Musings of a Former Fundamentalist (IFB) Renewed by Reformed Theology
all about books
Thanks to everyone who entered the book giveaway. The contest is now over as the results are in. Toby Holland is the winner of the free copy of 40 Loaves. I’ll be contacting you, Toby, by email today for your snail mail address.
Thanks again to WaterBrook Press for supplying the giveaway copy of 40 Loaves: Breaking Bread with the Father Each Day by C.D. Baker.
Abraham Piper at Twenty-Two Words recently commented on why bloggers link to Amazon:
Why bloggers link to Amazon so much…other than that Amazon is cheap and has everything.
Whenever I link to Amazon, then you click and buy something, I make money. This is true for almost every serious blogger.
He’s right. And I thought I would take the time and opportunity that Abraham’s post gives, to do an honesty check for my own blogging.
If you notice the credits at the bottom of this blog’s header, you will see that I am in association with Westminster Bookstore, Monergism Books, and yes, Amazon.com. If you follow links to learn more about books or to purchase them, I usually try to have my referral code in the link. So visiting their site or purchasing from it (depending on which site it is), can result in a modest amount of compensation to me for providing the link.
I also highlight special offers in my Odds N’ Ends section, and in the past had trumpeted a music club where if you signed up for it, I would get some free CDs for sending you their way.
I think that this is all fair and above board. I spend time blogging, and take the time to point you to other sites for deals or books or whatever. And based on the amount of traffic I send their way, I get a small something out of it.
To be very honest about this, I have not received all that much back from these sites. I did get a lot of “free CDs” but I had to still pay 4 bucks or more for shipping. From Amazon, I have made just over $100 total compensation from two years of linking to Amazon. Now that I have purchased my own site, I’m paying almost that much each year to maintain it. I have yet to meet the threshold for receiving compensation from the other stores (which would be in gift certificates).
Another compensation for my blogging, of late, has been free books. And with this I try to be above board as well. I ask publishers for books, and promise to review them. I ask for books I am already interested in. I then review them, with no promise of a positive or glowing review. The nature of my review pertains to my real honest assessment of the book. I also am careful to mention in my review that I got the book from the publisher.
If you are a blogger, I encourage you to take advantage of these means to get compensated. This will help you stick to your blog, and in my case, it keeps my nose in good books. Bringing in a small amount of income or saving yourself from spending a bit more than you would otherwise for books, is an honest venture. And blogging can and should be an honorable hobby.
And for those of you who enjoy reading this blog and others like it, I would ask you to understand about the occaasional links to Amazon and other sites. I try to keep the advertisement as low key as possible. And I am not in blogging to make money, anyway. But if you’d like to support me and this site, I’d love it if you use these links when you shop for books or other purchases. Many thanks for your readership.
As part of the 40 Loaves book blog tour, this week. I am giving away one copy of C.D. Baker’s book 40 Loaves: Breaking Bread with the Father Each Day. I’ve reviewed the book and am sure you will enjoy this. It will make an excellent gift, too.
Please use the following form to enter the contest. You can get additional entries to the contest if you subscribe to my blog or follow me on Twitter/Facebook, and if you publicize this giveaway on your blog or via Twitter/Facebook. So spread the word, and may the best one win!
The contest will end Friday night at 10pm Central Standard Time. The winner will be announced Saturday on the blog and contacted via email.
Contest is now closed, the winner was Toby Holland!
Author: C.D. Baker
Publisher: Waterbrook Press
Format: hardcover
Publication Date: 2009
Pages: 162
ISBN: 9780307444905
Stars: 4 of 5
Devotional books abound these days. They remain popular since Christians continue to desire books which help them connect with God. Scriptural readings followed by devotional thoughts, a prayer or a poem — this is what one expects to encounter with books in this genre. One doesn’t expect to be given penetrating and even troubling questions.
40 Loaves does just that. C.D. Baker dares to ask and discuss the questions that find their way into our heart of hearts. Why do I so easily lose self-control? Why am I so uncomfortable with doubts? Why can’t I overcome sin in my life? Why am I so discontented? These questions (and more like them) aren’t addressed easily.
