Showing titles in Commentaries

In this astute mix of cultural critique and biblical studies, John H. Walton presents and defends twenty propositions supporting a literary and theological understanding of Genesis 1 within the context of the ancient Near Eastern world and unpacks its implications for our modern scientific understanding of origins. Ideal for students, professors, pastors, and lay listeners with an interest in the intelligent design controversy and creation-evolution debates, Walton's thoughtful analysis unpacks seldom appreciated aspects of the biblical text and sets Bible-believing scientists free.

From Gene Robinson, the Bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in the Episcopal Church, the first openly gay person elected (in 2003) to the historic episcopate and the world's leading religious spokesperson for gay rights and gay marriage, comes a groundbreaking book that lovingly and persuasively makes the case for same-sex marriage. It establishes a commonsense, reasoned, religious argument, made by someone who holds the religious text of the Bible to be holy and sacred.

Written by a linguist, ex-fundamentalist graduate of Liberty University, this book goes straight to the evidence and presents a concise case-by-case analysis of the most salient problems in the Christian Scriptures. With insightful commentary concerning frequent rebuttals used by apologists, it makes a solid case against evangelical claims to inerrancy.

Psalm 91 has been described as a divine “insurance policy” for every believer. To reap the benefits of a natural insurance policy, we must know what is written in it, and in the same way, it is essential to know what the Lord has spoken to us through his word. In this study, Ashley walks us through Psalm 91 line upon line, detailing exactly how we can receive all that God has so generously and graciously promised us in this Psalm. It is full of promises for protection, healing, deliverance, provision, and so much more.

In his acclaimed books, including classics such as Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time, The Heart of Christianity, Speaking Christian, and Convictions, Marcus J. Borg helped shape an enlightened modernist view of Christianity. A leading scholar of the historical Jesus acclaimed for his ability to speak about Christianity in the context of contemporary society, Borg offered profound wisdom and inspiration - a new way of seeing and living the Christian life.

Written to help listeners better understand Jesus's life, death, and ultimate mission, this new book by well-known preacher John MacArthur looks at an important - yet often misunderstood - section of the Bible: Isaiah 53. Often hailed as one of the greatest chapters in the Bible, this passage foretells the crucifixion of Jesus, a critical event in God's ultimate plan for salvation. Explaining the prophetic words of Isaiah 53 verse by verse, MacArthur highlights important connections to the history of Israel and to the New Testament.

James Montgomery Boice challenges believers to follow the first-century church, encouraging them to glean the vital principles that enabled the early church to expand, and then to apply them to our modern-day church.

Leading Bible scholar John Dominic Crossan, the author of the pioneering work The Historical Jesus, provides new insight into the Christian culture wars which began in the New Testament and persist strongly today. For decades, Americans have been divided on how Christians should relate to government and lawmakers, a dispute that has impacted every area of society and grown more rancorous over the past forty years. But as Crossan makes clear, this debate isn’t new; it can be found in the New Testament itself, most notably in the tensions between Luke-Acts and Revelations.

Gleanings in Genesis is Arthur W. Pink’s lengthy examination of the biblical Book of Genesis.

As the work at the heart of Christianity, the Bible is the spiritual guide for one out of every three people in the world. It is also the world's most widely distributed book, having been translated into over 2,000 languages, as well as the world's best-selling book, year after year. But the Bible is a complex work with a complicated and obscure history.

Pause for a moment and ask yourself what your life would be like if it were completely without fear? If you did not fear death. If you did not fear life and what it might bring. If you did not fear any man, or woman, or any living creature. Would you live differently? In this unique work of never-before-published teaching, Dallas Willard revolutionizes our understanding of Psalm 23 by taking this comfortably familiar passage and revealing its extraordinary promises: "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.... I will fear no evil."

In the early 19th century, Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the United States and the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, conceived the idea of extracting a gospel purified of what he saw as extraneous philosophical, mythological, and theological elements. To do so, he took verses from the four canonical gospels and arranged them into a single narrative, focusing on the actual words of Jesus.

In this book for the curious, spiritual seeker, Madeleine L'Engle offers relevant lessons drawn from the life of Jacob from the Old Testament. Here, the son of Isaac becomes a spiritual companion to L'Engle, equipping her to deal with earthly and psychological struggles. Throughout her journey, L'Engle offers contemporary answers to questions that burden modern day listeners and believers. With her customary fearlessness and candor, she broaches such topics as the significance of angels, redemption, sexual identity, forgiveness, and the seemingly constant conflict between good and evil.

Stuck in a spiritual wilderness, it can be easy to forget that God remains the God of overcomers. The power and victory present in the Old Testament still exist for Christians today.

Picking up where Bible expert Bart Ehrman's New York Times best seller, Misquoting Jesus, left off, Jesus, Interrupted addresses the larger issue of what the New Testament actually teaches...and it's not what most people think. This is the book that pastors, educators, and anyone interested in the Bible have been waiting for, a clear and compelling account of the central challenges we face when attempting to reconstruct the life and message of Jesus.

How can we persevere through persecution? First-century Christians wrestled with this question. They were often harassed, slandered, beaten, and ostracized for their faith. As they endured these difficult circumstances, we can imagine their joy upon receiving two encouraging letters from the Apostle Peter. No stranger to suffering, Peter likely penned these letters while in a Roman prison just before his martyrdom. In this volume, Dr. R.C. Sproul takes us through Peter’s epistles line by line.

Grace or truth…or both? Truth without grace breeds self-righteousness and crushing legalism. Grace without truth breeds deception and moral compromise. Is it possible to embrace both in balance? Jesus did. Randy Alcorn offers a simple yet profound two-point checklist of Christlikeness. “In the end,” says Alcorn, “we don’t need grace or truth. We need grace and truth. And for people to see Jesus in us, they must see both.”

God Is Disappointed in You is for people who would like to read the Bible...if it would just cut to the chase. Stripped of its arcane language and interminable passages, every book of the Bible is condensed down to its core message, in no more than a few pages each. Written by Mark Russell with cartoons by New Yorker cartoonist Shannon Wheeler, God Is Disappointed in You is a frequently hilarious, often shocking, but always accurate retelling of the Bible, including the parts selectively left out by Sunday School teachers.

A. W. Pink (1886-1952) was a Christian pastor and author. In his book Why Four Gospels?, Pink explains the reason for the existence of four gospels in language that is easy to understand. He provides a detailed exegesis of each of the four, in order to explain the purpose and perspective of each. He concludes that the four gospels do not contradict but supplement one another to provide a more comprehensive portrait of the person of Jesus Christ.

No man in Scripture lived more consistently and completely for God than did Joseph, a favorite son of Jacob. In times of adversity and in times of prosperity - both of which offered the temptation to deny God and his lordship - Joseph remained steadfast. Living by Faith is the third and final volume on Genesis. Volume one focused on God’s relationship to the cosmos and to all peoples of the earth. Volume two traced the “new beginning” of God’s plan of redemption. In volume three, Boice follows the complete story of Joseph, a “man for all seasons”.