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What books (next to the Bible, of course) should every Christian have in his library? If you could name just a few essentials, what would they be and why?
Well, this is an obvious answer around here, but Calvin’s Institutes is an essential not only because of its historical importance, but also because it is perhaps the greatest manual on Christian doctrine ever written outside of the Bible. It is impossible to read that work and not leave it in a state of worship.
Not to put down Owen or Turretin who are fantastic in their own right, but those aren't really what I'd recommend to "every Christian".
It would help (not necessarily required) the typical believer to have at least one trusted systematic theology book on hand:What books (next to the Bible, of course) should every Christian have in his library? If you could name just a few essentials, what would they be and why?
...should... i.e. by duty or obligation
Exactly, your wording was fine.........And as another example (from my world): in some federal regulations there is the distinction between “should” and “shall”, where “should” is interpreted as a recommendation. “Shall” is interpreted as a requirement, which legal action can be taken against for negligence thereof.It happens that the modal verb should can express other things than duty or obligation. It is also used to give advice or recommendations.
Consider some examples:
"You should clean your room." (duty/obligation)
"You should try that new restaurant." (recommendation)
"You should do something about that mustard stain on your tie." (advice)
For a long time, Christians have been reading books and recommending those books to one another. Nobody here, I am certain, is saying that the books they recommend are to be read as a matter of duty or obligation.
Since I make a habit of plugging it at every possible opportunity, I'll add in Brakel's Christian's Reasonable Service.
Wilhelmus Á Brakel "The Christian's Reasonable Service"What books (next to the Bible, of course) should every Christian have in his library? If you could name just a few essentials, what would they be and why?
It would help (not necessarily required) the typical believer to have at least one trusted systematic theology book on hand:
Beginners:
https://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/summary-christian-doctrine-louis-berkhof
Advanced:
https://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/systematic-theology-louis-berkhof
A solid concordance to find passages with specific words would also be helpful:
https://www.amazon.com/Strongest-Strongs-Exhaustive-Concordance-Larger/dp/0310246970/
Optionally, but useful would be a Bible Background book to get a good grasp on the Biblical cultural environments:
NT - https://www.amazon.com/IVP-Bible-Background-Commentary-Testament-dp-0830824782/dp/0830824782/
OT - https://www.amazon.com/IVP-Bible-Background-Commentary-Testament/dp/0830814191/
Finally a nice collection of just cross-references of bible verses to observe Scripture interpreting Scripture will round out one's basic library:
https://www.amazon.com/Treasury-Scripture-Knowledge-26-May-2005-Hardcover/dp/B012HTJ2A0/
So that's about 4-5 books in addition to one's Bible to round out a believer's basic set of tools to increase their walk of faith.
Well, this is an obvious answer around here, but Calvin’s Institutes is an essential not only because of its historical importance, but also because it is perhaps the greatest manual on Christian doctrine ever written outside of the Bible. It is impossible to read that work and not leave it in a state of worship.
You can learn from Calvin, but you have to be patient - he does ramble quite a bit!
That is interesting, as I find Calvin has a way of saying much with very few words. In other words, my take is that he gets to the point in a clear, concise, and impactful manner.You can learn from Calvin, but you have to be patient - he does ramble quite a bit!
That is interesting, as I find Calvin has a way of saying much with very few words. In other words, my take is that he gets to the point in a clear, concise, and impactful manner.