This is a book of essays pondering the meanings of the Bible, Christianity, and various related subjects. These essays were written during the period from November 2003 through June 2009 and posted to forums and blogs on the Internet. The essays were written because of a felt need to answer questions about the Christian message for myself and others. Sometimes irreverent, the essays cover a variety of topics but always with the intent to inform and entertain the reader without getting too involved with specific denominational viewpoints.
Have you ever wondered... How Did God Do It? How did God perform the many miracles and supernatural events described in the Holy Bible - without violating the laws of physics and chemistry that He Himself put into place? And without conflicting with the basic tenets of Judaism and Christianity? This book proposes a theory that marries faith and rationality in a symphony of science and scripture....
In Defense of the Bible gathers exceptional articles by accomplished scholars (Paul Copan, William A. Dembski, Mary Jo Sharp, Darrell L. Bock, etc.), addressing and responding to all of the major contemporary challenges to the divine inspiration and authority of Scripture. The book begins by looking at philosophical and methodological challenges to the Bible—questions about whether or not it is logically possible for God to communicate verbally with human beings; what it means to say the Bible is true in response to postmodern concerns about the nature of truth; defending the clarity of Scripture against historical skepticism and relativism. Contributors also explore textual and historical challenges—charges made by Muslims, Mormons, and skeptics that the Bible has been corrupted beyond repair; questions about the authorship of certain biblical books; allegations that the Bible borrows from pagan myths; the historical reliability of the Old and New Testaments. Final chapters take on ethical, scientific, and theological challenges— demonstrating the Bible’s moral integrity regarding the topics of slavery and sexism; harmonizing exegetical and theological conclusions with the findings of science; addressing accusations that the Christian canon is the result of political and theological manipulation; ultimately defending the Bible as not simply historically reliable and consistent, but in fact the Word of God.
Controversial evangelical Bible scholar, popular blogger and podcast host of The Bible for Normal People, and author of The Bible Tells Me So and The Sin of Certainty explains that the Bible is not an instruction manual or rule book but a powerful learning tool that nurtures our spiritual growth by refusing to provide us with easy answers but instead forces us to acquire wisdom. For many Christians, the Bible is a how-to manual filled with literal truths about belief that must be strictly followed. But the Bible is not static, Peter Enns argues. It does not hold easy answers to the perplexing questions and issues that confront us in our daily lives. Rather, the Bible is a dynamic instrument for study that not only offers an abundance of insights but provokes us to find our own answers to spiritual questions, cultivating God’s wisdom within us. “The Bible becomes a confusing mess when we expect it to function as a rulebook for faith. But when we allow the Bible to determine our expectations, we see that Wisdom, not answers, is the Bible’s true subject matter,” writes Enns. This distinction, he points out, is important because when we come to the Bible expecting it to be a textbook intended by God to give us unwavering certainty about our faith, we are actually creating problems for ourselves. The Bible, in other words, really isn’t the problem; having the wrong expectation is what interferes with our reading. Rather than considering the Bible as an ancient book weighed down with problems, flaws, and contradictions that must be defended by modern readers, Enns offers a vision of the holy scriptures as an inspired and empowering resource to help us better understand how to live as a person of faith today. How the Bible Actually Works makes clear that there is no one right way to read the Bible. Moving us beyond the damaging idea that “being right” is the most important measure of faith, Enns’s freeing approach to Bible study helps us to instead focus on pursuing enlightenment and building our relationship with God—which is exactly what the Bible was designed to do.
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The late, beloved Rachel Held Evans answers many children's first question about God in this gorgeous picture book, fully realized by her friend Matthew Paul Turner, the bestselling author of When God Made You. Children who are introduced to God, through attending church or having loved ones who speak about God, often have a lot of questions, including this ever-popular one: What is God like? The late Rachel Held Evans loved the Bible and loved showing God’s love through the words and pictures found in that ancient text. Through these pictures from the Bible, children see that God is like a shepherd, God is like a star, God is like a gardener, God is like the wind, and more. God is a comforter and support. And whenever a child is unsure, What Is God Like? encourages young hearts to “think about what makes you feel safe, what makes you feel loved, and what makes you feel brave. That's what God is like.”
Experience the Bible as a singular, powerful story and prepare to be swept away by Scripture as never before! Wangerin's "Bible storybook for adults" features brilliant settings, dramatized scenes, and added dialogue—all gleaned from extensive research. The Book of God reads like a novel, dramatizing the sweep of biblical events, bringing to life the men and women of this ancient book in vivid detail and dialogue. From Abraham wandering in the desert to Jesus teaching the multitudes on a Judean hillside, this award-winning bestseller follows the biblical story from start to finish. Priests and kings, apostles and prophets, common folk and charismatic leaders—individual stories offer glimpses into an unfolding revelation that reaches across the centuries to touch us today. The Book of God: Follows the biblical story in chronological order Filled with carefully researched cultural and historical background Includes biblical events viewed through the eyes of minor characters Master storyteller Walter Wangerin Jr. shares the story of the Bible from beginning to end as you've never read it before, retold with exciting detail and passionate energy. Experience the Bible in a beautiful new way!
