Unconditional surrender: God's program for victory

by Gary North

Book by North, Gary

Genres: Theology, Christian, Christianity

264 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Gary North received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Riverside. He served on the Senior Staff of the Foundation for Economic Education, in Irvington-on-Hudson, New York, and was the president of the Institute for Christian Economics. Dr. North’s essays and reviews have appeared in three dozen magazines and journals, including The Wall Street Journal, National Review, The American Spectator, and others.

Reviews

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

On the plus side of good.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"My most important book is Unconditional Surrender." - Gary North
That should turn some heads. Worth a read. Free PDF from his site: https://www.garynorth.com/Uncondition...

[Douglas Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book that I have had all my children read, and lead book studies through. It is an easy to read theology primer, of the Reformed/Christian Reconstructionist variety.

Must reading!

[Jason Garwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this book. May God use the truths contained within its pages to expand his kingdom for his glory.

[Steven H · Rating 2 out of 5]

A HASTILY-WRITTEN BUT COMPREHENSIVE OVERVIEW OF NORTH'S "PROGRAM"

Gary Kilgore North (born 1942) is head of the Institute for Christian Economics, and a prominent Christian Reconstructionist, who has written widely on many topics (including postmillennial eschatology).

He wrote in the Preface to this 1988 book, "This book was born of necessity. I publish a bi-weekly economic newsletter, Remnant Review, which is sent to people who are interested in ways of preserving and increasing their capital... I wanted to recommend a good introductory book on the significance of Christianity for the modern world, and I couldn't think of one... that was general, theologically accurate, comprehensive, and readable... I decided to write this book, but with a time limit. That limit was two weeks.... I fact, I even had half a day to spare, since I finished in the afternoon."

"(Christians) know that they have the tool of dominion, God's law... The future belongs to them and their heirs... Given this perspective, is it surprising that Christians should amass capital?" (Pg. 191) Later, he adds, "The Church ... must become convinced that ... we aren't destined to defend the last outpost... Who wants to be a commander in a losing cause? ... I submit that this is a major factor in explaining why Christians have nobody sensible leading them in this century. Or at least very, very few sensible people." (Pg. 353)

He charges, "Churches that ordain women to positions of authority, or which ordain them as ministers of the gospel, are in open, flagrant rebellion against God." (Pg. 201) He asserts, "The individualistic, autonomous resistance to the civil magistrate by the Christian is prohibited. He must conform to the authorities, and if they are agreed, he has no valid alternative, except to leave the jurisdiction of the civil government under which he lives. The Bible does not advocate anarchy." (Pg. 253-254)

This is a useful summary of North's position---notwithstanding its haste in composition.

[Rory Fry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great for a number of reasons:
1. It’s easy to read
2. It introduces Reformed concepts
3. It breaks down the Recon movement nicely

Cons? It’s a tad slow at places.

[Aurora Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

Intended to be a 101 intro to dominionist theology

[Zach de Walsingham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent beginner level introduction to the late Gary North's overall thoughts on worldview, covenant theology, biblical law, and sphere sovereignty, from the 2010 fifth edition.

[Kurt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gary North claims this book was born of necessity when he couldn't find "a good introductory book on the significance of Christianity for the modern world." That was the early 1980's, so maybe better alternatives have been written in the last 30 years, but I think it would be difficult to beat this one. The style is easy to read, and although a few paradigms from my evangelical anabaptist upbringing were attacked, I came away wanting to examine the issues further instead of feeling the need to discount any of Mr. North's points. I think I'll need to read this book again to fully appreciate North's arguments.

(I read a pdf version of the Fourth Edition of this book that was a free download for Gary North's website. That file was a poor scan/text recognition conversion of the printed version of the book, and has many distracting errors in it. Nonetheless, I was able to enjoy the book despite the errors.)

[Jonathan Franzone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome read! This is a keeper and one to read over. Might also be required reading for my senior homeschooled children.

[Chris Concannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.