The NIV is the world's best-selling modern translation, with over 150 million copies in print since its first full publication in 1978. This highly accurate and smooth-reading version of the Bible in modern English has the largest library of printed and electronic support material of any modern translation.
At the turn of this century, Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins published their famous Left Behind series, with the underlying plot that Jesus would abruptly appear in the sky and "rapture" (catch away) His church just prior to the worldwide "Tribulation." Throughout this seven-year period of Tribulation, the main characters who are "left behind" find themselves in a survival struggle under the hideous rule of the Antichrist, as they earnestly await another appearance of Jesus at the end of the Tribulation - clinging to the hope that they will get another chance to be saved. This fictitious story is based on the predominant prophetic teachings that have been widely accepted as orthodoxy among many non-Catholic denominations. But just how accurate are these conclusions when measured up to the Word of God? What does the Bible really say about the Rapture and the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? In Except the Lord Build the House, author Norm Eberly constructs a doctrinal house from the ground up, using the literal renderings of various passages from the Bible as a foundation. Throughout its pages, the reader is urged not to apply "mystical interpretations" to Biblical prophecies, but rather to simply read the Word of God at face value in order to arrive at sound, logical conclusions. Later in the book, numerous prophetic interpretations are introduced for the reader to ponder - but only after a firm foundation that is based on the literal wordings of the Holy Scriptures has been established. Written for scholars, students, and novice Bible readers alike, and with over 100 colorful charts and illustrations, this book offers a fresh approach to the study of Biblical prophecies for the endtime and presents a bold challenge to the status-quo of popular Evangelical teachings concerning the Rapture and the Lord's imminent return.
Living on Solid Ground Most couples struggle at some point in their relationship with hard questions of marriage and family life, such as, what is God's primary purpose for marriage? What does it mean for a man to be the head of a home? Is divorce ever acceptable? How do we raise children who will love God? What does God have to say about the way we communicate, or about sexual intimacy? Authors Steve and Dee Brestin have wrestled with these questions in their own marriage and have found that God's Word is the only reliable blue-print for marriage and family life. This study will guide you through the encouragement that the Bible gives for those relationships. Jesus told us the storms will come and batter our homes, but if we obey him, our house will stand firm.
Life Is Never Mainly About Love and Marriage. So Learn to Live and Date for More. Many of you grew up assuming that marriage would meet all of your needs and unlock God's purposes for you. But God has far more planned for you than your future marriage. Not Yet Married is not about waiting quietly in the corner of the world for God to bring you "the one," but about inspiring you to live and date for more now. If you follow Jesus, the search for a spouse is no longer a pursuit of the perfect person, but a pursuit of more of God. He will likely write a love story for you different than the one you would write for yourself, but that's because he loves you and knows how to write a better story. This book was written to help you find real hope, happiness, and purpose in your not-yet-married life.
Combining the best and most recent evangelical Christian scholarship with the highly regarded ESV text, the ESV Study Bible is the most comprehensive study Bible ever published.
Who better to face the greatest evil of the 20th century than a humble man of faith? As Adolf Hitler and the Nazis seduced a nation, bullied a continent, and attempted to exterminate the Jews of Europe, a small number of dissidents and saboteurs worked to dismantle the Third Reich from the inside. One of these was Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pastor and author. In this New York Times bestselling biography, Eric Metaxas takes both strands of Bonhoeffer's life--the theologian and the spy--and draws them together to tell a searing story of incredible moral courage in the face of monstrous evil. In Bonhoeffer, Metaxas presents the fullest account of Bonhoeffer's life, including his: heart-wrenching decision to leave the safe haven of America to return to Hitler's Germany involvement in the famous Valkyrie plot and in "Operation 7," the effort to smuggle Jews into neutral Switzerland lifelong dedication to sharing the tenets of his faith This edition, revised and with a new introduction from the author, shares the deeply moving story through previously unavailable documents, including personal letters, detailed journal entries, and firsthand personal accounts to reveal never-before-seen dimensions of Bonhoeffer's life and work. Praise for Bonhoeffer: "Metaxas has created a biography of uncommon power--intelligent, moving, well researched, vividly written, and rich in implication for our own lives. Or to put it another way: Buy this book. Read it. Then buy another copy and give it to a person you love. It's that good." --Archbishop Charles Chaput, author, First Things "Metaxas tells Bonhoeffer's story with passion and theological sophistication." —Wall Street Journal "Metaxas presents Bonhoeffer as a clear-headed, deeply convicted Christian who submitted to no one and nothing except God and his Word." --Christianity Today "Metaxas has written a book that adds a new dimension to World War II, a new understanding of how evil can seize the soul of a nation and a man of faith can confront it." --Thomas Fleming, author, The New Dealers’ War
"An exciting vision of the future" --Michael Eric Dyson Everything Is Spiritual is an unexpected and compelling invitation to see your life in a whole new way. We have the great moments of our lives, the highs, those times when we soar, when it all makes sense, when it feels like it all has purpose and meaning. And then there are all those other moments—the lows and aches and failures and struggles and experiences that leave us wondering what the point of it all is. Are our lives ultimately bits and pieces and fragments—you try to find a little peace and hope and then it’s over? Or is there more going on here? In our increasingly polarized and disoriented world, Everything Is Spiritual gives us a radical new take on how it all fits together, how it works, how it’s all connected. Part memoir, part extended riff on the quantum nature of reality, part history of the universe, Rob Bell takes us back through the twists and turns and struggles of his story in order to help us see the larger story so that we can reconnect with our story.
Imagine what our world might look like if Christians became known for remarkable love, as well as life-giving truth. The stakes are high and the need is great for Christians to represent Jesus to a watching world. And today, we have more influence than ever before--for better and for worse. We are among the first generations to have access to a global megaphone through social media. But it's not enough to speak truth louder to a noisy culture. To counter the reputation Christians have earned, our love must be just as loud. Ask evangelist Matt Brown, and he will tell you Christians today are facing a crisis of influence. In our rush to speak truth to today's tensions, cultural issues, and trending controversies, it becomes all too easy to focus on proving our points rather than extending God's grace. Conversely, when we seek only to love yet never proclaim a better way, we short-circuit God's plan. Truth Plus Love invites you to rediscover the biblical framework for engaging culture as ambassadors of Christ. Through biblical insight, cultural analysis, and practical principles, Matt Brown outlines how to champion truth without compromise, how to love unconditionally, and ultimately, how to step into this great adventure of representing God to the world. It's hard, it's messy, and it's the unfinished project of a lifetime, yet here we find our great adventure: representing God to a watching world.