“Creator, do you have a family?” said my youngest. And he answered! Thus began our healing through awareness with Mina (how we address the human person—God—who built our universe), the archangels, and many others in spirit world. Our explosive conversation over the next 18 hours revealed God, angels, humanity, why we are as we are, and our universe as never before imagined. Spirit mediums Christopher McKeon and his daughters Ayako and El shatter the paradigms and magical thinking handed down to us through history by religion, philosophy, mysticism, and science. Experience, as we did, healing of your trauma, pain, and suffering through gaining awareness of your true reality. Included are ten historical spirit persons who give short testimonies of their experiences to help explain certain aspects of our—your—life reality. You'll never feel the same, or look at the world around you the way you did, as your awareness takes flight from unawareness with new wings on new winds. Be prepared for a story of life like nothing you've ever experienced. Best of all, you'll learn how you, too, can talk to Mina, 'angels,' your spirit family and guides, and willing spirit persons to get your own answers (without having to take ours on faith) as a ground-floor participant in the nascent worldwide energy testing community! For Mina, this book is all about healing your pain and suffering by revealing our personal, and larger, human reality. You'll find it all inside. A chapter summary: Part I is a narrative of our experience discovering energy testing and our shocking meet-up with our ‘creator;’ Part II describes how you and our universe are infinite and eternal as existence, time, space, and consciousness, including: —an overview regarding our true natural reality: matter, energy, gravity, mass, lightspeed (normal and actual), relativity and the quantum, black holes, the Big Bang, quantum entanglement/tunneling, how the natural universe interacts with the supranatural (spirit) universe; —what is All Existence of which our universe is a part; —all about consciousness (psyche) and how our physical body interacts with our spirit body; —‘psyche fundamental force’ (Intentionality); —and culture as the individual; Part III describes the origin of humanity and includes: —the birth of humanity; —who and what our creator is —how our universe came to be our home —why human life seems destructive and filled with pain and suffering; Part IV is the real ‘woo-woo’ of the book and includes: —how we exist and live as physicospirit-embodied individuals; —our mind, conscience, PTSD; —killing, abortion, euthanasia, suicide; —lineage and DNA; —what happens at death; —fate, destiny, and free will; —suffering, hope, depression, reincarnation, and the origin of slavery; —happiness, love and hate; —government and society; —evil; —beauty and ugliness; —spirit world; —the chakras and aura as they really are and what they do; —Intentionality; —who and what ‘angels’ really are; —history of Earth’s humanity and radiometric dating; —our physicospirit self; —religion; —what is healing, how to heal; —human freedom; —astral projection, the Akashic Records; —marriage, sex; —animal familials; —ten historical spirit persons' testimony: Duke Wen of Zhou, Hitler, Hannibal Gisco, Mio, Mnidho of Nihoa, Tethys, Jesus, Sun-myung Moon, Muhammad, Buddha; Part V teaches you energy testing so you can learn how to talk to Mina (God), 'angels,' your spirit family, spirit guides, and any willing spirit person to get your own answers to life.
Hurting people ask heart-felt questions about God and suffering. Some "answers" they receive appeal to mystery: “God’s ways are not our ways”. Some answers say God allows evil for a greater purpose. Some say evil is God's punishment. The usual answers fail. They don't support the truth that God loves everyone all the time. God Can't gives a believable answer to why a good and powerful God doesn't prevent evil. Author Thomas Jay Oord says God’s love is inherently uncontrolling. God loves everyone and everything, so God can't control anyone or anything. This means God cannot prevent evil singlehandedly. God can’t stop evildoers, whether human, animal, organism, or inanimate objects and forces. In God Can't, Oord gives a plausible reason why some are healed, but many others are not. God always works to heal everyone, but sometimes our bodies, organisms, or other creatures do not cooperate with God's healing work. Or the conditions of creation are not right for the healing God wants to do. Some people think God causes or allows suffering to teach us lessons or build our character. God Can't disagrees. Oord says God squeezes good from the evil God didn’t want in the first place. God uses pain and suffering without willing or even allowing it. Most people think God can overcome evil singlehandedly. In God Can't, Oord says God needs cooperation for love to reign now and later. This leads to a better view of the afterlife called “relentless love.” It rejects traditional ideas of heaven, hell, and annihilation. Relentless love holds to the possibility all creatures and all creation will respond to God’s love. God Can't is written in understandable language. As a world-renown theologian, Thomas Jay Oord brings credibility to the book’s radical ideas. He explains these ideas through true stories, illustrations, and scripture. God Can't is for those who want answers to tragedy, abuse, and other evils that make sense! What They're Saying... “If conventional notions of God make less and less sense to you, you’ll find Thomas Jay Oord’s new book a breath of fresh air. Simply put, “God Can’t” presents an understanding of God that thoughtful, ethical people can believe in.” -- Brian D. McLaren, author of The Great Spiritual Migration "I did not want this book to end. I wish Dr. Oord had written it 100 years ago, or 1000 years ago... To find your understanding of life and your love for God renewed, read this book." -- Dr. Karen Strand Winslow, Ph.D., Biblical and Jewish Studies Professor of Bible, Azusa Pacific University "As a clinical psychologist working with people in trauma, I owe Thomas Jay Oord an enormous debt of gratitude for recasting the so-called problem of evil in terms that are conceptually satisfying, theologically consistent, and pastorally liberating.” -- Dr Roger Bretherton- Principal Lecturer at the University of Lincoln (UK), Chair of the British Association of Christians in Psychology “Victims of trauma sometimes hear theological responses that imply their suffering is somehow “God’s will." A more careful theological reflection on the nature of the power of a God who is love can help. Oord gives us a clear and compelling alternative in this profoundly insightful and admirably concrete and accessible book.” -- Dr. Anna Case-Winters, Professor of Theology at McCormick Theological Seminary “I know of no book that speaks to suffering with the depth of theological sophistication and psychological sensitivity as God Can’t. This book is a rare combination of depth and accessibility, truly written for the wounded. I recommend it to my students, parishioners, and therapy clients.” -- Dr. Brad D. Strawn, Professor of the Integration of Psychology and Theology, Fuller Theological Seminary
