Over the past two and a half years, I have spent and still spend a lot of time with Christian college students. So, from my own personal walk with Christ (throughout college and into my mid 20s) and from seeing many college students following Christ, I would recommend these 7 books for Christian college students to read throughout 2019.

The Seven

1. The Bible (Lots of Pages)
   1. Most Christian college students have never read through the entire Bible. Now, I say that knowing that most professed Christians in general have probably never read through the Bible. . . . so do not frown on college students for this! With that said, Christians students should seek to read through the Bible this year. You can try a reading plan. You can try to read through it at your own pace. Just try to make your way through the Bible. You will be challenged, stretched, encouraged, and built up in the faith as you seek to do this. My first time doing this was when I was a senior in college. Convicted by the fact that I had never read through the entire Bible, I read it in three months (yes, to my shame, I skipped the genealogies)! Since then, I have consistently read the Bible every year. I am currently on my sixth time through the Bible and I am enjoying it more than I previously did the first five times because I am understanding it so much better. So, take up the Bible and read. Seek to be as acquainted with the Bible as you possibly can be!
2. Knowing God by J.I. Packer (288 pages)
   1. Every college student is a theologian. Each college student has a particular belief about who God is. And, in all honesty, each student believes dogmatically about what he or she believes. Once you say something contrary to what they believe about Jesus, salvation, the Spirit, spiritual gifts, etc., then they will argue with you. So, each student is a passionate theologian. However, that does not mean that each person is a good theologian. Just because we have a belief about God that we are passionate about does not mean that it is right. Therefore, we need to seek to be good theologians. Knowing God will help you with this. J.I. Packer will teach you what it is like to think carefully about who God is and how He has revealed himself in the Bible.
3. The Work of Christ by R.C. Sproul (224 pages)
   1. Most students that I have talked to focus primarily on the death and resurrection of Christ. They focus on the cross, the blood, the death, and the resurrection. The problem with this is that it is not the whole story. The work of Christ in his life is just as important as the work of Christ in his death. Jesus being born in Bethlehem, being a descendent of David, being circumcised on the eight day, being baptized to fulfill all righteousness, etc., are all important to our salvation. Had Jesus not been blameless, he would have not been a sufficient sacrifice. Had he not been righteous, there would be no righteousness for us to be gifted with through faith in Jesus. Thus, the work of Christ in his life is of immense important. R.C. Sproul will show you this.
4. The Truth of the Cross by R.C. Sproul (167 pages)
   1. So, whereas The Work of Christ will show you the importance of Christ’s earthly ministry, The Truth of the Cross will keen in on the significance of Christ’s work on the cross. And, let’s be honest, it would be of great value to become experts in all that happened on the cross. I mean what does it mean that the wrath of our just God was satisfied in the death of Christ? What does it mean that Christ made atonement for us? What does it mean that He was our substitute? What does it mean that he bore our sin in his body on the cross? What does it mean that he was made a curse for us? Sproul will show you the answers to these questions.
5. Tactics by Gregory Koukl (208 Pages)
   1. Evangelism is hard. It is hard to navigate conversations to specific points where we can proclaim the good news about Jesus Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. This is most certainly hard in a day where there is increasing hostility to a Christian worldview. . . .especially on college campuses. It is not abnormal for somebody to bombard you with things that they have heard from others (their highly educated liberal professors) once they hear you say that you are a Christian. How can the Bible be true if it is written by men? How can you believe abortion is wrong? How come you don’t think a woman has the right to choose how she uses her own body? Doesn’t it say that homosexuals ought to be stoned in the Bible? The Jesus of history is different from the Jesus of faith. The historical Jesus was just some Jew. The Jesus of faith is some mythological deity that early Christians made up. How can you fall for believing in this mythological deity? The questions abound! Gregory Koukl will give you a neat way to navigate these questions in a gentle way. He will help you turn these types of conversations into something that is very beneficial. Ultimately, he will help you to expose unbeliever’s faulty thinking, and to navigate these types of conversations to Jesus Christ and him crucified.
6. The Story of Reality by Gregory Koukl (208 Pages)
   1. We, as Christians, do not believe in a myth. When we speak about the creation of the heavens and the earth, the depravity of man, the person of Jesus, the death and resurrection of Jesus, etc., we are talking about reality. This is what has really happened. Therefore, everything else that is contrary to the Christian faith is false. It simply isn’t reality. Gregory Koukl, throughout The Story of Reality, articulates how the Christian worldview makes the most sense. This will be of great help to a Christian college student.
7. Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney (352 Pages)
   1. Most college students do not know what it looks like to progressively grow in holiness. They have an understanding of believing in Christ and being saved, but they do not have an understanding of what it looks like to work out their salvation with fear and trembling. Therefore, they don’t. This isn’t good. If we remain ignorant of this facet of the Christian life we will remain spiritual babes. This is why this book is so important. Donald Whitney will show us how God uses these ordinary disciplines (Bible reading, meditation, prayer, evangelism, etc.) to help Christians grow and conform into the image of Jesus.

I am sure that others would recommend a different seven books, but from what I have seen throughout my years in college and in college ministry, these seven books will be beneficial for college students. They are easy to read, pretty short, and address particular areas of thought that are largely neglected.