Tag: Tim Keller

Dr. Timothy Keller is founder and pastor of New York’s Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan. Over the past 20 years, the church has grown to five services at three sites, with a weekly attendance of over 5,000. Named one of the Top 25 Most Influential Churches in America, Keller’s ministry is notable not only for winning over New Yorkers who are skeptical to faith, but also for its missional approach, planting more than 100 churches though Redeemer City to City. He is the New York Times bestselling author of The Reason for God, The Prodigal God, and Counterfeit Gods. He blogs at Redeemer City to City.

My Top 10 Reads of 2011

I read over 100 books this past year, so I thought I would share my top ten books that were actually published in 2011. This next year I will be reading another 100 plus books (God willing) and one of the themes for the new year will be to read as many of the “Views” books as I possibly can (I have 70 of these books already at last count). The most important book I will be reading is the Bible. I will be using Robert Murray McCheyne’s Bible reading plan and the One Year Bible as well. Therefore, I hope to read through the Bible three times. I hope that God blesses your intake this next year and that His Spirit will illuminate your mind and saturate your thinking, emotions, and activity with a Christ centered and Holy Spirit empowering to live for His glory. All the books below (and more) were reviewed on Amazon.com and here on my blog.

10) Passages: How Reading the Bible in a Year Will Change Everything for You by Brian Hardin. He will really motivate you to get into the Word daily – which is arguably the most important discipline for you to maintain.

9) All In: From Refugee Camp to Poker Champ by Jerry Yang with Mark Tabb. This was one of the most spontaneous picks I ever read – I bought it because it was cheap! However, it was a gripping story of a Christian refugee coming to the USA and winning the biggest Poker prize in history and the astounding way he was and is a testimony for Christ in his lifestyle and giving. Jerry Yang is an amazing person who places Jesus first in every aspect of his life – even playing poker! I was surprised at how much God’s sovereignty and providence was brought into the story – not just the families escape from Cambodia, but also in the refugee camp in Thailand and then all the details that God worked out for him in the USA.

8) Salvation Accomplished by the Son: The Work of Christ by Robert A. Peterson. I always enjoy reading anything related to Jesus. This book was not easy reading, but very rewarding in that it mined the depths of the atonement and opened my eyes to riches to be found in Christ that I had never seen before.

7) The Essential Commandment: A Disciple’s Guide to Loving God and Others by Greg Ogden. This book is the third workbook in this series of outstanding discipleship workbooks. This one focuses on the application of the Ten Commandments. I highly recommend all of Ogden’s books on and for discipleship – He knows how to make and help you make multiplying disciples for Christ.

6) Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchividjian. I loved this book perhaps mainly because I could so identify with “rediscovering” that beauty of the gospel after going through so many trials and tribulations in recent years. Tullian clearly articulates the doctrines of justification and sanctification and how they are both grace based and emphasizes the “nowness” of the gospel in your life.

5) Think Christianly: Looking at the Intersection of Faith and Culture by Jonathan Morrow. This is a fantastic book that combines the biggest ethical and cultural issues of our times, and interviews with Christians who are experts in these areas – who have thought deeply about the issues, and are actually penetrating culture with their Christian views and actions and making a difference for the glory of God.

4) Nearing Home: Life, Faith, and Finishing Well by Billy Graham. Actually this wasn’t that great of a book – but it was written by one of the most used vessels in God’s arsenal in world history. This may be Graham’s last book that he will write before he goes home to hear those words we all long to hear, “Well done good and faithful servant.” I was brought to tears in reading this book because of this man’s integrity and faithfulness for the cause of Christ.

3) For Calvinism by Michael Horton. One of the most misunderstood doctrines so clearly and effectively articulated by one of the finest theologians of our times. A cogent and balanced defense of what the Scriptures teach about the doctrines of grace.

2) Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary by J. D. Greear. Very Christ-centered book on applying the gospel daily.

1) Tie for 1st! Forever by Paul David Tripp and The Meaning of Marriage by Tim Keller. Essentially anything that Tripp or Keller writes on anything trumps just about everything outside the Bible itself! These two writers have a great grasp on the gospel, Biblical Theology, and how to communicate these two elements with great relavency in the 21st Century. I’m sure I would also be including Keller’s “King’s Cross” here as well – but I haven’t read it yet!

Honorable Mentions (Most of these could have easily been in the top 10 too, but you gotta draw the line somewhere!):

Historical Theology by Greg Allison; Being George Washington by Glenn Beck; Reflections on Words of the New Testament by Vine and Benoit; Four Views on the Spectrum of Evangelicalism (Counterpoints: Bible and Theology – Various authors); Community: Taking Your Small Group off Life Support by Brad House; What is the Mission of the Church? by DeYoung and Gilbert; Preaching and Teaching the Last Things: Old Testament Eschatology for the Life of the Church by Walter C. Kaiser; More Than Ordinary: Enjoying Life with God by Doug Sherman.

