Brian G. Hedges | Pastor & Author
Showing posts with label Book Giveaway. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book Giveaway. Show all posts
Register for a free, calf-skin, ESV Study Bible
Have you bought an ESV Study Bible yet? If not, maybe you should register in this drawing for a FREE, calf-skin leather edition, over at A Boomer in the Pew.
Book Giveaway: The Gospel and Personal Evangelism
A couple of weeks ago I attended the 2009 Desiring God Pastors Conference. The theme this year was Commending Christ: The Pastor, the Church, and the Perishing. The keynote speaker was Mark Dever. Dever's messages were very encouraging, especially the final two, in which he shared so many stories about his own evangelistic efforts.
A group of four men from our church came with me. One of the highlights of the conference was discussing with them practical ways that we could improve in evangelism at FPBC. One of my requests to them was that they help me connect with unbelievers. One of the guys has already acted on this. Saturday we spent a couple of hours visiting with two unbelievers.
At the conference, I received a free copy of Dever's book The Gospel and Personal Evangelism. I already own a copy, so I'm passing it on to one of you. All you have to do to sign up is leave a comment about your own personal evangelism. If you're not sure what to write, start with one of these questions. Is sharing the gospel easy or difficult for you? Why? What is your usual approach? If asked to share the gospel in 60 seconds or less, what would you say? What would you like to see change in your efforts to share the gospel with others? How do you think believers with differing gifts could help one another in doing evangelism?
I'll leave the drawing open until the middle of March.
BTW, You can watch or listen to all the audio for free at Desiring God's website. Here are the links.
The Need for Evangelism
A Shepherd and His Unregenerate Sheep
The Pastor and Evangelism
"I Will Not Be a Velvet-Mouthed Preacher!”
The Church and Evangelism
Missions as Fasting
Commending Christ, Q & A
A group of four men from our church came with me. One of the highlights of the conference was discussing with them practical ways that we could improve in evangelism at FPBC. One of my requests to them was that they help me connect with unbelievers. One of the guys has already acted on this. Saturday we spent a couple of hours visiting with two unbelievers.
At the conference, I received a free copy of Dever's book The Gospel and Personal Evangelism. I already own a copy, so I'm passing it on to one of you. All you have to do to sign up is leave a comment about your own personal evangelism. If you're not sure what to write, start with one of these questions. Is sharing the gospel easy or difficult for you? Why? What is your usual approach? If asked to share the gospel in 60 seconds or less, what would you say? What would you like to see change in your efforts to share the gospel with others? How do you think believers with differing gifts could help one another in doing evangelism?I'll leave the drawing open until the middle of March.
BTW, You can watch or listen to all the audio for free at Desiring God's website. Here are the links.
The Need for Evangelism
Desiring God 2009 Conference for Pastors
February 2, 2009
Mark Dever
A Shepherd and His Unregenerate Sheep
Desiring God 2009 Conference for Pastors
February 3, 2009
Matt Chandler
The Pastor and Evangelism
Desiring God 2009 Conference for Pastors
February 3, 2009
Mark Dever
"I Will Not Be a Velvet-Mouthed Preacher!”
The Life and Ministry of George Whitefield: Living and Preaching as Though God Were Real (Because He Is)
February 3, 2009
John Piper
The Church and Evangelism
Desiring God 2009 Conference for Pastors
February 3, 2009
Mark Dever
Missions as Fasting
The Forsaking of Things Present for the Global Exaltation of Christ
February 4, 2009
Michael Oh
Commending Christ, Q & A
Desiring God 2009 Conference for Pastors
February 4, 2009
Various
The winner is . . .
Congratulations to John, winner of the November book giveaway, The Prodigal God.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Dorothy who won the October Book Giveaway of A Gospel Primer for Christians: Learning to See the Glories of God's Love by Milton Vincent.Thanks to everyone who participated, and be sure to enter the drawing for this month's giveaway, The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith by Timothy Keller.
The Prodigal God by Timothy Keller (Book Review)
.Keller targets both seekers who are unfamiliar with the gospel and longtime church members who may not feel the need for a primer on the gospel. Keller's book, as the provocative title suggests, is built on one of Jesus' most famous stories: the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15).
Keller consents that "on the surface of it, the narrative is not all that gripping." But, he contends that "if the teaching of Jesus is likened to a lake, this famous Parable of the Prodigal Son would be one of the clearest spots where we can see all the way to the bottom." Keller has taught from this passage many times over the years, and says, "I have seen more people encouraged, enlightened, and helped by this passage, when I explained the true meaning of it, than by any other text."
The book is laid out in seven brief chapters which aim to uncover the extravagant (prodigal) grace of God, as revealed in this parable. Keller shows how the parable describes two kinds of "lost" people, not just one. Most people can identify the lostness of the "prodigal son," the younger brother in Jesus' story, who takes his inheritance early and squanders it on riotous living.
