Recommended Readings and Publications
Amish Grace
| How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy By: Donald B. Kraybill, Steven M. Nolt, & David L. Weaver-Zercher I just finished reading this remarkable book that explores the Amish response to the Nickle Mines shootings in Pennsylvania in 2006. Their immediate response of forgiveness shocked the secular world and challenges those of us who are Christians to ponder how we would react to such a tragedy. I heartily recommend reading Amish Grace. ... Pastor Mike Garner [The following is excerpted from the publisher's web site] On Monday morning, October 2, 2006, a gunman entered a one-room Amish school in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania. The oldest hostage, a thirteen-year-old, begged Roberts to "shoot me first and let the little ones go." Refusing her offer, he opened fire on all of them, killing five and leaving the others critically wounded. He then shot himself as police stormed the building. The blood was barely dry on the schoolhouse floor when Amish parents brought words of forgiveness to the family of the one who had slain their children. The outside world was incredulous that such forgiveness could be offered so quickly for such a heinous crime. Forgiveness, in fact, eclipsed the tragic story, trumping the violence and arresting the world's attention. AMISH GRACE explores the many questions this story raises about the religious beliefs and habits that led the Amish to forgive so quickly. It looks at the ties between forgiveness and membership in a cloistered communal society and ask if Amish practices parallel or diverge from other religious and secular notions of forgiveness. It will also address the matter of why forgiveness became news. "All the religions teach it," mused an observer, "but no one does it like the Amish." Regardless of the cultural seedbed that nourished this story, the surprising act of Amish forgiveness begs for a deeper exploration. How could the Amish do this? What did this act mean to them? And how might their witness prove useful to the rest of us? |
Fabricating Jesus
| How Modern Scholars Distort the Gospels By: Craig A. Evans (Publisher's Description) Modern historical study of the Gospels seems to give us a new portrait of Jesus every spring, just in time for Easter. The more idiosyncratic the portrait, the more it departs from the traditional view of Jesus, the more attention it gets in the popular media. Why are scholars so prone to fabricate Jesus? Why is the public so eager to accept their claims without question? What methods and assumptions predispose scholars to distort the record? Is there a more sober approach to finding the real Jesus? Renowned evangelical New Testament expert Craig A. Evans takes an evenhanded, informed approach to these fascinating and timely questions. |
God the Evidence
| The Reconciliation of Faith and Reason in a Postsecular World By: Patrick Glynn (Publisher's Description) In the modern age science has been winning its centuries—old battle with religion for the mind of man. The evidence has long seemed incontrovertible: Life was merely a product of blind chance—a cosmic roll of an infinite number of dice across an eternity of time. Slowly, methodically, scientists supplied answers to mysteries insufficiently explained by theologians. Reason pushed faith off into the shadows of mythology and superstition, while atheism became a badge of wisdom. Our culture, freed from moral obligation, explored the frontiers of secularism. God was dead. But now, in the twilight of the twentieth century, a startling transformation is taking place in Western scientific and intellectual thought. At its heart is the dawning realization that the universe, far from being a sea of chaos, appears instead to be an intricately tuned mechanism whose every molecule, whose every physical law, seems to have been design from the very first nanosecond of the big bang toward a single end—the creation of life. This intellectually and spiritually riveting book asks a provocative question: Is science, the long-time nemesis of the Deity, uncovering the face of God? Patrick Glynn lays out the astonishing new evidence that caused him to turn away from the atheism he acquired as a student at Harvard and Cambridge. The facts are fascinating: Physicists are discovering an unexplainable order to the cosmos; medical researchers are reporting the extraordinary healing powers of prayer and are documenting credible accounts of near-death experiences; psychologists, who once considered belief in God to be a sign of neurosis, are finding instead that religious faith is a powerful elixir for mental health; and sociologists are now acknowledging the destructive consequences of a value-free society. God: The Evidence argues that faith today is not grounded in ignorance. It is where reason has been leading us all along. |
How To Read The Bible
| A Sermon on Matthew 12:3-7 By: C. H. Spurgeon This is probably the best sermon I have ever encountered regarding reading scripture and it's importance to the Christian life. To download it, click on this link: http://www.doverbc.org/home/180000431/180000431/docs/CH%20Spurgeon%20-%20How%20to%20Read%20the%20Bible.pdf?sec_id=180000431 |
Not a Silent People
| Controversies That Have Shaped Southern Baptists By: Walter B. Shurden For all of Baptist history, controversies and arguments have raged over things great and small, significant and trivial. In Not a Silent People, Dr. Shurden takes the reader through the controversies, the circumstances in which they arose, and the characters who fought over them. Shurden says, "Baptists were born in the bosom of radicalism. They are born fighters because they were born fighting." You will find this small (188 pages) book informative and stimulating. |
