I posted a similar list long ago, but since I have a lot of recent new readers, I offer the list again.
These are some books that have impacted me positively, shaped my thinking, and often have moved me Godward. They are presented in no particular order, either by classification or by importance.
A.W. Tozer. The Pursuit of God and The Knowledge of the Holy
Long before John Piper would write about his main theme, Tozer was probing me deeply with the challenge to know God beyond the surface level. Reading a biography of Tozer recently has caused me to want to dip in here again!
Donald Grey Barnhouse. The Invisible War
One of the first books I read during my pastoral ministry. Barnhouse gave me a vision of the drama of Redemption that has stayed with me all these years.
Jonathan Edwards. Life and Diary of David Brainerd.
This missionary to the Native Americans of New England was in love with Jonathan Edward’s daughter but died at 29. He burned out for God. His journal shows you why.
Robert Murray McCheyne. Memoirs
Another man of God who died young, McCheyne was characterized by Godliness, zeal and a burden for Israel. This Scot influenced me as a student more than anyone.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Autobiography. 2 vols.
No one influenced my early pastoral ministry more than the “Governor.” I have referred to incidents in his life and to his quotations more than to anyone else.
David Daniell. William Tyndale: A Biography
An example of how “sanctified scholarship” can both teach and inspire. The spiritual courage of Tyndale inspires me. So does Daniell’s keen scholarship and with theological insight.
Andrew Blackwood. Expository Preaching Today
This book won’t make it onto anyone else’s list, but it profoundly influenced me toward an expository preaching style.
Frances Schaeffer. Escape From Reason and The God Who Is There
I encountered Schaeffer when he first started to write down what he had been teaching for years at L’Abri. Although I didn’t always comprehend everything he wrote, he showed me that I didn’t have to check out my brains at the door of the church when I entered.
George Whitefield. Journals; and Arnold Dallimore. George Whitefield
This autobiography and biography blessed and challenged my young life as a pastor. As you can see, I like to read about the lives of great Christians.
A.W. Pink. The Sovereignty of God and Profiting from the Word
It was Pink who helped me to see the Scriptural basis of the doctrines of sovereign grace. However, his writings also probe my soul with their practical application. I try to read Profiting every year.
J.C. Ryle. Holiness
My well-worn copy testifies to the fact that I have read and re-read these chapters. Ryle had more solid truth in his little finger than most modern writers will know in a lifetime.
J. Sidlow Baxter. Explore the Book
I could mention a lot of commentaries and Bible study books, but Baxter helped me to understand the value of studying a book as a whole, not just its parts.
C.S. Lewis Mere Christianity and many of his essays and shorter writings
I have not been influenced as much by Lewis’ fiction as by his clear articulation of the reasonableness of the Christian faith in his non-fiction. His courage in defending historic Christianity before his Oxford and Cambridge fellows has always inspired me.
The Greek New Testament
A list like this assumes that the Bible is the most important book of all. I include the Greek NT because of the debt that I owe to my three Greek teachers – Richard Gainer, Robert Besancon and C.W. Smith. How thankful I am that they taught me how to read this book. It has shaped my life and ministry more than any other volume.
Elisabeth Eliot Through Gates of Splendor
The account of the five “Ecuador Martyrs” in 1956 challenged me to have the same type of commitment to Christ that they so evidently displayed in their short lives.
David Baron Rays of Messiah’s Glory
The writings of this “prince in Israel” helped me to see the absolute importance of the Messiah as the central theme of the Old Testament.
Walter Kaiser Toward an Old Testament Theology and his other OT books
No other writer has influenced how I approach the OT more than this creative thinker.
Walter Price Next Year in Jerusalem
This book will probably never appear on anyone else’s “best” list, but it launched me on a love affair with “things Jewish” that has only grown through the years.
John MacArthur The Sufficiency of Christ
In my opinion, this is my pastor’s best book. It strengthened my confidence in the sufficiency of the Word for doing God’s work.
David Wells. No Place for Truth: Whatever Happened to Evangelical Theology?
In a day when pragmatism is more important than theology to many, Wells challenged me to tread the old paths of theological accuracy and depth.
Biographies of William Tyndale, George Whitefield, CH Spurgeon, and AW Pink (above) and the autobiographies of FF Bruce and Bruce Metzger have blessed me and sometimes simply informed me about the actual “stuff” of the scholarly and ministerial life.
The following Christian authors have also greatly influenced me: F.F. Bruce’s many volumes, Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ sermons, J.I Packer’s theology, R.C. Sproul’s sanctified theology, and N.T. Wright’s scholarly writings and sermons. (I read the last author critically!) Fiction writers who have helped me understand better the human condition are Chaim Potok, Leon Uris, Daniel Silva and William Shakespeare (esp. Macbeth). And, yes, some summer I will finish one of those classic Dostoyevsky novels!