The Doctrines That Divide: A Fresh Look at the Historic Doctrines That Separate Christians

I have only a few words about Lutzer. He is prolific and I have read many of his books. You should never pass up the chance to buy and read anything written by him. He will not dissapoint no matter what subject he is writing about. He is one of Christianity's greatest writers.

If there is to be the restoration of "oneness" that is Christ, this book should be numbered among the reformation that encourages Christianity without denominational dogma. The book provides an understanding of the Protestant variations, much of which is not biblically sound nor reasonably acceptable, save the authoritative requisite of a denomination's founders. The book is scholarly and its form designed to present well-researched facts; facts that generally are not incorporated in church history but, nonetheless, readily available to seekers of truth. The book is recommended as a tool to inspire collective, Christian worship wherein understanding is encouraged and acceptance optional.

While I believe that Erwin Lutzer has written an outstanding book and I agree with him on almost every point (infant baptism being the huge exception), I do find a slight quibble in that the book is advertised as presenting an objective opinion, which it does not. However, I will hasten to point out that Lutzer is backed up by Scripture is his statements on every single point, which makes up for most of this and brings my rating of the book up to 4 stars. I'd give it a full 5 if he was more straightforward in the fact that he was in fact arguing for specific positions (including Calvinism, which is perfectly Biblical--don't get me wrong, but he specifically says at one point that he's not trying to convince the reader to become a Calvinist when in fact I think he really is).It's an excellent read, and Lutzer's thesis is certinaly important--we cannot sacrifice essential doctrines for the sake of unity. The former is more important.

Pastor Luzter writes a very insightful book. One huge advantage is that you do not have to read the book chronology. The book gives good theology of how certain traditions came into fruition. I recommend this book for anyone who desires to know more about Christian History.

I've been looking for a book like this for sometime. BOTH sides of the issues which Christians are divided over are explained. Not only are the issues explained fairly, but Erwin Lutzer brings in the giants to defend each position; no straw men here. The Martin Luther-vs-Erasmus section over Free Will is really good. Another thing which I like is that the author lets you know his positions on the issues. This allows the reader to decide if he is being fair to the other view.