Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross

This book comes out well before Easter to make sure that you are able to buy it, study it and then teach its truths to others as Easter comes about. The book is laid out to have 25 short teachings and thoughts on the cross of Christ. It has most theologians that you can think of in the Reformed and Calvinistic circles and then also includes at least one I know that wasn't a Calvinist (Adrian Rogers). Most of the chapters are about 3 to 4 pages which include many different angles to look at the cross. The topics range from Christ's humility in Gethsemane, silence among his accusers, our sin putting him on the cross, propitiation, forsaken by God, etc. I am not going to list every theologian and every topic, but I will say that this book is a very good one to help someone as they study further on the cross of Christ. This book is a book of quotable thoughts for any pastor.

Some of my favorites were Martin Luther, C.J. Mahaney, Tim Keller, Adrian Rogers and Augustine. Martin Luther is first up in the book, and in my opinion, it didn't get any better than Luther. I really enjoyed his chapter and found myself continually reading because of his start of the understanding of the "True Contemplation of the Cross." Here is an excerpt from Luther's chapter:

Take this to heart and doubt not that you are the one who killed Christ. Your sins certainly did, and when you see the nails driven through his hands, be sure that you are pounding, and when the thorns pierce his brow, know that they are your evil thoughts. Consider that if one thorn pierced Christ you deserve one hundred thousand.

The whole value of the meditation of the suffering of Christ lies in this, that man should come to the knowledge of himself and sink and tremble. If you are so hardened that you do not tremble, then you have reason to tremble. Pray to God that he may soften your heart and make fruitful your meditation upon the suffering of Christ, for we ourselves are incapable of proper reflection unless God instills it.

But if one does meditate rightly on the suffering of Christ for a day, an hour, or even a quarter of an hour, this we may confidently say is better than a whole year of fasting, days of psalm singing, yes, than even one hundred masses, because this reflection changes the whole man and makes him new…

Martin Luther, p. 12 (taken from Martin Luther's Easter Book)

Although there were some that stood out, there were also some where I couldn't wait to read and they seemed to fall a little flat. Not only tha, there were some that were just plain bizarre where I will either need to study further or just glaze over for the sake of the other chapters. The odd ones were John MacArthur's take on Christ's forgiveness on the cross. He believes that Christ was only asking for the forgiveness of those who would end up believing in Him and not everyone that was at the cross crucifying him. I believe he ends up making his theology read into this part of Scripture a little too much. The other two that I will have to study a little further were J.I. Packer's on Christ descending to hell and also Joseph "Skip" Ryan's chapter on Christ being thirsty. He takes this to mean that Christ was spiritually thirsty and not physically. My first take is that he is trying to stretch this text further than it allows.

Even with these three, the other 22 chapters far outweigh them to keep me from recommending this book. I would recommend this to any who would like a good understanding of the cross from a wide set of generations, convictions and theologians. Just know, that it doesn't get better than Luther's chapter, but that doesn't mean the rest of the book gets "worse." Highly Recommended
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Crossway

Westminster Books

Humility: True Greatness

I haven't wanted to read this book for the mere fact that I am selfish and didn't want to be that convicted of my prideful attitudes. It wasn't until one of my elders read the book and told me what impact it had on his thoughts and attitudes of his daily walk, that I decided to pick up the small, but towering book of truth.

CJ Mahaney has put together a very strong book that seems to come from the outworking of his previous works which focus on Christ and His cross. This seems as though it is the natural outflow of his writings on "Christ our Mediator" and also "The Cross Centered Life." CJ comes to this conclusion and outworking by writing the book "Humility: True Greatness."

The book is broken into three parts:

Part I: Our Greatest Friend, Our Greatest Enemy: The Battle of Humility Versus Pride

In this part CJ comes out and helps define what humility is and what pride is. He then walks through the implications, promises and perils of both.

Part II: The Great Reversal: Our Saviour and the Secret of True Greatness

This is classic Mahaney. Pointing us back to our Saviour. It is as although he has "defined" humility and pride in the first part he cannot truly define humility without coming back to the Saviour and the cross. Mahaney shows some ways that the Christ shows humility to his disciples in Mark 10 and also through the great redemptive plan in the cross. This is where you start to simply understand your need of humility to truly walk in the ways of Christ and this is where I started to ask, "give me some ways to understand this practically" and that is what Mahaney delivers in the third part of the book.

Part III: Our Great Pursuit: The Practice of True Humility

Mahaney really lays out some great practical ways to come to an understanding of humility in our lives and ways to see the pride in them as well. He lists out for most of the book, as this is by far the longest part, practical ways to be humble and ways to continually point out prideful parts in our lives.

All in all, this is a very hard book practically to read, as I have found all of Mahaney's books to be, but very easy for any layman to pick up and walk through. Very challenging without being a cry from the high towers of holiness as this book is read and written through the eyes of someone you feel is having the very same struggles you are in the subject that is being written, yet someone who has much knowledge to share on how to "accomplish" the set thesis.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who needs to understand this subject, and if you feel you don't need to understand this subject...you really need to read this book, cause you are missing the point...

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Living the Cross Centered Life

This book is truly a great one as C.J. Mahaney brings it all back to the cross. A lot of this book includes previous works, "The Cross Centered Life" and "Christ Our Mediator." I also had just listened to C.J.'s sermon from the 2005 Resolved Conference called "Interrogating the Legalist Within" so most of this was review. But if you have yet to read or listen to these, please pick this little book up, you will not be disappointed.

C.J. continues to bring out the cross in everything in this dissertation of the cross centered life. C.J. goes into understanding the cross in defining our lives, feelings (experience), God's love, Gethsemane, our part in the cross (sin), our suffering, legalism, condemnation (with much more) and then just the practical application.

C.J. gives five practical ways to live a cross centered life:

1. Memorize the Gospel: Memorize those scriptures that remind us of the gospel (2 Cor 5:21; Romans 8:31-34; Isaiah 53:3-6)

2. Pray the Gospel: Since the Gospel is the reason we can approach such a holy God, continue to pray the Gospel as a reminder of why you can speak to such an awesome God.

3. Sing the Gospel: Find songs and CD's whose focus in on the great and glorious Gospel and not on man. Those songs that concentrate on what He has done for us.

4. Review How the Gospel Has Changed You: Looking to your past, not for condemnation's sake, but for the reminder of mercy and grace

5. Study the Gospel: Don't only study books on the Gospel or only on the New Testament, but study the Old Testament and see Christ's fulfillment of It. Making sure that our studies don't leave the Gospel behind but builds itself upon It.

I would really recommend this to any and all Christians. Great reminders of how the Cross should impact our lives and how it has freed us from condemnation and the errors of legalism. Link to Buy

Christ Our Mediator: Finding Passion at the Cross

This little book is a very powerful one. The book is summed up in one of C.J. Mahaney's quotes when asked by a Starbuck's barista, "How are you doing?" C.J.'s response? "Better than I deserve." This quote is the essence of this book. C.J.'s focus is entirely on the cross and what Christ went through spiritually as He prayed in the garden and left alone and forsaken on the cross.

C.J. hammers home the point of quite the opposite of what is usually focused on: Christ's physical suffering to refocusing us on Christ's spiritual suffering. C.J. then applies this to the reader's suffering in life, joy and proclamation of the Gospel.

There is absolutely no fluff in this book, it keeps coming straight at you over and over again. One quote I absolutely loved is:

If one were to weigh their suffering in this life, their sin would far outweigh it.

C.J.'s point is that when we go through suffering we should not focus on ourselves but in the redemption and suffering at the cross.

I whole heartily recommend this book to all. Return to the cross. Link to Buy