I love to read. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

What Does the Bible Really Teach About Homosexuality? by Kevin DeYoung. If ever there was a book uniquely suited for the times it’s DeYoung’s latest. What Does the Bible . . . ? is after an admittedly small slice of the categorical pie, for DeYoung writes, “This is a Christian book, with a narrow focus, defending a traditional view of marriage” (15). The work’s utility lies in it’s simplicity: part one deals with the five most debated passage on homosexuality and part two deals with the seven most common objections to the traditional view. As we should expect by now DeYoung is winsomely logical, ruthlessly biblical, and pastorally helpful. Every pastor should get have multiple copies on hand to distribute to church members. We can’t seem to keep the book in stock at IDC and I continually hear of it being an immense help to our congregation. One of the must reads of 2015.

Water, Word, and Spirit: A Reformed Perspective on Baptism by J.V Fesko. The appropriate word for Fesko’s volume on baptism is “tome.” It’s an immense work of scholarship spanning the disciplines of historical, biblical, and systematic theology. The immensity is matched by a density of language; this is really an academic monograph on the subject. Fesko is strongest in the section on biblical theology as he highlights the reality of baptism being covenant and eschatological judgment—these are often neglected in my baptist circles. He also usefully points out how often baptism in Scripture is connected to the Noahic flood. Of particular importance is chapter 14, “Baptism and Its Recipients,” as Fesko goes full throttle to convince readers of paedobaptism’s rightness. I’m still not convinced, but if you want to understand the historic “Reformed perspective” this is the book for you.

Spiritual Friendship: Finding Love as a Celibate Gay Christian by Wesley Hill. Back in May I sat in a doctoral seminar entitled “Patristic & Celtic Spirituality” and heard Dr. Michael Haykin say something like, “Wesley Hill’s book Spiritual Friendship is teaching me things about friendship I’ve never seen before—and I’ve been studying the topic for years!” I immediately ordered the book and finally got around to reading it this week. Although I’m not convinced of Hill’s apparent desire to resurrect “vowed friendship” is a wise move (Allberry’s spot on in this review), I found myself continually rethinking my own views of friendship. Part 1, “Reading Friendship,” is illuminating in every way as Hill traces the decline of friendship in the Western world over the last few centuries. Part 2 is less helpful, for me at least, because it more acutely applies to those struggling with same-sex attraction. Nonetheless, I think anyone’s understanding and practice of spiritual friendship will be improved by this book.

The Prodigal Church: A Gentle Manifesto Against the Status Quo by Jared Wilson. Wilson says he doesn’t want The Prodigal Church to be a rant, an argument for a traditional church, or reactionary rejection. Rather it’s a “gentle manifesto” in which he dares attractional church aficionados to ask, “What if what we’re doing isn’t really what we’re supposed to be doing?” By “attractional” he means “a way of doing ministry that derives from the primary purpose of making Christianity appealing” (25). Although I think the overwhelming majority of readers won’t actually be attractional apologists (I imagine he’ll be mostly preaching to the choir), this book does achieve its stated aims. With gentility and honesty Wilson pokes at the sacred cows of attractional churches to see if they can stand withstand the light of Scripture and reason. If you know a pastor withering at an attractional church or wondering if the model is actually misguided, give them this book. They will be helped.

The Wright Brothers by David McCullough. There isn’t anyone from whom I’d rather learn about American history than David McCullough. The two-time Pulitzer winner writes with such a warmth and familiarity of understanding I feel as though I’m listening to my grandfather tells stories of days gone by. His latest work focuses on how Wilbur and Orville Wright created their “flying machine.” This story of the boys from Dayton, Ohio is quintessentially “American”—two men rising from obscurity to change the world through undaunted industry and ingenuity. The Wright Brothers is a story we all should know. And McCullough’s reverent and beautiful prose is the perfect guide. Highly recommended!

The Millennium Trilogy by Stieg Larsson. After almost seven months of nonstop PhD reading I permitted my mind a two-week break of relative mindlessness in terms of bedtime reading. For some reason—I’m still not exactly sure how—I grabbed Larsson’s international senstation The Millennium Triology (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played with Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest). Interestingly enough, Larsson was never able to bask in the success of his greatest success as Millennium was published after his death. Aside from a few brutal scenes and occasional reveling in innuendo the trilogy is taut, keep-you-up-too-late reading. I can definitely see why it’s such a smashing success.