On Loving God
| By: Bernard of Clairvaux This is a remarkable piece of writing by the 12th century Cistercian monk and theologian, Bernard of Clairvaux. Bernard outlines four levels of love beginning with self-love for self's sake. Second is love of God because of what we receive from God. Third is love of God because of who God is. The ultimate, according to Bernard, is love of self because we finally see ourselves as God sees us. Thus, the fulfillment of our desire for self-love only comes through complete surrender to the One who made us. Well worth spending the short time it takes to read. To read (or download) the text, go to http://www.ccel.org/ccel/bernard/loving_god.ii.html |
The Baptist Heritage
| Four Centuries of Baptist Witness By: H. Leon McBeth (From the dust jacket) H. Leon McBeth's The Baptist Heritage is a ;definitive, fresh interpretation of Baptist history. Based on primary source research, the book combines the best features of chronological and topical history to bring alive the story of Baptists around the world. The book is highly readable. While institutional developments are covered in detail, the author is equally concerned with biography. Both the familiar and the obscure figures of Baptist history become real to the reader under McBeth's skillful guidance. |
The Baptist Identity
| Four Fragile Freedoms By: Walter B. Shurden What makes a Baptist a Baptist? What is the shape and feel of Baptist Christianity? Shurden investigates these questions by examining four basic freedoms long celebrated by Baptists: Bible freedom, Soul freedom, Church freedom, and Religious freedom. As one reviewer states, "In a day when Baptist light is increasingly refracted, when being Baptist is often twisted to mean anything and everything, Shurden reminds us that it once meant a few precious things. Mostly, it meant freedom: to study and obey Holy Scripture, to deal with God unfettered by creed or clergy, to gather with free and faithful Baptists in free churches, and to do it all unaided or unhindered by the state." |
The Canon of Scripture
| By: F. F. Bruce (Publisher's Description) Winner of two 1990 Christianity Today Awards: Readers' Choice (1st place; theology and doctrine) and Critics' Choice (1st place; theology and doctrine).A 1989 ECPA Gold Medallion Award winner!How did the books of the Bible come to be recognized as Holy Scripture?Who decided what shape the canon should take?What criteria influenced these decisions?After nearly nineteen centuries the canon of Scripture still remains an issue of debate. Protestants, Catholics and the Orthodox all have slightly differing collections of documents in their Bibles. Martin Luther, one of the early leaders of the Reformation, questioned the inclusion of the book of James in the canon. And many Christians today, while confessing the authority of all of Scripture, tend to rely on only a few books and particular themes while ignoring the rest.Scholars have raised many other questions as well. Research into second-century Gnostic texts have led some to argue that politics played a significant role in the formation of the Christian canon. Assessing the influence of ancient communities and a variety of disputes on the final shaping of the canon call for ongoing study.In this significant historical study, F. F. Bruce brings the wisdom of a lifetime of reflection and biblical interpretation to bear in answering the questions and clearing away the confusion surrounding the Christian canon of Scripture. Adept in both Old and New Testament studies, he brings a rare comprehensive perspective to his task.Though some issues have shifted since the original publication of this book, it still remains a significant landmark and touchstone for further studies. About the Author Bruce (1910-1990) was Rylands Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis at the University of Manchester in England. During his distinguished career, he wrote many bestselling commentaries and books, including Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free, A Mind for What Matters and several titles published by InterVarsity Press. He also served as general editor of The New International Commentary on the New Testament. |
The Canon of the New Testament
| Its Origin, Development, and Significance By: Bruce M. Metzger (Publisher's description) This book provides information from Church history concerning the recognition of the canonical status of the several books of the New Testament. Canonization was a long and gradual process of sifting among scores of gospels, epistles, and other books that enjoyed local and temporary authority - some of which have only recently come to light among the discoveries of Nag Hammadi. After discussing the external pressures that led to the fixing of the limits of the canon, the author gives sustained attention to Patristic evidence that bears on the development of the canon not only in the West but also among the Eastern Churches, including the Syrian, Armenian, Georgian, Coptic, and Ethiopian. Besides considering differences as to the sequence of the books in the New Testament, Dr Metzger takes up such questions as which form of text is to be regarded as canonical; whether the canon is open or closed; to what extent a canon should be sought within the canon; and whether the canon is a collection of authoritative books or an authoritative collection of books. |