 

Book Review: The Meaning of Marriage by Tim Keller

A Compelling Vision of Christian Marriage

 Tim Keller is the pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, New York since he planted it in 1989, and the church reflects the city’s demographics: approximately 80% of the people (in a church of several thousand) are single. So Keller has a lot of experience in teaching, counseling and shepherding singles in particular. This book had its roots in the early 1990’s when he did a series of sermons on marriage because of the skepticism, fear, and arguments that many of the singles in attendance had toward marriage in the beginning stages of the church – and still do today. He also wrote this book to share from his own experiences with his wife Kathy of 37 years and counting. However, most importantly he wrote this book to give a compelling vision of what marriage was designed to look like from the Bible from Genesis to Revelation – from the first marriage of Adam and Eve to the last marriage of Christ and the Church.

Keller states in the introduction, “its [the books] primary goal is to give both married and unmarried people a vision for what marriage is according to the Bible.” I believe that Keller succeeds in giving a very compelling case for marriage from the three stands above – from his experience, his realistic apologetic of building a case for the benefits and values of marriage, and then giving a compelling biblical vision throughout the book for the beauty of marriage when it reflects the glory of Christ at the center of it all. He does not minimize the difficulties, or the effort and hard work involved in a marriage, but is clear-headed, and cogently eloquent in presenting the “complexities of commitment with the wisdom of God.”

Here is a sample of an excellent example he gives for submitting to the Bible as God’s manual for marriage:

“Think of buying a car: If you purchase a vehicle, a machine well beyond your own ability to create, you will certainly take up the owner’s manual and abide by what the designer says the car needs by way of treatment and maintenance. To ignore it would be to court disaster…Plenty of people who do not acknowledge God or the Bible, yet who are experiencing happy marriages, are largely abiding by God’s intentions, whether they realize it or not. But it is far better if we are conscious of those intentions. And the place to discover them is in the writings of the Scripture.”

Some of the ambivalent views and objections to marriage Keller elaborates on and dispels in this book are as follows:

“Marriage is just a piece of paper that only serves to complicate love”

“Marriage was originally about property and is now in flux”

“Marriage crushes individual identity and has been oppressive for women”

“Marriage stifles passion and is ill-fitted to psychological reality”

The Outline of Keller’s book is as follows:

Chapter One – A rich and deep discussion of Genesis 2 and Ephesians 5 bringing Paul’s discussion into today’s context and demonstrating “why the gospel helps us to understand marriage and how marriage helps us to understand the gospel.”

Chapter Two – With great skill and penetrating insight Keller shows how the sin nature resulting in selfishness necessitates the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit in making the saving work of Christ operative in bringing two hearts to beat as one.

Chapter Three – He helpfully shows what biblical love is – and what covenantal commitment is all about.

Chapter Four – He elaborates on the whole question of what marriage is for: “It is a way for two spiritual friends to help each other on their journey to become the persons God designed them to be…there is a kind of deeper happiness that is found on the far side of holiness.”

Chapter Five – He talks about the power of truth; the power of love – via affection, friendship, and service all in the context of grace.

Chapter Six – An excellent discussion of the Trinitarian roles and how that translates into gender roles in a marriage.

Chapter Seven – On Singleness and Marriage. Here is a sample of some guidelines he gleans for singles in relationships before marriage:

“Recognize that there are seasons for not seeking marriage.”

“Understand the “gift of singleness.’”

“Get more serious about seeking marriage as you get older.”

“Do not allow yourself deep emotional involvement with a non-believing person.”

“Feel ‘attraction’ in the most comprehensive sense.”

“Don’t let things get too passionate too quickly.”

“…don’t become a faux spouse for someone who won’t commit to you.”

“Get and submit to lots of community input.”

Chapter Eight – A good discussion of sex – realities and misperceptions – and the glory of it when it is practiced the way God designed it.

The book closes with a short epilogue and a short, but very helpful discussion on decision-making and gender roles.

All the chapters are very well written, have depth and penetrating insight, are logical and clear, balanced in dealing with the “then” and “now” of how the Scriptures apply and always pointing to Jesus at the center of the meaning of life and marriage. Dr. Keller knows what he’s talking about and has done an outstanding job of building a great case for marriage in a culture that simply doesn’t understand it and hasn’t been consulting the Creator’s manual and applying it in our marriages. I now have a new favorite book on marriage to recommend whole-heartedly to singles and married couples alike!

