Author: J.K.

Book Review: Christianity and Science

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Rating: If you are looking for something

Level: Difficult (wordy, academic style, knowledge of enlightenment and higher critical philosophies/theories is helpful); Short – 230 pages

Summary

The book has 13 chapters – Intro, How the Concept of Christian Science Emerged, Defects That Clung to Christian Science, Positive Science, Evaluation of Positivism, Consequence of the Verdict, The Concept of Science, The Natural Sciences, The Humanities, Theological Science, Revelation, The Blessing of Christianity for Science, and A Christian University. There is also a lengthy Editors’ Introduction, which explains some of the translation issues and gives a little bit of background in to Bavinck’s life and situation. 

Written in 1904, but looking back over the previous 50-70 years, the book focuses on changes to society and to the university system that has come from recent official moves towards liberalism and secularism. Bavinck is focused specifically on The Netherlands, but also broadly on the post-enlightenment and higher critical movements of Europe in general. 

There is a also a good explanation of what Bavinck means by ‘science’, which was essentially synonymous with ‘learning’ or ‘knowledge’, and science was often still in the title of disciplines (e.g. Theological Science). The book was also originally titled Christian Science, which the editors changed due to the current American religious movement. However, the phrase is used throughout the book. 

It should also be noted that this is not a discussion of Christianity vs. Science, in the way of some of our modern American discussions. 

My Thoughts

I’ll get the negative out of the way first, if you haven’t read Bavinck before, it can be difficult. This may only bother me, but he has sentences that run for paragraphs, and paragraphs that run for pages. Also, he is distinctly a product of his time, the theological and philosophical arguments that were raging at the time are front and center in his writing. While most people are probably familiar with Kant, I’d guess that Schleiermacher is less well known (though maybe not to the type of people that would read a Bavinck book), let alone the list of other German philosophers and theologians that have faded into obscurity. The editors make short notes as to whom he is referring and what they did, but without some background knowledge, I’m not sure how impactful it is. The notes help for those who were contemporary politicians in The Netherlands, because their thoughts/arguments are pretty straight forward, but the writings of the academics and their nuance may be lost. 

That being said, so much of his writing then is still applicable to us today. It is odd as an American, hearing the arguments about the Government funding private (including religious) schools, but most of Europe started in a different place than we did. They are coming from an official (confessional) religion and then moving secular. So, often ‘equality’ means funding all viewpoints/religions equally, while here it means funding none. For a more modern/current take on these issues, look up Michael Bird, as he writing/arguing some of these same issues right now in Australia (where the Government does fund all schools). 

There are some esoteric arguments in the first few chapters, especially about ‘positivism’, but especially starting in the Humanities chapter to the finish, the writing sounds very contemporary. He points out the issues/problems of ‘greatest good for the greatest number’ argument of morality, while also criticizing the ‘private matter’ of  a ‘preference and taste’ view of choosing a ‘personal religion’. The Theological Science chapter discusses how theology can/should be taught and the issues of many schools moving (in some cases required) to religion departments; pointing out that if there is no universal or deeper truth, then the studies of religion may as well move to History or Psychology departments, or if the Bible is just writings, why not a subset of Literature? Finally, the University chapter is wild it how it almost predicted the future. He feared the political re-shuffling of the professors based on ‘openness’ and ‘tolerance’  not actually being use the way the word implies. He states, ‘according to the doctrine, there is room for all, but according to life, only for us and our friends. If you ever see studies/surveys of professors today and see their very narrow set of beliefs/viewpoints (for the most part), you can see he is correct. He even points to the fact that professors come from other professors and is less about how might be the ‘best’ and more about ‘who do we want to get along with’, which is just interesting to see that written 120 years ago. 