The Case for a Creator
| A Journalist Investigates Scientific Evidence That Points Toward God By: Lee Strobel Publisher's Description Could it be that the world looks designed because it really is designed? In his most powerful and fascinating book yet, award-winning journalist and former atheist Lee Strobel uncovers compelling evidence for intelligent design from the fields of cosmology, physics, astronomy, biochemistry, DNA research, and the study of human consciousness. |
The Case for Christ
| A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus By: Lee Strobel (From the book cover) Is there credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God? Retracing his own spiritual journey from atheism to faith, Lee Strobel, former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune, cross-examines a dozen experts with doctorates from schools like Cambridge, Princeton, and Brandeis who are recognized authorities in their own fields. Strobel challenges them with questions like How reliable is the New Testament? Does evidence exist for Jesus outside the Bible? Is there any reason to believe the resurrection was an actual event? Strobel's tough, point-blank questions make this remarkable book read like a captivating, fast-paced novel. But, it's not fiction. It's a riveting quest for the truth about history's most compelling figure. |
The Case for Faith
| A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity By: Lee Strobel Publisher's Description In The Case for Faith, Strobel turns his skills to the most persistent emotional objections to belief--the eight "heart" barriers to faith. The Case for Faith is for those who may be feeling attracted to Jesus but who are faced with intellectual barriers standing squarely in their path. For Christians, it will deepen their convictions and give them fresh confidence in discussing Christianity with even their most skeptical friends. |
The Case for the Real Jesus
| A Journalist Investigates Current Attacks on the Identity of Christ By: Lee Strobel From Publishers Weekly Atheist-turned-Christian Strobel, with four Gold Medallions and other awards, focuses on rediscovering the real Jesus, whose identity and message have come under attack in recent years. He addresses six major challenges and claims: that a different Jesus is seen in ancient documents that seem as credible as the four canonical gospels; that tampering by the church has damaged the Bible's portrayal of Jesus; that new explanations refute Jesus' resurrection; that Christianity copied pagan religions regarding Jesus; that Jesus didn't fulfill messianic prophecies; and that contemporary people should be able to choose what to believe about Jesus. As with his previous books, Strobel attacks the issues as an investigative journalist, though one with a clear agenda. He searches out experts (including Craig A. Evans and Michael Licona) to refute each objection, offering readers top evangelical scholarship revealed in everyday language while challenging the claims of liberal writers like John Shelby Spong, Bart Ehrman and others. In the end, he says, none of these seemingly daunting challenges turned out to be close calls... they were systematically dismantled by scholars... with facts, logic and evidence. Evangelical readers will come away with deeper understanding of the various arguments about Jesus. (Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. |
The New Testament Documents
| Are They Reliable By: F. F. Bruce (Editor's note) This modern classic in the field of New Testament studies offers a compelling defense of biblical truth. F. F. Bruce, one of evangelicalism's most respected scholars, makes a clear case for the historical trustworthiness of the Christian Scruptures, drawing on evidence from the New Testament documents themselves as well as extrabiblical sources. |
The Present Future
| Six Tough Questions for the Church By: Reggie McNeal (From the dust jacket) In this provocative book, author, consultant, and church leadership developer Reggie McNeal debunks old assumptions and provides an overall strategy to help church leaders move forward in an entirely different and much more effective way. In The Present Future, McNeal identifies the six most important realities that church leaders must address. |
The Text of the New Testament
| Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration By: Bruce M. Metzger (Publisher's Description) This thoroughly revised edition of Bruce M. Metzger's classic work is the most up-to-date manual available for the textual criticism of the New Testament. The Text of the New Testament, Fourth Edition, has been invigorated by the addition of Bart D. Ehrman--author of numerous best-selling books on the New Testament--as a coauthor. This revision brings the discussion of such important matters as the early Greek manuscripts and methods of textual criticism up to date, integrating recent research findings and approaches into the body of the text (as opposed to previous revisions, which compiled new material and notes into appendices). The authors also examine new areas of interest, including the use of computers in the collection and evaluation of manuscript evidence and the effects that social and ideological influences had upon the work of scribes. The standard text for courses in biblical studies and the history of Christianity since its first publication in 1964, The Text of the New Testament is poised to become a definitive resource for a whole new generation of students. |
