Christian Biographies

God's Great Generals
Why They Succeeded and Why Some Failed

Over a decade ago God told a young man to read the biographies of His generals in order to see why they succeeded and why some of them failed. Such advice is well worth heeding today and therefore I have tried to compile a list of Christian biographies that are available today. I have included many heavyweight books as well as lighter reads. For some, that I consider more important, I have included more than one edition.

Not all the biographies are about the great, there are some about the small as well
"Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both small and great!" Rev 19:5

Books: linked to

All books are linked directly to Amazon. There are many free on-line resources in the links section. Books marked * are ones that I particularly enjoyed (mostly these are a good read and not too heavy).

1. Saint Thomas Aquinas - the Dumb Ox by G. K. Chesterton
2. St. Francis of Assisi by G. K. Chesterton
3. Inn of the Sixth Happiness (Gladys Aylward) by Burgess A *
4. Augustine of Hippo : A Biography by Peter Brown
5. The Legacy of Sovereign Joy: God's Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin by John Piper*
6. Saint Augustine (Penguin Lives) by Garry Wills
7. Confessions (Oxford World's Classics) by Saint Augustine, Henry Chadwick (Translator)
8. God's Smuggler by Brother Andrew, John Sherrill, Elizabeth Sherrill (Contributor) *
9. Historymakers by Richard Baxter
10. A Life Of The Reverend Richard Baxter 1615-1691 (Paperback) by Frederick J. Powicke
11. 9 Oclock in the Morning by Bennett, Dennis J. Bennett, John Sherrill (Designer) *
12. Dietrich Bonhoeffer : A Biography by Eberhard Bethge, Victoria J. Barnett (Editor)
13. Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, John Sherrill (Contributor)
14. William Booth (Men of Faith) by David Bennett
15. E.M. Bounds by Darrel D. King
16. David Brainerd (Men of Faith) by Ranelda MacK Hunsicker
17. The Life and Diary of David Brainerd by Philip E. Howard, Jonathan Edwards (Editor), David Brainerd
18. John Bunyan (Paperback) by Frank Mott Harrison
19. Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners (Penguin Classics) by John Bunyan, W. R. Owens (Editor)
20. John Calvin : A Sixteenth-Century Portrait by William J. Bouwsma
21. A Life of John Calvin : A Study in Shaping of Western Culture by Alister E. McGrath
22. William Carey : Father of Modern Missions (Heroes of the Faith) by Sam Wellman
23. Legacy of William Carey : A Model for the Transformation of a Culture by Vishal Mangalwadi, Ruth Mangalwadi
24. William Carey by Basil Miller *
25. A Chance to Die : The Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael by Elisabeth Elliot
26. Prison to Praise by Merlin R. Carothers *
27. Memoir and Remains of R.M. m Cheyne by Andrew A. Bonar
28. Oswald Chambers (Women and Men of Faith) by David W. Lambert
29. Life and Death in Shanghai by Nien Cheng *
30. The Life and Times of Constantine the Great : The First Christian Emperor by D. George Kousoulas
31. Golden Mouth : The Story of John Chrysostom-Ascetic, Preacher, Bishop by J. N. D. Kelly
32. Born Again by Charles W. Colson *
33. Fanny Crosby : The Hymn Writer (Heroes of the Faith) by Bernard Ruffin
34. Is That Really You, God? : Hearing the Voice of God by Loren Cunningham
35. Born to New Life : Cyprian of Carthage (The Spirituality of the Fathers, No. 2) by Oliver Davies (Editor), Tim Witherow (Translator), Cyprian Smith (Designer)
36. Surprised by the Voice of God : How God Speaks Today Through Prophecies, Dreams, and Visions by Jack Deere *
37. Surprised by the Power of the Spirit : Discovering How God Speaks and Heals Today Y by Jack Deere
38. Jonathan Edwards (Men of Faith) by David J. Vaughan
39. Jonathan Edwards : A New Biography by Iain H. Murray
40. God's Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards John Piper
41. Peace Child by Don Richardson
42. Shadow of the Almighty : The Life & Testament of Jim Elliot by Elisabeth Elliot
43. Just As I Am by Billy Graham
44. No Compromise: The Life Story of Keith Green by Keith Green, Melody Green Sievright, David Hazard
45. Rees Howells : Intercessor by Norman P. Grubb (Excellent)*
46. Jerome: His Life, Writings, and Controversies by J. N. D. Kelly
47. By Searching : My Journey Through Doubt into Faith by Isobel Kuhn
48. John Knox : The Hero of the Scottish Reformation by Henry Cowan
49. John G. Lake : The Complete Collection of His Life Teachings by Roberts Liardon (Compiler), John G. Lake
50. Surprised by Joy : The Shape of My Early Life by C. S. Lewis (Preface) *
