Common Grace, by Abraham Kuyper

I bought Common Grace thinking it would be a discussion of what those outside of faith share as humans. In fact it was something else. It was a close look at two covenants prominent in Reformed Theology: the Adamic and Noahic covenants. The focus is on God's program and what he asks of us as humans before Him. It is full of reflection about these two parts of Genesis and discussion of theological concepts such as the image of God, original righteousness, paradise, God's promise not to destroy the world again by flood, and numerous other ideas. The result of rading the book leads one to ponder why we are here and what God was about in creating us as humans. The emphasis is on theology more than a detailed examination of specific texts, but the discussion does lead one to consider many aspects of why God created us. 

This is my first read of Kuyper, a famous Reformed theologian of the late 19 and early 20th century. His style is clear. His address of issues is direct. He raises and pursues questions that many do not even raise. He reasons in detail, sometimes one senses he infers to answer questions that may not have an answer. Still it is a worthy read. If one has ever wondered why there is so much discussion of covenants to Adam and Noah in the Reformed tradition, this text will help to explain why the topic is raised.