15 Key Christian Books for Your 2022 Reading List
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Kickstart the new year by adding these key books on the Christian faith to your 2022 reading list, and they make great Christmas gifts too! (Click here for the 2024, 2023, 2021, 2020, 2019, and 2018 lists.)
1. Another Gospel?: A Lifelong Christian Seeks Truth in Response to Progressive Christianity by Alisa Childers (Tyndale Momentum)
Do you know people who profess to be Christians yet challenge essential biblical teachings such as Jesus being the only way to God? Since emergent Christianity appeared on the scene in the early 2000s, core tenets of the historic Christian faith are being deconstructed and replaced with doctrinal positions that cater to contemporary social views.
Alisa Childers, author, blogger, podcaster, worship leader, and speaker encountered progressive teaching in a discussion group led by her pastor that thrust her into a “spiritual blackout” of doubt regarding her long-held Christian beliefs (p. 8). In Another Gospel?: A Lifelong Christian Seeks Truth in Response to Progressive Christianity, Childers shares her own journey of confronting doubt and despair and subsequently reconstructing her Christian faith.
Progressives in the church hope to "redefine who God is and how he works in the world" by deconstructing what the Bible states about the existence of Adam and Eve, original sin, heaven and hell, Christ’s vicarious substitutionary atonement on the cross, and much more. According to Childers,
Progressive Christianity is not simply a shift in the Christian view of social issues. It’s not simply permission to embrace messiness and authenticity in Christian life. It’s not simply a response to doubt, legalism, abuse, or hypocrisy. It’s an entirely different religion—with another Jesus—and another gospel.” (p. 76)
In Another Gospel? Childers helps readers gain essential insight regarding how progressive Christians are completely at odds with historic Christianity, so believers can recognize this errant teaching and hold fast to what the Bible actually says. Click here for Amazon link.
2. Politics After Christendom: Political Theology in a Fractured World by David VanDrunen (Zondervan Academic)
At a time when politics seem to be consuming our attention with constant assaults on all the areas of our lives, it is good to consider what the Bible has to say. With helpful detail, theologian David VanDrunen takes his readers through a comprehensive study of political theology and political ethics in Politics After Christendom.
Theologically, VanDrunen builds on the foundation of the Noahic covenant toward the practical application of how a Christian should participate in government as “responsible citizens,” while keeping focused on their ultimate citizenship in the kingdom of God. He then addresses ethical questions such as religious liberty, laws, justice, and personal rights, along with the difficult and often emotional questions of "liberal and conservative traditions.” Although one may not agree with everything in VanDrunen’s book, a reader will surely come away with a better understanding of how God’s word helps us navigate today’s political landscape as faithful followers of Christ Jesus. Click here for Amazon link.
3. Together Through the Storms: Biblical Encouragements for Your Marriage When Life Hurts by Sarah Walton and Jeff Walton (The Good Book Company)
Marriage is a gift from God, and it is also hard. Despite how much spouses love each other, we irritate one another, sin against one another, and disagree with one another. And that becomes much more complicated once suffering gets tangled in as well. As waves of suffering slam down and disorient us, we may begin to either draw in on ourselves and away from our spouse or we begin attacking one another as we revolt against the pain.
Sarah and Jeff Walton know suffering. With years of chronic illnesses that affected Sarah and her children and a devastating job loss from Jeff, their family endured deep waves of suffering. From their years of pain, God has taught them and used their story to grow them. In their book Together Through the Storms, Jeff and Sarah walk through the book of Job and give not just a pep talk to suffering couples but solid encouragement and biblical guidance on how to stay united to one another and God when the storms of suffering seek to drown us. As Jeff and Sarah write,
Whatever your storms have been, or will be, these trials will inevitably cause you to wrestle with difficult and complex questions of faith—and they will either drive you closer together or further apart. It’s where and to whom we turn to for the strength and hope that we need to endure the storms that will make all the difference. (p. 18)
Find hope, companionship from fellow sufferers, and practical counsel from Sarah and Jeff in this beautiful book. Click here for Amazon link.
4. Seculosity: How Career, Parenting, Technology, Food, Politics, and Romance Became Our New Religion and What to Do about It by David Zahl (Broadleaf Books)
Do you trust in Christ as your Savior but still find yourself striving to prove yourself in your work, parenting, leisure activities, political involvement, relationships, church community, and even your food consumption? If we are honest with ourselves, we are likely "performing" much more than we realize. We want to be good enough, valued enough, and accepted enough, and yet we never find that "pot at the end of the rainbow," even with all our pursuit of it. According to David Zahl, author of Seculosity, people are increasingly rejecting traditional spiritual paths (big-R religions) that don’t sync with their personal worldview and are instead seeking out horizontal ways (little-R religions) to be “enough” in order to justify their existence:
Listen carefully and you’ll hear that word enough everywhere, especially when it comes to the anxiety, loneliness, exhaustion, and division that plague our moment to such tragic proportions. You’ll hear about people scrambling to be successful enough, happy enough, thin enough, wealthy enough, influential enough, desired enough, charitable enough, woke enough, good enough. We believe instinctively that, were we to reach some benchmark in our minds, then value, vindication, and love would be ours—that if we got enough, we would be enough. (Introduction)
Our goodness, value, and acceptance come only from being in Christ. Zahl’s book helps readers to reject "preaching” that wants us to chase "little-r” religions” that can never satisfy and instead remember the true source of our justification so we can live peacefully and intentionally to God's glory in a noisy, anxious, self-focused world. Click here for Amazon link.
5. Word, Water, and Spirit: A Reformed Perspective on Baptism by John V. Fesko (Reformation Heritage Books)
“If we want to understand what a person or church believes about salvation, we have only to ask what they believe about the sacraments” (John V. Fesko, Word, Water, and Spirit, p. 400). Do you hold to believer-only baptism or the rightful administration of infant baptism? This is a hot-potato topic for many evangelicals since infant baptism is often associated with the Roman Catholic Church, even though numerous Protestant denominations baptize the children of confessing parents. Pastor and theologian John V. Fesko approaches the subject of Christian baptism from a historical and biblical-theological perspective and then argues for the coherence of baptism as a means of grace, a sacrament, and a formal doctrine of the Christian faith. According to Fesko:
There are no neutral encounters with God and His revelation, whether in Word or sacrament. Whether man receives Word and sacrament as covenant blessing or sanction depends on the presence or absence in the recipient of faith in the incarnate, crucified, risen, and ascended Messiah. Moreover, despite the insistence of some on one exclusive mode of baptism, all three modes—immersion, sprinkling, and pouring—are biblical, as all are connected in some way with the promised baptism of the Spirit. (p. 10)
Every Christian will benefit from interacting with Dr. Fesko’s thorough treatment of the sacrament of baptism and its importance for the church. Click here for Amazon link.
6. Men and Women in the Church: A Short, Biblical, Practical Introduction by Kevin DeYoung (Crossway)
“‘So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them’” (Gen. 1:27). Yet, what does it mean to be male, and what does it mean to be female? In his book Men and Women in the Church, pastor and theologian Kevin DeYoung explains that the complementary distinction between the sexes is not happenstance, nor is it accidental; rather, it is part of God’s good design for humanity:
What is at stake in God making us male and female? Nothing less than the gospel, that’s all. The mystery of marriage is profound, Paul says, and it refers to Christ and the church (Eph. 5:32). “Mystery” in the New Testament sense refers to something hidden and then revealed. The Bible is saying that God created men and women—two different sexes—so that he might paint a living picture of the differentiated and complementary union of Christ and the church. (p. 14)
The roles of men and women in the church and family are major topics of discussion today, in both progressive and conservative churches. Many voices in contemporary society claim that gender roles are merely constructs and Bible verses related to men’s and women’s roles must be reevaluated accordingly. Is a Christian husband the authoritative head of his family? Does a Christian wife have to submit to her husband, as to the Lord? Is it true that women are not to speak authoritatively in the formal church service? The historic church has answered all the above questions with a resounding yes. Thankfully, pastor and theologian Kevin DeYoung has written this relatively short, concise, and helpful book on what it means to be men and women in the church by bringing together biblical truth, wisdom, and resoluteness communicated in love. Click here for Amazon link.
7. Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers by Dane C. Ortlund (Crossway)
Do you feel tired, defeated, and weary? Perhaps as you battle sin, all you hear are condemning voices saying you’re too broken, too lost, and too wicked to love. Perhaps you’re exhausted from pulling up your bootstraps and trying to make yourself holy. Maybe you’re tired of always putting up a façade for others that your life is perfect and holding together tightly, while it’s actually ripping apart at the seams. Maybe you’re windblown by a hurricane of suffering and God feels like a distant Father who doesn’t care.
If you’re weary and heavy laden, pastor Dane Ortlund has tender words of comfort and hope for you. Drawing on the teachings of the Puritans in Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers, Ortlund walks us through what it means that Jesus is gentle and lowly with his beloved people. He doesn’t simply tell us facts about Jesus, like stats on a baseball card, but instead draws us to the very heart of Christ himself towards his sinful and suffering bride, the church:
You don’t need to unburden or collect yourself and then come to Jesus. Your very burden is what qualifies you to come….Whether you are actively working hard to crowbar your life into smoothness (“labor”) or passively finding yourself weighed down by something out of your control (“heavy laden”), Jesus Christ’s desire that you find rest, that you come out of the storm, outstrips even your own.” (p. 21)
Wherever you find yourself in life at present, Ortlund’s Gentle and Lowly will encourage you to come and find rest in Jesus and see that he is gentle and lowly with you. Click here for Amazon link.
8. The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (Puritan Paperbacks) by Jeremiah Burroughs (Banner of Truth)
How difficult it is to find contentment, even when we are blessed by God’s good and gracious providence with so many good things. Puritan theologian Jeremiah Burroughs calls contentment “a rare jewel.” He defines Christian contentment as, “...that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition” (p. 4). The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment is divided into three parts. First, Burroughs explains the nature of contentment—what it is and how Christ teaches its excellence. In the second part he turns to the negative side—how lack of contentment primarily shows itself in what he calls “murmuring,” that is, complaining. Burroughs concludes by giving twelve ways a Christian can strive to grow more content in any circumstance.
The apostle Paul writes, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content,” (Phil. 4:11), but we all surely struggle to follow the Lord’s teaching on contentment. It is here that Jeremiah Burroughs clearly and helpfully shows us how to begin to find by God’s grace that “rare jewel." Click here for Amazon link.
9. Companion Guide for The Majesty on High by L. H. Baugh and The Majesty on High: Introduction to the Kingdom of God in the New Testament by S. M. Baugh
Christians pray for God’s kingdom to come in the Lord’s Prayer, and Jesus frequently spoke of the kingdom of God. Yet, what exactly is the “kingdom of God”? Is it present right now, and, if so, can we actually see it?
We featured S. M. Baugh’s outstanding work Majesty on High: Introduction to the Kingdom of God in our 2019 Key Christian Books list. Readers now have access to a helpful Companion Guide for The Majesty on High for personal and group study, written by Dr. Baugh’s daughter, L. H. Baugh, a Bible study author and translation consultant. Each weekly lesson (12 in all) of the Companion Guide includes:
Reading and learning goals for that week.
Succinct summaries of the big ideas from each chapter of Majesty on High.
Key term definitions to help students learn potentially new theological terminology.
Additional Bible passages and study questions interspersed throughout the summaries.
Contemplations with a specific Bible passage for reflecting on how the kingdom of God impacts the Christian life.
Questions at the end to help students connect the specific chapter on the kingdom of God with the bigger picture of God, his character, our relationship to him, and our relationship to our neighbor.
Understanding how believers today are part of God’s kingdom is critical for living out the Christian life on this earth. Baugh’s Companion Guide is a wonderful supplement to Majesty on High, and the two books provide Christians with valuable insight regarding why “the kingdom of God is not just the center of the Gospels and Acts. It is the center of all things” (S. M. Baugh). Click here for Amazon link to the Companion Guide and here for Majesty on High.
10. When Grace Comes Home: How the ‘Doctrines of Grace’ Change Your Life by Terry L. Johnson
When Grace Comes Home is a book on being grateful and joyful about being a Christian. Rather than merely explaining what the doctrines of grace are, Terry Johnson brings a pastor’s practical understanding of them to his readers. In short, the doctrines of grace change us by leading us to gratitude for all the benefits of Christ’s redemption, and that gratitude brings us to a changed life.
The twelve chapters are written in a devotional style with study questions at the end of each one. Covering topics such as worship, adversity, assurance, and guidance, Dr. Johnson focuses on how the grace and sovereignty of God fully changes a person’s viewpoint toward this world, giving them a clearer understanding of what it means to enjoy God forever. Click here for Amazon link.
11. Questions Women Asked: Historical Issues, Timeless Answers by Simonetta Carr (Reformation Heritage Books)
Simonetta Carr, author of the award-winning Christian Biographies for Young Readers series, gives readers a fascinating way to gain insight into the lives of 31 Christian women from history in her recently published work,Questions Women Asked: Historical Issues, Timeless Answers. In the book Carr provides valuable context regarding the particular circumstances that led each of these women to seek biblical answers to puzzling questions.
From Marcella of Rome in the fourth century (“How Do I Understand the Scriptures?”) to Marie Durand in the eighteenth century (“Can I Be a Secret Christian?” to Jeanette Li in the twentieth century (Can the Church of Christ Be Destroyed?”) Carr takes readers on a wonderful journey of learning why these 31 women came to ask the questions they did, what answers they found, and how their personal struggles relate to questions we have in this present day about God’s word and how to faithfully live as Christ’s followers. Carr also includes “Food for Thought” questions at the end of each chapter for use in private or group study. Questions Women Asked is a wonderful resource for anyone wanting to gain a stronger appreciation of the faith-related concerns of their sisters in Christ from past centuries. Click here for Amazon link.
