The Gospel According to Matthew


Book Description

The publication of the King James version of the Bible, translated between 1603 and 1611, coincided with an extraordinary flowering of English literature and is universally acknowledged as the greatest influence on English-language literature in history. Now, world-class literary writers introduce the book of the King James Bible in a series of beautifully designed, small-format volumes. The introducers' passionate, provocative, and personal engagements with the spirituality and the language of the text make the Bible come alive as a stunning work of literature and remind us of its overwhelming contemporary relevance.




Lent and Easter 2020


Book Description

The Gospel can be considered a Manual of Prayer, a letter written by the Holy Spirit to you. But God's Word doesn't live in a book. It comes alive when you pray about It. It is not about getting to know what the 'Historical Jesus' did two thousand years ago, what He said "back then"; Jesus Christ is not 'back then' anymore, He is alive, and is longing to talk to you.Taking the Gospel of the day, the iPray provides a commentary that can be a trigger for an authentic and personal conversation with Jesus. That time of prayer spent with Jesus is like a 'cooking pot' in which you blend the Words and scenes of Jesus' life, found in the Gospel, together with your daily life, your worries, your family and friends, all heated up by the fire of the Holy Spirit.'iPray with the Gospel' is not a ready-made meal you can just throw in the microwave, as if they were some prayers that you read and that's it. It is more like a personal recipe that only you can cook with the help of the Holy Spirit.




Who Do People Say I Am?


Book Description

Spanning early Christian writings from the Gospel of Mark to the Acts of John, this book by Vernon Robbins explores the various ways early Christians explained their understanding of the special nature of Jesus beyond the canonical Gospels. Who Do People Say I Am? shows how second-and third-century Christian authors of additional Gospels and Gospel-like writings expanded and elaborated on Jesus divinity in the context of his earthly existence. According to Robbins, these Christian authors thought that the New Testament Gospel writers could and should have emphasized the divinity of Jesus more than they did. Throughout the book Robbins asks and answers questions such as these: If Jesus introduced new beliefs and practices, what did second- and third-century believers find unresolved in the New Testament Gospels about those beliefs and practices, and how did they try to resolve them? What gaps in the storylines of the New Testament Gospels did second- and third-century Christian writers think could be filled in, and how did they fill them in? If Jesus really were fully divine when he came to earth and lived among his disciples, what experiences did his disciples have that the New Testament Gospels do not tell us? Learning activities and a bibliography at the end of each chapter help make this book a valuable resource for students and any other interested readers.




In Defense of Jesus


Book Description

An enlightening follow-up to the bestselling book The Case for Christ, In Defense of Jesus follows award-winning journalist Lee Strobel as he explores the most explosive arguments against the identity of Christ as the Messiah. Has modern scholarship debunked the traditional Christ? Has the church suppressed the truth about Jesus to advance its own agenda? What if the real Jesus is far different from the atoning Savior worshiped through the centuries? In Defense of Jesus explores such hot-button questions as: Did the church suppress ancient non-biblical documents that paint a more accurate picture of Jesus than the four Gospels? Did the church distort the truth about Jesus by tampering with early New Testament texts? Do new insights and explanations disprove the resurrection? Have fresh arguments disqualified Jesus from being the Messiah? Did Christianity steal its core ideas from earlier mythology? Evaluate the arguments and evidence being advanced by prominent atheists, liberal theologians, Muslim scholars, and others. Sift through expert testimony. Then reach your own verdict with In Defense of Jesus. This title is also available in Spanish, En defense de Jesús.