Overall, as is just about everything from Bavinck, this was a great book, he is truly a talented and gifted writing/academic. I just wonder how many people would benefit from this book, or rather who the audience would be. So, if you like Bavinck and are exciting more of his works are being translated to English, this will be pretty great. If you are in academia, you would also benefit. Obviously, some of the issues are a bit dated and the refences to contemporary Dutch politics isn’t always applicable. However, if you are studying or wanting to learn more about history and how we’ve gotten to our modern moment, this could be helpful. So, if you are looking for something, this book is great, but I do think you need to be looking to get much out of it. 

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. 

Book Review: The Beginning of the Gospel

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Rating – Put it on your list

Level – Moderate, written at popular level but Biblical knowledge is helpful; short (less than 200 pages).

Summary

This book is part of Crossway’s New Testament Theology series, and I think it is a fairy unique angle for study. The series preface says they are seeking, in this series, to take a Biblical Theological approach to the major themes of each book covered. If you aren’t as familiar with the term Biblical, it is as opposed to the more common Systematic way of handling theology; the latter being focused on topics first (sin, the church, etc.), while the former looks at overarching themes that unfold as you read through the Bible (or individual book in this case).

The book is broken into seven chapters – Divine Identity, Revelation, The Kingdom of God is at Hand, Repent and Believe the Gospel, Follow Me, What Moses Commanded, and Died, Buried, and Raised. There is also an introduction and epilogue. The intro chapter in this series is consistently one of the best out there on the topic. The on for Mark is less than 15 pages, but acts as a mini commentary. 

My Thoughts

This is a solid study on Mark. As mentioned above, it isn’t a traditional commentary, but focuses more on themes/theology of book. My main criticism would be that the chapters are almost too disparate. Other books in this series, while not having a unifying theme, still seem to flow more cohesively. That being said, if you are looking to teach/preach on Mark, this a book to add to your list. 

Particularly chapters one, two, and six are interesting in the connections he makes. First, who Jesus actually claims to be (and who his followers thought he was) is supposedly debated often today, but in reality His claims are clear. The chapters on handling the Old Testament is also instructive.

Something unique to Orr’s approach is the connection with both Peter and Paul to Mark. Mark is often associated with Peter’s perspective in the Gospel, but he also worked with Paul, and many of the theological elements of the Epistles are present in Mark. Whether Mark or Matthew were the first Gospel written is debatable, but either one would come later than most Epistles, so much of the original audience had the knowledge and writings, before the had the Gospels. I think that is hard for modern readers to remember, because we view it (and the Bible is arraigned) chronologically. There is also often a criticism from those outside the church that the Epistles, especially Paul’s, were a later change to Jesus’ message and that they altered the theology of the Gospels. Orr does a good job showing not only how aware Mark was of those letters but how his Gospel interacted (and agreed) with them.

If you are doing a Bible study or preparing a sermon series, this book can’t really stand on it’s own and would need to be supplemented with additional commentaries (especially if it is a sermon series). However, the chapters could be a good outline for a study and the book raises many good points and tackles some of the more confusing elements. If you are interested in deeper study of Mark, put this on your list. 

 

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Book Review: Psalms in 30 Days

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Rating: Must read

Level: Quick, easy; over 300 pages, but meant to be spread over 90 readings

Summary

This is a 30 day devotional through all the Psalms, with Morning, Midday, and Evening readings, based on the Book of Common Prayer (BCP) and other prayer books. All reading start with a call to prayer, include Psalms, and the Gloria Patri. The Morning and Evening readings are slightly longer and include Confession, Blessing, Canticle, Lord’ Prayer, and what he labels Prayers of the Church, which is a prayer from either the BCP or someone in Church History – Augustine, Luther, etc.

My Thoughts

This may be my favorite devotional of all time. At least the format, and prayers, etc. outside of the Psalms; I’m not a huge fan of the CSB Psalms, but it certainly isn’t a bad version (there are worse ones that are far more popular). If you have ever used the BCP, this will be pretty familiar by mixing the Daily Offices (all four – Morning, Midday, Evening, & Compline) with the daily prayer (Psalms), but in a daily devotional format (not reading Psalms, then flipping to various canticles, collects). I really enjoyed Wax’s collection of prayers of the church; it was a solid mix of old, very old, newer, prayer book, and also famous and less known prayers. 

