Stand Firm was a great nonfiction read! I felt like it was particularly relevant to the current times and I enjoyed reading it. John MacArthur isn't afraid to speak the truth, even when it may offend some people.

All in all, I recommend Stand Firm.

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If you have looked at our world the past few months, we see chaos all around us. We had a pandemic and now riots in the streets. Political turmoil is on the rise and there is tension even in the church.

We are seeing a godless, post-Christian culture turning its back on its Creator and His commandments. We are trading the glory of God for lies. Truth is whatever we want it to be. Holiness is treated with contempt and the family is disintegrating before our eyes. What are Christians suppose to do in days like these?

John MacArthur has written a timely book in which he encourages Christians in such a time as this. The book is appropriately titled, Stand Firm. MacArthur exhorts his reads to walk in holiness and shows why this is important for all believers not just a select few. We are also encouraged to love our neighbors and our enemies. It is easy to love those who love us but to love those who hate us is a challenge. The Lord commanded us to love our enemies yet God loved us while were His enemies (Romans 5:10). We are to love others when it might be difficult such as a child who has left the home and embrace a sinful lifestyle.

MacArthur encourages believers to be engaging with God in prayer. During times like these we need to pray and seek God. We need to have our hearts opened to him. One chapter MacArthur writes about is not fall under the myth of influence which means that the gospel will advance because of popularity. The message of the gospel will bring the people of God together but it will also divide. It is not a popular message nor is it one that is sought out. If there is a preacher who is popular in the world, then there must be some area of compromise in his message.

One final area MacArthur exhorts believers in is the area of perseverance. Believers are to persevere to the end. No matter how difficult the road maybe we are called to stay strong in the Lord. God told Joshua to be strong and courageous three times just before he led Israel to the Promise Land. Christians need to be strong and courageous if they want to persevere in a post-Christian society.

Not sure when MacArthur wrote this book, but I know he probably did not have 2020 in mind when he wrote it. This book is one all Christians need to grab and read.

Any of the books John MacArthur writes can be examined carefully for scriptural accuracy and they will be found to be filled with sound teachings. Not only that, but he is one of these rare people who can expound on a subject in a way that is easily understood.

During this time period where Christians are more often than ever looked down on, he reminds us to stand firm in our beliefs. He also expounds on conscience, and that is something we really need to learn to rely more on.

This is another 5 star book by this author, and one every Christian should benefit from reading.

A conscience that is too closely fixed to personal feelings is often untrustworthy. When it rises and falls with inconsistent emotions, the conscience can falsely magnify doubts and fears rather than reflecting the true state of the heart and its affections. The conscience can also be confused by too much focus on failures with sin at the expense of recognizing the work of God's grace. ..The conscience must be informed by God's word alone.

Living in the culture that we live in today can make it difficult to stand firm. It is only being in the word, living in community with biblical teaching, that we can be on the firm foundation that we desperately need. This text helps us identify what standing firm means and why we miss the mark.

Standing firm identifies what the Christian life means. It is foundational meaning that how you begin and progress will determine the faith that you hold on to. For example if you do not see God as holy, you will not see the need for holiness in your life. Holiness in its essence is a call to love which without the power of God is impossible but made possible with God. Holiness is a battle of our inner turmoil that we must be intentional in the fight.

I think my favorite chapter was The Christian life means repudiating the myth of influence. This is a loaded chapter that needs to be addressed by Christians but the church as a whole as it feeds this influence myth. We seem to follow a person of influence or if "the sacred cow" can bring in the seekers, a church calls itself successful. It is a good chapter to question our motives and how we do church. It is easily hidden because the simple fact is we are made to worship. We just don't worship the God we were created to worship. When Jesus says well done my faithful servant it is not because of the influence we bring but the faith we put our hope in.

There is much to this easy short read. MacArthur brings clarity and authority for the word of God. Highly recommend.

A Special Thank you to Reformation Trust Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an hone

John MacArthur is a Bible teacher that I fully trust to teach sound doctrine and rightly handle God's word. This book helps the Christian reader live a faithful life to Christ and is full of edifying scripture for the pilgrimage here on earth. The book is not to long and is one that every Christian should read and examine the scriptures that John lays out. I highly recommend this book it will be a blessing to your life to read and apply the principles. Thank you so much Reformation Trust Publishing and to NetGalley for the Arc.

Very timely and relevant to what we are facing today! MacArthur always does a wonderful job of tying Biblical principles to modern day life. It provokes a great deal of thought and prayer.

5 stars
John MacArthur is a phenomenal Christian teacher. He is scripturally accurate. He also is able to easily explain the Bible in such a way that anyone can understand. This book, as well as any of his others, are a must-read for all Christians.

I so highly recommend this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley. The views given are my own.

First sentence: The New Testament resounds with calls to holiness.

It continues, "We are told to abstain from fleshly lusts (1 Peter 2:11), mortify the deeds of the body (Rom. 8:13), love not the world (1 John 2:15), flee immorality (1 Cor. 6:18), put off the old man (Eph. 4:22), and think on what is true (Phil. 4:8). We read commands to let the Word of Christ dwell in us richly (Col. 3:16), to put on the breastplate of righteousness (Eph. 6:14), to buffet our bodies to bring them into subjection (1 Cor. 9:27), and to present our bodies as living sacrifices (Rom. 12:1). We hear the call of the Apostle Paul to cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh (2 Cor. 7:1), walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16), and lay aside all bitterness, anger, and malice (Eph. 4:31). Peter quoted from Leviticus in his charge to live disciplined, godly lives: “Like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15–16). Most Christians are well versed in those commands—we know them and we believe them. However, familiarity and mental assent are not enough to produce righteous results. In fact, the church seems to be rapidly losing the battle for holiness and purity. Consider the worldliness that pervades the church today. Some congregations are virtually indistinguishable from the world; many more are moving fast on a similar trajectory. Others don’t necessarily wear their worldly affections on their sleeves, but their outward acts of piety and devotion cannot conceal the corruption within. The reason is simple. The battle for holiness is not primarily about public professions and external displays. Rather, if God’s people are going to be holy, we must first win the battle on the inside."

John MacArthur's newest book is essentially a primer on the Christian life. It covers a wide range of subjects essential to living out the Christian life.

Chapter One: The Christian Life Means Being Called to Holiness
Chapter Two: The Christian Life Means Loving Your Neighbor and Your Enemy
Chapter Three: The Christian Life Means Loving Until It Hurts
Chapter Four: The Christian Life Means Engaging In Prayer
Chapter Five: The Christian Life Means Repudiating the Myth of Influence
Chapter Six: The Christian Life Means Persevering to the End

If there is a common thread to these chapters--to these subjects--it's that Christians are called out ones. No matter if we live in a so-called "Christian" culture or the worldly-world, we are called out by God, commanded to live not for the world, not for ourselves, but for Him and Him alone. Often this means countering culture and society, choosing to follow and believe what God has said.

I love short books. (Of course, I also love long books--but that is besides the point!) There is something oh-so-satisfying about sitting down with a little book and reading it in a day--or two or three. If it is super-relevant and packed with truths--both familiar and new--so much the better. I would definitely recommend this one.

This is not a book you will speed read through, it's a book you will read slowly and take to heart. The only way we can stand firm in this day and age is to stay in the bible and make sure the church you go to is a bible teaching church, not a church of the world. This is a book that I will read more than once and refer back to often. Thank you Reformation Trust Publishing via NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.