One of the Best Christian Bookstores in Canada

Just got back from a week in Nova Scotia. I always try to get to Dartmouth (across the harbor from Halifax) and visit the Bible Treasury, my favorite Christian bookstore. It is run by a “Plymouth Brethren” brother and he carries books that you just won’t find anywhere else, mainly Brethren works but other good materials, too. I usually drop $50-100 when I visit. Their website is here. The Google map is here.

Warming Up In The Bullpen…

Two of my earlier books that I took down for revising will soon be re-posted for your consideration:

1. In Defense of Erasmus. A small book defending Erasmus and his Greek Text against the attacks by enemies of the Traditional Greek texts and English Texts, namely our King James Bible.

2. Nettleton Verses Finney: The Shift in American Evangelicalism 1820-1830. My doctoral dissertation from 1995. This shows the heresies of Charles Finney and the great damage he has done to evangelism and the Church in general. It is also an evaluation of the Second Great Awakening.

Both books will soon be uploaded to our website www.pilgrimway.org.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List…even more

Continuing on from my library…

The Salt Cellars by Charles Spurgeon. Two volumes of nothing but proverbs and pithy sayings. In a day where we are plagued by “sentence sermons” on church signs (that are often more embarrassing than they are edifying), this works shows that much wisdom can indeed be packed into a sentence or two. I understand Spurgeon used to publish yearly sheet almanacs. I’d love to see them.

Refuting Compromise by Jonathan Sarfati. One of the best books to refute “old earth creationism” and “progressive creationism” which are nothing more than compromises with Darwinian evolution.

The Waters Above by Joseph Dillow. A scientific argument for a pre-flood vapor canopy over the earth, which would explain a lot about the pre-flood world as revealed in Genesis 1-6. No evolutionist would touch a book like this, showing their unscientific stubbornness to even acknowledge anything that would dare to challenge their own Darwinian orthodoxy.

Scientific Creationism by Henry Morris. A standard introduction to Creation Science. This is used in many Bible Colleges.

The Evolution Cruncher by Vance Farrell. Over 900 pages of devastating facts that disprove the myth of Darwinism once and for all. This is a necessary reference book for any Christian.

Cereghin’s Recommended Booklist…even more books

It’s been a few weeks since I did anything with this booklist so let me pick it up…

In Pursuit of Purity by David Beale. I identified with Biblical Fundamentalism from 1985 until a few years ago. With the weakening of the movement, the leavening effect by the so-called “Young Fundamentalists” and their fascination with neo-Calvinism and neo-evangelical preachers, a book like this is needed. Unlike George Dollar’s work on the history of Fundamentalism, Beale gets to the heart of the movement. Fundamentalism started as a trans-denominational holiness and prophetic movement after the Civil War. It was not until the liberals and modernists began flexing their muscles in the 1920s did Fundamentalism become “militant”. Beale gets to the heart of the movement, something Dollar and even George Marsden missed.

Scrivener’s Annotated Greek New Testament, published by the Dean Burgon Society. This is the exact Greek text that our English Received Text (the King James Version) is based on. It has a minimal critical apparatus but this isn’t designed for textual criticism. Every lover of the old Black-backed Book should have a Greek text like this. It is a shame that there is a proliferation of the corrupted critical texts. We need more copies of the true Greek text for our study.

Beyond the Cosmos by Hugh Ross. I do not agree with Ross’ “old-earth creationism” but this book is fascinating. Ross postulated that God is a multi-dimensional being, based on a variation of string theory, which would account for His power and omnipresence. I don’t know how right (or wrong) Ross is but this is a stimulating read and will get you thinking.

Holiness by J.C. Ryle. My friend, H.T. Spence, gave me a copy of this book and I certainly appreciated it. Ryle gives a good overview of sanctification and practical holiness. This book is certainly worth your time and money.

The Human Spirit, volumes I and II by O. Talmadge Spence. This was Dr. Spence’s last project before his death. Two volumes of the lost art of the theological discourse, a writing style that needs to be revived.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List VI…and more

A few books from my library by O. Talmadge Spence:

Rome: Crusade or Crucible?
Pentecostalism: Purity or Peril?
Charismatism: Awakening or Apostasy?
Satan: Sanctuary or System?

A quartet of necessary books on contemporary theology by the foremost Fundamentalist scholar of the 20th century (that’s not cheap praise, but I believe it is the truth!). The work on Satan is probably the most important as it prophesies the infusion of the occult into Christianity in the latter days. Spence, who grew up Pentecostal, was uniquely qualified to analyze its history and dangers. And with the contuining threat posed by the Church of Rome, the first book on this list should also be required reading for every remnant saint.

