Good to Great in

God’s Eyes 10 Practices Great Christians

Have in Common

NDCBF Summer Bible Study

Romans 12:2

July 11, 2012

Lesson 2:

Read Great Books

Thesis Statement

•True greatness is in

the eye of the

beholder

Purpose Statement

• To demonstrate that we

can not be great

Christians in the eyes of

God until we have

experienced a renewing

of our minds

Romans 12:2a

•And do not be

conformed to this

world, but be

transformed by the

renewing of your

mind,

In Romans 12:1…

•…Paul issues an

exhortation that

should be understood

as an imperative…

•…present your bodies

In Romans 12:2…

•…Paul issues another

exhortation …

•…be transformed by

the renewing of your

mind

God has…

•…commanded us to

stop conforming to

the world but be

transformed by the

renewing of our

minds.

The Message…

•…saturate yourself

with godly thinking by

exposing yourself to

godly teachers, writers

and other influences…

How can we do…

…this?

By reading great

books.

Mortimer J. Adler

• “In the case of good

books, the point is not to

see how many of them you

can get through, but rather

how many can get through

to you.”

Reading books…

•…require that you use

your brain

•…help you to develop

important skills

Reading books…

…help you to improve

your vocabulary

…help you to learn to

think critically

Reading books…

…gives us windows

into other cultures

and places

…can change your life

“Some books…

• …are to be tasted,

others to be swallowed,

and some few are to be

chewed and digested.”

• - Francis Bacon

Great books…

•…help you

understand what

shapes your thoughts

and beliefs

Robert M. Hutchins

• These books are the means

of understanding our society

and ourselves. They contain

the great ideas that dominate

us without our knowing it.

There is no comparable

repository in our tradition.”

Great books…

•…can cause a

little genius to

rub off on you

Sir Richard Livingston

• “We are tied down, all our days and

for the greater part of our days, to

the commonplace. This is where

contact with great thinkers, great

literature helps. In their company we

are still in the ordinary world, but it is

the ordinary world transfigured and

seen through the eyes of wisdom

and genius.”

Great books…

•…can help us

learn from past

mistakes

Mortimer Adler • “People who question or even scorn the

study of the past and its works usually

assume that the past is entirely different

from the present, and that hence we can

learn nothing worthwhile from the past.

But it is not true that the past is entirely

different from the present. We can learn

much of value from its similarity and its

difference…

• We and the ancients share a common

human nature and hence certain common

human experiences and problems.”

Great books…

•…can improve

our ability to

comprehend

Robert M. Hutchins

• “If many great books seem

unreadable and unintelligible…it

may be because we have not for a

long time learned to read by

reading them. Great books teach

people not only how to read them,

but how to read other books as

well.”

“Some books…

• …are to be tasted,

others to be swallowed,

and some few are to be

chewed and digested.”

• - Francis Bacon • “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders

are readers.”

• - Harry S. Truman

When I read…

…Great Books,

they broaden my

world.

Broadening My

World… – …The Content of Our Character: A New

Vision for Race Relations in America

• Shelby Steele

– Simple Church: Returning to God’s Process

for making Disciples

• Thom S. Rainer and Eric Geiger

– Unleashing the Church: Getting People Out

of the Fortress and Into Ministry

• Frank Tillapaugh

When I read…

…Great Books,

they sharpen my

mind.

Sharpened My

Mind… –Evangelism & the Sovereignty

of God

•J. I. Packer

–The Gospel According to Jesus

•John F. MacArthur

When I read…

…Great Books,

they inflame my

heart.

Inflamed My

Heart… – My Utmost for His Highest

• Oswald Chambers

– Knowing God

• J. I. Packer

– The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the

Art of Spiritual Direction and

– Working the Angles: The Shape of Pastor

Integrity

• Eugene H. Peterson

When I read…

…Great Books

they help to

develop my skills.

Developed My

Skills… – The Road Less Travelled

• M. Scott Peck

– Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

• Stephen Covey

– Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical,

Financial and Time Reserves

• Richard A. Swenson

Developed My

Skills… – Fighting for Your Marriage: Positive Steps for

Preventing Divorce and Preserving a Lasting

Love

• Howard Markman, Scott Stanley, Susan Blumberg

– His Needs, Her Needs: Building An Affair-

Proof Marriage

• Willard F. Harley, Jr.

– Intended For Pleasure

• Ed Wheat

When I read…

…Great Books,

they help to

shape my

character.

Shaped My

Character… – Disciplines of a Godly Man

• R. Kent Hughes

– The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding

How God Changes Lives

• Dallas Willard

– The Delicate Art of Dancing With Porcupines:

Learning to Appreciate the Finer Points of

Others

• Bob Phillips

When I want to

read a book that

heals my soul…

…I read the Bible

The Greatest Book • “By reading the scriptures I am

so renewed that all nature seems

renewed around me and with me.

The sky seems to be a pure, a

cooler blue, the trees a deeper

green. The whole world is

charged with the glory of God

and I feel fire and music under

my feet.” ______Thomas Merton