Simonetta Carr adds the latest volume to her series by Reformation Heritage Books, the Christian Biographies for Young Readers series that is. Others include Calvin, Augustine, Owen, Athanasius, Lady Jane Grey, Anselem, Knox, Edwards, and the latest and subject of this review Marie Durand. As a side the next project volume in the series is on Martin Luther. This is the first of the series that I have read but I don’t plan on it being the last. I chose to read this book primarily because I have two young daughters and want them to be able to read about some of the female heroes of the church. This book will be placed on my children’s book shelf for their use as the begin to read.
I didn’t quite know what to expect picking up this book being about a woman with whom I had never heard of. It turned out to be a fascinating read about Marie Durand and learning about her life in which a large portion of it was spent in prison because of her faith in Jesus Christ. This was a timely read as we seem to be moving towards greater persecution of Christians in America, it was a helpful reminder of how well we have it here in the USA. It also was a reminder that the gates of hell will not defeat the church; Christianity will survive the persecution we may face.
This book traces out the days of Durand’s life and much of her family who were imprisoned because of their protestant faith, largely due to her brother’s preaching ministry. The story is intermingled with beautiful art rendering as well as photographs. I found the photographs very helpful in understanding the context and historically neat aspect of the book. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in women of the church, French church history, and young girls looking for examples of Godly women.
Richard M. Hannula adds a nice little work to the “Bitesize Biographies” series published by evangelical press books edited by Michael Haykin. His biography on Samuel Rutherford is the first thing I have read on Rutherford and was a simple and interesting introduction. It is a widely accessible biography of the 17th century Scotish Presbyterian minister at a beginner level.
The Good:
This book is short and readable for those who want to learn more about great men of the church yet don’t want to know every last detail. Coming in at 138 pages it is not a huge commitment. In the short work though one will gain a greater appreciation for Rutherford and His life and ministry and how that fits into British church history.
I for one was most impressed with his commitment to a small rural church. He was essentially forced away from it into what others would considered more prestigious positions in the universities. He was dogmatic about serving the people where God had placed him and would spend long hours walking to visit with the flock God had placed under his leadership where they were often in the fields working. It is quite admirable the visitation he did and the dedication he had to these people.
We learn of Rutherford’s suffering through death in family and also through political persecution. Much of what he went through and the lessons learned are so applicable to 21st century Americans. He lived a life that had its ups and downs but he persevered and died with his hope in Christ alone.
The most interesting chapter to me was on his role at the Westminster assembly. For those interested in the confession you will enjoy the chapter. It also was the chapter that most clearly showed Rutherford’s theological distinctives.
Another good part about the book is that while it is overwhelmingly in praise of Rutherford he does mention a couple places where Rutherford was not perfect showing he was a real man and a man of his time. He mentions the possibility that Rutherford’s first wife was pregnant before they were married (p.24) and also how Rutherford occasionally corresponded the cause of the Covenanter army with the cause of Christ. (p.110). This is helpful to not present and unrealistic portrait of a man.
The Bad
I would have loved to see some footnotes, endnotes, and bibliography. Rutherford and others are quoted widely throughout without any noting where the quotes come from. For one wanting to study further it will make this book not helpful in that regard. There is an appendix with recommended further reading but no sources given for where the material in book came from. Having not read many short biographies like this I am unsure if this is commonplace or not, but I would hope not. There is also no note of where the picture on front cover comes from which I would be interested to know what where it is.
As it is a “bitesize Biography” I understand that not everything can be included but I do wish that more of Rutherford’s theology and how he got there was included because that seems helpful in understanding the positions he took and life he lived.
Also not really bad but unless familiar with Scottish Presbyterian lingo you will need to look up several words along the way. For instance many Americans may not have a clue what a Kirk is. I believe Kirk is just the Scottish way of saying church.
If interested in the man, the time, or Westminster divines or related subjects you will enjoy this short read.
