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And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death (Revelation 12:11, ESV).
It’s not the number of books read that’s important; it’s the quality of Spirit within those books. In today’s culture, too many books have a 50,000-word limit, published according to an editor’s opinion of what sells, and once an author hits big, they give that author a contract for one book a year.
There’s a genre of book that I call “the ancients,” and some aren’t that old chronologically but written about a life lesson taught by the Spirit, giving a testimony of encouragement for our walk today — not mass-produced pablum, with the goal of getting you to click the purchase button on Amazon®.
“Ancients” can vary from saint to saint; I define them as books that impact our soul. I’d place Corrie Ten Boom’s The Hiding Place in this category as one of the top 10 “ancients” that have influenced my life. You may have others. Sometimes I pick up a book, and it becomes singular with me from the first page, but most of the “ancients” I’ve read come recommended by people I respect.
Here are a few of my “ancients” below…
The Imitation of Christ, written by Thomas a Kempis between 1418 and 1427. Some claim it’s the most widely published book other than the Bible (great testimony on why you should read it). In this book we learn about resisting temptation, inner peace, and living in grace and self-surrender.
A famous quote … Love feels no burden, takes no account of toil, attempts things beyond its strength; love sees nothing as impossible, for it feels able to achieve all things.
The Cloud of Unknowing. The author is listed as “An Ancient Mystic.” I found that the author had a profound understanding of psychology, with insights into our relationship with God. Written as a “how to” for new believers, and though it promotes a Christian mysticism (God cannot be fully grasped by our intellect), the book says that while we can’t know God fully, we can fully experience His love.
A favorite quote … Just as there is a cloud of unknowing above you, between you and your God, so you must put a cloud of forgetting beneath you, between you and all creation.
A Serious Call to a Devout & Holy Life by William Law. Some argue that this book can be legalistic, and it can be. However, correct discipline motivated by a higher calling isn’t really legalism but a path to finding joy in who we are. The book is a much-needed critic of a lukewarm faith.
Famous quote … If you will stop here, and ask yourself, why you are not as pious as the primitive Christians were, your own heart will tell you, that it is neither through inability of nature, nor want of divine grace, but because you never thoroughly intended it.
I recommend this book often because it’s totally unique. What can we really learn about following Jesus from a book in which the author sits in front of Rembrandt’s painting “The Return of the Prodigal” at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia, for hours while contemplating our lostness to our Father? Answer: Quite a lot, which is why you should read this book.
A quote that has great impact … The question is not ‘How am I to find God?” but ‘How am I to let myself be found by him?’
That’s my five “ancient” books that I encourage you to read. Take your time reading; try reading one a year for the next five years.