One of the most painful parts of the week is uploading the sermon from Sunday night to the website. There’s just something real uncomfortable about having what you said preserved and made accessible that is disconcerting. Anyway, this week I am spared that discomfort as the message was not recorded from Sunday night.

I have been reading an awful lot on the Holy Spirit and, if your’e interested, here is a list of what I’ve been reading with some comments:

1. The Mystery of the Holy Spirit, RC Sproul. This is a good primer on the Spirit, but pretty simple. Also, Sproul definitely doesn’t think the gifts of tongues, miracles, healing, prophecy, etc, are for today (I disagree, but still a good book)

2. Showing the Spirit, DA Carson. Fantastic, if you want to put in the work. This is a 200+ page book that is simply his exposition of 1 Corinthians 12-14. He is convinced and convincing that the charismata are for today and offers a chapter full of pastoral implications. It is hard, rigorous, but rewarding reading.

3. Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God, Gordon Fee. Fee is a self proclaimed Pentecostal (minister in the Assemblies of God) and also a professor of NT at Gordon Conwell Seminary. This is the best book on the Spirit I’ve read (Carsons is great, but Fee is broader).

4. Keeping in Step with the Spirit, JI Packer. This is very good, though I don’t agree with all his conclusions. He, like Sproul, don’t believe the charismatic gifts are for today, though he is more open to the possibility. He stands outside of the Pentecostal movement and is critical of theological errors and excesses, yet, appreciates how they have called the church not to neglect the Third Person of the Trinity.

5. Baptism and Fullness, John Stott. This is also very good, and short. I would highly recommend it (though, again, I don’t agree with his cessationist position).

6. Convergence, Sam Storms. The subtitle says it all: The Spiritual Journeys of a Charismatic Calvinist. He lives in two worlds, two worlds many think are incompatible. I like his position, but the book isn’t all that good. I want him to convince me, but he tells a lot of his personal story. You may really enjoy it, and I would highly recommend most of Storms books, but not this one. Sorry.

7. Desiringgod.org, John Piper. There is a treasure chest of material available from John Piper on the Spirit and the gifts. Check out the section on the Spirit and the section on the spiritual gifts.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 7th, 2007 at 11:41 am and is filed under Resources. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.