Samuel Rutherford: by Richard M. Hannula in Bitesize Biographies series
My two and half year old daughter quite enjoyed this book so based upon that I would give it 5 stars but as a father I need to be more discerning that just whatever my children enjoy. I have a 2 year and a 4 month old daughters so I am on the look for solid christian books especially for very young at this time. This book would definitely be suitable for 2-3 year olds to have read to them. I was very excited to see that the good book co. was starting a childrens book line and look forward to seeing what else they come out with. So here are my thoughts on “Alby’s Amazing Book” by Catalina Echeverri.
The good:
The illustrations are great, very colorful and great for the kids but also have a lot of details to be appreciated by all. They include text of the scripture in the pictures which are the bible story shown in the picture which was a neat aspect. I much enjoyed the illustrations as well as my daughter. Also I was pleased that there were no images of Jesus Christ. I am not sure if this will continue with the Good book Co. children’s literature but it was nice for one who believes 2nd commandment doesn’t allow for images of Christ.
The book shows the importance of the scriptures and that it is not just a boring book, but full of great stories of God working in this world. This hopefully will encourage children to want to read the bible more with their parents and long to learn those stories.
The text is short and and easily keeps the attention of very young children. There are not a lot of good christian books that are aimed at children 2 and under like this so it is much needed.
Concerns:
The book implies that the bible is a love letter to an individual in this case Alby. While the bible speaks to individuals and their needs, it should be read looking for Christ and what God has done for us through Him primarily and as a book for the church. This is somewhat nit picking because the book does show importance of scripture which is admirable, but Good Book Co. could improve as they produce more.
The text on some pages was very difficult to read because it is so small and the color of text blended into the illustration. This made it difficult to read to my daughter and show her pictures at same time.
While the illustrations were great the picture of Adam and Eve was one like I had not seen before. While the image was not unbilical it might have benefited from increased leafs.
Keep and eye on Good Book Co. childrens imprint and hopefully we will more great illustrations from Catalina Echeverri.
This book was provided from the publisher in exchange for review which was not required to be positive.
This is the place I believe to begin reading John Owen. For those interested in reading Owen there are several edited works of his by Banner of Truth publishing and crossway publishing but I would still recommend starting here with Ryan McGraw’s “Foundations of Communion With God: The Trinitarian Piety of John Owen”. You will not have read an entire John Owen book, but you will be introduced to the man and get 41 golden nuggets of readings from his works.
The book contains and introduction bio on Owen that is really and simple yet highly interesting read. Then you have 41 readings divided into 3 sections; 1. Knowing God as Triune, 2: Heavenly Mindedness and Apostasy 3. Covenant and church. The book then ends with some appendixes dealing with reading John Owen. It comes in at just 147 pages, which makes this book so accessible for many who would never read Owen otherwise.
The Good:
The book is divided into 41 short readings in addition to the bio. This makes it very readable. I would recommend reading one chapter a day and maybe more than once. There is so much to chew on in just a couple of pages of Owen which is about the size of each chapter, so one could read and think deeply about it.
The book also shows a lot of what Owen had to say on public worship of the Triune God. I had heard quite a bit about Owen on killing sin but to read him on the ordinary means of grace was especially encouraging. This book will encourage you to kill sin and commune with the triune God through due use of the ordinary means of grace. It will encourage you as you struggle through waking up early and trying to get kids ready for church each Lord’s Day as you are reminded of who you worship and the benefits of it.
This book will likely cause you to want to read more Owen and thankful the Editor has a nice appendix with helpful tips on reading Owen which includes recommend places to start and progress.
The Bad:
Owen is hard to read! This is no surprise to those who have attempted to read the man. The book makes him accessible to many but I found myself still having to stop and go back and reread as I lost track. This does not mean the material was less than rich but it must be worked for.
I really enjoyed this book and getting to take in more Owen on a variety of subjects. I also found of great interest the bio and the relation of Owen to Goodwin and others that I had not realized. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in John Owen.