If you have never used the BCP, you may want to after this book. Being something of a BCP light, but with just the Psalms and not the full office readings (the whole Bible in a year) is a great introduction. This devotional is also a good way to introduce someone to Psalms readings. Reading through the Psalms monthly dates back hundreds, if not thousands of years, and has been practiced by millions of Christians. 

I am more used to the Morning/Evening breakdown, but the Midday was a nice touch, it was shorter than the others, so if I couldn’t get to it at lunch, I’d either read it when I got home from work or add it to the Evening (which I think is shorter than the Morning, but not by much). On average, you read five Psalms a day, so it works to something like a 2-1-2 (though obviously not that nice and easy as sometimes you may read up 9 in a day as in the 140’s, or may spend days in one Psalm, as in 119).

There is no commentary or thoughts written regarding the Psalms, as this follows the prayer book model, which may seem different to those more used to the modern ‘daily devotional’ style. I personally prefer this style, as the ‘daily devotion’ can be hit or miss and oftentimes it seems the author had a short passage in mind before picking a verse (or whichever Psalm, if it is one of the many Psalms devotionals). If you want to keep reading the Psalms, but prefer that style, Keller’s is probably the best and he stretches it to last a whole year. However, the prayer book style has been lost and often it seems daily reading/devotionals have become overly complicated. Martin Luther reportedly told people to say/read a Psalm and then say the Lord’s Prayer and get on with your day. Luckily, we are more literate and have infinitely more access to books/materials than even the richest parishioner from 500 years ago. That doesn’t mean we have to over complicate it, but being able to read all the Psalms (not just recite the few we have memorized from church) and other prayers/confessions is the best of both worlds. If you have any interest in the Psalms or daily prayer, this is a must read. If you already reading the Psalms on a monthly basis, swap this in for a month a year to great benefit. 

Book Review: From the Manger to the Throne

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My Rating: Must Read

Level: Moderate, written at popular level but Biblical knowledge is helpful; short (less than 200 pages).

Summary

The book is broken into seven chapters – The Great Reversal; Peace on Earth as in Heaven; Israel, the Gentiles, and Isaiah’s Servant; The Way of Life; The Success of the Last Adam; The Son of Man’s Rule and the Ancient of Days; and The Year of Jubilee. There is also the series preface, book preface, intro, and an epilogue. If they chapters don’t look chronological to you, it is because they aren’t. The unique aspect of this series is that it seeks to catch all the major theological themes, but in commentary style.

My Thoughts

This is the first book I’ve read in Crossway’s New Testament Theology series, and I think it is a fairy unique angle for study. I’ve seen this book (or series) occasionally referred to as a commentary (not by Crossway) and while that isn’t technically correct, I can see where people are coming from. If you took a true scholarly commentary on Luke (e.g. Baker’s) and stripped out just the sections on theological themes or maybe an excurses on angels, you’d end up with something like this book. The series preface says they are seeking, in this series, to take a Biblical Theological approach to the major themes of each book covered. If you aren’t as familiar with the term Biblical, it is as opposed to the more common Systematic way of handling theology; the latter being focused on topics first (sin, the church, etc.), while the former looks at overarching themes that unfold as you read through the Bible (or individual book in this case).

Now, the seven themes Gladd has chosen are probably not the consensus themes among theologians/scholars. I imagine if you asked 10 people to pick seven themes, they might agree on three or four of them. Even as I read, I caught myself wondering whether one or two of the topics really belonged. That being said, I actually think this adds to the potential use for the book. As I read, I kept thinking about how great this would work as a small group or other Bible study. I would have loved to hear others’ feedback on some of the threads Gladd pick’s up on. He obviously makes compelling cases in each chapter and backs up each point with scripture from all over the Bible, so I don’t think any of them are ‘wrong.’ For a pastor a bible study leader, that gives you some compelling material to challenge people.

