recommend Let Men Be Free by Obbie Tyler Todd.
March 16, 2018
Concise and insightful. Russel and Andrew note in many ways the change the "cult" of our culture away from valuing of religious liberty towards a increasing the influence of the state upon the lives of Americans. They also highlight the importance of the church conducting its freedom of speech in a way that promotes the gospel and the Lordship of Christ. Although written from a Christian worldview it would be a good introduction for anyone wishing to consider the need for religious liberty even if one is not particularly religious.
July 3, 2019
Everyone needs to be concerned about religious liberty's defense. There are many attacks against it today. Russell Moore and Andrew Walker provide background and strategy that every Christian (since that is my perspective) should read.
Read
November 21, 2020A helpful overview on a topic more relevant by the day.
March 4, 2019
Made some really good points and discussed some important issues. Short, helpful book.
November 28, 2016
In June B&H began The Gospel for Life Series, edited by Russell Moore and Andrew Walker, which connects the gospel message with everyday life issues. Both Moore and Walker serve at the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC) of the Southern Baptist Convention and, Moore especially, have written and spoken extensively on gospel responses to the ethical issues Christian’s face.
gospel-and-religious-libertyThe books are structured around answering five questions: What are we for?, What does the gospel say?, How should the Christian live?, How should the church engage?, What does the culture say? For example, in answering What are we for?, the authors all begin in Genesis with creation. This starting point intentionally grounds all discussion within the framework of creation which is the beginning of the biblical story line of creation, fall, redemption, and re-creation/consummation. This creation starting point helps us to see God’s intention within these various issues and in turn helps us to see what has gone wrong with them as a result of the fall. Some readers will be challenged by the creational foundations of religious liberty presented by Andrew Walker in the book on The Gospel & Religious Liberty. This was a new concept for me and something I will continue to think about.
Another helpful aspect of this series is how it frames the Christians response within the community of the Church. So, it is notgospel-and-racial-reconciliation enough for the individual Christian to be equipped to respond to the culture but it is the collective witness of the whole Church, the bride of Christ, that should speak loudly to these issues with the truth of the gospel. For example, when it comes to racial reconciliation, the Church needs to have the conversation about it, yes, even all white churches, because, as Trillia Newbell writes in The Gospel & Racial Reconciliation, “The problem is, race continues to be talked about because there continue to be problems. And there continue to be problems because often conversations about race revolve around racism. And these conversations centered on racism happen because people are racist. So, until we see an and to racism, both personal and systemic, we will need to continue this conversation.” (49)
gospel-and-same-sex-marriageOne final helpful aspect of this series is its interaction with the current cultural opinion on these issues. After all, if everyone were living according to God’s plan as outlined in Scripture then there wouldn’t be a reason for these books to exist. For example, in The Gospel and Same-Sex Marriage, Al Mohler Jr. briefly outlines four cultural changes in regards to sexual ethics that paved the way for same-sex marriage: birth control and contraception, divorce, advanced reproductive technologies, and sex outside of marriage. Mohler’s words are biting:
"The marriage crisis is a moral crisis. It did not start with same-sex marriage, nor will it end there. This has all been made possible by a deliberate breakdown in the moral immune system of human society. Western civilization has forfeited its immunity against the breakdown of marriage, the family, and the integrity of human sexuality. We sowed the seeds of the current confusion. To make matters indefinitely worse, the failure of Christian churches to address these issues with the full weight of Christian conviction has created, in the eyes of many, an insurmountable challenge to evangelical credibility on the issue of homosexuality and same-sex marriage. Today’s movement toward the total acceptance of homosexual behavior and relationships was only made possible because some heterosexuals first did their best to undermine marriage." (95-96).
The Gospel for Life Series is the perfect primer on a number of current cultural issues that Christians needs to be aware of and ready to give a Christian gospel-informed answer to. The contributors are theologians, cultural experts, and local church servants. We cannot hide our heads in the sand or just let other Christians deal with it. If you are going to obey the command to love your neighbor as yourself then you must be equipped to discuss these important issues. The witness of Christ and His church are at stake.
