In our image-based culture, people need to visualize something to understand it. This has never been more true about our communication of the gospel. But sometimes our understanding of the gospel gets stuck in a rut, and all we know is a particular outline or one-size-fits-all formula. While we hold to only one gospel, the New Testament uses a wealth of dynamic, compelling images for explaining the good news of Jesus, each of which connects with different people at different points of need. Neil Livingstone provides a guided tour of biblical images of the gospel and shows how each offers fresh insight into God's saving work. Walking through Scripture's gallery of pictures of salvation from new life to deliverance, from justification to adoption, Livingstone invites us to deepen our understanding of the gospel. By letting the truth and power of each permeate our lives, we will be better able to articluate the life-changing gospel of Christ to a world that needs to taste--and see--that the Lord is good.

At key moments in his life on earth, Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, turned to the Psalms for words to express his deepest thoughts and emotions. It is not hard to imagine Jesus, his mind and heart saturated with the words and thoughts of the Psalms as they were prayed aloud in the Temple, going off early in the morning to pray. How much must he have mouthed the words of the Psalms and given them a fulfillment? They became his answering speech to his heavenly Father. In these pages you will discover how the psalms that relate closely to the mission of Jesus can also become our answering speech. We will begin our journey into the mind of Christ by immersing ourselves in several psalms which Jesus himself refers to and fulfills. And then in the second half of the book, we will immerse ourselves in psalms that Jesus would have meditated on during his time on earth, focusing on the heart and mind of Jesus as he prayed the psalms. Structural analysis of each psalm will help us grow our ability to read the Psalms. The guided personal prayer liturgy with each chapter will help us go deeper in the experience of praying the Psalms. Through these psalms we will discover more of the human life of our Lord and Savior. And in the process we will discover more of who we are as we come before our holy God. Also included: a group discussion and prayer experience to accompany each chapter.

"What good does it do to say that the words of the Bible] are inspired by God if most people have absolutely no access to these words, but only to more or less clumsy renderings of these words into a language? . . . How does it help us to say that the Bible is the inerrant word of God if in fact we don't have the words that God inerrantly inspired? . . . We have only error-ridden copies, and the vast majority of these are centuries removed from the originals." So contends Bart D. Ehrman in his bestselling Misquoting Jesus. If altogether true, we have little reason to put our confidence in Scripture. Add to this Ehrman's contention that what we read in the New Testament represents the winners' version of events, twisted to suit their own purposes and not at all a faithful recounting of what really happened, and the case for skepticism and unbelief gives every appearance of being on solid footing. But are things really so bad off? Were the New Testament documents widely distorted by copyists? Can we in fact have no idea what was in the originals? Do we have no hope of knowing what eyewitnesses said and thought? Are other documents left out of the New Testament better sources for understanding early Christianity? While readily conceding that Ehrman has many of his facts straight, pastor and researcher Timothy Paul Jones argues that Ehrman is far too quick to jump to false and unnecessary conclusions. In clear, straightforward prose, Jones explores and explains the ins and outs of copying the New Testament, why lost Christianities were lost, and why the Christian message still rings true today.

Blech argues that both Christianity and Judaism are responsible for anti-Semitism in claiming divine revelation as the source of their scriptures.

It is imperative for every growing Christian to study the Bible. Volume one of this new series will enrich both the believer’s knowledge and life with its survey of the Old Testament.

Chapters conclude with projects, questions and exploration activities that not only test readers’ grasp of the materials but also provide opportunity for more detailed and intensive study.

This well-executed work does much to acquaint people with the Old Testament’s major divisions and its amazing unity as a whole–all of which can lead to a deeper faith.