12. 5 Things to Pray for Your Kids: Prayers That Change Things For The Next Generation by Melissa B. Kruger (The Good Book Company)
Do you struggle to pray for your children? We know we should pray for them, and as Christian parents our most common prayer is often for their salvation. But what about beyond that? After a while it can feel like all we ever pray for our children is the same, repetitive prayer.
In 5 Things to Pray for Your Kids, Melissa Kruger walks us through different areas and situations in which we can pray for our children. The book is divided into 21 main prayers, each based on a passage from the Bible, with five subsequent prayers from the main one. 5 Things to Pray is for parents with children of any age, covering topics, concerns, and needs that encompass our children’s entire lives. Kruger not only calls us to pray for our children but also for our own hearts and lives as well. And throughout these prayers, she continues to draw us back to the gospel that we as parents and our children both need. Click here for Amazon link.
13. Grace Abounding in a Believer’s Life (Christian Living Classics) by Charles Spurgeon, compiled and edited by Robert Hall (YWAM Publishers)
Are you looking to grow in your Christian faith or learn more about gospel truths? Grace Abounding in a Believer’s Life is a wonderful place to draw near to Christ as you dive into sermons by Charles Spurgeon. A celebrated preacher in his own time for his clear and dynamic Christ-centered preaching, Spurgeon is still being used by the Lord through his writings to share the unfathomable love of God toward sinners. These sermons are ideal for a wonderful Sunday afternoon read or as a devotional either in morning or evening. Each sermon is divided into smaller subsections, making it easy to digest a small portion each day.
Grace Abounding in a Believer’s Life is part of a six-part series called Charles Spurgeon Christian Living Classics. Other titles in the series are A Passion for Holiness in a Believer’s Life, The Power of Prayer in a Believer’s Life, Spiritual Warfare in a Believer’s Life, The Triumph of Faith in a Believer’s Life, and What the Holy Spirit Does in a Believer’s Life. While the complete set is currently available only via used booksellers, the individual books in the series are available in Kindle and book form. Click here for Amazon link.
14. Overcoming Sin and Temptation by John Owen, edited by Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor (Crossway)
According to the great Puritan theologian John Owen in Overcoming Sin and Temptation, believers need to take their duty seriously to mortify the flesh throughout life, and this mortification involves recognizing not only the nature of temptation but also the nature of indwelling sin: “It always abides in the soul; it is never absent” (p. 246). Owen emphasizes that we cannot die to the old self (mortification) and live unto God (vivification) apart from God’s grace (p. 133). Owen describes the ever-active nature of sin:
Sin does not only still abide in us, but is still acting, still laboring to bring forth the deeds of the flesh. When sin lets us alone we may let sin alone; but as sin is never less quiet than when it seems to be most quiet, and its waters are for the most part deep when they are still, so ought our contrivances against it to be vigorous at all times and in all conditions, even where there is least suspicion. (p. 51)
This new edition by Crossway has been carefully edited by Kelly Kapic and Justin Taylor to make Owen’s writing more accessible to the church today. The book contains three of Owen’s classic works: Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers, Of Temptation: The Nature and Power of It, and The Nature, Power, Deceit, and Prevalence of Indwelling Sin.
While the world and, sadly, many professing Christians encourage people in the church to view sin lightly with an easy-grace attitude, God’s word takes sin with the utmost seriousness, warning of Satan’s schemes and snares. As long as Christians are in their mortal bodies, their fight against sin and temptation will continue. Thankfully, Owen’s book provides Christians with a treasure trove of biblical wisdom to prepare them for spiritual battles to come. Click here for Amazon link.
15. Triumph of the Lamb: A Commentary on Revelation by Dennis E. Johnson (P & R Publishing)
Have you ever hesitated to read the book of Revelation or, once you began, quickly shut the book? Perhaps you have heard strange things about the last days and were curious about how to read Revelation? Well, you aren’t alone. The pages of Revelation are filled with amazing, and to the modern Christian, odd imagery, and many believers have been bewildered by how to understand this prophetic New Testament book.
In Triumph of the Lamb, theologian Dennis Johnson shows readers how to understand the book of Revelation in light of Old Testament imagery and the Scriptures. Letting Scripture interpret Scripture, rather than letting our own ideas steer our understanding, Johnson brings much-needed clarity to an otherwise seemingly cloudy book. Revealing how the early church would have understood the apostle John’s writing and garnered comfort and certainty from it, Triumph of the Lamb helps Christians in our time to understand and be comforted by this last book of the Bible as well. Click here for Amazon link.