Favorite Books Read in 2020

In the previous post, I listed the books I was able to read in 2020. Here are my favorites of those books from different categories. Also included are very short snippets about why I liked the book, but for longer reviews of each of book see my Goodreads here. The categories are as follows:

Best Devotional Books
Best Theological Books
Most Theology-Impacting Books
Books that Most Inspired Me to Be a Better Man
Most Interesting Books
Best Books About Culture
Best Ministry-Impacting Books
Most Disappointing Books
Overall, Best Books I Read in 2020
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Best Devotional Books

1. Living Life Backwards by David Gibson – This exposition of Ecclesiastes was not only helpful exegetically, more so it was beautiful and encouraging and convicting, all while pointing my affections to God and his glory in his world.
2. The Bookends of the Christian Life by Jerry Bridges & Bob Bevington – This was extremely good, surprisingly so (I just randomly took it off my shelf, not even sure where I got it from). You’d think it was basic, and of course it was, but it was so well done. It might be my go-to beginner Christian book now.

Best Theological Books

1. The Final Word by O. Palmer Robertson – My #1 in theological and theology-changing. Convincing and clear through and through. I’m surprised this isn’t much more famous than it is.
2. Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves – I reread his Rejoicing in Christ this year, and this previous one on the Trinity is just as good. Brilliant and insightful through and through.
3. Can We Trust the Gospels? by Peter J. Williams – Succinct but utterly convincing. It’s theology and apoliogetics, all proving that the Gospel books really can and should be trusted.
4. Against the Gods: The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament by John D. Currid – This is a topic I don’t even remember studying much in seminary. Currid does such a good job explaining the cultural connections in the Old Testament, and shows how the OT writers use these connections to show that Yahweh truly is God. And he does this in a very readable format. I recommend this to anyone, especially if you’re interested in the OT.
5. Loving the Old Testament by Alec Motyer – What a great little book! It stirs your heart for the God of the Old Testament! Reading books like this makes me realize I truly need to read really smart, deservedly famous Bible scholars more often!
6. Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer – Re-read this and wasn’t disappointed. So good. It’s only #5 on this list because I’ve read it before.
7. The Message of Zechariah: Your Kingdom Come by Barry G. Webb – Just an excellent commentary in the Bible Speaks Today series. He was clear, interesting, and even made great applications. Very impressive for a commentary on a confusing Old Testament minor prophet.

Most Theology-Impacting Books

These specifically are books which changed or broadened my theological views the most.

1. The Final Word by O. Palmer Robertson – I went through a journey on the issue of cessationism vs continuationism once again this year. After reading this, I am firmly on the cessationist side. Read it. You won’t regret it. The big question is: What is prophecy? This book was helpful beyond measure.
2. One Assembly: Rethinking the Multisite and Multichurch Church Models by Jonathan Leeman – Very convincing in so many ways. I’m still working through some of it, but his argument was very solid.
3. Pocket History of the Church by D. Jeffrey Bingham – This little book on church history changed my way I viewed church history. I’ve studied and taken classes on church history before, but Bingham in this works really focuses in on the beautiful remnants of faith found in all ages of history. Because of this, I now have much more respect for, say, fellow Christians during the Middle Ages. A really helpful read.
4. Understanding Church Leadership by Mark Dever – This book didn’t change my views too much (although in some small ways it did), but more so, it was firmly convincing and helpful in how I will now seek to manage church leadership.

Books that Most Inspired Me to Be a Better Man

1. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer – So much better than I expected. He practically has helped me slow down, rest, and control my electronic intake. Even though I still have a long way to go, this book easily had the most inspirational impact on my life this year.
2. Proverbs: Wisdom That Works by Ray Ortlund, Jr. – I’ve read this before, but this time I read it slowly as I was teaching someone Proverbs one-on-one. Ray does such a great job stirring your heart to be a better man.
3. Embracing Obscurity by Anonymous – A friend had this on his shelf, it looked interesting, and so I bought and read it. The title and author says it all: It’s about embracing obscurity. Helpful for me in an age where everyone wants to be famous and known by others.

