Reformed Reading Guide · 13 books
The Best Books on the Sacraments
In confessional Reformed theology, the sacraments are the two holy signs and seals instituted by Christ, baptism and the Lord's Supper, that visibly present and apply the promises of the covenant of grace. They do not save automatically, but by the working of the Holy Spirit they confirm faith and unite believers more closely to Christ and his benefits. This reading guide gathers the best in-print books on their meaning, recipients, and right use.
The sacraments sit at the heart of Christian worship, yet many believers have never studied why Christ gave us water, bread, and wine. This guide recommends the best confessional Reformed and evangelical books on baptism and the Lord's Supper, all currently in print. We have sorted them into basic, intermediate, and advanced tiers so you can start where you are and go as deep as you like. Every title is verified by author, current edition, and ISBN.
Basic
5 books
Baptism: Answers to Common Questions
Guy M. Richard · 2019
A gracious, easy-to-read introduction that walks through what baptism means, whether it saves, and who should receive it.
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The Lord's Supper: Answers to Common Questions
Keith A. Mathison · 2019
A short, question-and-answer primer that clears up the most common confusions about the Supper for ordinary church members.
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What Is the Lord's Supper?
Richard D. Phillips · 2005
A compact booklet in the Basics of the Faith series that explains the Supper as sign and covenant seal in plain language.
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Children of the Promise: The Biblical Case for Infant Baptism
Robert R. Booth · 1995
A former Baptist pastor lays out the covenant argument for infant baptism in an accessible, personal, and persuasive way.
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The Lord's Supper
Thomas Watson · 2004
A warm Puritan classic that treats the Supper as a visible sermon meant to stir deeper love for Christ.
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4 books
Given for You: Reclaiming Calvin's Doctrine of the Lord's Supper
Keith A. Mathison · 2002
The definitive modern recovery of Calvin's real-presence view of the Supper, richly biblical and pastorally motivated.
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The Lord's Supper: Eternal Word in Broken Bread
Robert Letham · 2001
A concise, biblically grounded case for a historic Reformed understanding of communion over against memorialist and Roman views.
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The Lord's Supper as a Means of Grace: More Than a Memory
Richard C. Barcellos · 2013
A focused study showing from Scripture and the confessions how the Supper actually conveys grace rather than serving as a bare reminder.
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Christ, Baptism and the Lord's Supper: Recovering the Sacraments for Evangelical Worship
Leonard J. Vander Zee · 2004
An award-winning call for evangelicals to reclaim both sacraments as living encounters with the risen Christ.
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4 books
Word, Water, and Spirit: A Reformed Perspective on Baptism
J. V. Fesko · 2010
A rigorous historical, biblical, and systematic theology of baptism that treats covenant, efficacy, and the case for infant baptism in depth.
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The Mystery of the Lord's Supper: Sermons by Robert Bruce
Robert Bruce (edited by T. F. Torrance) · 2005
Classic sixteenth-century Scottish sermons, translated and edited by Torrance, offering profound reflection on how believers feed on Christ.
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Calvin's Doctrine of the Word and Sacrament
Ronald S. Wallace · 1997
A careful scholarly examination of Calvin's writings that remains the standard study of his sacramental theology.
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Children at the Lord's Table? Assessing the Case for Paedocommunion
Cornelis P. Venema · 2009
A thorough historical, exegetical, and systematic evaluation of paedocommunion that defends the confessional practice of admitting children after a profession of faith.
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