I knew that this book addressed such questions. I wasn’t prepared for how relevant the treatment of them would be. Baker uses such questions to probe deeply into our souls, and to ground us firmly in the gospel of God’s free grace. Throughout his devotional readings, he displays a gift in cutting to the heart of the problem.
Each reading begins with a story or example which draws us into the problem represented by the question covered in the reading. The stories are gleaned from Baker’s ministry and life experience, and they do much to keep the book interesting. The devotional then considers the question and finds the key issue or obstacle such a question reveals. The Scripture is briefly applied to the problem at hand, and some questions for further reflection are provided. The section ends with a brief prayer pertinent to the issue.
The readings are short, 4 small pages each. Yet their message is weighty. Don’t think the book is frighteningly sober or dreadfully serious. It is, but it isn’t. Baker manages to keep the readings eminently readable, interesting and above all, helpful.
As a once-upon-a-time-legalist, I found Baker’s emphasis on grace refreshing, and his exposure of their peril of performance-based Christianity convincing. Baker also quite often gives encouragement and reminds us that we are human after all. It would be wrong to assume that Baker just offers a cheery view of the world, however. He acknowledges and addresses the grittiness of the Christian struggle. And his thoughts are grounded in Scripture. I appreciated his emphasis on the centrality of the gospel and his encouragement to focus on Jesus.
This little volume will be a blessing to you. All the more if you find yourself voicing some disturbing questions. 40 Loaves will prove to be accessible to almost any reader, and offers a high return on any investment involved in the reading. This book has made me interested in picking up some of Baker’s other devotional books. I encourage you to pick up a copy of this book, you won’t be disappointed. Also, this would make an excellent gift book, this holiday season!
C. David Baker founded an award-winning business before redirecting his career to write full-time from his small farm in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He is the author of eight books, including six novels, one of which was nominated for a Christy Award. He has contributed articles to the Christian History Institute’s international publication Glimpses, and to Christian Singles magazine. Baker has a Master’s degree in theological studies from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
Disclaimer: this book was provided by the publisher for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to provide a positive review.
This book is available for purchase at the following sites: Amazon.com or direct from Waterbrook Multnomah.
Author: Daniel Doriani
Publisher: P & R Publishing
Format: hardcover
Publication Date: 2007
Pages: 220
ISBN: 9780875527857
Stars: 5 of 5
It’s hard to keep up with all of the new commentary series available these days. Critical, expository, application, practical, scholar’s, layman’s, preacher’s, everyman’s — commentaries come in all shapes and sizes. They also run the whole gamut of theological positions. One can find a commentary to fit almost anyone’s personal taste. This is actually a good thing, as non-English speaking people could certainly attest. Availability of good resources (along with some less useful ones) is a blessing we must not take for granted.
When I picked up a volume from P&R’s Reformed Expository Commentary series, I wasn’t sure quite what to expect. As it turned out, I was totally unprepared for how truly excellent a commentary actually can be.
James, by Daniel Doriani, is a joy to read — and use. I’ve been putting it to use in a men’s Bible study on the book of James. And the book serves well to that end. Not only is it an able study tool, but it would serve as excellent devotional reading material. It has the right balance of practical theology and careful scholarship.
The Reformed Expository Commentary series purposely aims to keep the volumes more pastoral and accessible to lay leaders within the church. The authors of each book in the series are pastors committed to the Reformed understanding of Bible doctrine as embodied in the Westminster Confession of Faith. Don’t let that scare you. Even if you are not reformed or Calvinist-leaning, you should be thankful for the Westminster Confession of Faith. People who ascribe to it are likely to be conservative Bible-believing scholars. They are chained to the text of Scripture, which the WCF does a good job of handling (albeit as a Baptist, I differ in at least one point).
As a pastor-scholar, Doriani is able to bring an exposition of the text to us in his commentary. He doesn’t merely break down the text, but he applies it and is free to connect the text to parallel passages in Scripture that develop the same theme. While the book goes out of its way to apply the sense of Scripture, it doesn’t become merely a written sermon. Doriani traces the flow of the text well, and seeks to cover all the questions laymen and scholars alike would have. Still, this is not a critical commentary that might delve deeply into the Greek; and so it will not be the only resource one should consult for study.
