Books

Importance of Network Structure

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As far as I am aware, no historical denomination has ever been able to fully recover its earlier, more fluid and dynamic movement ethos again.  That's why it is the network structure, where power and responsibility is diffused throughout the organization and not concentrated at the center, that more approximates our real nature and calling as the body of Christ.  A network structure thus guards us from the dangerous creep of religious institutionalism.

Alan Hirsch in The Forgotten Ways, page 188.

Quitting or Sticking

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Extraordinary benefits accrue to the tiny minority of people who are able to push just a bit longer than most.

Extraordinary benefits also accrue to the tiny majority with the guts to quit early and refocus their effort on something new.

[...]

Quit the wrong stuff.
Stick with the right stuff.
Have the guts to do one or the other.

--Seth Godin in The Dip, page 4.--

Coming Keller Book

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Thanks to Michael Keller we now know that the new Tim Keller book has found it's final name: The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism.  Michael also provides us the Table of Contents.

Introduction – All doubts are leaps of faith

PART 1 - The Leap of Doubt

1. There can't be just one true religion

2. A good God could not allow suffering

3. Christianity is a straitjacket

4. The church is responsible for so much injustice

5. A loving God would not send people to hell

6. Science has disproved Christianity

7. You can't take the Bible literally

Intermission

PART 2 - The Grounds for Faith

8. The clues of God

9. The knowledge of God

10. The problem of sin

11. Religion and the gospel

12. The (true) story of the cross

13. The reality of the resurrection

14. The Dance of God

Epilogue - Where do we go from here?

Critical & Generous

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We need to be as critical of ourselves as we often are of others, and as generous to others as we always are to ourselves.

John Stott, The Message of the Sermon on the Mount, BST, p 180.

John Piper is Cheap!

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Nice deal.  Get on it.  From Abraham Piper at the Desiring God Blog...

We would like to offer the book What Jesus Demands from the World for $2.97 to our readers. (It retails for $19.99 and we usually sell it for $12.49.)

This may be the first post you've seen here at the DG Blog or you may be a regular reader. Either way, we appreciate your interest and we would be very happy for you to take advantage of this special.

To get the discount, add the book to your cart in our store. Proceed through the checkout and on the payment page there will be a field to enter a coupon code. Enter the word blog and then click on "Apply Code."

Small print: This special is only available online. One discounted book per order. We've set aside 500 books for this, so it is a while-supplies-last kind of deal.

I also ought to add that you can always download  this book for free (PDF) along with a bunch of our other books if you don't mind reading a couple hundred pages on your computer screen.

Reformed Pastor Audiobook

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I just wrote myself a note yesterday to remember to reread The Reformed Pastor by Richard Baxter.  Now you can get the audiobook for free.  I just got it, so should you. Via Justin Taylor...

ChristianAudio's "Free Audiobook of the Month" is Richard Baxter's classic, The Reformed Pastor.

Inhis introduction, Baxter writes: "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood." This charge from Acts 20:28 only is the beginning of a solemn and overarching task to be personally involved and disciple all of your congregants. Richard Baxter's plea for shepherding his flock continues with a charge to pastors to verify their own spiritual walk and then walks them through various disciplines, strategies, and goals to guide and instruct their congregation.

Use the coupon code MAY2007 during checkout to get the download format of   The Reformed Pastor for free!

     Your Price: $0.00
     List Price: $22.98

The Forgotten Ways

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ForgottenwaysAlan Hirsch's book, The Forgotten Ways, is causing me to ask a lot of good questions of my theology, my ecclesiology & missiology.  It's good, challenging stuff and I recommend you pick it up.  I've been meaning to read/review this book for some time and it has been too long in coming.  Over the next few weeks or so I'm going to make the effort to post a few quotes, reflections, and/or questions about the book and the issues it raises.  Please feel free to interact with the ideas.

Alan_hirsch_2 I wish I had time to do the book more justice, but Scot McKnight (for one) spent a good deal of time on the book (Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8).  You might also want to check out Jordan Cooper's epic first half review here. I encourage you to go to these links for a good recap of the arguments of the book.

