Certain books stand the test of time, inspiring and influencing generations. Whether we like it or not, being a respected member of polite society requires reading as many of these books as possible.
But who has time to read?
Here are ten books you can listen to on Audible that are genuine Christian classics. If you’d like to start an Audible free trial with one book of your choice, click here or on one of the audiobook images below.
1. Mere Christianity – C.S. Lewis
Not long into my acceptance of Christian faith, I discovered and listened to a recording of C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity–multiple times.
Lewis disabused me of any false notions I had that Christianity was for idiots. He had a cogent way of making arguments, but he also wielded the English language the way a great artist wields a paintbrush–and sometimes the way a master swordfighter wields a deadly blade.
And I’m not the only one who felt that way! Mere Christianity has been seen by virtually all Christians who have read it as a persuasive defense of Christian faith by an eloquent writer who is actually fun to read.
2. The Hiding Place – Corrie ten Boom
The Hiding Place is the autobiographical account of Dutch watchmaker, concentration camp survivor, and smuggler of Jewish refugees Corrie ten Boom, who was moved by her Christian faith to not only look out for the weak and vulnerable, but also to forgive the enemies who so horribly mistreated her.
Her story is filled with dramatic moments, historical interest, and inspiration to follow Christ and do the right thing no matter the cost.
3. On the Incarnation – Athanasius of Alexandria
Athanasius was a fourth century Alexandrian bishop most famous for combating the view of the influential heretic Arius that Jesus was not “very God of very God,” but a created being. In On the Incarnation, he demonstrates why Jesus is so central to the Christian faith and why both a divine and human Jesus is necessary for salvation.
This is the oldest book on this list, but old books are not necessarily bad or boring books. C.S. Lewis’ introduction to a popular English translation of Athanasius’ On the Incarnation exhorts us to read more old books than new, perceiving that, “Every age has its own outlook. It is specially good at seeing certain truths and specially liable to make certain mistakes. We all, therefore, need the books that will correct the characteristic mistakes of our own period. And that means the old books.”
If your Christianity is limited by your perspective as a 21st century westerner, Athanasius will challenge you to think of the church as a global and ancient body and not merely the local or national faith community you’re familiar with.
4. Desiring God – John Piper
In Desiring God, Reformed pastor John Piper lays out his case for “Christian hedonism”–the notion that duty and delight are not diametrically opposed, but that serving God can be one’s greatest joy.
In Desiring God, Piper makes the case that following Christ should not be thought of as a sacrifice in the sense that we ultimately lose value. Instead, when our hearts are fixed on Christ, following Him will be a delight. Piper therefore gives a strong defense of the Westminster Shorter Catechism’s contention that, “man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
5. The Imitation of Christ – Thomas
à Kempis
Thomas was a 15th century German priest whose work The Imitation of Christ became one of the most influential Christian books ever written. Within about two hundred years it had been re-printed more than seven hundred times in nearly as many languages as the Bible had been translated into. The famed social philosopher and Catholic saint Thomas More described it as one of the three books that everyone should own. Even among many non-Catholics today, it is very highly regarded.
The book is built around short chapters that serve as meditations which promote various spiritual concepts and practices. It exhorts its readers to give up on their own desires and to pursue God and a life which imitates that of Jesus.
6. The Pilgrim’s Progress – John Bunyan
17th century Puritan John Bunyan’s greatest work is The Pilgrim’s Progress from This World, to That Which Is to Come. The book, which is a parable about the life of faith, features a man named Christian who travels from the City of Destruction (this world) to the Celestial City (the world to come). Bunyan first embarked upon writing the book while he was in prison for holding religious services outside of the established English church. It became immensely popular in America, especially in the Puritan colonies.
While the sometimes archaic language may throw off some modern listeners, versions with more updated language also exist.
7. The Pursuit of God – A.W. Tozer
A.W. Tozer lived his life almost entirely in the first half of the 20th century. He was born into poverty in a small Pennsylvania farming community, never graduated from high school, but taught himself and ended up receiving two honorary doctoral degrees.
His book The Pursuit of God encouraged his readers to seek after God as their primary concern. He signed away a significant percentage of his royalties to those in need and lived a simple life unencumbered by what he saw as worldly distractions.
8. The Cost of Discipleship
Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a German pastor and theologian during the Third Reich. He was an opponent of both Hitler’s policies against the Jews as well as Nazi attempts to control the church and replace Christian orthodoxy with a false gospel of German nationalism.
In The Cost of Discipleship, Bonhoeffer castigates what he calls “cheap grace,” which is to say “grace without discipleship.” In place of cheap grace, he puts forward the idea of “costly grace,” organized around Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
9. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings – Maya Angelou
Angelou’s literary autobiography recounts her experience as a black girl growing up in an America where God was seen as white and her gender marked her as potential prey for a man many times her age. She eloquently recounts her experience in the black church, both its beauty and its hypocrisy, and reminds her readers of the Jesus who sides with those whom society seeks to cast out.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is beautifully written, so much so that some readers questioned whether it should be classified as biography at all. It’s also less formally theological than most of the other books on this list despite carrying important theological reflections and messages for its readers.
10. Against War – Desiderius Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus was a Dutch Christian philosopher and humanist (in the Renaissance sense) most famous for his publishing of the Textus Receptus–a bound volume of the New Testament in Greek–and his debate with Martin Luther about free will.
He also wrote a compelling treatise against war; both wars where Christian nations fight against each other as well as wars against non-Christian peoples. He asked rhetorically:
“[Is it] a good Christian man’s deed to slay a Turk? For be the Turks never so wicked, yet they are men, for whose salvation Christ suffered death. And killing Turks we offer to the devil most pleasant sacrifice, and with that one deed we please our enemy, the devil, twice: first because a man is slain, and again, because a Christian man slew him.”
This Audible edition is a two-for-one as it is packaged with Erasmus’ famous satirical book “The Praise of Folly.”