I was pretty much hooked on this after the intro while long for an intro to a book this size (over 10% of the pages) it makes sense once you read it. Gladd takes you through a quick summary of all of Luke. It was probably one of the most concise, while still being dense and comprehensive, overviews of any book of the Bible I’ve ever read. It really would be a great way to start off a Bible study.

I wouldn’t recommend this book as the first thing someone reads on Luke, or even for a new believer. To be as short as it is, you need some level of scripture to begin. This book would best be used in self study as a supplement to a regular commentary or, as I mentioned, an eight part Bible study with a group. I think getting everyone caught up on Luke from the intro, then spending a study time on each chapter would be a great use of this book and lead to some interesting discussion. For pastors preaching through all of Luke, this would certainly give you some ideas to focus on and themes to pull out and make sure are coming out in your sermons. While being somewhat technical, it is well and is a fair quick and easy read; it is also short at under 200 pages. If you are already familiar with Luke and look for another way to study, or leading a study, or are a preacher, this book is a must read.

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Updates and Recommendation

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Posting was spotty in 2022 due to a new job in my real life and a focus on our podcast – Modern Cloister – but I’m hoping to be back more often this year with fairly regular book reviews and a project I am starting on the Psalms. I should have a steady stream of book reviews, as I am way behind, starting Monday with one of Crossway’s new commentary series on Luke. I’m trying to get it up quickly, so I can grab their version on Mark will advanced copies are still available. It isn’t a full on commentary, but I think it is pretty unique and a great addition to any library or Bible Study. I have a very long term (probably years) plan on the Psalms that I hope to start sometime this Spring. If things are actually going well, I’m going to try to start an occasional series that will come out on Wednesdays that may be posted here and streamed through the Modern Cloister, for as long as we keep that going.

I also wanted to recommend a few books for anyone looking for something to read this year. I have reviewed either yet, but hopefully soon. If you are look for a good fiction book, try Lonesome Dove. I checked it out of the library. It is on the longer side, maybe 800+, but it is a quick/easy read and probably one of the best works of fiction I’ve ever read (easily top 5). Those looking for a devotional should check out Psalms in 30 Days: CSB edition. I’m not a huge fan of CSB for the Psalms, though better than others, but if you’ve taken the habit of reading the whole Psalter in 30 days, this is a really interesting twist. The author breaks the readings into three instead of two, but instead of just reading, there is essentially a mini-BCP (Book of Common Prayer) with calls to worship, gloria patria, and additional prayers. It is probably my favorite devotional of all time.

Two heavier books, on Systematic and on non-fiction. Evangelical Theology from Michael Bird is now probably at the top of my list for a systematic theology text. I’ll have more to say when I review it, but it is reformed-ish and evangelical in the theological sense (not political, as he is not American), easy to read, offers great depth, and maybe most interesting: funny. If you are looking for non-fiction, I finally got around to reading Fukuyama’s Origins of Political Order. This is the first (beginning of time to French Revolution) of a two volume work on society/political organization, and if that is an interesting topic to you, this book is fascinating.

Looking back through my Goodreads, you can kind of forget what you read, and I realized I’d planned to do a post on a slew of ‘controversial’ books from the past few years – Making of Biblical Womanhood (review), Recovering from Biblical Womanhood , Jesus and John Wayne, and Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. I need to finish these reviews, and either a write-up with how they interact or a pod on them. Speaking of which, does anyone listen to podcast that review books? I am thinking of making a few episodes specially on book reviews and wasn’t sure how interesting that may be.

