If you've never heard of Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church, you need to return to the real world, or out of your basement, or back from the dead. The young-ish pastor from Seattle made huge waves in the Christian community with his unconventional approach to preaching and ministry. 

One of the outward-directed missions of Mars Hill Church in Seattle was The Resurgence, a threefold attempt to equip Christians for every good work by training their heads, hearts, and minds. According to The Resurgence website, these three elements are Jesus-centered, designed to bring all glory and honor to Him.

In the effort to train minds, The Resurgence offers a line of books called Re:Lit, with titles covering everything from art, to family life, to systematic theology. A number of authors and pastors have contributed to the Re:Lit imprint (including Matt Chandler and D. A. Carson), lending both credibility and divergent perspectives.

These books share one thing in common: they're Gospel-centered. Readers won't find a bunch of pop-psychology or self-help instruction; they will find conviction for sin, Biblical exegesis, and exhortation to holiness. Most of the titles are inherently missional, though that doesn't mean they're primarily for non-Christians.

Actually, the Re:Lit titles are primarily not for non-Christians. Even Matt Chandler's excellent The Explicit Gospel is a plain statement of the Christian Gospel for those who already believe. Re:Lit, like The Resurgence, is discipleship-oriented, aimed at shaping saints for service and the defense of the faith.

We would offer one caution: Mark Driscoll is becoming increasingly hazy in his doctrinal distinctives, even defending apostate pastors like T. D. Jakes and Joel Osteen. This hasn't obviously made its way into the Re:Lit books yet, Driscoll himself has written many of the titles, and continues to do so.

Does this mean we should throw out all these books? By no means: again, authors represented include high-profile, orthodox church leaders, and even the books penned by Driscoll are helpful and insightful. As with any line of Christian books, we'd simply advise you to read with discernment and caution, comparing everything to the only infallible standard of God's Word.