The tone of the commentary allows for more of the author’s personality to come through. We see this in Doriani’s treatment of James’ teaching on the elders praying over the sick and anointing them with oil. He shares how his study of the book of James led him to encourage his church to follow James chapter 5 in their practice. He relates two touching stories of God’s healing in answer to the prayer of the elders (and the simple faith of following God’s teaching in this matter). The personal story however, does not turn into a soap-box in any sense. Doriani is careful to cover how faith is not something obligating God to heal in every case, nor is sin behind every illness. His treatment of this passage alone, is worth the price of the book.
The most transformational passage I encountered in my own study of James (with Doriani’s help) has been chapter 1:12-17. Doriani confronts the confusing nature of verses 13 and 14 which seem to say God would never “tempt” anyone. Doriani brings out that God does “tempt” Abraham and also Moses and the Israelites, etc. Of course “tempt” can mean “test” , or “trial” , and context is king here. But Doriani helped me to really get the sense of of the overall teaching of that passage. Here is an excerpt that is especially helpful.
So there are two potential paths in any test. Testing met with endurance makes us mature and complete; it leads to life (1:3-4, 12). Or testing met with selfish desire leads to sin and death (1:14-15). “Death” is more than the death of the body, tragic as that is. Rather, just as faith and endurance lead to eternal life (1:12; cf. Matt. 10:22), so selfish desire and sin lead to eternal death (Rev. 20:14-15).
This is the worst possible result of testing, and a idea we might prefer to avoid. Therefore, James commands, “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers” (1:16 ESV). James warns his readers against blaming temptation and sin on God. He hopes his readers see the truth. Sin begins in our hearts which are all too willing to follow evil desires. How foolish it is to succumb to temptation, then blame the results on God.
Because of our sin, tests can lead to spiritual death, but God designed them to bring us good. Tests stand among God’s gifts, not his curses. But if our sinfulness leads us to fail life’s tests, how can we escape our failures? The final two verses [17-18] offer an answer. (pg. 39)
This insight is going to stick with me my whole life, Tests offer two alternative responses: endurance & faith or selfish desire/doubt/blaming God. Our choice is important, we must not be deceived. But this topic (covered in verses 12-16) flows right into verse 17 which says every good gift comes from God. Tests, in the context of James chapter 1, then, are God’s gifts to us!
The extended quote above also serves to illustrate Doriani’s style in two ways. Notice first, the end of the first paragraph, where he looks beyond the focus of the text in James to the teaching of other Scripture as well. Second, the last paragraph above shows how Doriani is always looking for the gospel. We do fail life’s tests, what then?
This gospel focus serves readers well as they encounter James through this book. James can be seen as merely a book of practical advice or a collection of commands, yet sprinkled throughout the book are elements of Gospel. And it is the gospel which makes sense of James. Doriani shows us how to see James as complementary to Paul, and warns against a legalistic approach to the book.
I cannot more highly recommend this resource. If other titles in the series are as well put together, and as helpful as this book, I am going to want to collect them all. I suspect you will too.
My thanks go out to Presbyterian and Reformed Publishers for providing me with a review copy of this book.
Daniel M. Doriani (M.Div., Ph.D., Westminster Theological Seminary; S.T.M., Yale Divinity School) is senior pastor of Central Presbyterian Church, Clayton, Missouri. He previously was dean of faculty and professor of New Testament at Covenant Theological Seminary. He is a frequent speaker at conferences and seminars, and the author of Getting the Message: A Plan for Interpreting and Applying the Bible, Putting the Truth to Work: The Theory and Practice of Biblical Application, and The Sermon on the Mount: The Character of a Disciple.
Disclaimer: this book was provided by the publisher for review. The reviewer was under no obligation to provide a positive review.
This book is available for purchase at the following sites: Westminster Bookstore, Amazon.com, or direct from P & R Publishing.