It is plain even from Paul's own writings that other presentations of the Christian message than his own were current during his apostolic career. With some of these other presentations he is quite happy; against others he found it necessary to put his readers on their guard. In these four studies originally presented as the inaugural series of Didsbury Lectures at the British Isles Nazarene College, Manchester, F.F. Bruce discusses what we know about the history of non-Pauline Christianity in the first century. Judiciously drawing upon material from the whole of the New Testament, he relates it to other early Christian literature in order to provide a highly readable outline of an important area. But, as he warns, this book does not study the literature for its own sake. Instead, it focuses on the leaders of early non-Pauline Christianity, with their associates, from whom the literature provides indispensable evidence. The topics covered are: Chapter 1: Peter and the Eleven Chapter 2: Stephen and Other Hellenists Chapter 3: James and the Church of Jerusalem Chapter 4: John and his Circle

This study presents comprehensive documentation relating to the Sahidic, Bohairic, Achmimic and Dialect V translations of the Epistle of St. James and the two Epistles of St. Peter from the Greek New Testament.

"The ultimate reason for getting to know Peter is so together we might better know Jesus. For the story of Peter is the story of Jesus. Perhaps, if you and I do our best, the same will be said of us someday"--Michael Card. In A Fragile Stone, songwriter and musician Michael Card explores the dynamic, contradictory life of the apostle Peter. The fruit of years of careful study, A Fragile Stone revisits well-known passages and discovers unexpected insights, painting a portrait of Peter that is both familiar and jarring. With a scope spanning the entire New Testament, Card reveals how the impetuous fisherman of the Gospels was transformed into the pivotal leader of the early church. The life of Simon Peter thus serves as a model for Christian discipleship, offering hope that we likewise can be changed as Jesus calls us to follow him. This companion study guide, written by Michael Card with Dale and Sandy Larsen, provides nine inductive Bible studies on the life of Peter, with discussion questions for group study or individual reflection.

Do you want to study the Bible on your own but find yourself overwhelmed by complicated, cumbersome study methods? Are you a group leader looking for exciting resources to bring new life to your teaching? Is your time in the Word dry and lifeless, or do you find Scripture hard to understand? Victoria Johnson--a busy speaker, teacher, author and mother--has discovered an easy-to-follow method that has made Bible study come alive for her and for many others she has taught. In this book she reveals seven practical principles for study that can transform your life. Related with passion, warmth, wisdom and humor, Johnson's step-by-step instructions can help both individuals and groups discover the power of Bible study for themselves. Originally published asBible Study for Busy Women, this revised edition also includes a twelve-week study guide for small groups and study helps for leaders.

Better is a dry morsel with quiet than a house full of feasting with strife. A perverse person spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends. Go to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise. Everyday we make choices on the path of life. Proverbs are memorable capsules of wisdom, chiseled in words and polished through use by those who have traveled that path ahead of us. But the proverbs of the Bible make a greater claim than "a penny saved is a penny earned." They are woven into the web of divine revelation, rooted in the "fear of the Lord" that is the beginning of wisdom. While many proverbs speak to us directly, we can gain much greater insight by studying the book of Proverbs as a whole, understanding its relationship to ancient non-Israelite wisdom and listening to its conversation with the other great voices of wisdom in Scripture--Job and Ecclesiastes. InHow to Read Proverbs Tremper Longman III provides a welcome guide to reading and studying, understanding and savoring the Proverbs for all their wisdom. Most important for Christian readers, we gain insight into how Christ is the climax and embodiment of wisdom.

An interpretation of Leviticus 20, updated for publication. In addition to classical methods of exegesis, it also uses other approaches, particularly those from cultural anthropology. The study first clarifies the scholarly prerequisites for an interpretation of the text, working on the assumption that Leviticus 17-26 is an integral part of the Priestly Source ("P" text). The text itself is examined in both its synchronic and diachronic aspects and identified as a reader and sermon which reflects internal Jewish conflicts in the post-exile community. The whole of the formulaic content of the death sentences contained in Leviticus 20 is analysed thoroughly and discussed against the background of the thesis of "social death" (H.-P. Hasenfratz). Within the text complex of Leviticus 11-22, Leviticus 20 is concerned with irreversible impurity, which leads to exclusion from Israel, and the concluding interpretation of Israel as a people sacred to YHWH. The study closes with a theology of Leviticus 20 and a preview of the history of capital punishment in later Judaism.

