That idea of taking a second glance at God's Word is central to a forthcoming book from Ligonier's publishing imprint, Reformation Trust Publishing -- What's So Great about the Doctrines of Grace? Written by the Rev. Richard D. "Rick" Phillips, it is scheduled for release in April.

If you haven't yet become familiar with Rick and his work, I hope you'll do so soon. He is (or has been) a pastor, preacher, conference speaker, author, professor, soldier, husband, and father. But what's more, he's a test pilot.

You see, Rick came to us with a book idea very soon after Reformation Trust was launched. He was already a published author with several excellent books under his belt, but he was willing to take a chance on an unproven publisher. In essence, he made himself a test pilot for Reformation Trust. We're extremely appreciative, because Rick's writing is substantive yet accessible. Best of all, his work is "biblical exposition at its finest," as one reviewer described that initial book he proposed to us, which became Jesus the Evangelist.

Now, in What's So Great about the Doctrines of Grace? Rick is employing the philosophy of the second glance in regard to the doctrines of grace, also known as the five points of Calvinism. This book is both an explanation and a celebration of the doctrines. Rick is calling his readers to take another look at the scriptural underpinnings of these tenets, which may seem all too familiar, and see again the wonderful truths they encapsulate.

Here's a short excerpt from Chapter 4, "What's So Great about Limited Atonement?":

Every family has a black sheep. It is that brother or uncle or cousin who has to be acknowledged as a family member but who is, frankly, a bit embarrassing. As we consider the family of letters that make up the Reformed acrostic, TULIP, allow me to introduce the black sheep: L--limited atonement. As is always the case with black sheep, it is hard for us to deny L its place in the family; after all, without the L, the acrostic no longer spells our beloved Dutch flower. But there are always those who insist the black sheep doesn't really belong. There must have been a mistake: the babies must have been switched at the hospital or the FedEx driver must have delivered the wrong package. This is the kind of thing jokingly whispered at the family dinner table; it accounts for the so-called "four-point Calvinists" who do not want limited atonement in the family portrait.

I have performed funerals for black sheep, and it is usually hard to know what to say, especially when we're pretty sure he or she wasn't a Christian. Everyone knows that you don't have much to work with and are just doing your best. This is how I feel when I hear many Reformed scholars defending limited atonement. They are searching for positive things to say and hoping to make it through without doing too much harm.

Well, let me assure you, I am not writing to deliver a funeral oration for limited atonement. In fact, I would like to reverse the famous line from Mark Antony's eulogy for Julius Caesar, as immortalized by Shakespeare: "I have come not to bury limited atonement, but to praise it." Indeed, I want to do my part to rehabilitate the reputation of our dear relation, limited atonement, proclaiming it to be not a black sheep in the family of Reformed doctrine, but a teaching worthy of our high esteem and a privileged place at the table of our hearts.

Intrigued? I hope so. This book not only will help you better understand the doctrines of grace, it will offer you multiple reasons to love them, as well.