Book Review: Amazing Grace, by James M. Boice

Boice has written a text that very well may become a classic, as Gerstner’s comment on the back cover suggests. The book is written with a near-perfect combination of popular-level scholarship and pastoral voice. Boice delivers on what his title and subtitle promise, as he enters into a comprehensive, but non-technical, study of grace.

The topic is dealt with in four parts. Part One deals with Our Gracious God. Starting with God’s actions toward Adam and Eve at the time of the Fall, the author demonstrates that there was grace expressed in Eden. He then moves on to discuss the vital issue of Common grace (theologians’ explanation for God’s goodness as it is experienced by all people), and then wraps up the section by speaking of the grace that was revealed in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ.

In Part Two, Saving Grace, Boice sets the table by beginning with an exposition of Ephesians, in which he demonstrates that God’s saving grace proceeds from God’s sovereign choice in election. This is followed by a chapter (again using Ephesians) asserting that salvation is by grace alone, followed by the next chapter which attests that justification is by grace alone. Boice does an excellent job explaining the terminology, such that this book could be given to a seeker who is largely unfamiliar with the intellectual territory of salvation.

Moving along to chapter seven, we are shown the effects of God’s grace in our daily lives (the title is, aptly, Standing in Grace). Boice uses this chapter to deal with the all-important subject of our union with Christ, as well as the vital topic of suffering. Many Christians are confused about the issue of our security in Christ, and the author handles that matter in chapter eight. Part Two wraps up with a discussion of the abundance of God’s grace and the relationship of law and grace.

So far, the book has operated somewhat on a chronology of a spiritual journey. The first part dealt with the awakening to sin, and the awakening to Christ. The second with matters pertinent to becoming a true believer in Christ. In keeping with this pattern, the third part (Living by Grace)deals with issues for a new Christian.

Chapter eleven covers growing strong in grace, and twelve the sufficiency of grace to cover our weaknesses. Boice then moves on to the role of grace in prayer, giving, and our communications in succeeding chapters.

The final part of the book (Grace Triumphant) is given to the matter of perseverance, and the Bible’s benedictions of grace.

One of the strengths of this marvelous exposition of grace is the wide range of audiences for whom it will be helpful. Christians of any spiritual age will benefit from the results of Boice’s careful study. Individual chapters of the book can be profitably employed by biblical counselors seeking to build up one portion or another of a counselee’s life. The book can also be given to those who are not yet in Christ, as the first two parts comprise a compelling, lucid explanation of the gospel.

This is an excellent book written at an accessible, popular level, and I recommend it highly. You may have a little difficulty securing a copy; at the moment (April, 2012) it seems to be out-of-print, which is a real shame considering its value. You can find used copies on the Internet, however, for a good price.