Time after time choosing selfishness over selflessness, human beings invariably destroy themselves and wreck their societies. Only God can help, says Genesis. Yet God refuses to coerce. Instead he works with individual men and women who turn around--who stop trying to make a name for themselves and start trying to be a blessing to others. The transformation is slow and arduous. God waits. Captured in one of the world's best and best-known stories, this dynamic between God and recreated individuals leads from the universal chaos of Babel to blessing for all our world's peoples. Unfortunately, most of us overlook the dramatic story of God's work in early time because we read Scripture in disjointed pieces--and we think we've heard it all before We miss the suspenseful, sweeping narrative of interconnected events. We miss the nuances of emotion and relationship between the characters. Now inGenesis: The Story We Haven't Heard Paul Borgman fits the pieces back together--revealing God's story as if it had never been read before.

In Slaves, Women & Homosexuals William J. Webb tackles some of the most complex and controversial issues that have challenged the Christian church--and still do. He leads you through the maze of interpretation that has historically surrounded understanding of slaves, women and homosexuals, and he evaluates various approaches to these and other biblical-ethical teachings. Throughout, Webb attempts to "work out the hermeneutics involved in distinguishing that which is merely cultural in Scripture from that which is timeless" (Craig A. Evans). By the conclusion, Webb has introduced and developed a "redemptive hermeneutic" that can be applied to many issues that cause similar dilemmas. Darrel L. Bock writes in the foreword to Webb's work, "His goal is not only to discuss how these groups are to be seen in light of Scriptures but to make a case for a specific hermeneutical approach to reading these texts. . . . This book not only advances a discussion of the topics, but it also takes a markedly new direction toward establishing common ground where possible, potentially breaking down certain walls of hostility within the evangelical community."

Was the resurrection of Jesus a fact of history or a figment of imagination? Was it an event that entailed a raised and transformed body and an empty tomb? Or was it a subjective, visionary experience--a collective delusion? In the view of many, the truth of Christianity hangs on the answer to this question. Jesus' Resurrection: Fact or Figment? is a lively and provocative debate between Christian philosopher and apologist William Lane Craig and New Testament scholar and atheist Gerd LUdemann. This published version of a debate originally set at Boston College is edited by Paul Copan and Ronald K. Tacelli, who invite the responses of four additional scholars. Robert Gundry, a New Testament scholar, and Stephen Davis, a philosopher, argue in support of a historical and actual resurrection. Michael Goulder and Roy Hoover, both New Testament scholars, offer their support for Gerd LUdemann's view that the "resurrection" was based on the guilt-induced visionary experience of the disciples. The book concludes with a final response from LUdemann and Craig.

"Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching?proclaiming?and healing every disease and every sickness among the people." (Mt 4:23) Few today doubt that Jesus was viewed by many of his contemporaries as a miracle worker. And many scholars today would agree that Jesus was a healer and an exorcist. But what does this mean? Was Jesus simply a master at relieving psychological distress, a healer of psychosomatic illness, a purveyor of paranormal therapy? What distinguished Jesus from other miracle workers of the ancient world? And what should we make then of his stilling the storm, his walking on the sea, his feeding of the five thousand? In this study of the miracles of Jesus, Graham Twelftree extensively examines the miracles within each Gospel narrative. He evaluates Jesus' own understanding of the miracles, weighs the historical reliability of the miracle stories, and considers the question of miracles and the modern mind. This book maps and explores the borderlands between the affirmations of faith and the conclusions of historical method. Are some miracles simply more open to historical verification than others? With the historical study of Jesus once again capturing the attention of the media and the public, this timely book courageously steps forward to investigate the hard questions. Jesus the Miracle Worker is a comprehensive and textbook study of the miracles of Jesus, written by a recognized expert in the historical investigation of the exorcisms of Jesus.

