February/March 2013
Take the next step. From radical followers of Christ to radical communities of faith. In Radical, David Platt’s plea for Christians to take back their faith from the American Dream resonated with readers everywhere, and the book quickly became a New York Times bestseller. Now in Radical Together, the author broadens his call, challenging us to unite around a gospel-centered vision. How, he asks, might such a vision reshape our priorities as the body of Christ? How might well-intentioned Christians actually prevent God’s people from accomplishing God’s purpose? And, how can we best unleash the people of God in the church to carry out the purpose of God in the world? Writing to everyone who desires to make an impact for God’s glory—whether you are an involved member, a leader, or a pastor—Dr. Platt shares six foundational ideas that fuel radical obedience among Christians in the church. With compelling Bible teaching and inspiring stories from around the world, he will help you apply the revolutionary claims and commands of Christ to your community of faith in fresh, practical ways.
December 2012
The Christmas story evokes many touching images. Halos, fresh hay, shepherds carrying newborn lambs, and young motherhood all bring tears to the eyes of Christmastime churchgoers. But the Christmas story is more than sentimental. It is powerful. It deals with real people. It involves pain. It is one of the most strikingly unusual stories in all of history. And its main emphasis is not on Jesus’ infancy, but on his deity — and why Deity took the form of an infant. In this collection of Christmas insights, Dr. James Montgomery Boice emphasizes the incredible implications of one of our favorite true stories: the Creator of the universe choosing to live among the people of Earth. The Christmas story has deep meaning today, not merely as a nice bedtime story for children or a narrative in a choral concert, but as a foundation point of your salvation and your new life in Jesus — the omnipotent, omniscient, righteous Christ of Christmas.
September/October 2012
If God is in control of everything, can Christians sit back and not bother to evangelize? Or does active evangelism imply that God is not really sovereign at all? J. I. Packer shows in this new edition to the popular IVP Classics how both of these attitudes are false. In a careful review of the biblical evidence, he shows how a right understanding of God’s sovereignty is not so much a barrier to evangelism as an incentive and powerful support for it. With over 100,000 copies in print, Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God is truly a classic that should be read by every Christian.
January/February 2012
In the eyes of many Christians, the doctrines of grace are tedious tenets that offer no practical benefit for ordinary believers. But as the Rev. Richard D. Phillips affirms, “To love the doctrines of grace is to love God as He has revealed Himself in His Word.”
In this book, Phillips both explains the doctrines of grace through the exposition of Scripture and helps believers feel the power of these magnificent truths. He argues that these doctrines are wonderful in that they reveal the sovereign, mighty, and effectual grace of God, shaping Christians’ attitudes toward God, themselves, the present life, and the life to come.
“Rick Phillips has an unbounded love for the doctrines of grace and writes about them with an enviable simplicity and clarity…Here is persuasive exposition of biblical teaching that captures the thrill of knowing a sovereign God.” – Dr. Sinclair B. Ferguson
December 2011
Between purchasing presents and planning travel, enjoying holiday pageants and attending parties, it is
All too easy for the bustle of Christmas to silence the sacredness and crowd out a quiet anticipation of the season’s truths.
The result –this special volume—
Draws from the works and sermons of classic theologians such as Whitefield, Luther, Spurgeon, and Augustine, and from leading contemporary communications such as John Piper, J. Ligon Duncan, Randy Alcorn, John MacArthur, Francis Schaeffer, R.C. Sproul, Tim Keller, Skip Ryan, and Joni Eareckson Tada to beckon you and your family into the wonder of Jesus’ incarnation and birth.
With its high view of Scripture and its focus on the gift of Jesus, this lovely book is sure to ready your heart and mind for a fresh experience of “Immanuel, God with us” this and every Advent season. Open the cover and rediscover what Christmas was meant to be…
November
This is a great book to help us see and savor Jesus Christ!
October
In honor of our celebration of Reformation Day on October 31, we could not more highly recommend The Unquenchable Flame. Burning pyres, nuns on the run, stirring courage, comic relief: the story of the Protestant Reformation is a gripping tale, packed with drama. But what motivated the Reformers? And what were they really like? In the words of the author, “I wanted this introduction to the Reformation to be an easy read that anyone could pick up and enjoy, but through which they’d come to appreciate some of the key lessons of the Reformation: justification, the supremacy of the Bible, how (and how not) to reform churches and so on. Often the Reformation is spoken of as a historical curiosity, as if the Reformers’ real issue was with a sixteenth century problem of corruption in the Church. I cannot stress enough how misleading that idea is. The Reformers themselves believed that the Reformation was not so much a negative movement, about criticizing Rome (though they did do that); they were part of a positive movement, about moving closer to the gospel. As such, the spirit and message of the Reformation is the lifeblood of the Church’s health today.
September
From the back of the book: “Everyone encounters conflict – whether it be with a co-worker, family member, friend, or complete stranger. And yet we all desire harmony in out relationships. Resolving Everyday Conflict is a practical, biblical, and concise guide to peacemaking in everyday life that can turn your troubled relationships into peaceful ones.
“With proven advice found in this book, authors Ken Sande and Kevin Johnson show you how to achieve not only a cease-fire but also unity and harmony. Their biblical guidance will take you beyond resolving conflicts to true, life-changing, reconciliation with family, co-workers, and fellow believers.”
This book will also be used for our adult Sunday School class in October and November.
