If you like reading and are like me, you may struggle with reading books–in that you have too many of them to read! Well, I thought I would just share a quick post about some books on my reading list. On top of this, I am doing an in depth study of 1 and 2 Thessalonians, I am reading the Bible chronologically with my wife, I just started a men’s study called Men 7/52, and oh yes, these books here! Let’s just say I do have more time than others to do this stuff, but perhaps not by much! Anyway, here is what is on my primary reading list right now.
The Canon Revisited: Establishing the Origins and Authority of the New Testament Books by Michael J. Kruger
This is a work on the canon from a framework committed to presuppostional apologetic method and Reformed theology. This being said, it does appear to be a modern, researched, well written work that has promise for helping clarify how we can know which books are in the NT canon. I am trying to finish it within the month, as that it when it is due back to the Inter-Library Loan (thank you Buffalo Library and the library it came from!).
The Coming Kingdom: What is the Kingdom and How is Kingdom Now Theology Changing the Focus of the Church? by Andy Woods — A newly released book this summer, the work is about the theme of the Kingdom of God. It has been well researched. At nearly 400 pages, it is dense and meaty. As indicated by the subtitle, after inductively studying the Kingdom the work will deal with the current issues and how Kingdom Now is very popular. This work matters and the issue matters, because it is at the heart of divergence between dispensational and Reformed theology and also at the heart between fundamentalism and evangelicalism in regard to the role, purpose, and motive of social action and cultural influence.
Promise Unfulfilled: The Failed Strategy of Modern Evangelicalism by Rolland McCune — I just received this book yesterday. It is a fairly recent work (early 2000s) looking at the Evangelical movement both historically and theologically from a committed fundamentalist and dispensational perspective. In this way, I expect I will find it similar to Dr. Larry Oats book I reviewed a few months ago, though this work may be abit more historical then theological. Having just read a presentation of the evangelical model of social engagement by way of The Colson Way by Owen Strachan, I was left asking questions as to what is the proper way to engage the culture while maintaining fundamental separatism and dispensational theology. In that light, I think the work merits my reading to try to understand better the fundamental perspective and to try to make sense of what I am seeing from evangelicals and why fundamentalism remains separate and opposed to the Evangelical model. As the recent issue of the FrontLine magazine of the Fundamental Baptist Fellowship International demonstrates, the issue of fundamentalism and evangelicalism is still very much a matter of controversy and worthy of consideration.
Behold the City by Matthew Recker — This work is a book on Christian ministry and outreach in the cities of America by a lifelong fundamentalist church planter in New York City. As an aside, I was able to visit Pastor Recker’s church earlier this year. I am interested in reading this book to see how a committed Fundamentalist deals with some of the things that come with city ministry and related social issues. Granted, the social issues aren’t the focus of this book, but by way of example, I think Pastor Recker’s example will be informative on how a Fundamentalist does city ministry. As of yet, the most significant time I’ve spent in fundamental churches have been rural or suburban ones, and the issues that one faces in an urban church are very different. I don’t exactly have an example. It seems to me that in the rurual and subruban environments, it can be easier to not have any kind of social needs ministries for pragmatic reasons. By that, I mean the needs may not always be as obvious as they are in the city. So, I hope this work will be fruitful for me.
As to when I will finish these, that remains to be seen! But, I will try to hold myself to these for the near future anyway.
Biblical Worldview Musings 