Huge Bestseller Book Sale at WTSBooks

For just a week (until 1/15) WTSBooks is offering all of their 2012 bestsellers at 50% off retail. While I'm certain that every title it excellent, the following would certainly be my highlights of the list:

• When Helping Hurts - Steve Corbett & Brian Fikkert
• Dangerous Calling - Paul David Tripp
• The Meaning of Marriage - Timothy Keller
• The Hole In Our Holiness - Kevin DeYoung

 Here's the complete list:

Book Review: Tempted and Tried by Russell D. Moore

Temptation is common to the human experience. And how we handle it is all too common as well, often either quickly caving or white-knuckling through it in sheer self-determination. So when we read the biblical account of Jesus' temptation in the wilderness, it is easy to see the overt supernatural elements at work, the magnificent scope of the seductions, and Jesus' flawless victory and see no connection between his testings and our own.

This is a mistake. In Tempted and Tried, Russell D. Moore magnificently draws the lines between the common temptations of the sons of men and the Son of Man. In his own words, "You will be tempted exactly as Jesus was, because Jesus was being tempted exactly as we are . . . You will be tempted to provide for yourself, to protect yourself, and to exalt yourself." Not only that, but he shows how the victory of Jesus reveals a power and promise of our own victory once we see it rightly. Again from Moore: "The same Spirit who led Jesus through the wilderness and empowered him to overcome the Evil One now surges through all of us who are joined by faith to Jesus. We overcome temptation the same way he did, by trusting in our Father and hearing his voice."

Russell structures the book around the three different temptations: self-directed provision, protection, and exaltation. Every enticement from Satan (and our own sinfulness) essentially tells us to cut God out of the loop and take matters into our own hands regarding our desires, our identity, and our future. Without getting clunky or wordy, Moore has crafted a book that is theologically rich, easily accessible and—more often than not—practical.

If I had one gripe about the book, it was structural. While I read quite a bit, the chapters felt too long (there's only seven chapters for a book of almost 200 pages). Publishers use tricks like short chapters and frequent section breaks within chapters to make a book feel more readable and friendly, but there are few of both here. It almost felt like a sermon series turned book where every chapter is a sermon.

That critique aside, Tempted and Tried is well worth the added work and discipline it takes to get through the long chapters. There are unique insights and deep wisdom that hold the gospel up as the only answer to true victory against our temptations—victory that exceeds white-knuckling it through our illicit desires and avoids jury-rigging the heart with fear or pride.

"The gospel exposes you as a sinner, and the gospel embraces you as a son or daughter."

Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: Every Christian struggling with a besetting sin, and every Christian who thinks they're not

You can buy Tempted and Tried from the Westminster Bookstore cheaper than Amazon right now. 

This book was a free review copy provided by Crossway. 


"Tempted and Tried" Trailer - Russell Moore from Crossway on Vimeo.

3 Ways the Gospel Should Influence Leaving a Tip

I've worked in the service industry longer than I have in the church (at least as far as payroll is concerned). I am currently still bi-vocational and work part-time at my church and full-time as a shuttle driver for a hotel here in Omaha. I am paid below minimum wage, so tipping is an expected part of my income by my employers.

I've experienced good tippers and bad ones, but the most memorable ones were those whom I knew were Christians and yet tipped like they were Pharisees (All law, no grace. Bare minimum, no generosity). Particularly painful to me have been the large groups of Christians who occasionally take over the hotel for an event and the entire group tips poorly, because I know I'm not the only one who's tempted to form an opinion of these Christians by their tipping. I've even found myself apologizing to co-workers on behalf of other Christians and trying to use the opportunity as a springboard into presenting the gospel. Believe me, that's a tough sell (perhaps I'll write a post on that in the near future). But for now, I want share some guidelines I formed for myself after serving just such Christians.

1. Your tip should reflect Christian generosity. God's generosity towards us should affect the bank account, every Christian knows that. But there is perhaps no better test on how great a hold the idol of mammon still has on us than how we tip. Disagree? "What about giving to the church and charities?", you ask. But both of those we do with our "Christian hat" on, when we give to such things we are acting out of our Christian sensibilities. When you tip, however, I bet you're all business. Right down to the penny (or rounded to the dollar if your lazy or bad at math). My brothers, this should not be!

2. Your tip should demonstrate grace—not law. If there's a problem with my meal, the last thing I do is take it out of the tip. I want to give the server every chance to make up what could be honest mistakes or problems out of their control. To begin subtracting from the tip before giving the server an opportunity to make it right reflects the heart of a hard-nosed legalist, not a heart stricken by grace.