You can learn more about this series from their website www.thegospelforlifeseries.com. Other forthcoming books in the series include:
The Gospel & Abortion (January 2017)
The Gospel & Adoption (January 2017)
The Gospel & Marriage (January 2017)
The Gospel & Parenting (January 2017)
The Gospel & Parenting (April 2017)
The Gospel & Pornography (April 2017)
The Gospel & Work (April 2017)
I received these books for free from B&H for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
gospel-and-religious-libertyThe books are structured around answering five questions: What are we for?, What does the gospel say?, How should the Christian live?, How should the church engage?, What does the culture say? For example, in answering What are we for?, the authors all begin in Genesis with creation. This starting point intentionally grounds all discussion within the framework of creation which is the beginning of the biblical story line of creation, fall, redemption, and re-creation/consummation. This creation starting point helps us to see God’s intention within these various issues and in turn helps us to see what has gone wrong with them as a result of the fall. Some readers will be challenged by the creational foundations of religious liberty presented by Andrew Walker in the book on The Gospel & Religious Liberty. This was a new concept for me and something I will continue to think about.
Another helpful aspect of this series is how it frames the Christians response within the community of the Church. So, it is notgospel-and-racial-reconciliation enough for the individual Christian to be equipped to respond to the culture but it is the collective witness of the whole Church, the bride of Christ, that should speak loudly to these issues with the truth of the gospel. For example, when it comes to racial reconciliation, the Church needs to have the conversation about it, yes, even all white churches, because, as Trillia Newbell writes in The Gospel & Racial Reconciliation, “The problem is, race continues to be talked about because there continue to be problems. And there continue to be problems because often conversations about race revolve around racism. And these conversations centered on racism happen because people are racist. So, until we see an and to racism, both personal and systemic, we will need to continue this conversation.” (49)
gospel-and-same-sex-marriageOne final helpful aspect of this series is its interaction with the current cultural opinion on these issues. After all, if everyone were living according to God’s plan as outlined in Scripture then there wouldn’t be a reason for these books to exist. For example, in The Gospel and Same-Sex Marriage, Al Mohler Jr. briefly outlines four cultural changes in regards to sexual ethics that paved the way for same-sex marriage: birth control and contraception, divorce, advanced reproductive technologies, and sex outside of marriage. Mohler’s words are biting:
"The marriage crisis is a moral crisis. It did not start with same-sex marriage, nor will it end there. This has all been made possible by a deliberate breakdown in the moral immune system of human society. Western civilization has forfeited its immunity against the breakdown of marriage, the family, and the integrity of human sexuality. We sowed the seeds of the current confusion. To make matters indefinitely worse, the failure of Christian churches to address these issues with the full weight of Christian conviction has created, in the eyes of many, an insurmountable challenge to evangelical credibility on the issue of homosexuality and same-sex marriage. Today’s movement toward the total acceptance of homosexual behavior and relationships was only made possible because some heterosexuals first did their best to undermine marriage." (95-96).
The Gospel for Life Series is the perfect primer on a number of current cultural issues that Christians needs to be aware of and ready to give a Christian gospel-informed answer to. The contributors are theologians, cultural experts, and local church servants. We cannot hide our heads in the sand or just let other Christians deal with it. If you are going to obey the command to love your neighbor as yourself then you must be equipped to discuss these important issues. The witness of Christ and His church are at stake.
You can learn more about this series from their website www.thegospelforlifeseries.com. Other forthcoming books in the series include:
The Gospel & Abortion (January 2017)
The Gospel & Adoption (January 2017)
The Gospel & Marriage (January 2017)
The Gospel & Parenting (January 2017)
The Gospel & Parenting (April 2017)
The Gospel & Pornography (April 2017)
The Gospel & Work (April 2017)
I received these books for free from B&H for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews