Today I'm adding Big truths for young hearts by Bruce Ware to the Master Reading List under the category of Beginner Theology (Available from Amazon).
If you want to study systematic theology then you have a number of options available to you. Most people should own a good major systematic theology that they can consult by authors such as Berkhof, Bavinck, Reymond and Grudem. But to pick up one of those tomes and work your way through it can be daunting - I'm yet to read one cover to cover. Usually they are consulted as reference works; you use them to look up answers to particular questions.
So what do you read if you want a good introduction to the major doctrines of the Christian faith? I would recommend Ware's book 'Big truths for young hearts'. The book comprises nine chapters on all the essential doctrines:
(i) God's word and God's own life as God;
(ii) God as three in one;
(iii) Creator and rule of all;
(iv) Our human nature and our sin;
(v) Who Jesus is;
(vi) The work that Jesus has done;
(vii) The Holy Spirit;
(viii) Our great salvation;
(ix) The church of Jesus Christ.
Each chapter is then divided into smaller sections which are closed with questions and suggested memory verses.
The reason I like it as an introductory text is because it is a systematic theology designed for children. Why would I then be recommending it for adults? Because theology scares most people. And rightly so - after all we're not God and so it makes sense that it is hard for humans to get their heads around God. But Ware's "kid's" book is not difficult - in fact it is enjoyable to read, rather than painful. The language is simple, the illustrations are easy to grasp and all the core doctrines are covered.
If you're trying to understand the big truths of Christianity and can humble yourself enough that you're willing to profit from a child's book, then Ware's book is a good first stop.
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