Knowing & Doing: Recent Episodes
C.S. Lewis Institute
Join us every two weeks for an audio article from Knowing & Doing, our quarterly teaching magazine, covering a wide variety of articles from nationally recognized leaders in discipleship, spirituality, theology, apologetics, and cultural analysis. Narrated by Aimee Riegert. Learn more at: www.cslewisinstitute.org
Ralph Waldo Emerson was a gifted nineteenth century American writer who helped launch a movement of sorts called transcendentalism, in which the individual supplanted religious traditions and institutions. David George Moore argues that while Emerson’s work isn’t well known among Americans, his influence on our lives is incalculable. In this article, he offers suggestions for how Christians can address the ongoing challenges posed by Emersonian philosophy. Read this article online.
We might think that the antidote to fear is courage, since it is one of the classical cardinal virtues. But, the biblical response to fear is really hope. Learn more in this message from Dennis Hollinger. Read this article online.
There is no such thing as Hinduism. Hinduism is a word that the British coined as a catch-all term for the innumerable and often contradictory religions they found on the Indian subcontinent. Gerald McDermott presents a thumbnail sketch of Hinduism for Christians. Read the full article here.
Most Christians are taught to believe that ambition is sinful and therefore to be avoided. But what is godly ambition and how can we harness it for good? Discover principles for exercising ambition in an honorable and godly way. Read this article online.
Christians feed on Scripture. Holy Scripture nurtures the Holy Community as food nurtures the human body. Eugene Peterson helps us understand how we can find nourishment from the Bible. Read this full article here.
In recent years, there has been growing interest in the relationship between Christianity and the natural sciences. Oxford Professor Alister McGrath illustrates how Christianity helps make sense of the world and provides a framework for both science and a spirituality of nature. Read this full article online.
The modern world tends to downplay or deny the reality of death, relegating it behind closed doors or to a few lines in the back of the newspaper. Death is considered a rare stranger instead of a certain and approaching visitation. But ignoring death is short-sighted and can prevent us from living fully. Death not only filters our priorities, it also filters our passions. In this insightful message, Gary Thomas helps us understand why it is wise to remember the fragility and brevity of our own lives and recall the lives of those who have gone before us. Read this article online here.
We’re burdened for our friends who don’t know the joy of the Gospel. So how do we approach evangelism and apologetics? Randy Newman shares our need to ask God to reshape us so we truly love people and see them as “precious, eternal, valuable souls.” Furthermore, he suggests that we must adjust our approaches to sharing the Gospel according to the dramatic changes in our culture. Read this article online.
Christians aren't immune to evil, but skeptics are often quick to seize on a Christian's bad behavior as reason to discount the faith. The gospel can uniquely address the skeptic’s contention – because the gospel’s response is to demonstrate that there is Someone they can trust. Read this article online.
Our desire to pray is God’s gift of love and friendship to us. Learn more about the relationship between prayer and friendship with God in this insightful message from Dr. James Houston. To read this article online, please click here.
How can we present Jesus Christ to the world in a way that is simultaneously authentic and relevant? How can we be loyal to the authentic Jesus and simultaneously present him relevantly to our contemporaries? Read this article online.
Do you desire to be successful? What would that look like? In our world today there are numerous definitions of success and failure. But God’s blessing, God’s protection, God’s presence, God’s grace, God’s peace—that all adds up to being fulfilled and being complete. That is success. Anything else is, ultimately, failure. Read this article online.
You can experience the freedom and fulness of life that God intended. Discover how you can be set free and empowered to live a new life—a life that transforms, blesses others, and glorifies God. To read this article online, please click here.
In this issue we turn our attention to our treatment of “the flesh,” the third member of what has been called “the unholy trinity.” If we don’t understand the flesh rightly, we cannot rightly understand sin and how to deal with it. This is the heritage of everyone born into the world since Adam and Eve. To read this article online, please click here.
What does the New Testament mean by the word world? In this issue we will seek to understand the world system, its origin and nature, and how the devil works through it to enslave and destroy God’s people and thwart His kingdom. This is part two in a four-part series. To read this article online, please click here.
The world, the flesh, and the devil present three major hindrances to following Jesus Christ. In part one of a four-part series we'll explore what the Bible teaches about the devil. And you'll learn how you can overcome the presence and power of evil in your life. To read this article online, please click here.
Resources:
For more information about spiritual warfare please visit Standing Strong in Spiritual Battles.
In this second installment of Who is God?, Tom Tarrants explores the unchanging nature of God as revealed in the Bible. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything by Fred Sanders (Crossway, 2010)
The greatest need of every true believer (and nonbeliever) today is the recovery of a right view of God. From this flows everything else. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W. Tozer
Dr. McGrath shares ways in which the Christian faith helps us make sense of the world and how natural sciences can help our thinking about our faith. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
Science & Religion: A New Introduction by Alister McGrath (2020)
Most of us live our daily existence in denial of the possibility of death. Yet how does an awareness of our mortality affect the way that we live? When we schedule our priorities and follow our passions without regard to eternity, our vision becomes distorted. We miss the big picture. Gary Thomas shares insights into how a Christian understanding of death can help us turn our lives the right side up. Read this article online.