But—and this is a huge "but"—nothing models gospel grace like a generous tip even after a server has blown it, been made aware of it, and was unable or failed to "make it right". I know this is a hard pill to swallow for many of you (myself included), but why should the tip be the last thing to be impacted by the grace that has been poured out on us? I've talked to Christians who will simply gush about the grace of Christ towards us . . . and then not think twice about leaving a terrible tip for terrible service. Why reinforce the system of law by which the whole world runs when we have the resources of grace to draw from?

3. Your tip should embody the gospel. I know, I know. "Embody the gospel? In a tip?!" But if the gospel really is the all-encompassing reality that it is, then it should affect every area of our lives, and every area of our lives can reflect it. When Christians tip, we should not only give more than expected (point 1), and give more than deserved (point 2), your tip should be a tangible outgrowth of the grace and generosity you yourself have received as not just an undeserving but ill-deserving sinner. We have all performed below what was expected of us and even in direct rebellion against the one we were made to serve. And yet the gospel is that God gave out of his riches both generously beyond what we could have hoped for and graciously beyond what we ever could have earned. And if God has given out his endless and bottomless generosity on our behalf, we have that same treasury to draw from. The gospel allows us to release our vice-grip on earthly riches and instead use it as a tool for the gospel.

Bonus point: Don't leave a gospel tract unless you've done points 1-3. So maybe gospel tracts aren't your thing (they probably aren't unless your 40 or older). My church encourages members to take our pens with them and leave them around. I have business cards with all the church info on it. But if you have anything you like to leave in the name of evangelism, don't leave it unless you are tipping out of generosity, grace, and the gospel. To leave a gospel tract with an average or poor tip is unattractive at best. To leave a gospel tract instead of a tip is downright detrimental. That's like saying, "You need this and I know it. I need this and I don't know it." If your tip doesn't grow out of the gospel message of grace and generosity, then your tract probably won't communicate it.

Can't afford to tip this way? Then, as one in the service industry, I would suggest one of two things. Either eat at fast/casual restaurants where you place your order at a counter and no tip is expected, or dine out in such a way that no one knows your a Christian (i.e. no prayer, no "Jesus talk", no books at the table with crosses on the front). I think you know which option I would suggest.


Feedback: Have you ever worked in the service industry? What do you think is a good tip? Do you think a gospel tract left with the tip is ever effective? 

This is a cross-post from the Christians In Context blog.

Recommended reading for Christian men

Recently, someone from church asked me to recommend some books for Christian guys who want to grow as Christians, as leaders, and as men. The following brief list was my recommendation:

Date Your Wife - Justin Buzzard     I know, I know, you're not married yet. But this book spends more time talking about what it means to be a man, created in the image of God, and what it means to be a faithful image bearer than it does about being married.

Crazy Love - Francis Chan     Not just a book for men, but a book that uses simple speak to say some challenging things to the church. It will push you.

Don't Waste Your Life - John Piper     One of my favorite authors and preachers, this is a partially autobiographical book about how John came to realize the only thing worth pursuing in life.

Death By Love - Mark Driscoll     I don't think there's more of a man's man preacher/author than Mark Driscoll. While none of his books are specifically on manhood, this is probably his strongest and most forceful book to date.

The Masculine Mandate - Richard Phillips    I've just started reading this, so I can't give you a hearty endorsement yet, but what I've read is good and this is as close as my recommendations have come to a book on biblical manhood. 

Feedback: What would you add to this list? 

Book Review: The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler

The Explicit Gospel is vintage Matt Chandler all the way. I really wanted to love this book. It had everything going for it: a dynamic pastor in his debut print offering, a trusted publisher, and the hottest topic in Christian literature right now. Alas, the book I hold in my hands is not the book I had dreamed up in my head, and thus I had to settle for merely liking the book.

Don't get me wrong, this is a good book and worth the price of admission. However (as a subscriber to Matt's sermon podcast for years now) I was hoping that sitting down and writing out his content would force Chandler to reign in some of his rabbit-trails and awkward trains of thought. Unfortunately, this was not the case. And only adding to the confusion, Jared Wilson's name also appears on the cover, but I finished the book still at a loss as to what exactly his contribution was (even after a prolonged search).

But—and this is a huge "but"—if Matt Chandler's clarity in his train of thought suffers at times, his clarity about the gospel stands out all the more starkly. Matt Chandler bleeds the gospel. When he gets excited, he gets excited about the gospel. When Matt Chandler goes off on a rabbit-trail, he rabbit-trails to the gospel. If we must choose to sacrifice clarity regarding something, it is better by far to sacrifice clarity on a train of thought rather than clarity on the gospel. Only one thing is needed. Matt has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from him.

