Thomas Goodwin on Union with Christ

Thomas Goodwin has been described as 'the forgotten man of English theology' and, though known by some as a pioneer of congregationalism and a prominent member of the Westminster Assembly, the true significance and scope of his lifes work has only recently been discovered. Historical reassessment has uncovered that the majority of Goodwins treatises were intended to form a grand project defending Reformed soteriology in the 1650s against new threats as well as traditional opponents. Examining Goodwins notion of union with Christ in relation to mystical indwelling, transformation, justification and participation, this study demonstrates the central role of union with Christ in Goodwins soteriology. The application of salvation, he contended, must be founded on real union with Christ (i.e., mystical union forged by Christs indwelling) in order to advance a trinitarian, federal, high Reformed soteriology in which redemption from sin is set within a Reformed scheme of Christocentric deification. This in-depth analysis makes a fresh contribution to recent controversy over union with Christ in the post-Reformation period.