Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals: Why We Need Our Past to Have a Future

“In an age of head-spinning change, Gavin Ortlund rightly calls evangelicals to stand their ground and recover the theological ground already plowed by earlier generations. When the very foundations are being shaken, it is vital that churches recover their center of gravity by retrieving the past—what Bernard Ramm once called ‘the evangelical heritage.’ Evangelicals are not the first generation to have received the gospel. Accordingly, Ortlund here issues a manifesto about the importance of retrieving theological tradition. He then practices what he preaches in a series of astute case studies that mine the past to fund the present.”

“Anyone convinced that evangelical and ancient are opposites should read this book. Gavin Ortlund provides a compelling case for retrieving patristic and medieval theology. Mining the premodern tradition, Ortlund reminds us of neglected and forgotten insights on the creator-creature distinction, divine simplicity, and atonement theology. An excellent contribution to Protestant retrieval theology!”

“Ortlund argues compellingly that evangelicals can and should claim the classic theological heritage as their own. And then he actually does it, opening up the treasury of the great Christian tradition and dispensing theological wisdom with both hands. To look into this book is to look through a doorway into a world where there is such a thing as evangelical theology that is richly resourced, deeply informed, and ready for action.”

“Gavin Ortlund, a committed evangelical, calls for a robust engagement with the first fifteen hundred years of the Christian tradition, patristic and medieval, East and West. Retrieval, not repristination, is the goal, and Ortlund shows here how this can be done—to the glory of God and the upbuilding of the church. An exciting and important book!”

“For those who struggle with whether, how, and why to appropriate the church fathers and medieval doctors within their own theology, piety, and ministry, this book is a welcome resource. Leading us by the hand through a wide range of instructive examples, Gavin Ortlund demonstrates a principled Protestant approach to drawing upon the pastors and theologians of the past for the sake of the church’s renewal in the present.”