Book Reviews

This book is written for officers of the church, particularly the pastoral officers, ruling and teaching elders. Louis Tamminga is a retired pastor in the Christian Reformed Church; and he has vast experience and insight into the issues that not only CRC churches face, but the PCA as well. Tamminga writes that The Empty Pew was “written to help you and fellow caregivers in your church who desire to minister to those who left or whose ties with the congregation seem to be weakening, for whatever reason. Perhaps it may also help you and other church leaders strengthen ministry programs so that all members of your church may experience closer ties to their faith community.”

While reading this book you may find out how wide your back door is and learn some of the reasons why people leave. You will also discover some ideas as to what you can do to correct and prevent their leaving. The book is divided into three parts: “Understanding Those Who Leave,” “Reaching Out to Those Who Leave,” and “Preventing Members from Leaving Their Churches. “Many of the statistics, illustrations, and references are from CRC documents; but you will find an overlap with some PCA standards.

Tamminga uses the research of Dr. Ian McIntosh who outlines four basic reasons why members leave their churches.

Internal Reasons – External Reasons – Institutional Reasons – Interpersonal Reasons

The reader will also find very helpful thoughts from Tamminga on visitation and how to minister to people who face difficult circumstances in their lives, especially those who need ministering to when a family member is the one who has left the church.

Every section of the book has a “Points to Ponder” with very perceptive questions. It would do every Session good to discuss these in the context of their ministry. I think every officer who reads this book will find it very challenging and stimulating as they face the demands of ministry in their church.

There are conflicts in human relationships which lead to departure without reconciliation. They have difficulties with the programs and governance of their church. Church life loses its importance i.e., circle of friends and activities they pursue. They have failed to come to terms with their Christian faith.

I would probably have put this book aside on the “don’t read stack” had I not seen that the foreword was written by George Barna. While I may not always agree with some of his conclusions and prescriptions, I read Barna’s analyses very carefully and I have learned much. This little book was no exception. Even after reading the book, had not planned to take the space to mention it here; however, as I shared the content with some close friends, they were as intrigued by it as I was. While I would not put it at the top of my reading list, it was very helpful for me to hear what the authors, Henderson and Casper, had to say.

A word of background-Jim Henderson is a long time Christian, who like so many others, had always been very involved in the church. He decided it was time to find out how visitors would react to and interpret the church and what would inspire them to come back or come for the first time to church. To do this he hired professing atheist, rock musician and journalist Matt Casper to help him with the project. The agreement was that Henderson would not attempt to convert Casper during the process.

Henderson and Casper traveled across the country visiting churches such as Willow Creek, Saddleback, Mars Hill, and Potter’s House. They would visit a church, usually sitting in the balcony with their laptops, taking notes on the service. Later in the day, they would compare notes. I was especially impressed by Casper’s comments. One quote from Casper both in the book and on the jacket to whet your appetite reads, “Light shows, fog machines, worship bands, offering plates-is this what Jesus intended? Is this what Jesus told you guys to do?”

What are we doing right and what do we need to do better? These are two very valid questions this book will inspire you to answer. The book is an easy read and often a sad commentary; however, you might pick up some insights on how non-church people look at your church.

Normally, I am not too impressed with books like this. I have not found them particularly helpful. But here is an exception to my statement. This is a valuable book. It contains quotes and statements on a variety of subjects such as atonement, death, happiness, love for others, praise, etc. The book contains quality quotes from some of the best known Christian scholars and preachers of all time. A couple of examples will demonstrate my point.

“In commanding us to glorify him, God is inviting us to enjoy him.” C.S. Lewis

“Praise…decentralizes self.” Paul E. Billheimer

“Our use of reason itself is not only wounded and weakened but made willful and wrong by sin.” Os Guinness

“The name of Christ excludes all merit of our own.” John Calvin

“We know how God would act if he were in our place-he was in our place.” A.W. Tozer

These give you a flavor of the brevity and depth of the quotes. The collection will be helpful in teaching and preaching, for church bulletins and newsletters. If you are like me, you will
also find it helpful just to browse through the different themes, reading the quotes.

Blanchard is no stranger to most of us. He has written over 30 books, including his famous Is Anybody There? and Right With God. This compilation is just as excellent in quality and well worth keeping in your library

Here is a helpful book for new Christians, Bible teachers, and preachers. I thought Michael Green was overstating the book’s value when he said, “If I had only one book to help me understand the Bible, this is the one I would go for.” After I got into the book, I could see exactly what he means. This is a book that will communicate both with the non-specialist and the professional Bible teacher. There are 12 chapters in the book, divided into two categories. As Johnston states in the introduction, one section is comprised of chapters 1, 2, 7, 8 and deals with the overall background issues of the testaments. The second section, chapters 3-6 and 9-12, covers the main sections of the Bible and each biblical book in turn.

