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#buildyourbookshelf

As we seek to grow in our walk with Christ, we want to take advantage of the many resources the Lord has made available to us. This is to help strengthen our walk, and to increase our love for the Lord and His word. Below are essential items that every believer should have on their bookshelf.

These Bibles are designed to give many helpful resources all in one volume. They will often include themes of each book, commentary on key verses in each chapter, and other helpful items such as maps, concordances and historical, geographical or cultural background. Below are three that we would recommend:

The Macarthur Study Bible
The Evidence Study Bible
The ESV Study Bible


The 

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We need to learn from those who have gone before us, especially when it comes to maturing in our relationship with God. Every aspect of our lives should be impacted by being in Christ (Rom 12:1-2). Here are some options. Any of these books will feed your soul well (fyi: each book below increases in its challenge regarding length and content): 

The Pursuit of Holiness (Jerry Bridges)
Spiritual Discipleship (J. Oswald Sanders)
Practical Religion (JC Ryle)

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These books cover the 10 main categories of Theology and catalogue what the Bible teaches about each subject; Theology Proper (God the Father), Christology (Christ), Pneumatology (the Spirit), Hamartiology (Sin), Soteriology (Salvation), Anthropology (Man), Ecclesiology (The Church), Eschatology (End Times), Bibliology (The Scriptures) and Angelology (Angels).

Everyone is a theologian. It's a matter of whether our theology is biblical and accurate. These resources are a great help to get our arms around these topics in an organized way. Either of these two books will serve you well:


Biblical Doctrine (Macarthur/Mayhue)
Systematic Theology (Grudem)

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The Lord has commanded us to always be "ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you" (1 Peter 3:15). As our love for Christ grows, our concern for the lost should increase as well. But as we share the Gospel, there will be legitimate questions that people have as they wrestle with their own worldview. It will take intentional effort for us to be prepared to answer these inquiries when they come. Koukl, in this excellent work, has provided a practical guide of how to engage with others in substantive, Christ-centered conversations. This book will be a great encouragement to you. 

Tactics (Greg Koukl)

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This is an indispensable resource to learn what other religions believe and teach about Christ, sin, the way to heaven, the Scriptures, etc. A very helpful volume to understand the spiritual culture/context of the person with whom you are sharing the Gospel. It also provides many practical helps of how to point them to the truth of the Bible. 

The Kingdom of the Cults (Walter Martin)

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Choose a hero of the faith, and read how they navigated the things of life for the honor of Christ. You will find it full of encouragement and practical application. If you need a good one to start with, I recommend JC Ryle. This book is a collection of letters he wrote to his children in his later years of life to provide them with a family history. A fascinating read. Warm and personal from the heart of a man who pastored for many years. 

Bishop JC Ryle's Autobiography (Andrew Atherstone)

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