Ok, folks, I've been away for a while-- it was deliberate, as this place is really addicting!!!

Anyway, we're just about to open up our bookstore at our church, and, while it is fairly comprehensive, there are lots of "baby Christians" at our church, so I doubt we'll be plugging "the heavy stuff" right off the bat. Having said that, we want CORE, staple items to be the most prominently featured-- divines or contemporary-- whatever kicked open some of the barn doors to your faith, greatly increased your understanding of Scripture, and brought heretofore unseen personal intimacy and love for Jesus Christ...

Or, to ask another way, if you were stranded on a desert island, and could only have 25 books, besides the Bible, what would they be?

In other words, what would you consider to be the most important, influential, and 'breakthrough' books that you have read that you would consider absolutely essential for your Christian library?

Try to remember your first five years (or so) as a Christian, and look back at what you might recommend that floored you at the time. Please, try to limit the list to 25 items!!!!!

DISCLAIMER 1: Dr. Matt suggested that I search the board, and while I found some great stuff that comes close to answering this question, I couldn't quite find this answer. Please don't flame me too bad if I overlooked it!!!

DISCLAIMER 2: I also am acutely aware that this question is almost unfairly broad-- one might ask, "Top 25 books on what topic?" Please just bear with me, and try to come up with a suitable list.

Thanks in advance...

In His Service,

Alex

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Alex Berry

Husband to Kristy, Father to Hannah, Kendall (twins-10), and James (6).

First Baptist Church of Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, FL

A book that I really enjoyed was The Pilgrim's Progress.

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Caleb
Trinity Baptist Church
Spokane, WA

My list would be:

1. The Life, Walk and Triumph of Faith by William Romaine
2. Holiness by J C Ryle
3. The Mortification of Sin by John Owen or here.
4. The Poor Man's Morning & Evening Portions by Robert Hawker
5. The Lord's Prayer by Thomas Watson
6. The Ten Commandments by Thomas Watson
7. Body of Divinity by Thomas Watson
8. The Path of True Godliness by William Teellinck
9. We and Our Children by Professor Hanko
10. Spiritual Desertion by Gisbertus Voetius & Johannes Hoornbeeck
11. The Marks of God's Children by Jean Taffin
12. The Lord's Day by Joseph Pipa

The above are all clear, simple and practical. Most are also very devotional.

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Richard
CofE
UK

I would have to add 2 of the books that got me started in the Reformed path,
"What is Reformed Theology" by RC Sproul (formerly when I bought is Grace Unknown), & "Desiring God" by John Piper. I would have both "Desiring God" & "Pleasures of God".
Good for beginners.

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Frank O Fuentes
Church of THE King
McAllen, Texas
Student at Edinburg Theological Seminary

Argh... I am a bit of a baby in the Christian book reading area. I'm not too good with reading, I tend to plod through books quite slowly.

One book that I'd have to put in here is "The Godly Man's Picture" by Thomas Watson. I think that everybody should read it.

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Vaughan
BTh Student, Sydney Missionary Bible College
Naremburn Cammeray Anglican Church
Sydney, Australia
The Ransomed

These are the first ten that came to mind when considering the question.

1. The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan.

2. Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray.

3. Tulip: The Five Points of Calvinism in Light of The Scriptures by Duane Spencer

4. What is Reformed Theology? ( Formerly Grace Unknown) by R.C. Sproul.

5. Overcoming Sin and Temptation (3 Works by John Owen on Sin and Temptation).

6. Scripture Alone: Exploring the Bibles Accuracy, Authority and Authenticity by James White.

7. The Doctrine of Justification by James Buchanan.

8. The Holiness of God by R.C. Sproul.

9. A New Systematic Theology Of The Christian Faith by Robert L. Reymond.

10. A Quest for Godliness: The Puritan Vision of the Christian Life by J.I. Packer.

__________________
Brian K. Karger
Grace Baptist Church
1689 LBC
www.founders.org

In no particular order....

The Sovereignty of God - A.W. Pink
What is Reformed Theology - R.C. Sproul
Bondage of the Will - Martin Luther
The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination - Lorraine Boettner
All of Grace - C.H. Spurgeon
An Antidote Against Arminianism - Christopher Ness
A Sure Guide to Heaven - Joseph Alleine
Life by His Death - John Owen (an easy to read version of Death of Death in the Death of Christ)
Right with God - John Blanchard
Advice for Seekers - C.H. Spurgeon
A Price for a People - Tom Wells
The Christian Following Christ as Lord - William Webster
Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God - Jonathan Edwards
Fair Sunshine - Jock Purves
Today's Gospel: Authentic or Synthetic - Walter Chantry
Sermons of Robert Murry M'Cheyne - Robert Murry M'Cheyne
Signs of the Apostles - Walter Chantry
What's in the Bible - R.C. Sproul & Robert Wolgemuth
The Five Points of Calvinism: Defined, Defended & Documented - Steele, Thomas & Quinn
Are Five Points Enough? The Ten Points of Calvinism - Leonard J. Coppes