In a world where most struggle for any clear moral foundation, God presents before us an opportune moment. Learn more in this episode with Dennis Hollinger narrated by Aimee Riegert. Read this article online.
Randy Newman explains that before we even start some evangelistic conversations, the deck is stacked against us, as nonbelievers assume they’re morally or intellectually superior to believers. Many outside the faith see us as narrow-minded, intolerant, homophobic simpletons. He gives us some valuable techniques to level the playing field so our words are considered rather than dismissed. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Engaging with Series (The Good Book Company, 2014)
Jerram Barrs challenges us to consider what it means to work as unto the Lord and to honor those who do so. Learn more about the place and value of work in a life of worship. Read this article online.
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien's life and writing were deeply influenced by his religious faith. Learn more about J.R.R. Tolkien's spiritual journey, his friendships with others like C.S. Lewis, and the impact Tolkien's faith had on his creative writing. Read this article online.
In the second installment of this two-part series, Dr. Aikman points to Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn’s warnings of the war between intellectual forces on one side who describe themselves as “progressive” and those on the other who are advocates of a Judeo-Christian worldview. Read more here.
Like most of pre-Soviet Russia, Solzhenitsyn had been born into a Christian tradition and was baptized as a child. However, as Marxism took hold throughout the country, atheism became Aleksandr’s world view. Learn how he came to turn from atheism and fully embrace Christianity. . . Read this article online.
Composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff wrote masterpieces that have found their way into the standard repertoires of major orchestras for decades. CSLI Senior Teaching Fellow, Randy Newman, shares how Rachmaninoff’s music can help us experience “longing” and beauty in profound ways. And he shares details about the composer’s life that may inspire you.
After the Bible, John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress is the best-selling Christian book of all time, and for centuries was widely read and highly influential in evangelical households. In recent years, however, this book has been read by fewer people, in part due to its now archaic language. In this article, Edward Glancy recommends this classic book and passes on a number of tips for reading it today. Learn more in this special Knowing & Doing Podcast. To read this article online, please click here.
We have little idea what brought Perpetua to faith in Christ, or how long she had been a Christian, but thanks to her diary, and that of another prisoner, we have some idea of her last days—an ordeal that so impressed the famous Augustine that he preached four sermons about her death. Learn more in this special Knowing & Doing Podcast. To read this article online, please click here.
V. Raymond Edman was a pastor, missionary, professor, and author who served as the fourth President of Wheaton College. In this episode we explore the journey of V. Raymond and the nature of the exchanged life. We'll see that the exchanged life is the result of the indwelling of the Lord Jesus Christ made real and rewarding by the Holy Spirit. To read this profile of faith, please click here.
James M. Houston concludes his two-part series by sharing that Narcissism is globally reflective of deep-rooted fallacies about the human identity. Since it is expressive of ‘original sin’, it seems too inherent to expect a resolution. Read this full article online.
James M. Houston explores Narcissism in part 1 of a two-part series. He discusses how theology can be taught as an educational program like any other topic, without directly speaking to our way of life. This heightens our need to relate the gospel, not just to “church” or “the academy,” but to how we identify ourselves and how we actually live daily. To read this article online, please click here.
Hear the remarkable story of servanthood and love as we follow Pamela Rose Moore’s journey as she reflects on the Dutch missionary evangelist, Cornelia ten Boom known as “Corrie.” Read this article online.
Mark Talbot discusses the importance of a biblical view of vocation that we find in the book of Genesis. He helps us to “really understand the gospel” and be “what God means you to be”. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
- What is Vocation? by Stephen J. Nichols
- God At Work: Your Christian Vocation in All of Life by Gene Edward Veith Jr.
Music is a great gift, with the power to take us to another world. Though music can move us so much, it makes a poor god! In this article, Dr. Newman expounds on both the common grace and the common ground that can be found through the gift of music. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Gift of Music: Great Composers and Their Influence by Jane Stuart Smith and Betty Carlson.
"I have found my musical soul again ... this time in the preludes of Chopin... Aren’t they wonderful? ... they are so passionate, so hopeless, I could almost cry over them; they are unbearable. I will find out the numbers of the ones I mean and we will have a feast next holidays."
- C.S. Lewis (in a letter to his friend Arthur Greeves)
Learn how you can share your faith with family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and more. Communicate winsomely and engage in healthy conversations with loved ones about issues that truly matter. In this message Dr. Joel Woodruff, President of the C.S. Lewis Institute, shares practical insights and lessons for Conversational Apologetics.
In this excerpt from J.C. Ryle’s classic book Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots, Ryle presents twelve points to create a picture of practical holiness. Read this article here.
Recommended Resources:
Holiness (Abridged): Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties, and Roots (Moody Classics) by J.C. Ryle
Pastor Bill Kynes explores the burning question - How can a loving God send people to hell?
