It’s another Friday which means I’ve got another edition of Free Stuff Fridays for you. And, as it happens, I’ve got another great giveaway for you. This week’s sponsor is CBD Reformed, a company you know well by now. They are offering 5 prizes, each of which will consist of the following 3 books:

• Generous Justice by Timothy Keller - Retail price $19.95
• The God Who Is There by D. A. Carson - Retail price $16.99
• Grounded In The Gospel by J.I. Packer and Gary Parrett - Retail price $16.99

Generous Justice is the most recent of these books—one that has actually not yet been released. Here’s a bit of information about it: “It is commonly thought in secular society that the Bible is one of the greatest hindrances to doing justice. Isn’t it full of regressive views? Didn’t it condone slavery? Why look to the Bible for guidance on how to have a more just society? But Timothy Keller sees it another way. In Generous Justice, Keller explores a life of justice empowered by an experience of grace: a generous, gracious justice. Here is a book for believers who find the Bible a trustworthy guide as well as those who suspect that Christianity is a regressive influence in the world.”

CBDReformed is also offering a 4-day sale (October 29 - November 1) on these books. This sale is open to anyone who cares to take advantage of it.

• Novum Testamentum Graece (NA27) Wide-Margin Edition - retail $59.95 / sale $17.99
• Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From The American Dream by David Platt - retail $14.99 / sale $8.99
• Through The Year with Martin Luther: A Selection of Sermons Celebrating Feasts and Seasons - retail $19.95 / sale $5.99

Giveaway Rules: You may only enter the draw once. Simply fill out your name and email address to enter the draw. As soon as the winners have been chosen, all names and addresses will be immediately and permanently erased. Winners will be notified by email. The giveaway closes Saturday at noon.

Last week I spent a day in Grand Rapids and most of that day was taken up with meetings at the head office for Zondervan. As you probably know, Zondervan will be publishing my next couple of books, so we had a series of meetings to discuss, among other things, marketing plans (that’s right—we met to figure out how we can force you to part with a few of your dollars and hand it to us!). We also shot a bit of video and talked about plans for the next book.

As I was touring around the offices, I found quite a few interesting new products, some of which I knew of already and some of which were entirely new to me, that I thought I’d make you aware of. And make sure you read to the end—I’ll make it worth your while (or someone’s while, anyway). Here are a few of the products that caught my eye:

God So Loved, He Gave: Entering the Movement of Divine Generosity by Kelly Kapic with Justin Borger - You may know the name Kelly Kapic as one of the co-editors of the modernization of John Owen’s Overcoming Sin and Temptation. If you haven’t got a copy of that book, well, you really need to. It’s a good one. Kapic is also the author of a new book called God So Loved, He Gave. He  managed to get endorsements from a long list of people including Tim Keller, Jerry Bridges (who calls it “an amazing book”), Bryan Chapell, Michael Horton and quite a few others. Here’s the publisher’s description: “God So Loved, He Gave places the practice of giving within the larger story of God's generosity. Here we discover how our participation in the overflow of divine giving is vitally connected to the Trinitarian nature of God, the unfolding drama of Scripture and ultimately the Gospel itself.” And here is Jerry Bridges’ glowing endorsement: “God So Loved, He Gave is an amazing book. In it Kelly Kapic deftly moves from our being recipients of all God's generous gifts through Christ to our being stewards of God's gifts as we share them with others. This book is both encouraging and challenging. It should be read attentively and prayerfully.” [Westminster Books | Amazon]

A God-Sized Vision: Revival Stories that Stretch and Stir by Collin Hansen and John Woodbridge. According to the publisher “In A God-Sized Vision, Collin Hansen and John Woodbridge recount the fascinating stories of revivals throughout history--from biblical times to the Great Awakenings to more recent revivals in China--strengthening your understanding of God's work in the past and deepening your faith in the possibility of revival today.” This book also sports quite a list of endorsers including Tim Keller and Jerry Bridges (deja vu), Nancy Leigh DeMoss, George Marsden and D.A. Carson. Here is what Keller says about it: “The importance of spiritual revival and the necessity of conversion is being questioned in many evangelical and Reformed circles. I'm so glad that this book is appearing now, as a witness both to how God has worked in the church in the past and what he can do in the future.” [Westminster Books | Amazon]

The Reason for God: Conversations on Faith and Life (DVD) - Tim Keller’s book The Reason for God has proven to be a hit and even made its way onto the New York Times list of bestsellers. “Captured live and unscripted, pastor and author Timothy Keller meets with a group of people over six sessions to address their doubts and objections to Christianity. Using literature, philosophy, real-life experiences, and the Bible, Keller and the group explore the truth of Christianity.” This is one that I haven’t yet had time to watch, but I do intend to do that soon. From the bit I have seen it looks like a great setting for conversation and quite a unique format in which to discuss big issues: Isn’t the Bible a myth? Why does God allow suffering? How can God send good people to hell? [Westminster Books | Amazon]

That was rather an unexpected start to the World Series, wasn’t it? When Cliff Lee faces Tim Lincecum you’re hardly expecting a slugfest. And yet that’s exactly what it turned into. I don’t much care who wins this series, but I’m hoping it can at least remain close enough to be interesting.

