Book Reviews

The Mark of a Christian by Francis Schaeffer

February 7, 2012 by Adam Shields

Summary: Short introduction to why we should pursue unity within the church.

This short pamphlet (60 pages in paper, just over an hour in audio) was written to address the unity of the church in 1970. It is a good introduction to why Christians need to treat one another well, without ignoring real doctrinal differences or important matters of sin.

There are good thoughts here. But it is so short, and this is such an important subject, that I feel he barely scratched the surface when the pamphlet was done. Roughly, Schaeffer pointed out the importance to Jesus Christ in his High Priestly Prayer of unity. Then very briefly, Schaeffer walked through why this is not organizational unity, or theological unity, but a unity for those outside the church. We are not one in order to lord over one another or to submit in all areas to one another, but the point, according to Schaefer is for those outside the church to see how well we treat one another inside the church.

Living Water: Powerful Teaching by Brother Yun

July 15, 2026February 6, 2012 by Adam Shields

Summary: Powerful teaching of a Chinese Christian leader calling the church to greater devotion and service.

I recently read the autobiography (Heavenly Man) of Brother Yun, a dissident underground Chinese church pastor that now lives in Germany.

I bought Living Water when I first heard about Brother Yun and started it twice but did not get far each time. After reading his autobiography and giving context to his life and teaching I finished Living Water. This seems to be mostly adapted sermons that have been structured together as a book. I listened to it as an audiobook, so maybe that format makes it seem more sermon-like. But each chapter is mostly self contained and there is some repetition of stories and examples between chapters, so that contributes to the sermon feel.

This is a book of readable, but heavy, teaching. It is not a feel-good, breeze-right-through book. It is not all that long (a bit over 8 hours in audio, 320 pages in paper.) But I spent a couple weeks listening to this on and off and pushed through the last half of the book in two days.

The Opal Deception (Artemis Fowl: Book 4) by Eoin Colfer

February 3, 2012 by Adam Shields

Summary: Artemis is once again dragged into the Fairy world to help save it from destruction.

At the end of the last book, Artemis and all of his human associates were mind-wiped. Their memories of the Fairy world and the previous two years were gone. The fear was that Artemis would revert back to his old criminal ways (since he did not have the two years of Fairy influence and his own experience).

The Gospel of Luke by Joel Green

February 1, 2012 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Very thorough and helpful commentary on Luke.

I have greatly enjoyed my Luke reading project. Last year I read a suggestion by Jerry Bridges that instead of reading straight through the bible in traditional one year plan or some of our other formats, that we might benefit from more in depth study of scripture. Bridges suggested that if you spend six months on a book and really spend time in it you will have a very thorough knowledge of scripture in about 30 years.

I am not sure I will keep this up for 30 years, and even if I do, it is likely that I would put together a couple of the smaller books as a single reading project.

But I am declaring an end to Luke. It has actually been closer to seven months and even though this commentary on Luke by Joel Green is very good and quite readable, I am still ready to move on.

Historical Theology by Gregg Allison – The Trinity

January 27, 2012 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Theology requires history and church tradition.

I already wrote a summary review on Historical Theology. But I am still using it as background. I am getting ready to start working on a series of books on the Trinity. I started reading one book with some friends and was very disappointed with the opening chapter. So I decided to go back and read the chapter on the Trinity from Historical Theology to give myself some additional historical context. That is really what this book is for, more than to read straight through from cover to cover.

The Trinity is an interesting doctrine. Essentially the vast majority of what the church believes was determined by 600 AD. The first three major creeds of the church spent a lot of time talking about the trinity and only a little has really been added over the years. The trinity is one area where there is very little difference of opinion between Protestants and Roman Catholics.

This is the Story of a Happy Marriage by Ann Patchett

July 15, 2026January 25, 2012 by Adam Shields

This Is the Story of a Happy Marriage | [Ann Patchett] Takeaway: It is really many stories of divorce (her own and those in her family) followed by an almost accidental discovery of an actually happy marriage (so far).

Marriage is both overly prized and distained in our culture. Some think it can do anything, so think it can do nothing. Some people think both.

Patchett wrote this essay for a friend. Her young friend wanted the story of Patchett’s happy marriage. And Patchett does seem to have a happy marriage by her account. She has been married about 11 years to a man she adores and who seems to be right for her and she for him.

Patchett starts not with meeting her husband the how they fell in love and got married and lived happily ever after, but with the story of many divorces in her family. Staring with her grandfather who came to the US and worked for 10 years before saving enough money to send for his family. When his wife wrote back that she wanted to come, but that she had to tell him that there were now three boys instead of two, he rescinded the offer and never saw his family again (even refusing to see the son that came to find him later in life.)

The Resignation of Eve: What if Adam’s Rib is No Longer Willing to Be the Church’s Backbone? by Jim Henderson

July 15, 2026January 24, 2012 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: The stories of women and their views on women in church leaders, backed by statistical research can be powerful.

Women in church leadership is a touchy subject with me. As I have related in other reviews, I went to the University of Chicago Divinity School for my MDiv. My small class was more than half women, most of whom had grown up in relatively conservative church backgrounds, felt the call to be a pastor and were often quite harmed by the church on their way to seminary. Many had left the denominations that they grew up in and sought safer places to pastor.

Unfortunately, even in denominations that officially ordain and recognize women as pastors, the road is often difficult.

Jim Henderson started this project because he was seeing women leaving the church because they were being restricted by the church.

Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture by Lesslie Newbigin

January 23, 2012 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Outsiders can sometimes see us better than we can see ourselves.

Lesslie Newbigin is one of the most important Christian thinkers of the last couple decades. He was a missionary in India for 40 years before returning to teach in England. His work on missiology and culture are very important and I have read some short articles by him and had his work referred to frequently, but I think this is the first full length book of his that I have read.

I really do think that all pastors need to take some classes in cross cultural missions and translation theory. In many ways it is like requiring high school and college students to take a couple of years of a foreign language. Most students will never get enough of the language to really communicate or actually use the foreign language, but they will learn enough of the other language to take a new appreciation and perspective on English.

The Broken Gun by Louis L’Amour

January 20, 2012 by Adam Shields

The Broken Gun Takeaway: A classic western that was actually set only a couple decades ago.

Westerns were a staple of my teenage years. I was not a ‘manly man’. I have never really liked competitive sports, but I like hero stories. I think that is what I liked about the classic westerns. My uncles were big Louis L’Amour fans so I always had a ready supply of westerns whenever I wanted free books. I have read the majority of L’Amour’s books, but The Broken Gun was one I had not. For the most part L’Amour wrote historical westerns or early American settler stories. I have only read a couple of his modern stories.

The Broken Gun is a classic western, man passing through town, a murder, power and corruption beyond the reach of an under-powered but honest law system. There is a strong woman who is single (widowed in this case) that needs rescuing.

Love Walked Among Us: Learning to Love Like Jesus by Paul Miller

January 17, 2012 by Adam Shields

Takeaway: Jesus did not love in some abstract ethereal way. He loved the people around him personally, physically and in a very human manner.

Love Walked Among Us is a very concrete, personal look at how we can learn to love like Jesus did. I very much enjoyed Paul Miller’s book A Praying Life. And this is very much in line with that in style.