Expert Reading List

The books that have most influenced Bob DeWaay:

1. No Place for Truth; David Wells, Eerdmans, 1993. This book confronts the trends in the evangelical movement that have so damaged our ability to confront the culture. I was in seminary when I first read the book and could see how profoundly Wells identified the key issues. Event since 1993 such as the arrival of the Emergent Church, have proven Wells to be prophetic.
2. The Bondage of the Will, Martin Luther. When I first read this book 20 years ago, it opened my eyes to the doctrines of grace. Providentially, when I was reading Luther, I was also teaching verse by verse through Romans. Between Luther and Paul, I was cured of Arminianism once for all.
3. Faith Works - The Gospel According to the Apostles (Word, 1993) John F. MacArthur, Jr. MacArthur deals with many key issues of the gospel and Christian life while refuting the easy believism teaching. I have used this book to help disciple new Christians so that they gain a solid understanding of Christian theology before they can be misled by the popular evangelical culture. The chapter on assurance of salvation is fabulous.
4. A Careful and Strict Enquiry into the Modern Prevailing Notions of that Freedom of Will which is supposed to be essential to Moral Agency, Virtue and Vice, Reward and Punishment, Praise and Blame. Jonathan Edwards. Edwards is at his brilliant best in this work. It is laborious reading but contains profound arguments that have never been refuted. To help me understand his reasoning, I often reconstructed his logic on a separate piece of paper. After digesting this work, I was much better equipped to refute Arminians and open Theists.
5. The Gospel of Mark in The New International Commentary on the New Testament; William L. Lane. I preached through the Gospel of Mark using several commentaries, but Lane's is superb. The reason this work was so influential for me is that while preaching through Mark I was simultaneously blessed to sit under the teaching of the late Dr. Donald J. Verseput. Between Verseput and Lane my ability to interpret narrative through understanding authorial intent blossomed. By God's grace, my preaching and Biblical interpretation have been permanently improved as the result.
6. Hebrews Vol. 1 & 2 in Word Biblical Commentary; William L. Lane. I have been teaching through Hebrews in our adult Bible class for the last three years. Lane's insights into the book are nothing short of brilliant. What I have learned from Hebrews is directly applicable to fighting the mysticism and apostasy that are characteristic of our current age. Lane's commentary on Hebrews is outstanding.
7. Hard to Believe - The High Cost and Infinite Value of Following Jesus; John F. MacArthur (Nelson, 2003). This book is a profound description of the gospel and its claims. MacArthur has helped me in more ways than one to stay gospel-centric in my ministry. This book was a great encouragement to that end.
8. Whatever Happened to the Gospel of Grace, (Crossway, 2001) James Montgomery Boice. Boice, writing just before he departed this life for his eternal reward, explains the solas of the Reformation with the heart of a godly pastor. I have urged the members of our congregation to read this book in order to be grounded in sound Reformation theology. The story of the church in Philadelphia that Boice pastored is inspiring as well. It shows that a congregation can be true to the gospel over many generations.
9. Escape From Reason; The God Who is There; He is There and He is Not Silent; Francis A. Schaeffer. Though I first read these books separately in the 1970's; they are now available published as a single volume trilogy. Each decade I have found a new reason to re-read these books. I recently published an article showing how Schaeffer predicted and rebuked post-modern spirituality before it even had a name. These books are still timely.
10. The Epistle to the Romans; Leon Morris (Eerdmans, 1988). Morris' commentary came out when I was in the midst of teaching through Romans for the first time (a several year process). I had 5 commentaries I was consulting, but Morris instantly became my favorite. I like how he follows the text of Romans and does not read ideas into Paul's writings to make them conform to any particular church tradition (like, for example, Lenski does).