Songs of a Suffering King: The Grand Christ Hymn of Psalms 1-8
This is a short devotional read on Psalms 1-8 written by a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and a professor at Westminster Seminary California. I typically don’t read devotional literature like this as much as more strictly theological works, but this book will not let down those lovers of deep theology. While it caused this reader to think and rejoice more deeply about Christ it did not do so by bypassing the theological nature of the texts. Many doctrines are dealt with along the way for the benefit of the reader such as union with Christ, imputed righteousness, justification, and more. Ultimately you will learn how David points forward to Christ and how all of the Psalms point to Christ as well as seeing the structure of the Psalms and how they relate.
This book is more on the devotional level as mention but also is provocative yet biblical and true. While many have their favorite Psalms or parts of Psalms he doesn’t shy away from dealing with the tough parts of the Psalms. Issues like praying for God to defeat our enemies and the question of does God hear the prayers of unbelievers are dealt with head on. The work is also convicting and comforting. We are shown that God searches the heart and mind, not just outward appearance which is a scary thought. The reader will be pushed to strive for holiness and run to the cross for grace.
Who might want to read this book. Anyone looking for good devotional literature that is theologically sound on Psalms 1-8 will find this book helpful. It could also be used well reading through with another using the study question provided at the end of each chapter. As the book comes in at a total of 123 pages and written in simple fashion it will be accessible to most.
An unique feature to the book that may encourage you to pick it up is that each chapter includes a metrical psalm at the end and tells of internet resources where audio files are to help you sing them. This will be helpful to many who have not sung the psalms before, which I assume is a large majority.
The only critique I have of the book is that each chapter doesn’t contain the full text of the Psalm at the beginning. A small section is usually given where I believe it would have been helpful to include the text of the Psalm at the beginning of each chapter.
The Physical book is great for a paperback. The cover is beautiful yet simple. This will look nice on your shelf as far a paperback can. I can picture a series of books with similar covers looking very nice if J.V. Fesko were to write on more of the Psalms. The texture of the cover feels very nice in the hand as well as it is not a high gloss cover. The covers seem to stay flared out a bit when book laid down while the pages return to flat position fairly well.
I would recommend this book to those who want to study Psalms 1-8 and believe they will have a greater gratitude for love of Christ Jesus from it.
Year:2014
Publisher: Reformation Heritage Books
Pages: 123
Binding: glue
Boards: paperback
Scripture Index: no
Persons Index: no
Subject Index: no
Footnotes or Endnotes: footnotes
WTS Books: $9.00
This book was provided to me by the publisher free of charge in exchange for a review. I was not required to give a positive review
Reading Jonathan Leeman’s book “Reverberation” really changed the way I viewed the scripture and increased my love for the word especially as preached, read, and sung at church. So when I saw Jonathan Leeman’s recommendation of this book I was excited to read it. “ Can I really trust the Bible? And other questions about scripture, truth and how God speaks” is a short but extremely helpful read. It is a good book published by The Good Book Company.
Who is it for?
This book would be a great read for all Christians, but may be especially suitable for discipling new believers or those young in their faith. It also would be great for anyone interested in an intro level work on the trustworthiness of the Bible and why we have what we have as our bible. Ultimately it would be helpful for all Christians to have a basic knowledge of trustworthiness of the book they base their faith on and this book is the place to start.
Be sure to check out this tongue in cheek promo video.
The Good
This book is great and I will recommend it to others. Its brevity makes it very useful in a day when many don’t read long tomes and its simplicity and style make it accessible to readers of many ages and ability. This can be seen in examples such as footnote 1 in chapter one (page 10) the author says “ If you’re unfamiliar with Bible references, the number before the “v” is the chapter, and the number after is the verse. So “Psalm 19 v. 1-4 means the book of Psalms, chapter 19, verses 1 to 4”. This book truly could be handed to someone with no background or understanding of the Bible.