Confronting Contemporary Christian Music by H. T. Spence. If you could buy one book on Christian music, this would be the one. Many men have written against rock music or Christian Contemporary Music but Dr. Spence goes further by dealing with the philosophies that spawned these genres. IThis book certainly is a “Confrontation”. The “sacred cow” of Southern Gospel Music comes under the same examination and is found wanting. It is no secret that evangelicalism and Charismatism abandoned godly music decades ago, but the Fundamentalists are making up for lost time.

These books can be purchased from the bookstore of Foundations Bible College.

More books from my library to follow. I currently have Foundations on the brain as I just returned from the 27th annual Men’s Prayer Conference, with its 40 hours of prayer. I arrived late after an all-night drive and I fought drowsiness all day, but it was worth it, as it always was. My only lament is that there are not more such prayer conference around the country. We’ve had a few all night prayer meetings here at our church, but certainly not like they have in some Asian, Latin American or African churches, where their prayer life puts the average American church to shame.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List V

History of the Waldenses by J. A. Wylie. I have ancestors who were Waldensians in northern Italy, so histories like this are of especial importance to me.

The Anabaptist Story by William Estep. Baptists trace their roots through the old Swiss and German Anabaptist groups, so this is a good book to lay a foundation for the study of Baptist history. You also gain a greater appreciation of what the early Anabaptists had to struggle against in the Reformation period, as they were persecuted by both Catholics and Protestants.

This Day in Baptist History by E. Wayne Thompson and David Cummings. Devotional readings in Baptist History. They give info on many Baptist preachers that history has forgotten.

Two by George Marsden:
Fundamentalism and American Culture. A look at Fundamentalism up to 1925. An important study on the beginning years of the movement.
Reforming Fundamentalism: Fuller Seminary and the New Evangelicalism. An important study of post-war Fundamentalism and how it shifted to the softer, neo-evangelical version. The rise and fall of Fuller Seminary is also chronicled, and the impact it had on the Fundamentalism of the 1950s and 1960s.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List IV

More “must have” books from my library.

I recommend two books by Laurence Vance:
1. Archaic Words and the Authorized Version. A dictionary of “archaic” words from the King James Bible. Vance does a great job giving full definitions and etymologies, as well as showing that these so-called “archaic” words in the King James Bible aren’t really archaic at all.
2. The Other Side of Calvinism. An absolutely devastating evaluation of the many doctrinal errors involved in Calvinism. I wish these so-called “Young Fundamentalists” , who have a disturbing infatuation with Calvinism and contemporary Calvinistic preachers would read a book like Vance’s. I think Vance’s work is the best refutation of Calvinism on the market.

Revival and Revivalism by Iain Murray. Books on the Second Great Awakening (1797-1825) are rare so Murray’s history of this period fills a void. I was so impressed by this book I did my doctoral dissertation of the controversy between Asahel Nettleton and Charles Finney, which defined the latter end of the Second Great Awakening. Murray is one of the few writers willing to take on the myth of Charles Finney and reveal him as he truly was- a heretic.

Martyr’s Mirror by Thielman J. van Braght. The best historical account of the martyrs on the market. It concentrates on the Baptists and Anabaptist groups up to 1660. Books like this also remind us that Baptists were persecuted by both Catholics and Protestants during the Reformation, which makes us wonder why some Baptists want to refer to themselves as “Reformed”.

The Reformers and Their Stepchildren by Leonard Verduin. A classic. Verduin shows the dangers of State Churches and Establishments of religion. State churches (including ones set up by Calvin, Luther and Zwingle) persecute those who refuse to conform to the idea of “Christian sacralism” and they hinder religious freedom. The Baptist people, from the Donatists to the Mennonites fought against the state churches of their day and Verduin chronicles their heroic struggles. Again, “Reformed” and Calvinistic Baptists may want to do some re-evaluation of their identifications if they read this book. As one who identifies with the Anabaptist/Mennonite/Brethren side of the Baptist heritage, I can identify with the burden of this book, especially since some of my ancestors were Waldensians.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List III

Moving on from my commentaries, we now delve into the other parts of my library:

The Preacher and His Preaching by Alfred Gibbs. This my homiletics textbook while at Maryland Baptist Bible College. I think I like Gibbs’ book better than Spurgeon’s Lectures To My Students. I think Gibbs was associated with the Plymouth Brethren but this is a warm, friendly book on the preacher’s call and I have always appreciated it.

My favorite hymnals include:
Our Own Hymn Book, edited by Charles Spurgeon
The Psalms and Hymns of Isaac Watts
Olney Hymns by John Newton and William Cowper
Gadsby’s Hymns, edited by William Gadsby

You’ll notice these are all compilations of the old English hymns. I am not impressed by modern hymnody, Christian Contemporary Music or Southern Gospel Music. The real meat are in books like the ones listed above. This is a preventative for the shallow and carnal Christianity that plagues us today.