51. David Livingstone : Missionary and Explorer (Heroes of the Faith) by Sam Wellman
52. David Martyn Lloyd-Jones the First Forty Years 1899-1939 by Iain H. Murray
53. David Martyn Lloyd-Jones : The Fight of Faith 1939-1981 by Iain H. Murray, Lain H. Murray
54. Here I Stand : A Life of Martin Luther by Roland Herbert Bainton *
55. Irenaeus of Lyons (The Early Church Fathers) by Robert McQueen Grant
56. The Awakening : One Man's Battle With Darkness by Friedrich Zuendel, Johann Christoph Blumhardt
57. The Seven Storey Mountain by Thomas Merton (Author)
58. Robert Murray McCheyne: by A. Smellie
59. Thomas More : A Biography by Richard Marius
60. Andrew Murray (Men of Faith) by William Lindner, William Linder
61. The Story of Watchman Nee : Against the Tide by Angus Kinnear *
62. Called to Commitment (Life Messages of Great Christians Series) by Watchman Nee, Judith Couchman (Compiler)
63. John Newton (Men of Faith) by Catherine Swift
64. Bruchko by Bruce Olson - What happens when a nineteen-year-old boy and heads into the jungles to evangelize a murderous tribe of South American Indians? For Bruce Olson it meant capture and torture, but what he discovered revolutionized the world of missions.
65. Origen (The Early Church Fathers) by Joseph Wilson Trigg
66. John Owen by Andrew Thompson
67. John Owen: The Man and His Theology (Paperback) by Sinclair B. Ferguson (Editor), Robert W. Oliver (Editor), Graham S. Harrison (Editor), Michael A. G. Haykin (Editor), Carl R. Trueman (Editor)
68. Luis Palau (Men of Faith) by Terry Whalin
69. Mind on Fire : A Faith for the Skeptical and Indifferent (Classics of Faith and Devotion) by Blaise Pascal, James M. Houston (Editor), OS Guinness (Introduction)
70. A Piece of the Mountain: The Story of Blaise Pascal by Joyce McPherson
71. God Is a Matchmaker by Derek. Prince, Ruth Prince (Photographer)
72. Death of a Guru by Maharaj, Dave Hunt *
73. A Passion for Souls : The Life of D.L. Moody by Lyle W. Dorsett
74. Autobiography of George Muller by George Muller
75. Chasing the Dragon by Jackie Pullinger, Jackie Pillinger *
76. John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace Jonathan Aitken
77. Peace Child by Don Richardson
78. An Instrument of Revival : The Complete Life of Evan Roberts, 1878-1951
79. Faithfulness and Holiness: The Witness of J.C. Ryle (Hardcover) by J. I. Packer
80. Francis & Edith Schaeffer (Men of Faith) by Louis Gifford Parkhurst
81. Forgotten Spurgeon by Iain Hamish Murray
82. Spurgeon: Prince of Preachers by Lewis A. Drummond
83. For Me to Live Is Christ (Life Messages of Great Christians) by Judith Couchman (Compiler), Charles Haddon Spurgeon
84. C T Studd: by Norman P. Grubb
85. Joni Eareckson Tada : Her Story by Joni Eareckson Tada, Joni Eareckson *
86. J. Hudson Taylor : A Man in Christ (An OMF Book) by Roger Steer
87. Spiritual Secret of Hudson Taylor by Howard Taylor, Geraldine Taylor (Biography by same authors out of print but worth getting *)
88. Hudson and Maria by John Pollock
89. Betrayed by Stan Telchin, Sam Telchin *
90. Abandoned : What Is God's Will for the Jewish People and the Church? by Stan Telchin
91. Something Beautiful for God : Mother Teresa of Calcutta by Malcolm Muggeridge
92. William Tyndale : A Biography by David Daniell
93. A Severe Mercy by Sheldon Vanauken
94. Vanya by Myrna Grant *
95. John Wesley: A Biography (Paperback) by Stephen Tomkins
96. Wesley and the People Called Methodists (Paperback) by Richard P. Heitzenrater
97. A Real Christian: The Life of John Wesley (Paperback) by Kenneth, J. Collins
98. God's Politician : William Wilberforce's Struggle by Garth Lean, Charles W. Colson (Foreword)
99. Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce by John Piper and Jonathan Aitken
100. Cross and the Switchblade by David Wilkerson, David Wilkkerson, Elizabeth Sherrill, John Sherrill
101. Coming Clean: The True Story of a Cocaine Drug Lord and His Unexpected Encounter with God by Jorge Valdés
102. George Whitefield : The Life and Times of the Great Evangelist of the Eighteenth-Century Revival by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Designer), Arnold A. Dallimore
103. Smith Wigglesworth : The Complete Collection of His Life Teachings by Smith Wigglesworth, Roberts Liardon
104. Dare to Believe (Life Messages of Great Christians, 3.) by Smith Wigglesworth, Judith Couchman (Editor)
105. Tortured for Christ by Richard Wurmbrand *
106. In God's Underground by Richard Wurmbrand, Charles Foley (Editor)
107. John Wycliffe: Man of Courage (By Faith Biography Series) (Paperback) by Ambassador (Author)
108. The Bible in English : John Wycliffe and William Tyndale by John D. Long

