Gene Edward Veith presents basic information to help book lovers understand what they read–from the classics to the bestsellers. He explains how the major genres of literature communicate. He explores ways comedy, tragedy, realism, and fantasy can portray the Christian worldview. These discussions lead to a host of related topics—the value of fairy tales for children, the tragic and the comic sense of life, the interplay between Greek and Biblical concepts in the imagination, and the new "post-modernism" (a subject of vital importance to Christians).In the pages of this book, readers will meet writers, past and present who carry on a great literary tradition. By supporting worthy authors, Christians can exert a powerful influence on their culture."What a superb resource this is! It resonates with profound perceptions of how good literature works to enrich and illuminate us. Dr. Veith proves himself once again to be a knowledgeable guide through the landscape of the written word." —Luci Shaw, author of God in the Dark and Polishing the Petoskey Stone"Veith makes it clear that the joys of reading can be deep joys of the type which can enliven our souls. This book should raise significantly the cultural level of evangelicalism." --Dr. Edward E. Ericson, Jr., Calvin College"Reading Between the Lines is thoroughly readable and thoroughly literate--a magnificent blending of history, literature, and theology that will be welcomed by professionals and laity alike." --Dr. Wayne Martindale, Wheaton College"Ed Veith has written on important topics with his usual clarity, good sense, organizing ability, and comprehensiveness. The scope of the project is impressive." --Dr. Leland Ryken, Wheaton College

    Though originally published nearly seventy years ago, the book maintains its relevance today.

    It is symbolized in the temple ruins, and before it the temple itself, and before that the ark of the covenant and the tabernacle that housed it, and before that the Garden of Eden. In response to this longing, God shares his ultimate mission, in which his people play a part: the expansion of Eden, the temple of God's presence, to all peoples throughout the earth. The temple has always been a source of rich scholarship and theological reflection, but what does it mean for the church's ongoing mission in the world? G. K. Beale and Mitchell Kim take temple theology off the bookshelf and bring it to our modern-day life, where the church is instructed and exhorted in its purpose. From Eden to the new Jerusalem, we are God's temple on the earth in our day, the firstfruits of the new creation. God has always desired to dwell among us; now the church must follow its missional call to extend the borders of God's kingdom and take his presence to the ends of the earth.Preaching's 2014 Best Books for Preachers 2014 Best Missions-Oriented Biblical Study, from Byron Borger, Hearts and Minds Bookstore

    It's this vision of the world, with the Christian family at the heart, that modern parents desperately need to recover.

    The Mind of the Maker will be relished by those already in love with Dorothy L. Sayers and those who have not yet met her. A mystery writer, a witty and perceptive theologian, culture critic, and playwright, Dorothy Sayers sheds new, unexpected light on a specific set of statements made in the Christian creeds. She examines anew such ideas as the image of God, the Trinity, free will, and evil, and in these pages a wholly revitalized understanding of them emerges. The author finds the key in the parallels between the creation of God and the human creative process. She continually refers to each in a way that illuminates both.

    Created by a diverse team of 95 leading Bible scholars and teachers--from 9 countries, nearly 20 denominations, and 50 seminaries, colleges, and universities--the ESV Study Bible features a wide array of study tools, making it a valuable resource for serious readers, students, and teachers of God's Word.Features:Size: 6.5- x 9.25- 9-point Lexicon type (single-column Bible text); 7-point Frutiger type (double-column study notes) 2,752 pages Black letter text Concordance Extensive articles 240 full-color maps and illustrations Smyth-sewn binding Lifetime guarantee Packaging: J-card (HC), clamshell box (TruTone and leather), permanent slipcase (cloth over board)

    But for those who know that Christ is coming to establish a new and perfect order, ours is not just a world to endure but a world to invade. Believers have not been stationed here on earth merely to subsist but to actively subvert the enemy’s attempts at blinding people in unbelief and burying them under heartbreaking loads of human need.The kingdom of God changes all that.Ed Stetzer’s Subversive Kingdom is a personal call for Christians to reorient their thinking and lifestyle to match what Jesus described of His people in Scripture, while teaming up with other believers through their churches to bring light into a dying and darkening culture. Stetzer uses the parables of Christ to unlock the “kingdom secrets” that bring this mysterious concept within understandable reach, while urging Christians to turn this knowledge into practical, everyday, ongoing missions designed to set people free from lives headed for hopelessness.