No More Faking Fine


Book Description

Scripture reveals a God who meets us where we are, not where we pretend to be. No More Faking Fine is your invitation to get honest with God through the life-giving language of lament. If you've ever been given empty clichés during challenging times, you know how painful it is to be misunderstood by well-meaning people. When life hurts, we often feel pressure--from others and ourselves--to keep it together, suck it up, or pray it away. But Scripture reveals a God who lovingly invites us to give honest voice to our emotions when life hits hard. For most of her life, Esther Fleece Allen believed she could bypass the painful emotions of her broken past by shutting them down altogether. She was known as an achiever and an overcomer on the fast track to success. But in silencing her pain, she robbed herself of the opportunity to be healed. Maybe you've done the same. Esther's journey into healing began when she discovered that God has given us a real-world way to deal with raw emotions and an alternative to the coping mechanisms that end up causing more pain. It's called lament--the gut-level, honest prayer that God never ignores, never silences, and never wastes. No More Faking Fine is your permission to lament, taking you on a journey down the unexpected pathway to true intimacy with God. Drawing from careful biblical study and hard-won insight, Esther reveals how to use God's own language to come closer to him as he leads us through our pain to the light on the other side, teaching you that: We are robbing ourselves of a divine mystery and a divine intimacy when we pretend to have it all together God does not expect us to be perfect; instead, he meets us where we are There is hope beyond your heartache, disappointment, and grief Like Esther, you'll soon find that when one person stops faking fine, it gives everyone else permission to do the same.




Did Jesus Rise From the Dead?


Book Description

[This] is the most important question regarding the claims of the Christian faith. Certainly no question in modern religious history demands more attention or interest, as witnessed by the vast body of literature dealing with the Resurrection. James I. Packer says it well in his response to this debate: 'When Christians are asked to make good their claim that this scheme is truth, they point to Jesus' resurrection. The Easter event, so they affirm, demonstrated Jesus' deity; validated his teaching; attested to the completion of his work of atonement for sin; confirms his present cosmic dominion and coming reappearance as Judge; assures us that his personal pardon, presence, and power in people's lives today is fact; and guarantees each believer's own reembodiment by Resurrection in the world to come.' The Apostle Paul considered the Resurrection to be the cornerstone of the Christian faith. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, the whole structure, Christianity, collapses. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:14-17, 'And if Christ has not been raised, 'our preaching is useless and so is you faith.' More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God. . . . And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile [emphasis added].' The Christian faith-and its claim to be Truth-exists only if Jesus rose from the dead. The heart of Christianity is a living Christ.




Spirit, Soul, and Body


Book Description

Have you ever asked yourself what changed when you were "born again?" You look in the mirror and see the same reflection - your body hasn't changed. You find yourself acting the same and yielding to those same old temptations - that didn't seem to change either. So you wonder, Has anything really changed? The correct answer to that question is foundational for receiving from God. If you lack this basic understanding, you'll forever ask yourself doubt-filled questions like: "How could God love somebody like me?" and "How can I possibly expect to receive anything from the Lord? I don't deserve it, I'm not good enough!" Spirit, Soul, and Body will help you eliminate those and other doubt-filled questions that destroy your faith. If you have trouble receiving from God, this is a must-read!




God the Son Incarnate


Book Description

Nothing is more important than what a person believes about Jesus Christ. To understand Christ correctly is to understand the very heart of God, Scripture, and the gospel. To get to the core of this belief, this latest volume in the Foundations of Evangelical Theology series lays out a systematic summary of Christology from philosophical, biblical, and historical perspectives—concluding that Jesus Christ is God the Son incarnate, both fully divine and fully human. Readers will learn to better know, love, trust, and obey Christ—unashamed to proclaim him as the only Lord and Savior. Part of the Foundations of Evangelical Theology series.




Echoes of a Prophet


Book Description

Echoes of a Prophet examines intertextual connections to Ezekiel found in John and in Second Temple literature. The Dead Sea Scrolls contain many allusions to a number of Ezekiel's oracles, while other Second Temple works refer to only a few of Ezekiel's oracles, and those only rarely. In each case, Manning examines the evidence for the presence of the allusions, studies the implied interpretational methods, and comments on the function of the allusion in advancing the author's ideas. He also analyzes John's allusions to Ezekiel: the good shepherd, the vine, the opened heavens, imagery from the "dry bones" vision, and water symbolism. He observes that John has a few unique tendencies: he alludes to all five of Ezekiel's "oracles of hope" and primarily uses that imagery to describe the giving of the Holy Spirit and new life through Jesus.




Revelation


Book Description

The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.