As my wife and I hit the road today for a couple of weeks of needed Christmas vacation, I thought I would share with you some of the reading I will be doing while on the road.
Is God a Moral Monster?: Making Sense of the Old Testament God by Paul Copan
Is the God of the Old Testament nothing but a bully, a murderer, and an oppressor?
Many today–even within the church–seem to think so. How are Christians to respond to such accusations? And how are we to reconcile the seemingly disconnected natures of God portrayed in the two testaments?In this timely and readable book, apologist Paul Copan takes on some of the most vexing accusations of our time, including:
- God is arrogant and jealous
- God punishes people too harshly
- God is guilty of ethnic cleansing
- God oppresses women
- God endorses slavery
- Christianity causes violence
Copan not only answers the critics, he also shows how to read both the Old and New Testaments faithfully, seeing an unchanging, righteous, and loving God in both.
Who’s Tampering with the Trinity?: An Assessment of the Subordination Debate by Millard Erickson
There are few beliefs more essential to Christianity than that of the Trinity. In Millard Erickson’s most recent scholarly work on the Trinity, he seeks to provide a lucid and judicious answer to the question: Is Jesus eternally subordinate to the Father, or is Jesus equal with the Father? The answer to that debated question arouses further inquiry: Who is God in relation to Jesus and to the Spirit? What do the Scriptures teach about these relationships? How do our beliefs about the Trinity flesh out in real life activities?
How a Christian views the Trinity has implications for understanding not only God but also family roles and relationships. Are wives subordinate to husbands or are they equal? In addition to providing rigorous theological analysis of the subject, Erickson exposes flaws in familial implications derived from the Trinity. This increasingly debated topic has finally received a thorough, careful, and objective treatment in Who’s Tampering with the Trinity?.
An Introduction to Ecclesiology: Ecumenical, Historical & Global Perspectives by Veli-Matti‚ Kƒ¤rkkƒ¤inen
What is the church? What makes the church church? In this volume, theologian Veli-Matti Kƒ¤rkkƒ¤inen provides an up-to-date survey and analysis of the major ecclesiological traditions, the most important theologians, and a number of contextual approaches that attempt to answer these essential questions. Drawing on his international experience, global research and ecumenical awareness, Kƒ¤rkkƒ¤inen presents an overview of both traditional and contemporary expressions of the Christian church. An Introduction to Ecclesiology will richly reward the student, pastor or layperson who is looking for a comprehensive and insightful overview of the unity and diversity of understandings and practices within the one church of Jesus Christ.
The Three Hardest Words: In the World to Get Right by Leonard Sweet
Three simple words¢â‚¬“¢â‚¬Å“I love you¢â‚¬¢â‚¬“capture the heart of Jesus¢â‚¬â„¢ life and ministry.
These three words form the bottom line and top drawer of all his teachings. And they remain the three hardest words in the world to get right. Two pronouns and a verb have never been so difficult to grasp, much less to practice.
Popular culture has ruined love¢â‚¬â„¢s reputation by redefining it first as romance, and then as lust. But it¢â‚¬â„¢s not just the meaning of the word love that causes so much confusion. To fully understand love, we also need to find out who we are in God¢â‚¬â„¢s eyes and whom we are commanded to love. Following Jesus can be described as the daily practice of all three words: I. Love. You. There is nothing more rewarding, and nothing more risky.
There is nothing more challenging than adopting the three-word lifestyle of Jesus as your own.
Perhaps you have wondered why love seems to work for everyone else, but not for you. Or maybe you¢â‚¬â„¢ve done your best to love those around you, but it seems that life has drained your last drop of trust and affection. Nothing is better than love when it¢â‚¬â„¢s right; and nothing is more destructive than attempts at love that fail to follow the Jesus prescription for a healthy life.
Jesus devoted his earthly life to saying these three words¢â‚¬“I love you¢â‚¬“and teaching us how to say them. As Jesus defined love, it takes everything you¢â‚¬â„¢ve got¢â‚¬¦and then even more, which only God can give. The lifestyle of love is not something you can master on your own, but Jesus is ready to show you how.
I am particularly excited about this one as it will be my first full read of a book on the Kindle that I am getting for Christmas! I hope you enjoy your Christmas and New Years, and I will be back with you the first of the year!
