Bart Ehrman is a New Testament scholar who chairs the Department of Religious Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He has both an M.Div. and Ph.D. from Princeton Theological Seminary where he studied under the renowned scholar Bruce Metzger. Though he formerly considered himself a Christian and even pastored a church, he is now an avowed agnostic. Much of Ehrman's career has been dedicated to attempting to prove that history has been incorrect in suggesting that it was heretics such as Marcion who were responsible for tampering with the original texts of the Bible. He suggests and attempts to prove that it was those who professed faith in Christ who sought to change the Scripture to force it to adapt to their beliefs.

There are many people I "know" primarily through their books. I read constantly and find that books allow me to understand the people who write them, especially when the author has written several books. As I read through the corpus of his writings I learn to understand how he thinks and learn to understand what he believes. Even if I have never met an author face-to-face, I often feel like I have met him in his books. Because Tim Keller has written so little, I do not know him in the way I feel I know many of his peers--pastors and theologians who have written extensively. So it was with great interest that I read The Reason for God, only his second book (besides edited volumes to which he has contributed a chapter) and certainly his most significant. Published by Penguin and with a positive review by Publishers Weekly, it has all the makings of a bestseller.

Delighting in God’s sovereignty, even through affliction.

I typically post a new book review here every Tuesday morning. But because I was so excited by the book I planned on reviewing this week, I thought I would break with tradition and post this review a day early.

Polishing God’s Monuments was an unexpected surprise. A book that arrived (as do so many others) without any fanfare, I quickly skimmed the four endorsements and paused only when I saw Bruce Ware’s name and his claim that this title is “so gripping and moving and inspiring that one cannot put the book down.” Based on my respect for Bruce Ware, on the enthusiasm of his endorsement and on the track record of the publisher, Shepherd Press, I decided I should at least give the book a try. Am I ever glad I did!

It was an interesting experience reading Suffering and the Sovereignty of God (edited by John Piper and Justin Taylor), for only a year before its release I had been present at the Desiring God National Conference where the contents of the book were first presented as keynote addresses. With only a couple of exceptions, each chapter of this book is drawn from one of those speeches (those exceptions being Dustin Shramek’s chapter and an appendix entitled “Don’t Waste Your Cancer” which was initially written by John Piper when he learned of his prostate cancer and was subsequently added to by David Powlison when he was diagnosed with the same disease). I had, then, some familiarity with the material before I began to read it. I knew which authors would provide a theological framework for suffering and which would focus instead on their first-hand experiences of suffering. I even knew what most of the authors would say. Still, I enjoyed reading the chapters as much as I enjoyed hearing the speeches one year ago. I am sure I learned as much from them the second time around.

The degree to which God controls the world is a topic that has received much debate in Christian circles through the past two or three decades. Where Christians once uniformly affirmed God’s absolute sovereignty over this world, today this is an area of great dispute. The aftermath of recent natural disasters has shown that there are two distinct beliefs within Christendom. Some claim that God is absolutely sovereign and controls everything within His creation. Others claim that God is in no way responsible for tragedy as disaster is just a natural occurence within a sinful world. These people claim that God does not have absolute control.

It seems that behind every sad song is a sad story. Behind an inspiring song is an inspiring story. Behind the song “Mommy Paints the Sky,” there is both. With thanksgiving but sadness in his heart, Danny Oertli wrote a song for his daughter. “As the sun lays down to sleep / You ask me why she’s gone / I don’t know where to start / As the sunset lights your face / I see God knows how to heal little hearts.”

“Gracie, Jack and I were driving down the road in my really fast Honda minivan. As we pulled into a parking space at Wal-Mart an incredible sunset began to form over the mountains. The car’s interior was bathed in amber light and deep strokes of yellow criss-crossed the sky, as if drawn by an unseen hand.

“‘Daddy,’ came Gracie’s little voice from the back seat, ‘Did God let mommy paint the sky tonight?’

“Looking in the rearview mirror I saw her leaning into Jack to catch a better view. As the light from the sunset settled on their faces, I silently praised God for the healing and hope He had brought into our lives.

I am not a big fan of Relevant Magazine. In my mind it represents a flavor of Christianity that seeks to appeal to the world by being cool and hip. It’s Christianity with frosted hair and all the right labels of clothing. So when I am asked to read a book published by Relevant I am a little bit apprehensive, which I will admit is probably not fair of me. Adventures in Holy Matrimony by Julie Anne Fidler asks the questions, “When happens when the storybook wedding is over? What happens when the white picket fence you dreamed of turns out to be not-so-white and just a little dangerous?” In other words, what happens when real life so rudely interrupts a storybook romance?

There are few people I admire more than missionaries. They represent such a selfless expression of Christ's love - people who dedicate their lives to sharing the gospel with those who least want to hear it, but most need to hear it. Not only do they forsake the comforts of Western society and leave behind friends, jobs, church and family, but they often put their lives in danger by ministering in unstable nations.

In The Presence of My Enemies tells the story of Martin and Gracia Burnham, a missionary couple who were kidnapped and held for over a year by the Abu Sayyaf, a terrorist group with ties to Osama Bin Laden. While celebrating their anniversary at a small resort in the Philippines they were snatched away and spent the next year of their lives on the run, fighting to survive in the Philippine jungles. They were constantly faced with incredible hardship and often lacked even the most rudimentary comforts. They were held pending the payment of a large ransom, one which missionary groups will never pay. It was not until the aftermath of September 11 that real progress was made in trying to rescue the Burnhams.