Book Reviews, etc

Book Reviews, etc

Daniel, by Wendy Widder–A Book Review

Note: I recently read an excellent commentary on Daniel in the very accessible Story of God Bible Commentary series, by Wendy Widder. Widder, who got her PhD at the University of Free State, South Africa, is an author, teacher, and scholar with a passion for helping people understand the Bible better. She is not a dispensationalist, and holds to the Greek view in the identification of the fourth kingdom (rather than the Roman view). Rather than review the entire book,…

Book Review: Devoted to God, by Sinclair Ferguson

Note: This new book is in the library, and has been highly recommended.   Here is a sampling of the quotes below:  “In order to experience final salvation, sanctification is as necessary as justification. Why is this? Simply because there is no justification without sanctification”  “We are not justified on the basis of our sanctification; yet justification never takes place without sanctification beginning.”  “The law-maker (Jesus as a member of the God-head)  became the law-keeper (in his obedient life), but then…

Book Review: The Last Adam

Note: This article is by Brandon D. Crowe, author of the new book, The Last Adam: A Theology of the Obedient Life of Jesus in the Gospels, which is being added to the library on February 5. Ron Maness The Adamic Christology of Early Christianity In discussions of the New Testament Gospels, it is commonplace for scholars to affirm that Jesus is somehow the fulfillment of Israel. This is indeed an emphasis of the New Testament. However, much less often…

Book Review: John Knox

Note: This new biography on John Knox, the leader of the Scot Reformation, was just added to the CBC library.   Ron Maness http://www.reformation21.org/featured/the-real-john-knox.php The Real John Knox Article by Thomas Kidd  June 2016 If you ever go to see the John Knox statue at St. Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, you won’t come away with warm and fuzzy feelings. Knox, in statue and in Scottish historical memory, comes off as stern, formidable, and unapproachable. To admirers, he was also a man of…

Article on CBC Library by John Fea

Library Note: I am pleased to report that noted historian, blogger, and author John Fea has published an article on CBC’s library on his blog site. John teaches history at Messiah College, a Christian college in Pennsylvania. We have had his books in the library for some time, and I recently began following him on twitter, where he has over 6,000 followers. I had sent several tweets to him, and identified myself as a church librarian. He asked what church,…

New Book Notice: Making All Things New

This email concerns a new book being added to the library this week. It is not a book review, as I have not yet read it. But it is a book I have been eagerly awaiting since it was first announced a couple of months ago. At this point, I just want to make some introductory comments, which are paraphrases and summaries of comments from the Preface to the book. Making All Things New: Inaugurated Eschatology for the Life of…

Book Review: Heirs of Promise: The Church as the New Israel in Romans

This is a brief review of a brief (107 pgs), but very compelling book. The book is Heirs of Promise: The Church as the New Israel in Romans, by P. Chase Sears. It is on the new book shelves of the library. It is the first in a new series titled Snapshots, edited by theologian Michael Bird. The series will engage significant themes in contemporary biblical and theological scholarship in a relatively brief “snapshot” manner, making them accessible to busy…

The Great Divide–New Book in the Library

Library Note: I recently completed this magnificent book about the animosity between Washington and Jefferson, former friends and founding fathers who became adversaries due to different visions for the new nation. The divergence between their visions is ultimately seen in the later dissolution of the union that resulted in the Civil War. Lincoln’s aim to preserve the union was in accordance with the vision of Washington, whereas the South’s basis for seceding followed principles of Jefferson’s vision.   Closely allied with…

America’s First War Against Muslim Terrorism–Book Review

Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates: The Forgotten War That Changed American History, by Brian Kilmeade and Don Yaeger. I just finished reading this fascinating book. To pique your interest, let me ask two questions: When was America’s first war on Muslim terrorism? In the famous Marine Corps hymn, there is a line that says, “From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli, we fight our country’s battles, in the air, on land, and sea”. Do you know the…

The Odd Couple of Bible Prophecy

Well, not really so odd if you have a basic understanding of the differences between the eschatological (end times) views. This email relates to a new book in the library, and the reason I called them the Odd Couple is that the authors hold to different end times perspectives, yet really not so very different.   This is not a book review, because I am in the process of reading the book. But in skimming it, I can see what they…

Sneak Peek–New Titles for Sunday October 11

Among the new titles being added to the CBC Library this Sunday are three that should be of particular interest to devotees of the Puritans and Puritan-style writings. Although J.I. Packer, while 89 years old, is too young to actually be a Puritan, he has long been noted for his devotion to, and promotion of, the Puritan writers. Among his books in the CBC library is A Quest for Godliness: The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life, which is a…

Revelation: A Shorter Commentary, by G.K. Beale

Book Review by Ron Maness January 26, 2015 I just completed perhaps the greatest commentary I have ever read, and below I have written a review of it. I realize the review is somewhat long, but even for those who will not want to undertake reading the book, I would recommend that you read the review, because it will give you an overview of the book of Revelation from a different perspective—in this case how an amillennial interpreter views the…

Starting a Church Library

Community Bible Chapel Library Are you thinking about starting a library in your church? If so, this article sets forth some suggestions, and some preliminary issues that you should consider. Recommended resource: The Church Librarian’s Handbook, a book by Betty McMichael (Baker Book House, 3rd Edition, 1998). This book is very helpful, and deals in detail with many of the issues discussed in this article. However, it is not currently in print. You can often find used copies at www.amazon.com, or…

Quotes on Reading

The end to which good men’s libraries finally come is a melancholy subject. Few things are so loved by some, and despised and neglected by others, as books, and specially theological books.  J.C. Ryle (71) Though fallen on hard times of late, books have played an essential role in Church history…John Bradford, himself only days away from being bound to the stake, offered a petition that was short and to the point—that he might “have his books, and time enough…

Book Review — The Incomparable Christ

The Incomparable Christ, by John Stott (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001, 235 pages) The contents of this book were delivered by John Stott at the A.D. 2000 London Lectures on Contemporary Christianity, at All Souls Church, London on four consecutive Thursdays. The full title of the lectures was The Incomparable Christ: Celebrating His Millennial Birth. Despite having founded the annual London Lectures in 1974, Stott had never been the lecturer until this time. And in this book, he brings…

Book Review — The Path to True Happiness: John 2

The Path to True Happiness: John 2, by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1999, 214 pages) This is a collection of 12 sermons on the second chapter of John’s Gospel, originally preached by Dr. Lloyd-Jones (MLJ) in late 1995. MLJ notes that John’s theme is stated near the end of his Gospel: …but these (i.e., the signs recounted in his gospel) are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ; and that by believing ye…

Book Review — God’s Way, Not Ours: Isaiah 1

God’s Way, Not Ours: Isaiah 1, by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1999, 150 pages) This book contains nine sermons on the first chapter of Isaiah, originally delivered by Martyn Lloyd-Jones (MLJ) in 1963. While keeping the larger themes of Isaiah’s message to the people of his own day in view, MLJ primarily focuses on the one great message of the entire Bible, and he sees in Isa 1 a summary of that message. He begins with…

Book Review — Living in the Gap Between Promise and Reality: The Gospel According to Abraham

Living in the Gap Between Promise and Reality: The Gospel According to Abraham, by Ian Duguid (Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing, 1999, 167 pages) This book is the first in a new series called “The Gospel According to the Old Testament”. In a quote contained on the book cover, D.A. Carson says that “one of the most urgent needs of the church is to grasp how the many parts of the Bible fit together to make one story-line that…