Short But Very Sweet

One decision I enjoy getting to make every year as a youth pastor is what book to buy as a gift from the church to my graduating seniors. Last year, I really enjoyed Alex and Brett Harris' Do Hard Things, and I'd actually given thought to getting it again for my 3 grads this year. In hindsight, I'm very glad that Tim Keller's The Prodigal God caught my eye instead. Though it was a quick read, don't let that fool you as to the depth of spiritual insight contained within. This is one of the best-written books I've read in some time in terms of making excellent use of every word.

The book is an examination of Jesus' parable from Luke 15:11-32, commonly called the parable of the Prodigal Son. Keller seeks to examine the parable to see what it teaches us about the nature of the Christian faith, and he exposes a parable that reads very differently than most people have thought. Rather than focusing on the wayward son, Keller points out that the focus of the story is actually the father, who represents God to us. Also, he spends a large amount of time examining the older brother in the story, who is actually cast in worse light than the younger brother. This was especially helpful to me, pointing out how dangerously often my "obedience" to God is really self-centeredness in clever disguise. In the end, though, the lasting impact of the book is a picture of a father who seeks to reconcile both sons to himself and does so at great personal cost. This is the inspiriation for the book's title - rather than meaning "wayward" as is often assumed, "prodigal" actually means "to spend recklessly, to spend all that one has." Keller paints us a picture of a God who is the ultimate prodigal, who takes the debt of sin on himself and who graciously and lovingly calls both individualistic, rebellious "younger brothers" and self-righteous, self-seeking "elder brothers" to repentance.

I really cannot recommend this book strongly enough. Keller writes extremely well and makes his points with clarity and power. Last night, I was talking with two of my grads and they were both gushing over the book. One of my guys was nearly finished with it after just 3 days, adding that he'd never finished a book in a week in his life. Whether you're a high school senior or a senior citizen, this is a book that you'll find edifying, enlightening, and encouraging. Put it at the top of your summer reading list.

A Comprehensive Challenge

Though I've never been able to attend the Together For the Gospel conference, I listened to audio of all the messages from last year's edition and found them extremely challenging, convicting, and encouraging. I'd heard a couple of the messages from the 2006 conference, but not all of them, so I was excited recently to begin reading Preaching the Cross, a book written by the conference speakers that encapsulates the content of their messages. The book is not an exact transcript or reproduction of the sermons, but the content is very similar.

Mark Dever, Ligon Duncan, Al Mohler, C.J. Mahaney, John MacArthur, John Piper, and R.C Sproul each contribute a chapter, and all of them are quite helpful in their own right. The book is, as the title suggests, built around the centrality of Christ's atonement in preaching. Each writer's work is related to that theme, but each is very different in its focus - a fact that keeps the book fresh throughout and makes it a valuable tool in many different areas. My favorite chapters were likely Sproul's refelctions on the centrality of justification by faith, Duncan's insights on preaching Christ from the Old Testament, and Mahaney's hard-hitting call to a careful watch on one's own life. Content-wise, the book was excellent. My only complaint is that at times it reads like a book of sermons, with the unshakable feeling that to hear these messages preached would be far more engaging than simply reading them. I wouldn't call the writing flat, but the whole endeavor did at times betray itself as a book that is a byproduct of another medium. If you attended T4G 2006, you may want to take a pass on this one, since it will be largely summary and retread. However, if you're like me and did not attend, you'll find a lot of benefit in this book. The subject of the cross in preaching is covered from nearly every conceivable angle, a great help for the pastor who seeks to leave no stone unturned is his proclamation of Christ crucified - the only hope for our people and for us.

A Primer on the New Atheism

Richard Dawkins. Christopher Hitchens. Sam Harris. Daniel Dennett. You may or may not know the names, but chances are if you've had a discussion about God with an atheist in the last few years you know their ideas. Their bold and confident pronouncements against theistic belief - and largely Christian belief in particular - have topped bestseller lists and influenced countless people. Their ideas have become so pervasive among atheists that I can almost see them coming before a conversation begins. Their movement, often referred to as the "new atheism," is a cultural reality that any serious Christian needs to pay mind to. I recently finished a book that would be a good tool for someone who wants to do just that, Al Mohler's Atheism Remix.

