Lit! A Christian Guide to Reading Books

Top Highlights

“Before we step into a fully-stocked bookstore, we must be determined to read the imperfect in light of the perfect, the deficient in light of the sufficient, the temporary in light of the eternal, the groveling in light of the transcendent.” (source)

“They taught me to think deeply about the gospel and to preach the gospel to my own soul. This is vital, because thinking deeply about the gospel is the only way to consistently feel deeply about the gospel. You cannot cultivate affection for the Savior without reading and studying the Word of God.” (source)

“Some people collect coins and baseball cards. I collect other people’s thoughts. When I read an important sentence or paragraph (the 1 percent), I mark it and then later return and copy it into a topical database on my computer.” (source)

“Sin blinds the heart to the glory of Christ, and when the glory of Christ is not seen, lives remain unchanged.” (source)

“I regularly plunge my soul in solid theology books about the person and work of Christ.³ I bathe my mind in the theological works of a few dead theologians—Calvin, Martin Luther, Jonathan Edwards, John Owen, Thomas Goodwin, Herman Bavinck, and Geerhardus Vos. And I immerse my soul into the works of contemporary authors like J. I. Packer, D. A. Carson, John Stott, R. C. Sproul, John Piper, Jerry Bridges, and C. J. Mahaney. Old or new, I prize any books that will help me swim deeply into the person, work, and love of Christ.” (source)