Dr. Thomas H. McCall, Caleb T. Friedeman, and Matt T. Friedeman put out a book this year entitled “The Doctrine of Good Works: Reclaiming a Neglected Protestant Teaching.” Christianity Today has named it as their first choice for an award-winning book for 2023 in the category of Theology (Academic). Dr. McCall is a member of the faculty at ATS. Matt Friedeman is an alum (’85), and his son, Caleb, attended ATS briefly.
You can find CT’s article about this book HERE, but here is a helpful summarizing excerpt:
“Jointly written by a renowned systematic theologian (Thomas McCall), a New Testament scholar (Caleb Friedeman), and a professor of evangelism and discipleship (Matt Friedeman), this book offers a unique examination of one of the most downplayed aspects of evangelical theology: the relationship between salvation and good works. The volume offers historical, biblical, and theological treatments of this doctrine, concluding with case studies and practical applications for pastoral ministry.”
To learn more or purchase the book, visit Baker Publishing or Amazon.
Treatment of the doctrine of good works has long been needed in today’s religious environment, especially among evangelicals, where cheap grace has supplanted authentic grace. As a retired UM pastor with 41 years of service, I can’t count the number of people who “gave their lives to Jesus” but never opened themselves to one iota of transformation.