The book though is not so surface level as to leave a long time Christian wanting. Cooper says things that will get you out of bed on Sunday morning ready to go hear the word preached dealing with the depth of God’s word. On page 14 he says “ Then, just as God’s spoken word brought light into being in Genesis 1 v3, so, as we’ve just seen in Psalm 19, his written word is described as “giving light to the eyes”. As the psalm implies, God’s written word is no less powerful or life-giving than his spoken word. If this is true, then when we read God’s word, or hear it preached, we should read or listen with trembling and anticipation. The fierce power that summoned and sustains the universe is about to be unleashed again in our hearing.” This powerful and something a new believer to the elderly saint needs to be reminded of.
Cooper argues persuasively thought that the Bible claims to be the word of God, seems to be the word of God, and proves to be the word of God. Throughout these arguments there are gray boxes with little blurbs on related subjects that are helpful and place at timely spaces where it makes it natural to read and not distract from the rest of the chapter. They are edited nicely so you don’t have to turn back pages to pick up where you previously a nice touch.
The Bad
It is a struggle to think of something to critique the book on. One small thing is that the Author lives in the UK so some of the English is a bit foreign to us in the USA but it does not hinder the reading of it and the style the author writes with really keeps one reading along.
Another minor thing is that he says on page 72 “Sometimes, theologians speak about the “clarity” of Scripture.” This may have been a chance to introduce reader to term “perspicuity” which means clarity and is a term they will run into if they go deeper into the subject and that the bible is not necessarily easy to understand but that what is necessary for salvation is clear.
There is so much to commend about this book that I would feel comfortable handing it to anyone without any qualifications.
The Physical Book
The book is a small paperback and bright orange (to my eyes) but with a fairly attractive design. The bible on the front is pressed out and has a nice feel when holding the book. After reading it doesn’t lay flat again and pages seem to stay flared out. The paper is a gray paper and not a bright white but the text type is easy on the eyes. The outside margins have to be some of the smallest I have seen which makes taking notes difficult but there are 8 blank pages in the back with header “notes” to help one out there. Also strangely online you will find several endorsements of the book which made me interested in picking it up but the actually hard copy contains none which is unfortunate.
Is the devil at work here in 2014? Do Christians need to be on guard against the devils schemes? The answer to these questions is a resounding yes in the new book by Brian Borgman and Rob Ventura. In this new and highly praised book the authors approach questions of spiritual warfare as the title suggest in a biblical and balanced perspective. The authors show the real and present danger of the Devil and his demons without sensationalizing the topic. In fact the book constantly points us to Christ and his person and work for us, not speculating on abstract ideas about the devil. I believe this book is a great introduction on the subject as it comes in at just 124 pages it is very accessible to a wide audience. It is a 124 pages of reading well worth ones time.
If you are looking for a lot of answers to questions about the devil and demons and want to speculate on a wide variety of questions this is not your book. You will find in this book though biblical principles to fighting the devil and standing against him as a Christian in your daily life. The book is essentially an exposition of Ephesians 6:10-20. The book works through each piece of the armor we are to wear and the sword we are to wield. Each piece is describe and what it would of looked like on soldiers in the time period and how it is a metaphor for spiritual warfare. The books greatest strength I believe is that it constantly points us to Christ and our union with him throughout the description of how to use the armor. The book does contain 3 appendixes than do answer some question not addressed specifically in Ephesians 6.
The book finishes by showing how all of the armor of God is to be used through prayer. This is a powerful chapter showing the importance of prayer in the believers life.
A quote to wet your appetite to read this book comes from page 86 “ Corporate worship is not just a time to express emotion or to practice our singing; it is a time for warfare. When we sing God’s truth, when we sing Scripture, we are wielding the sword of the Spirit in a mighty way in worship and praise.”