By definition, a high view of Scripture inheres in evangelicalism. However, there does not seem to be a uniform way to articulate an evangelical doctrine of Scripture. Taking up the challenge, Vincent Bacote, Laura Migu?lez and Dennis Okholm present twelve essays that explore in depth the meaning of an evangelical doctrine of Scripture that takes seriously both the human and divine dimensions of the Bible. Selected from the presentations made at the 2001 Wheaton Theology Conference, the essays approach this vital subject from three directions. Stanley J. Grenz, Thomas Buchan, Bruce L. McCormack and Donald W. Dayton consider the history of evangelical thinking on the nature of Scripture. John J. Brogan, Kent Sparks, J. Daniel Hays and Richard L. Schultz address the nature of biblical authority. Bruce Ellis Benson, John R. Franke, Daniel J. Treier and David Alan Williams explore the challenge of hermeneutics, especially as it relates to interpreting Scripture in a postmodern context. Together these essays provide a window into current evangelical scholarship on the doctrine of Scripture and also advance the dialogue about how best to construe our faith in the Word of God, living and written, that informs not only the belief but also the practice of the church.

God is up to something And his plans are far greater than you might imagine. Christianity is not merely about isolated individuals going to heaven. It's about God transforming the entire world and making things right. Sicknesses will be healed, sins will be forgiven, injustice will be eradicated, and all creation will be redeemed. But this is not merely a distant future. It's happening now through what Jesus came to establish--the kingdom of God. Allen Wakabayashi reawakens you to the world-changing reality of the kingdom of God. With clear, biblical insight, he unpacks what Jesus proclaimed about the good news of the kingdom and spells out the implications for you today. Focusing on the kingdom of God will revolutionize how you live out your faith, how you think about your world and how you explain the good news about Jesus. Ultimately, understanding yourself as a citizen of the kingdom will empower you to be one of God's change agents in the world. God is at work to restore everything to be the way he intended it to be, and you can be a part of what he is doing Get a glimpse of the kingdom coming, and experience his will being done--on earth as it is in heaven.

Have we really heard the message of Colossians? Is this New Testament book just another religious text whose pretext is an ideological grab for dominating power? Reading Colossians in context, ancient and contemporary, can perhaps give us new ears to hear. In this innovative and refreshing book Brian J. Walsh and Sylvia C. Keesmaat explain our own sociocultural context to then help us get into the world of the New Testament and get a sense of the power of the gospel as it addressed those who lived in Colossae two thousand years ago. Their reading presents us with a radical challenge from the apostle Paul for today. Drawing together biblical scholarship with a passion for authentic lives that embody the gospel, this groundbreaking interpretation of Colossians provides us with tools to subvert the empire of our own context in a way that acknowledges the transforming power of Jesus Christ.