This message is adapted from a chapter in Bill’s book Seven Pressing Questions: Addressing Critical Challenges to Christian Faith (Minneapolis: NextStep Resources, 2015). Read the article here.
In a culture where Christians are affected by fragmentation and compartmentalization, Randy Newman argues that getting “back to the Bible” means pursuing a holistic vision for what it means to be human and what that looks like in every way. Then, we will love God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind. To help us do this, he recommends reading Jonathan Edwards’s classic The Religious Affections (1746). Edwards wanted his hearers and readers to know that just having an opinion about God or believing the right propositions about God doesn’t make one a Christian. Saving faith must be felt as well as understood.
Learn more in this episode of the Knowing and Doing Podcast. To read this article online, please click here.
Jim Phillips discusses studying classic Western literature, and how knowledge of the classics can open up opportunities for gospel discussions.
Recommended Resources:
- A Christian Guide to the Classics by Leland Ryken
- The Consequences of Ideas: Understanding the Concepts that Shaped Our World by R.C. Sproul
Tom Tarrants observes that judging from recent research and anecdotal evidence, it appears that very few professing Christians in America think fasting has a place in the Christian Life. He observes, however, that from the earliest days of the church, fasting has been recognized as an important way to draw near to God, deepen one's relationship with Him, and seek His help in times of special need. Tarrants explains that if you desire a deeper, more intimate and fruitful relationship with God, or if you need His help in a time of real need, fasting is an important means of grace to practice. Discover helpful and practical guidance to experience God's blessing through fasting. Listen in to this podcast or download the original article.
Recommended Resources:
- God's Chosen Fast: A Spiritual and Practical Guide to Fasting by Arthur Wallis (2016)
- A Hunger for God by John Piper (2013)
If we hope to engage in conversation about weighty topics, we need to have some level of competence in listening, asking good questions, and pursuing rich conversation. Read the full article here.
It is difficult to think clearly about Francis of Assisi. The first thing that comes to mind is the gentle saint who preached to birds, tamed wolves, and padded about in flower-filled fields basking in the love of God. But it’s also difficult to imagine how such a benign figure could turn thirteenth-century Europe upside down. Read this article online.
Major Warren Hamilton Lewis was a kind-hearted and genuinely humble man, who spent most of his years living a quiet and retiring life. Learn more about his life in this audio production. Click here to read this full article.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) is called by some the greatest preacher of the last century. He had an impact on many leaders of this generation. Learn more about his life and legacy in this audio production. Click here to read this full article.
In 2002, Hammond’s youngest daughter Rebecca was born with severe cognitive disability. This created a crisis in the author’s faith which led him to the Scriptures to reconsider what it means for a human being to be made in the image of God. In this article, Hammond explains what he discovered and what it means for persons like his daughter and all human beings to be made in the image of God. He also discusses how individuals and churches can welcome families with a member who has severe cognitive disabilities. Read the full article here.
Recommended Reading:
It Has Not Yet Appeared What We Shall Be: A Reconsideration of the Imago Dei in Light of Those with Severe Cognitive Disabilities by George C. Hammond. P&R Publishing | Amazon
According to Randy Newman, evangelism could be viewed as slightly less difficult if we break it down into component parts. In this article, Newman breaks evangelism down to a few component skills: presenting a concise summary of the gospel, sharing your personal testimony, answering apologetic questions, asking stimulating questions and offering invitations. Read the full article here.
Does God exist? How can we know?
Humankind has wrestled with these questions for centuries. The influential philosopher Thomas Aquinas argued that the existence of God can be proved in five ways. Learn more in this recording of a classic message from one of the history's great thinkers. Aquinas helps us to see that God is the source of both the light of natural reason and the light of faith
To read this article in the Knowing and Doing magazine, please click here.
Charlotte Brontë’s mid-nineteenth century novel Jane Eyre offers valuable life lessons for modern readers. The daughter of a clergyman, Brontë’s Christian faith influenced her writing, and the story of Jane Eyre offers wisdom on dignity, love, self-denial, and dealing with hardship and suffering.
To read this article in the Knowing and Doing magazine, please click here.
Recommend Resource:
A Christian Guide to the Classics by Leland Ryken
In this final installment of the series, Michael Ward challenges us to reach out with the gospel by doing more than just promoting ideas or stating propositions. We need to engage the imaginations and affections of those we want to reach. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Cambridge Companion to C. S. Lewis (Cambridge Companions to Religion), edited by Robert MacSwain and Michael Ward (Cambridge University Press, 2010)
In Part 2 of this episode, Michael Ward continues his examination of some of the groundwork to the thinking of C.S. Lewis that enabled him to become so effective an apologist. Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
The Romantic Rationalist: God, Life and Imagination in the Work of C.S. Lewis, edited by John Piper and David Mathis (Crossway, 2014)
According to Michael Ward, C.S. Lewis is probably the most influential practitioner of Christian apologetics over the last hundred years. In this article, he looks at the Lewis of the 1930s, prior to the time he wrote his most influential works, in order to examine some of the groundwork to his thinking that enabled him to become so effective an apologist. . .Read the full article.