The book is a short and quick read (I knocked it out in two sessions of about a half-hour each), and not spectacularly deep in its analysis, but it does an excellent job of introducing the reader to these men and their ideas. I'm pretty confident that a person who didn't know The God Delusion from War and Peace could read Mohler's book and emerge with a good foundational understanding at the ideas that the new atheists are advancing. One of Mohler's many talents is his ability to shape his communication to fit his audience (as anyone who's heard him preach at both a seminary convocation and a local church knows full well), and he presents his material here in a way that's not dumbed down but that also doesn't require a collegiate course in theology and philosophy. The book's accessibility makes it perfectly suited for the curious layman.

However, its accessibility is a limitation as well as a strength. For those who are already familiar with the new atheists, there's not a whole not of new material here. Mohler summarizes who they are and what they believe, then lays out the cultural consequences of their ideas (another great talent of his) and provides some basic responses from across the theological spectrum. Honestly, as much as I enjoyed the brief treatment of McGrath and Plantinga's responses, I would have liked to see more in depth analysis from Mohler himself. However, that's just simply not the aim of the book. I don't think he's trying to teach a graduate course on the matter, but to offer an introduction to a challenge that will have a huge impact on a generation of believers. If you'd like to understand and begin to think about the new atheism, Mohler's book would be a great place to start. If Dawkins, Hitchens, and the like are old-hat to you, then you'll probably want to take a pass here.

Are You a Respectable Sinner?

Over the weekend, I finished up Jerry Bridges' book Respectable Sins. Though the title may seem a bit odd (it was a great conversation starter with some of my co-workers), the premise of the book is much needed and incredibly useful. As the church today fails to miss a beat in condemning the grievous sins of society, Bridges challenges Christians to take a hard look at the less-obvious, but all-too-serious sins we tolerate in our own lives - our own "respectable" sins. Anger. Bitterness. Envy. Pride. Judgmentalism. You won't hear fiery polemics on these topics like you will about abortion, sexual immorality, or Godlessness, but they are alive and well in our lives, made all the more dangerous by their insidious nature. By treating them as "respectable," we often are blind to their devastating effects on our spiritual walks.

After introducing his premise in the opening chapters, Bridges examines several of these sins in detail chapter-by-chapter, examining how they often pop up in our lives and what we can do to battle against them. The book is incredibly disarming, showing self-styled "good people" like us just how much we still struggle with sin - and how easily we even give up the struggle and accept some sins as normal. This could be an incredibly depressing topic to explore if not for the pastoral heart that Bridges writes with. His lifetime of wisdom and gentle demeanor overflow out of every page. What could be a shattering condemnation instead has a hopeful tone, as Bridges constantly exhorts us to put our trust in the grace of Christ - both for our salvation and our sanctification. He is honest about his own failings, and offers extremely practical advice for overcoming the stumbling blocks of sin.

I can't recommend this one highly enough. It's a fairly quick and easy read that is well-suited to careful and prolonged study. One could easily read through the book in an afternoon, but I found I benefited greatly by spreading it out over a few weeks, deliberately meditating on each chapter. I think this book would be especially useful as part of a small-group study (in fact, the back of the book contains information about ordering study guides). There's not one person among us or in our churches that couldn't benefit from this challenging, yet ultimately encouraging book. Give it a read.

Tearing Down the Shack

Everybody and their mother seems to be talking about The Shack lately. I've not read it myself, but my good friend Corey Reynolds just reviewed it, and he's got major concerns. And by the way, before any supporters of the book chalk this one up to just another reformed guy hating on the emergent crowd, Corey was a fan of the much-maligned Blue Like Jazz.

This Looks Intriguing

As I begin to compile my mental list of books I'd like to pick up at this year's Basics Conference (with its awesome 20% bookstore discount), Philip Ryken's Art for God's Sake sounds like an interesting read. Anybody already read it?

You May Be Righteous, But Are You Godly?

