These books touched Christian leaders in 2024

Graham Coyle, UK

Chairman of the European Educators' Christian Association (EurECA)

Dreaming With God by Bill Johnson

I first read this book almost a decade ago and read it again this year. Having been involved with vision and action to bring transformation into areas of society for decades, in particular within education, this book brought fresh insight for me into how this was an expression of God’s heartfelt desires for His world.

If you want to explore how the Lord speaks to us through wisdom, imagination and creativity, I can recommend this book, which helped and encouraged me greatly.

Olof Edsinger, Sweden

General Secretary of the Swedish Evangelical Alliance

Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind by Tom Holland

At long last, I read this fascinating book, and despite its length (624 pages), I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone interested in the role of Christianity in what has come to be described as” The West”.

The book has already had a significant influence on many secular intellectuals, where increasing numbers seem to be turning to Christianity for answers.

Combine it with a more contemporary analysis like Morality: Restoring the Common Good in Divided Times by Jonathan Sachs, and you can look forward to a very productive reading experience!

Juhana Pohjola, Finland

Second bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland

Wonderfully made - A Protestant Theology of the Body by Dr. John W. Kleinig

I have enjoyed the Finnish translation of the marvelous book already published 2021: Wonderfully made - A Protestant Theology of the Body, by Dr. John W. Kleinig (Lexham Press).

The question of the human body and its value covers the whole of our life, from the womb to the tomb. This book, in an understandable and concrete way, helps us see the wonders of embodiment covering our human, spiritual, sexual and spousal life. God, Who became flesh in Christ Jesus, allows us to see the worthiness of our mind and body, which belong together.

We have a joyful message to share the gift and purpose of our body in a world that is driven by shame, idolatry, and disregard for the body. We are wonderfully made not only for this life but also for the next in bodily resurrection!

Meego Remmel, Estonia

Board Chair of the European Evangelistic Society

Disciplism: Reimagining Evangelism Through the Lens of Discipleship by Alan Hirsch

Alan Hirsch is verbalising some things I have considered for a long time. There is no need to divide our understanding of discipleship into two pieces: evangelism and disciple-making. Jesus never did that.

And as we have small kids, we begin to disciple them from the earliest possible stage of their development. If biblical mathetes means learning, then our call is a life-long learning to follow and make followers of Jesus.

Frits Rouvoet, the Netherlands

Director of Bright Fame Nederland

Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

Francine Rivers has written a great novel, ‘Redeeming Love’. Inspired by the biblical book of Hosea, in which Hosea was told by God to marry a prostitute. Hosea obeyed God and marries her. Redeeming Love tells the story of Angel. She hates men, and that is also the only way she can survive in a world of sex, violence and rejection.

In this book, we follow Michael Hosea and Angel. We read how, step by step, trust, acceptance and love grow, and there is victory in the end. Liberating Love has been translated into many languages. We often give this book away to women who have to work in prostitution in Amsterdam’s Red Light District.

Invariably, we then hear back how this story touches them, that every page is about them. Regularly reading this book has been important in their decision to stop working as prostitutes.

This novel is about God’s overwhelming love and the patience He has with us. It is certainly not just a book for women, and I would encourage men to read it, too.

God sent His Son into this world out of His amazing love for us and how patient He is with each one to accept that overwhelming love.

A book that also invites us to look differently at the people around us, to love them as God asks of us and to be patient and give that other person time during a process of change.

Steef de Bruijn, the Netherlands

Chief editor Reformatorisch Dagblad

Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of John by J.C. Ryle

What is the best book I read in 2024? I mostly read books with a spiritual message because they can ‘feed’ me the most: meditative books, church history, biographies or books with sermons and theological treatises. Often, these are books by authors from earlier centuries, and usually, I don’t read them immediately from beginning to end, and sometimes, I re-read them a year later.

When asked this question, I hesitated whether to mention Samuel Rutherford’s ‘Letters’, a book in which I have often read short sections. This year, I purchased Bishop J.C. Ryle’s "Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of John", and I now read a section from it almost daily. Ryle compared dozens of sources to write this commentary.

Every day, I marvel at the balanced explanations and practical lessons Ryle draws from this book of the Bible. Accessibly written, sometimes razor-sharp, often comforting and always enlightening. From the foreword: “Ignorance of Scripture is the root of every error in religion and the source of every heresy. In my opinion, it is the greatest honour a Christian can obtain if he is enabled to remove a few grains of ignorance and let a few rays of light fall on God’s precious Word.”

