Notes on two books I’ve read recently:

 The Holy Spirit in Mission:
Prophetic Speech and Action in Christian Witness
Gary Tyra (IVP Academic)
My Rating: ****

Gary Tyra brings his Pentecostal convictions to bear on the ongoing conversation about the missional church. In observing the early church’s faithful witness to the gospel in Acts, Tyra highlights the need for evangelicals to be alert to the Spirit’s prompting toward prophetic speech and action.

Christians from various theological backgrounds will benefit from Tyra’s counsel to be more sensitive to the Spirit’s movements as we seek to edify and equip disciples for missional faithfulness.

 The Cross Is Not Enough:
Living as Witnesses to the Resurrection
Ross Clifford and Philip Johnson (Baker)
My Rating: ****

This is a challenging book that brings together apologetics, worldview analysis, biblical exposition, and theological reflection. The authors believe that evangelicals have unintentionally downplayed the theological significance of Christ’s resurrection, as well as the cultural connection points that the resurrection provides us in our evangelistic efforts.

Despite occasional hyperbolic statements that appear to pit the Cross against the Empty Tomb, the primary message is highly needed as Christians seek to witness faithfully in a postmodern age.

 The Dragon’s Tooth:
Ashtown Burials #1
N.D. Wilson (Random House)
My Rating: *** 1/2

I’m a firm believer in reading just for the fun of it. Sometimes, to recapture the fun of reading, you’ve got to dive into some kids’ books or young adult fiction. That’s why after reading and enjoying  Notes From The Tilt-A-Whirl, I picked up N.D. Wilson’s recent fiction book, The Dragon’s Tooth.

The book is a rollicking adventure that brings together humor and suspense, as well as themes like heroism, responsibility, destiny, and loyalty. The characters are well-formed, and the pace is intense. If you’ve got older kids who like to read, you might recommend this one.

- The first two of these reviews were first published in Christianity Today, January 2012.

A few weeks ago, I posted a reflection on one of the best books I read last year, Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, and God by Michael Kelley. It’s the compelling story of his 2-year-old son’s diagnosis with leukemia and the three and a half years of chemotherapy that followed.

Trevin Wax: Tell us about the title of the book. Why were Wednesdays pretty normal? 

Michael Kelley: I think up until Joshua’s diagnosis, I had the luxury of looking at pain and suffering, which all of us hold in common, like a specimen in a biology lab. I was able to pick at it, dissecting how God’s love and sovereignty fit together. But then the world was turned upside down.

It’s interesting to me that though the Bible clearly puts forth both a sovereign and loving God, it doesn’t see a difficulty in reconciling those attributes with each other. I think there’s something pastoral about that approach. The Bible doesn’t hold up for us all the ins and outs of “why” people suffer; it instead presents us with the inevitable reality of suffering and yet holds out for us the great compassion of God. Maybe walking through pain is one of the means God uses to bring people not to complete understanding of His character but to a deeper appreciation of its fullness.

Michael Kelley: I think some of both really. I kept a journal throughout Joshua’s treatment, and I intended for it to be full of profound thoughts of great importance. But it slowly devolved into one-sentence prayers and pleas for enough grace to get through the day.

I suppose that this is one of the most remarkable ways that God grows us in our faith though. Often we don’t realize it’s happening. It’s only on looking back at the experience that we are able to see a glimpse of just how faithful He really was the whole time.

Michael Kelley: I do. Or at least I hope that’s how people see it. We’re certainly not sentimental about the story, and I don’t think God is either. Sentiment, on its own, is really a cheaper kind of emotion. I think God resonates with our pain at a much deeper level than mere sentiment.

Trevin Wax: Thanks for stopping by, Michael. I enjoyed Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal, and I commend it to others. Here’s an excerpt I posted from the book last year.

Notes on two books I’ve read recently:

Loving the Way Jesus Loves
Philip Ryken
Crossway, 2012
My Rating: *****

Phil Ryken takes readers through “the love chapter” (1 Cor. 13: “Love is patient, love is kind …”) and illustrates it with snapshots from the life and ministry of Jesus.