"Contrary to what we normally think, ungodliness and wickedness are not the same. A person may be a nice, respectable citizen and still be an ungodly person. The apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1:18, "The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness." Note that Paul distinguishes ungodliness from unrighteousness. Ungodliness describes an attitude toward God, while unrighteousness refers to sinful actions in thought, word, or deed. An athiest or avowed secularist is obviously an ungodly person, but so are a lot of morally decent people, even if they say they believe in God.

Ungodliness may be defined as living one's everyday life with little or no thought of God, or of God's will, or of God's glory, or one's depenence on God. You can readily see, then, that someone can lead a respectable life and still be ungodly in the sense that God is essentially irrelevant in his or her life. We rub shoulders with such people every day in the course of our ordinary activities. They may be friendly, courteous, and helpful to other people, but God is not at all in their thoughts. They may even attend church for an hour or so each week but then live the remainder of the week as if God doesn't exist. They are not wicked people, but they are ungodly." - Jerry Bridges, Respectable Sins, pp. 53-54.

Set Sail

I was a big fan of Peter Weir's 2003 film Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World. So, a couple years ago, when I happened upon one of the books on which it was based in the bargain bin at Borders for $2.99, I snatched it up. It's taken me quite a while to finally pick it up and dive in, but I finally finished it yesterday, and found it an enjoyable, if not occasionally frustrating, read.

The Far Side of the World is actually the 10th in author Patrick O'Brian's series of 20 novels detailing the exploits of British naval captain Jack Aubrey and his confidant and ship's surgeon, Dr. Stephen Maturian. Those who have seen the Weir film (which starred Russell Crowe as Aubrey and Paul Bettany as Maturian) will find much familiar here, with much of the overall plot structure of the film being lifted from this book. However, the differences are numerous and prevalent enough that there is still a great sense of surprise and drama for one who has seen the movie. Set in the War of 1812, the book finds Aubrey's ship, HMS Surprise, assigned to track down and capture an American ship, the Norfolk, that has been attacking and capturing British whalers in the south seas. Their journey takes them around Cape Horn, through external storms and internal struggle, as they seek their prize.

Perhaps the best way for me to describe O'Brian's writing style is to call him a period Tom Clancy. Anyone who has read Clancy knows that he'll usually spend a great deal of time (often 100 pages or more) offering detail into his setting and characters before getting significantly into the plot. O'Brian operates much the same way, providing enough details to make one feel like they've spent a tour or two at sea with the King's navy. Just about the time that the detail begins to feel tiresome, the novel takes off, and in retrospect the detail is worth the time, with the subsequent drama feeling incredibly immersive. The book had segments that gripped me tremendously, but it also had lulls that tempted me to put it down. I won't spoil the ending, since it will be new even to fans of the movie, but it felt abrupt and ultimately unsatisfying. I'm sure book 11 likely picks up where it leaves off, but I'm not sure I'll ever pick it up to find out. For those who love historical fiction, you'll love O'Brian, if you haven't discovered him already. The average reader will find an enjoyable ride here, I think, but not a great one.

A Primer on Prayer

D.A. Carson has long been a favorite author of mine. Ever since hearing him give a series of lectures during my freshman year of college, his writing has had a great impact on my spiritual life – most notably the way I think about the love of God. For that reason, I picked up a used copy of one of his books I hadn’t read – A Call to Spiritual Reformation. This book is a study of the prayers of the apostle Paul, intended to help us to reevaluate and reinvigorate our prayer lives.

This was a bit of a curious book from Carson. It’s obviously written with the layman in mind, with each section ending with questions for study and reflection. On an organizational front, this would be a great book for a small group study in the local church. On a content front, it also seems tailor-made for such an endeavor. Time after time, Carson offers insights into the discipline of prayer that the church definitely needs to hear (I say this because I definitely needed to hear them). Some of the middle chapters started to feel repetitive, but the book’s final chapter was incredibly good, with several instances of excellent insight into unanswered prayer. He is better than most at examining theological truths that are not only hard to understand, but hard to accept. My favorite Carson writing is his material dealing with aspects of God’s love that often don’t feel very loving to our human hearts (I highly recommend The Difficult Doctrine of the Love of God and Love in Hard Places), and I think he is equally adept at offing counsel on a prayer life that feels like it’s hit a brick wall.