*TIMOTHY KELLER was born and raised in Pennsylvania, and educated at Bucknell University, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and Westminster Theological Seminary. He was first a pastor in Hopewell, Virginia. In 1989 he started Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan with his wife, Kathy, and their three sons. Today, Redeemer has more than five thousand regular attendees at five services, a host of daughter churches, and is planting churches in large cities throughout the world. He is the author of KING’S CROSS, COUNTERFEIT GODS, THE PRODIGAL GOD, the New York Times bestseller THE REASON FOR GOD & the forthcoming CENTER CHURCH (August 2012).

Study Guide Review: Gospel in Life by Tim Keller

This is a Workbook is an in depth course on the Biblical Gospel is to be lived out in all of your life—internally, and externally (in your community and in the world). It is specifically designed for use in a small group that is working through the companion DVD called “Gospel in Life.” If you want to have a better understanding of how the gospel applies to your life not in the past, and not in the future, but NOW – then look no further than this book.

Anything Tim Keller writes is theologically deep, contains biblically sound teaching, and is penetratingly Christ-centered. This study guide is no exception – as a matter of fact, I almost wish it wasn’t a study guide – so more people would read it, and work through it as a workbook. In my opinion he is the finest communicator of the gospel in America today.

There are 8 Studies in the Guide that are designed for use with the Gospel in Life DVD:

1)    The City – The World That Is

2)    The Heart – Three Ways To Live

3)    Idolatry – The Sin Beneath The Sin

4)    Community – The Context For Change

5)    Witness – An Alternate City

6)    Work – Cultivating The Garden

7)    Justice – A People For Others

8)    Eternity – The World That Is To Come

Each session contains an inductive Bible study on the theme, discussion questions based on the DVD, and home studies consisting of exercises, projects, readings, questions, and quotations to help you dig deeper into the topic at hand. A very helpful extensive section of notes is included for those who lead the small group through this study.

I can’t recommend this DVD and Study Guide highly enough – I think it’s a Top 5 (along with His study on “The Prodigal God” and “The Reason for God”) resource to be used in any church that is serious about the Gospel, being missional, church planting, living in community, and fulfilling the great commission.

God The Seeker

“All religions founders say, ‘that’s the way to God’, only Christianity gives you Jesus, who says, ‘I’m God come to find you” – Tim Keller

Religion vs. The Gospel

“RELIGION: I obey-therefore I’m accepted.
THE GOSPEL: I’m accepted-therefore I obey.”
-Tim Keller

The God Who Seeks Us

“All religions, by and large, besides Christianity give you founders that say, ‘that’s the way to find God’, only Christianity gives you a founder, Jesus Christ, who says, ‘I’m God come to find you.'” – Tim Keller

Book Review of Tim Keller’s “The Prodigal God”

Tim Keller (Pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian in Manhattan, N.Y.) is a very gifted thinker and communicator. His book “The Prodigal God” is one I have read 3 times in the last year. The book is based on perhaps the most famous story that Jesus told in the New Testament (Luke 15) – often referred to as the the parable of the “prodigal son.”I have been a Christian for 39 years now (24 of those years in the pastorate), and I have never read a better presentation of the gospel than he presents in this book. Dr. Keller helped me to fall in love with the God of the gospel again. He helped me to realize that the gospel isn’t just about forgiveness for what I’ve done in the past, or for the promise of Christ’s return and the hope of Heaven for the future, but that the gospel is essential for living today. God’s grace through a relationship with Christ is what we need to be reminded of every day in order to basque in the pleasure, peace, and presence of a wonderful God – who loves us despite our tendencies to rebel, or revel in our own righteousness – either way – our sins of thinking we are too bad, or too good keep us at a distance from knowing God the Father through His perfect Son – Our Lord and Savior – Jesus Christ.

I can’t recommend this book highly enough. Out of 5 stars – I would give it a 10. The principles in this book are invaluable and I sum up what I learned from this book here:

1) I am a bigger sinner than I thought I was – I have a tendency to be like the “older brother” in Luke 15 – who sees himself as more righteous than he really is.

2) God is more gracious than I thought He was – He provides forgiveness for both the rebel (the younger brother) and the older brother – who is lost because it is his supposed righteousness that keeps him from having a relationship with his father – he is an idolater becasue he loves his father’s “things” more than the father himself.

3) It has helped me to understand the gospel and explain it better. Religions have a tendency to lead to idolatry – we think we are good – because we follow rules, or do “good works,” but these good works are self serving and make us look down on others.

4) Ultimately, I owe my salvation solely and totally to the goodness, patience, mercy, grace, and provision of God through Christ. He sought me while yet a sinner. He gave me His righteousness in exchange for my sin. He forgave me despite my rebellion and pride, and revealed His love for me in that He sent His one and only sin to die for me on the cross – Romans 5:8.

5) The Prodigal God wants me to go after all people with the good news that He has made provision for their salvation – no matter what separates them from Him. What a mighty and wonderful God we serve!