I doubt that reading this would change Andrew’s opinions, but I found it helpful and it deals in more depth (although still concisely) with the issues he and I were wrestling with. For anyone wanting to dig deeper into the subject this would be a great place to start.
 
In three sections Gatiss looks at the exegetical arguments about the extent of the atonement, then historical and doctrinal developments and finally some practical conclusions. This is not a combative book, with Gatiss stating in his introduction that it is not something “over which Reformed evangelicals should seriously fall out,” and whatever side of the debate you are on there will be material here that will helpfully stimulate and provoke your thinking.
 
The exegetical arguments take up the first half of the book, and are of course essential. Gatiss seeks to deal with claims that definite atonement is a ‘textless doctrine’ and, to my mind, does this in a way that is convincing. However, these arguments have been well chewed, and it is when the book moves onto historical theology and practical considerations that it really comes alive for me. A brief overview of pre-Reformation views is insightful and then a longer section dealing with the claim that Calvin wasn’t really a Calvinist is especially helpful. In this section Gatiss engages with R. T. Kendall’s much quoted Calvin and English Calvinism, helpfully showing some of the weaknesses in Kendall’s thesis.
 
The examination of what the Synod of Dordt actually says about limited atonement is very clarifying, demonstrating as it does the breadth of Reformed opinion Dordt sort to accommodate. This was no hard-line, hyper-Calvinist stitch-up! Gatiss’s examination of ‘hypothetical universalism’ is also fascinating, as this approach seems to be very close to the Limited/Unlimited position currently being popularised by Mark Driscoll. If you want to understand the historical antecedents for Driscoll’s position, and also some of its weaknesses, the summary here on hypothetical universalism is a great place to start. As the Latimer Studies are written from an Anglican perspective for an Anglican audience the section on doctrinal developments concludes with an examination of Anglican positions, which is of limited interest for a non-Anglican like me!

In the section on practical considerations Gatiss succinctly deals with the pastoral complaint that a belief in particular redemption precludes us from being able to say, ‘Jesus loves you! Jesus died for you!’ As I argued in one of my posts, this language isn’t a good refection of the biblical models anyway, and certainly isn’t representative of what we see in the apostolic sermons in the book of Acts.

At 129 pages long For Us and For Our Salvation is not a long and technical read but does cover enough ground in enough depth to be useful. I would think that most readers of this blog would find it accessible and helpful, and would recommend it to you. I’d also recommend it to Andrew!