Handbook on the Gospels by Dr. Benjamin L. Gladd

 Excellent book from an excellent series by Dr. Ben Gladd. Take some time and watch the video. It's worth it.

Book review: Reformation Anglican Worship: Experiencing Grace, Expressing Gratitude by Michael Jensen

 It has been my pleasure to read and digest two works on the Anglican faith in the recent months.  J.I. Packer's, The Heritage of Anglican Theology was a delight. So I dug in again with Michael Jensen's, Reformation Anglican Worship which is part of the series, Reformation Anglicanism Essential Library available from Crossway.

Whereas Packer's book focuses on Anglican history through the centuries, Jensen's book focuses on the development of Anglican worship. Rich in history, Jensen outlines the development of Anglican worship with a close eye on Cranmer and his work. He states in the introduction, "My objective is to uncover the roots of the Reformation theology and practice of worship." He continues, "The origins of the distinctive Anglican worship— for which it is best known— lie in a clear step away from the worship of the medieval Catholic Church and the theological convictions that it represented." "...for Cranmer as a liturgist. He was a genuinely theological liturgist, seeking to enshrine a particular gospel by means of his revision of English worship." And, "In this book, therefore, I will be less concerned to outline my preferences for a particular style of church meeting than to explore the theological convictions that made the Anglicanism of the Reformation what it was and is today— and what it could be in the future."

This book is a wealth if information, not just for the Anglican or would-be Anglican, but for all of us who seek true, Biblical worship that is edifying and pleasing to our Triune God.

 Casting our eye over the table of contents, we see that Jensen covers a range of topics that historically and currently are of interest.

Introduction   

1   The Heart of Christian Worship   

2   Worship in the English Reformation   

3   Reading and Preaching the Scriptures   

4   The Gospel Signs: The Sacraments   

5   Prayers of Grace   

6   Music: The Word in   Song Acknowledgments Bibliography

Acknowledgments 

Bibliography

General Index 

Scripture Index

This work is well written, easy to understand, and quite an enjoyable read. Highlights for me were the last three chapters on The Sacraments, Prayers of Grace, and Music though none of the book should be discounted.

I thoroughly recommend this book for your edification and understanding of true worship.

Quotations taken from: Michael P. Jensen; Ashley Null; John W. Yates III. Reformation Anglican Worship (Kindle Locations 168-213). Crossway.

Crossway has graciously provided a copy of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own. There are paid links on this page.

Book Review: The Heritage of Anglican Theology by J. I. Packer

 

For sometime now I've been interested in Anglican theology but was slow to investigate my interest. So when the opportunity to review The Heritage of Anglican Theology  by J. I. Packer appeared, I jumped at the chance. Who better to explore and explain the history of the Anglican church than by J.I. Packer?

 

Almost immediately I was drawn into the web of Anglican history, the good and the bad, the ebb and flow, and the main players down through time. Beginning in the early 1500's, Packer takes us all the way through today's current standing in the Anglican church. As with any theological persuasion or denomination, there is both the bad and the good, the mainstream and the fringe, the conservative and the liberal. Theology and worship, true worship of God, can be messy and so it was in Anglican history.

 

The writing style was most pleasant; an easy read.  Complex terms and ideas are explained for the unfamiliar with Anglicanism. Of course, the worship of God, church history, and theology never operate in a vacuum. When, and it was often necessary, British history, culture, and politics are explained. Though this was a work on Anglican history, Packer always explained the correct method of worship and Biblical understanding.

 

To get a flavor of of the book, below is a list of chapter titles

1   Taking the Measure of the Anglican Mainstream   

2   The English Reformation   

3   Puritan Theology   

4   Richard Hooker   

5   The Caroline Divines   

6   Rational Divinity   

7   Revival Theology   

8   The Oxford Movement and Anglo-Catholicism   

9   Nineteenth-Century Broad Church Theology   

10   Anglican Modernism   

11   Early Twentieth-Century Anglican Theology   

12   Concluding Thoughts on Anglican Theology 

Afterword: Further Thoughts on the Anglican Concept of Doctrine 

Recommended Reading 

Index

Overall the reader will get a thorough understanding of the state of Anglicanism both past and present. 

I would give this five out of five stars! Excellent book. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

For more on Packer's theological thought check out his work, Knowing God. 

Crossway has provided a complimentary copy of this book through Beyond the Page and includes paid links. Opinions are my own.

For more on the Anglican Book of Common Prayer, see my post here.

Looking to Enhance Your Devotional Time?

 Sometime ago I was looking for a way to change up my devotional time. As I was exploring different avenues I came across this video by Matthew Everhard on the Book of Common Prayer. Though I'm not Anglican I've always heard good things about it. So, I purchased one and followed the directions Matthew has given in his video below. It was well worth the time and small expense.

A less expensive option for the BCP is here (paid link).

Be blessed!

Book Review: Losing A Spouse: A Widower's Way by Dennis Disselkoen

 

Contemplating the death of one's wife is such a difficult thing to do. Perhaps more so if it is somewhat imminent. Watching the life slowly or quickly ebb away can be so overwhelming. A husband may ask, "What can I do?", "What should I do?" "What about all the things she did to keep our marriage humming along?" "How will I handle things when she's gone, how will I deal with the loneliness?" Author Dennis Disselkoen has faced these questions and dealt with them out of his own experience. Out of this experience his book, Losing A Spouse: A Widower's Way, was born.

