Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

pt. 1. Knowing God : the presuppositions of theology. Dissonant dramas : paradigms for knowing God and the world -- The character of theology : a theoretical or a practical science? -- The source of theology : revelation -- Scripture as covenant canon -- The Bible and the church : from Scripture to system -- pt. 2. God who lives. God : the incommunicable attributes -- God : the communicable attributes -- The Holy Trinity -- pt. 3. God who creates. The decree : Trinity and predestination -- Creation : God's time for us -- Providence : God's care for all He has made -- Being human -- The fall of humanity -- pt. 4. God who rescues. The person of Christ -- The state of humiliation : Christ's threefold office -- The state of exaltation : the Servant who is Lord -- pt. 5. God who reigns in grace. Called to be saints : Christ's presence in the Spirit -- Union with Christ -- Forensic aspects of union with Christ : justification and adoption -- The way forward in grace : sanctification and perseverance -- The hope of glory : "those whom He justified He also glorified" (Ro 8:30) -- The kingdom of grace and the New Covenant church -- Word and sacrament : the means of grace -- Baptism and the Lord's Supper -- The attributes of the church : unity, catholicity, and holiness -- Apostolicity : a fellowship of receivers and deliverers -- pt. 6. God who reigns in glory. A dwelling place -- The return of Christ and the last judgment -- The last battle and life everlasting.

Michael Horton's highly anticipated The Christian Faith represents his magnum opus and will be viewed as one of -- if not the -- most important systematic theologies since Louis Berkhof wrote his in 1932. A prolific, award-winning author and theologian, Professor Horton views this volume as "doctrine that can be preached, experienced, and lived, as well as understood, clarified, and articulated." It is written for a growing cast of pilgrims making their way together and will be especially welcomed by professors, pastors, students, and armchair theologians. Features of this volume include: (1) a brief synopsis of biblical passages that inform a particular doctrine; (2) surveys of past and current theologies with contemporary emphasis on exegetical, philosophical, practical, and theological questions; (3) substantial interaction with various Christian movements within the Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodoxy traditions, as well as the hermeneutical issues raised by postmodernity; and (4) charts, sidebars, questions for discussion, and an extensive bibliography, divided into different entry levels and topics. - Publisher.