J. B. Lightfoot ranked Eusebius's Preparation for the Gospel and Proof of the Gospel together as Òprobably the most important apologetic work of the Early church.Ó
[Preparations for the Gospels] The prominent position occupied by Eusebius of Caesarea in the Arian controversy and the Council of Nicaea has given rise to so many important treatises on his life and character, that it would be quite superfluous to prefix a formal biography to the present edition of one among his many literary works. It will be sufficient to mention a few of the best sources of information accessible to the English reader.
Christianity Today 2013 Book Award Winner Winner of The Foundation for Pentecostal Scholarship's 2012 Award of Excellence 2011 Book of the Year, Christianbook.com's Academic Blog Most modern prejudice against biblical miracle reports depends on David Hume's argument that uniform human experience precluded miracles. Yet current research shows that human experience is far from uniform. In fact, hundreds of millions of people today claim to have experienced miracles. New Testament scholar Craig Keener argues that it is time to rethink Hume's argument in light of the contemporary evidence available to us. This wide-ranging and meticulously researched two-volume study presents the most thorough current defense of the credibility of the miracle reports in the Gospels and Acts. Drawing on claims from a range of global cultures and taking a multidisciplinary approach to the topic, Keener suggests that many miracle accounts throughout history and from contemporary times are best explained as genuine divine acts, lending credence to the biblical miracle reports.
Presented here are two volumes of apocryphal writings reflecting the life and time of the Old and New Testaments. Stories told by contemporary fiction writers of historical Bible times in fascinating and beautiful style.
Bart D. Ehrman, the New York Times bestselling author of Jesus, Interrupted and God’s Problem reveals which books in the Bible’s New Testament were not passed down by Jesus’s disciples, but were instead forged by other hands—and why this centuries-hidden scandal is far more significant than many scholars are willing to admit. A controversial work of historical reporting in the tradition of Elaine Pagels, Marcus Borg, and John Dominic Crossan, Ehrman’s Forged delivers a stunning explication of one of the most substantial—yet least discussed—problems confronting the world of biblical scholarship.
Among important books in the defense of Christianity, this one has few equals. Evidence That Demands a Verdict is an easy-to-read, front-line defense for Christians facing the tough questions of critics and skeptics. Using secular evidences and other historical sources, Josh McDowell's faith-building book is a must read for every Christian.
There have always been challenges to belief in God as he is revealed in the Bible and each new year seems to add more questions to the doubter's arsenal. In Evidence for God, leading apologists provide compelling arguments that address the most pressing questions of the day about God, science, Jesus, the Bible, and more, including Is Intelligent Design really a credible explanation of the origins of our world? Did Jesus really exist? Is Jesus really the only way to God? What about those who have never heard the gospel? Is the Bible today what was originally written? What about recently publicized gospels that aren't in the Bible? and much more
Everything you need to effectively defend the truths of the Bible and the beliefs of the Christian faith. Winner of the 2018 ECPA Christian Book award for Bible Reference Works. The truth of the Bible doesn't change, but its critics do. Now with his son, Sean McDowell, speaker and author Josh McDowell has updated and expanded the modern apologetics classic for a new generation. Evidence That Demands a Verdict provides an expansive defense of Christianity's core truths, rebuttals to some recent and popular forms of skepticism, and insightful responses to the Bible's most difficult and misused passages. It invites readers to bring their doubts and doesn't shy away from the tough questions. Topics and questions are covered in four main parts: Evidence for the Bible Evidence for Jesus Evidence for the Old Testament Evidence for Truth Also included, you'll find: An introduction about the biblical mandate to defend one's faith and why our faith is built on facts. A prologue describing why we live in a theistic universe. A closing response to the specific challenges of atheist New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman. Two reflections: "How to Know God Personally" and "He Changed My Life." Serving as a go-to reference for even the toughest questions, Evidence that Demands a Verdict continues to encourage and strengthen millions by providing Christians the answers they need to defend their faith against the harshest critics and skeptics. "Here's a treasure trove of apologetic gems! This is an indispensable book that all Christians should keep within reach." —Lee Strobel, bestselling author of The Case for Christ
From its earliest days, Christianity has viewed Judaism and Jews ambiguously. Given its roots within the Jewish community of first-century Palestine, there was much in Judaism that demanded Church admiration and praise; however, as Jews continued to resist Christian truth, there was also much that had to be condemned. Major Christian thinkers of antiquity - while disparaging their Jewish contemporaries for rejecting Christian truth - depicted the Jewish past and future in balanced terms, identifying both positives and negatives. Beginning at the end of the first millennium, an increasingly large Jewish community started to coalesce across rapidly developing northern Europe, becoming the object of intense popular animosity and radically negative popular imagery. The portrayals of the broad trajectory of Jewish history offered by major medieval European intellectual leaders became increasingly negative as well. The popular animosity and the negative intellectual formulations were bequeathed to the modern West, which had tragic consequences in the twentieth century. In this book, Robert Chazan traces the path that began as anti-Judaism, evolved into heightened medieval hatred and fear of Jews, and culminated in modern anti-Semitism.
Evidence shows the New Testament texts were not written by simple, non-royal subjects, but instead were created by extremely well-educated, royal Romans. In Piso Christ, author Roman Piso, with Jay Gallus, presents a new perspective to show that the creation of Christianity has different origins than previously taught. Through this collection of essays and articles, Piso shows that only a few individuals invented and built the Christian religion, and these same individuals authored the New Testament of the Christian Bible. Piso Christ addresses the issues of how these few people wielded that much power and how they were able to succeed. In this new book, Piso contends that the royalty wanted to protect their centuries-old institution of slavery upon which the empire functioned, lived, fed, and gained wealth. The royal people understood that knowledge was power and, therefore, did what they could to keep the masses ignorant and superstitious. Through research, Piso Christ shows that the god concept did not originate in what is represented in the Bible. It demonstrates how millions of people are being misled into accepting the concept of a god and how they live in fear of an unnatural belief.