More modern biographies (testimonies):

1. God the Evidence : The Reconciliation of Faith and Reason in a Postsecular World by Patrick Glynn (written by a former atheist, it is not quite a biography but is a good read)*
2. Philosophers Who Believe : The Spiritual Journeys of 11 Leading Thinkers by Kelly James Clark (Editor) *
3. Why I Am a Christian : Leading Thinkers Explain Why They Believe by Norman L. Geisler (Editor), Paul K. Hoffman (Editor), Josh McDowell (Afterword) *
4. Professors Who Believe : The Spiritual Journeys of Christian Faculty by Paul M. Anderson (Editor)
5. Finding God at Harvard by Kelly Monroe (Editor)

Collections

1. God's Generals : Why They Succeeded and Why Some Failed by Roberts Liardon
2. The Legacy of Sovereign Joy: God's Triumphant Grace in the Lives of Augustine, Luther, and Calvin by John Piper* (The Swans Are Not Silent, 1)
3. The Hidden Smile of God : The Fruit of Affliction in the Lives of John Bunyan, William Cowper, and David Brainerd (The Swans Are Not Silent, 2) by John Piper *
4. The Roots of Endurance: Invincible Perseverance in the Lives of John Newton, Charles Simeon, and William Wilberforce (Swans Are Not Silent, V. 3.) by John Piper
5. Contending for Our All: Defending Truth and Treasuring Christ in the Lives of Athanasius, John Owen, and J. Gresham Machen (The Swans Are Not Silent, 4) by John Piper
6. Filling Up the Afflictions of Christ: The Cost of Bringing the Gospel to the Nations in the Lives of William Tyndale, Adoniram Judson, and John Paton (The Swans Are Not Silent, 5) by John Piper
7. 70 Great Christians: by G. Hanks
8. 25 Surprising Marriages : Faith-Building Stories from the Lives of Famous Christians by William J. Petersen
9. 100 Christian Women Who Changed the Twentieth Century by Helen Kooiman Hosier
10. Great Missionaries of the Church by Charles C. Creegan, Josephine A. Goodnow
11. Giants of the Faith : Classic Christian Writings and the Men Behind Them (Augustine, Luther, Bunyan, and Wesley) by Raymond Edward Brown
12. In the Footsteps of Faith : Lessons from the Lives of Great Men and Women of the Bible by John F. MacArthur
13. Living With the Giants : The Lives of Great Men of the Faith by Warren W. Wiersbe
14. Promise of Good Things : The Apostolic Fathers (The Spirituality of the Fathers, 3) by Oliver Davies (Editor), Alun Idris Jones (Translator)
15. How They Found Christ : In Their Own Words by Bill Freeman (Editor) Augustine, Luther, Calvin, Bunyan, Madame Guyon, Wesley, Andrew Murray, Hannah W. Smith, Hudson Taylor, Spurgeon, A.B. Simpson, and Watchman Nee
16. 131 Christians Everyone Should Know (Holman Reference) by Mark Galli (Editor), Ted Olsen (Editor)
17. Not Less Than Everything: The Courageous Women Who Carried the Christian Gospel to China (Paperback) by Valerie Griffiths

Martyrs and persecution

1. Tortured for Christ by Richard Wurmbrand *
2. In God's Underground by Richard Wurmbrand, Charles Foley (Editor)
3. Foxe's Book of Martyrs by John, W. Foxe, W. Grinton Berry (Editor)
4. By Their Blood : Christian Martyrs of the Twentieth Century by James C. Hefley, Marti Hefley
5. Their Blood Cries Out : The Untold Story of Persecution Against Christians in the Modern World by Paul Marshall, Lela Gilbert
6. Vanya by Myrna Grant *
7. Peace Child by Don Richardson

Revivals

Revival is something that the West desperately needs to meet the challenge of this century. The Great Commission occurs in each of the gospels and also in Acts, each time the Holy Spirit or His gifts are mentioned.

