Swans Are Not Silent

7 primary works • 8 total works

The Legacy of sovereign joy

by John Piper

Published 1 March 2000

An uplifting look at three famous and flawed fathers of the Christian church and how their lives can inspire us to fall in love with God and find the power to overcome our weaknesses.
Augustine grappled with sexual passion. Martin Luther struggled to control his tongue. John Calvin fought the battle of faith with the world's weapons. Yet despite their failings, each man will always be remembered as a founding father to the Christian faith because of the messages they declared. And even with their deaths hundreds of years ago, their messages still speak today.
John Piper explores each man's life, integrating Augustine's delight in God with Luther's emphasis on the Word and Calvin's exposition of Scriptures. Through their strengths and struggles, he teaches us how to better live today, for when we consider their lives, we behold the glory and majesty of God - and in that, find the power to overcome our weaknesses.

The Hidden Smile of God

by John Piper

Published 15 January 2001

The Roots of Endurance

by John Piper

Published 21 February 2003

Contending for Our All

by John Piper

Published 17 March 2006

Filling Up the Afflictions of Christ

by John Piper

Published 1 June 2009

The fifth volume in Piper's acclaimed The Swans Are Not Silent series illustrates powerful and enduring lessons through the missional sufferings of Tyndale, Judson, and Paton. Jesus' words in John 12 are sobering: unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it will bear little fruit. The history of Christianity's expansion proves that God's strategy for reaching unreached peoples with the gospel includes the sufferings of his frontline heralds-the missionaries who willingly die a thousand daily deaths to advance God's kingdom. Pastor John Piper's latest addition to The Swans Are Not Silent series focuses on this flesh-and-blood reality in the lives of William Tyndale, Adoniram Judson, and John Paton. The price they paid to translate the Word of God, to pave the way for missionary mobilization around the world, and to lead the hostile to Christ was great. Yet their stories show in triplicate how the gospel advances not only through the faithful proclamation of the truth but through representing the afflictions of Christ in our sufferings.

Seeing Beauty and Saying Beautifully

by John Piper

Published 17 May 2014

Volume 6 in the Swans Are Not Silent series explores how God used the poetic eloquence of George Herbert, George Whitefield, and C. S. Lewis to build the church and spread the gospel.

A Camaraderie of Confidence

by John Piper

Published 15 April 2016

This book explores how Charles Spurgeon's, George Muller's, and Hudson Taylor's trust in God's sovereignty fueled their faith, enabling them to live in obedience, persevere through hardships, and bear fruit for the glory of God.

21 Servants of Sovereign Joy

by John Piper

Published 31 March 2018

In this book, John Piper explores the lives of 21 leaders from church history, offering a close look at their perseverance amidst opposition, weakness, and suffering-inspiring readers toward a life of Christ-exalting courage, passion, and joy.