Slave: The Hidden Truth About Your Identity in Christ
2010, Thomas Nelson
John F. MacArthur Jr.
Dr. MacArthur is one of my favorite authors. I do not always agree with him, but he holds to the authority of the Bible in the life of the believer, and that is something I truly admire.
In his latest book, Slave, he focuses on the repeated use of the word ‘slave’ in the New Testament as used descriptively for the status of the Christian believer.
He stresses the fact that, as Christians, we are no longer to run our own lives, but be totally submitted to the lordship of Christ.
Dr. MacArthur has written much on the issue of Lordship Salvation/Easy Believism. He is a staunch believer that when Christ forgives your sins and you become a follower of His, you will live your life differently. It is inconceivable that one should enter a relationship with the Creator of the universe and not have it drastically change the way you live.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the book and agreed with its premise. When Dr. MacArthur addressed the issue of being a slave of Christ’s the book covered important ground.
My one issue with the book was that, near the midway point of it, it drifted into what seemed to me to be a treatise on double-predestination. This theory alludes to the idea that God, before time, chose who would (and consequently, who would not) be saved. This has always confused me in Dr. MacArthur’s writings in that he says that God has already chosen who He will save and who He will not, BUT it is also OUR responsibility to have faith.
I hold to a much more Wesleyan idea of salvation, which includes the idea that Christ died for ALL, not just some.
I’m not sure how vital the discussion of election was to the overall message of the book, but it seemed to divert, and possibly distract, from the book’s central theme.
Overall, not a bad book, but I would suggest reading Dr. MacArthur’s The Gospel According to Jesus, for a fuller treatment of the subject.
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