Kai Soltau, Austria

Church planter and Pastor at Christ Church Vienna

God’s Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards by John Piper

One of the most fascinating and beneficial books that I read this year as a pastor and theologian was John Piper’s “God’s Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards” (Crossway, 1998). Especially in reformed circles, we are all familiar with the first question and answer of the Westminster Shorter Catechism: “What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. “Few other books probably give a clearer explanation and make a better case for this truth than Piper’s God’s Passion for His Glory.

The second part of this book is Piper’s annotated edition of Jonathan Edwards’ stela, philosophical and theological work: The End for Which God Created the World, which Edwards wrote over 250 years ago. While Edwards is by many accounts the most profound reasoner and greatest theologian that America ever produced, much of his writing is, because of density and style to many of us today, inaccessible. But in God’s Passion for His Glory, Piper helps us as modern readers to understand, comprehend and access one of Edwards’ greatest works and illustrates the implications of Edwards’ theology for the 21st century by his own testimony of how Edwards has influences his life and ministry (part one of the book).

Reading Edwards’ own words after having been primed for them by Piper’s introduction and illustration, God’s Passion for His Glory turns out to be a book that gets better and better as you keep reading. The awe, joy, insight, and excitement about the thesis of this book literally climaxes on the last four pages of the book, as the reader arrives at Edwards’ answer to why God created the world: God has a disposition to emanate the fulness of his glory for his people to know, praise and enjoy. Then we read in the closing paragraph that this knowledge, praise and enjoyment in his people will increase for all eternity—” and yet there never will come the moment, when it can be said, that now this infinitely valuable good has been actually bestowed.”

Leonardo de Chirico

Pastor of the church, Breccia di Roma in Rome

Making Faith Magnetic: Five Hidden Themes Our Culture Can't Stop Talking About... And How to Connect Them to Christ by Daniel Strange

There are five fundamentals that all human beings are looking for and to which they are magnetically drawn because of their universal presence in people’s lives. According to Strange, each religion responds to these five questions in various ways. Their responses are points of attraction for people to be drawn to them. The questions are:

1. The search for totality: a way to connect to reality
2. The need for a norm: a way to live
3. The yearning for deliverance: a way out of oppression
4. The sense of destiny: a way to control
5. The reality of a higher power: a way to measure up to the supernatural

Religions suppress God’s truth and seek to substitute it with an alternative account, resulting in a messy combination of beliefs and practices. According to Strange, every religious conversation touches on one or more magnetic points. It is up to us to succeed in conveying the message of the Gospel by showing how the Good News is the right answer for relating to the world, living according to God’s will, being set free from sin, relying on divine benevolent providence, and living in the power of the Holy Spirit.

I found Strange’s book very helpful in giving me a tool to engage in meaningful gospel conversations with different people.

Igor Bandura

Pastor and Senior Vice-President of the Baptist Union of Ukraine

Brotherhood in Christ: Towards a Ukrainian Baptist Perspective on Associations of Churches by Dr Oleksandr Geychenko

I am recommending the book "Brotherhood in Christ: Towards a Ukrainian Baptist Perspective on Associations of Churches" by Dr Oleksandr Geychenko, the prominent Ukrainian theologian and rector of Odesa Theological Seminary. This book is one of the few books written by Ukrainians and published in English.

The book deals with important but not well-developed issues of “brotherhood”, which is important for our understanding of interchurch unity and cooperation. It helps to understand what Jesus meant when He was praying for the church's unity. This book is helpful to all who are navigating the life and the ministry of a local church in a predominantly individualistic mindset.

Kristina Ballova

Author for Die Tagespost, who writes about motherhood

The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman

Good and happy relationships are not only based on goodwill, but also on knowing and understanding the other person. When I know what my partner, but also my children or friends really long for, I will be able to give it to them.

In today's world, we are led to believe that we should only focus on ourselves and many behaviors are immediately labeled as toxic or old-fashioned. However, relationships and people are not black and white, but must first be recognized and understood in all their different facets. This classic and bestseller by Gary Chapman was an eye-opener and helped me in my personal relationships.

Akil and Linda Pano

Pastor couple from Albania

The Return of the Gods by Jonathan Cahn

We’d like to recommend The Return of the Gods by Jonathan Cahn as our favorite Christian book of this year.

Cahn's book offers an exploration of ancient spiritual forces and helps you understand the Biblical context on the modern culture and society. The book powerfully connects biblical prophecies to contemporary societal changes, encouraging believers to engage in spiritual discernment and renewal.

As we see through the challenges of 2024, we see increasing moral confusion, and spiritual unrest worldwide. Cahn’s message is so actual and urges the believers to stand firm in their faith, recognise these dynamics, and seek God as the ultimate solution.

The book is both eye-opening and deeply rooted in scripture, making it a timely call for repentance and a return to God amidst today’s challenges.

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