1. Azusa Street Revival by Clara Davis
2. The Coming Revival : America's Call to Fast, Pray, and 'Seek God's Face' by Bill Bright
3. The Essential Smith Wigglesworth : Selected Sermons by Evangelist Smith Wigglesworth from Powerful Revival Campaigns Around the World by Smith Wigglesworth, Wayne Warner, Joyce Lee
4. First-Hand Experiences of Revival by Clive Price
5. George Whitefield : God's Anointed Servant in the Great Revival of the Eighteenth Century by Arnold A. Dallimore
6. God Sent Revival : Asahel Nettleton by J. F. Thornbury, P & R
7. The Gospel Pedlar: The Story of John Berridge and the Eighteenth Century Revival by Nigel R. Pibworth Evangelical Press
8. Great Awakening : A History of the Revival of Religion in the Time of Edwards and Whitefield by Joseph Tracy, Banner of Truth
9. America's Great Revivals Bethany House (Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, D.L. Moody, Jeremiah Lanphier, and Charles Finney. )
10. Celtic Revivals by Seamus Deane
11. Firefall : How God Has Shaped History Through Revivals by Malcolm McDow, Alvin Reid (Contributor) Broadman & Holman
12. From Holy Laughter to Holy Fire : America on the Edge of Revival by Michael L. Brown
13. Revival by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Good News Pub
14. Joy Unspeakable : Power and Renewal in the Holy Spirit by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Harold Shaw Pub
15. The Rising Revival : Firsthand Accounts of the Incredible Argentine Revival-And How It Can Spread Throughout the World by C. Peter Wagner (Editor), Pablo Alberto Deiros (Editor) Regal Books
16. When the Heavens Are Brass : Keys to Genuine Revival by John Kilpatrick Destiny Image
17. When the Kingdom Comes by Steve Gray, Stephen Hill Baker Book House
18. When the Spirit Comes With Power : Signs and Wonders Among God's People by John White Intervarsity Pr
19. Overcome by the Spirit : The Extraordinary Phenomenon That Is Happening to Ordinary People by Francis MacNutt Fleming H Revell Co
20. The River Is Here : Receiving and Sustaining the Blessing of Revival by Melinda Fish Chosen Books Pub
21. An Instrument of Revival : The Complete Life of Evan Roberts, 1878-1951
22. Why Revival Tarries by Leonard Ravenhill
23. Greater Works : Experiencing God's Power by Smith Wigglesworth (Paperback - April 2000)
24. Prayer & Fasting by Kingsley A. Fletcher

God centred books from Amazon:

1. The God Chasers : 'My Soul Follows Hard After Thee by Tommy Tenney - suggested by a friend
2. Desiring God : Meditations of a Christian Hedonist by John Piper
3. The Pleasures of God : Meditations on God's Delight in Being God by John Piper
4. Future Grace : The Purifying Power of Living by Faith by John Piper, the faith that justifies also sanctifies
5. Chosen by God by R. C. Sproul - I read this short book about predestination in one sitting*
6. The Sacred Romance : Drawing Closer to the Heart of God by Brent Curtis, John Eldredge
7. Lion and Lamb/the Relentless Tenderness of Jesus by Brennan Manning
8. Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis - different to the above books but one of the most quoted Christian books written

If you can recommend a good biography or a better edition than the one listed above email me

Non-Christian bios:

1. Wild Swans : Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang *
2. The Slave by Isaac Bashevis Singer, not a bio but a good read *

Links:

1. Christian Biography Resources - very good site
2. Christian Classic Ethereal Library - Classic Christian books in electronic format, selected for your edification. There is enough good reading material here to last you a lifetime, if you give each work the time it deserves! All of the books on this server are believed to be in the public domain in the United States unless otherwise specified. Copy them freely for any purpose. Outside of the US, check your local copyright laws.
3. Christian Biographies - short bios of Augustine Calvin Chrysostom Cyprian Francis of Assisi Hus Luther Polycarp Spurgeon Wesley Wyclif
4. Christian Biography
5. The Hall of Church History - Phillip R Johnson
6. Museum of Pilgrims - rare book room
7. Biographies of some Noted Christians - actually many noted Christians
8. Calvary Christian Bookshop, a resource ministry of Calvary Christian Fellowship, Motherwell, Scotland
9. Heroes of History - Sam Wellman's Biography site