 In the end, I am happy to recommend The Explicit Gospel because it has a burning center of gospel heat. While it didn't always suit the tastes of my logical, linear, Enlightenment-addled mind, my heart was inflamed at the beauty and the sufficiency of the gospel. I'm sure Matt would be the first to say along with Paul, "For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power." If that's not the explicit gospel, I don't know what is.


Rating: 3 out of 5 stars


Recommended for: Pastors, fans of Trevin Wax and Jared C. Wilson

This book was a free review copy provided by Crossway.

Book Review: A Shot of Faith to the Head by Mitch Stokes, PhD

Every year there's a book that comes across my desk of which I have little or no expectation but ends up being one of my favorite books of the year.  In 2009, it was Notes From the Tilt-A-Whirl by N.D. Wilson (you can buy it here). In 2010, it was Marks of the Messenger by J. Mack Stiles (buy here). In 2011, it was A Meal With Jesus by Tim Chester (buy here) and Red Like Blood by Joe Coffey and Bob Bevington (buy here).

Without a doubt, the strongest contender for the title so far this year is A Shot of Faith to the Head by Mitch Stokes, PhD. While I had heard nothing about the book (or the author, for that matter) before receiving it, once I had picked it up and started in, I couldn't put it down.

"Finally," I thought to myself as I read, "someone who's matching the atheists not only on the level of arguments (which many good Christians apologists have done), but also on the level of wit, sarcasm and biting intellect." After all, if the New Atheists have done anything well, they have so ridiculed the supposed anti-intellectualism of Christianity that even smart Christians feel they must compromise or live a contradiction. Stokes has now begun to level the playing field and not only show that we have reason on our side, but that the New Atheists should be ashamed of their scathing condescension and perhaps consider their own contradictions for once.

If I may give a spoiler by way of summarizing the book, A Shot of Faith to the Head broadly covers three areas: rationality, design, and absolute (moral) standards. Stokes shows how the atheist depends on one or more of these ideas every time they present their arguments, yet all three of these ideas have no grounding in the atheist's world, only in the theist's. As Stokes concludes:

"The notions of design, rationality, and absolute standards cannot exist in a naturalistic world, the world of the atheists. Without absolute standards—of which there must be many—their worldview would entirely collapse.

"And this poses a serious problem for any atheist who claims that belief in God is irrational. In fact, it takes the legs right out from under such a claim. If there is no designer, then there is no proper function, and therefore there is no such thing as irrationality. But then there’s no such thing as rationality either. There’s only a sterile, impersonal “desert landscape. Beliefs are neither rational nor irrational. They just are."

 This book was a delight to read and an honor to recommend.

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Recommended for: Apologists, philosophers, anyone challenged or threatened by the ideas of the New Atheists

This book was a free review copy provided by Thomas Nelson. 

Book Review: How Good Is Good Enough by Andy Stanley

Tim Keller defines defeater beliefs as any culture's "'common-sense' consensus beliefs that automatically make Christianity seem implausible to people." If I may be so bold as to add to the wisdom of Tim Keller, I would suggest that any belief that makes Christianity unnecessary or inconsequential would fall into such a category as well. And of all the beliefs that make Christianity unnecessary or inconsequential, there is perhaps none more common than the one confronted in this book: "all good people go to heaven".

In How Good Is Good Enough?, Andy Stanley spends the first two thirds of the book dismantling this defeater belief, clearing the way for a clear and compassionate gospel presentation. The dismantling of the "good people go to heaven" belief is surprising simple, primarily because it is so often assumed and so rarely analyzed. The frailty of this assumption is quickly revealed as Stanley begins measuring it against a few questions (the first of which is the title of the book).

Consider. How do you know when/if you're good enough? According to whose standard of goodness? Jesus? Buddha? Mohammed? And if God is good, shouldn't he have communicated a little more clearly that standard and where exactly the cut-off line is? And the kicker in my mind: no matter where the line is, what do you say to the poor sap who falls below that line by one measly good dead? That he missed the cut-off for heaven and is now in hell because of one white lie? One errant word? One stolen piece of candy as a child?

To put it another way: if a passing grade is 3.0, what do you tell the schmuck who scores a 2.999? "Sorry chump, to hell with you and Hitler and Pol Pot"."All good people go to heaven" is often touted as a much fairer option against the Christian view of the afterlife. Yet, like a good apologist, Stanley shows that this approach to eternity fails at its own test of fairness and equality.

I can't decide if How Good Is Good Enough? is a really short book (92 small pages) or a long gospel tract, but either way it's well worth adding to your library so that you are ready to loan it or cite it next time someone says "Well that's great if Christianity works for you, but I'm just trying to be a good person".


Rating: 4 1/2 out of 5 stars


Recommended for: Every Christian 

This book was a free review copy provided by Multnomah Books.