The Best Books from My Theology Degree
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Published 2022-12-31
In this video, I share with you the most impactful books from my time at Moody Bible Institute. I pull from four categories: General education, Biblical studies, Church history, and Theology.
Want the full list of every required book from my degree? Go here: www.gospelsimplicity.com/blog/theology-books
Need some structure for your reading? Here's a two year reading plan to get through the books from this video. I've arranged it so each season has no more than three books and the complexity grows as you go. Find this here: www.gospelsimplicity.com/blog/self-study-theology-…
Thanks to Christian Ministry EDU for sponsoring this video. To learn more about your ministry educational needs, check out: htttps://www.christianministryedu.org
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About Gospel Simplicity:
Gospel Simplicity began as a YouTube channel in a Moody Bible Institute dorm. It was born out of the central conviction that the gospel is really good news, and I wanted to share that with as many people as possible. The channel has grown and changed over time, but that central conviction has never changed. Today, we make content around biblical and theological topics, often interacting with people from across the Christian tradition with the hope of seeking greater unity and introducing people to the beautiful simplicity and transformative power of the gospel, the good news about Jesus.
About the host:
Hey! My name is Austin, and I'm a 23 year old guy who’s passionate about the beautiful simplicity and transformative power of the gospel. I believe that the gospel, the good news about Jesus, is really good news, and I’m out to explore, unpack, and share that good news with as many people as possible. I'm a full blown Bible and Church History nerd that loves getting to dialogue with others about this, learning as much as I can, and then teaching whatever I can. I grew up around Frederick, MD where I eventually ended up working my first job at a church. They made the mistake of letting me try my hand at teaching, and instantly I fell in love. That set me on a path for further education, and I'm currently a student at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, IL, studying theology. On any given day you can find me with my nose in a book or a guitar in my hands. Want to get to know me more? Follow me and say hi on Instagram at: @austin.suggs
Video Stuff:
Camera: Sony a6300
Lens: Sigma 16mm F1.4 amzn.to/2MjssPB
Edited in FCPX
Music:
Bowmans Root - Isaac Joel
*Links in the description may include affiliate links in which I receive a small commission of any purchases you make using that link.
Chapters:
00:00 - College prices are insane
00:30 - DIY Theology degree
02:48 - Start of Gen Eds
02:50 - You are What You Love
03:09 - Philosophy the Classics
04:02 - On Beauty and Being Just
04:38 - Start of Biblical studies
05:03 - How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth
05:36 - Blue Parakeet
06:34 - Old Testament Theology
07:04 - The Pentateuch as Narrative
08:02 - Introduction to Early Judaism
08:39 - Start of Church History
08:51 - The Story of Christianity
09:34 - Dominion
10:20 - The Story of Christian Theology
10:49 - The Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church
12:06 - In Stone and Story
13:09 - Jesus: Made in America
14:20 - Start of Theology books
14:40 - Theology as Discipleship
15:40 - Institutes of the Christian Religion
16:56 - The Orthodox Way
17:49 - The Meaning of Tradition
19:07 - Delighting in the Trinity
19:58 - One with Christ
20:43 - The Journey of Modern Theology
21:27 - Ad - ChristianMinistryEDU.org
22:06 - Two Year Reading Plan
22:47 - Gospel Simplicity Inside Circle
All Comments (21)
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1. You Are What You Love by James KA Smith 2. Philosophy the Classics by Nigel Warburton 3. On Beauty and Being Just by Elaine Scarry 4. How to Read the Bible For All its Worth by Gordon D Fee 5. Blue Parakeet by Scot McKnight 6. Old Testament Theology by John Kessler 7. The Pentateuch as Narrative by John H Sailhamer 8. Introduction to Early Judaism by James C Vanderkam 9. The Story of Christianity by Justo Gonzalez 10. Dominion by Tom Holland 11. The Story of Christian Theology by Roger Olson 12. The Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church by Joseph Kelly 13. In Stone and Story by Bruce Longenecker 14. Jesus: Made in America by Stephen Nichols (Honorable Mentions: Mark Noll & Douglas Sweeney) 15. Theology as Discipleship by Keith L Johnson 16. Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin 17. The Orthodox Way by Kallistos Ware 18. The Meaning of Tradition by Yves Congar 19. Delighting in the Trinity by Michael Reeves 20. One with Christ by Marcus Peter Johnson 21. The Journey of Modern Theology by Roger Olson
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To quote my best friend who is currently wrapping up his master's degree in philosophy, "Philosophy and Theology are the same thing. The philosophers just don't know it yet."
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Interesting! And you are not walking a narrow road you are reading tons of different things which is brilliant for your mind! I admire you quite a bit!
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You made some great points on this video and I have been down both roads from formal training , free training and just reading a bunch of theology books but if you want to apply for a Lead Pastor position your going to need that degree, with that being said I love this video !
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Looking forward to completing this reading list!
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Man, I appreciate all your help in these books I will be getting a few of them. Thanks a lot.
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_ “If you are a theologian, you will pray truly; if you pray truly, you will be a theologian.”_ -- Evagrius Ponticus
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An interesting and large grouping of books in the blog. I understand why. Guess I am a bit pleased that I have 5 or 6 of the total list on the blog. Well done and good info from you. Thanks.
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This is a great list! Thank you for putting this together and sharing. Happy to say I've read about half of these titles in my own studies, but I'm still walking away with some new ones to add to my (miles-long) to-read list! Keep up the good work.
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I read many of these while in college for my pastoral degree! Fantastic list here. Many books I want to go back and re read. Thanks for sharing!
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Austin, you’re awesome! Keep it up
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it is a joy to follow you Austin. Continue reading and following your call. You've got decades to savor all these ideas that came before you. Seriously, when i look at you i see in your dedication a great 21st century theologian in the making🤩
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Delighting in the Trinity is a great book! As you said, it is simple, yet deep!
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The reading plan is a fantastic idea. I would like to implement it but not with every book on the list, as there are some which I'm simply not interested in that much with the time I have. I literally have about 30 theology/exegesis books on the OT and NT right next to me waiting to be read, so I might just insert a few of those in the plan instead of the ones I'm not interested in reading. Thanks for doing this. I picked quite a few from your list which I'm going to order and read. This will be exciting.
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Thank you for making this list! Many of those sound like theology books that I would like to read.
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Well thought, concise, and helpful video. Pastor Greg
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So happy to see Delighting in the Trinity on this list! One of my all-time favorite books! Gotta check out the others! Thank you, Austin!
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Thankyou for your indepth listings, a place to start from ❤
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I’m in the second year of my ThD program and am currently reading The Story of Christianity (and lots of other stuff). I also read Delighting in the Trinity in my Masters program. I enjoyed it for sure. Good video! Thanks for sharing 👍
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I love Frank Sheed's writing. He wrote three books which all treat the Creed in successively greater depth: "A Map of Life," "Theology for Beginners," and then "Theology and Sanity."
