My last sermon of 2025 was titled Why Did God Write Poetry? I attempted answering that question because most of us today treat poetry as unnecessary and purely intellectual, ornamental rather than essential. Yet roughly one-third of Scripture is written in poetry. Thus, if we lack a proper appreciation for poetry, we will also struggle …
Continue reading Soul in Paraphrase: A Treasury of Classic Devotional Poems | Leland Ryken
The four-volume Reformed Systematic Theology by Joel Beeke and Paul Smalley is a massive work. Reading it cover to cover is quite a journey to embark upon but also a satisfying accomplishment to complete. Indeed, that is one of the reasons why our church has recently used this set as the primary reading of our …
Continue reading Reformed Systematic Theology | Joel Beeke and Paul Smalley
1. The Liberal Arts Tradition | Kevin Clark & Ravi Jain You will notice a decent number of education related books on this list. That is largely because I am haunted by the question how I can best use the next ten years to equip my seven-year-old for whatever the world looks like in 2035. The …
Yesterday I finished writing today's sermon a bit earlier than usual, so I sat down to write a letter to my daughters, which is a practice that my wife and I have been doing since she was pregnant with our eldest. Looking at the books on my shelves, I just started writing down some thoughts …
Continue reading A Letter to My Daughters on Books & Reading
I have recently begun reading Milton's Paradise Lost, which I previously attempted to read a bit of last summer at the beginning of my journey through the major epic poems. But I rightly say that it was merely an attempt because I found its style to be far too difficult to enjoy. Now after a …
1. Providence | John Piper Although I began reading this behemoth of a book last year, I completed it this year. But really the content, more than the page-count, demands that this book be read carefully and prayerfully. Piper tackles deep theological matters with the heart and skill of someone seasoned by decades of pastoral …
Few books of the Bible puzzle Christians as much as Revelation. Max Doner's two volume collection of sermons aims to help believers make sense of Revelation so that it can be read for the book of encouragement and comfort that it is (Doner is also offering it free to pastors!). While I am only about …
Jonathan Gibson's book of liturgies for daily worship, Be Thou My Vision, was my first experience with bringing elements typically associated with corporate worship into my times of private worship, and I have not looked back since. Although devotional time ought to rightly be viewed as time that is explicitly devoted to the Lord through …
In last Sunday's sermon, I decided not to make much comment on Hebrews 9:23, except noting that it is the author's transition from speaking of the old covenant to speaking of Christ. However, if we slow down to read that verse carefully, a significant question arises: "Thus it was necessary for the copies of the …
Continue reading Why Did Jesus Need to Purify Heaven? | Hebrews 9:23
Little Pilgrim’s Big Journey, specifically Part II, has been my eldest daughter’s favorite book since it first came out. Indeed, after reading Part I over and over again while waiting for Christiana’s book to arrive, she hugged us with tears in her eyes whenever she finally held the book in her hands. Of course, this …
B. C. Newton 