This book review of Dennis Johnson’s Him We Proclaim was written as part of Pastor Lane’s doctoral course work, and as such, it is written in a more formal, academic tone than the rest of this blog’s posts. Still, we hope the audience will find these academic book reviews useful, which is why we have published them for your reference.
Dennis E. Johnson is Academic Dean and Professor of Practical Theology at Westminster Seminary. His education includes earning a B.A. from Westmont College, a M.Div. and Th.M. from Westminster Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. Fuller Theological Seminary. He has pastored churches in New Jersey and Los Angeles. He is currently the Associate Pastor at a Presbyterian Church of America congregation in Escondido, CA. He has served in numerous denominational roles and as Trustee at Covenant College. He has also been privileged to preach in eight foreign countries. He began teaching at Westminster Seminary in 1982. After teaching New Testament for 16 years, his teaching now focuses on preaching and ministry courses. His passion is to teach his students to preach Christ from all the Scriptures and to leave seminary fully prepared to serve Christ with a winsome boldness.
Dr. Johnson states that the purpose for writing the book is to address the issue of preaching Christ by arguing for insights and disciplines from the apostles’ practices and suggesting perspectives and strategies to help the modern reader. He calls this the “apostolic-christocentric” method. The book is designed to teach how to preach Christ by reuniting insights and disciplines the apostles displayed but that have become disconnected.
The target audience for this book is students and pastors. The nature of the book is instructional by design and content. The author sets forth his purpose, lays a foundation for his teaching, and systematically presents his method. This book is helpful for students or pastors wanting to sharpen their skill at preaching Christ from the whole of Scripture.
The theological orientation of the author is evangelical, and more specifically reformed. A number of indicators show this including the academic environment where he teaches, the denomination he has pastored in, and his own identification with other pastors and scholars in this same theological orientation.
The unique contribution of this book will be most evident, I believe, in its approach to discussing the case and practice for the apostolic-christocentric preaching method. The author covers a wide array of information, but uses a difference approach from other authors in pursuit of the topic. For instance, when he covers historical influences he categorizes each one oriented to the apostolic preaching model. This changes the relationship from historical development to each position as it relates to the purpose of the book.
Another significant contribution of this book is found in the footnotes. The large amount of information included serves for further understanding of the author’s writing and as reference for further study. I found the footnotes to be extensive, and while helpful, maybe too extensive at times. The footnotes do serve, however, to give the reader the sense that the author has encompassed a large scope of information in the processing of his method.
Him We Proclaim is an advanced textbook that covers a broad scope to accomplish its purpose. There is a considerable philosophical and theoretical processing in the first part of the book. This is helpful for the reader to establish a foundation for the author’s purpose. But this can also become a bit of an overload of information. The second half of the book turns to the practice of the method, but the framework for this section remains highly theological.
The contents of the book begin with the first chapter establishing the author’s purpose in detail. A strategy is set forth to give the reader a broad introduction. Three reunions, as he refers to them, empower the preaching of the gospel in the global platform. These include reuniting the Old and New Testament, reuniting apostolic doctrine and apostolic hermeneutics, and reuniting biblical interpretation and biblical proclamation. He makes a heavy application of the apostle’s preaching because it is “redemptive-historically structured, missiologically communicated and grace-driven.” The structure of the book has two parts. The first part makes a case for apostolic hermeneutics and homiletics exegetically, historically, and polemically. The second part constructs a framework and strategies to implement this method in the ministry context. This is a helpful introduction for the reader to see the whole purpose of the book.
Part One includes four chapters and moves into the author’s case for apostolic-christocentric preaching. Chapter two begins this section by addressing the priorities and polarities in preaching. This addresses one’s overall approach to preaching. The author uses three purposes of preaching among twenty-first century preachers to frame the chapter: preaching to convert the sinner, preaching to edify the saints, and preaching to instruct the saints. The author acknowledges advantages of each but also addresses questions and concerns surrounding each as a primary purpose in the preaching event. While he acknowledges that his method agrees with elements of each, it also differs in that it encompasses a broader purpose than any of the other. He offers Tim Keller’s preaching as typical of this approach and gives three central emphases that are always present. One, both believer and unbeliever stand in need to hear the gospel and its implications for a life lived in response to amazing grace. Second, lingering idols are both the root of an unbeliever’s sin and the source of stealing a believer’s living power of the gospel in life. Third, the preacher and congregation always assume the presence of unbelievers among them. All three primary purposes of preaching, converting, edifying, and instructing, are always included in the sermon.
