I have a feeling that James White and I would get on well! I like a writer who tells you what he really thinks rather than dressing it up in over diplomatic language, who is not enslaved by political correctness and who, above all, is passionately jealous for the word of God. All of that…

There is no doubt that the life story of Mike Milton is a remarkable one. He is at pains to point out in this short autobiography that he is where he is and what he is today only by the grace of God. Born into a seriously dysfunctional home, he was brought up by a…

The choice of English Bible translations today is bewildering and increasing. Fee and Strauss have done the ‘average’ believer a great service in writing a very thorough guide to finding your way through this veritable plethora of Bible versions. I wish I had been aware of this book when I taught a short series recently…

Is general revelation in any sense sufficient to lead to saving faith? Can anyone be saved because of their sincere adherence to another belief system? These are among the questions addressed and answered in this excellent book. The issue of whether anyone can be saved without an explicit saving experience of Christ has been the…

For months people have been asking me whether I’ve read The Shack. This book has been flying off the shelves in both Christian and secular bookshops. Until now I’ve resisted, partly for lack of time. I’m glad I have now read it, but I need to say right up front that I’m concerned about its dangerous…

In some senses, this book could be regarded as a potential ‘last will and testament’ of its author, who, at the time of writing, was undergoing treatment for cancer with only a 25 per cent likelihood of success. Mercifully, David Gordon is currently in remission, and, equally mercifully, did not significantly edit his work which…

I have to confess to two failings. Firstly that, despite serving in a Bible College in Edinburgh I have never read a biography of John Knox, and secondly that I have been influenced, though never completely persuaded, by the ‘bad press’ Knox has had. Douglas Bond’s book is the latest in the excellent series A Long…

When Rico Tice, author of the Christianity Explored programme which is based on Mark’s Gospel, says that from now on this is the first commentary he will reach for, you know it will be good.  Your view is reinforced when you realise that Gerard Chrispin is the author.  He is such a good and clear…

In Why God Won’t Go Away McGrath provides an accessible introduction to the New Atheists and exposes the intellectual and moral bankruptcy of their position. In his opening two chapters he introduces us to this latest manifestation of atheism and its main protagonists, namely Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett and Christopher Hitchens, – ‘The Four Horsemen’.…

This is a gem of a book, approaching Calvin’s life, ministry and contribution to the church from an unusual angle. Edited by John Piper and David Mathis, it is a compilation of addresses given at the Desiring God 2009 National Conference. The book takes its title from Calvin’s own description of life as ‘this magnificent…