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.

I love to read. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

It’s been over six weeks since I last offered up a “Recent Reads” post, but my reading hasn’t slowed down. In order that this post doesn’t become unnecessarily long I’ve selected seven of the books I completed that might be of most interest to ordinary pastors.

Preaching: Communicating Faith in an Age of Skepticism by Tim Keller. The Manhattan Man’s treatise on preaching has been in the works for a long time. Thankfully it has arrived. Those familiar with his preaching ministry and homiletical convictions won’t find anything new in this work. But don’t mistake that as being a bad thing. Preaching is saturated with instruction on concerns you’d expect from Keller: preaching contextually, understanding cultural narratives, and making the gospel of Christ central in every sermon. The book shines brightest in the last two chapters, “Preaching Christ to the Heart,” and “Preaching and the Spirit.” Two chapters that ought to be required reading for every preaching student or preaching pastor.

Going Public: Why Baptism is Required for Church Membership by Bobby Jamieson. The focus of 9Marks’ latest book is pointed—should believer’s baptism be required for all church members? Jamieson gives a thoughtful emphatic, “Yes,” as you’d expect from reading the subtitle. His primary interlocutors are John Bunyan and John Piper, for they represent 17th century and 21st century convictions of “open membership” (the view that paedobaptists can be accepted as members in a credobaptist church). I’ve heard one prominent Baptist say the book paves new ground in our understanding of the sacraments and church membership, but I couldn’t discern what this new ground is supposed to be. I can see some parts of the argument being new for Baptists, but many aren’t new to—what I see as—a more historically Reformed understanding on specific matters. Case in point: the chapter on baptism as “The Initiating Oath-Sign of the New Covenant” is as rich a treatment on the covenantal realities of baptism I’ve seen put forth by a Baptist (and probably a new way of thinking about baptism for many Baptists). Yet, Reformed treatments on the subject have been making similar arguments for centuries. Nonetheless, this is a very valuable book and necessary reading for anyone interested in the intra-Baptist debate on open membership and closed membership.

Confessions by Augustine. Simply magnificent. For years this has sat on my shelf begging to be read, yet it took a PhD seminar in Patristic Spirituality to get me to actually read Augustine’s classic. I’m not sure if I should say much about Confessions lest I break out into a string of redundant superlatives. So I will only say, “Read this book!”

Newton on the Christian Life: To Live is Christ by Tony Reinke. The praise for Reinke’s book on Newton was so eye-grabbing that I couldn’t help but grab the book myself. “Here is mastery!” cries Packer. “For some readers, this book may just become the most important book, outside the Bible, they will ever read,” declares Ortlund. I think the hyperbolic endorsements created unrealistic expectations, for I confess to having felt a bit disappointed when I finished . . . even though the book is solid. Maybe it’s because I found the book too long, a bit redundant, overly italicized, or maybe it’s because I can be a stodgy reader. Who knows. But you must not mistake my unmet expectations as being reason not to read the book. In fact, I recommend the book to anyone. Read this dissertation with slow meditation. Read it to observe a man—Newton—stare hard and long at the glory of the Savior. You just might find Newton giving you fresh insights into Christ and the human heart. If he does that for you, Newton on the Christian Life will be worth every penny.

The Happy Christian by David Murray. I’m utterly delighted Murray has given us this book. The title and cover may seem a bit sappy (Murray admits he didn’t like the title at first), but The Happy Christian is a book worth everyone’s attention. For Murray is right, Christians should be the happiest people in the world! The man from Puritan Reformed Seminary weaves together biblical insight, scientific research, and personal anecdotes in convincing fashion. Each chapter offers a mathematical spiritual formula for happiness and many of them are worth memorizing. Formulas such as, “Facts > Feelings = Positive” (chapter 1), “Done > Do = Positive” (chapter 3), or “Future > Past = Positive” (chapter 5) are handy guides for everyday happiness in Christ. Several of the chapters are longer than necessary, but Murray fills them with plenty of short sections and never overtaxes one’s attention. I can see this being a useful discipling resource for churches and small groups.

