Which Writer(s), Whether Past or Present, has/have Impacted Your Ministry the most?

The single most important influence on my theological thinking was Eric Charles Rust. That he was my father-in-law is of course a determining factor, but even if he had not been, I think that I would have learned more from his fourteen books than from almost any other body of writing I can think of.

His most important earlier works were The Christian Understanding of History and Nature and Man in Biblical Thought, both published in England in the late 1940's. My wife remembers seeing him scribble on ... History in the bomb shelter in Birmingham! These were rethought and rewritten as new publications in the US -- Toward a Theological Understanding of History and Science and Faith.

As he struggled with modern currents of thought, he produced Evolutionary Philosophies and Contemporary Theology, Positive Religion in a Revolutionary Time, and volume on preaching, The Word and Words. In many ways his magnum opus was Religion, Revelation and Reason.

And then there were Biblical materials as well -- I love using Covenant and Hope as a summary of the prophets' message.

Well, enough of family-related hagiography. But I can tell you that although he has been deceased more than 15 years, he is a factor in my thinking even today.

 

That is only about the 90th time someone has joked about my name! You can imagine what reaction the Mormon missionaries have when they visit my home, and I tell them my name and then what I do. After that we can get into the REAL discussion!

 

1. C. H. Mackintosh
2. William R. Newell
3. Alva J. Mc Clain
4. John Walvoord
5. John R. Rice
6. Oliver B. Green
7. Dwight Pentecost
8. J. Vernon McGee
9. John Phillips
10. H.A, Ironside
11. A. W. Tozer
12. Adolph Saphir
13. David Baron

The above would be my top 13 as of today.

 

There is no question that most of us can list the famous preachers and writers. Frankly, I was more influenced by lives than books. The one book that impressed me beyond measure is, Who Moved the Stone by Frank Morrison (1930). I first read this book in 1945. It is about the resurrection of Jesus. He was not a famous preacher. He was a reporter for a London (England) newspaper. He set out to disprove the resurrection of Christ and returned a believer. I learned that reason can be an instrument of truth, and I learned that key to my life would be the fact that Jesus did escape the tomb and He lives.

Whilst the story of Jim Elliot and four other missionaries, killed in Ecuador by the Aucas, is awe inspiring, I was more taken by the story of Rachel Saint (sister to killed Nate Saint) and Betty Elliot (wife to Jim Elliot) returning to those same people just three years later. It is what gave me a new passion for souls and for missions, whether it be foreign or home.

It must be noted that there are some who have never authored a book, but inspired many books to be written and changed lives forever. Jesus. May our lives be a living book.

Cheers,

Jim

 

Thanks for mentioning that. I had forgotten that one. My youth pastor gave me that book when I was wrestling with the factual nature of the Bible. It was a real help.

 

Decision Making and the Will of God by Garry Friesen

In my early to mid 20's I read "Decision Making and the Will of God" by Garry Friesen. Absolutely the most influential single book in my spiritual life.

The Integrity of God by R.B. Thieme was also incredibly influential.

 

More That I had Forgotten To Mention

In no particular order .

Walter Martin , Douglas Kelly , Mark Noll , George Marsden , F.F.Bruce , Gleason Archer , Walter Kaiser , Henry Kersten , Richard Gaffin , John Newton , Richard Belcher , Darrell Bock , Robert Morrey , Machen , J.A. Alexander , Os Guiness , Gordon Fee , Derek Kidner , George Knight etc. My library is scattered from here to Timbuktu . I can't remember all my books .

 

I started out with Clarence Larkin, John Walvoord, J. Dwight Pentecost, Lehman Strauss, Charles Ryrie, Arthur Pink, J. Vernon McGee and Warren Wiersbe. Recently I'm been enjoying Wayne Grudem, Henry Thiessen, R. Kent Hughes, Charles Swindoll, and a few of the more modern theologians. I hope to get into some of the older theologians as time permits.