Blog (Page 7)

Misquoting Truth: A Guide to the Fallacies of Bart Ehrman’s Misquoting Jesus, by Timothy Paul Jones. A spirited response to Bart Ehrman, a former evangelical but now radical New Testament critic and author of several best-selling books, such as Misquoting Jesus and Lost Christianities. The Dawkins Delusion: Atheist Fundamentalism and the Denial of the Divine, by Alister McGrath and Joanna Collicutt McGrath. In his book, The God Delusion, world-renowned scientist Richard Dawkins writes: “If this book works as I intend,…

Words to Live By: A Guide for the Merely Christian, by C.S. Lewis. Lewis had the ability to precisely define and explain key issues in the life of faith. This collection contains selections from his fiction, nonfiction, and letters arranged by subject matter, so that the reader can discover the wisdom of C.S. Lewis on confession, desire, friendship, joy, marriage, silence, truth, and more. The Evangelical Doctor: John Wycliffe and the Lollards, by Douglas C. Wood. Ignorance, superstition, priestcraft, and…

The New Faces of Christianity: Believing the Bible in the Global South, by Philip Jenkins. As Christianity’s center of gravity moves southward, Africa may soon be home to the world’s largest Christian populations. Jenkins takes a close look at Christianity in the global South, and notes that it is first and foremost a biblical faith. Four Portraits, One Jesus: An Introduction to Jesus and the Gospels, by Mark Strauss. A thorough yet accessible introduction to the Gospels and their subject,…

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’…

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. Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce, by John Piper. Against great obstacles Wilberforce (1759-1833), an evangelical Christian and a member of Britain’s parliament, fought for the abolition of the African slave trade and against slavery itself until they were both illegal in the…

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. John Piper gives insight into the physical side of depression and spiritual darkness, what it means to wait on the Lord in…

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. Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness Testimony, by Richard Bauckham. As N.T. Wright says: “The question of whether the Gospels are based on eyewitness accounts has long been controversial. Now Richard Bauckham, in a characteristic tour de force, draws…

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…

What Jesus Demands from the World, by John Piper. As Sinclair Ferguson notes, “scholars, popularists, and now even novelists are falling over each other today in a blind passion to discover an alternative Jesus to the One so magnificently portrayed in the Biblical Gospels”. In stark contrast, Piper offers careful reflections on the authoritative commands of Jesus, in recognition that He has authority over everyone regardless of their religion, culture, nationality, gender, race, or sexuality. Judas and the Gospel of…

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. A Conversation with Jonathan Edwards, by W. Gary Crampton. A clear and concise introduction to the thought of Jonathan Edwards in an enjoyable conversational format.…

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. Packer says that “though Wyclif was hardly the hero Protestant hagiology has made him to be, his opposition to papal autocracy and transubstantiation, followed by his rejection from the Oxford establishment, started…

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. Second, this edition also contains The Life of Susannah Spurgeon, by Charles Ray, a…

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. In his Foreword, John Piper says this book is “God-centered good news…that will release people from the self-absorbed rationalizations that keep us from the fullest engagement in the global cause of God” and is…

Surprised by the Father’s Plan, by Charles David Kelley with Kristen Zetzsche. Chuck Kelley is a Latvian-American, the product of a short-lived marriage between a Latvian immigrant mother and an unstable American father. Raised by his grandfather, who was a Latvian Baptist pastor, he grew up in a Mexican neighborhood in downtown Los Angeles, but inspired by the stories of his grandfather, his dream was to reach his native country of Latvia with the gospel of Jesus Christ. As a…

Putting a Face on Grace: Living a Life Worth Passing On, by Richard Blackaby. Many Christians sing of the sweet sound of amazing grace, but fail to extend it to others—missing the point entirely. The author urges you to let God’s grace flow through you, for you will never understand it until you give it away. Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense, by N.T. Wright. J.I. Packer says that “brilliant Bishop Wright is one of God’s best gifts to our…

Saddam’s Secrets, by Georges Sada. The author was one of Saddam’s top military advisors, and a devout Christian in a Muslim country. He was also a man who would stand up for what was right, even at the risk of his own life. He reveals the disturbing truth about Saddam’s plots to destroy Israel, hide weapons of mass destruction, and overtake the Arab world. It Came from Within, by Andy Stanley. The truth about what lies in the human heart.…

Contending for Our All: Defending Truth and Treasuring Christ in the Lives of Athanasius, John Owen, and J. Gresham Machen, by John Piper (The Swans Are Not Silent #4). These men were fighters for the sake of the deepest truths: Athathasius defended the deity of Christ; the focus of Owen’s vast intellect and expansive heart was communion with Christ, and he battled Christ-belittling errors of the mind and heart with passion and skill; Machen represented Christ in all his fullness…

Who Are You to Judge? The Dangers of Judging and Legalism, by Dave Swavely. The author says many of our interpersonal conflicts result from the sin of judging and the error of legalism. This helpful book defines judging and legalism in a biblical manner, and discusses two often-overlooked biblical commands: Do not pass judgment before the time, and do not go beyond what is written (1 Cor 4:5-6). Reading Romans Through the Centuries: From the Early Church to Karl Barth,…

End of the Spear, by Steve Saint. The author was only five years old when his father, Nate Saint, along with Jim Elliot and three other missionaries, was speared to death in the jungles of Ecuador by Waodani warriors, men from the most savage culture ever known. Decades after the spearing, Steve and his family made the difficult choice to leave behind a comfortable life in the United States and return to the jungle to live among the Waodani people,…

Twelve Extraordinary Women: How God Shaped Women of the Bible and What He Wants to Do With You, by John MacArthur. It wasn’t their natural qualities that made these women extraordinary, but the power of the one true God they worshipped and served. Who’s Afraid of the Holy Spirit: An Investigation into the Ministry of the Spirit of God Today, edited by Daniel B. Wallace and M. James Sawyer. The backgrounds of the editors are in the evangelical cessationist tradition…