Books

New & Noteworthy Books

Compiled by Matt Reynolds

The Case for Grace: A Journalist Explores the Evidence of Transformed Lives

Lee Strobel (Zondervan)

Strobel, the hard-boiled Chicago crime reporter turned popular apologist, has made a career of sifting the evidence behind claims made for and against the faith. In The Case for Grace, however, he focuses less on rational arguments than on stories of radically transformed people he encountered during his travels. These remarkable narratives, he writes, “illustrate the power of God to revolutionize human lives—to turn a homeless junkie into an ordained pastor; an adulterer into a marriage counselor; a reckless rebel into a selfless servant of God; and a mass murderer into a pardoned saint.” Strobel (The Case for Christ, The Case for Faith, and The Case for a Creator) also writes of his own pilgrimage from atheism to faith.

Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory: A Protestant View of the Cosmic Drama

Jerry L. Walls (Brazos Press)

Walls, who teaches philosophy at Houston Baptist University, has written a trio of scholarly books defending the doctrines of heaven, hell, and—more controversially among Protestants—purgatory. Here, he packages those arguments into a single volume pitched at ordinary readers, delivered at a moment when debates about the hereafter have picked up steam. “The Christian story is extraordinary, to be sure,” Walls maintains, “but it is radically incomplete and ultimately unsatisfying without a robust doctrine of the afterlife, and one simply cannot seriously affirm Trinity, incarnation, atonement, and resurrection without going on to heartily affirm ‘the life everlasting.’ ”

Saying Is Believing: The Necessity of Testimony in Adolescent Spiritual Development

Amanda Hontz Drury (IVP Academic)

For many, nothing induces anxiety quite like the prospect of speaking in public. Mix ordinary worries about audience reception with personal subject matter, and the dread worsens. Despite all this, public testimonies have long held a prominent place in evangelical communities, including in CT (see p. 88). Based on interviews conducted at several Midwestern churches, Drury, assistant professor of practical theology at Indiana Wesleyan University, argues that personal testimonies are vitally important for younger believers. Such stories not only give thanks for past progress but also shape future growth. “Regardless of what form the testimony takes,” she writes, “articulating where we understand God to be at work within our life is a powerful form of spiritual formation.”

Also in this issue

The CT archives are a rich treasure of biblical wisdom and insight from our past. Some things we would say differently today, and some stances we've changed. But overall, we're amazed at how relevant so much of this content is. We trust that you'll find it a helpful resource.

Cover Story

Meet the Women Apologists

Cover Story

Oxford's Unapologetic Female Apologist

My Top 5 Books on Nonviolence

The Morning After the Pentecostal Murders

Getting Brutally Honest with God

Review

The Civil War Is More Than a Historical Fascination

News

Messianic Judaism Flourishes in Holocaust Towns

Review

Why the Time Is Ripe for Pro-Life Reform

Boring Work: Good for the Soul

The Best Worship Music You Won't Hear on Christian Radio

Reading Luke Through Latin American Eyes

Which False Teachings Are Evangelical Christians Most Tempted to Believe In?

Revival 100 Years After the Armenian Genocide

Testimony

Unplanned Pregnancy, Unplanned Grace

What to Do with the Dull Parts of Scripture

Editorial

There's Still Power in the Blood

Why Stretch Marks Remind Me of the Resurrection

News

Cloud of Witnesses

News

Gleanings: April 2015

Reply All

News

Should Unaccredited Bible Colleges Be Allowed to Grant Degrees?

Women Who 'Prophesy'

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Our Latest

Wire Story

SBC to Sell Nashville Headquarters to Cover Cost of Abuse Cases

Southern Baptists have spent down reserves with over $12 million in legal fees over the past three years.

News

Seminary Professor Accused of Secret Second Marriage

Accountability group says Vince Bantu, an expert in ancient African Christianity, is justifying adultery with an argument for polygamy. Bantu denies their claims.

These Christians Have Not Given Up on North Korea

Experts and practitioners discuss their top challenges and encouragements in serving the reclusive country.

Mobilizers See Millions of Future Missionaries in Overseas Filipino Workers

While Filipino Christians are reaching the diaspora, cross-cultural evangelism efforts face challenges.

Sports Betting Has Become Too Prevalent for Christians to Ignore

Online gambling isn’t necessarily sinful, but it’s certainly not a careful use of the wealth God has given us.

News

You Can Turn Off the News and Still Be a Good Citizen

Five experts share advice for Christians overwhelmed by the headlines

Excerpt

God at the Bottom of the Glass

An excerpt from “The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust” on discovering the hand of God in the science of his creation.

Shielded from Truth at Our Own Expense

The Bible consistently tells us we must examine ourselves and accept correction, but our culture is forgetting the art of fair critique.

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