Recommended Reading:
The Narnia Code: C. S. Lewis and the Secret of the Seven Heavens by Michael Ward
Tom Tarrants observes that God desires an intimate, personal relationship with His children and calls us to know, love and serve Him and His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. As we do so, we will experience joy and delight. One of the means by which we can grow closer to God is by setting aside time each day to quietly read and reflect on God’s Word, lift our prayers to Him, and give thanks and praise to Him for who He is and for His goodness to us. In this article, Tarrants offers helpful suggestions that will aid you in developing your daily time with God and growing to know Him better and love Him more. Read this article online.
Recommended Resource:
Simplify Your Spiritual Life: Spiritual Disciplines for the Overwhelmed by Donald S. Whitney
Aaron Welty lives an active life with cerebral palsy. While he has prayed for healing, he states that God has provided an unexpected prescription, showing that perseverance is the unexpected — and greater — miracle. In this article, Welty observes that truthfully we’re all weak in ways visible and invisible. He argues, however, that weakness can unexpectedly draw others toward a deeper understanding of who God is — and who we are as His creation — if we embrace it. Read this article online.
Recommended Resources
When God Weeps by Joni Eareckson Tada & Steve Tada
What makes atheism so appealing? Author Cameron McAllister makes the case that overlooking atheism’s appeal constitutes a serious strategic mistake for those of us who want to discuss the gospel with skeptics.
Read this article on the C.S. Lewis Institute website.
Andy Bannister argues that in considering how to deal with what has been termed the “New Atheism,” we can learn much from looking at C.S. Lewis’s atheism in his early life, “and his journey from it to Christ, as he engaged with the very kinds of arguments that the New Atheists are recycling today.” To read this full article, click here.
Recommended Reading:
Peter S. Williams, C.S. Lewis vs. The New Atheists (Paternoster, 2013)
Since the advent of Superman: The Movie in 1978, ushering in the modern era of superhero cinema, theater audiences have enjoyed blockbuster films focused on comic book characters. In this episode, Congressman Aaron Welty explores the modern mythology of comic book heroes and how superhero stories can be a doorway to deeper theological truth.
Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
Epic by John Eldredge. Discover the story that God is telling.
D.A. Carson observes that in common usage, the words “spiritual” and “spirituality” have meanings ranging outside the sphere of biblical usage, and likewise the term “spiritual disciplines” has extended itself into arenas that are bound to make those who love the gospel more than a little nervous. In this episode, Carson considers: How shall we evaluate the popular approach to spiritual disciplines? How should Christians think of spiritual disciplines and their connection with spirituality as defined by Scripture? Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
D.A. Carson, For the Love of God: A Daily Companion for Discovering the Riches of God's Word, Volume 1. Christian Book | Amazon
Tom Schwanda helps us explore the Biblical foundations for spiritual growth. This is the first of a three part series that reflects deeply on why we need intimacy with Christ, how scripture sets the platform for it, and then offers suggestions for pursuing that noble goal. To read the full article for this podcast, please click here.
Recommended Reading:
God Is the Gospel: Meditations on God’s Love as the Gift of Himself by John Piper (Crossway, 2005)
Crossway: https://www.crossway.org/books/god-is-the-gospel-tpb-1/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/God-Gospel-Meditations-Gods-Himself/dp/1433520494
Looking at the process of discipleship from the opposite side of most discussions, Tom Tarrants raises the important, albeit disturbing, topic of persecution for the sake of the gospel. Jesus warned many times that his disciples would face specific trials that come from following him. This article helps us prepare for those inevitable trials. Click here to read the full article.
"For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps."
(1 Pet. 2:20–21)
Recommended Reading:
Gregory C. Cochran, Christians in the Crosshairs: Persecution in the Bible and Around the World Today
Tom Schwanda completes his three part series on “Growing in Intimacy with God” by digging into the role that experience plays in that process. The tension between knowing and doing, sometimes polarized to unhealthy extremes, is examined with an appreciation for both head and heart, doctrine and experience, thought and emotion.
Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
Stephen J. Nichols, Jonathan Edwards: A Guided Tour of His Life and Thought
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Jonathan-Edwards-Guided-Tour-Thought/dp/0875521940
In this episode Tom Tarrants considers the question, “How do we navigate around the seductions of this fallen world and faithfully follow Jesus in daily life?” He argues that the key is in and with our heart’s desires.
Recommended Reading
Devoted to God: Blueprints for Sanctification by Sinclair B. Ferguson (Banner of Truth, 2016)
Purchase online from Banner of Truth or Amazon.
Ruth Lovejoy, a Fellow in our C. S. Lewis Institute Fellows program, shares how seeing the gospel and the goodness of God more worshipfully can set us free from our love for and idolatry of efficiency. With one eye on the scripture’s story about Mary and Martha and another eye on her to-do list, Ruth helps liberate us from the tyranny of the urgent.
Recommended Reading:
Gordon MacDonald, Ordering Your Private World (Thomas Nelson, Revised, Updated edition, 2017). Order on ChristianBook.com | Amazon
Learn more about the Fellows Program.