The Quest for the Radical Middle: A History of the Vineyard by Bill Jackson. One reason for my recent blog hiatus was a research paper I needed to complete on the spirituality of Vineyard music. One of the many invaluable resources I came across in research was Bill Jackson’s excellent history. This is the definitive account of a movement that swept through and swept up evangelicalism in the late 20th-century. Jackson writes as sympathetically (he’s a Vineyard pastor), but not uncritically. As the book was published only two years after the death of John Wimber, the Vineyard’s leader and shaper, it’s essentially a history of “The Wimber Years.” And what fascinating years they were! I only wish all PhD research was so intriguing from cover to cover.

Reinventing American Protestantism: Christianity in the New Millennium by Donald Miller. In 1997 sociologist Donald Miller published his study of what he termed “new paradigm churches,” the most influential of which are Calvary Chapter and the Vineyard. Miller argues, as Larry Eskridge ably states, “New Paradigm churches achieved a unique balance, incorporating aspects of the therapeutic, individualistic, and antiestablishment values of the counterculre [of the late 1960s to early 1970s] while rejecting its inherent narcissistic tendencies. He goes on to demonstrate that while Calvary Chapel and the Vineyard were fundamentalist in many areas, their organizational pragmatism broke the mold of traditionally evangelical denominations and thus ushered in a new age of “doing church.” I leaned heavily on his study of music in the New Paradigm churches, where he concludes, “Worship may be viewed as a form of sacred lovemaking.” And that, my friends, is a “memorably correct” conclusion.

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.

I love to read. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

Patrick of Ireland: His Life and Impact by Michael Haykin. More than just being the patron saint of a holiday in March, St. Patrick of Ireland was a man of fierce orthodoxy and evangelistic zeal. In this little book Haykin gives an overview of Patrick’s life and ministry. It reads somewhat like an academic paper, but don’t let that deter you from picking up a copy. What I found most interesting was Patrick’s eschatology; in taking the gospel to Ireland he believed he was evangelizing the last people group on earth and so ushering in the coming of Christ. Other interesting historical and theological tidbits abound, which is typical of Haykin’s work—he is indeed a master scholar.

Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret by Dr. & Mrs. Howard Taylor. Lord willing, tomorrow night I will preach a biographical sermon at IDC on Hudson Taylor, so this famous work on his life was required reading for the week. Six years ago when I first read the book I found it stirring and challenging. This time around I found myself a bit disappointed at its hagiographical nature (Taylor’s son wrote the book and emphasized on the good about his father’s ministry). I wanted more critical interaction with his ministry in China and various decision he made along the way. Nevertheless, Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret is an edifying and informative read.

After Heaven: Spirituality in America Since the 1950s by Robert Wuthnow. What a fascinating book! In After Heaven Wuthnow analyzes the development of spirituality in America since the 1950s. He argues that American spirituality has moved from “a traditional spirituality of inhabiting sacred places has given way to a new spirituality of seeking.” I found his thesis convincing and his cultural analysis piercing. He walks through each decade from the 1950s-1990s and shows how American spirituality changed from and reacted against what came before. For Wuthnow the proper approach to spirituality is a “practice-oriented” one, which sounds to me like an ordinary-means-shaped piety. It’s a solution I can heartily agree with.

Spirituality of Liberation: Toward Political Holiness by Jon Sobrino. Oh my, what a turgid read this one was. In the 1970s Liberation Theology grabbed a hold of Roman Catholic practice in Latin American countries and Sobrino was one of the movement’s major thinkers. Liberation Theology believed that because God is most revealed in the poor and that Christ is liberator of the poor, true spirituality is practiced among the poor. It’s practiced among the poor so that the poor might find liberation in “reign of God,” which is not much more than the poor escaping their socioeconomic captivity. Thus, liberation theology inevitably became concerned with social and political structures required for liberation (hence the emphasis on “political holiness”). Sobrino captures all of this in Spirituality of Liberation and if this movement sounds stimulating—dive on in. If not, just move along.

The Return of the Prodigal Son by Henri Nouwen. Sometime late in his life Nouwen, a Catholic priest, became enamored with Rembrandt’s painting The Return of the Prodigal Son. The truths he discovered in meditating on the painting changed his spiritual life and are recounted in this book. All in all, the book is a wonderful meditation on the parable of the prodigal son as Rembrandt depicted it. There are few points where Nouwen goes astray theologically, but on the whole this book will feed the soul. Nouwen helpfully shows how we all struggle to run away from God (like the prodigal) and let our complaints rob us of joy (like the elder brother). What we need, Nouwen concludes, is a fresh awareness of how God’s overflowing love leads to everlasting joy. The Return of the Prodigal Son is a masterful representation of how long meditation on a familiar story can bring out fresh truth for the heart.