But Keller shows that the "elder brother" in the parable is no less lost. Together, the two brothers are illustrations of two kinds of people in the world. "Jesus uses the younger and elder brothers to portray the two basic ways people try to find happiness and fulfillment: the way of moral conformity and the way of self-discovery." Both brothers are in the wrong, and when we see this, we discover a radical redefinition of what is wrong with us. "Nearly everyone defines sin as breaking a list of rules. Jesus, though, shows us that a man who has violated nothing on the list of moral misbehaviors may be every bit as spiritually lost as the most profligate, immoral person. Why? Because sin is not just breaking the rules, it is putting yourself in the place of God as Savior, Lord and Judge just as each son sought to displace the authority of the father in his own life."
As these quotes hint, Keller's exposition of the two sons lays the groundwork for a penetrating analysis and critique of both moral relativists on the liberal left and religious moralists on the conservative right, showing that the latter are just as lost as the former. What both need is Jesus, whom Keller presents as "the true elder brother," the one who comes to our rescue at his own expense. Through his grace, we are given hope and invited to the great feast of the Father.
As with Keller's preaching, this book is intelligent and winsome, combining thoughtful reflection on both text and culture with searching heart application. Keller's book is effectively illustrated with a liberal use of stories and quotations from literature, movies, and the arts. Most imporantly, the book orients the reader's heart to the hope of the gospel of God's grace revealed in Christ.
One more note: for readers who may have felt intimidated by Keller's recent book The Reason for God, don't shrink away from The Prodigal God. It is probably only 1/3 of the length and much easier to read. I highly recommend it to unbelievers, seekers and established Christians.
Book Giveaway: A Gospel Primer for Christians
The book giveaway for this month is Milton Vincent's A Gospel Primer for Christians: Learning to See the Glories of God's Love. I just read it this week and found it very helpful. Guessing that fewer of my readers will already have a copy, I thought it would be an ideal giveaway.This short book (97 pages) is divided into four parts. Part 1 is a series of thirty-one meditations on "Reasons to Rehearse the Gospel Daily." These Scripture-laden reflections will nourish your soul and thrill your heart with the wonders of God's grace. Part 2 is "A Gospel Narrative: Prose Version." This is a short summary of the message of the gospel, broken down into four parts (The Glory of God; My Sin Against God; God's Work on My Behalf; My Salvation) and forty-one "verses." Part 3,"A Gospel Narrative: Poetic Version," is the summary of the gospel in the form of poetry. Part 4, "Surprised by the Gospel," explains the story behind the book - how a performance-driven pastor discovered the freedom and joy of justification by faith alone.
Here's an excerpt from Part 1 of the book. This is one of the thirty-one reasons to rehearse the gospel daily.
The gospel encourages me to rest in my righteous standing with God, a standing which Christ Himself has accomplished and always maintains for me. I never have to do a moment's labor to gain or maintain my justified status before God! Freed from the burden of such a task, I now can put my energies into enjoying God, pursuing holiness, and ministering God's amazing grace to others.
The gospel also reminds me that my righteous standing with God always holds firm regardless of my performance, because my standing is based solely on the work of Jesus and not mine. On my worst days of sin and failure, the gospel encourages me with God's unrelenting grace toward me. On my best days of victory and usefulness, the gospel keeps me relating to God solely on the basis of Jesus' righteousness and not mine.
Each of these meditations are written in the first person like this. Just reading them really is an exercise in preaching the gospel to oneself.
How did I come across this book? I read Andy Naselli's review. It was so positive that I ordered it immediately. I'm glad I did. So, check out his review and don't forget to register for the giveaway by posting a comment.
Congratulations!
Congratulations to Richard, who won the giveaway of Don Whitney's Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. (Richard, see the comments section on the above post, for instructions on how to receive the book).
I will post information on the book giveaway for October tonight or tomorrow.
I will post information on the book giveaway for October tonight or tomorrow.
Book Giveaway: Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
Following the example of a blogging friend, I'm going to try a monthly book giveaway. My choice for September is Don Whitney's Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life.This is, in my opinion, the best book on the spiritual disciplines available today. Whitney writes on a popular level, combining rich exposition of Scripture with helpful practical application. He also draws heavily from the Puritan and Reformed traditions, sprinkling his book with some of the best insights and quotations on various disciplines from stalwarts of the faith like Charles Spurgeon, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and Jonathan Edwards.
I'm also delighted to recommend and give this book away, because I know Dr. Whitney and have a personal appreciation for him and his ministry. I first met him in an elevator in Minneapolis, in the first Desiring God National Conference (he spoke on Pursuing a Passion for God Through Spiritual Disciplines: Learning from Jonathan Edwards). He was very winsome and friendly and we had a nice conversation. A few years ago, Don visited Fulkerson Park to teach a weekend conference for us. You can listen to the messages on our website. You should also check out Dr. Whitney's excellent website, The Center for Biblical Spirituality, which is full of free audio and reading resources.
If you would like to sign up for a chance to win this book, just leave a comment. I will randomly select a winner at the end of the month and send the book to you. Be sure to leave your e-mail address or another way to contact you.
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