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The book we need to make sure we are gleaning the most from is the Bible... And now for something completely significant and different! The following article from Crossway Blog is so impactful that I think I will just leave you to read it and soak in the immense thought of what God almost 6 centuries ago with His Word! Sure, it has to with books and sure, now we have electronics or e-books (a library on an single ipad or phone), but it all started with this first invention, which gave us the Bible in a new and unique fashion! This should help us to appreciate that the Lord has fulfilled and continues to fulfill His promise to preserve His Word forever (Isaiah 30:8) https://www.crossway.org/.../the-invention-that-changed.../ Blessings! 
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There is no substitute for reading the greatest of all books, the Bible, as it is the only Book which the Author of it is always present with us when we read it. Hebrews 4:12 tells us just how living and active it is in our life. So as the Spurgeon quote tells us, we can visit many great books but must live in the Bible. The word "gleaning" is the idea of extracting information from various sources. Its synonyms are obtain, get, draw and derive. I will try to provide help to us to glean well some great books and with that perhaps the "4-i's": Insight, Inspiration, influence and Impact of the books I highlight them. May it all be to His glory and to the benefit and encouragement we need! https://www.amazon.com/Assura.../dp/1433540517/ref=sr_1_1... Here is an inaugural post on a favorite book by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, "The Assurance of our Salvation: Exploration the Depth of Jesus' Prayer for His Own". This in-depth commentary on Christ's true prayer for us before the Father in John 17, we glean some awesome insights into His will and prayers for His followers. As it is stated in chapter 1, "It is customary for us to refer to the prayer which we find recorded in the Sermon on the Mount and in Luke 11 as the Lord's Prayer; but in reality, of course, that was the prayer which he gave as a kind of model to his disciples and to others, whereas here we have what can truly be called our Lord's own prayer, for here we find him praying his own personal prayer to the Father." True to Lloyd-Jones' desire to go into the depths of these passages in John 17, we can glean great explanations of doctrine, life principles and promises for living the life of faith and witness of Christ's gospel. May we learn and live well to the Father's glory! These are also available online at MLJ Trust as sermons. Blessings  The following review of an awesome book is brought to us from Tim Challies and although it is now 17 years old (posted in 2006), the truths in this book are rather timeless since the the great work of the gospel is for all ages and everywhere. https://www.challies.com/.../the-great-work-of-the-gospel/ Tim Challies reviews John Ensor's book "The Great Work of the Gospel", which holds a precious place in my heart and mind as it was the book we used in the inaugural launch of a community group, which we were glad to co-lead, not too many years after this book was published. I hope you will take time to get and read this book and benefit from Ensor's insights! Blessings!  One of the books that had such an impact and influence on my own Christian faith was "Who Moved the Stone" by Frank Morison (a pseudonym). As the following review states, the appeal of the book is that it doesn't try to be so theological, but more as a presentation of the evidence from the main sources related the verifiable events and characters as well as related to Christ and His Resurrection. I especially like some of the things the author examines related to seemingly superficial things, which really are not (ie: The Book that Refused to be Written and The Historic Crux of the Problem). I especially enjoyed seeing the author's life changed by the real evidence, which reminds me of my own story to a large degree. The Lord used the author's skepticism and goal to refute and prove the Resurrection false and in the end the facts led him to salvation in Christ! https://londongrip.co.uk/2015/03/who-moved-the-stone/... The reading of older books more than the newer is a good habit to form and practice. Blessings!  There are several studies of doctrine that I focus on in my reading schedule and one which is high on my list is related to the Atonement , the Cross and the Blood of Christ. Some of my favorites for this study, which I am plodding through and taken notes, are "The Atonement" by A.W. Pink, "Pierced for Our Transgressions", by Jeffery, Ovey and Sach, "Where Wrath and Mercy Meet", by David Peterson, and "Calvin and the Atonement", by Robert A. Peterson. https://www.challies.com/book-reviews/blood-work/ All of these are excellent in their own right and I highly recommend them. But, today I want to highlight "Blood Work: How the Blood of Christ Accomplishes Our Salvation", by Anthony Carter. I found this review by Tim Challies, which is extremely helpful in helping us understand and appreciate this subject about salvation and the blood of our Lord and its significance. Blessings!  Gleaning from great books oftentimes requires journeys which can take much time and require much pondering and contemplation. That’s ok because we know the Lord is using each and every reading session to broaden our biblical horizon. Presently, I am reading a massive systematic theology which clearly I hope will be useful to close gaps in my learning, my understanding and hopefully from which I will glean wisdom. This book is called “Israelology: This Missing Link in Systematic Theology” by Dr. Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum of Ariel Ministries. This link provides us with an excellent short review of this great book which I am plodding slowly through and excited to be doing so. Blessings!  |
Robert Thomas Clark,
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