The Bone Tree by Greg Iles. I loved Iles’ Natchez Burning so much that I named it my favorite fiction book of 2014. Natchez was the first book in a trilogy and ever since reading it I’ve tried to temper my expectations for its sequel, The Bone Tree. I am delighted to say there was no need for such tempering, The Bone Tree is excellent! Iles picks up right where the narrative left off and for 800 pages, with unrelenting force, he never lets the reader go. The pages fly as Penn Cage tries to save his father, uncover the truth about Kennedy’s assassination, and take justice into his own hands when he loses a loved one. I was shocked to see just how many loose ends Iles tied up from Natchez, while simultaneously opening up new ones that will make any reader ravenous to read the trilogy’s final entry. Tolle lege!

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.

I love to read. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

Hearing God’s Words by Peter Adam. I had high expectations for Adam’s entry in the fabulous New Testament Studies in Biblical Theology series. A book that seeks to ground our understanding and practice of spirituality in the Bible itself? Yes please. However, when I closed the book after reading I found myself disappointed. Adam wanders about for the bulk of the book, with not much discernible trajectory or unity in argument. I must mention that he does have some very helpful sections on how a spirituality of the Word should overflow into ordinary Christian life. If you are already convinced about the centrality of Scripture for piety, then you probably only need to read the first and last chapters—for, in my mind at least, that’s where Adam’s best instruction lies.

Praying the Bible by Don Whitney. Short, concise, and practical, I could see Whitney’s latest book offering wisdom many church members—and church leaders—are looking for. In Praying the Bible Whitney says, “If . . . mind-wandering boredom describes your experience in prayer, I would argue that if you are indwelled by the Holy Spirit—if you are born again—then the problem is not you; it is your method.” I think he’s right, especially when you understand the method he has in mind. The is method is praying through Scripture, particularly the Psalms. He’s spot on to say that such a method of prayer gives structure, purpose, and longevity. Whitney’s book is brief, just under 100 pages, so when it comes out you’ll want to buy some copies for your church. This one could transform your people’s prayer life.

The Apostolic Fathers edited by Michael Holmes. Here is a treasure trove of primary source material from the church fathers. The first edition came out way back in 1891 and Baker Publishing is to be commended for keeping this volume, under a new editor, in print. The Apostolic Fathers includes many texts integral to our understanding of the period from men like Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp, as well as The Didache. If you aren’t interested in patristic studies, which you probably aren’t, don’t shy away from this gem. You’ll likely be surprised how instructive and encouraging the fathers are—I know I was.

Pseudo-Macarius: The Fifty Spiritual Homilies and the Great Letter. Macarius was a Syrian monk in the fourth century who has generated no small amount of scholarly interest of the years due to his interpretation of Scripture and articulation of the Christian life. Even John Wesley was smitten with his work! The book’s homilies are quite catechetical in nature and full of metaphors. Some his interpretations won’t find widespread agreement today, but I appreciate his emphasis on the Christian life as one of fighting, struggle, and perseverance. His focus on the pursuit of purity and devotion to prayer is also commendable.

Light from Dark Ages? An Evangelical Critique of Celtic Spirituality by Marian Raikes. Only recently have I been made aware that Celtic spirituality is making a comeback in some arenas of evangelicalism. As it is appropriated today, Celtic spirituality seems to have much to offer for contemporary culture: the Celts are said to be about tolerance, ecumenism, environmentalism, and holistic ministry. Raikes effectively demolishes this modern adaptation, proving it to be unfaithful to the real tradition. Celtic spirituality does indeed have much to offer to us today, just for different and more ordinary reasons. The strengths of Celtic spirituality lie in earnest discipleship, love of the scriptures, commitment to prayer, costly evangelism and the pursuit of holiness. Will such interests set our modern culture on spiritual fire? I hope so.