Ryken’s reflections are profound, his stories engaging, his quotes well chosen, and his exegesis accessible. Loving the Way Jesus Loves challenges our loveless attitudes and behaviors in light of the Savior who loved us “to the uttermost.”

 Why Jesus?
Rediscovering His Truth in an Age of Mass Marketed Spirituality
Ravi Zacharias
FaithWords, 2012
My Rating: ****

In Why Jesus?, the popular apologist examines humanity’s deep spiritual hungers and the common solutions presented by mass-marketed leaders of pop spirituality (Deepak Chopra, Oprah Winfrey, Eckhart Tolle, and so on). Ravi Zacharias exposes the empty promises of those who peddle spiritual advice at the expense of careful thinking and experiential wisdom.

The book shows why issues of exclusivity, authority, and relevance are always pertinent to conversations about spirituality, and ends with a plea for people to understand Jesus as Truth.

- These reviews first appeared in the February 2012 edition of Christianity Today.

There has been a lot of talk in recent years of people migrating from one Christian tradition to another. Though the majority of converts have come to evangelicalism from liturgical, high-church traditions, an increasing number of Christians are leaving evangelical churches for Rome, Constantinople, or Canterbury. Whenever the migration between traditions is discussed, we tend to focus on the phenomenon abstractly, neglecting the personal elements that play a role in these transitions.

1. To help Evangelicals understand why persons are leaving their churches for Christian traditions that are more liturgical.
2. To help Evangelical leaders in responding to questions from church members who are attracted to liturgical Christian traditions.
3. To help non-Evangelicals, such as Catholic and Orthodox Christians, in understanding why persons have departed their traditions for Evangelicalism, why some Evangelicals are now moving in the other direction, and what fundamental differences remain between Evangelical and non-Evangelical communities.

In order for these goals to be accomplished, readers will need to pay careful attention to the heart-motivations that rise to the surface in these conversion stories. One of the common elements in the conversion stories away from Evangelicalism is a dissatisfaction with contemporary, seeker-driven worship services. The three men who moved into liturgical traditions express a longing for worship that is more established, reverent, and rooted in history.

We cannot tweak our way to the deep roots of the Church and its faith. There is a great difference between scripted worship and inscripturated worship. (78)

Though the book is well worth reading, there are some parts that lead to further questions. For example, I was puzzled by how Evangelical and Evangelicalism were capitalized in the book. This may seem like a minor quibble, but the capitalization implies that the Evangelical faith is a church tradition similar to Anglicanism, Orthodoxy, or Catholicism. So even if Ellsworth’s conversion isfrom the Southern Baptist Convention to Orthodoxy, it is set up as a conversion from Evangelicalism in general. This isn’t problematic if one is placing all low-church traditions under the umbrella of evangelical identity, yet each of these stories is from one definable tradition (within evangelicalism) to another.

Why this neglect of conversion in the salvific sense? When I was involved in mission work in Romania, evangelicals were labeled “repenters” for our emphasis on repentance. Though the term was meant to be an insult, we wore it as a badge of honor. What is a Christian if not a “repenter”? Although all Christian traditions agree that heartfelt repentance and faith are necessary for salvation, it appears that individual salvation is emphasized in evangelical circles and neglected in the liturgical churches. I would have liked to see more reflection from the contributors as to why this is the case.

In all, I believe Plummer’s book is an example of helpful ecumenical dialogue. The friendly tone of these discussions does not detract from the significant differences between the contributors. The result is an enlightening read that will prompt good conversations among evangelical church leaders.

Notes on two books I’ve read recently:

The Spiritual Condition of Infants:
A Biblical-Historical Survey and Systematic Proposal 
Adam Harwood
Wipf and Stock, 2011

What happens to infants who die? Most evangelicals agree that infants, though born in sin, go to heaven. But the way that evangelicals come to that conclusion varies, and the theological steps one takes to that conclusion can have ramifications in other areas, including the question of those who have not heard the gospel.