However, the curious nature of the book comes from the fact that, though it seems like a perfect fit for a lay group study, Carson’s writing may be over the head of much of the audience. Carson is an incredibly smart guy. However, I felt at times that the way he wrote wouldn’t really connect across the spectrum of theological literacy. The book seemed to have the pastoral heart of his love books, but the academic tone of Exegetical Fallacies. It was a combination that didn’t always mix well. In final analysis, though it’s not perfect, and it’s not my favorite Carson book, it’s definitely worth a read for someone who is struggling to learn how to pray. Just bring your pocket theological dictionary.

A Commentary Doubleheader

A couple weeks ago, my youth group and I finished a 58-week study in the gospel of John, the tail end of which you’ve been able to follow here on the blog. It was a great study, and my teaching preparation was greatly enhanced by the two commentaries that I used over the course of the study. I commend them to you.

The first is Arthur Pink’s Exposition of the Gospel of John. This thick volume contains Pink’s insights into the text, many of them drawing from the most miniscule details to produce great insight. That’s the primary reason I would recommend the commentary – Pink often sees meaning in the details of the text that I simply didn’t. I’ll never forget planning the first lesson in the study. I had intended to teach John 1:1-18 the first Wednesday night. I had my outline prepped and ready, only to have the Pink commentary arrive from Amazon on Tuesday. I sat down and began to read that evening, and very quickly realized that there was absolutely no way I could do justice to those 18 verses in one night. Pink challenged me to go deeper and to search familiar verses for truths that I had neglected, which is in effect the job of any Bible teacher. I ended up taking 5 weeks to tackle the passage, and never felt like I was stretching. However, the commentary’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. Sometimes, Pink draws out things from the text that I’m just not convinced are there. He is very apt to allegorize narrative passages, and there were several weeks (especially the accounts of Jesus’ miracles) where I didn’t find much of profit despite much reading. There were several occasions where I would ask a trusted friend their take on Pink’s interpretation when the water between profound exegesis and allegorical stretching became muddied. All in all, though, the good far outweighs the bad for a discerning reader.

The second is John Calvin’s commentary on the book from the Crossway Classics series. If Pink was my source for the minute details, Calvin was where I turned for the broader strokes of theme and application. I found his writing spot on and extremely useful, to the point where if I was crunched for reading time during a particular week and could only get through one commentary, it would more often than not be his. His pastoral heart shines through in the way that he applies the text, and often his application would inform my concluding thrust to my students (who says that dead French theologians have nothing to say to modern American teenagers?). In addition, the people at Crossway did a fantastic job of translating Calvin into a very accessible modern English without it ever having that dumbed-down, JV feel that such a translation can easily fall prey to. It was a great commentary on all fronts.

At the end of the day, if I could only buy one, I’d buy Calvin’s. However, both of them read quite differently and are incredibly useful in their own right. If you’re planning a study of John or would just like a commentary to aid you in your personal study, you won’t go wrong with either of these.

The Power of Quiet Wisdom

If I had to name the preacher I enjoy hearing the most, most people around me know that I would name Alistair Begg. Every year, I attend his Basics Conference for Pastors with several friends and find it a time of great refreshment. Several years ago, one of the speakers at the conference was Derek Prime, who was Begg's mentor when Alistair was a young minister in Scotland. I remember being struck by Prime's humility and wisdom. Listening to him preach was like listening to a grandfather passing on wisdom to his grandchildren. He's not flashy, he's not loud, he's not full of catchphrases or clever rhetoric - he's just full of wisdom.

That impression led me to recently pick up his book A Christian's Guide to Leadership for the Whole Church. What I found inside was very reminiscent of the sermons I heard Prime preach several years ago. He offers very practical, down-to-earth advice on how to demonstrate Christlike leadership in the church - whether one's sphere of leadership extends to the pastorate or even a simple committee chairmanship. Absent are the catchy formulas that one would expect to find in a book on leadership. Prime simply seeks to present biblical wisdom on how to lead well, peppered with his experience from over 30 years as a pastor - the last 19 of which have been spent in the same church. His pastoral heart shines through in his presentation as well, as he ends each section with a prayer, applicable Scripture readings, and reflective questions.