The Earliest Christian Hymnbook: Odes of Solomon. For those of you who love history and reading old hymns this book is for you. These odes, or hymns, were probably written around 100 A.D. and thus contain some wonderful insights into the spirituality of the church during the closing of the apostolic age. A couple of the odes are a bit strange, but, on the whole, the project bursts forth with joy. If you happen to know someone gifted in crafting congregational melody, give him or her this book. Maybe they’ll be inspired to put the odes to music and today’s church can sing some of the earliest Christian songs.

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.

I love to read. I find it helpful to summarize my thoughts on each book and I offer those thoughts in the hope that you will be encouraged to either read or pass over the given title.

Bonhoeffer’s Seminary Vision: A Case for Costly Discipleship and Life Together by Paul House. It’s easy to forget that Bonhoeffer’s best known works—The Cost of Discipleship and Life Together—both originated as lectures to seminary students. There is thus much to learn about Bonhoeffer’s seminary vision in each book. Paul House has done us all a favor by analyzing and applying Bonhoeffer’s thoughts on seminary life to our current academic culture. Although I think House is prone to a more romantic view of Bonhoeffer’s teaching than is necessary, he nonetheless makes a compelling case for embodied, communal, and spiritual seminary education. This is a valuable read for any seminary administrator or faculty member wrestling with how to best train ministers in our 21st century context of online education and just-check-it-off-the-list coursework.

Bonhoeffer on the Christian Life: From the Cross, For the World by Stephen Nichols. As part of my final prep for leading some discussion over Bonhoeffer at an upcoming doctoral seminar I managed to squeeze in Nichol’s entry on the German giant in Crossway’s Theologians on the Christian Life series. I love Steve Nichols and have profited from many of his books, so I expected great things from this volume. Yet, in the end I was quite disappointed. As so often seems to happen, Bonhoeffer is made to fit into an American evangelical vision of who we want Bonhoeffer to be more than who he really was. Nichols is right to hang Bonhoeffer’s thoughts about spirituality on Christ and community, but organizing the remainder of the work spiritual disciplines misses out on the complexity and heart of Bonhoeffer’s thought and practice.

The Compelling Community: Where God’s Power Makes a Church Attractive by Mark Dever and Jamie Dunlop. Dever’s book The Deliberate Church is the resource, outside of Scripture, we value most when training future officers at IDC. It offers an astonishing amount of biblical truth and practical wisdom on matters of pastoral ministry, church polity, corporate worship, and even gets down to things like hiring church staff and running elders’ meetings. Whereas The Deliberate Church aims to set a foundation for healthy church, The Compelling Community is something like a sequel that tries to let us know—as difficult as it can be to capture in print—what a healthy church feels like. And what a fantastic sequel this is! The Compelling Community offers a vision for healthy church life from which any pastor or church leader can profit. I found the discussion of a church being a place of either “Gospel Plus Community” or “Gospel Revealing Community” worth its weight in gold. I’ll cast aside all other superlatives that come to my mind and simply say, “Get this book!”

Life of Constantine by Eusebius. Next week I’m out in Louisville for a doctoral seminar on “Pastrisic & Celtic Spirituality” and am slated to give a presentation on the piety of Eusebius as shown in his panegyric (think “gushing oration put to paper”) written in honor Emperor Constantine. Eusebius is out to show, in hagiographical form, that Constantine was among the most pious of men. In the course of his appreciation I think we get a decent sense of the kind of piety Eusebius thought worthy of emulation. Life provides patristic scholars with no small amount of fodder for historical and theological debate, but my aim in analysis is simple: what we see encouraged is a moral, prayerful, political, and eschatological piety. If you aren’t a PhD student, I’d be hard pressed to see why you’d need to read this one . . . so you’ll probably want to just move along.

The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation by Michael Reeves. Good ol’ Mike Reeves has written my favorite intro on the Trinity, my favorite intro on life in Christ, so it shouldn’t surprise you to find out he’s also written my favorite introduction to the Reformation. Reeves has an envious amount of winsome and witty wisdom on Scripture and history, characteristics that live in full color on every page of The Unquenchable Flame. I reread this book with the staff at our church and Reeves managed to win over one of our staffers predisposed to loathe history (I know, we are working on such silliness). If you are looking to get a brief, but substantial sense of what the Reformation was all about, this is the book for you.

Click here to find other entries in the Recent Reads series.