‘Books’ Category

1. Tied for number one are John Wigger, American Saint: Francis Asbury and the Methodists (Oxford University Press, 2009) and Alister Chapman, Godly Ambition: John Stott and the Evangelical Movement (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012). Both of these books are “thick” history at its best: rich in detail, and conversant with the cultural, theological and ecclesial scenes. I find the lives of both Asbury and Stott, though quite different, deeply awe-inspiring. I was astonished at the way I resonated with the heart-beat of both, though I must stress that I have definite theological differences on the level of secondary issues.

2. Peter J. Morden, ‘Communion with Christ and his people’: The Spirituality of C.H. Spurgeon (Oxford: Regent’s Park College, 2010). I find Spurgeon to be a perennial source of inspiration and delight. And this new study by the Tutor in Church History and Spirituality at Spurgeon’s College tells me of the hidden springs of why I find him to be so: here is the heart of Spurgeon’s ministry displayed in great detail.

3. Carolyn Weber, Surprised by Oxford. A Memoir (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2011). I love to read biographies, collections of letters and memoirs. And this was a delight. I had not heard of Carolyn Weber before my good friend and research assistant Ian Clary alerted me to this book. It is the story of the conversion of a feminist literary scholar, who is a fellow Canadian, in one of my favorite cities in all the world. A truly charming read.

4. Then tied for number 4 place are two books by two of my favorite historians: John Lukacs, The Future of History (New Haven/London: Yale University Press, 2011), a short essay-style book on the future of a variety of things dealings with being an historian—vintage Lukacs. And then Gertrude Himmelfarb, The People of the Book: Philosemitism in England, from Cromwell to Churchill (New York/London: Encounter Books, 2011), also a monograph, on love for the Jewish people. In a very short, and masterly, compass she deals with this history from Cromwell’s Puritan interest in the Jews that culminated in the readmission of the Jews to England—they had been expelled en masse in the Middle Ages—down to Churchill’s philo-Zionism, something quite different from Cromwell’s affection. Also vintage history.

5. Daniel C. Goodwin, Into Deep Waters: Evangelical Spirituality and Maritime Calvinistic Baptist Ministers, 1790–1855 (Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2010). This is a tremendous study of an overlooked area of Baptist studies. I have spent much time studying the English Calvinistic Baptist scene and also, to some degree, that of the Southern Baptists in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. But the Baptist world of the Maritimes is a third important area of Calvinistic Baptist impact that should not be overlooked. Very illuminating.

Broadman & Holman have been publishing a new series of monographs on the history of Baptists entitled “Studies in Baptist Life and Thought.” These monographs explore Baptist life together and Baptist thought, and are vital reading for anyone who loves the truths that Baptists have lived and died for. Given the many significant changes that the world is undergoing in our day, Baptists are being tempted to divorce themselves from their theological and spiritual roots. Behind this series is the conviction that such would be suicidal and that the volumes in this series will provide a way in which Baptists can learn from the past how to live faithfully for God in the present.

The latest volume in the series is Paul Brewster’s Andrew Fuller: Model Pastor-Theologian, has just been released. Brewster, pastor of Ryker’s Ridge Baptist Church in Madison, Indiana, and a PhD from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, examines Fuller as a pastor and theologian and the way in which he was able to frame a theological perspective in the midst of a very busy pastorate.

In recent years, with the upsurge of interest in Reformed theology, there are a number of theologians who have been the focus of attention, Edwards, for example, or some of the Puritans like Owen. But when it comes to a solid model of Baptist ministry, who do we have? Spurgeon, without a shadow of a doubt. Well, after Spurgeon I would suggest that Fuller is a prime example of what a pastor-theologian looks like. Read Brewster’s book and see for yourself!

You can order from Amazon.com for $16.49.

Walter Wilson’s The History and Antiquities of Dissenting Churches and Meeting Houses (London, 1808–14, 4 vols.) is one of the gems that anyone researching seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Dissent needs to know. Going through vol. 1 just now, I noticed that among those whom Wilson consulted for help in his researches was “J. Sutcliff, of Olney.” Sutcliff, the Baptist pastor of Olney, was an ardent bibliophile and helping Wilson would have been right up his alley!

“Nothing weighs less than a pen, nothing is more cheering.” And to boot, Petrarch notes, writing will profit others, “sometimes even men of the future, thousands of years away.” Thus he concluded: “of all earthly delights none is more noble than literature, none longer-lasting, sweeter, more constant…” He hoped that death would find him “reading or writing, or, if it be Christ’s will, praying and weeping” (Letters on Familiar Matters 17.2).

Dr. Haykin serves as co-editor, along with Joel Beeke, of the Reformation Heritage Book series “Profiles in Reformed Spirituality”.  The newest volume in the series is by Thabiti Anyabwile and focuses on the piety of Lemuel Haynes.  To promote this volume and the series of which it is a part, Reformation Heritage Books is randomly giving away five free sets today to those who sign up at Challies.com.

This is a great set.  The volumes are multifunctional. That is, they are the perfect, non-intimidating introductions to people, doctrine, and practice of the reformed tradition. They make excellent short readings for stimulating thought and devotion. They are also good for class texts for giving students an affordable entry point into a given person and time period both primary and secondary treatments in one small book.

