Thoughtful Reflections on Faith and Life
Os Guinness, Fool’s Talk: Recovering the Art of Christian Persuasion (Downers Grove: IVP Books, 2015), 270 pp. Fads come, and fads go. Since the 1980s, there have been many apologetical and evangelistic methods emerge within Christian circles. One pops up today and disappears as fast as it showed up when a new and improved method … Read More “Fool’s Talk” »
Paul Copan and Kenneth D. Litwak, The Gospel in the Marketplace of Ideas: Paul’s Mars Hill Experience for Our Pluralistic World (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2014), Pbk. 176 pp. One of the common passages for apologists to go to for a model of apologetic conversation is Paul’s experience at Athens in Acts 17. Such a choice is … Read More “The Gospel in the Marketplace of Ideas” »
Nabeel Qureshi, Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2016), Pbk. 176 pp. One of the most heated topics among Christians and non-Christians is that of Islam in general and Jihad in particular. The media continually presents stories of violent attacks by Muslim extremists. Terrorist attacks in supposedly safe countries such as Canada, United States, … Read More “Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward” »
Mark L. Strauss, Four Portraits, One Jesus: A Survey of Jesus and the Gospels. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007. 559 pp. Bible college and seminary students need to learn many things, but near the top of that list is a good understanding of Jesus and the Gospels. Although there are many books that fall under that … Read More “Four Portraits, One Jesus” »
John Lennox, Gunning for God: Why the New Atheists are Missing the Target (Oxford: Lion Hudson, 2011), Pbk. 248 pp. Gunning for God: Why The New Atheists are Missing The Target is a written follow up by Dr. John Lennox to the public debates he has engaged in with the New Atheists namely Richard Dawkins, Sam … Read More “Gunning for God” »
Pamela Binnings Ewen, Faith on Trial (Nashville: B&H Publishing, 2013), Pbk. 217 pp. Books that have gained popularity in Christian circles on apologetics tend to have a theme. It is not enough to just write about the resurrection or the historical Jesus or the problem of evil. You need some context that all the … Read More “Faith on Trial” »
Michael F. Bird (ed.). Four Views on the Apostle Paul (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012), 236 pp. Pbk. One of the most interesting series of books to come out is that of the four views. Each book provides the opportunity for multiple authors to offer their own view on a theological subject and then to … Read More “Four Views on the Apostle Paul” »
John N. Oswalt, The Bible Among the Myths (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2009), 204 pp. Pbk. There is no lack of books that argue that the Bible is no different from any other ancient mythology. From one perspective, there seems to be logic to such a theory. The Bible shares with ancient myths a belief in … Read More “Bible Among the Myths” »
Richard Swinburne, Revelation: From Metaphor to Analogy (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007), 373pp. Pbk. Richard Swinburne offers what may be his tour de force in Revelation: From Metaphor to Analogy. It is one of those rare books which forces one to think about and analyze every argument it contains. The work addresses claims of divine … Read More “Revelation: From Metaphor to Analogy” »
David Berlinski. The Devil’s Delusion. Atheism and its Scientific Pretensions. (Basic Books: New York, 2009) 256 pp. Pbk. Into a very crowded genre of books redressing Richard Dawkins and the new breed of militant atheists comes an interesting and thought provoking submission by David Berlinski. With intellectual depth, helpful insight and more than a little … Read More “The Devil’s Delusion” »
Eric Metaxas, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2010), 591 pp. Pbk. Eric Metaxas is a versatile author, working on such projects as books on Wilberforce and Veggie Tales cartoons. This time, Metaxas turns his attention to Dietrich Bonhoeffer. This is an important figure to write on as he is both well and … Read More “Bonhoeffer” »
Ravi Zacharias (ed.), Beyond Opinion: Living the Faith We Defend. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2007. xx + 360 pp. Pbk. Ravi Zacharias is one of the most well known apologists of today. Even if one does not agree with his apologetic method, it is difficult to not respect his impact both in his own ministry and … Read More “Beyond Opinion” »