N. T. Wright's Jesus and the Victory of God is widely heralded as one of the most significant and brilliantly argued works in the current "third quest" of the historical Jesus. In this second volume of his multivolume investigation entitled Christian Origins and the Question of God, Wright uncovers a Jesus that most historians and believers have never met. Rooted and engaged in the soil of Israel's history, its first-century plight and its prophetic hope, Wright's portrait of Jesus has set new terms of discourse and debate. Through Wright's lens, familiar sayings and actions of Jesus have fresh meaning. But in the midst of all that is new, Wright also offers a profile of Jesus that bears striking lines of continuity with the Jesus of Christian belief and worship. This resemblance has captured the attention of confessing Christian biblical scholars and theologians. Wright's work thus far is of such consequence that it seemed timely and strategic to publish a scholarly engagement with his reconstruction of the historical Jesus. Like all works in progress, Wright's proposal is still under construction. But its cornerstone has been laid, the foundation has been formed, the pillars and walls are going up, and even if we cannot yet see how the ceiling, roof and parapets will look, there is quite enough to engage the minds of colleagues, critics and other curious onlookers. For the purposes of this book (and in keeping with IVP's own evangelical identity), editor Carey Newman invited scholars who are committed to Christian belief as it has been classically defined to engage Wright's Jesus and the Victory of God. Newman sets the stage with an introduction, and Craig Blomberg offers a critical and appreciative overview of Jesus and the Victory of God. Various facets of Wright's proposal are then investigated by contributors: Paul Eddy on Jesus as prophet, Messiah and embodiment of Yahweh Klyne Snodgrass on the parables Craig Evans on Israel under continuing exile Darrell Bock on the trial and death of Jesus Dale Allison on apocalyptic language Richard Hays on ethics Alister McGrath on the implications for evangelical theology Stephen Evans on methodological naturalism in historical biblical scholarship Luke Timothy Johnson on Wright's historiography To these essayists Wright extends his "grateful dialogue." He gives this spirited and illuminating reply to his interlocuters: "The high compliment of having a whole book devoted to the discussion of one's work is finely balanced by the probing, intelligent questions and by the occasional thud of a blunt instrument on the back of one's head. . . . Only once did I look up my lawyer's telephone number." After Wright takes his turn, his good friend and frequent partner in debate Marcus Borg offers his "appreciative disagreement." Newman then concludes the dialogue with his own reflections on moving from Wright's reconstruction of the historical Jesus to the church's Christ. A book assessing a scholar's work is usually an end-of-career event. But in this case interested readers can look forward with eager anticipation to Wright's next volume in Christian Origins and the Question of God--this one on the resurrection of Jesus.

First published in 1910, "The Christ Myth" drew violent criticism from theologians, the press, and the public. Eminent German philosopher Arthur Drews (1865-1935) reacts to the 'romantic cult of Jesus', which, he says is undermining intellectual truthfulness. He exposes the Jesus of the gospels as a mythical character, arguing that no basis exists for seeking a historical figure behind the Christ myth. Through a comparative study of ancient religions, Drews shows that Christianity is a syncretism of various pagan and Jewish beliefs, and that a strong pre-Christian cult of Jesus as son of God and messiah existed. This is a valuable sourcebook for students of religion, and all those interested in examining the origins of Christianity.

Is the creation story in Genesis nothing more than a botched version of a Babylonian myth? Is 'free will' illusory? Are the Jesuits really educated men? In these three classic essays "The Forgery of the Old Testament", "The Myth of Immortality" and "Lies of Religious Literature" Joseph McCabe (1867-1955), ex-priest and the 'world's greatest scholar', exposes the inconsistencies, absurdities, and outright mendacity that lie behind the most revered texts and 'truths' of Christianity. With forcefulness, clarity, and often biting humor, McCabe attacks two millennia of Christian tradition which, he says, must withdraw before the weapons of science and reason.

Originally published at the turn of the century, this classic work by a French priest and historian attempts to understand the role of Catholic dogma in a world undergoing wide-ranging changes in science, social science, historical analysis, and cultural study. His inquiries, and those of other priests and scholars, ignited a controversy within the Catholic church that culminated in Pope Pius X's intervention in 1907 with his encyclical condemning these so-called 'Modernist' views. Not since the tumult of Martin Luther's Reformation has the church undergone such internal conflict.The Modernists questioned the inerrancy of Scripture and its use as historical evidence, the historicity and divinity of Jesus, the authority of church doctrine, and other dogmas of the Catholic faith. Their efforts to embrace the separation of church and state, to assure freedom of individual conscience, and to reconcile Christians with non-Christians and non-believers were viewed by the Vatican and the Holy See to destroy the Catholic church from within. For his efforts on behalf of free religious inquiry, Loisy was forced to leave his teaching post, "The Gospel and the Church" was censured and placed on the Vatican's Index of Forbidden Books, and in 1908 Loisy was formally excommunicated. This volume includes the text of Loisy's controversial work plus two valuable additions: an informative introduction by famed biblical scholar R. Joseph Hoffmann that places the book in its proper historical context, and the complete text of the papal encyclical condemning the Modernist movement.