Oh, and here's a good study for the new christian

http://scripturetruths5.tripod.com/gracestudy.html
http://www.monergism.com/directory/l...Grace-Studies/

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Dan McPherson
Creekside, PA
Faith OPC - Indiana, PA

“The ultimate destiny of every individual is decided by the will of God, and blessed it is that such be the case. If it were left to our wills, the ultimate destination of us all would be the lake of fire.” -- A. W. Pink

Hi Alex,

A few books that I believe are good for newer Christians on some important biblical topics besides the ones already mentioned are:

1) The Sovereignty of God by A.W. Pink (Baker Books ed.)
2) Putting Amazing Back into Grace by Michael Horton
3) The Doctrines of Grace by James Boice and Philip Ryken
4) According to Plan by Graeme Goldsworthy
5) Always Ready by Greg Bahnsen

These are not hard reads and help one to grasp many of the important principles/concepts for books that are more in depth.

For the new Christian, I agree.

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~Greg Carpenter~
Deerfield Beach, FL

"It is a throne of grace that God in Christ is represented to us upon; but yet it is a throne still whereon majesty and glory do reside, and God is always to be considered by us as on a throne." –John Owen

The Bondage of the Will by Martin Luther.
The Institutes of the Christian Religion by Calvin
Confessions by St. Augustine

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J. B. Atken
John Knox PCA
Layman, M.A. student at Louisiana College

City of God by St Augustine

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J. B. Atken
John Knox PCA
Layman, M.A. student at Louisiana College

Thanks again to all who have responded so far-- I hope we get more feedback on this, as it really requires a lot of discipline to curtail the selection to just 25--- and yet, it's relatively easy to come up with a "Top 5" or "Top 10"...

Hmmmmm....

Anyway, Most of your responses hit close to home: of course, Pilgrim's Progress is huge, but I only discovered that after I was a Christian 3 years. My buddy (who moved away, and now goes to Briarwood Church in Birmingham, Alabama, gave me my first "theology" book. It was Grace Unknown, by R.C. Sproul. The books that are harder to read (but tend to provide much richer content-- "center-cut filet mignons", as one of our elders puts them), are the Puritan books. My favorite is The Reformed Pastor, by Richard Baxter. Even though I'm not a pastor, the godly counsel he leaves for living in a way befitting a Christian applies to us ALL, not just pastors. Plus, the things he warns against are unbelievably relevant today-- probably moreso than when he wrote it in the early 1600's. The Godly Man's Picture (Watson) is not far behind. The Evil of Evils: The Exceeding Sinfulness of Sin by Jeremiah Burroughs ranks highly, and needs to be FAR more known in today's "Carnal Christian" atmosphere.

I'm a tad surprised no one brought up Knowing God, by J. I. Packer. That one's a keeper, in a BIG way. I love it because it guages "spirit" and "truth" (the balance of which I'm pretty big on, as you can probably tell from my handle) better than any other contemporary author, IMO.

No-brainers mentioned, so far, including above:
Reymond's A New Systematic Theology Of The Christian Faith
Luther's Bondage of the Will
Calvin's Institutes...

Lots more I haven't read, but know I need to-- I've read dribs and drabs of people like A.W. Pink's stuff, and J. C. Ryle-- that keeps coming up on everyone's fave lists....

There are others that I would include (The Power of Prayer, by R. A. Torrey, for example), and many others-- but I already know MY staple books-- The point here is, I want to hear yours!!!

I'd love to hear more. This is great---really... Thanks again, and keep 'em coming!!!

Anyone else want to chime in?

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Alex Berry

Husband to Kristy, Father to Hannah, Kendall (twins-10), and James (6).

First Baptist Church of Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, FL

Here's one I've found most energizing, and that would be especially helpful for baby Christians. It is a great example of how understanding the sovereignty of God should radically alter lives, and an illustration of how reflection and meditation upon good doctrine will produce hearty practice and good works.

In the Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp.

It's very discipleship oriented and great for laity to read. I'll be using it in the fall to disciple a couple of younger college students as part of my work to establish an discipleship-oriented midweek group for college students at my church (with me under direct care and supervision of my teaching elder and the session in general for this role).

