GOOD READS Books for Global Partners by ROB QUIRING


Each year the Fellowship of Evangelical Bible Churches gives the gift of reading to our global partners sent by our churches to cross-cultural ministry in various


nations. Along with a gift card, the Commission on Global Partnership suggests several titles to strengthen their vision for ministry as options for ordering their books whether in electronic or traditional codex format (depend- ing on accessibility in their countries of service). We offer these as suggestions for your own reading.


Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and


Sufferers by Dane Ortlund Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2020. This book is about the heart of Christ. It will not


reveal anything that you do not already know about Jesus, but your heart will hear the tender voice of Matthew 11:29 speaking His love for you again. Probably the introduction puts it best,


“Tis book is written for the discouraged, the


frustrated, the weary, the disenchanted, the cynical, the empty. Tose running on fumes. Tose whose Chris- tian lives feel like constantly running up a descending escalator. Tose of us who find ourselves thinking: 'How could I mess up that bad—again?' It is for that increasing suspicion that God’s patience with us is wearing thin. For those of us who know God loves us but suspect we have deeply disappointed him.” At one time or another, that description fits most of


us, making this a fruitful book for all. Ortlund will introduce you to many voices from the


Puritan movement who may be unfamiliar. Thomas Good- win’s "The Heart of Christ" (from 1651) is one author he cites from extensively (and may move you to seek out Goodwin’s work for yourself). Richard Sibbes, John Bunyan, and John Flavel are other theologians cited, but the core of Ortlund’s message is a presentation of what Scripture says about the heart of our Savior for us and for the world. His insights will give refreshing focus to your own study of Scripture.


Dane Ortlund serves as a pastor in Naperville, Illinois.


He earned a PhD from Wheaton College and is an editor for theKnowing the Bible series and the Short Studies in Biblical Theology series. He is the author of several books, includingGentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers. He lives with his wife, Stacey, and their five children in Naperville, Illinois.


Reading While Black by Esau McCaulley, Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2020.


This book was a journey in cross-cultural under-


standing and deepening biblical insight. Seeing the world through another’s eyes cultivates both empathy and self-understanding. McCaulley frames his perspective on African American biblical interpretation as an exercise in hope through his personal narrative of home, schooling, and academic journeys.


He addresses current issues within a biblical context,


allowing the reader to consider such questions as “How has the community in which you were raised both helped and hindered your interpretation of the Bible?,” “How has the multiethnic vision of the Bible shaped your church context?,” “What does it mean for each culture to offer its distinctive gifts to God?” and “Have you ever been angry or disappointed with the church? — What kind of resources have you turned to?.” His personal story reflects cultural realities of the United States today.


His careful reading of the biblical text shines a


brighter light on many passages that help us understand the heart of the Lord for all His people. He points to the familiar story of the blessing of the sons of Joseph:


“Meeting these two half-Egyptian, half-Jewish boys


causes Jacob to recall the promise that God made him many years ago … Jacob sees the brown flesh and African origin of these boys as the beginning of God’s fulfillment to make Jacob a community of different nations and ethnicities, and for that reason he claims these two boys as his own” (101-102). This begins the trajectory of Scripture that culminates


in the vision of Revelation 7: “It includes people from every nation, tribe, people and language. Each in its own way highlights diversity. These distinct peoples, cultures, and languages are eschatological, everlasting. At the end we do not find the elimination of difference. Instead the very diversity of cultures is a manifestation of God’s glory (118).


Esau McCaulley teaches as assistant professor of New


Testament at Wheaton College in Illinois. He regularly contributes articles to Christianity Today, the Washington Post, and the New York Times. He and his wife Mandy, a Navy medical officer, raise four children together in Whea- ton, Illinois.


Rob Quiring taught high school English for more than 30


years at the Alliance Academy International in Quito, Ecuador, under the auspices of Reach Beyond (formerly known as HCJB World Radio). He works with Share English, an English con- versation project for language learners. He serves on the FEBC Commission for Global Partnerships.


FELLOWSHIP FOCUS, DECEMBER 2021/JANUARY 2022 14


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