If the heart of discipleship is to become like Jesus, then it seems to me that a missional reading of this text requires that we see Jesus's strategy is to get a while lot of little versions of him infiltrating every nook and cranny of society by reproducing himself in and through his people in every place throughout the world. (p 113)

Book Review: When the Darkness Will Not Lift

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PiperI just finished John Piper's new book, When the Darkness Will Not Lift (audiobook).  It's about 70 pages long, helpfully short for someone who is weighed down with darkness.  You can pick it up for $8, or find it online for free thanks to Desiring God.

This is a very encouraging little book.  Piper deals with the issues of melancholy, assurance/doubts, unconfessed sins, Satan, self-absorption, remedies, and dealing with other people who are in darkness (among other things).  Oh, and Piper all talks a little about joy. :)

This book helped me realize where I'm struggling through a bit of darkness right now  It's remedies are not simplistic and trite but rather practical and Gospel-centered.  I will try to keep a few copies of this around to give away, and I think it will become one of the most recommended books for those I pastor.  I highly recommend it whether you love Piper's writing (like me) or not.

A few encouraging quotes...

Despair of finding any answer in yourself.  I pray that you will cease from all efforts to look inside yourself for the rescue you need.  I pray that you will do what only desperate people can do, namely, cast yourself on Christ. (p 21)

If we pour ourselves out for others, God promises to make us like "a watered garden"--that is, we will receive the water we need for refreshment and joy.  But even more, we will thus be "a spring of water" that does not fail--for others, for the demanding, exhausting draining ministry of urban self-giving. (p 63)

Reading, Wanting & Teaching

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I'm reading several books right now including The Power of the Hour (Lakhani) and The Forgotten Ways (Hirsch).  The Forgotten Ways is a very interesting read so far.  My worship team and I are reading Pleasing God in our Worship, a booklet by Robert Godfrey.  Basic but good.  Bob Roberts' new book is out, Glocalization.  I've read his other book, Transformation, and liked it.  Looking forward to picking up this new one.  You should keep up with Bob's blog as well.

I also wanted to mention that a generous Amazon.com shopper sent me the New and Collected Poems (1931-2001) of Czeslaw Milosz.  Awesome!

I just finished preaching a series of sermons on generosity.  God's timing was amazing with this series and the events of my life.  I then preached Psalm 103 last Sunday, will be preaching on being a church without walls this coming Sunday and on the need for small groups on the 18th.  Then I start a series on the book of Daniel that should take us through to warmer weather (it's currently 1 degree with like a -10 wind chill).

In another study I do before worship on Sundays I just finished teaching through The Enemy Within (Lundgaard) and am now doing a straight-up practical series on The Organized Life.

I'll post soon on some really incredible things God has done for our family.  Look for it.

ESV Reverse Interlinear

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Esv_1A few weeks back I received the new ESV English-Greek Reverse Interlinear New Testament (whew!).  I've used it a few times now and like it a lot.  If you know Greek well then this product may not be very helpful.  I will probably not use it much myself since I have one of those intense Bible programs on my laptop.  But for those who don't have a great grasp on the Greek, this can be a fantastic Bible study tool.  I'm especially thinking of small group leaders and Bible study teachers in my church.

Basically this tool is the ESV Bible with the Greek words below.  Each Greek word is transliterated, parsed and numbered from Strong's.  There are helpful guides at the beginning of the book on how to use the book that explain these things further. 

As a pastor who preaches from the ESV and encourages my church members to use it for their own reading and study, I want to express my thanks to the nice people over at Crossway who are continuing to deliver great ESV tools and Bible editions.

Saturday Selections

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I'm getting a lot of hits from Spero News.

Have you been listening to Ken Myers' podcast from Mars Hill Audio?  It's called Audition, and it's a great free resource for provoking thoughts on theology & culture.  And if you don't subscribe to Mars Hill Audio, I recommend it.  At least get a free sample issue to try.  It's a key resource for stretching me beyond my current intellectual boundaries.

