I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

Evan Hock is Pastor of Trinity Fellowship Church.  We met in the early 90s during our studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School.  Among the many things I appreciate about Evan is his wonderful wit.  Here are Evan’s selections:

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

I met Roger Berry about thirty years ago.  At the time, he served a church in the Bay Area as a pastor of evangelism and discipleship.  I was working for Campus Crusade for Christ at Stanford.  Roger moved to Austin a few years before we did.  Since 1993 we’ve been meeting weekly for banter, encouragement, and accountability.  You will see that he likes Keller!

Here is Roger’s list:

Basic Christianity by Stott

Prodigal God by Keller

Counterfeit Gods by Keller

Reason for God by Keller

How Will You Measure Your Life by Christensen, et al.

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

Next up is Michael Svigel.  Michael is Department Chair and Associate Professor of Theological Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary.  Michael has the good sense to make my wife’s book, Good Christians, Good Husbands?, required reading in his American Church History class.  Here are Michael’s picks:

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

Colby Kinser is a dear friend and the pastor of Grace Fellowship Church in Overland Park, Kansas.  Here are Colby’s selections:

Bonhoeffer’s “The Cost of Discipleship”
Frost’s “Exiles”
“Center Church” or “Prodigal God” by Keller (serving different purposes)
“The Forgotten God” by Chan
A good survey book of OT and NT, or a good treatment of the Bible as story

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

John Mark Reynolds is a gifted academic.  He is the founder of the Torrey Honors Program at Biola and currently serves as Provost of Houston Baptist University.  Here is John Mark’s list:

Plato’s Republic

C.S. Lewis, That Hideous Strength or Abolition of Man

Tolkien, Lord of the Rings

Schmemann, For the Life of the World

Dante’s Divine Comedy 

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

Louis Markos is the Robert H. Ray Chair in Humanities at Houston Baptist University.  He is an expert on Wordsworth, C.S. Lewis and the author of many acclaimed books.  Here is Lou’s list:

Dante’s Divine Comedy for sure and much of C.S.Lewis. If they are up for it, Brothers Karamazov. I’d like see everyone read more Plato and some Greek tragedy. I really think it points ahead to Christianity in powerful ways!

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

I am asking a number of friends to answer the following question: If you could wave a magical wand which caused all Christians to read five books, what works would you pick? Here is the next installment.

Tony Debenport is a dear friend and a careful student of the Bible.  Tony is Senior Program Manager at Lam Research.  Here are Tony’s selections:

The Pentateuch. That isn’t a joke.

On an non-biblical list I’d include:

-A good Church history book covering the last 200 years

-Eusebius History of the Church or perhaps/and  a more recent book on the history of Church heresies/heretics.

-A book on modern entertainment culture:  Amusing Ourselves to Death (Neil Postman)…perhaps Empire of Illusion (Chris Hedges)..on my reading list so I can’t recommend yet.

basically….history, history, history & today.