Don Carson has been based at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School since 1978. Together with Tim Keller, Don Carson founded The Gospel Coalition (TGC) in 2005 and he was the president until 2020. He could rightly be seen as a successor to John Stott: both wrote an enormous amount on a range of theoretical and practical topics; both invested significant time to global Christianity, preaching, training, and evangelising; both established and strengthened important parachurch organisations. Becoming familiar with their work is not only vital for understanding recent evangelical history but also extremely spiritually and practically beneficial for one’s life, mind and ministry.
The Gospel and the Modern World is a collection of thirty-four of Carson’s editorials and other articles from the theological journal Themelios, of which Carson was the general editor from 2008 to 2018.[1] After an introductory section, the book is divided into five further sections, on the gospel; the Bible and biblical theology;[2] Christ and culture; church leadership; and Christian discipleship.
Introductory Essays: Helpful but Largely Descriptive
The introductory part 1 (‘A Theological Vision for the Church’) includes essays by Andy Naselli, who completed his PhD under Carson from 2006–2010 and was his research manager from 2006–2014; and Collin Hansen, vice president for content and editor in chief of TGC.[3] These are followed by two essays written by Carson.
Gospel and the Modern World, The: A Theological Vision for the Church
D. A. Carson; Brian J. Tabb (Editor)
Gospel and the Modern World, The: A Theological Vision for the Church
D. A. Carson; Brian J. Tabb (Editor)
Biblical scholar D. A. Carson has contributed a tremendous amount to the field of evangelical thought, serving as cofounder of the Gospel Coalition, editor of the theological journal Themelios, and, beginning in 2022, as president of the Evangelical Theological Society. Reflecting on his esteemed career, Carson’s colleagues have gathered some of his best work in this warm, enriching collection, imparting years of experience and Christian scholarship to a new generation of readers.
Naselli’s chapter begins with a biographical sketch (11–17). He describes the volume of Carson’s annual reading—500 books a year; the scale of his written output—on average “one book written or edited every four months, with one article and two reviews written every six weeks—for three decades” (quoting Justin Taylor); not to mention his travel schedule—“For example, from 1985 to 2010, Caron made over sixty-five trips to Australia to preach and teach”. These figures are so astonishingly prodigious that Carson’s productivity is not really an example to follow, any more than was Bobby Fischer’s ability to win simultaneous games of chess while blindfolded. Praise God for the extraordinary gifts he gives to his church!
The primary purpose of the chapter, however, is to describe ‘D. A. Carson’s Theological Method’. Carson has written and taught extensively on this topic, so the chapter is largely a careful collation and summary of what Carson has said, rather than a description resulting from observation and induction. Naselli is clear that his intention is to describe rather than critique Carson’s method, although in his conclusion his evaluation is:
Carson’s theological method is outstanding and his first-class work is the fruit. Both his method and product are worthy of imitating. (48)
Hansen’s chapter is likewise primarily descriptive and glowingly positive in its outline of the history of and ‘D. A. Carson’s Vision for The Gospel Coalition’. This is a useful account, drawing on not only books and public documents, but also Hansen’s firsthand experience and personal correspondence with Carson. It is interesting to discover that TGC grew much more rapidly and that the website came to be much more significant than was expected (59–60). Hansen notes that “TGC now publishes one of the largest Christian websites in the world” (60). The chapter serves its purpose, but the minimal analysis shows that there is still need for future work on TGC of a more critical nature.
One point in this chapter provides an explanation for one of the recurring themes of the collection as a whole:
Carson foresaw that homosexuality could become in the twenty-first century what indulgences had been in the sixteenth-century Reformation. Homosexuality could be the “trigger issue” that led to deeper division over biblical authority and ultimate a split across the entire Western church. (54)
Recurring Themes
Themes emerge, reflecting the choices of editor Brian Tabb but also demonstrating some recurring concerns of Carson himself. The book, then, in part provides one assessment of the pressing issues facing especially North American evangelicalism in the early twenty-first century.
These themes include, firstly, the definition of the gospel and a careful distinguishing of the gospel itself from the necessary effects and implications of the gospel. Secondly, the changing definition of the word tolerance, from upholding freedom of belief and the importance of respecting those with whom you might strong disagree, to welcoming and celebrating those whose beliefs and practices differ to one’s own. Thirdly, affirming and upholding the authority of Scripture as God’s word. Fourthly, theological attempts to endorse, or downplay the moral objection to homosexual sex.
It is worth contemplating to what extent the most significant issues of the mid-twenty-first century might be drifting from these matters and what the primary emerging challenges may be.
Two Highlights
Two features of this collection especially stand out. First, Carson’s tendency to complexify an issue, prising apart distinct but related topics, noticing equivocations and slips of logic, resisting artificially tidy synthesis. Rather than provide overly simplistic answers, Carson will often instead offer an extensive list of significant “reflections”, usually introduced with a variation of “my list … in no particular order of importance, would look something like this” (262). This approach is alluded to in the naming of each section of the book “Reflections on …” “the Gospel”, “the Bible and Biblical Theology” and so on. It is such a characteristic of Carson’s work that it maybe deserved to be more explicitly foregrounded in Naselli’s chapter on Carson’s theological method.
Second, the practical essays in the final three parts of the book are a particular highlight. I think Andreas Köstenberger is justified in describing Carson as “one of the last great Renaissance men in evangelical biblical scholarship” (1). Not only is Carson an exceptional exegete and theologian, he also is adept as a historian, cultural critic, preacher, evangelist, and pastoral theologian. Those who have listened to a great deal of Carson’s sermons and lectures will be familiar with many of the personal stories and practical insights in the second half of the collection. They have not, however, been a dominant feature of his books. The Gospel and the Modern World make this material available to a different audience.
Since Themelios is available for free online there is no need to buy the book for new content except for the introductory essays. Its value resides in its curation and convenience. The collection is a useful introduction to the breadth of Carson’s thought. God-willing it will inspire many to read his books and listen to his preaching and teaching. It is also a useful training resource; most of the articles are less than ten pages long, Carson’s penchant for obscure vocabulary is also restrained, and so articles can be easily assigned for reading, reflection and discussion in a range of settings.
[1] Originally published by Universities and Colleges Christian Fellowship (UCCF) in the UK, Themelios was taken over by TGC in 2008 and has since been published as a free online journal. Since this change, its readership has grown astronomically: “In 2022 Themelios attracted more than 1.9 million pageviews from readers in 235 countries” (60).
[2] Together, the sections on the gospel and on the Bible and biblical theology, make up one-third of the book.
[3] Hansen began working for TGC in 2010 (59).
