Collected Writings of John Murray: Lectures in Systematic Theology

We read John Murray in seminary & he is one of the best. You can't go wrong w/ Murray. Highly recommend.

excellent

Standing on the shoulders of the best theologians ever to appear in succession - the Hodges, BB Warfield, and Geerhardus Vos - John Murray represents the pinnacle of theological achievement in the modern world. He came from Scotland to study at old Princeton in the fall of 1924. The incredible responsibility of continuing the role of world-renown Bible expositor and distinguished theologian, was humbly, yet fully demonstrated by Murray. And therefore, in this reviewer's opinion, the most trustworthy and competent theology to ever appear would be this present volume. It is second to none. Systematic theologians of the modern order, such as Millard Erickson, Robert L Reymond, Tom Schreiner, Wayne Grudem (and even Arnold Fruchtenbaum, although he does not state his sources) have extensively referred to and satisfyingly quoted from this masterpiece. It can simply not be outdone. Collected articles, addresses, sermons and lectures have posthumously been compiled in this work.THE CALL:'The fact that calling is an act of God, and of God alone, should impress upon us the divine monergism in the initiation of salvation in actual procession. We become partakers of redemption by an act of God that instates us in the realm of salvation, and all the corresponding changes in us and in our attitudes and reactions are the result of the saving forces at work within the realm into which, by God's sovereign and efficacious act, we have been ushered. The call, as that by which the predestinating purpose begins to take effect, is in this respect of divine monergism after the pattern of predestination itself. It is of God and God alone.' 2:166'It would be exegetically impossible to exclude from the scope of the spiritual blessing the blessings specified in the immediately succeeding context - adoption (Eph 1:5), redemption and forgiveness of sins (vs 7), the knowledge of the mystery of God's will (vs 9), the inheritance (vs 11), and the seal of the Holy Spirit as the earnest of this inheritance (vss 13, 14). Hence election is logically and causally prior to all blessing bestowed. In accordance with which all spiritual blessing is bestowed and is in the possession of the believer, is something that antedates all history, namely election. This order cannot be reversed. Anything that falls into the category of spiritual blessing cannot be regarded as in any way conditioning election.' 2:126'Here our interest is the expressions "being predestined...according to the good pleasure of His will" (Eph 1:5), "the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Him" (vs 9), "having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will" (vs 11). The central issue of the plan of salvation can be staked on these expressions. This latter expression is surely the will unto salvation revealed in the gospel with which the whole passage is concerned. As respects both - predestination and the mystery of His will - it is to trifle with the plain import of the terms, and with the repeated emphasis, to impose upon the terms any determining factor arising from the will of man. If he meant to say anything in these expressions in verses 5, 9 and 11, it is that God's predestination, and His will to salvation, proceeds from the pure sovereignty and absolute determination of His counsel. It is the unconditioned and unconditional election of God's grace.' 2:127'There is however, another angle from which the plan of salvation must be viewed. To say the least, there is another aspect of God's counsel of salvation that must be appended to the discussion of the plan of salvation, apart from which our construction of the plan of salvation fails to take account of what is necessarily germane. If we are alert to the demands of exegesis, we will have detected the requirement. Much has been said of the electing love of God as the fountain, and as that which conditions salvation in all its phases. But it is God the Father who is the subject. God the Father is the subject in Ephesians 1: 4, 5, as is shown by verse 3: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." It is apparent also in Romans 8:29, for the subject is the person of whom it can be said that He "predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son." The Father alone sustains such a relationship to the Son. Much else could be adduced from Scripture to the same effect. In a word, therefore, our concept of the plan of salvation is bereft of what is most precious, if it fails to take account of this.' 2:130

Good

Good teaching