I really had no issues with the book and would recommend it to anyone interested in this subject. Also I would recommend listening to the authors interviewed on the Confessing Baptist Podcast Interview #40
Year: 2014
Publisher: Reformation Heritage Books
Pages: 124
Boards: Paperback
Binding: Glue
Scripture Index: No
Subject Index: No
Person Index: No
Footnotes or Endnotes: Footnotes
Forward: Steven J. Lawson
Endorsements By: Voddie Baucham Jr., Thomas R. Schreiner, Peter O’Brien (note that on wtsbooks.com there are more endorsements given that are not on the hardcopy of book by Carl Trueman, Stanley Gale, Bruce Ware, Bruce Ray, Joel Beeke, Paul Washer, Phil Johnson, David Murray, and Al Martin)
Mark Dever with 9marks ministries recently interviewed G.K. Beale. You can listen to the interview here. Towards the beginning Dever ask him about several books and I thought it may be helpful to have a list of those books with links to them. The list should include almost all of the books that either Beale or Dever said where worth looking at. Listen to the interview to hear Beale’s comments on each volume.
Him we proclaim comes from Colossians 1:27-28. This book teaches the reader why and how to see and preach Christ from all of scripture. Reading this as one who is not a preacher I had slightly different motives than most who will probably read it, but I am glad that I did. This book would be helpful for pastors to read but it is not beyond those in the pew, and the content is definitely for those in the pews as well. If pastors are to preach Christ from all of scripture, we out to be hearing Christ preached week in and week out. This book will help you know if you are preaching Christ and if you are hearing Christ preached. The book has two main parts the first is defending the case for apostolic christocentric preaching and the second is showing the how it was done by the apostles and how it is done today. The book can get tough a bit for one like me who is a man in the pew, but is also rewarding getting a better idea of what I should look for in a sermon and appreciation for good sermons and the time it takes a preacher to prepare. Most of all this book helps you to see Christ in the whole story of the Bible and just how great a Savior He is.
I would say this is the best book I have read all year, but it is only the second book I have read in 2012 so I will say it is in the top 3 best books I read in 2011 and would be high in my ranking of importance for all books I have read. When Thabiti Anyabwile says in his endorsement “Put this book into the hands of any Christian you wish to give a revolutionizing appreciation of God’s Word in the local church” he hit the nail right on the head. This book will revolutionize your thinking about God’s word, by that I would include all of God’s word spoken in history that brought creation into existence, written in the bible, and Jesus Christ who is the word. This book will also give you a greater appreciation for God’s word reverberated through the pastors’ preaching and Christians sharing the word with others. This book comes in at just under 200 pages, but pack a real punch that will give depth to any motivated reader’s theology.
Leeman divides the book into three main parts first “the word”, second “the sermon”, and thirdly “the reverberation”. In the first he convincingly forms a theology of the word of God that is not mainly concerned with the questions of scriptures inerrancy, infallibility, or historical reliability, although these are assumed. This book deals more with what may fall under the sufficiency of scripture. What is an absolute necessity for a church’s growth, Leeman argues it is the word of God. The second part talks about the method of presenting this word, he argues that God gives us his word in the bible and that we hear God’s word through the faithful preaching of it. He helpfully discusses how pastor should preach the word and how members can know they are hearing God speak through this deliver of the word. In the third and last part of the book Leeman looks at how the local church sings the word, prays the word, and disciples with the word. In the last chapter he looks again at evangelism and how the word scatters the church so that it can gather the church.
This book has a much needed theology of the word for the church today. The content is so great and to make it better it is presented in an easy to consume way, this is a book that doesn’t require a huge amount of former knowledge on this subject. I will recommend this book to younger and older Christians alike. This book will also be helpful to pastors who need this foundation to build there preaching methods upon. As a member of a Southern Baptist Association church it is exciting to see such a helpful book coming from the pen of another Southern Baptist, but don’t let that comment confuse you, this is a book for the church and any who know English I’m convinced would benefit from it.
Publisher: Moody Publishing
Year:2011
Pages:197
Boards: Paperback
Binding: Glue
Scripture Index: No
Subject Index: No
Persons Index: No
Recommended Reading List: Yes given at the end of each chapter corresponding
This book was given to me free of cost as part of a review program by Moody Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review only to give my honest opinion concerning the book.
Soli Deo Gloria 