The book is well written, an easy read, and at 186 pages including appendices and index, it is not a lengthy or laborious read. 

Ground level of this book is the experiences over a number of years of the author tending to and caring for his wife. For the reader it addresses a needed perspective on what a husband is or will experience. Full of personal experiences, testimony of interviewees, and practical suggestions I would regard Disselkoen's work as even a necessary read.

As can be seen from some of the chapter titles below, Losing A Spouse: A Widower's Way is comprehensive.

Chapter 1 How this Started

Chapter 3 Wife's Decline

Chapter 4 Time Together

Chapter 5 Hospice

Chapter 6 Final Arrangements

Chapter 8 Visitation and Funeral

Chapter 9 What is Next?

Chapter 11 What Is New

Chapter 12 How Do You Think About Grief

Chapter 13 The Emotional Side

Chapter 14 The Physical Side

Chapter 16 What You Can Do

Chapter 17 What You Should Know

This volume covers it all: grief, anxiety, loneliness, isolation, friends and family responses, funeral arrangements, and much more providing practical advice and sound theological insights.

As a husband who is in the midst of this situation, I found the insights into grief, loneliness, isolation, and dealing with a new normal most helpful and comforting.

I wholeheartedly recommend this book and give it a solid five stars.

The author has graciously provided a copy of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own. There are paid links on this page.

Dr. Disselkoen has provided a solid bit of writing that should become a source of guidance and reassurance to men who have suffered the loss of their wives, as well as those for whom this bitter loss is imminent. Disselkoen's collected experience - his own and that of the men he interviewed - is reinforced by the expertise of cited sources, giving this book a more durable wisdom than could have been achieved by the more common approach of relying on a single perspective.

Dr. Kriss Wiant, Ph. D., Psychologist

 

Top Commentaries on Every Book of the Bible from Nathan W. Bingham

This post from Ligonier is a fantastic starting point for anyone looking to begin or expand their commentary library. Bingham's insights are well founded and I'm sure there are more one can add to the list for each book of the Bible. 

What commentaries have been most helpful to you?

 

Book Review: Recovering the Lost Art of Reading by Leland Ryken & Glenda Faye Mathes

A book about reading is an intriguing idea to me so I jumped at the chance to read and review Recovering the Lost Art of Reading.  This work was a bit of an eye opener for me as I normally read for informational purposes. Authors Leland Ryken and Glenda Faye Mathes enlighten the reader to the benefits and indeed the necessity of reading literary works, including the Bible, for the beauty and enjoyment of reading.

As each chapter unfolds the authors take the reader deeper into the beauty, wonder, necessity, and appreciation of literary books and they return to their theme, found in the title, Recovering the Lost art of Reading often. As the volume suggests, and where I would agree, reading is an art and it is dying art. As can be seen from the table of contents below, Recovering the Lost art of Reading is comprehensive.

Introduction: Welcome to the Conversation 

Part 1 Reading Is a Lost Art  

1 Is Reading Lost?  

2 What Have We Lost?  

3 Why Consider Reading an Art?

Part 2 Reading Literature  

4   What Is Literature?   

5   Why Does Literature Matter?   

6   What Does Literature Offer? 

7   Reading Stories: Tell Me a Story   

8   Reading Poems: Songs of the   Soul   

9   Reading Novels: Come Away with Me 

10   Reading Fantasy: A Far Journey 

11   Reading Children’s Books: Once Upon a Time 

12   Reading Creative Nonfiction: To Tell the Truth 

13   Reading the Bible as Literature: Words of Delight 

Part 3 Recovering the Art of Reading 

14   Recovery through Discovery 

15   Truth in Literature 

16   The Moral Vision in Literature 17   

Beauty in Literature 

18   Discovering Literary Excellence 

19   Freedom to Read 

20   Reading Good Books 

21   Calling and Creativity 

22   Literature and the Spiritual Life: Over and Above

(Leland Ryken; Glenda Faye Mathes. Recovering the Lost Art of Reading (Kindle Location 86). Crossway.)

I benefited most from the authors take on reading the Bible as literature (chapter 13).  Something where I am often amiss. I didn't agree with everything but found it most helpful.

I found this book enlightening and useful as I'm primarily an informational reader and usually leave my fiction intake to quality movies and TV programs. Nevertheless, I found this a quality read and recommend to all, especially those oriented to fiction.

 Crossway has provided a complimentary copy of this book through Beyond the Page. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Some of the best Bible Commentaries Series

 

Some of the best Bible Commentaries Series:

 

Baker Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament (BECNT)

Includes cross section of conservative evangelicals including several Reformed authors.  

 

Calvin’s Commentaries 

The standard.

 

Evangelical Press Study Commentary

Conservative Reformed (including Reformed Baptists). 

 

Geneva

Conservative Reformed reprints of famous commentaries. 

 

New American Commentary (NAC)

Solid commentary-series.

 

New International Commentary on the New Testament (NICNT)

Seek out older volumes as they are they are explicitly Reformed. Newer volumes are not.

 

New Testament Commentaries (NTC) [My favorite]

Solid conservative-Reformed series by Hendriksen and Kistemaker.

 

Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC)

Mostly-Reformed series. These commentaries are excellent.

 

Tyndale New Testament Commentaries 

Authored by international conservative evangelicals.

 

Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (ZECNT)

Authored by solid evangelical scholars.

 

Share your thoughts!