Book by J.C. Ryle

Book Review by Cesar Vigil-Ruiz

When you have thoughts reserved for young men that stem from personal experience, the basic qualification needed is that the person who has these thoughts is no longer young and is a man. It’s assumed these are thoughts that young men would benefit spending some time to consider. Well, from reading this short book, J.C. Ryle is more than qualified, and young men would be foolish not to heed this man’s advice.

If you don’t know anything about Bishop Ryle, you would think this book was written very recently, since many in our day are averse to spending time with young men, and would appreciate some kind of word that would jolt them into sober-mindedness. Surprisingly, for those unaware, Ryle died in 1900, and wrote this at a very late age (71 years old). How often would you come across an older man at that age who would gladly spend time with you and impart to you his wisdom that he’s gleaned over the years—especially a godly man? How many of us know men that age who are still following hard after Christ? It’s books like these that remind me that I am in need of learning—not to be proud of how much I know now, but grateful that I have a resource from which to observe this kind of wisdom. That’s what every book (including this one) has brought me to realize. I am not perfect in this life (nor will be), so I must grow in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Christ, and, in His wisdom and sovereign will, has given various men (and women) in the faith to have wisdom to share with the body of Christ.

This book is broken up into four parts that J.C. Ryle believes is crucial for the life of a young man:

1. The Reasons for Exhorting Young Men
2. The Dangers of Young Men
3. The General Counsels to Young Men
4. Special Rules for Young Men

Titus 2:6 has formed the basis for why Ryle thought it necessary for him to write this book: “Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.” Following the Apostle Paul’s advice, he plows through within each of these four sections, and speaks frankly, as well as compassionately, to the youth of his day (and ours) about the reality of life in a fallen world. Reading this book, I couldn’t help but be reminded of my need for older men to guide me in my walk with Christ, and to be slow to speak and quick to hear. Ryle knew the many temptations of a young man, since he was one. He remembers vividly the mistakes he made and saw that it as inherent in a young man to welcome many problems into their own life without giving an ear to one who has already gone before them.

If you have read anything written by Bishop Ryle, you know he asks very uncomfortable questions, not unnecessary ones. It’s pointed straight at the heart of every young man, who very much knows the answer to many of his questions, and yet could also be self-deceived into the answers they give. Easily, the entire book could be quoted, since there is much to learn from each sentence that he writes. Here are a few:

I tremble to observe how few young men are led by the Spirit—how few are in that narrow way which leads to life—how few are setting their affections upon things above—how few are taking up the cross and following Christ. (6)

Who in their families give them most pain and trouble?…Who are the class which requires the most incessant watching and looking after?…“The Young Men.” (7, italics his)

Two things are said to be very rare sights in the world—one is a young man humble, and the other is an old man content. (19)

Contempt of holy things is the high road to infidelity. Once let a man begin to make a jest and joke of any part of Christianity, and I am never surprised to hear that he has turned out a downright believer. (28)

[S]eek to become acquainted with our Lord Jesus Christ. This is, indeed, the principal thing in religion. This is the cornerstone of Christianity. Till you know this, my warnings and advice will be useless, and your endeavours, whatever they may be, will be in vain. (34)

And that is only half the book! This book is like listening to a father speak to his son about what is most important. However, in this case, it’s a worshipper of Christ who seeks to bring other people into true worship of the risen Savior, all for the love of the little ones (Mark 10:14). If you are a young man, read this book. If you are a man, read this book. If you have doubts as to how Christianity relates to your teenage life, read this book. If you are one who desires wisdom from above, read this book. Your life will never be the same, if you put into practice the appeals of this godly man.

Book by Michael Card

Book Review by Cesar Vigil-Ruiz

Living a life that enables you to disciple someone else is one of great joy and hardship, of service and sacrifice, being mindful of the end goal, and filled with spontaneous moments of instruction. I think every time I read a book on discipleship, I see the many weaknesses I have and how I hope to be better. Reading The Walk has not been any different, since I can imagine myself placed in the many different situations the two men in this book were often in. Although I am definitely not an expert in leading another to growth in Christ, I try to find as much teaching as I can get.  Since I have such narrow vision, I need outside help to see what Christ wants me to see.