Adam Harwood’s The Spiritual Condition of Infants wades into the deep waters of speculation on this sensitive issue by providing a helpful survey of the views of sixteen theologians as well as an exegetical look at relevant passages. Arguing against the “spontaneous regeneration” view of Wayne Grudem, Harwood’s conclusion is similar to that of Millard Erickson and William Hendricks, that infants inherit a sinful nature from Adam but become guilty only when they sin. Harwood’s view would have been bolstered by appealing to the Eastern Orthodox view that Christ had a sinful nature and yet was sinless. But even as it stands, this is a careful, thoughtful book on a difficult and sensitive subject.

The Intolerance of Tolerance
D. A. Carson
Wm. B. Eerdmans, 2012

A few years ago, I was reading through D. A. Carson’s  Christ and Culture Revisited and benefiting greatly from his analysis of the church within our contemporary Western setting. He made some helpful remarks in that book about the “new tolerance.” Now, several years later, Carson has written an entire book on this subject. The heart of the book is a contrasting of “old tolerance” and “new tolerance.” He writes:

The new tolerance suggests that actually accepting another’s position means believing that position to be true, or at least as true as your own. We move from allowing the free expression of contrary opinions to the acceptance of all opinions; we leap from permitting the articulation of beliefs and claims with which we do not agree to asserting that all beliefs and claims are equally valid. Thus we slide from the old tolerance to the new.

The rest of the book unpacks the slide from “old” tolerance to “new.” Along the way, Carson exposes the intellectual bankruptcy of the new tolerance as well as its hypocritical application in a way that muzzles the viewpoints of religious people and those with objective notions of morality. In the end, Carson explains that Christians who attempt to be faithful to the Scriptures will necessarily uphold certain truths as being true regardless of relativism’s tyranny. This is timely work that gets to the heart of contemporary controversies over religious freedom and political involvement.

The explosive growth of Christianity in Africa and South America has led many observers to speak of this demographic shift as creating a new Christendom. Unfortunately, the teaching that has fueled growth in these areas has been tainted by an American-style prosperity emphasis that focuses on health and wealth at the expense of sin, redemption, and repentance.

A PLEA TO REJECT THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL

Femi Adeleye is the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students Associate General Secretary for Partnership and Collaboration. A Nigerian based in Ghana, Adeleye argues against the prosperity gospel from a place of personal experience and from an up-close view of how his country (and continent) is developing theologically. His book Preachers of a Different Gospel: A Pilgrim’s Reflections on Contemporary Trends in Christianity is a heartfelt plea to reject the prosperity gospel and embrace the biblical message that saves.

Adeleye begins his book by describing a “strange gospel” that has created “strange Christians.” He laments the fact that many no longer adhere to the gospel as it was first presented in Africa. “The gospel that downplays human sinfulness and the eternal benefits of the gospel is not a gospel of Christ” (134).

Throughout the book, Adeleye contrasts the revivals of the 1970′s with contemporary gospel presentations in an effort to show how quickly the degeneration has taken place. Quoting Dietrich Bonhoeffer, A.W. Tozer and others, Adeleye seeks to show the disparity between the prosperity teaching in Africa today and historic Christian witness. He writes: “Whereas the gospel of the cross calls for repentance and denial of self and other things, the gospel of champagne calls for self-satisfaction in response to stimuli from diverse entertaining attractions” (19).

Adeleye sympathizes with the early aspects of the charismatic movement. He traces the history of recent African renewal movements and recounts his personal experiences during this time. At the same time, he laments the tendency of Africans to focus on the gifts of the Spirit more than the fruit.

A PROPHETIC SERMON AGAINST THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL

Preachers of a Different Gospel reads like an extended sermon in which Adeleye, like an African prophet, seeks to correct his brothers and sisters and bring them in line with the gospel that was once for all delivered to the saints. And, like a good preacher, Adeyele turns some striking phrases, such as the polarity between “the God man uses” rather than “the man God uses.”