Jesus’ disciples asked, “Lord, teach us to pray.” In this episode, Pastor Bill Kynes takes us to the heart of Jesus' response and helps us learn how to pray to the Father.
To read this article on Growing in Prayer, please click here.
Recommended Reading:
Tim Keller, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God (Penguin Books, 2016)
A life of prayer is something to which we are all called and to which we should all aspire. Dr. Bill Kynes discusses what it would mean for us to devote ourselves to prayer, to ‘pray continually’ as instructed by the Apostle Paul.
Recommended Reading:
Kevin DeYoung, Crazy Busy: A (Mercifully) Short Book about a (Really) Big Problem (Crossway, 2013)
Purchase your copy at: https://www.crossway.org/books/crazy-busy-tpb/
In this two-part series addressing vocation and calling, Mark Talbot discusses the importance of a biblical view of calling and the value of spending time each day in God’s written word.
Read this article online by clicking here.
Recommended Reading:
Os Guinness, The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life (Thomas Nelson, 2003)
Are you confident that you know and are fulfilling God’s purpose for your life? Tom Tarrants observes that God’s purpose for our life has two major aspects: His purpose in the world to come, and His purpose in the present world. These are intricately intertwined, and it is important to approach our need for guidance in the pressing affairs of the present world, which seem so urgent, in the context of God’s larger, eternal purpose. Once we situate ourselves in this framework, we can more readily discern and embrace God’s particular plans in the unique circumstances of our lives. . . Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
Discovering God's Will by Sinclair Ferguson (Banner of Truth, 2013)
Discovering God’s Will draws out fundamental principles by which God guides us, applies them to practical situations like vocation and marriage, and underlines many important biblical counsels. It shows that the guidance God gives comes primarily through knowing, loving and obeying him.
Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper (Crossway, 2003)
In this best-selling book, John Piper makes a passionate plea to the next generation to avoid the dangers of a wasted life, calling us to take risks and make sacrifices that matter for eternity—with a single, soul-satisfying passion for the glory of God that seeks to make much of him in every sphere of our lives.
What is it that motivated C.S. Lewis, a comfortable academic with more than enough to do, to direct so much of his time writing and speaking towards the conversion of the unbelieving of the world? What made him sacrifice not only the regard of many of his colleagues but his own academic advancement to defend the faith? . . .
Learn more in this episode of Knowing & Doing featuring the writing of Christopher Mitchell, PhD., Director of the Marion E. Wade Center and Assistant Professor of Theological Studies at Wheaton College.
For the full article from Professor Mitchell, please click here.
The biblical writers frequently draw parallels between physical and spiritual life, and in many cases the parallels are close. The physical maturity of a child can be measured with the aid of a tape measure and scales; the child’s intellectual development can be gauged by examinations and tests. Likewise our own growth in maturity can be measured. J. Oswald Sanders shows us how Maturity Can Be Measured.
To read the full article, please click here.
Dr. Gerald McDermott gives us a thorough and very helpful overview of Islam, the second biggest religion in the world. Read the full article from the CS Lewis Institute here.
Recommended Reading:
Nabeel Qureshi, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity (Zondervan, 2014). Purchase on Amazon.
Dr. Gerald R. McDermott offers an insightful overview of the history, beliefs, and various schools of Buddhism. He helps Christian better understand their Buddhist neighbors and summarizes key similarities and differences between Buddhism and Christianity.
Read the full article here.
Recommended Reading:
Tangible: Making God Known Through Deeds of Mercy and Words of Truth by Chris Sicks. NavPress, 2013.
In Tangible, author and pastor Chris Sicks speaks from his heart and his years of reaching out to others. Through practical resoures, biblical examples, and vignettes about real people, this book will equip you to introduce hurting people to God through intentional deeds of kindness. When you enter the world of the suffering with real help, you will reflect the love of Christ--the most tangible proof of God's existence. Purchase your copy here.
Turning Conversations about C.S. Lewis to the Topic He Loved Most If you’ve ever told someone that you’ve read something by C.S. Lewis or like his writing or have seen one of the Narnia movies, you may have found that many people have a positive view of him. In this article, Randy Newman identifies ways we can transition conversations about C.S. Lewis to conversations about Jesus Christ.
Read the full article here.
Recommended Reading:
Joe Rigney - Live Like A Narnian: Christian Discipleship in Lewis's Chronicles.
Amazon | Desiring God Ministries
We live in a culture that would have us believe that the way to happiness is to gain more—more money, more things, more pleasure. In this excerpt from his book Abundant: Experiencing the Incredible Journey of Generosity, Todd Harper explores what the Bible has to say about money, and how to experience the abundance God wants for us.
Read more about the Joy of Generosity.
Recommended Reading:
Todd Harper, Experiencing the Incredible Journey of Generosity (Generous Giving, 2016). | Amazon
According to Gregory Ganssle, the Christian story makes sense of our deepest longings. That is, the story that Christianity sets forth fits well with the things we value most and with the kinds of people we want to be. In this article, he develops one aspect of this fittingness, the centrality of relationships to our well-being. . . Read the full article.
