Tuesday, June 11, 2019

Recommended Reading Winter/Spring 2019 (Pt. 2) (June 11, 2019)


Allen Raynor Weblog: Recommended Reading Winter/Spring 2019 (Pt. 2)

(June 11, 2019)

         

          Cell phones have changed our lives.  One could argue for better or for worse, but there is little doubt they have changed us, and the world in which we live. Tony Reinke has written a fantastic book called 12 Ways Your Phone is Changing You.  I found this book among the most fascinating reads of late.  He argues we have become addicted to distraction; that we devalue, perhaps even ignore flesh and blood in a way previously unknown; that we crave immediate approval through social media; that literacy to a large degree is being lost as people skim and speed-read in a way never done before; that we are losing a sense of true meaning; that we are lonelier now than ever before; that much of the clear sense of right and wrong we once knew is being lost; that we are more harsh to one another; we are more comfortable than we have ever been before in secret vises, and much more.  Before reading this book, I assumed I had a good grasp of the problem, but Reinke really made me think about many things.  Put this book on your “must read” list.

          Some books just make you say “Wow,” and that is the case with author Melvin Tinker’s book That Hideous Strength: How the West was Lost: The Cancer of Cultural Marxism in the Church, the World and the Gospel of Change.  Tinker explores how the worldview behind the attempt to build the Tower of Babel in Genesis 11 is the same one that influenced Karl Marx and his socialistic descendants.  In recent decades we have seen a drastic change in western culture in how truth is viewed.  The secular worldview, sexually promiscuous, pro-homosexual, pro-abortion, anti-family mindset of today undermines the very idea of “truth” itself before any thoughts or ideas are shared!  Tinker writes this book in the backdrop of C. S. Lewis’ classic work That Hideous Strength where Lewis saw with remarkable precision and clarity where the thinking of even 70 years ago would take mankind.  Melvin Tinker’s book is pointed and eye-opening!

          Concerning the subject of church history I really enjoyed, and learned a lot from A Brief History of Sunday: From the New Testament to the New Creation by Justo L. Gonzalez.  The book traces the development of Sunday (The Lord’s Day) as the day of Christian worship moving from the Jewish Sabbath on the 7th day of the week.  Many think this was simple, with only a few lingering issues, but it was not so cut and dry.  There are several intriguing historical truths of which I was unaware until I read this book.  Gonzalez takes one through the middle ages, through The Reformation, and shows how the reformers felt about The Lord’s Day. Gonzalez then moves on to the Puritans, and then up to the more modern issues concerning the day of worship. 

          The Five “Solas” or “Sole authorities” coming out of the Protestant Reformation were the sole authority of Scripture alone; Faith alone; Grace alone; Christ alone; and by God’s Glory alone.  Jason K. Allen is the editor of a great new book that came out earlier this year called Sola: How the Five Solas are Still Reforming the Church.  A handful of authors write each chapter and give a great overview of each of the 5 solas.  It is a great introductions for those new to the subject and a great reminder for those who hold these near and dear.

          David Martyn Lloyd-Jones was perhaps the most amazing Bible expositor of the 20th century.  He preached with passion and precision to spellbound audiences.  I was blessed and inspired, while reading Steven J. Lawson’s book The Passionate Preaching of Martyn Lloyd-Jones.  This book is somewhat biographical but focuses mainly on the different aspects of his stellar preaching. 

          J. I. Packer has done a lot of research on English Puritanism and his writings celebrates these towering figures we know as “the Puritans.”  I enjoyed reading Packer’s book Puritan Portraits: Selected Classic Pastors and Pastoral Classics.  A handful of key Puritans are covered with a bit of biography and a summary of their major works.  This book is a great introduction for someone wanting to know more about the English Puritans.

          On the subject of prayer I was blessed by re-reading Alone with God: Rediscovering the Power and Passion of Prayer as I prepared to teach through the book on Wednesday Evenings.  John MacArthur gives many wonderful quotes from famous preachers and writers of the past concerning prayer, offers deep and heart-rendering insights, and gives wonderful explanations to the phrases found in the Lord’s Prayer/Model Prayer.  Another related book which both helped and challenged me was The Essential Guide to Fasting: What it is, How to do it, and Why it Matters by Elmer Towns.  Fasting may not get the notoriety that prayer gets but it is vitally important, biblical, and useful to our spiritual development.  Towns gives great insight into this oft neglected spiritual discipline.

          Christians believe a lot of lies that they think are either Scriptural, or nearly Scriptural.  However, many of the views held are nothing more than “urban legends.”  In his great book 9 Common Lies Christians Believe: And Why God’s Truth is Infinitely Better, author Shane Pruitt dispels some of the most common of these lies.  These include such misconceptions and “one liners” as “God won’t give me more than I can handle,” “God gained another angel,” “God just wants me to be happy,” “I could never forgive that person,” “Just follow your heart,” “God does not really care,” “Believe in yourself,” etc.  This book will help you separate fact from fiction in your own life and help you help others shine the light of Scripture by dispelling falsehoods and “old wives tales” about the Bible.

          Believers are well aware that the normalization of homosexuality, and even same-sex marriage, has come in like a flood and radically changed the culture right before our very eyes!  We have heard so much rhetoric and many have suspected that much of what they were hearing was not true but they did not have the knowledge, in many cases, to really say for certain this rhetoric was not accurate.  One of the most popular practices of our day by the political left is to revise history, which is easily done with the help of the internet. What is the actual truth concerning  the historical view of homosexuality?  Authors S. Donald Fortson III and Rollin G. Grams have compiled an enormously helpful resource in their book Unchanging Witness: The Consistent Christian Teaching on Homosexuality in Scripture and Tradition.  The research for this 402 page book is extensive and thorough.  They trace and extensively quote ancient writers, philosophers, Jewish Rabbis, consult early church confessions, the Protestant Reformers, up to modern writers and theologians to show how the church, and society in general has always stood opposed to homosexual practice. The authors also examines many Scriptures that speak about homosexuality and show what they mean, and what they have been understood to mean historically.  They also spend significant time quoting and commenting on revisionist writers who have tried very hard to re-interpret the Bible to fit their lifestyle or simply accommodate the culture.  This is, by far, the most thorough treatment of the subject of homosexuality I have read to date.  I highly recommend all believers read this book.

          Abortion has been a hotly contested issue for a long time and figures to be for a long time to come, even though polls are showing a decline in the number of supporters.  Lives are at stake!  Believers must be educated on the issues in order to be able to argue the case for life.  John Ensor and Scott Klusendorf have done a great service by writing their book Stand for Life: A Student’s Guide for Making the Case and Saving Lives.  The book is heartfelt, challenging, and educational as it explores the abortion issue and offers suggestions as to how to get involved in this battle for life.  Another great book I read recently on this topic is Randy Alcorn’s book Why Pro-Life?  Caring for the Unborn and their Mothers.  It can be read quickly, but offers a great challenge.

 

In Christ,

 

Dr. Allen Raynor, Pastor

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