Carl R. Trueman, The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2011. E-Book. It’s been more than fifteen years now since Mark Noll published his successful The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind in which the (then) Wheaton professor criticized evangelicals for its intellectual obscurantism. Evangelicalism’s preoccupation with dispensationalism and six-day creationism, he argued, … Read More “The Real Scandal of the Evangelical Mind” »
Tom Wells, The Priority of Jesus Christ. Frederick, MD: New Covenant Media, 2005. 158 pp. Pbk. Perhaps I have forgotten, but I don’t recall another book like this — an exploration, exposition, and application of the hermeneutical implications of the dominant New Testament theme of the Lordship of Christ. The cover describes the book as … Read More “The Priority of Jesus Christ” »
Andreas J. Kostenberger and Scott R. Swain, Father, Son and Spirit: The Trinity and John’s Gospel. Downer’s Grove: IVP, 2008. 224 pp. Pbk. It is common knowledge that both historically and perennially John’s Gospel has played a significant role in the formulation of the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. What is surprising, then, is the … Read More “Father, Son and Spirit” »
Paul R. Williamson, Sealed With an Oath: Covenant in God’s Unfolding Purpose, Downer’s Grove: IVP, 2007. 247 pp. Pbk. In this 2007 addition to the New Studies in Biblical Theology series (D.A. Carson, ed.), Paul Williamson (Lecturer in Old Testament and Hebrew, Moore Theological College, Sydney) traces out Scripture’s covenant motif as it advances “God’s creative … Read More “Sealed With an Oath” »
Norman L. Geisler, If God, Why Evil? A New Way to Think About the Question. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2011. 173 pp. Pbk. There are many areas of apologetics that people find interesting. However, there is one area that is more personal and close to the heart and that is the problem of evil. From biblical times … Read More “If God, Why Evil?” »
Michael Rydelnik, The Messianic Hope: Is the Hebrew Bible Really Messianic? Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2010. 224 pp. Hdbk. I’m fairly certain that if the average evangelical Christian layman were to hear a respected teacher say that Genesis 3:15 (the promised defeat of the Serpent) is not a messianic prophecy, the response would be one … Read More “Messianic Hope” »
Rob Bell, Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived. New York: HarperCollins, 2011. xi+202 pp. Hbk. There have been few books in recent times as controversial in evangelical circles as Rob Bell’s Love Wins. Bell is not some obscure liberal whose views can be easily ignored, … Read More “Love Wins” »
Daniel C. Dennett and Alvin Plantinga, Science and Religion: Are They Compatible? (Point/Counterpoint Series) New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. 96 pp. At an American Philosophical Association Central Division Meeting in 2009, two starkly contrasting philosophers, Alvin Plantinga and Daniel Dennett, met to discuss the compatibility of science and religion. That context allowed for the … Read More “Science and Religion” »
Drew Dyck, Generation Ex-Christian: Why Young Adults are Leaving the Faith…and How to Bring them Back. Moody: Chicago, 2010. 208 pp. Pbk. Generation Ex-Christian is a thoughtful, well-researched, practical guide on why Generation Y or Millennials (those born after 1980) are leaving Christianity at an alarming rate, how they arrived there, and how to work towards … Read More “Generation Ex-Christian” »
Paul Hughes (ed.). Think and Live: Challenging Believers to Think and Thinkers to Believe. Las Vegas: Anderson-Noble, 2011. 161 pp. Pbk. The subtitle of this book, Challenging Believers to Think and Thinkers to Believe, sets the tone for this book. It attempts to be a bridge between believers and unbelievers. The content of this book … Read More “Think and Live” »
James Hannam, The Genesis of Science: How the Christian Middle Ages Launched the Scientific Revolution (Washington: Regnery Publishing, 2011) 448pp. With the rise of the New Atheists, the idea that religion “teaches us to be satisfied with not understanding our world” has been branded into our culture, forcing the formation of caricatures that portray religion … Read More “Genesis of Science” »
