Hold Fast the A Devotional Commentary on the Westminster Confession of 1647, was written to help introduce evangelical Christians to the great puritan document, The Westminster Confession of Faith (1647). The WCF has been the doctrinal standard of Presbyterian and Reformed churches for over 350 years, and is one of the most important theological statements written in the last one thousand years.As the title suggests, Hold Fast the Faith is a "devotional." It was not written for scholars or theologians, but regular Christians on a journey of faith and obedience. It was written to help inform and guide our prayer lives, and to strengthen our daily relationship with Jesus Christ.Yet Hold Fast the Faith is also a "commentary," because it sticks closely to the original thirty-three chapters of the WCF, explaining the foundational beliefs of the English Puritans, and working through all of the major doctrines of Reformed churches.
This book serves as a great introduction to the Westminster Confession in a devotional format. I enjoyed not only being able to read the Confession and the accompanying scriptures, but also how Pastor Everhard applies the Confession to various parts of the Christian life.
Each chapter of the devotional begins with reading a chapter of the WCF, one or two readings from scripture, prayer, historical reflection, self-reflection theological reflection, and then ends with application. I found this organization to be helpful, since it allowed time for deep reflection on the Confession and then the application of it at the end.
This book isn’t necessarily a thorough deep dive into the WCF, but definitely serves as a wonderful devotional and practical reflection over the truths found in the Confession!
I have to admit that I knew nothing about the Westminster Confession. These devotions opened my eyes to them. My only complaint is that was no Table of Contents. It was difficult to get a grasp of the material because of no Table of Contents.