Book Reviews

Some homiletics professors tell their students not to use books of illustrations. These are the professors who use the same three sermons everywhere they go and don't face the challenge of writing two or more fresh messages every week. While most illustration books tend to be stale, re-packaged mate

Today's young adults have distinctive cultural styles and concerns that may not be addressed in many settings. In Testimony to the Exiles (Chalice Press), Methodist pastor Mark Feldmeir offers a collection of sermons written specifically to connect biblical truths with the needs and hurts of

Ministry Loves Company: A Survival Guide for Pastors (Westminster John Knox) by John Galloway, Jr., is a helpful look at the joys and challenges (especially the challenges) of parish ministry. Himself a Presbyterian pastor in Wayne, PA, Galloway writes with humor and grace about the wonderful, frus

James Merritt is a gifted preacher (and former Southern Baptist Convention President) who now pastors the 12,000-member Fellowship of Joy in suburban Atlanta. His newest book, Crown Him King (Broadman Holman), offers a series of messages on the Kingdom of God and how we make Christ King in our li

Soli Deo Gloria Publications has released a fascinating book called The Christian Pastor's Manual. It is a collection of essays and letters by prominent 17th and 18th century American and English Puritan pastors. They deal with a variety of issues faced by pastors in their own day. It's intere

Ever wish you had a quick reference tool to deal with some of the tough questions with which we are confronted? The Pocket Handbook of Christian Apologetics (InterVarsity Press), by Peter Kreeft and Ronald K. Tacelli, provides brief but solid discussion of an evangelical approach in chapters

It's All In How You Tell It: Preaching First-Person Expository Messages. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2003. Paper, 143 pages$12.99. ISBN 0-8010-9150-0. Too often, I hear preachers say that while they would like to take a more expository approach in their sermons, they fear their people won't st

The Old Testament was the Bible of the early Christian church, and makes it approximately three-quarters of God's written revelation to humanity. Yet most contemporar preaching does little to reflect the significance of the Old Testament.