As I said, don't pick the book up expecting flash or pizazz. Prime is not the most engaging writer I've ever read, but the quiet humility of his preaching is evident in the way that he writes. For anyone who is in any type of leadership role in a church (or has aspirations to be), this would be an immensely valuable read. Don't come in expecting the broad scope and vision of Mark Dever and Paul Alexander's The Deliberate Church, but if you're searching for a book that focuses on the day-in-day-out concerns, stresses, and difficulties of leading the people of God, you won't be disappointed here.

The Last Lecture: Randy Pausch, The Beauty of Life, and Romans 8:28

Last week, a good friend lent me a copy of Randy Pausch’s best-selling book, The Last Lecture. Pausch (who died in July) was a computer science professor who in his mid-forties was diagnosed with terminal cancer. After the failure of all treatment options, Pausch was given only 3-6 months to live. He was invited by his university, Carnegie-Mellon, to give his “last lecture,” a tradition where outgoing profs expound on the wisdom gained in their lives and what they’d like to pass on. The father or three young children, Pausch saw this as an opportunity to leave a message and a legacy to them, and gave the lecture. His book is an expansion of the lecture, telling his life story and passing on what he learned through it. I had heard good things about the book, but I’ll admit that I was a little apprehensive about reading it. I had visions of an overly smarmy 200-page long Hallmark card. Those fears were shattered as I got into the book, and found myself tremendously moved by one of the best books I’ve read in the last few years.

One thing that instantly jumps out from the book is Pausch’s personality. Within the first few pages, I had the unshakeable thought, “I like this guy.” As I waded deeper into the book, that very quickly morphed into, “I want to be like this guy.” This was a man who understood what was important in life. This was a guy who loved his wife and kids, wasn’t afraid to follow his dreams, and lived every day with a joy and a purpose. From his reflections about his parents and his childhood to his recounting of his bachelor days to his beautiful discussions of being a husband and father, this is a man with a story to tell – terminal cancer or not. One anecdote sticks out to me that seemed to sum up his personality. He talks of his bachelor days, when he would be the “fun uncle” to his nephews. He had just bought a snazzy new convertible and was preparing to take them for a ride as his sister hounded the boys to be careful not to mess up Uncle Randy’s new car. Wanting to communicate that there are more important things in life than stuff, he cracked open a can of Coke and poured it all over the back seat as the boys watched in amazement. Pausch talks about how a few days later, one of the boys got sick and threw up in the back seat. Needless to say, he didn’t feel scared that Uncle Randy would be mad at him for ruining his new car.

Countless situations like that paint a picture of a man who didn’t waste his time worrying about what everybody thought of him. He lived his life, and he lived it well. I found myself reflecting on my own life, and how much I take for granted – my wife, my daughter, my family. Whether my life ends at 45 or 95, I want to be able to look back and know that I lived it well, that I truly focused on the things that are really important. This is a book I can recommend wholeheartedly to any and everyone. It’s a fantastic memoir from a man who truly has a story worth telling.

That brings me to one final reflection. One cannot read a story like this without asking the “why” question. Why would God take a man like that in the prime of life, with a wife and kids who need him? (Interestingly enough, though Pausch reflects briefly on his faith and his church, the “why” question never comes up) Adding to the irony is the fact that I spent time yesterday in a blog debate about how a loving God can be in sovereign control of a world filled with suffering. I had to ask the question – how can Romans 8:28 apply to Randy Pausch? Surely, his wife and kids grieve his loss with a sadness that I can’t even imagine. I don’t want to downplay that in the least. But consider this – I’ve repeatedly said that this is a man with a story worth telling. However, if it weren’t for his cancer, his story would never be told. After all, the man was a computer science professor at Carnegie-Mellon. Computer science professors at Carnegie-Mellon don’t write NYT best-selling memoirs. Randy Pausch, because of his suffering, was able to impact millions of lives, including mine, with his own. I am so thankful that God allowed me to see his life story, for there is much in it that I want to emulate. Does it take away the suffering? No – but it is a glimpse into the gracious and sovereign hand of God who works all things together for good.