I've gotten through part of the Book TV discussion with Andrew Sullivan and David Brooks.  The conversation focused on Sullivan's new book The Conservative Soul: How We Lost It, How We Can Get It Back.  I originally caught some of the end of the show on TV.  It is intriguing concerning political conservatives and evangelicals.  You can also get at least some (maybe all?) of the video at YouTube, which has worked better for me than the Book TV video.  Al Mohler just had Sullivan on his radio show as well.

Speaking of evangelicals and the political world, I'm very interested in the recent comments of David Kuo, who is currently a columnist at Beliefnet.  Kuo served as Special Assistant to President George W. Bush and Deputy Director of the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, and has written the new book  Tempting Faith: An Inside Story of Political Seduction.  I just bought the book and look forward to reading it in the next couple of weeks. I was introduced to Kuo by watching Charlie Rose's interview a couple of nights ago.  Here's the Google Video of the program, and the Kuo interview begins at around the 35 minute mark.  Justin Taylor points to the Books & Culture review of Tempting Faith.

I'm already tired of the online discussion about Ted Haggard, and find Stephen Shield's post on the matter very helpful.  Mark Driscoll's good advice in his post on the subject are must reading, though nothing profoundly new (a typical sign of most good advice).

The late Mitch Hedberg has some important thoughts for us as Thanksgiving approaches.

I don't listen to country music, but the new CD by Alan Jackson is really good.  It's called Like Red On A Rose. 

I'm finishing up preaching Colossians this Sunday.  I've enjoyed N.T. Wright's commentary (TNTC) the most.  Then I'm taking two Sundays off for vacation and a planning retreat.  Tim Etherington will be preaching for me from Jude.

Reformissionary Roundup

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Time for a roundup of random stuff.

1. I've started a Bible study series at our church based on Kris Lundgaard's book, The Enemy Within (@ Monergism).  Lundgaard's book is based on two of John Owen's works on sin.  I read it a few years ago and rereading it for this series.  Very helpful book.  Justin Taylor points to some of Lundgaard's audio messages on The Enemy Within.

2. Watched the movie Click with my wife yesterday.  It was moderately funny.  Best part of the movie is what Adam Sandler does to David Hasselhoff (there's a bad word here, so don't watch if you can't handle it).

3. Speaking of video, the Smiling Addiction video is great.  It's an original piece (including original music) by Crossroads Community Church in GA.  I think Joe Thorn first pointed me to this.

4. It looks like Paradox, a music venue at Mars Hill Seattle but not run by Mars Hill, is no more.  This article doesn't really give Mars Hill's perspective in a good light, but the news was worth mentioning.

5. Have you taken a trip on Line Rider yet?  Throw on a scarf and go!

6. Alan Hirsch is blogging.

7. Tim Keller wants to help you know how to "Work."  Great sermon.  Keller provides Dorothy Sayers' definition of the biblical doctrine of work: "Work is the gracious expression of creative energy in the service of others."  Other TK Resources.

ESV Bible Turns 5

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EsvThe English Standard Version of the Bible (my Bible of choice) turns 5 years old in a few days.  Congrats! 

Today, the ESV is available in more than one hundred formats, has seen nearly 3 million copies distributed worldwide, and is reaching the world in creative and strategic ways. ESV General Editor J. I. Packer recently stated, “I find myself suspecting very strongly that my work on the translation of the ESV Bible was the most important thing that I have done for the Kingdom, and that the product of our labors is perhaps the biggest milestone in Bible translation in the past fifty years or more.”

[...]

The English Standard Version (ESV) Bible is an essentially literal Bible translation that combines word-for-word precision and accuracy with literary excellence, beauty, and readability. Believing that every word of the Bible is inspired by God, the translators of the ESV sought to be transparent to the original text so that the reader could see the structure and meaning of the original as clearly as possible. For more information on the ESV Bible, visit www.esv.org.

Pocket Guide to the Bible

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I'm long overdue for some comments on Jason Boyett's Pocket Guide to the Bible: A Little Book About the Big Book.

1. The Boring Details. 

Boyett_1 This book, at just under 200 pages, comes in five parts...
    - The Biblicabulary (a glossary of terms)
    - Know Your Characters (a biblical role call)
    - The Bible at Breakneck Speed (an ill-advised plot summary)
    - Versions and Perversions (a guide to modern translations)
    - The Brief History of Holy Writ (an exhilarating timeline)

2. The Point.

From the introduction...

