JRF's #13 - An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians, to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens by William Carey

And that's the abridged title.

This 80+ page "pamphlet" (we call them books today) was used by God to launch the Modern Missionary Movement in the Western world.

When humble shoemaker turned pastor William Carey read his Bible, studied Church History, and looked at the world around him he asked the simple question "Why aren't we as English followers of Christ doing anything to reach those around the world who have yet to hear of the good news of Christ?"  The answers he got from the ecclesiastical elite basically was, "if God really wanted them to get saved, He doesn't need us to do it.  Besides there is plenty of Gospel work still to be done here in England."  This answer did not satisfy and sent Carey back to the Book.  The result was this treatise and plea to take the Great Commission seriously.

His basic premise is that although God is totally sovereign and not dependent on His children to accomplish His plan of redemption, that plan includes using His faithful followers as the means of bringing His Life Giving Gospel to the ends of the earth.  To conviently hide behind God's sovereignty would be to disobediently ignore His clear commands and foolishly forfeit the joy of participating in God's design for His glory.

Carey organizes his manuscript into five major sections.  Section I. examines whether the Great Commission is still binding on believers in the Modern Era (the answer is YES).  Section II. is a whirlwind tour of the history of missions starting in the book of acts and ending in Carey's day.  Section III. is a survey of the spiritual state of the world in Carey's day and reads like a 18th century Operation World.  In Section IV. Carey examines the obstacles between the church and the unreached world, and in Section V., proposes practical steps to overcome and/or endure them.

I thank God for this book, the man who wrote it, and the fire that was ignited through it.  Its message is just as importantly urgent today as it was when it was written.

"...have not English traders, for the sake of gain, surmounted all those things which have generally been counted insurmountable obstacles in the way of preaching the Gospel?"

"If a temple is raised for God in the heathen world, it will not be by might, nor power, nor by the authority of the magistrate, or the eloquence of the orator; but by the Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts.  We must therefore be in real earnest in supplicating his blessing upon our labours."

"What a heaven will it be to see the many myriads of poor heathens, of Britons amongst the rest, who by their labours have been brought to the knowledge of God.  Surely a crown of rejoicing like this is worth aspiring to.  Surely it is worth while to lay ourselves out with all our might, in promoting the cause, and the kingdom of Christ"

JRF's #12 - The Warlord of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Book three in Edgar Rice Burrough's classic eleven part John Carter of Mars series is my least favorite so far.  Not that it wasn't good - it just felt like we were covering the same ground as books 1 and 2. The formula of ... John Carter's wife gets kidnapped ... he hunts them down and destroys them...he gets imprisoned...she gets kidnapped again...he breaks out...hunts her down...got a little old.  Still awesome swash buckling (what exactly is a swash and how does it buckle?) action to be sure, but a little old.

I did appreciate that although it began with a massive cliffhanger, it did not end with one like the two previous books and wrapped up the first trilogy very nicely.

Now onto book four...

JRF's #11 - The Grace and Truth Paradox by Randy Alcorn

Webster's dictionary describes a paradox as "a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true"

The concept of boldly proclaiming truth all the while being gracious with those who reject it seems to fit that definition precisely.

Walk the path of following Christ for any length of time and you will experience the tension of the Grace and Truth Paradox.  Try to share the Gospel with an unbeliever or confront your believing friend about an unrepentant sin and you will feel the tug to either sugarcoat the truth or harshly hurl it down from your thundercloud.  Whole denominations and sub-denominations of Christianity have resulted from this tension and a failure to maintain Biblical balance.  But this is not a balance of 50/50 but 100/100.  Grace and Truth are not in competition with each other, but Biblically speaking, are in fact mutually dependent.

When we look at Christ we see Grace and Truth perfectly and harmoniously embodied (John 1:14,17).  In this short book Randy Alcorn explores some of the reasons why we so easily fail to maintain and show grace and truth simultationeously, warns us of the fallout caused by sacrificing one for the other, and points us to Jesus as the source, motivation, and power for faithfully living out both.

Alcorn has a way of making difficult concepts palatable, especially through real life examples of how the grace and truth paradox has played out in his own life.  I found myself convicted and encouraged many times while reading this.

I trust you will as well.

JRF's #9 - Culture Smart: Indonesia by Graham Saunders

In preparation for our first trip to Indonesia, our team read and discussed this book.  We didn't know how helpful it was until we got there, but now that we have gone and returned I am grateful for this small little book and would recommend the series for wherever you travel to next.  It covers what you would expect from this kind of book: history, culture, religion, and travel tips.

It was a good exercise reading through this book with a missions mindset looking for cultural bridges and barriers to the Gospel.  For instance...it was very helpful to know that although the majority of Indonesians would identify as Muslim, the basic underlying worldview is predominately a mix of Hinduism and Animism.

It was also nice to have some tips on how to keep myself from looking like a complete idiot and a walking cultural faux pas.  I need all the help I can get in that area.

Yeah, so this book wasn't a classic piece of literature or theological treatise.  But it was helpful...and I read it...so I'm counting it!

JRF's #8 - Towards Spiritual Maturity by William Still

I had never heard of Scottish pastor William Still but three things attracted me to this book:

1. - It was short
2. - I liked the title
3. - Sinclair B. Ferguson recommend it with these words, "He remains the person whose ministry has made the deepest impression on me."

I am glad I picked it up.  I had been unaware of how I had let my confidence in God's sovereignty allow me to drift into a lazy apathy.  Still called me back to the battlefield and showed me how God's sovereign work on the cross was both the reason I am at battle as well as the power against the enemies within and without that rage against my soul.  The Cross of Christ wages war against my sinful flesh and protects me from the very real Satan.

I particulary appreciated Still's chapter entitled The Military Training of the Christian Soldier which laid out the truth that at times we need to know how and to what Refuge we are to retreat from evil, at times we are able to stand firm against the onslaught of the Evil One, and how and when we are to advance against the forces of Darkness with the Truth and Life of the Risen Savior.

I will be chewing and digesting this one for years to come.  I encourage you to dig in yourself.

JRF's #7 - The Gods of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs

This is the Temple of Doom of the John Carter series.  Dark, creepy, adventurous and awesome.

Picking up ten years after A Princess of Mars ended, John Carter is finally transported back to Barsoom (Mars), eager to be reunited to his beloved princess, Dejah Thoris.  Yet when he wakes up he is in a dark corner of Barsoom that he has no knowledge of.  He soon finds that he must battle his way out of the very center of the holiest city on Mars, the headquarters of the diabolical cannibalistic false deity that holds the planet under her spell.

Action packed and ending with a heart-wrenching cliff hanger, this book makes for an entertaining read.

I'm not one to try to read too deep into these kind of books but at many times I wondered if Burrows was making a subtle attack on religion in general through this book.  A Princess of Mars seemed to be critiquing communism at times, an ideaology which was gaining a lot of traction at the time of its writing.  I could see the theme of exposing false mythologies and traditions in The Gods of Mars as Burroughs way of commenting on the modernization of his era.  Again, these are only my conjectures.