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Scott - Dallas, Texas - PCA

"It is not what a lawyer tells me I may do; but what humanity, reason, and justice tell me I ought to do." - Edmund Burke

Christianity and Liberalism (1923) by J. Gresham Machen (1881-1937)
How to Barbecue Mini-Dougnuts Without Them Falling Between the Bars on the Grill by Bill "Baptist in Crisis" Brown

Both of these are must-haves.

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Richard T. Zuelch, M.Div
Ruling Elder, OPC (not currently serving)
Westminster Presbyterian Church, CA (OPC)
www.reiterations.wordpress.com
www.foft.wordpress.com

Faith and repentance are born together and aid the health of each other. - Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892), on July 23, 1865

Except for the obvious books already noted, I would add
Freedom of the Will by Jonathan Edwards
A Treatise on Regeneration by Peter Van Mastricht
Biblical Theology by Geerhardus Vos
Perhaps also Chosen By God, Willing to Believe, and Knowing Scripture by R.C. Sproul

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Patrick Arnold
Covenant OPC, Brighton, MI
MA student in philosophy at the University of Michigan

Sounds great, T, thanks. I'll check it out. It's always great when God's truth is actually PERCEIVED as relevant for certain applications for those new in the faith, even though we all know God's Word is ALWAYS relevant (whether we "perceive" it that way, or not)

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Alex Berry

Husband to Kristy, Father to Hannah, Kendall (twins-10), and James (6).

First Baptist Church of Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, FL

Below are a few previous threads that Dr. Matt may have had in mind:

What are some books besides the Bible that have had the most impact on you?

Top 10 Theology Books of All Time

The Best of the Best

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Andrew Myers
Husband of Jessica, Father of Jackson, Katie and Samuel
Member, Presbyterian Reformed Church of Northern Virginia
Warrenton, VA USA
Editor, The Matthew Poole Project

"Let your Morning Thoughts, and your last Evening Thoughts, be what shall become of you to all Eternity." -- Matthew Poole

If it wasn't said already, The Westminster Standards (full Scottish text of course ) should be near the top of the list.

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Chris Coldwell
Lakewood Presbyterian Church (PCA), Member
• Naphtali Press: Presbyterian & Reformed Books
• The Confessional Presbyterian, A Journal for Discussion of Presbyterian Doctrine & Practice
• The Blue Banner Archive

When heresy rises in an evangelical body, it is never frank and open. It always begins by skulking, and assuming a disguise. Its advocates, when together, boast of great improvements, and congratulate one another on having gone greatly beyond the ‘old dead orthodoxy,’ and on having left behind many of its antiquated errors: but when taxed with deviations from the received faith, they complain of the unreasonableness of their accusers, as they ‘differ from it only in words.’ This has been the standing course of errorists ever since the apostolic age. Samuel Miller, Introductory essay, The Articles of the Synod of Dort (1841).

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

Thank you!!! YES, those are they!!!

This is a BIGGGG help.... really!!!

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Alex Berry

Husband to Kristy, Father to Hannah, Kendall (twins-10), and James (6).

First Baptist Church of Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, FL

Now that's interesting. Is "Perhaps also Chosen by God" a sequel to
Chosen by God?

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Todd K. Pedlar
member, First Congregational Church, (CCCC) Cresco, IA
http://semperubi.rtrc.net

"Many men, after a long conversion, see more of the workings of sin in their hearts than ever they did before or at their first conversion. Now, such men have not an increase of sin, but an increase of illumination and light" (Christopher Love)


Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

• holiness ryle,
• everyday talk,
• matt henry's commentary,
• naves topical,
• hendrikson's commentary set (One item ),
• 1689 confession waldron,
• reformed doctrine of predestination boettner
• foxes book of martyrs
• biography of M'Cheyne bonar
• Strong's concordance

__________________
Frank
member/Reformed Baptist Church, NJ
1689 BCF
Technician in NewYork
Titus 2:13
...looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus...

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Alex Berry

Husband to Kristy, Father to Hannah, Kendall (twins-10), and James (6).

First Baptist Church of Boynton Beach
Boynton Beach, FL

Or perhaps a prequel?

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Conrad W. Judy, Jr.
Ruling Elder, Eastern Shore Reformed Presbyterian Church, Centreville, MD
James Pepper: You know, there's an old saying, Miss Sally. There's no law west of Dodge and no God west of the Pecos. Right, Mr. Chisum?
John Simpson Chisum: Wrong, Mr. Pepper. Because no matter where people go, sooner or later there's the law. And sooner or later they find God's already been there. - Chisum (1970)

Perhaps Also Chosen by God sounds almost Dispensational.

"Ah yes... and the church!"

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Vaughan
BTh Student, Sydney Missionary Bible College
Naremburn Cammeray Anglican Church
Sydney, Australia
The Ransomed