Ron Maness's blog

AD 33: The Year That Changed the World, by Colin Duriez. In AD 33, an obscure religious leader died a criminal’s death in a distant outpost of the Roman empire. Yet this was an event with world-changing consequences. Looking back, we can see how from the perspective of world history it was dominated by two people—a Roman and a Jew. The Roman was the Emperor Tiberius, and the Jew was Jesus, who was put to death by one of Tiberius’ minor governors, Pontius Pilate.

Battling Unbelief: Defeating Sin with Superior Pleasure, by John Piper. Only the power of God’s superior promises in the gospel can emancipate our hearts from servitude to the shallow promises and fleeting pleasures of sin.

When the Darkness Will Not Lift: Doing What We Can While We Wait for God—and Joy, by John Piper. Even the most faithful, focused Christians can encounter periods of depression and spiritual darkness when joy seems to stay just out of reach. It can happen because of sin, satanic assault, distressing circumstances, or heredity and other physical causes.

The Message of the Old Testament: Promises Made, by Mark Dever. In this collection of sermons, Dever preaches through the entire OT one book at a time, with a Christological focus and careful Christian application of the Old Testament.

The Road to Unafraid: How the Army’s Top Ranger Faced Fear and Found Courage Through “Blackhawk Down” and Beyond, by Captain Jeff Struecker with Dean Merrill. Struecker was one of those involved in the 1993 battle in the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia when a U.S. Army Blackhawk helicopter was shot down in the middle of the city, leading to an 18-hour suicide mission through the streets of Mogadishu to rescue the band of downed soldiers. The story of that rescue was immortalized in the movie, Blackhawk Down.

Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?, by Philip Yancey, author of What’s So Amazing About Grace? Does prayer work? More personally, does it work the way we think it should? What can we really expect from prayer? Philip Yancey probes the very heartbeat—the most fundamental, challenging, perplexing, and deeply rewarding aspect—of our relationship with God.

        John Wyclif: Myth and Reality, by G.R. Evans. Wyclif (1329-1384) and his associates were the first to translate the entire Bible from Latin into English, and he has been called the “Morning Star of the Reformation”. Yet his legacy has long been clouded by myth and controversies. J.I.

Free Grace and Dying Love: Morning Devotions by Susannah Spurgeon. While much is known about Susannah’s famous husband, Charles Spurgeon, comparatively little is known about the woman who supported the great preacher through the many years of his long and fruitful ministry at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London. This book will help to address that situation, first through 24 daily meditations on selected texts of scripture.

The Great Work of the Gospel: How We Experience God’s Grace, by John Ensor. Forgiveness is God’s great work because sin is the greatest of problems, the cross is the most excellent of solutions, and grace produces the most extreme changes. It is all-inclusive and everlasting.