August
from the Forward by Mark Dever: “Not only is this book one of those rare encouraging books on evangelism, but it is one of those even more rare instructive books on evangelism. Think Packer or Metzger, only with more transparent passion and punch . . . In this book we are given Biblical clarity on the gospel, with extraordinary experience in evangelism. The result is an instructive exposé, a warning about where too many of us are today, about how we’ve become fuzzy around the edges – and sometimes even near the core – of the gospel. In this book Mack puts the evangel back in evangelism. If we read it praying for God’s spirit to help us apply its truths to our own evangelism, we may do the same.”
July
“All your life, you’ve been on a treasure hunt. You’ve been searching for a perfect person and a perfect place. Jesus is that person; heaven is that place. So if you’re a Christian, you’ve already met the person, and you’re already headed to the place. But there’s a problem. You’re not yet living with that person, and you’re not yet living in that place! You may attend church regularly, pray, and read the Bible. But life can still be drudgery, can’t it? You dutifully put one foot in front of the other, plodding across the hot, barren ground, longing for a joy you cannot find, a treasure that eludes you. Jesus told a story like that. It’s about a hidden treasure that, once discovered, brings life-changing joy. The Treasure Principle has long been buried. It’s time to unearth it. It’s a simple yet profound idea-with radical implications. Once you grasp it and put it into practice, nothing will ever look the same. When you discover the secret joy of the Treasure Principle, I guarantee you’ll never be content with less.”
– Randy Alcorn
June
As sinners, it’s easy for us to believe the lie that true happiness and contentment lie somewhere other than in Christ. We can play the “if only” game, thinking and believing that what would really make us happy is [blank]. We believe that “the grass is greener on the other side.”
[from the back of the book] With humor and honesty, Stephen Altrogee helps us do battle with discontentment by steering us back to the central truths of the gospel. He addresses issues such as complaining and idolatry, reminding us of all that we have and will have in Christ.
May
What does it mean to preach the gospel to yourself? This short book gives you 31 ways to remind yourself of the gospel and help you apply the truths of the gospel to every area of your life. Author, Milton Vincent, describes his own experience: “Over the course of time, preaching the gospel to myself every day has made more of a difference in my life than other discipline I have ever practiced. I find myself sinning less, but just as importantly, I find myself recovering my footing more quickly after sinning, due to the immediate comfort found in the gospel. I have also found that when I am absorbed in the gospel, everything else I am supposed to be toward God and others seems to flow out of me more naturally and passionately. Doing right is not always easy, but it is never more easy than when one is breathing deeply the atmosphere of the gospel. I am confident that you will find the same to be true in your life as well.”
April
A quote from the book: “When we become united to Christ by faith, God places a set of bookends on the bookshelf of our lives. One bookend is the righteousness of Christ; the other is the power of the Holy Spirit. Though they’re provided by God, it’s our responsibility to lean our books on them, relying on them to support, stabilize, and secure all our books – everything we do. Why are these two gracious provisions from God the bookends of the Christian life? And how do we lean our books on them? This book will answer those questions and these:
How can I overcome persistent guilt?
How can I deal with the pressure to measure up?
Where can I find the motivation to grow?
How can I live the Christian life with my heart and not just my head?
How can I be sure God loves and accepts me?
Where do I draw the line between God’s grace and my works?
Where can I find the strength to change in an authentic and lasting way?”
March
Joshua Harris writes:
I know from experience that it’s possible to be a Christian but live life on the surface. The surface can be empty tradition. It can be emotionalism. It can be doctrine without application. I’ve done it all. I’ve spent my share of time on the sandy beaches of superficial Christianity.
This book is the story of how I learned to dig into truth and build my life on a real knowledge of God. I want to share how I learned that orthodoxy isn’t just for old men but for anyone who longs to behold a God who is bigger and more real and glorious than the human mind can imagine.
The irony of my story is that the very things I needed, even longed for in my relationship with God, were wrapped up in the very things I was so sure could do me no good. I didn’t understand that seemingly worn-out words like theology,doctrine, and orthodoxy were the pathway to the mysterious, awe-filled experience of truly knowing the living Jesus Christ.
February
As a conclusion to our “Deliberate” sermon series, our February book of the month will be “Stop Dating the Church” by Joshua Harris. According to Harris, “We are a generation of consumers, independent and critical. We attend church, but we don’t want to settle down and truly invest ourselves. We’re not into commitment – we only want to date the church.”
In addition, in honor of February and Valentines, we have as an alternate selection, “When Sinners Say I Do” by Dave Harvey. The book is about encountering the life- transforming power of the gospel in the unpredictable journey of marriage. Many of the themes in this book are wonderful complements to the Sunday School study, “How People Change”.
January
January Book of the Month: Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung
The subtitle is A Liberating Approach to Finding God’s Will – Or . . . How to make a decision without dreams, visions, fleeces, impressions, open doors, random Bible verses, casting lots, liver shivers, writing in the sky, etc. DeYoung writes, “Too often God’s people tinker around with churches, jobs, and relationships worrying that they haven’t found God’s perfect will for their lives. Even worse, they often do nothing, stuck in a frustrated state of paralyzed indecision . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . for clear direction, unmistakable direction.” This book will show you that discovering God’s will happens not as we “let go and let God,” but as we “trust God and get going!” Books are $8 and are avaible in the bookstore.
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