What Every Christian Ought to Know, a review

reviewed by   T. C. Pinckney                                                                                                                       Vol. XX, No. 3, March 2007

What Every Christian Ought to Know is Adrian Rogers’ last book, published in 2005. You may recall that Dr. Rogers died 15 November 2005.

Those who have heard Adrian preach or who have read any of his other books know his great gift of using ordinary, easily understood English with unforgettable pungency and power, clarity and conviction. Here are two examples:

Having asked, “What is grace?”, Dr. Rogers answers, “Grace is the characteristic of God’s nature that makes God love sinners such as we. God does not love us because we are valuable; we are valuable because He loves us. That love is by His sheer grace. Grace is something we do not deserve at all. It is God’s unmerited love and favor shown to sinners who deserve judgment.” [p. 34]

Addressing the purpose of prayer, he writes, “Too many people have the notion that prayer is talking God into doing something that He ordinarily would not want to do. This is not true. Prayer is seeking the will of God and following it. Prayer is the way of getting God’s will done on earth.” [p. 216]

His book has twelve chapters, each discussing something every Christian ought to know: the Bible is the Word of God, the assurance of salvation, about eternal security, what happens when a Christian sins, how to handle temptation, about believers baptism, how to discern the will of God, about faith and how to have it, how to be filled with the Holy Spirit, how to discover his spiritual gift, how to pray with power, how to understand the Bible, and an epilogue: It’s Not How Much You Know, It’s How Much You Grow.

When Adrian Rogers wrote this book, he must have known he had cancer. I believe he considered What Every Christian Should Know as his last witness to believers and unbelievers. It is powerful. It is flowing with godly wisdom. It will bless your heart and the rest of your life. Be sure to read it ... at least twice. And give copies to those you love.

[Adrian Rogers, What Every Christian Should Know (Broadman & Holman, Nashville, 2005), 248 pp.]