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It is one of Jesus’ more audacious claims–that all of the Scriptures testify to him. As Jesus appealed to the religious authorities of his day and as he exposed their ignorance, he declared that he himself is the subject of the Bible; he himself is the one all of the Old Testament Scriptures were pointing to. Finding Christ in the pages of the Bible can be a challenge at times, and especially so when reading portions of the Old …
There are some books that find their strength in saying new things–the original thoughts or perspectives we’ve simply never heard before. There are other books that find their strength in saying old things–things we’ve heard before but just need to hear again, whether that’s because of lack of faith or lack of memory or just because every time something is said it’s said in a different way. Jonathan Leeman’s new book Reverberation: How God’s Word Brings Light, Freedom, and Action …
“This book deals with a question that no twenty-first-century Christian can afford to ignore: does God-given prophecy continue in today’s church, or doesn’t it? And, if it does, can those who announce such prophecies sometimes get things wrong?” So says Stuart Olyott in his Foreword to Prophecy Today. In this brief book, Jim Thompson lays out his argument against contemporary prophecy. He does so in three chapters, presenting a logical argument that is both simple to understand and easy to …
I do not know too many serious students of the Bible who do not wish, at one time or another, that they were proficient at Greek (or more proficient at Greek). But few of us have had time or opportunity to study the language in a formal, academic setting. Basic Greek and Exegesis by Richard B. Ramsay and published by P&R Publishing is a newly-published attempt to increase the accessibility of the Greek language. It is “A practical manual that …
Timothy Paul Jones responds to the fallacies of Bart Ehrman’s “Misquoting Jesus.” Bart Ehrman’s Misquoting Jesus was a surprise bestseller. Released in late 2005, it quickly climbed its way onto the bestseller lists–an interesting feat for a book dealing with textual criticism. Ehrman is a renowned New Testament scholar and 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 …
Guidance and the Voice of God is one of several books I have read that discusses the way God speaks to and guides His children. I initially turned to these books in response to the words I hear all around me in modern Christianity. People continually ask God to speak to us in circumstances and situations. Likewise, I am often asked how God spoke to me during a period of time or perhaps during a specific event. The terms people …
Those with an interest in the theology of Scripture may be intrigued by a book published this year by New York University Press. “All religious traditions that ground themselves in texts must grapple with certain questions concerning the texts’ authority. Yet there has been much debate within Christianity concerning the nature of scripture and how it should be understood–a debate that has gone on for centuries. Christian Theologies of Scripture traces what the theological giants, including Origen, Luther, and Barth, …
Translating Truth is a collection of essays on the subject of Bible translation written by leading Evangelical scholars. The essays were first presented as papers at the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society in November 2004. The publishers notes that “the purpose of publishing these papers now as a collection is to encourage the ongoing, careful reflection on methodology and issues in Bible translation—that necessary work, which the Christian church is called to undertake, with fear and trembling before …
It was the late, great Francis Shaeffer who spoke of a group of people “who have both feet firmly planted in mid-air.” This phrase brilliantly describes people in our society who adhere, as much as anyone can adhere to such a system, to moral relativism. For one can only be planted so firmly on a system that has no foundation. Relativism, written by Greg Koukl and Francis Beckwith, critiques moral relativism and explores the myriad inconsistencies inherent in this position. …
The authority of Scripture is, as this book indicates, a critical issue for the body of Christ. Much of the ground that was gained during the Protestant Reformation has been lost in the past few decades. There has been a dramatic shift among Protestants away from biblical authority. James Draper and Kenneth Keathley, both Southern Baptists, have seen this fight up close and personally from within the Southern Baptist Convention, so are well-versed in the arguments and in what is …