But Adeleye is careful to not critique in such a way as to create a different sort of distortion. When speaking of God’s immanence, for example, Adeleye seeks balance and makes sure to not rule out a believer’s experiential piety and relationship with God.

Toward the end of the book, Adeleye points out ways that the prosperity gospel is responsible for some of Africa’s ongoing cultural problems. He sees the witness of the church as tightly tied to the content of the gospel it preaches. “The primary purpose of the gospel is to save us and bring us into a living relationship with God and with one another. The goal is to produce transformed people who bear witness to the righteousness of God” (134).

It quickly becomes clear that Adeleye believes that the prosperity gospel has left the church in a state of impotence, totally unable to address many of the societal and structural issues in Africa today. He writes: “When there is a fire in the church, society should feel the heat” (121). And again: “True renewal is not just personal; it must also have an impact on society.”

Some may not agree with Adeleye’s description of Christians as “transforming agents” in society, but it is clear that Adeleye views societal transformation as intricately connected to personal evangelism and the church being the people of God. Preachers of a Different Gospel is a clarion call to the contemporary church to return to authentic Christianity, not only for the sake of the church, but also for the good of the world.

- first published in the 9Marks eJournal, Jan-Feb 2012

Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal: A Boy, Cancer, and God by Michael Kelley was one of the best books I read last year. It would have made my annual Top Ten list, but it hadn’t been released yet. On March 1, the book launches, and I hope it finds a wide audience.

Michael’s book chronicles his son Josh’s battle with cancer. The book weaves together stories and theological reflection, and the result is a raw, honest look at faith in the middle of trying circumstances. The big questions about human sickness, God’s sovereignty, the supremacy of Christ, and the need for faith – all of these are displayed against the backdrop of the family’s journey through a time of intense suffering.

When you come across books about children and cancer, you may think that the target audience is predominantly female and that the tone of the book will be sentimental in nature. Not so with Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal. This is not a sappy book, and though it ends happily, one senses the weight of the experience and the change it brought about in the lives of Michael and his wife.

After reading an early manuscript, I sent in an endorsement:

“Wednesdays Were Pretty Normal is about personal faith forged through the fire of suffering, and the all-encompassing grace of a God who won’t fit into the boxes we try to construct around him. This is not a sentimental memoir or another theoretical look at suffering. Instead, Michael leads us to the intersection of faith and life, of God’s love and our pain, of God’s plan and our questions.”

Take a look at the trailer for the book, and then do yourself a favor and pre-order it now.

Books on writing bore me. Either they focus too much on grammatical do’s and don’ts or they exalt the intangible features of good writing that are caught, not taught. That’s why most writing books leave me with a passionate desire to write more – not because they’ve inspired me but because I’d much rather go ahead and write than read another boring book about writing.

Doug Wilson’s brief book Wordsmithy: Hot Tips for the Writing Life is a delightful exception. Wilson only has seven exhortations for us writer-wanna-be’s, and he delivers them in two pages. That’s right. In two pages, you get the gist of the book, but those two pages will whet your appetite for what the rest of the book delivers.

Reading Wordsmithy is a lot like savoring a meal at the same time you are learning to cook. As you learn how to mix up the ingredients that make for good writing, Wilson dons his chef’s hat in order to properly demonstrate all that he is exhorting you to. In other words, you won’t leave the table hungry.

After reading Wordsmithy, I sent Doug a few questions about writing. Here are his answers:

Trevin Wax: When did you first begin to write?

Doug Wilson: I remember wanting to “make books” around the sixth grade. And I think I wrote my first poem around the same time (it was about a sea anemone). But I did not seriously begin to write until after my stint in the Navy, when I was around 22.

Trevin Wax: Have you always found joy in the writing process? Or is joy something that has developed over time?

Doug Wilson: When I began to set myself to writing, my initial efforts were pretty stiff and cardboardy. But I wanted to do it and wanted to learn how to do it.

