In this brief, lively, and engaging book, Dr. Bruce Epperly untangles the difficult concepts of process theology and shows how we can envision a God who is in relation to us throughout our lives here and in the next world. He believes that “God is present at the moment of our conception, guides us through the adventures of this lifetime, urging us to rejoice in embodiment and bring healing to our world, and upon our final earthly breath receives ...
Tired of eating only Christian casseroles, listening only to Christian music, and having only Christian companions? Then why not try something radical – like being a friend of sinners like Jesus was? Unlike Jesus makes a convincing and convicting case that we who love Jesus must also love the lost – and must stop cocooning ourselves within our churches. Christians need to get out more. But this doesn’t mean we become friends of the world (a ...
When you hear the words «in the original text it says» or «in the original text this means,» it's time to be wary. Those words often provide the introduction to misleading information. But how can the hearer discern just what is correct and what is misleading? How can pastors avoid giving their congregations misleading information? "In the Original Text It Says" takes a look at word-study fallacies and how you can avoid them. Autho ...
“How can you mend a broken heart …” said the Bee Gees many years ago. As Linda Estes, and most of us, knows, bruised and broken hearts are part of this life. How we deal with the brokenness is as diverse as we are. Linda reminds us that our LORD is the One who does more than apply temporary ointment or bandage. He tenderly and fully heals with the power of His own loving treatment. Join Linda in this fourth, and possibly her last, devotion b ...
Did you know that there is a musical score embedded in the Hebrew Bible? The Song in the Night presents this astonishing fact. Experts have argued over what the music is for over 1000 years. Now you can examine the key to the music and imagine how the whole song might sound. You can see clearly how the accents in the text translate into music and marvel how our ancestors designed this elegant insight to the tone of voice that is still there ...
“The Jefferson Bible” or “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth” as it was originally entitled is an extraction of biblical passages constructed by Thomas Jefferson sometime around 1819. In an 1803 letter Jefferson remarks that he first conceived of the idea of writing his interpretation of the “Christian System” sometime during 1788-89. He first accomplishes it in a more limited fashion in 1804 with “The Philosophy of Jesus of Nazareth” whic ...
John Henry Newman was a very prominent religious figure throughout his life. As such, he came under fire for his staunchly traditional beliefs. “Apologia Pro Vita Sua” is an articulation and defense of the stance he took regarding the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches. Once a clergyman in the Church of England, Newman believed that the church had regressed and strayed from certain Catholic tenets, regarding dogma and worship. Eventually, dist ...
Charles Alexander Eastman (Ohiyesa) wrote “The Soul of the Indian” to examine the spiritual history of Native American’s before European settlement in America. Born of Minnesota Sioux parents in South Dakota, Charles Eastman spent his life working with Natives and Europeans to bridge cultural divides. Born into and raised by a traditional Sioux family, Eastman developed a deep connection to the life of American Indians. Yet at the age of 15 East ...
John Bunyan, born in England in 1628, was a well-known Puritan preacher and author. He is most famous for his allegorical work “The Pilgrim's Progress”, a story of the Christian pilgrimage toward salvation and widely considered one of the most important works of religious English literature. “The Pilgrim’s Progress” was published in 1678, but was written several years earlier during Bunyan’s time in prison from 1660 to 1672, when he was sen ...