Recommended Reading:
Gregory E. Ganssle, Our Deepest Desires: How the Christian Story Fulfills Human Aspirations (IVP Academic, 2017).
InterVarsity Press | Amazon | Christian Book Distributers
Dorothy L. Sayers, author of sixteen novels, ten plays, six translations, and twenty-four works of non-fiction, was an accomplished writer in multiple genres. In this article, Lindsey Scholl notes that Sayers had a hard-hitting, humorous, competent style, and argues that reading her would benefit many Christians today, particularly those inclined to use their faith as a cover for sloppy thinking. Scholl introduces readers to the body of Sayers’ work, and also to her colorful, confrontational personality.
Read the full article from Lindsay Scholl.
Recommended Reading:
Barbara Reynolds, Dorothy L. Sayers: Her Life and Soul (St. Martin’s Press, 1997)
Christian Book Distributors | Amazon
In this episode, Tom Tarrants presents a case study, from the Bible, of a group of ambitious men who sought human greatness long ago and how they discovered kingdom greatness. According to Tarrants, their experience has lessons for us today.
Read the full article here.
Recommended Reading:
Jerry Bridges, The Blessing of Humility (NavPress, 2016). Click here to order on Christian Book Distributors or Amazon.
What Is Character?
Character assumes that our actions are not isolated from each other. Character is a pattern of choices flowing out of a person—a pattern of virtues or vices.
In Part 2 of “Character” Dr. Lindsley explores how to cultivate character.
It is wise, before entering into a long-term relationship, to consider the other person’s character. This is especially true in friendship, marriage, business partnership, etc. Love in a relationship is only safe when there is character present.
Art Lindsley explores the ongoing crisis of character, the importance of character, and the way of character. He helps us find a solid foundation for character rooted in the love of God.
Show Notes
To read the full article: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Character_FullArticle
Tom Tarrants shares his dramatic story of coming to saving faith out of a life of prejudice, hatred, and self-righteousness. In fact, those adjectives don’t paint the picture as bad as it really was! Tom’s story is inspiring as well as challenging. And it illustrates just how powerful and transformational the gospel can be.
Show Notes:
Full Article:
https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Is_Spiritual_Transformation_Really_Possible
Thomas A. Tarrants, Consumed by Hate, Redeemed by Love: How a Violent Klansman Became a Champion of Racial Reconciliation (Thomas Nelson, 2019)
Christian Book Distributers:
https://www.christianbook.com/consumed-redeemed-violent-klansman-champion-reconciliation/thomas-tarrants/9781400215324/pd/215324?event=ESRCG
Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Consumed-Hate-Redeemed-Love-Reconciliation/dp/1400215323
Lynne Kohm asks, “How does your sexuality affect your witness as a Christian?” In this article, she argues that living and communicating a genuinely biblical view of sexuality is a most powerful apologetic today.
Show Notes:
To read the article: please visit:
https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Sexuality_as_an_Apologetic
Todd A. Wilson, Mere Sexuality: Rediscovering the Christian Vision of Sexuality (Zondervan, 2017)
Order Online at Zondervan: https://zondervanacademic.com/products/mere-sexuality
Christian Book Distributers: https://www.christianbook.com/mere-sexuality-rediscovering-the-christian-vision/todd-wilson/9780310535355/pd/535355?en=google&event=SHOP&kw=academic-0-20%7C535355&p=1179710&dv=c&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_qSS-Mje8QIVxP_jBx3ZEgavEAQYASABEgJqAvD_BwE
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mere-Sexuality-Rediscovering-Christian-Vision/dp/0310535352
According to William Fullilove, one of the joys of the past twenty years has been seeing a renewed emphasis on the doctrine of vocation in many Protestant churches—the understanding that God is pleased when each man and woman pursues his or her calling, whether that is to religious or “secular” work. He argues, however, that this has led to some unintended consequences. In this article, Fullilove considers Joseph’s story in Genesis 37-50, which he argues is a useful corrective.
Show Notes:
The Gospel at Work: How the Gospel Gives New Purpose and Meaning to Our Jobs by Sebastian Traeger and Greg Giblert.
Christianbook: https://www.christianbook.com/gospel-working-gives-purpose-meaning-ebook/sebastian-traeger/9780310513988/pd/42071EB
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Gospel-Work-Gives-Purpose-Meaning/dp/0310562074/ref=dp_ob_title_bk
Andy Bannister challenges the prevailing naturalistic worldview around us that insists that people are merely animals. The wide gap between our Biblical perspective – that people are unique, eternally valuable, and created in the image of God – and the dehumanizing trends in our world today are shown to be as dramatic as can be. Show Notes:
Dignity and Destiny: Humanity in the Image of God by John F. Kilner
Eerdmans: https://www.eerdmans.com/Products/6764/dignity-and-destiny.aspx
Christian Book Distributers: https://www.christianbook.com/dignity-destiny-humanity-the-image-god/john-kilner/9780802867643/pd/867643?product_redirect=1&Ntt=Dignity%20and%20Destiny:%20Humanity%20in%20the%20Image%20of%20God%20(Eerdmans,%202015)&item_code=&ps_exit=RETURN|legacy&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCG
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dignity-Destiny-Humanity-Image-God/dp/0802867642
Dan Osborn dares to wonder why some prominent Christians don’t persevere. As painful as the topic is, he rightly warns us not to ignore it. He also shares biblical insights as to how we can avoid the same tragic mistakes.