I think that I knew from the beginning that joy was the point. My wife already had her degree in English Lit, and I was a philosophy major. She knew how to type, and at the time I didn’t, so she would type out my papers for me. I must have set myself to making it interesting early on because I remember her telling me that I couldn’t put things “like that” in an academic paper. I had enjoyed reading lively writing from the time I was in high school (C.S. Lewis, William F. Buckley, et al.), and I knew I wanted to move in that direction if I could figure out how. Other models came later – e.g. Wodehouse, Mencken.

Trevin Wax: One of the takeaways from your book is that writers should know the rules of grammar but also be willing to bend them. Are you a word fusser or a word libertine?

Doug Wilson: I would say I am a fusser on the basics and a libertine around the edges. To illustrate, I think table manners are essential to civilized life, but if the court of Louis XIV demands 22 salad forks, my sympathies move to the antinomians.

Clear thinking and clear writing go together, and the rules of grammar are (for the most part) dedicated to keeping things clear. When they begin to obscure that clarity and become counterproductive, then it is time to remember that man was not made for the Sabbath.

Trevin Wax: What’s the correlation between good reading and good writing?

Doug Wilson: Good reading is foundational. Constant exposure to that which is undeniably good helps train your ear. It helps train you to throw out things that are guilty of no writing “sin” but that are equally free of any virtue. A melody can be dull without breaking any musical laws, and writing can come off like it was written by a committee without parts or passions. Reading good stuff educates a future writer in the intangibles.

Trevin Wax: What’s your take on the current state of the “blogosphere”? Do blogs help us write better?

Doug Wilson: Some blogs are great, of course, but most of that world is just noise. And most of the really good stuff is going to find its way into print. Blogs are a way for a prospective writer to make it in the minors.

The best thing about blogs is that they provide a dedicated writer with an occasion to crank it out in a disciplined fashion. If he gets good, his blog will get noticed, or his writing talents will be. But this only works because this part of our world is like the rest of the world. Cream rises, which only works if it is not all cream.

One of the more helpful theological books I read this year is J. Todd Billings’ Union with Christ: Reframing Theology and Ministry for the Church (Baker Academic, 2011). After reading through it, I was happy to offer this word of recommendation:

In Union with Christ, Todd Billings expounds upon an important New Testament doctrine by exploring its contemporary ramifications in light of careful historical and exegetical reflection. This is a thought-provoking book that will ignite fresh conversations about the nature of our participation in Christ.”

Today, I’m honored to have Todd join us here at Kingdom People to talk about the importance of the doctrine and the reality of “union with Christ” and what it means for our salvation.

Trevin Wax: Todd, you say something bold at the beginning of your book – that the doctrine of “union with Christ” is theological shorthand for the gospel itself. Explain what you mean by this statement and why we need to see the importance of union with Christ in how we conceive of the gospel.

Todd Billings: Good question. Well, my bold statement comes from John Calvin, who claims that the “sum of the gospel” is the double grace of justification and sanctification, gifts which are inseparable yet distinct, received through the Spirit in union with Christ (Institutes 3:3:1). I think that Calvin brings us a profound insight here.

Union with Christ encompasses many, many different ways that the New Testament talks about Christian identity:

• being “in Christ,”
• abiding in Christ the Vine,
• walking by the Spirit,
• the forgiveness of sins in justification,
• the gift of new life by the Spirit who works in and through believers in sanctification.

It’s a corporate image because the Spirit unites us not only to Christ but to Christ’s body, the church.

It’s also a covenantal image that brings together the Old Testament and the New, for to be in Christ is to be in God’s covenant of grace. We not only believe that Jesus Christ, in His life, death, and resurrection, is the culmination of God’s purposes in creation and covenant, we are united to Jesus Christ by the Spirit and thus participate in the One who is the true Prophet, Priest, and King.

