50 Books to Build Your Faith

I absolutely love to read, but that wasn’t always the case. As a kid, I never read for pleasure, only for school. So what changed? Simply put, I became a Christian! One of the first evidences that I was truly born again was a newfound hunger for God’s Word. I began to devour my Bible with joy. And about the same time, I began to love good Christian books. It started with biographies. Then I discovered Charles Spurgeon and A.W. Tozer. I’ve been a bookworm ever since.

I’ve been wanting to share my recommendations with the church for a while. In my notes, I have a list of over 300 books. But that’s a little overwhelming, right? So below, you’ll find a condensed list: 50 books to build your faith. I tried to focus on shorter and easier-to-read books, but there are a few more challenging entries on the list—I think they’re worth the effort! (Just so you know, it killed me to leave off some of my personal favorites that were a little longer and denser! If you’re willing to go a little deeper, I’ll happily share those with you. Just ask.)

You may wonder why I’m doing this. Is it a pastor’s job to tell you to read? Not really. But I’ve found that reading is key to exponential growth. By reading, we can learn in a few hours the priceless lessons that others have learned over a lifetime. We can learn by reading one book what the author learned by reading dozens of books! It is hard to overstate the power of reading to expand our knowledge and understanding.

In addition to what we can learn from the text, the very act of reading can itself provide many benefits. Reading improves focus and cognitive function, builds vocabulary and sharpens communication skills, sparks creativity and imagination, and can even reduce stress and support mental health. Ultimately, the Bible is the only book you must read, but if you’re not reading other great books, you’re missing out on a lot of benefits. So without further ado, here are 50 books I would recommend to build your faith, categorized by subject and ordered by author’s last name. (*An asterisk indicates that the book is short, about 150 pages or less.)

God and the Gospel

• What is the Gospel? — Greg Gilbert *
• Gospel People: A Call for Evangelical Integrity — Michael Reeves *
• Repentance — J.C. Ryle *
• Basic Christianity — John Stott *
• The Knowledge of the Holy — A.W. Tozer *

Church Life

• 9 Marks of a Healthy Church — Mark Dever
• Rediscover Church — Collin Hansen & Jonathan Leeman *
• Church: Do I Have to Go? — J. Garrett Kell *
• Service: How Do I Give Back? — Mez McConnell *
• I Am a Church Member — Thom S. Rainer *

Spiritual Growth

• Training: How Do I Grow as a Christian? — Isaac Adams *
• Inductive Bible Study — Richard Alan Fuhr Jr. & Andreas J. Köstenberger
• How to Study the Bible — Robert M. West *
• Women of the Word — Jen Wilkin
• Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life — Donald S. Whitney

Prayer

• Pray Big — Alistair Begg *
• Prayer: How Praying Together Shapes the Church — John Onwuchekwa *
• Growing in Prayer — Stephen Shead *
• The Prayer of the Lord — R.C. Sproul *
• Praying the Bible — Donald S. Whitney *

Christian Character

• The Pursuit of Holiness — Jerry Bridges
• Humility — Andrew Murray *
• Don’t Waste Your Life — John Piper
• Holiness — J.C. Ryle
• The Pursuit of God — A.W. Tozer *

Sharing Our Faith

• I Am Going — Daniel L. Akin & Bruce Riley Ashford *
• God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life: The Myth of the Modern Message — Ray Comfort *
• The Gospel and Personal Evangelism — Mark Dever *
• The Unsaved Christian: Reaching Cultural Christianity with the Gospel — Dean Inserra
• Missions: How the Local Church Goes Global — Andy Johnson *

Worship

• On Worship — H.B. Charles
• Rhythms of Grace: How the Church’s Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel — Mike Cosper
• Sing!: How Worship Transforms Your Life, Family, and Church — Keith & Kristyn Getty *
• Worship: The Ultimate Priority — John MacArthur
• Look and Live: Behold the Soul-Thrilling, Sin-Destroying Glory of Christ — Matt Papa

Family

• 7 Myths About Singleness — Sam Allberry
• Family-Driven Faith — Voddie Baucham Jr.
• Gospel-Powered Parenting — William P. Farley
• Show Them Jesus: Teaching the Gospel to Kids — Jack Klumpenhower
• Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family — Paul David Tripp

People and Culture

• Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism’s Looming Catastrophe — Voddie Baucham
• The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert — Rosaria Butterfield *
• The Secular Creed: Engaging Five Contemporary Claims — Rebecca McLaughlin
• 12 Ways Your Phone Is Changing You — Tony Reinke
• Sex in a Broken World — Paul David Tripp

Miscellaneous

• Church History 101: The Highlights of Twenty Centuries — Sinclair B. Ferguson, Joel R. Beeke & Michael A.G. Haykin *
• The Great Divorce — C.S. Lewis *
• The Screwtape Letters — C.S. Lewis *
• Mere Christianity — C.S. Lewis *
• The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation — Michael Reeves

The benefits of reading are countless, and there are so many wonderful books at our fingertips. But we should always remember to give God’s Word first place on our reading list. If any of the excellent books recommended above keep you from your Bible, then put them away. As Pastor Charles Spurgeon once said, “Visit many good books, but live in the Bible.”