Benefits of the Deliberate Approach

While I was away last week, I was able to finish Mark Dever and Paul Alexander's The Deliberate Church: Building Your Ministry on the Gospel, a book I had been intending to finish up for some time. The time was very well spent. To those who are in church ministry of any kind, I can't recommend this book highly enough. Dever and Alexander lay out not only what a church based on the Scriptures should look like, but also some very practical steps on how to get there.

As the title suggests, the book is designed to suggest how a church can be deliberate in following the Bible's commands for how the church ought to function. We live in a day when, as Derek Webb put it, we don't really see a difference between what works and what's right when it comes to the church. Does it put people in the pews? Then it's great! Success is measured in terms of numbers - both membership and budget. Even those who may eschew these trends often do so not because of a biblical focus, but because of entrenched human tradition. The Deliberate Church does an excellent job of pointing us to examine what the Bible has to say about the church, nothing more, and then explores how to implement these truths.

The book covers the whole spectrum of church life, including membership, polity, prayer, music, structure, and the ordinances. The book's strength is its ability to cover a great many topics while providing great advice on how to get from where you're at to where you're going. Often times, studying a healthy church from a Biblical perspective can be an overwhelming endeavor, with my enthusiasm for moving forward severely dampened by the despair of a seemingly insurmountable task. I never got that feeling with this book. What I did get is a clearly presented view of what the Scriptures call us to as a local church, and the motivating desire that pursuing those goals is not only admirable but possible by God's grace. Well paced, biblically founded and accessibly presented, whether you're a pastor or layman you owe it to yourself and your church to pick this book up.

Viva la Rebelution!

As a youth pastor, I’m always on the lookout for things that will be helpful in communicating God’s truth to teenagers. Recently, I picked up a book for my graduating seniors and was very impressed as I read through it. Though it’s not about theology per se, Alex and Brett Harris’ Do Hard Things: A Teenage Rebellion Against Low Expectations is a powerful challenge to teens to live their lives with God’s glory in mind and not to waste what the world would have us believe are life’s disposable, “just have fun” years. Perhaps the most compelling part: it’s actually written by teenagers. The Harris twins (younger brothers of Covenant Life pastor and blogger Joshua Harris) wrote the book at nineteen, and their ability to discuss these issues on a peer-to-peer level with teens makes the book all the more powerful. These are not some 50-year old guys telling teens about the good ol’ days, they’re two nineteen-year-old guys who have risen above our culture’s pathetic dismissal of teens and launched a global phenomenon known as The Rebelution.

The Harris twins call teens to discard the modern idea of adolescence and embrace adulthood. As a teen, nothing annoyed me more than being dismissed because of my age. I desperately wanted to be seen and heard as an adult. I think teens today have the same desires – the desire to break away from childhood and be seen as important and mature. However, the book calls for teens to embrace this maturity by “doing hard things,” by challenging themselves to do things to the glory of God that are important and significant. The twins encourage teens to discard the low expectations that society has on them (as they put it, if a teen simply doesn’t do drugs and get into trouble, they’re viewed as a ‘good kid’) and live a life that meets the expectations of God – and not to wait until they’re 20 (or worse) to get started. Along the way, they offer practical advice and countless stories from real ‘rebelutionaries’ of how they’ve answered the call. All of this is written in a way that is simple, straightforward, witty, and smart. If you’ve got a teenager in your life, the next time you’re looking for an idea for a graduation, birthday, or Christmas present, Do Hard Things would be an excellent choice.

No .com, But Lots of Crumminess

Well, I've now recieved my autographed (eBay beware) copy of the Crummy Church Signs book, and let me say that it is indeed crummy - and this is one of the few contexts I can imagine where that is a compliment. The signs were compiled from 2004-2007, and since I only discovered the website about a year ago they've been mostly all new to me. If you are a fan of Joel's blog (especially a newer fan), you ought to take a look at the book. I've had it for four days, and it's already been a fantastic coffee table book. Talk about a conversation starter - and here's hoping (or maybe not) that the next four years yields another wealth of material.