From the beginning, the book is about Michael Card, a Christian musician, and William Lane (not William Lane Craig), a biblical scholar, and their discipleship relationship. Interestingly enough, both Card and Lane are respected in their own field, which can appeal to either fans of Card’s music (count me one of them), or those appreciative of Lane’s writings (not yet). The book is written is in the same style as the famous Tuesdays with Morrie (by Mitch Albom), which emphasizes telling a story as a means of teaching. However, this book has a little of both: the teaching (or the walk, as Card puts it) and the truth of it lived out (or the story). Compared to other books on discipleship are popular now, this book is special in that Card recites some of the teachings that Lane had taught him, and he shows how his teacher’s life is in conformity to that truth. Most books will emphasize the teaching at the expense of showing how you apply it, and so this book does offer something new.

What caught me off guard while reading this book is the insight, wisdom, and love William Lane expressed to Card. Of course, being a biblical scholar, he had to have a working knowledge of the Word of God to be able to function as a seminary professor, but he shows those traits much more as a discipler. Their story begins when Michael is attending Western Kentucky University, with Lane as the interim pastor of his church.  Knowing him to be one who knows God, Michael asked if they could start meeting for a while, hoping to benefit from having Lane as his mentor. From their hikes, Michael grew to learn what Lane would later call the cycle of discipleship:

Bill saw three phases in Jesus’ pattern of discipleship. The first we find in Mark 3:13-15; it is the call to be with Jesus. The second phase, which is in Mark 6:7, 12-13, represents the commissioning of the disciples. The third is in Mark 6:30-31; here we see the disciples returning to Jesus, reporting to him all the things they had seen and heard. At this moment they heard the word from Jesus, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (Mark 6:31). Bill used this pattern in his relationships with the students he mentored as well as in his own walk with the Lord. (46)

Those three phases form the structure for the rest of the book, and also serve as a metaphor for a Christian’s spiritual walk, as well as the structure for discipleship.  They became foundational for how Michael saw his life, as he relates towards the end of the book:

As I look at this cycle of discipleship and ministry, it’s interesting to apply it to the context of each day. I wake in the morning, and I’m with Jesus. I learn from Him. I read His Word. I spend time with Him. I realize my commission, and then I go out. I do His work and I speak His Word. Then, at the end of the day, I come back and report to Jesus everything I’ve done and everything I’ve said….You can apply the cycle over a day, over a matter of months, or over a lifetime. That was my experience with Bill, who first shared this concept with me. (125-126)

Many of the aphorisms in the book are reoccurring, such as: “When God gives a gift, He wraps it in a person” (22), “It is more important to say ‘I trust you’ than it is to say ‘I love you’” (43), and “Sonship/daughtership is established in the wilderness” (83). These sayings he had would end up pointing to the one he would keep in his heart most: “I want to show you how a Christian man dies” (109). William Lane found out in 1995 that he had cancer. His life now took a new turn towards returning to Christ, and he wanted to show Michael, both in teaching but now more than ever in modeling, how a man redeemed by his Savior is to die. Even in death, he wanted to die as one who honors Christ with his all.

This story has drawn many lessons I want to model in my own life, especially in regards to showing others how to understand God’s gift of Christ to us. Their unique friendship drew each other closer to Christ, and a exhibited the love Christian men have for one another: sacrificial love, love that will always sharpen, instruct, and nurture. The sad reality of it is, the world mocks this kind of love. The only reason they seem to do so is they don’t understand this kind of love because they’ve never experienced sacrificial love. This kind of friendship will always give hope, because it points back to Christ whom we are to be with, sent out by, and return to all throughout our lives.