The Bible is under attack on all sides. Unbelievers denounce it as backward, narrow-minded, and intolerant, and even some professing Christians deny its truth to gain approval from the culture. With each assault, we hear echoes of the serpent’s question in the garden of Eden: “Did God really say?” Unfortunately, many believers don’t know how to answer these challenges and find their confidence in God’s Word shaken.
In Final Word: Why We Need the Bible, Dr. John MacArthur defends the trustworthiness of Scripture, with the goal of equipping the church to stand firm for the truth even when others abandon it. Only when God’s people recognize the Bible for what it is—God’s inerrant, authoritative Word—will they be able to fulfill their calling and carry the message of God’s salvation to the world. – from publisher
Dr. MacArthur as always is very passionate and frank about the need for Christians to open up their bible and read. Not only read but to study and apply God’s word to their lives. The book is broken down into six chapters where he takes the reader through the attacks on the bible. In each chapter, he lays out what the specific attack is and then supports the importance of the Bible through scriptures.
Dr. MacArthur not only calls Christians to read the bible to defend their faith, to understand the supremacy of God’s word but to be able to discern false teaching in which he specifically calls out many of today’s preachers especially those with large followings. He plainly shows through scripture that we must read and study the bible for ourselves with scripture-based pastors who’s sole purpose is to preach the God’s word through scripture verse by verse and not picking apart the scripture that will align with ones preaching.
This book is extremely important for Christians to understand the importance of God’s word but to also to understand that we must study it and seek to correctly interpret scripture. Dr. MacArthur strongly and succinctly makes the case that we must dust off the bible, read it and use it as it was designed. We can no longer expect to be spoon fed but take an active roll in our relationship with God.

I received an ARC ebook from Netgalley and the publisher, Reformation Trust Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

A worthwhile, if expected, read on the supremacy of Scripture. I appreciated the length and the author choosing to be concise instead of long winded as many are prone to be on this subject and in this genre. This would make a great gift for anyone: ministers and deacons especially. I'm making it a Father's Day gift for my dad.

5 stars

John MacArthur has written yet another amazing and biblically accurate book. I cannot say enough good things about this book . MacArthur is a great preacher. He has an amazing ability to explain Scripture without resorting to fluff or trying to be seeker sensitive.
I highly recommend this book. It would be the perfect book for a small group to read and discuss.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

Final Word is the kind of book most Christians need but I suspect few will truly benefit from. A strong authoritative wake-up call to treat Scripture as the accurate Word of God in an increasingly intolerant society, it tells it straight - 'unless the church makes an unpopular stand for Truth - there will be no church. Quoting Pastors who refuse to say 'the Bible says' Mr McArthur's book is a plea to'be careful if you think you are standing firm lest you fall'. True Chrianity is a life-long commitment to'be dedicated to God and hated by society. Mr McArthur discharges His duty to tell us that in a fatherly way. Thank you.

"Every attack on the Bible is an attack on divine truth and God's holy nature, no matter where the attack originates." - John MacArthur

In Final Word: Why We Need The Bible, Pastor MacArthur puts forth a solid case for the sufficiency, authoritative, infallible, and the effectiveness of Scripture for "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness," - 2 Timothy 3:16

As always, I enjoyed the simplicity and perspicuity of Pastor MacArthur's writing, which renders this book such a wonderful and necessary read in this day and age. It only has six insightful chapters replete with Scriptures reference that points us back to the importance and relevance of Bible. It is a good read for both new and seasoned believers and I highly recommend it!

Favourite quotes:

"The purpose of God's Word is to deposit life-transforming truth into the mind."

"Spiritual growth comes when we know the Word, when it shapes our convictions, and when we learn to long for the sustenance it alone can provide."

"In a world full of corrupting influence and contaminating ideas, there is only one source of the pure spiritual milk we require: Scripture. And we should hunger for it accordingly."

First sentence: Elizabeth Charles, the hymn writer who gave us “Praise Ye the Triune God,” was also a novelist.

In Final Word, MacArthur argues that even within the church the Bible is under attack. Many people--people who call themselves believers, people who attend church--are unable to put up a defense of the Bible, unable to articulate why the Bible is (still) important and (still) relevant. Believers of all ages and stages need a refresher course on the place the Word should have in their lives.

MacArthur reminds readers that the Bible has been under attack since Eve spoke with the serpent in Genesis. Satan's tactics have not changed. We are still vulnerable to his tactics, his attacks. Sadly, most believers deny there is even a battle to be fought. Spiritual warfare is not something most prepare for. We tend to be especially weak when unprepared.

He writes,
"The battle for the truth is the battle for the Bible, and in this fight God’s people cannot flinch. Biblical truth is under relentless and endless assault. And like Luther and the heroes of the early Reformation, we must meet the enemy head-on and be willing to stand and fight for the truth, especially when others avoid or even abandon truth when it becomes controversial."

Final Word is a short read; it has just SIX chapters. It may be short but it is super-satisfying. MacArthur is clear and straight-forward in this one. He defines terms that readers may be unfamiliar with. Every chapter relies on Scripture. Many chapters focus in on one or two specific passages of Scripture. MacArthur is an expositor even when he's writing. He will share Hebrew and/or Greek words and clarify the meaning of the text. He stays on task too.

I loved, loved, loved, LOVED John MacArthur's newest book, Final Word: Why We Need the Bible. This should come as no surprise to anyone. I love, love, love the Bible. Reading books written by people who also love, love, love the Bible is one of my favorite things.

Favorite quote:
"The purpose of God’s Word is to deposit life-transforming truth into the mind. We cannot know the truth of a passage until we understand the accurate interpretation of the passage. We need to be careful and thorough students of all Scripture, confident in its divine authorship and dependent on the Holy Spirit’s illuminating work in bringing us to a clear understanding of God’s revealed truth."