As I read through the first two chapters, I thought they alone made it worthwhile to read and purchase this book. Chapter 1, written by Mark Strauss, deals with “Introducing the Bible.” He explains very clearly things such as inspiration and authority, biblical criticism, textual criticism and the canon, translations and languages of the Bible. Chapter 2, by other authors, focuses on “Introducing the Old Testament.” It contains a good survey of the background of the Old Testament, which makes this chapter a valuable resource. One statement underscores this importance. “This is why Old Testament laws address each area of human life and societal existence. One key idea of Israelite society was to live in the ‘fear of the Lord.’ Basically this means that Yahweh made a claim on every aspect of his people’s lives and they should respond by seeking to please God in all of life. “In chapter 2 there is also a helpful section on how to read and interpret the Old Testament. Of course to rightly interpret the Old Testament, as well as the New Testament, you must be aware of the cultural and historical setting of each book. This book will be extremely helpful to that end.

The same description applies to the New Testament as well. Chapter 8, “Introducing the New Testament,” deals with such themes as background, theology, and interpretation. From there the New Testament is presented in sections: the Gospels, Acts, Letters, and Revelation. The book concludes with a brief section on reading the Bible and different ways to make reading the Bible meaningful.

This will be a good and helpful edition to your library; and you will use it as you study, teach, and preach the Word.

Here is a helpful book for personal devotions, family devotions, or groups. With a good selection of hymns and songs, The Book of Worship follows the church calendar beginning with Advent and concluding with Pentecost and the season after Pentecost.

Author Randall Dennis writes, “Though they were not compelled by God’s law, the early church recognized this rhythm too. They seized the opportunity to use cycles and seasons to frame and reinforce oral teachings about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the church. Their calendar was built of components ensuring Christians were taught ‘Christianity 101’ and celebrated God’s faithfulness, mercy, and love.”

The songs and hymns are arranged topically according to the church calendar and contain 365 days of materials. Though as Dennis says, if you skip a day or so, it will not throw you out of sequence. Each Sunday reading includes prayers from The Book of Common Worship, by Thomas Cranmer. Dennis has edited the 1500’s text at points to make it more understandable and accessible for today. However, he also has tried to stay true to his vision for the book saying, “I think there’s merit in hearing these prayers, hymns, and songs as they were originally written. The only paraphrasing I have done was to elements where language so got in the way as to obscure the message.” Along with the words of these elements, there is also a melody line to each of the songs and hymns included.

The Book of Worship is an excellent resource for family or personal devotions. Its selected texts, hymns, and church calendar format are sure to bless you in your daily walk.

By Carol J. Ruvolo

God included many prayers in the Bible to help His people learn how to pray. One of the most instructive prayers is tucked away in the book of 2 Chronicles. Perhaps you share my inclination to skim over it quickly. If so, my prayer is that The Prayer of Jehoshaphat (not to be confused with Bruce Wilkinson’s book, The Prayer of Jabez) will not only strengthen your prayer life but also your conviction that all Scripture is indeed profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness.

This wise, insightful, and conversational exposition of 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 examines the effective prayer of a righteous man and concludes that such prayer doesn’t “just happen.” Instead, it is rooted in the deep knowledge of God, motivating a habitual turning to Him for help in all situations as a first resort, not the last. Jehoshaphat, the fourth king of Judah, was a good king whose primary focus was the glory of God and faithfulness to His desires. He was not a perfect king, which makes his example all the more encouraging for us as we strive to serve God in our weakness and imperfection.

Jehoshaphat’s prayer was his first response to a paralyzing event. A mighty army was advancing against him, and his own forces were pitifully powerless to resist its assault. Have you faced situations like that: locked in the grip of real, intense, freezing fear; helpless before an enemy you cannot overcome; unable to run, unable to hide, unable to win? Where most of us tend to lose our wits, Jehoshaphat naturally “set his face” to seek the Lord.

The Prayer of Jehoshaphat reveals the breadth, length, height, and depth of God-focused prayer. Studying it has helped me in overcoming my tendency to fall apart in the face of overwhelming assault, enhanced my ability to pursue my commitment to walk worthy of my high-calling in Christ, and equipped me to more effectively glorify and enjoy God. It has blessed me immensely. Buy a copy and study it well. Then buy some more copies and give them to people you care deeply about.