Peter Hitchens, The Rage Against God: How Atheism Led Me To Faith. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010. 224 pp. Hbk. Atheism in the twenty-first-century is a facile form of its counterpart from a previous generation. The abandonment of atheism by Antony Flew before his death in some respects marks the closing of an age of disbelief … Read More “The Rage Against God” »
Tim Challies, The Next Story: Life and Faith After the Digital Explosion. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011. 204 pp. Reading Tim Challies’ new book, The Next Story: Life and Faith after the Digital Explosion, my thoughts kept turning to the Amish. Not perhaps the most expected line of thinking for a book on the digital revolution, … Read More “The Next Story” »
Christian Apologetics: Past & Present: A Primary Source Reader: Volume 1: To 1500. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Publishers, 2009. 498 pp. Hdbk. Since its start, the Christian church has needed and used apologetics. The New Testament is full of apologetic language, aside from the standard 1 Peter 3:15. Throughout its history, the church has had many … Read More “Christian Apologetics: Past & Present” »
Robert Letham, Through Western Eyes: Eastern Orthodoxy: A Reformed Perspective. Fern, Ross-shire: Christian Focus Publications, 2007. 319 pp. Pbk. Christians in the West have little understanding of Eastern Orthodoxy. Though at odds, Roman Catholics and Protestants have a fairly good take on each others’ faith and practice. Both, however, are largely ignorant of their Eastern … Read More “Through Western Eyes” »
Alister McGrath. Why God Won’t Go Away: Is the New Atheism Running on Empty? (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2011), 191 pp. Pbk. Why God Won’t Go Away is Alister McGrath’s latest engagement with what has been referred to as the New Atheism. His primary area of concern centers on the work of its four leading proponents: Richard … Read More “Why God Won’t Go Away” »
Nancy Pearcey, Finding Truth: 5 Principles for Unmasking Atheism, Secularism, and Other God Substitutes. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2015. 384 pp, hardcover. There are few, if any, modern defenders of the faith who would dispute C. S. Lewis’s position as the foremost Christian apologist of the twentieth century. And yet, Lewis might never have … Read More “Finding Truth” »
Michael F. Bird, Introducing Paul: The Man, His Mission, His Message. Downer’s Grove: IVP Academic, 2007. 209 pp. Pbk. Truly, no evangelist had more impact on Christianity than Paul. Yet despite his prominence in writing and importance in gathering the early gentile church, very little is actually known about him. In his excellent book, Introducing … Read More “Introducing Paul” »
Steven B. Cowan & Terry L. Wilder, (eds.) In Defense of the Bible: A Comprehensive Apologetic for the Authority of Scripture. B&H Academic, 2013. 490 pp. What do a Bible, a treadmill, and a liberal arts degree all have in common? If you said that they’re all “things people buy and often never end up using,” … Read More “In Defence of the Bible” »
Tripp York and Justin Bronson Barringer (eds.). A Faith Not Worth Fighting For: Addressing Commonly Asked Questions About Christian Nonviolence (Eugene: Cascade, 2012), 243 pp. Pbk. When it comes to issues of nonviolence and pacifism, every Christian has an opinion. It is not just about whether to join the military. Even the decision to call … Read More “A Faith Not Worth Fighting For” »
Michael H. Mitias. Seeking God: A Mystics Way (Eugene: Resource Publications, 2012), 198 pp. Pbk. Mysticism is a dirty word for many Christians. Unfortunately, that is often because few Christians know what mysticism even references, let alone what it looks like in practice. Michael Mitias, in his book Seeking God, paves a way forward in … Read More “Seeking God: A Mystic’s Way” »
Fred G. Zaspel, The Theology of B. B. Warfield: A Systematic Summary (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010); 624 pp. Hdbk. Slowly but surely historians and theologians are starting to provide a proper assessment of the legacy of Benjamin B. Warfield. In general, the story of Princeton Theological Seminary has been told by writers like David Calhoun and … Read More “Theology of B.B. Warfield” »
Our first issue of Hope’s Reason: A Journal of Apologetics came out in 2010. I am very excited about this journal. There are some great articles by some talented apologists is this issue. There are also plenty of helpful book reviews to give you an idea of what is out there. You can get a … Read More “Hope’s Reason: A Journal of Apologetics Vol. 1 No. 1” »
