Book Reviews 2020 for Koorong

My Book Review Contributions on Koorong Books webpage continued...

#3.

Counterfeit Gods: When the Empty Promises of Love, Money, and Power Let You Down
Author:  Timothy Keller

Highly relevant and crucial reading
By Emil, 29 Feb 2020

https://koorong.com/product/counterfeit-gods-when-the-empty-promises-of-love_9780340995082

What I love about this book is that it actually identifies and dismantles our inherently acute conditions. Generally speaking, more obvious idols are money, sex, and power. But Tim Keller fleshed the idea out from biblical perspective that the idolatry enslaves and distorts our lives like the culture of greed that eats away at our souls and brings down economic collapse. Idolatry is not just a failure to obey God but a setting of the whole heart to replace God with the idols even when it sounds positive like family, work, career. Tim also advised how to replace our counterfeit gods, i.e. that Jesus must become more beautiful to your imagination, more attractive to your heart than your idols. Rich of relevant quotations from Jesus Himself and influential thinkers like Martin Luther, C.S.Lewis, R.Niebuhr, he wraps all his messages around the real life stories from the Bible and modern times like WW II and the GFC 2008. For all intents and purposes, this book is highly readable and crucial to every serious Christian at each stage.

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#4.

The Great Gain of Godliness
Author:  Thomas Watson

A must Puritan reading
 By Emil J., Mar 12 2020

https://koorong.com/product/the-great-gain-of-godliness-puritan-paperbacks-series_9781800403093

In the midst of such degenerate era as this where being godly, pious, or even just the word religious could become a source of mockery, The Great Gain of Godliness advised Christians to be like a living fish swimming against the stream. Not a dead fish down the stream. Thomas Watson reminds us in this book: "The looser others are, the stricter we should be. The more outrageous others are in sin, the more courageous we should be for truth." For those longing to be an upright person who shines in the dark and holds fast his/her integrity (Psalm 37:37), I would highly recommend this compact-sized book which could serve like a sanctuary that keeps ourselves pure in a time of common infection.

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#5. [unrecorded / deleted by Koorong]

Most likely one authored by Ravi Zacharias

#6.

ANGELS

Author: Billy Graham

Spiritually Comforting
By Emil Jayaputra, 25 Jun 2020

https://koorong.com/product/angels-billy-graham_9780849938719

For some reason I have long been inquisitive to learn more about angels as this topic is not usually discussed in depth in sermons or daily talk. This book called "Angels (Ringing Assurance that We Are Not Alone)" is fit for its purpose as it quenches my thirst for many aspects of these ministering spirits. Plus it was written by Billy Graham, possibly the most prominent and influential Christian preachers in 20th century. The book assures me of angelic protection over God's children in times of hardship and danger. (Read the strange Christian bookroom incident as told by Dr. Nelson Bell, Dr. Graham's father-in-law, in 1942 in Shanghai China in one morning that lasted for two hours to be "enchanted".) Dr. Graham wrote some people strongly believe that each Christian may have their own guardian angel which possibly begins in infancy according to Jesus in Matthew 18:10. It also offers great comfort reading numerous accounts of heavenly escort of angels when believers cross that thin veil (death) from natural world to spiritual world... into the presence of the Lord. Needless to say, I highly recommend this book to my fellow believers especially those who, due to this ongoing pandemic COVID-19, are sick or dying, under economic/mental pressure of everyday living, or frustrated by events of present challenges. Thank God for the ministry of His blessed angels.
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