Sunday 26 March 2017

20 Answers Salvation - Jimmy Akin - 20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers

20 Answers - Salvation
20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers
Jimmy Akin
Catholic Answers Press
ISBN 9781941663615
eISBN 9781941663639
ASIN B01HDZVDVE



Lent is now half over and I have read 7 of the 20 books in the 20 Answers series from Catholic Answers. And I realise I am setting myself up for a hard stretch towards the end. To date I have been avoiding all the ones that deal with other religions. I have no hesitation about reading them but am concerned about how to approach them for writing reviews. But I made the commitment to do the 20 Answers Challenge from Catholic Answers Series. During lent you can get all 20 books for 50% off, what an amazing deal! So I need to refocus my reading, and tackle some of those books I have not yet. I am part way through Jimmy Akin's A Daily Defense: Apologetics Lessons for Every Day, and love his writing style, so I was not surprised that I loved his volume on Salvation in this amazing series.

The twenty questions that Jimmy tackles regarding salvation are:

1. Why do I need to be saved?
2. What is original sin?
3. What is personal sin?
4. What is grace?
5. How can I be saved?
6. How should we understand the key concepts connected with salvation?
7. How should we answer the question, "Have you been saved?"
8. Why did Jesus die on the cross?
9. What is a sacrament?
10. What is baptism?
11. What is confession?
12. If Jesus died for our sins, why should we do penance?
13. What is justification?
14. Are we justified "by faith alone"?
15. What are "works of the law"?
16. What is merit?
17. What is heaven?
18. What is purgatory?
19. What is hell?
20. Is there salvation outside the Church?

From the introduction Jimmy is clear and concise in his teachings on Salvation, he states: "When Scripture says that God gave his only Son, it refers to Jesus Christ and the key events of his life-particularly his death on the cross. God didn't just give his Son to be born among men-he gave him to die on a cross for our salvation. That's how much God loves us!" This book is a synthesis of centuries of teaching about salvation, what it is, what it is not, how it is achieved are but a few of the lessons that will be learned in this book. Jimmy draws extensively from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and from Scriptures. There are a few other quotes from other church documents. But for the most part his arguments come from Scripture and the Catechism. 

I particularly loved the chapter: 'If Jesus died for our sins, why should we do penance?' for it is excellent for sharing with fallen away Catholics, or protestants who question the 'whole penance' thing. This line here is pure gold "So even when we've become children of God and been forgiven, God still disciplines us. He allows us to experience some consequences for our sins so that we may grow in holiness." And when you combine it with what follows it in the text: "That's why we do penance. It's a way of embracing discipline, of learning to do it, to internalize it, and it builds strength and self-control for the future. If we learn how to say no to ourselves as part of penance, we'll be better able to say no to temptations in the future." You have a blueprint for spiritual growth into maturity. Or as Saint Paul wrote, in 1 Corinthians 3:1-4 "Brothers, I could not talk to you as spiritual people, but as fleshly people, as infants in Christ. I fed you milk, not solid food, because you were unable to take it. Indeed, you are still not able, even now, for you are still of the flesh. While there is jealousy and rivalry among you, are you not of the flesh, and behaving in an ordinary human way?" Penance will help bring about maturity, and to be honest so will reading this book or the whole 20 Answers series.

This was another excellent read in the 20 Answers series and I highly recommend the book and the series.

Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2017 Catholic Reading Plan!

Note 2: Lent 2017 this is an amazing series of books is being offered at a 50% discount through the end of Lent 2017. But the challenge is to read the 20 books in the 20 Answers series over Lent. That is right you can get all 20 physical books or all 20 eBooks for just $34.95! If you want a way to go deeper this Lent give this series a try! #20AnswersChallenge




Books by Jimmy Akin:
The Salvation Controversy
Cracking the Da Vinci Code
The Fathers Know Best
The Drama of Salvation
Justification by Faith and Works
A Daily Defense: 365 Days ( plus one) to Becoming a Better Apologist
Mass Revision: How the Liturgy is Changing and What it Means for You
Pope Names: The Definitive Guide to the History of Papal Naming, Why Popes Choose the Names They Do, and What Name the Next Pope Will Choose
Why Mormonism Is Not Christian: The Essential Facts Every Catholic Must Know
Mormons: The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints: A Catholic Perspective
20 Answers Salvation - 20 Answers Series from Catholic Answers
The Bible Answer Man Debate: Jimmy Akin vs. James White
Annulments: What You Need to Know
Islam: A Catholic Perspective
Mark: A Commentary
The Nightmare World of Jack Chick
God Is Love: Understanding Benedict XVI's First Encyclical
Words of Wisdom from the Church Fathers

