These are not necessarily first-time reads for 2018, but they are the top five that we have read or re-read during the year and feel should be remembered and brought to our attention again. They are not 2018 or even new publications. And, finally, these reviews are not exhaustive. We are hitting some of the high points that we think make the books interesting and useful to you also. They are all easily obtained online, through Amazon, or Christian Books, and other outlets. We’ve included some Twitter handles on a few of these. We hope they are helpful to you.
5. Hearing God by Dallas Willard.
This was a good reminder of the circumstances in which we can and should and must hear God. It is also pointing out that the men of old, some of our heroes from Scripture, the prophets whom God used mightily were all men just like us. They were not built differently, had no special ears or sensors that we don’t have built into our human forms. As they heard God, we can hear God. He desires to communicate with the crown of his creation. We were made in His likeness–for Him and to commune with Him. We don’t hear God when we stop listening for Him. There are many rivals to the still small voice in today’s noisy world. We need first to remember He is always near and always calling us to draw near to Him.
4. Betrayed by Stan Telchin
This is about the shock, gut-wrenching revulsion and struggles that a Jewish father went through when his daughter came home from college to drop the bomb and tell him she had become a Christian, a believer in Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah of God. Much like the investigative reporter in The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel (@LeeStrobel), Telchin sets off to read the New Testament in order to dismantle his daughter’s faith and show her the fallacy of her new belief. Unbeknown to him, his wife was doing the same and they were both being the subject of earnest prayer by their daughter, her church, and the housekeeper. The book is a beautiful journey, expressing the struggles and hurdles that our Jewish brothers and sisters have to overcome just to begin to look into Jesus, let alone accept Him for Who He is. We love our Jewish friends. Reading this, and reading Paul’s heartfelt expressions about his Jewish brothers in the NT epistle to the Romans, helps us better understand the veil before their eyes and the genuine zeal they have for faith and family and culture. The best value to us was the insight to the Jewish traditions and misunderstandings of the New Testament. They have to understand it is not some anti-Semitic handbook! If they read, just read it, they will see it is written for the most part by Jews. Telchin’s understanding of the schism that developed in Rome between the new Jewish Christians and the Gentile Christians around the time of a Jewish uprising against Rome helps explain and lends some basis for understanding the present-day rift, suspicions and veil. We must do our parts to help the whole world—including our Jewish friends and neighbors—to understand the promise to Abraham, the Seed that is the blessing for the entire world. This book gives some valuable insights, tools for the toolbox.
3. YouVersion the Bible app.
This is not a book per se but we have to list it because it has become such an invaluable tool. So easy to download! So easy to use. So easy to share with others. We have been able to help even unbelievers get access to the Bible and give us a common ground to discuss what they are reading. We can easily switch to the same version they are using, copy and paste troubling portions of Scripture in order to email or text help for them to understand and learn. The best feature is the ability to form a group to read a plan and discuss or comment on the daily readings limited within the reading group. The app has been a great blessing as we’ve completed several “through the Bible” reading plans. It keeps the reader on track for the daily readings and easily catches you up if you fall behind or miss a day now and then. We recommend the program to you—a great way to keep up your Bible reading and give you ready access wherever you are. Have your phone? Your Bible—in multiple translations—is always with you. https://youversion.com/the-bible-app/
2. Once an Arafat Man and the follow-up book The Mind of Terror by Taas Saada
Much like Telchin’s journey in Betrayed, these chronicle the journey of a Palestinian Muslim from hatred, the displacement of his family, violence against Israel, and trouble with his fellow Muslims to love for a Jew—His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and thereby all people, including Israel. It is an amazing journey that only God could orchestrate. The books give us valuable understanding of the genuine human struggles of the Palestinian peoples, as well as the difficulties that Muslim’s have in accepting the message of Christ. The inside story from Taas Saada can be shocking at times. The current ministry of Taas and his wife Karen (@karensaada) to Muslims, Jews, and Christians in Israel and Jordan, to the displaced Palestinians and others is an inspiration. They work hard to bring peace to children. The power of the Holy Spirit emboldening Taas and opening doors while closing others, the protection and opportunities available to them are nothing short of miraculous. These books demonstrate the goodness of God, the God who forgives, redeems and remakes, and the need for the Church to clear its own vision and get moving in Love.
1. Unparalleled by Jared C. Wilson (@jaredcwilson)
Easily the best book read this year! This is the author’s simple review—not bogged down with a lot of deep theology—of the Grace of God. The anecdotes are poignant. His section on abortion and the utilitarian confusion many anti-abortionists adopt underscores the significance of all humans being created in the image of God. It is an easy read. The audio book, read by the author, is worth having too. The Holy Spirit confirms the writing as consistent with God’s Word. The pastoral insight is conveyed with self-effacing style. Although any writing contains some self-promotion, you get the sense this book was written for sinners to grasp the magnitude and meaning of the Grace of God—our only hope—in Wilson’s unintimidating totally honest style. His review of the other monotheistic religions and other spiritual or philosophical schools of thought and demonstrations of the unique message of Jesus Christ is worth the price of admission. It is a very useful book to encourage the Church in sharing the mysteries of Faith, our Gospel, with confidence. The message of Jesus Christ through the Body of Believers in today’s world is unique because it is the only message of salvation that is based upon God’s finished work, not our works. There is nothing we can do to increase God’s love for us or diminish or change the work of Christ already accomplished before we were born, when He hung His head and said, “It is finished.” We can never earn His Grace. Wilson demonstrates how compelling the simple Gospel can be and shows how wrong the accusers who say Christianity is exclusive are. This is a very special book that I recommend everyone obtain several copies of just to give away.
Obviously, there are other books that may be better for you in terms of edification, building up in the faith, teaching, answering questions and so on. There are some more informative, even some better written. Indeed, you may disagree with the value we see in these five. But alas, we can only share the little bit we have.
Enjoy. Feel free to comment. And, of course, suggest others to us for next year. They don’t need to be trendy or even new. As Solomon once said, there’s not much new under the sun anyway.
Men Following Jesus 