Morning Exercises and Evening Exercises by William Jay. Probably the deepest devotional books out there. These books are not for the “One Minute Devotions for Busy Housewives” crowd. It will take you a little longer than that to dig through Jay’s daily devotionals.

The Christian’s Daily Walk by Henry Scudder. Probably the most practical book ever written for the “how-to’s” of a daily walk with God.

Evidence that Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell. I have always appreciated McDowell’s apologetic works. He can make even complicated issues understandable and accessible.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List II

The Song of Solomon by O. Talmadge Spence. Not many commentators do the Song justice, since they do not approach it in the right spirit. But Dr. Spence does. I heard him preach through the book during my first summer at Foundations Theological Seminary in 1992 and that spurred me to do my own study on the book and write my own commentary on it. Dr. Spence recognizes that the Song is a picture of the relationship between Christ and the Believer, not merely some raunchy Middle Eastern love sonnet. Like others before him (Gill, McCheyne, Durham, Spurgeon), Dr. Spence takes the high road and gives us a important book on the heart of this divine relationship.

Zechariah by James Knox. Knox pastors the Bible Baptist Church in DeLand, Florida. He’s also written several other “Christ Honoring Commentaries” on Genesis, Jonah, Titus and Revelation (see here). I recommend the Zechariah book since there is so little material on this prophecy. I also have Knox’s commentary on Revelation, which is also worth your money.

The Gospel of Luke, Expository and Homiletical by W. H. Van Doren. I love this book! Not a traditional commentary but a thought-by-thought collection of sentence observations of the Gospel. Van Doren gives you the cream, but you have to churn your own butter. Another commentary in a similar style is Studies in Romans by Thomas Robinson, which is my favorite commentary on Romans. Both books are highly recommended!

James by Thomas Manton, Jude by Thomas Manton. I think Manton is my favorite Puritan. Both commentaries are full of deep things that will keep you busy for a long time. I also have all of Manton’s works on CD but I rather have them in book form (I only have the first volume of his works, money is an issue, you know!)

John Phillips Commentary Series. I’ve gone out of my way to collect all of Phillips’ commentaries (I’m just missing one or two now). Phillips gives lots of good insights and his outlines alone are worth the price of the books. I think his volume on Hebrews is his weakest effort, though.

Cereghin’s Recommended Book List- I

I like to look through my library from time to time and note books that I have accumulated over the past 23 years in preaching that I simply would not part with. I’m going to describe them from time to time here.

In my commentary section, my list of “highly recommended books” would include:

Foundations Bible Commentary on the Pentateuch by O. Talmadge Spence, founder of Foundations Bible College in Dunn, North Carolina. Dr. Spence was one of my seminary teachers and a man I highly respected. This commentary is 656 pages of small-print, double-columned divinity. Not a verse-by-verse treatment of the Five Books of Moses but Spence highlights the main topics in each chapter to varying degrees.

Tools of Dominion by Gary North. I know, North is a Calvinist and Christian Reconstructionist who is wrong on eschatology and who went nuts with his infamous posts on the Y2K scare, so you can save me the emails. I know all about him. But this book on Case Laws of Exodus is simply brilliant and worth a look. This is part of North’s unusual economic commentary of the Bible. This book goes over 1,000 pages. Anyway, North writes for lewrockwell.com, so he can’t be all bad, can he?

Notes on the Pentateuch by “CHM” or C.H. Mackintosh. I love the old Plymouth Brethren. Our debt to them is significant. Many were fine Bible scholars with a genuine heart for God. Mackintosh’s commentaries on the Pentateuch are deep and will do your soul good.

Treasury of David by Charles Spurgeon. What can I say about this set that hasn’t already been said? The real value here is how Spurgeon went deep into his library to pull our passages from writers of old. This is one of the few commentaries that I actually sit down and read like a book, instead of just “using.”

Proverbs by Charles Bridges. Bridges is good on just about everything he comments on, including his commentary on Psalm 119, which I also have.

The Bible Believer’s Commentary on Proverbs by Peter Ruckman. I suspect this would also generate some heated e-mails! Notwithstanding Ruckman’s “activities” and “unusual teachings” on some things (which I know all about, so again, save me the emails), his commentary on Proverbs may be his best work. It is full of practical wisdom from a pastor, not just a theologian locked up in his study all day. Ruckman’s other recommended work is his commentary on Acts.

You’ll notice as I go through this list that I recommend a rather eclectic choice of authors. The contributions from all quarters of the Body of Christ to our library of theological literature is not to be despised. Books by men whom you may not be in fellowship with (like North and Ruckman in my case) can still give you a blessing and be a great aid to you. If you restrict yourself to just your little theological group of writers (like Calvinists only reading books by other Calvinists), you will be the poorer for it.

More to come.