My Top 10 Christian Theology Books

Here is a list of books I wish I had read ages ago. They have given me a good overview of the meta-narrative of the Bible and a deeper appreciation of God’s plan of salvation throughout history.
I have also come to see that a very good argument can be made for the Jesus of history being the Jesus of Faith. These books have helped tremendously.

Book Review : Preaching and Preachers – D.M. Lloyd Jones

I haven’t got much to say today. Blogging tends to be quite time consuming for me. Lately my wife and I have been discussing how to relate faith and everyday life. In short we’ve been trying to take theology from abstract discussion to an everyday reality and its not as easy as you would think. But  its something we must do. Theology was meant to be discussed and lived. The two elements are inseperable. An incorrect understanding leads to an incorrect implementation.

The Weight of Truth

The year was 1939. An gutsy young man rose to power in Nazi Germany and started annexing countries in Europe; claiming them back for the “fatherland”. Austria and Poland fell first. More of Europe followed suit very quickly. Germans from around the world were returning home to join the army in the struggle against those who wished to hamper their expansion. What followed was 6 years of bloodshed and genocide that has yet to be rivaled in history. Although reports differ we know at least six millon Jews lost their lives during this period. In fact we could reword that to say that the Nazi regime systematically set out to exterminate the Jewish race from the planet; stopped only because they lost the war. All over the world, veterans of this war still gather to remember those who lost their lives. We may have studied this war at school or heard stories from our parents or grandparents. But according to Ian Wishart, a large portion of the youth in Britain believe the holocaust never happened.

Book Review : The Courage to be Protestant – David F Wells

When a friend is out on the street doing something silly and embarassing themselves what do you do? Do you remain silent hoping they will stop or do you say something? This is exactly the dillema faced by David Wells when He wrote “The Courage to be Protestant”.  I must admit that I read books about the Church & Culture with a healthy dose of skepticism. The Church faces a barrage of criticism from outsiders. Critiquing the Church is as easy as shooting fish in a barrell. There are always problems to be addressed. Sometimes I think the critics are majoring on minors.

Wells picks on two strands of the “evangelical” church today, Seeker Sensitive and the Emergent Church. Having come from a Seeker Sensitive Church myself I have experienced much of what Wells talks about.  Very early in the book he makes a very wise statement, “It takes no courage to sign up as a Protestant today…but to live by historical tennets of protestants takes courage.” Historically speaking the protestant movement was founded on the five solas.

A spoonful of sugar…

Today I took my own advice and had lunch with a friend of mine. We discussed all the important things in life, namely Theology and Chicks. I know, I know, I can see the eyes rolling from here. Just kidding, we just discussed theology.

The discussion we had forced me to think on my feet, and find a way of articulating what I believe. All the reading I have done over the past year has helped me enormously. I am now able to see that I understand the Gospel message better and am ready to give a reason for the hope that is in me. The Lord will not leave me where I am though. He keeps me humble by reminding me that inspite of all my knowledge I am still a fallen human being in need of His Grace.

Polaroid World

I’m tired of everything being so instant and I’m tired of trying to learn theology on the Internet.
Whatever happened to taking the time to read scripture carefully, reading commentaries and listening to the Sermon on Sunday? Today I think too many people (myself included) see the Internet as a mystical gateway. A way to have a surface understanding of just about every theological issue there is out there. The staggering amount of information out there truly does boggle the mind, but it is no substitute for hard work and good old fashioned learning.