It’s also eschatological as well as ethical, for we have already “died” to sin, yet we are called to “put to death” the old self (Rom. 6:6; 8:13). All of this happens through the Spirit (Rom. 8:9). I could say more, but even this short description indicates how this “sum” of the gospel is not a reduction of it — it’s an expansive vision of it compared with the many ways that Christians tend to domesticate the gospel today.

Trevin Wax: What are some of the ways we tend to reduce the gospel today?

Todd Billings: There are several common ways. On the one hand, sometimes we as Christians reduce the gospel to a conversion experience, or to “justification alone” — such that the entirety of the gospel comes to be about the forgiveness of sins. Sanctification becomes “our own work,” an optional extra for super-Christians.

On the other hand, sometimes we downplay or ignore the forensic imagery of justification, and we think that the gospel is just about our own transformation. On that side of the equation, the gospel can become reduced to our own lives, our own efforts to do good. It is no longer good news about God’s grace revealed to us in Christ.

But the gospel is more than either of those reductionistic options. The good news is nothing less than Jesus Christ, as the culmination of God’s purposes in creation and covenant, and our union with this same Christ by the Spirit. This means that we must say “both/and” to forensic (legal) and transformational images of salvation — because, in the words of Calvin, “free remission of sins cannot be separated from the Spirit of regeneration. This would be, as it were, to rend Christ asunder” (Institutes 3:16:1). The two gifts of the double-grace are distinct yet inseparable.

In the book, I explore many specific ways that this plays out, and I draw upon sociological work to illustrate exactly how some of these “reductions” of the gospel have taken place. Then I explore the quite remarkable way in which a theology of union with Christ addresses these reductions of the gospel. For example, in the first chapter I draw on the sociological work of Christian Smith to show how God is seen as conveniently distant by many Christians today. And in response I describe a biblical and Reformational theology of salvation as adoption by the Triune God in Christ as an antidote to that problematic view of the gospel.

Trevin Wax: How does a proper understanding of “union with Christ” aid us in sanctification? Or better put, how does the reality of union with Christ help us become more like Him?

Todd Billings: Our temptation is to think that we should imitate Christ from a distance, or ask, “What would Jesus do?” This can often lead to a practice of sanctification that is focused upon ourselves and our own efforts rather than upon loving God and neighbor and growing in conformity to Christ.

There are several dimensions of good news relating to union with Christ here. First, we are not just given a ticket to heaven and then told to try really hard to act like Christ. By the Spirit’s power, we are given justification and sanctification as gifts. Thus, even our new life in Christ is a gift, not an achievement.

Second, we don’t follow Christ at a distance, but by the Spirit’s power we are united to Christ in His death and resurrection – Christ isn’t just a distant model from history, Christ lives in us by the Spirit. At the same time, this union remains a differentiated one so that we don’t confuse the work of Christians with the work of Christ.

Third, in light of union with Christ, we can go beyond the sermon punchline of “try harder to do good,” the moralistic preaching that is so common today. Instead, in gospel proclamation our true identity is held before us – that we are adopted children of the Triune God, whose true identity is in Christ by the Spirit. The exhortation becomes: live into this new identity, which is your true identity. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ because you have been united to Him in His death and resurrection.

Finally, undergirding all of this, it’s important to recognize that affirming the effectual work of the Spirit in sanctification is not to say that we can be lazy in sanctification or that our identity is annihilated in sanctification. Rather, it is to affirm that the Spirit is the One who brings life to those who are dead in sin, thus activating believers to love God and to service in the world. When the Spirit effectually acts in sanctification, we (in our created goodness) are being restored, not annihilated. This short video about the book explores a bit more how union with Christ illuminates misunderstandings about “total depravity.”

Trevin Wax: How does “union with Christ” challenge the prevailing ways we go about doing theology and ministry?

Todd Billings: My book is full of surprises for many people. It explores the surprising, astonishing ways in which a theology of union with Christ can illuminate our understanding of the gospel, correct misunderstandings, and change the conversation about many areas of theology and ministry. It does this through showing how a biblical theology of union with Christ, together with insights retrieved from the Reformation, can open up new avenues, new ways of approaching biblical and theological issues that shake up our contemporary categories.

