Jehovah’s Mighty Acts, Nathan J. Langerak. Jenison, MI: Reformed Free Publishing Association, 2019. 100 pages, hardbound. $24.95.
His Friends and Servants, Nathan J. Langerak. Jenison, MI: Reformed Free Publishing Association, 2020. 95 pages, hardbound. $24.95.
Both of these volumes are in a new set of Bible stories entitled Tell His Wonders, a title that comes from Psalm 78:4. Each volume is beautifully illustrated by Michael Welply from France. Together they give us sixty-one stories covering material from Genesis 1 through Daniel. According to each volume they are for children ages 7–10, though probably they would be better for children of the older end of these ages.
These stories are well-written and have been well-chosen. Twenty-five alone are about sections in Genesis. In the preface to the second volume Langerak writes, “The book is part of a series of Bible story books entitled Tell His Wonders. The series intends to cover a selection of the main events of the Old and New Testament history. The entire series aims to be covenantal. . . . These wonders fill the pages of the Bible, culminating in the great wonder of grace in the incarnations Jesus Christ.”
While the author does not develop questions for each story, the parent using these stories will be able to give questions to the young hearers. These are valuable books for reading and discussing God’s way with the children God has given us. Perhaps this practice is fading away. Let us not let this happen. Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord. Highly recommended.
Marian’s Big Book of Bible Stories, Marian Schooland. Neerlandia, AB: Inheritance Publications, 2016. 351 pages. Paperback. $19.95.
Most of us need no introduction to this book. Many can remember it from our days of reading Bible stories; others, from listening to Dad or Mom. This is a republication of this often-used volume. For those unacquainted with this book, there are more than two hundred Bible stories from the Old and New Testaments. They are short but to the point. There are a few pictures of Jesus in the book, if that makes a difference to you. However, if you do use it, you will find that your children will learn the history of redemption.
The Christian’s True Identity: What It Means to Be in Christ, Jonathan Landry Cruse. Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 2019. 155 pages. Paperback. $14.00.
This is a small book, but one with a powerful message. Perhaps these ten chapters were originally a series of sermons preached to his congregation in Kalamazoo, Michigan. As he writes about the Christian union with Christ, chosen in Christ, pardoned, righteous, adopted, secure in him, and alive in him, the reader is given a picture of what it is to be a Christian. Each point is the stroke of an artist giving us the beautiful picture of a child of God. Being a Christian is not being a member of a club or just a way of distinguishing ourselves from others around us. It is a living relationship with Christ having its source in God by his grace.
For those who wish to study more about the Christian life, each chapter is concluded by a series of questions.
The Path of Life: Blessedness in the Seasons of Lament, J. Stephen Yuille. Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 2019. Paperback, 224 pages. $9.00 (sale).
If you haven’t read or studied Psalm 119 lately, you have here a devotional approach on this longest chapter in the Bible. The author is the vice president of academics at Heritage College and Seminary, Cambridge, Ontario. He begins with an introduction and background to this psalm, has a short devotional on each of the sections of the psalm, and concludes with a bibliography of volumes on this psalm. It is a delightful read which will make the reader meditate on the truths of Scripture.
Jerome Julien is a retired minister in the URCNA living in Hudsonville, MI, and serves on the board of Reformed Fellowship. He and his wife, Reita, are members of Walker URC in Grand Rapids, MI.