Justification and Regeneration: Practical Writings on Saving Faith

Healthy doctrines of justification and regeneration have always been essential to the Christian’s faith and knowledge of God. In the context of 18th century Great Britain and its American Colonies, few treatments were as highly regarded as John Witherspoon’s An Essay on Justification and A Practical Treatise on Regeneration, both reprinted in this volume.

Providing a careful summary of Witherspoon’s life and thought, Kevin DeYoung’s introduction and notes are an invaluable guide to these classic works. Justification and Regeneration is both milk and solid food for the Christian-an incisive study of the converted person’s standing before God, along with a pastoral exploration of the power of that conversion.

207 pages.

View excerpt here.

“John Witherspoon is often portrayed as a patriot, academic, moralist, or churchman. These are all true. But here in these essays on justification and regeneration, carefully edited by Kevin DeYoung, we discover that Witherspoon was preeminently a theologian and gospel preacher. This descendent of John Knox was deeply committed to the imputation of the righteousness of Christ and the necessity of the new birth through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit. I’m grateful to Dr. DeYoung for pointing readers once again to what the influential college president, patriot, and Presbyterian preacher held to be ‘the doctrine of Christ, the Scripture method of salvation,’ and ‘fundamental truth,’ as well as the ‘substance of religion,’ namely that ‘except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ The works reprinted here are wonderful evidence that Witherspoon, the only clergyman who signed the Declaration of Independence, not only believed in the great American cause, but more importantly, believed in the cause of the cross of Christ.” – Peter A. Lillback, Westminster Theological Seminary

“This work has always been regarded as one of the ablest Calvinistic expositions of that doctrine in any language. I hope you approve Mr. Witherspoon’s books. I think his Treatise on Regeneration is the best I have seen upon this important subject” – John Newton (1725-1807) in a letter to Mr. Cunningham

“We associate John Witherspoon mostly with his immense contribution to the American republic. Thanks to Kevin DeYoung, we can now see him also as a premier Reformed theologian defending the biblical doctrines of justification and the new birth in a revivalistic context not so different from our own. I am thrilled that these accessible essays can have a fresh impact on churches today.” – Michael Horton, Westminster Seminary California