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“Tackling Big Books” (Jeffery S. Smith)

layers Part 28 of 32 lightbulb 2 illustrations in this sermon

This sermon, delivered by Jeffery S. Smith, encourages believers to cultivate a consistent habit of reading substantial theological books, even if only in small increments. He argues that by reading just ten pages a day, four days a week, for 40 weeks a year, one can complete significant works like Calvin's Institutes or a volume of Augustine. Smith shares a personal anecdote about how he and his wife read many 'meaty' books early in their marriage by consistently reading a few pages each night. He emphasizes the unprecedented access to good, Reformed, experiential literature available today and urges listeners not to let this opportunity go to waste for spiritual growth.

Outline 5 sections · 3 min

  1. Overcoming Intimidation in Reading Big Books 0:00
  2. A Practical Reading Strategy: The 10-Page Rule 0:16
  3. The Surprising Volume Achieved Through Consistency 1:05
  4. Personal Testimony: Reading as a Couple 1:32
  5. The Abundance of Good Reformed Literature 2:11

Key Quotes

“You can't think of books just in terms of the whole. You have to think of it in little parts.”
“How many pages will you have read by the end of that year? 800 pages, right? Now, in 800 pages, you can read a lot of stuff.”
“And so you'll be surprised if you just make it a consistent habit to get good books.”
“And it's remarkable to me, even today, to look back and to think about how many books we read through that way.”
“There's so much good stuff out there that we live in a generation. We probably have access to more good, solid, reformed, experiential books.”
“And literature than any generation ever in the history of the church. And don't let it go to waste.”

Applications

All listeners

  • Don't be intimidated by big books; think of them in small parts.
  • Adopt a consistent reading habit, such as reading ten pages a day, four days a week, for 40 weeks a year.
  • Make it a consistent habit to get good, meaty, helpful books, perhaps from the church bookstore.
  • Take advantage of the unprecedented access to good, solid, reformed, experiential books and literature available in this generation.
  • Do not let the abundance of good literature go to waste.

A full transcript is available on the tab. 10 paragraphs, roughly 3 minutes.

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