Literature

The logic is clear behind the JSM-Langham Literature Program: pastors can’t preach if they don’t study and they can’t study if they don’t have books. Books are the tools of the pastor’s trade. But books are scarce in developing countries. Working with the five national Langham Boards (USA, UK & Ireland, Canada, Australia and Hong Kong), Langham has three responses to this need to help pastors around the world.

• First, we carefully select 2 books each year— especially biblical expositions—and send them to about 12,000 church leaders to help them in their preaching. Two simpler books are selected for approximately 60,000 untrained pastors.
• Second, we offer a grant annually to 900 seminary libraries, helping them obtain key evangelical works.
• Third, we help nearly 40,000 seminary students and faculty to buy, at a heavily subsidized price, basic reference books to form the nucleus of their personal library.

Because book publishers and distributors give the program generous discounts, the actual value of the books delivered is highly leveraged and represents almost three times our expenditure budget. The JSM-Langham Literature Program would not exist if it weren’t for these publishing and distribution partners who are the key link for making good evangelical books available to seminary libraries, faculty, students and pastors.

It would be hard to imagine life without our books, but many pastors from developing countries have nearly empty bookshelves. The JSM-Langham Literature Program is helping stock these pastors’ reference libraries with good evangelical books. This JSM-Langham effort is having a great effect on the quality of preaching and teaching in many churches around the world.

Please visit the Literature program area of the website for more specific information.  You can also browse our Grant Catalog by by clicking here.