Final recommendation to start the year is a substack (because blogs and people who have them are old and outdated) called Common Grace, Common Schools (check it out here). I found it via, of all places, LinkedIn, but the author was a friend of mine back in high school/church growing up, and actually we were almost roommates in college, which is a long story. He has a PhD in education policy and works in that arena now. The series is (going to be) about a Christian view of public school and (I assume) homeschooling. Stephen is an extremely intelligent guy and pretty good writer and I think the series will be interesting for anyone who has every considered the public/home school debate/issues. I’ve considered writing a series myself, but his will almost certainly be better. I went to public schools (including college and grad) and my parents could have never afford home/private schools and I am a bit biased due to two/maybe three different incidences. First, after college I actually worked at a ‘home school’, this could be a post itself, but I’ll just say it was past embarrassing and into shameful. Second, through some very crossed wires, I had an interview with ‘definitely not the Heritage Foundation’ think tank on ‘school choice’ (this is your reminder if someone is arguing ‘choice’ they’ve already lost on merits). Their legislative director explained to me their goal of undermining and defunding public schools in Georgia. I’m generally fine with most sincerely held political beliefs, so if you want to defund schools and end education in America, I guess that is fine, but I very much hate that Christians are the ones used to do this and they method the organizations use is fear. Third, I knew basically no one homeschooled (before fear was used around the millennium, and of course the reason the school I know started was not what they said, but because one of their children were kicked out of school), mostly because I lived in a middle class area. This is similar to my current situation. However for the past 15 years or so, I’ve worked in and attended church in a rich area, and there, where it doesn’t take two incomes to live, homeschooling is seen as the ‘correct’ and ‘most Christian’ way, which I find frustrating.

Anyway, I could write quite a bit more on this, but I think Stephen will hit most of it, and maybe I’ll have some reactions. I’d also recommend anyone who doesn’t know, go check out the history of homeschools (which wasn’t legalized in Georgia until the mid-80’s).

Alright, that should do it for now. Hopefully, I’ll be back to posting regularly in 2023. If not, y’all probably wont hear from me in anymore 2024.

Edit: Two things I need to add that I forgot. First, Stephen received his PhD from the two time defending national champs – the University of Georgia. Second, I should have caveated – not all homeschools. There are legit reasons to home school, and some schools (or consortiums, or whatever they call themselves) are quite good; I know at least two great people who teach at some of those. However, that being said, the history and people’s reasons are often shaky, and I will probably always remain skeptical.

Book Review: In the Lord I Take Refuge

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My Rating: If you are looking for something

Level: The devotions are short and easy; ESV is somewhat awkward for Psalms; long (400+), but meant to be read over 150 days

Summary

A full Psalm, then a short (usually less than a page) devotion/commentary follows. There is a short introduction, but I do wish it was longer, and went into a little more depth how to use the Psalms or the different types, etc. 

My Thoughts

For thousands of years Christians (and Jews, thousands before them) have used Psalms for devotions, prayers, songs, and meditations, so you have find dozens of devotionals like this on the market. Honestly, this one is kind of odd. You may notice the subheading ‘150 daily devotions through the Psalms’ and remember that there are 150 Psalms. If you are like me, you may think, surely it’s isn’t a one to one ratio. Some Psalms are only a few lines, while Psalm 119 is longer than some other books in the Bible. However, that is what they have chosen to do. The actual devotion is relatively similar in length, regardless of the length of the Psalm, so if you are setting time apart each day to read, it will vary wildly. 

The devotions seem to have a bit of a theme with in each of the five books, but maybe that was just my mind looking for a pattern. Ultimately, it is always going to be interesting to get someone else’s thoughts, as one line may have stuck out to you, but the author has chosen something else to focus on. Ortlund seems to go a little more narrow/specific, while other devotions will speak of the Psalms (or portion) as a whole. This isn’t necessarily bad or good, but I did catch myself sometimes not even remembering the line he decided to write on and having to go back and read it. This can be helpful, as it teaches you something you missed, but I had the sense, reading through this, that it might have been better to have the notes first. I don’t think I’ve seen that done, so maybe it isn’t a good idea. That would work for more of a commentary, but these devotions are more on the reflective side. They are well written and often insightful and certainly comes from a strong pastoral mind/heart. 