If you don’t win the set, You can order the complete set or individual volumes at Reformation Heritage Books.

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.

Dr. Haykin has just completed leading a reading circle group through C.J. Mahaney’s Humility: True Greatness.  I had previously posted the study questions for chapters 1 & 2 and for chapters 3-6.  I have just posted the final set of questions for chapters 7-12.  These will be available continually on the Books & Papers page, under Study Guides.

Study Guide for C.J. Mahaney Humility: True Greatness (Sisters, Oregon: Multnomah Publishers, 2005).

Chapters 1-2

Chapters 3-6

Chapters 7-12

You may purchase the book upon which this study guide is based here.

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.

Soldiers of Christ:  Selections from the Writings of Basil Manly, Sr. & Basil Manly, Jr. was edited by Southern Seminary professor Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin, in conjunction with Dr. Roger D. Duke and Dr. A. James Fuller.  Soldiers of Christ focuses on the writings on the father and son duo without whom, as current SBTS President R. Albert Mohler, Jr. notes in his Foreward, Southern Seminary would not exist.  This work was published by Founders Press and is available from order now from Reformation Heritage Books.

FROM THE BACK COVER:

Basil Manly, Sr. and his son Basil Manly, Jr. played vital roles in shaping a number of the central institutions of the Southern Baptist community in its formative years in the nineteenth century, including the influential Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Undergirding their churchmanship was a vigorous Calvinistic Baptist piety that was expressed in sermons and tracts, hymns and confessional statements, letters and diaries, all of which are represented in this timely volume of selections from their writings. Here we have a wonderful window onto the vista of nineteenth-century Southern Baptist life with all of its glorious strengths as well as its clear failings.

COMMENDATIONS:

“The introductory and biographical essays on the lives of Basil Manly, Sr., and Basil Manly, Jr., as well as the carefully selected collections from their writings found in this volume are wonderful and much-welcomed additions to Baptist studies. I am quite pleased to recommend Soldiers of Christ.”
— David S. Dockery, President, Union University

“The publication of these writings is long overdue and is most welcome, and the editors have done their work well.”
— Gregory A. Wills, Professor of Church History, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“Michael Haykin, James Fuller, and Roger Duke have done us a service by introducing the Manlys to a new generation.”
— Nathan Finn, Assistant Professor of Church History, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

“A fascinating, moving, and shocking look at piety among Southern Baptists in the middle two-thirds of the nineteenth century.”
—Tom J. Nettles, Professor of Historical Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

“A superb collection of well-edited primary sources by two of the most formative shapers of Southern Baptist life in the nineteenth century.”
—Timothy George, Senior Editor of Christianity Today

FROM THE FOREWARD BY R. ALBERT MOHLER, JR.

“Humanly speaking, the formula is easy: no Manlys, no Southern Seminary. This year, as The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary celebrates its sesquicentennial, our indebtedness to the Manlys of South Carolina is increasingly clear. As an institution, our history is inextricably tied to the lives and ministries of Basil Manly, Sr. and Basil Manly, Jr.”

PUBLICATION DETAILS

Published by Founders Press.  240 pages.  Paperback.  2009.

Order here from RHB for $18.00 $12.00 (34% off)

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.

The current financial crunch has shaken and rattled the West to a depth that has not been seen since the 1930s. This financial collapse is affecting far more than America. Much of the world has been similarly impacted, with failing banks and the disappearance of financial liquidity. What is God saying in the midst of it? How has God worked during previous crises? Perhaps it is only now that we begin to ask profound questions that many of us tend to ignore in daily life. Why did this happen? What does it all mean? What is God saying in the midst of this financial mess? In whom do we trust?

This new booklet from Michael Haykin provides a timely perspective amidst our financial chaos.  Scheduled to be released at the F.I.R.E. Conference in Indianapolis, IN in a couple of weeks, it can be pre-ordered now at a 50% savings from Audubon Press.  That’s only $1.99 each.  This offer is good through May 20th.  You can also order by calling toll-free 800-405-3788 M-F 9:00-5:00 CST.

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.

Dr. Haykin has written a short review of John Buchan’s classic tale of intrigue featuring his famous character, Richard Hannay.  To read Dr. Haykin’s recent reflections on this work click here. For other “Book Reviews” click here.

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.

Dr. Haykin recently wrote a book commendation for Glory in the Glen: A History of Evangelical Revivals in Scotland, 1880-1940.  It is posted below:

The great need of the Church in the West is for God the Holy Spirit to come in power as he has done so often in the past—ravishing hearts, enlightening minds, inspiring purity of worship, sending out into mission, mollifying hardened souls. Contrary to the wisdom of the age, it is not new techniques or new schemes we need with pastors masquerading as CEOs. Nor is the solution to our spiritual dearth a turning to ritual or even I dare say the return of charismatic spectacle. It is what many nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Scottish Christians, whose experience of true revival is set forth in this well-documented book, knew: the awesome God of holiness himself drawing near to his people and setting mind and heart ablaze with glorious light. Read—and pray!

Posted by Steve Weaver, Research and Administrative Assistant to the Director of the Andrew Fuller Center for Baptist Studies, Dr. Michael A.G. Haykin.