Jana Harmon interviewed fifty former atheists who had come to saving faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior. She tells us what she learned in the process, both from what her conversation partners said and how they told their remarkable stories.
Full Article URL: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Surprised_by_God_Reaching_the_Resistant
Childlike faith is relevant not only to mature believers in their walk with the Lord, but also in the workplace, especially in terms of how we lead, interact with others, and make decisions.
Show Notes:
To read the full article https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/The_Importance_of_Childlike_Faith_in_the_Workplace
In this last of his series of four articles written to help people read God’s Word with profit, Bill Kynes considers the questions: What can we expect the Bible to do for us? What is it for? He explains that the end or goal of the wisdom the Bible gives us is our “salvation” and offers practical advice for how to read the Bible with this in mind.
READ: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/How_to_Read_the_Bible_Part_4_How_is_the_Bible_Useful
Show Notes:
Recommended Reading:
Howard G. Hendricks and William D. Hendricks, Living by the Book: The Art and Science of Reading the Bible (
https://www.amazon.com/Living-Book-Science-Reading-Bible/dp/0802408230
Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart, How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth (Zondervan Academic, Fourth edition, 2014)
https://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Bible-All-Worth/dp/0310517826/ref=dp_ob_title_bk
Bill Kynes continues his series on how to read the Bible by zeroing in on the task of interpretation. He rightly reminds us that Jesus is the center of all of Scripture and any effort to interpret a part of the Bible without remembering that bigger picture is doomed to failure.
So you want to read the Bible, but you’re not sure how to do it well. What does it really mean? How is the Bible understood?” As Bill Kynes addresses these questions in this article, he emphasizes that “[t]o read the Bible rightly, one must submit to the Master, who alone holds the key to meaning. Jesus Christ and His gospel must guide our understanding of the Bible, even as our reading of the Bible will refine our understanding of Jesus and His work.
To read the full article go to https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/How_to_Read_the_Bible_Part2
Recommended Reading;
Robert L. Plummer, 40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible (Kregel Academic & Professional, 2010)
In 40 Questions about Interpreting the Bible, New Testament Professor Dr. Robert L. Plummer tackles the major questions that persons ask about reading and understanding the Bible.
https://www.christianbook.com/questions-about-interpreting-bible-2nd-edition/robert-plummer/9780825446665/pd/44666X?event=ESRCG
Kevin J. Vanhoozer, Is There a Meaning in This Text?: The Bible, the Reader, and the Morality of Literary Knowledge
The introduction of this burgeoning classic into paperback and the Landmarks in Christian Scholarship collection is much welcomed. Kevin Vanhoozer's Is There Meaning in this Text is the seminal contribution of Evangelical scholarship to the field of Hermeneutics. Vanhoozer lucidly and directly critiques trends in postmodern literary criticism (deconstruction) and thinkers (Ricoeur, Fish), while providing Evangelicals with a critical methodology upon which "texts"--and most especially biblical texts--can be confidently interpreted.
https://www.christianbook.com/meaning-bible-reader-morality-literary-knowledge/kevin-vanhoozer/9780310324690/pd/324690?event=ESRCG
Bill Kynes begins a four part series that considers how to read, study, and meditate on the Bible. He begins with a reminder that the Bible’s overall storyline must be the context in which we examine any specific passage. Show Notes: To read the full article click here: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/How_to_Read_the_Bible_Part1 Recommended Reading: Trent Hunter and Stephen Wellum, Christ from Beginning to End: How the Full Story of Scripture Reveals the Glory of Christ (Zondervan, 2018). https://www.amazon.com/Christ-Beginning-End-Scripture-Reveals/dp/0310536545 From beginning to end, the Bible reveals the glory of Jesus. But for many Bible readers, it doesn’t seem that simple. We’re often unsure how the Bible’s many stories, characters, events relate together and connect to Jesus. Some are tempted to force the pieces of the Bible together, making superficial jumps to him. Others give up trying to understand the Bible altogether. Christ from Beginning to End is written to help Christians understand better how every part of Scripture fits together to reveal the glory of Christ Jesus. In Part 1, Wellum and Hunter reintroduce us to the Bible — what it is, how it comes to us, and what it’s centrally about. Then, in Part 2, they walk from one side of the Bible’s story to the other, carefully tracing the Bible’s storyline from Genesis to Revelation. As readers see how our triune God’s plan unfolds through his covenants, they will be equipped for a lifetime of seeing Christ’s glory in Scripture. From this book, you’ll learn how to: • read the Bible according to the three biblical contexts: the immediate context, the context of the unfolding story, and the context of the whole story centered in Christ. • recognize how different parts of the Bible connect together as part of a unified story. • embrace the story of the Bible as our own, to live this story out, and to share this story with our neighbors and the nations. Robert W. Wall and David R. Nienhuis, ed., A Compact Guide to the Whole Bible: Learning to Read Scripture’s Story (Baker Academic, 2015) https://www.amazon.com/Compact-Guide-Whole-Bible-Scriptures/dp/0801049830* This compact, one-semester introduction to the Bible prepares students to begin reading the biblical text as Christian Scripture, focusing on the meaning of Scripture for the church. The editors and contributors — experienced teachers with expertise in different parts of the Bible — orient students to the whole of Scripture so that they may read the biblical text for themselves. The book first explains what Christians believe about Scripture and gives a bird’s-eye survey of the whole biblical story. Chapters then introduce the story, arrangement, style, and key ideas of each division of the Old and New Testament, helping readers see how the books of the Bible make a coherent whole. NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible, D.A. Carson, general editor (Zondervan 2018)*
Randy Newman shares an excerpt from his recent book Unlikely Converts: Improbable Stories of Faith and What They Teach Us About Evangelism that emphasizes the many ways Scripture talks about the Gospel. It’s not just about forgiveness (although that certainly is central and non-negotiable).