The book is published by Crossway, so it uses the English Standard Version (ESV). I’m not a big fan of the ESV for Psalms, as it is often too literal, while at other times still attempts to use ‘traditional’ or poetic language. I’ve heard rumors that Crossway is going to write an independent Psalter, which I think would be incredible, but until then, I think there are better options than this translation. 

Overall, I’d highly recommend any devotional on the Psalms, or just reading them all the way though in a month (the various Book of Common Prayer editions out there have reading plans in them, or just search). As I mentioned, I found the one to one Psalm/devotion to be an odd editorial decision, one I wouldn’t really recommend. However, most of the devotions are strong, and if you’ve read many of the others, and are looking for something, this would be an edition to add to your list. 

Modern Cloister Interview: Fatcat Books

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Check out the interview Mrs. MMT did with Natasha Kennedy and Todd Hains about there book series ‘Fatcat’, which includes children’s book on the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and Christmas (with more to come). You can watch the video below or listen to the Pod format (and download wherever you subscribe).

Book Review: The Beauty and Power of Biblical Exposition

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My Rating: Put it on your list

Level: Easy read, some Biblical knowledge needed; moderate length (under 300)

Summary

As the subtitle indicates, the book is about preaching the genres of the Bible. It is written to pastors, but I think anyone leading a Bible study, or interested in getting a better understanding of genres can benefit. The book is broken into six chapters – The Greatest Story Ever Told (Preaching Narrative), Let Him Who Has Ears Hear (Preaching Parables), Love Letters (Preaching Epistles), The Beauty of Simple (Preaching Poetry), Words of Wisdom (Preaching Proverbs), And I Saw (Preaching Visionary Writings). Each chapter is broken into two parts, reading and preaching. Additionally, each chapter ends with resources for deeper dives into the genre. There is also an introduction and a conclusion. 

My Thoughts

This book is a great introduction to the genres (broadly defined) of the Bible. While it is geared toward preachers, with additional notes about preaching and parts of sermons in various chapters, it is still a helpful book for any Bible teachers or anyone interested in a better understand of the Bible. If you haven’t been exposed to literary aspects or genres of the Bible, this will help you read it well, and I think the book could also be used by itself as part of a study for a community group. People are generally familiar with narrative, you’ve probably heard a sermon/teaching on parables, but most people have not had much introduction to proverbs or visionary wittings, and certainly not much about poetry. The poetry chapter alone is probably worth the price of the book. 

The author does a good job of not being too narrow (explaining how much poetry is throughout the Bible, and looking into proverbs that aren’t just the book of Proverbs). This is especially true in the visionary writings chapter, while heavy on Revelation, the chapter didn’t focus on it only. The split of each chapter on reading, then preaching is valuable. The first part offers a great intro to the genre, with the second part being on preaching (or teaching). 

In some ways, it was odd that this is written for preaching, as I would expect most preachers/pastors to have learned these structures in seminary or somewhere else before preaching. That said, I think it is great that genre is getting some publicity, and it’s focus is getting to more people, especially those interested in teaching. Too many errors in interpreting various verses/chapters in the Bible come from not having even a basic understanding of literature. 

Overall, the book is valuable and a good place to start for those wanting to learn more about writings of the Bible, the end of each chapter gives additional resources (books) you can look into to expand your understanding. For those who aren’t preachers, it is still a book to add to your list. I’m not sure you’ll find a better intro to genres of the Bible. O’Donnell has a bit of a ‘preaching’ stick that gets a little long/redundant, but most points are still applicable to regular teachers and Bible study leaders. 

 

*I received a free copy of this book from Crossway, in exchange for an honest review.

Modern Cloister: God’s Glory Alone

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This is our last episode in the Five Solas Series. If you are just catching this on for the first time, this Sola functions almost like a summary of the previous three, so if you like what you hear, please go back through and listen for a deeper dive (plus our other two episodes, what lead to the Reformation and Sola Scripture, which means we hold Scripture as our final authority). Ultimately, we are saved by God to His Glory alone. Listen below, find us on YouTube and wherever podcasts are found, or listen on our home page at Modern Cloister.