Our Top Tens
Our Top Tens
Happy New Year. What follows are not reviews per se, but rather a list of good books. What follows is a list of books which have had the most profound influence on our thinking. All of them we commend to your reading, but you need not fear that you will turn into monsters like us. The books are listed in no particular order, except that Laurence's 10 come first.
Pilgrim Progress - by John Bunyan: As relevant now as it was then, this classic continues to expose superficiality, teach biblical truth, and warm the hearts of true believers.
The Trouble with the Church - by Helmut Thielicke: With an emphasis on the inner life of the Christian, the author reveals the veneer that most of us assume is spirituality.
David Livingstone.- His Life and Letters - by George Seaver: Missionary, explorer, and scientist, this man opened up the Dark Continent to the light of the gospel (wish I coulda been there).
Foxes' Book of Martyrs - by John Foxe: Be sure to buy an unabridged copy of this historic account of the price our brothers and sisters paid for their profession of faith.
The Attributes and Existence of God - by Stephen Chamock: A well written, mind-expanding examination of the character of God.
The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway - by Ernest Hemingway: I know, you thought I was more spiritual than this. But Hemingway does a great job in portraying the humanity of his characters (for better or worse) which allows us to evaluate our own lives and counsel others.
Mere Christianity - by C.S. Lewis: I still enjoy the simplicity of this intellectual giant explaining and defending our Christian faith.
Chosen By God - by R.C. Sproul: This is truly a paradigm shifting tome. The reader not only eschews his past Arminianism, but comes to realize the true love of God.
The Razor Edge - by William Somerset Maughham: A comparative study on passions and priorities in novel form. This is my favorite book.
Knowing God - by J.I. Packer: To be read and reread. This is an ideal book to introduce anyone to what theology really is: an understanding of who God is and how we are to respond to that knowledge.
The Bondage of the Will - by Martin Luther: This is the greatest book ever to be penned on the nature of man's sin, and its enslaving power, written by the man who was probably the most influential man of the millennium.
The Freedom of the Will by - Jonathan Edwards: Perhaps the most brilliant piece of philosophy ever penned by the man even many pagans affirm is the greatest intellect of the New World. Not only that, but it is all you'll ever need to win arguments with your Arminian friends.
All God's Children and Blue Suede Shoes - by Ken Myers: The subtitle for this book, a part of the outstanding Worldview Series published by Crossway, is, "The Christian and Pop Culture." Myers is brilliant at showing us how the world around us shapes the way we think, even when it's not trying to. Though I don't want to blame Ken for what we do here, without this book there would be no Highlands Study Center and no Every Thought Captive.
The Law - by Frederic Bastiat: This wise Frenchman wrote centuries ago and demonstrated how it is that Lord Acton was right, that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In, the tradition of Rutherford's Lex Rex, this little book distills the essence of just and sound government, arguing for a rule of law rather than a rule of man, finding through the light of nature what God gave Israel millennia ago.
Reforming Marriage -by Doug, Wilson: Doug does here what he does best, shows the outworking of our theology in our lives. In doing so, he teaches volumes not only on marriage, but on the biblical principle of hierarchy, and more importantly, the covenant.
That Hideous Strength - by C.S. Lewis: By aesthetic standards this book is no great shakes. But as a compelling and entertaining story that also carries a great deal of pedagogical freight, it is a master work. This is The Abolition of Man, Lewis' most prescient work, turned into fiction. You will no longer look at either modernism or post-modemism as cute, errant children again, but will see them for the Pandora's boxes that they are.
Paradise Restored - by David Chilton: Chilton does not merely make sense of the book of Revelation, he also does for us what Revelation was intended to do, inspire us to obedient kingdom building in an age that has succumbed to the world. His approach is to see the book as it was intended, as a vision of the current reign of Christ given to the suffering church of the first century. Warning: After reading this you'll never again be able to listen to dispensational eschatology without laughing.
The Shorter Catechism for Study Groups - by G. I. Williamson: When I look back on my theological education, I divide it into three equal parts. The first was all I learned from my father at home. The second was my study at seminary. But an equal share of it comes straight from studying through this book as a 13 year old. If anything made me understand and appreciate Reformed theology it was these little books. Like the gospel they are easy enough for a child to understand, and profound enough to teach any of us.
Heiland - by Franklin Sanders: This is the book I read when I'm down. Like the Lewis novel, this is not art. But it does teach while giving the reader two compelling visions. First it shows us how vicious governments can be. Then it shows us how a faithful covenant community responds. All of which reveal the heart of the author, a living hero of the faith.
I'll Take My Stand - edited by Andrew Lytle: Agrarianism is not an easy thing to understand in a consumerist age. I struggle with explaining it every time we put out an issue of ETC. This collection of essays will not dissect and parse the movement, but rather will invite the reader to taste of it. And it tastes like a freshly picked peach.
None of these books are available here, but if you need help tracking them down, we can try.