5 books I’m reading this summer

Guest post by Aaron Armstrong

Summertime is now upon us; for many of us, this means something very important: the opportunity to take time off work! One of the ways I recharge is to spend time reading. Here are five books I'm planning to read this summer:

Kingdom Come by Sam Storms

This one is probably going to be my big "plugging away a bit at a time" read:

The second coming of Christ is a matter of sharp disagreement amongst Christians. Many hold to premillennialism: that Christ's return will be followed by 1,000 years before the final judgement, a belief popularised in the popular Left Behind novels. However, premillennialism is not the only option for Christians. In this important new book, Sam Storms provides a biblical rationale for amillennialism; the belief that 1,000 years mentioned in the book of Revelation is symbolic with the emphasis being the King and his Kingdom.

Buy it at: Amazon | Westminster Books

What Every Christian Needs to Know about the Qur'an by James R. White

What used to be an exotic religion of people halfway around the world is now the belief system of people living across the street. Through fair, contextual use of the Qur'an as the primary source text, apologist James R. White presents Islamic beliefs about Christ, salvation, the Trinity, the afterlife, and other important topics. White shows how the sacred text of Islam differs from the teachings of the Bible in order to help Christians engage in open, honest discussions with Muslims.

Buy it at: Amazon

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

I grew up watching the film based upon this book, so I think it's high-time I actually read it:

Anyone who lived through the 1980s may find it impossible—inconceivable, even—to equate The Princess Bride with anything other than the sweet, celluloid romance of Westley and Buttercup, but the film is only a fraction of the ingenious storytelling you'll find in these pages. Rich in character and satire, the novel is set in 1941 and framed cleverly as an “abridged” retelling of a centuries-old tale set in the fabled country of Florin that's home to “Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death. Brave men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passions.”

Buy it at: Amazon

The Doctrine of Sin by Iain D. Campbell 

This is one of the last books I need to complete for my systematic theology certificate:

Modern theology reveres the names of Karl Barth, Rudolf Bultmann and Emil Brunner, hailed as the heroes of a new, modern and re-stated Reformation theology - a new orthodoxy for a new age.

In this book, Iain D. Campbell focuses on one doctrine - the doctrine of sin - and views it first in its biblical perspective, and then considers the perspective of the Reformers and Puritans. He compares and contrasts their approach with that of Barth, Bultmann and Brunner. He also shows how the modern theologies have evacuated the Evangel of its power and saving influence by reducing the sin of man to little more than personal dysfunction.

The Gospel is shown to be the power of God to salvation, because there is an emphasis on sin as objective and factual, leaving people in need of the saving work of Jesus Christ. The new orthodoxy is shown to be not a re-statement of the Gospel, but, as Paul reminded his readers long ago, 'a different gospel'.

Buy it at: Amazon | Westminster Books

Letters and Life: On Being a Writer, On Being a Christian by Bret Lott

All serious writers know that each word they write reveals something significant about their beliefs, something about their reason for creating, something about the one for whom they write. After all, writing lays bare the soul.

Yet the work of a Christian artist is often pressured to fit into a popular mold, oftentimes forgoing quality for the sake of convenience or acceptance, or even simply because of a lack of the bravery necessary to look square in the eye the world, and to do so with the unflinching eye of Christ.

In this series of intimate reflections on life and writing, critically acclaimed and best-selling novelist Bret Lott calls authors to pursue excellence in their craft through five fascinating essays and an extended memoir that explore everything from the importance of literary fiction to the pain of personal loss.

Learn here what it means to be a writer who navigates the tension inherent to being a Christian in the public square—and to being an artist made in the image of God.

Buy it at: Amazon

Those are the primary books I'm planning to read this summer (there may be others that come up). What are you hoping to read during the next couple months?