...a handy, easy-to-read, occasionally amusing guide to the Bible and its characters, events, translations, and history.

...the bible is the all-time best-selling book, one that most people own but apparently don't read, that lots of people read but apparently don't understand, and that people allegedly understand but in a way that makes them jerks....Let's see what the Pocket Guide can do about that. (p. xii)

3. The Skinny.

It's true.  Boyett has succeeded in putting together a Bible handbook for people who typically wouldn't read the Bible.  I found much of the content helpful and well-stated.  I occasionally didn't like the way he worded something, or presented the content.  But not more than most any other book.  And more often than not I was impressed with Boyett's ability to make the truth simple and concise.

It's funny.  I had to be careful where I read this book.  I caught myself laughing out-loud at Starbucks in front of people on more than one occasion.  At times the humor goes a little too far, but I typically enjoyed it and felt it not only made the book entertaining, but often aided in understanding.

Example entry from Biblicabulary...

BLOOD
    You know what blood is, so quite acting all uninformed.  Biblically speaking, blood becomes one of the most important symbolic concepts of the Jewish and Christian faiths.  Blood smeared on the doorframe protects the Israelites during the Passover.  Priests sprinkle the blood of sacrificial animal on the altar, and the people of God (in the Old Testament, at least) are prohibited from eating blood.  The blood of an animal -- because it represents life -- is the necessary ingredient in the process of atonement.  Which leads to the New Testament, in which people gain atonement for their sins through the innocent blood shed by Christ on the cross.
PLEASE USE IT IN A SENTENCE OR TWO: At the Last Supper, Jesus tells the disciples that the wine represents his blood.  But good Southern Baptists know that, though he says "wine," he really means "grape juice."
BIBLICAL EXAMPLE: "The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you" (Exod 12:13).

4. The Warning.

Look, if you spend all day trying to invent new ways to misrepresent and broadbrush young Christians as goatee-wearing hipsters who must be theologically liberal because their clothes weren't bought at the Men's Warehouse or they read magazines that have a sense of style, then this book isn't for you.  It will just make you mad because you probably really, really like to get mad at things that help younger generations learn the Bible in non-traditional ways.  So just move on and call LifeWay for less helpful resources (apologies to my many friends at LifeWay, who should do more to get the bulletin shell creators to stop putting soldiers on the cover every other week).

5. The Recommendation.

If you dare encouraging others to laugh and enjoy learning truth at the same time, get this little book for your young friend who needs a handy reference as they learn to read the Bible.  Some of the humor may be over-the-top for youth, so I recommend it for all twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings, but only thoughtfully for high-schoolers.

I also recommend Michael Spencer's 12 reasons to buy this book. 

I'm looking forward to reading Jason Boyett's other Pocket Guide books (Adulthood, Apocalypse) as well as A Guy's Guide to Life. 

600 Pages

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I recently read three books, each running about 200 pages.

Hsu_2 The first was The Suburban Christian by Albert Hsu.  I thought it was a very helpful book on suburban Christian spirituality that fills a gap in understanding life in suburbia.  There are points Hsu makes that I don't completely agree with, but all-in-all this is a good book worth checking out.

Simple The second was Simple Church by Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger.  I really wasn't sure what to expect since I hadn't read Rainer in near a decade.  I really enjoyed the book.  It was similar to something Andy Stanley might say (and at times has said), and I say that as a compliment.  If you are a pastor or church leader, this book will have plenty of good advice for you.

Speaking_1 The third and final read I both started and finished last night.  It was Speaking of Jesus by J. Mack Stiles.  This book has been on my shelf for a few years at least.  I really was looking to read a book that gave some practical, conversational helps.  I wasn't disappointed.  There were a few places where I wish Stiles would have taken a more missional approach, but as a whole I liked the book and would encourage my people to read it.  If you are looking for some practical advice on talking with people about Jesus there are many good things out there, and this book is a good one too.