Is Music Warping My Child? - Russell Moore pens a good article on music, and whether listening to it will harm our kids.

Martin Luther: In His Own Words - “Most all Christians know the name Martin Luther. Less familiar, however, are his words. This compilation of many of Luther’s most important writings serves as an excellent introduction to those new to Luther. It also provides a fresh medium for people familiar with his writing.” It’s free right now at ChristianAudio.

Luther’s Stand - And while we’re talking about the great reformer, Chris Castaldo has written an account of Luther before the Diet of Worms where he made his most important stand. “Have you ever wondered what Luther's stand looked like on the ground? Here is a glimpse, starting with the moment when Luther's covered wagon rolled into town.”

$1 Trillion - Since a trillion is the new billion, it’s worth trying to get some perspective on such a massive number. This inforgraphic helps a little bit.

Lasting Victory - This is just a short article on overcoming pornography, but Brian Croft hits on a very important subject: the role of the local church. “A common flaw in trying to break the cycles of pornography is thinking your one or two random accountability partners are enough.  Daily walking in victory over this struggle requires a community effort and an accountability that stretches far beyond your Christian co-worker asking you questions once a week regarding which internet sites you visited.  The victory comes as spiritual guidance, care, rebuke, and marriage counseling are given by your leaders.”

Yet Remix - Fans of Switchfoot and/or Mutemath will be interested in this free download. It’s a remix of Switchfoot’s “Yet” done by Mutemath’s Darren King.

The Most Popular Name - In a sign of the times, the most popular name in Britain is now…Mohammed.

Snickaloaf - You know you’d love to eat a Snickaloaf:

Not only the worst of my sins, but the best of my duties speak of me as a child of Adam. —William Beveridge

There are many books out there that describe Reformed theology and that invite people to become part of the Reformed tradition. However, most of these books are a product of the years before the advent of this young, restless, Reformed reality that is all the rage today. Most such books predate the New Calvinism.

New to the field, and largely distinct from the rest, is Letters to a Young Calvinist by James K.A. Smith. This is one of the few books to speak directly to this new young, restless, Reformed movement. Written in the form of letters from a mentor to a young man who is investigating Reformed theology, the book offers a winsome 125-page introduction to the tradition and to the way it works out in real life. The author says "These letters don't offer an apologetic defense of Calvinism, trying to defend it against all comers; rather, I envision the addressee of these letters as someone who has already become interested in this tradition and is looking for a guide into unfamiliar territory."

Smith leads the young recipient of these letters into the tradition in a systematic way. He begins with words of welcome, expressing the way that Reformed theology leads us to seek out and discover deep wells of the Scripture. For example, "I think it is one of the hallmarks of the Reformed tradition that it has a long history of encouraging curiosity about creation. Unlike some of the places you and I have been, which really discourage questioning in order to get people to toe the party line, the Reformed tradition has long encourages a kind of holy intellectual riskiness."

He warns of one of the most perilous sins of the Reformed: "Now is as good a time as any to warn you about one of the foremost temptations that accompanies Reformed theology: pride. And the worst kind of pride: religious pride (one of Screwtape's letters speaks quite eloquently about this). This is an infection that often quickly contaminates those who discover the Reformed tradition, and it can be deadly: a kind of West Nile virus."

Smith suggests that the best one-word summary of Reformed theology is grace. He speaks of grace going "all the way down," by which he means that grace infuses every part of Reformed theology. And, indeed, Reformed theology is a theology of grace--grace in every part. He says (rightly!) that Reformed theology is not all about election and predestination; they are components of the theology but they are not all there is to it. "I often feel that Reformed theology is ill served by a myopic focus on these things, as legitimate as they are." And he emphasizes that Reformed theology is inherently unfinished. "It seems to me very un-Reformed to prop up Reformed theology as a timeless ideal, a consummated achievement, when one of the Reformers' mantras was semper reformanda—always reforming. You shouldn't expect a lifetime of pursuing the truth to result in constant entrenchment into what you thought when you were twenty."