Show Notes:
To read the article: https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/A_Multifaceted_Gospel_for_Multifaceted_People
Recommended Reading
Mere Apologetics: How to Help Seekers & Skeptics Find Faith
By: Alister E. McGrath
In the spirit of C. S. Lewis's Mere Christianity, Alister McGrath's Mere Apologetics seeks to equip readers to engage gracefully and intelligently with the challenges facing the faith today while drawing appropriately on the wisdom of the past. Rather than supplying the fine detail of every apologetic issue in order to win arguments, Mere Apologetics teaches a method that appeals not only to the mind but also to the heart and the imagination. This highly accessible, easy-to-read book is perfect for pastors, teachers, students, and lay people who want to speak clearly and lovingly to the issues that confront people of faith today.
https://www.christianbook.com/apologetics-help-seekers-skeptics-find-faith/alister-mcgrath/9780801014161/pd/014161?event=ESRCG
In this article, Corey Latta addresses how C.S. Lewis wrote about emotion, and shares about what Lewis’s books have meant to him in his life.
Two themes that surface in Augustine’s sermons that may be helpful for our discipleship: understanding (1) salvation as primarily a process, a pilgrimage that is completed only in the future at our final destination, heaven, and (2) future rewards as a motivating factor for present godliness.
Show notes: To read the article go to https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Augustine_on_Heaven_and_Rewards_page1
Recommended Reading:
Gerald Bray, Augustine on the Christian Life: Transformed by the Power of God (Crossway, 2015)
Augustine is widely considered to be the most influential theologian in church history after the apostle Paul. Dramatically converted from a life of licentiousness to one of wholehearted devotion to Christ, the humble North African pastor quickly established himself as a leading figure within the ancient church. In Augustine on the Christian Life, historian Gerald Bray explores the rich spirituality of this extraordinary man, examining his historical context, approach to the Christian life, and work as a preacher and teacher of God’s Word. Drawing on Augustine’s many writings—including his classic spiritual autobiography, the Confessions—Bray demonstrates Augustine’s enduring relevance for Christians today. This book is part of Crossway’s Theologians on the Christian Life series.
https://www.christianbook.com/augustine-christian-life-transformed-power-god/gerald-bray/9781433544941/pd/544941?event=ESRCG
The metaphor of birth provides a helpful way of understanding fuller implications of what it means to know God and to grow in that relationship. Just as a human being is physically born into the world and moves through a developmental cycle from infant to child to adolescent to adult, so a child of God is born spiritually and is called to move through a similar developmental cycle.
To read the full article https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Knowing_God_Personally_page1
Recommended Reading:
Knowing God by J.I Packer https://www.christianbook.com/knowing-god-j-i-packer/9780830816507/pd/1650X?event=ESRCQ
One of the top 50 books that have shaped evangelicals (Christianity Today, 2006) Platinum Book Award, Evangelical Christian Publishing Association For over 40 years, J. I. Packer’s classic has been an important tool to help Christians around the world discover the wonder, the glory and the joy of knowing God.
Lewis believed that a vigorous supernaturalism was essential to understanding Christianity. Central to Lewis’s supernaturalism was an unapologetic belief in heaven and hell. In this article, Eyre discusses heaven and hell in the writings of C.S Lewis.
Show notes:
For a printed copy of this article go to https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/CS_Lewis_on_Heaven_and_Hell_FullArticle
Recommended Reading:
Wayne Martindale, Beyond the Shadowlands: C.S. Lewis on Heaven and Hell (Crossway, 2005)
https://www.christianbook.com/beyond-shadowlands-lewis-heaven-hell-ebook/wayne-martindale/9781433517099/pd/7278EB?event=ESRCG#CBD-PD-Publisher-Description