    In The Case for Faith, Strobel turns his skills to the most persistent emotional objections to belief---the eight "heart barriers" to faith. This Gold Medallion-winning book is for those who may be feeling attracted to Jesus but who are faced with difficult questions standing squarely in their path. For Christians, it will deepen their convictions and give them fresh confidence in discussing Christianity with even their most skeptical friends. "Everyone --seekers, doubters, fervent believers-- benefits when Lee Strobel hits the road in search of answers, as he does again in The Case for Faith. In the course of his probing interviews, some of the toughest intellectual obstacles to faith fall away." --Luis Palau "Lee Strobel has given believers and skeptics alike a gift in this book. He does not avoid seeking the most difficult questions imaginable, and refuses to provide simplistic answers that do more harm than good." --Jerry Sittser, professor of religion, Whitworth College, and author of A Grace Disguised and The Will of God as a Way of Life

    For the First Time in English, a Foundational Work of One of the Church's Most Important Theologians As some point in life, we all wonder: Who am I? What is the world, and what is my place within it? Only Christianity offers answers to these questions in a way that meets our truest needs and satisfies our deepest longings.In this important book, translated into English for the first time, Herman Bavinck provides a framework for understanding why the Christian worldview is the only solution to the discord we feel between ourselves, the world, and God.

    He seeks nothing less than to account for the spread of secularism and decline of faith in the last 500 years. Now a remarkable roster of writers—including Carl Trueman, Michael Horton, and Jen Pollock Michel—considers Taylor’s insights for the church’s life and mission, covering everything from healthcare to liturgy to pop culture and politics. Nothing is easy about faith today. But endurance produces character, and character produces hope, even in our secular age.

    His new book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God, will continue down this path, helping us with the ultimate big-picture issue: how do we know God? Love Wins was a Sunday Times bestseller that created a media storm, launching Bell as a national religious voice who is reinvigorating what it means to be religious and a Christian today. He is one of the most influential voices in the Christian world, and now his new book, What We Talk About When We Talk About God, is poised to blow open the doors on how we understand God. Bell believes we need to drop our primitive, tribal views of God and instead understand the God who wants us to become who we were designed to be, a God who created a universe of quarks and quantum string dynamics, but who also gives meaning to why new-born babies and stories of heroes and sacrifice inspire in us a deep reverence. What We Talk About When We Talk About God will reveal that God is not in need of repair to catch him up with today's world so much as we need to discover the God who goes before us and beckons us forward. A book full of mystery, controversy, and reverence, What We Talk About When We Talk About God has fans and critics alike anxiously awaiting, and promises not to disappoint.

    This anthology covers all of the major topics that fall within this subject and includes essays and excerpts from fifty authors, including C.S. Lewis, Flannery O’Connor, Dorothy Sayers, and Frederick Buechner.

     When Nate Wilson looks at the world around him, he asks "What is this place? Why is this place? Who approved it? Am I supposed to take it seriously?" What could such an outlandish, fantastical world say about its Creator? In these sparkling chapters, Wilson gives an aesthetic examination of the ways in which humanity has tried to make sense of this overwhelming carnival ride of a world. He takes a whimsical, thought-provoking look at everything from the "magic" of quantum physics, to nature's absurdities, to the problem of evil, evolution and hell. These frequently humorous, and uniquely beautiful portraits express reality unknown to many Christians-the reality of God's story unfolding around and among us. As the author says, "Welcome to His poem. His play. His novel. His comedy. Let the pages flick your thumbs."

    Owen is very insistent that believers cannot hope to succeed in this battle in their own strength. He sees clearly that the fight can be won only through faith in Christ, and in the power of the Spirit. Fighting sin with human strength will produce only self-righteousness, superstition and anxiety of conscience. But with faith in Christ, and with the power of the Spirit, victory is certain. The temptations in times like Owen's and ours are obvious on every side; the remedy to them is clearly pointed out in this practical and helpful book.

    These principles have been entitled the "principles of war." But not all warfare is waged on a battlefield: every Christian is called to be a soldier. Our fight is against Satan, our objective is the acknowledgment and fulfillment of God's commands, and our ammunition is the power of the Holy Spirit. In Principles of War Jim Wilson outlines the time-tried, fundamental principles of war and explains how we can employ them in our daily spiritual battles as we fight a war which our commander in chief has already won for us.