Chapter three sets forth a purpose for preaching as defined by Scripture, as the purpose for which God gave a particular text. Paul’s description of preaching is summarized in seven themes:
- Purpose of his proclamation
- Consideration of the identity and need of the listeners
- Content to be communicated authoritatively and persuasively
- Concrete communication tasks that preaching accomplishes
- Price to be paid by the preachers of the gospel
- Divine power that operates through the frailty of the human preacher
- Motif of the preacher’s office
Each theme is explained and presented with compelling persuasion by the author, using biblical and some historical arguments. This chapter concludes with a grand summary of apostolic preaching defined and its full effects upon the hearer listed, cognitive, moral/volitional, affective, behavioral, and communal or interpersonal.
Chapter four addresses the complications, chastening, rejection, and recovery of apostolic preaching in the history of the church. This chapter takes a unique approach to covering history in that it addresses each from its response to apostolic preaching. This helps the reader frame apostolic preaching in historical context by showing not just the merits or challenges of each era, but how it specifically responded to apostolic preaching. In this way the author was able to show ways different historical figures affirmed and diverged from this practice. The chapter concludes with the recovery element through Gerhardus Vos and Edmund Clowney’s ministry.
Chapter five addresses challenges to apostolic preaching. The previous chapter set this one up very well to prepare the reader to consider their own response to this method. Three modern misgivings are offered: misgiving about biblical unity, misgiving about interpretive accountability, and misgiving about interpretive credibility. These allow the author to address the broader issue of, “What constitutes the appropriate context or contexts for the interpretation of biblical text?” Addressing challenges provides the platform for the author to set forth his conclusion toward an accountable, credible, Christ-centered hermeneutic. This chapter concludes with the author’s words that “a humble recognition of our limitations in contrast to the revelatory insights of the apostles should lead us not to depart from but follow the apostles’ hermeneutical example particularly as we interpret those Old Testament texts on which the New Testament writers have not commented.”
Part Two introduces the author’s apostolic-christocentric preaching method. Chapter six begins by acknowledging the challenge of modern preachers using biblical examples of homiletics because of the difference of context and audience. The author uses the book of Hebrews as an example because it is a sermon preached specifically to a Christian congregation. Three specific elements are noted of Hebrews. It expounds how the Old Testament preaches Christ, preaches Christ and his redemptive work, and addresses the needs of a specific audience. The practical nature of this chapter makes it very helpful as the reader moves into learning the practice of the author’s method.
Chapter seven deals with theological foundations of apostolic preaching. This chapter addresses a way of viewing the Scripture to help one understand. Five categories are offered for how the New Testament interprets the Old and three features of Old Testament hermeneutics are identified. Hermeneutical implications of Old Testament typology are explained to show in diagram form how truth is faithfully communicated in our preaching.
Chapter eight introduces preaching Christ as the head of the new creation and the mediator of the new covenant. The Bible is God’s instrument to announce and apply what he has done to reverse sin’s effects. It must be understood in light of the whole plan of God through creation, fall, redemption, and consummation. Christ is the Lord and servant and thereby makes perfect the covenant with God. The three offices of Christ — prophet, priest, and king — are offered as helpful to understand the themes of Scripture and their unifying center in Jesus. The chapter concludes with preaching Christ for transformation by a couple of respects to application, build exhortation on grace, and display the texture of renewal in the image of God.
Chapters nine and ten are the most practical as each genre of Scripture is addressed, the Old in nine and the New in ten. These chapters instruct the reader in properly handling each genre with an application of the apostolic hermeneutic-homiletic. Two appendices are included with a step-by-step guide and the second with sample sermons.
Him We Proclaim is similar to a number of other books in this field, but has a very distinct format and structure to content. There is much of similar content covered as in other books, but the way the author structures the book gives emphasis and detail to different aspects, which make it a valuable reference in sharpening one’s ability to interpret and preach the Old Testament with a Christ-centered focus.
I would say this book is more advanced in its content. This book is best suited for the student who is not new to the topic for a couple of reasons. First, the vocabulary of the book is advanced. This book demands a base vocabulary that will be very unfamiliar to the beginning student. Second, long and complex sentences characterize the author’s writing style. One cannot grasp all the author is saying with only a quick reading of the material. Third, there is a great amount of information in footnotes for additional reading and research. This information must be considered at points in the book for a firm grasp of the material. Overall, I found the writing style a bit burdensome at times, especially in the beginning, but grew to appreciate the extent of information that he included.
I found two specific items of the book most encouraging. I enjoyed the way the author handled the historical information in chapter four. Instead of simply walking through history by representing different figures and position, each was oriented in relation to the focus of the book. This showed similarities and challenges while considering the person or position. Second, chapter eight serves as an excellent reference to frame one’s understanding of Christ’s unique role in redemption in order to approach the scriptures and faithfully preach Christ.
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