Most Interesting Books

1. Reflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis – I enjoyed this in 2018 when I read all of C.S. Lewis, but I reread it this year, and wow, incredible to say the least. I ate it up. It was so fascinating. Each chapter had some brilliant insight I’d never thought before (or forgot I thought in 2018 when I read this the first time!). Even though Lewis’s view on the Bible is lacking in his reverence for inspiration, I still can easily say this was the most interesting book I read in 2020.
2. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer – Not only was this the most impactful book for me in 2020, it also was extremely interesting to read.
3. Against the Gods: The Polemical Theology of the Old Testament by John D. Currid – Insightful theology, but also so interesting, especially since I’ve read the Old Testament many times, even studied much of it in seminary, but a lot of this was totally new to me.
4. How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson – Not a Christian book, but really interesting and helpful about the world, history, and why our technology is the way it is now.

Best Books About Culture

1. The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer – It was impactful, interesting, and insightful on the cultural moment we live in.
2. The God Who Is There by Francis Schaeffer – A classic, and for good reason. Schaeffer does such a good job tracing thoughts and worldview, explaining why we are where we are today.
3. Before You Vote by David Platt – I’m glad this came out this election year. Besides his argument for why Christians should vote, which I think was lacking support, Platt was very biblical and helpful throughout this book.
4. The Church Before the Watching World by Francis Schaeffer – This book does a great job combining both Schaeffer’s emphasis on purity in the church and love for one another and the world. This book (and others like his The Mark of the Christian) show that Schaeffer was not merely a teacher of apologetics, he was a pastor who cared about truth and love.
5. How We Got to Now by Steven Johnson – Not a Christian book, but really interesting and helpful about our culture.

Best Ministry-Impacting Books

1. The Pleasures of God by John Piper – Third time reading it, I believe. But every time I’m just enthralled with the God of the Bible he displays with crystal clarity in this book. Ministry to me is showing forth and helping people love this God.
2. Church Planting Is For Wimps by Mike McKinley – Nothing too special, but still helpful when it comes to pastoring a small church. Much of it was practical and thought provoking.
3. Letters of Francis Schaeffer by Francis Schaeffer – In his letters, you really get to see his care, his heart, and his pastoral wisdom put on full display.
4. Prayer by John Onwuchekwa – A good book on prayer in general, but what makes it great is his emphasis on the church praying together. Helpful to read, and I hope it’ll have a large impact on how I do ministry.
5. Symphonic Theology by Vern Poythress – The second half of this book wasn’t even worth reading, but the first half, concerning reading the Bible intentionally from multiple perspectives, was very helpful.
6. Finding the Right Hills to Die On by Gavin Ortlund – A great book about the different levels of importance we should give to different topics. Gavin Ortlund was the perfect person to write this book (and it was creepy how similar our theology is!) and he did a great job writing it.
7. The Bookends of the Christian Life by Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington – Simple, but impactful in how clearly and helpfully they describe both justification and sanctification. It is the center of our faith—the gospel and its benefits—explained in clarity.
8. Analog Church by Jay Y. Kim – Some helpful insights about why the church needs to return to the analog basics which have existed for thousands of years.

Most Disappointing Books

1. The Gospel Comes With a Housekey by Rosaria Butterfield – I know this will be debatable to some, so I will just direct you to my detailed Goodreads review here rather than try to explain it in here in a couple sentences. But overall, this was by far the most disappointing book I read in 2020.
2. The Doctrine of Balaam by CR Cali – This is a anti-abortion book critiquing the typical pro-life agenda. In some ways, I think he’s right (meaning, we need to be even firmer on the issue), but the way he writes and conducts himself isn’t helpful. It just comes off as angry and arrogant.
3. The Christian Ministry by Charles Bridges – Disappointing, especially considering how famous this book is! It wasn’t that insightful and he just kept going on and on. There are other ministry books that are far superior.

Overall, Best Books I Read in 2020

These are the books that, as I look back on 2020, easily stick out to me. Fittingly, they all topped at #1 on at least one list above. They are simply listed in alphabetical order (by author last name)

• The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer
• Living Life Backwards by David Gibson
• Reflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis
• The Final Word by O. Palmer Robertson 

See my favorite books from 2017 here, 2018 here, and 2019 here.