My Book List for the New or Old Converts
While ingratiating myself with a new church here in Italy and in particular its young people - the Lord saw fit, in His kindness, to have me share in the joy of a few of its young people who crossed over from death to life (John 5:24). Even sweeter still, the most recent convert was won to Christ through the faithfulness of one of the members of the youth group who he attends school with, Soli Deo Gloria! I've noticed that books-to-read, has dominated my conversations with some of the youth - to make most of the fire God has started, while it is at its hottest. So I decided to compile a short list of books that I've found invaluable to my growth. This will not be an extensive list - readability and length will, for the most part, govern this list. I pray that this post is helpful for some to start, and for others to add, to their repository of brothers and sisters, past and present who fellowship, challenge and edify us through the pages.
The Bible.
The What Is A........series. Greg Gilbert, Mark Dever, Thabiti Anyabwile
The preaching and daily application of the Gospel is what saves and keeps us (Christians) saved (1 Cor. 15:1-5, Rom. 10:14-15). Learning more of what the gospel is, and as important, what it is not, is essential to growth of the Christian and the Church. "No man is an island"- once saved, a Christian is adopted into a family called a Church (Christ's bride). Gaining a foundational understanding of what that bride should look like is greatly important for pastors as well as congregants. Learning how to be a healthy limb in the body of Christ will greatly add joy individually as well as corperately to your participation in the body. There are other books being added to this 9 Marks series, by all means get them all!
God's Big Picture (Tracing the Storyline of the Bible). Vaughan Roberts
I found this to be a joyous read. I read it with my brothers back in Cayman, and I know we are better Christians for it. As a matter of fact this blog got its name from this book as Vaughan Roberts uses the Kingdom Method (Kingdom Intersection). "God preaches only one sermon" Thabiti Anyabwile - understanding the major storylines, contributes to the proper interpretation and thus the proper handling of the word.
Bible Doctrines. Wayne Grudem
I feel I'm breaking the "length" rule I gave earlier, with this one - which is easy to do with a Wayne Grudem book. This is actually a condensed version of his Systematic Theology title. Knowing "what the whole Bible teaches us today about any given topic" is invaluable knowledge. "Nothing but the whole Bible can make a whole Christian" (A.W. Tozer) and Systematic Theology is the method of study that helps one to stay faithful to the biblical text and topics: The Trinity, The Person of Christ, Creation, Sin, The Atonement, Conversion etc. A great book for reference/study use or just casual reading for you scholars.
Mere Christianity. C.S. Lewis
To say that this is a classic in Christian literature is an understatement. C.S. Lewis is beloved in the household of faith as one of our greatest thinkers, both intellectually and artistically. And this is perhaps one of his most popular pieces which is actually compiled manuscripts of radio broadcasts. Your soul and mind will be greatly blessed by this or any C.S. Lewis book.
Church History in Plain Language (Third Edition). Bruce L. Shelley
How did we get here? And what was it like for Christians outside the timeline of the epistles? Christianity is a historical faith. I'm thankful for Dr. Shelley's efforts, especially for making it readable to everyday Christians that are not scholars. Another joyous, but lengthy piece. Not be completed in one sitting for sure. Good for reference or fun if you're a history buff.
The Institutes of Christian Religion. John Calvin
A champion in the Protestant Reformation, John Calvin's Institutes... is another classic in Christian literature. Born in 1509 in France John Calvin is a blessing to read, the depth to which he thinks on God, has left us with a sweet repository of thought directing our hearts and minds and indeed our lives to seek to give God the maximum amount of glory.
Living The Cross Centred Life (Keeping the Gospel the Main Thing). C.J. Mahaney
You'll enjoy everything you read from C.J. Mahaney. His relatability as a writer as it pertains to practical matters, fleshing out gospel truths is a blessing. C.J. writes "Because of God's amazingly gracious heart toward those who thoroughly deserve only His wrath, He both planned for and provided this mediator to resolve the divine dilemma-a mediator who, through His blood, would accomplish a unique assignment utterly unlike any other work of mediation. In the mystery of His mercy, God-the innocent, offended party-offers up to death His own Son, to satisfy His righteous wrath and save the guilty party from it." Dr. Albert Mohler comments "That's about as clear a description of God's saving purpose as will ever find." I concur.
If You Could Ask God One Question. Paul Williams and Barry Cooper
Apologetics (the defending of ones faith) is not every Christian's meat and potatoes area of study. But the sharing of our faith is every Christian's responsibility. "We owe the gospel to every man, woman, and child still in Adam." Being equipped to answer the common question sure to come your way in everyday conversations: at the water cooler, in the lunch room, on the plane, train etc. both helps us fulfil the great commission and edifies/sanctifies our soul - "and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ (Philemon 1:6)." If You Could.......is one of the easiest reads, answering some of the most difficult existential questions on every humans heart.
Radical (Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream). David Platt
This is probably the most challenging book I've ever read. David Platt takes (Matt. 16:24, Lk. 9:23) exegetes then applies and absolutely obliterates all the superficial trappings this world offers that contradicts Jesus' command to "deny oneself, and take up his/her cross and follow Him." A absolute must read.
Well, this concludes this list. I'm sure you'll be blessed by these brothers. This is not an extensive list, if you have any books you would like to recommend, please don't hesitate to do so in the comments. After the work God has done between the shoulders (figuratively speaking), much of the Christian's battles takes place in mind. I pray this list goes along way in equipping your mind of Christ to do battle.
God bless!
Rather than talk about books, you should reflect and talk about your own behaviour!!!! Even if you read all these books, your behaviour will be the judge whether you really understood anything! God bless you
ReplyDeleteAnonymous :-), thank you for your comment on a 2015 post. I wasn't alerted to your comment or else I would have responded sooner - I haven't been active in quite awhile as I'm sure you've gathered by now.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I must correct you, my perseverance/obedience to the gospel not a weighted scale of good behavior vs. bad behavior is what I'll be judged on (2 Thess. 1:8, 1 Pet. 4:17..) - though behavior is important in identifying who you belong to, among other things. Learnt that in a book ;-).
Second, I hope that you practice wisdom in identifying sober and edifying content (even if it's not through me). For the aim of the post is to promote "loving God with all our mind." And a common tactic of many in the faith is to trivialize intellect in Christianity by, among other things, pointing to the blemishes of the messenger. But to your credit, indeed, we don't want to have a theology that is a mile long and an inch deep! So fleshing out what we learn is important, but we can’t flesh out what we don’t know!
Third, I want to encourage you to try to use your name when commenting if possible, especially if your intention is to edify/encourage. You need not engage in anonymity if the intentions are pure. You risk coming across as a troll and be mindful that your tone lends to that assumption as well. Of course I hope those assumptions are wrong.
That being said I hope to share one of my many failings and God's faithfulness in restoring my soul soon. I'm sure I can count on your prayers for that as we continue to press towards the mark.
Peace and Love
Thank you for this. I'd like to also recommend books by Andrew Wommack a powerful bible teacher with a deep knowledge of the Word, especially 'Spirit, Soul and Body'.
ReplyDeleteHey Sally, thanks for stopping by and the recommendation. Will certainly check him out.
ReplyDeleteGrace and peace.