For example, as this short video about the book explores, union with Christ can move us beyond an “either/or” that polarizes divine transcendence and mystery from the Christian’s union and communion with God.

The book also explores the insights provided by a theology of union with Christ as a way to move beyond shortcomings in our contemporary talk about ministry, as this short video about the book’s critique of “incarnational ministry” shows.

Trevin Wax: Thanks for writing such a helpful book, Todd. And thanks for stopping by to talk about it here!

Every December, I select the ten books that I most enjoyed reading during the year. Please note that I am not giving a blanket endorsement to everything in these books (after all, some of them contradict each other at points). I choose ten books a year based primarily on how much I enjoyed reading them.

Here are my top ten picks for 2011.

#1. GOD’S GLORY IN SALVATION THROUGH JUDGMENT:
A BIBLICAL THEOLOGY
- James Hamilton

Hamilton puts the Bible together in a way that leads the reader to marvel – not at his own theological acumen, but at the majestic and loving God whose saving actions are at the heart of the Bible’s grand narrative.
See an excerpt here.

#2. UNBROKEN:
A WORLD WAR II STORY OF SURVIVAL, RESILIENCE, AND REDEMPTION
- Laura Hillenbrand

… the riveting life story of Olympic runner Louis Zamperini, is easily one of the best books I’ve read… I was moved to tears by the wondrous power of the Holy Spirit to change a heart.
For more information, check out: “What Finally Broke Louis Zamperini.” 

#3. NOTES FROM THE TILT-A-WHIRL:
WIDE-EYED WONDER IN GOD’S SPOKEN WORLD
N. D. Wilson

… while guys like me are blabbing on about the need for beauty, guys like [Nate] are already delivering thoughtful, rich, dare-I-say exuberant prose that stirs up a sense of wonder at life, love, and the beauty of Christian truth.
Check out my interview with Nate here as well as some great quotes from the book (here and here).

#4. THE WARMTH OF OTHER SUNS:
THE EPIC STORY OF AMERICA’S GREAT MIGRATION
Isabel Wilkerson

By interweaving three individuals’ lives and the larger narrative of the Migration, Wilkerson paints a stunning portrait of life in the Jim Crow era…
Read my full review here.

 #5. READ THE BIBLE FOR LIFE:
YOUR GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING AND LIVING GOD’S WORD
George Guthrie

… an easy-to-read yet in-depth approach to hermeneutics that focuses on connecting the dots of the big story line of the Bible.
See my review for Christianity Today here or my interview with George Guthrie here.

#6. THE LORD OF THE RINGS
J. R. R. Tolkien

Frodo’s humble devotion to a cause and Sam’s unflagging devotion to Frodo is the foundation of this epic battle of good versus evil.
Read one of my favorite passages here. 

#7. HERETICS
G. K. Chesterton

 It’s ironic that Chesterton’s literary foes who believed him backwards and old-fashioned are largely forgotten today, while we are still reading Chesterton a century later.
Read some of my favorite quotes here, here, here, and here.

#8. GOSPEL:
RECOVERING THE POWER THAT MADE CHRISTIANITY REVOLUTIONARY
J. D. Greear

[J. D. has] expressed in laypeople’s terms the type of confidence and security that comes from believing in the gospel of Jesus Christ…
Check out my conversation with J. D. here.

#9. DESTINY OF THE REPUBLIC:
A TALE OF MADNESS, MEDICINE, AND THE MURDER OF A PRESIDENT
Candice Millard

Not only did I finish it feeling like I knew James Garfield, I also enjoyed the thrilling pace of the plot development…
See my full review here.

#10. GOSPEL WAKEFULNESS
Jared Wilson

Anyone hungry and thirsty for righteousness will be refreshed by the invigorating streams of truth that flow from Gospel Wakefulness. Jared Wilson wants us to delight in the gospel to the point that sin becomes bitter and Christ becomes our supreme treasure…
See my full review here.