20 Answers Faith and Works - Jimmy Akin

20 Answers Series:
20 Answers Abortion - Trent Horn
20 Answers Angels & Demons - Fr. Mike Driscoll
20 Answers Atheism - Matt Fradd
20 Answers Death & Judgement - Trent Horn
20 Answers Divorce & Remarriage - Jim Blackburn
20 Answers End of Life - Jason Negri
20 Answers Faith & Science - Trent Horn
20 Answers God - Trent Horn
20 Answers Islam - Andrew Blezad
20 Answers Jehovah's Witnesses - Trent Horn
20 Answers Mary - Tim Staples
20 Answers Miracles - Karlo Broussard
20 Answers Mormonism - Trent Horn
20 Answers Salvation - Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Scripture and Tradition - Jim Blackburn
20 Answers The Bible - Trent Horn
20 Answers The Eucharist - Trent Horn
20 Answers The Papacy - Jim Blackburn
20 Answers The Real Jesus - Trent Horn

20 Answers The Church - Trent Horn
20 Answers Witchcraft & the Occult - Michelle Arnold
20 Answers Apparitions & Revelations - Michael O'Neill
20 Answers Bible Prophecy - Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Homosexuality - Jim Blackburn
20 Answers The Reformation - Steve Weidenkopf
20 Answers The Sacraments - Fr. Mike Driscoll

20 Answers Bioethics - Stacy A. Trasancos
20 Answers Conversion - Shaun McAfee
20 Answers Faith and Works - Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Anti-Catholic Myths - Jimmy Akin
20 Answers The End Times - Jimmy Akin
20 Answers The Rosary - Tom Nash
20 Answers Seasons & Feasts – Michelle Arnold
20 Answers New Age -  Michelle Arnold
20 Answers Catholic Social Teaching – Mark Brumley
20 Answers Prayer – Hugh Barbour O. Praem and Sebastian Walshe O. Praem
20 Answers Faith & Reason – Christopher Kaczor
20 Answers The New Testament – Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Protestantism – Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Marriage & Sex – Todd Aglialoro
20 Answers The Early Church – Jim Blackburn
20 Answers The Old Testament – Jimmy Akin
20 Answers Judaism – Michelle Arnold
20 Answers The Sacraments – Father Mike Driscoll

Other Books from Catholic Answers:
Hard Sayings: A Catholic Approach to Answering Bible Difficulties - Trent Horn
A Daily Defense: Apologetics Lessons for Every Day - Jimmy Akin
The Apostasy That Wasn't: The Extraordinary Story of the Unbreakable Early Church - Rod Bennett
Answering Atheism - How to Make the Case for God with Logic and Charity - Trent Horn
Persuasive Pro Life: How to Talk About Our Culture's Toughest Issue - Trent Horn and Fr Frank Pavone
The Protestant's Dilemma: How the Reformation's Shocking Consequences Point to the Truth of Catholicism - Devin Rose
Behold Your Mother: A Biblical and Historical Defense of the Marian Doctrines - Tim Staples
Handed Down: The Catholic Faith of the Early Christians - James L. Papandrea
Demons, Deliverance, Discernment: Separating Fact from Fiction about the Spirit World - Fr. Mike Driscoll
Navigating the Tiber: How to Help Your Friends and Family Journey Toward the Catholic Faith - Devin Rose
100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura - Dave Armstrong
The Drama of Salvation: How God Rescues You from Your Sins and Brings You to Eternal Life - Jimmy Akin
The Truth is Out There (Brendan and Erc in Exile Book 1 - Brother Amadeus and Amadeus
...Memorize the Reasons! Defending the Faith with the Catholic Art of Memory - Kevin Vost
Marching Orders: A Tactical Plan for Converting the World to Christ - Dan McGuire

The Fathers Know Best - Jimmy Akin
Why We're Catholic: Our Reasons for Faith, Hope, and Love - Trent Horn
The Old Evangelization: How to Spread the Faith Like Jesus Did - Eric Sammons
...

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