Journey to a place as far from here as breathing out is from breathing in-where people are human with the same grace that a willow is a willow-with this insightful, absorbing and practical introduction to the ten gates of Jewish mysticism.

    . .What is real?How do we know what we know?What is right?Who or what am I?How should we view science and its claims?And as we wrestle with these issues, we may even find ourselves thinking, Perhaps what I need is a good dose of philosophy. It's a shame philosophy is so difficult. Garrett DeWeese and J. P. Moreland understand this frustration and in this book offer help to make philosophy at least slightly less difficult. In straightforward language with everyday examples, they explain the basics needed to understand philosophical concepts and thus bring clarity to discussions of life's big questions. Students, pastors, campus workers and ordinary Christians will all benefit from this user-friendly guide.

    Incredible events, amazing love stories, larger-than-life personalities, and deep theological themes are just some of the treasures found in Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther.These books tell the story of the nation of Israel and the God who loves her, punishes her, and always brings this recalcitrant people back to Himself. It is really the story of all of us.David M. Howard Jr. provides an in-depth introduction to the Old Testament historical books, focusing first on the overarching themes of historical narrative in general. He then turns his attention to each book, considering topics like:Authorship and datePlace in the canonHistorical and cultural contextTheology of the bookSpecial issues pertaining to the bookFrom the conquest of Canaan to the fall of Jerusalem, from war to peace and back to war, from kings and queens to farmers and housewives—David Howard covers it all in this invaluable introduction to the Old Testament historical books.

    Progressively, these lives image and reverse one another in an ascending narrative of action, a narrative all too commonly broken apart and missed. These heroes of the city of God - Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and others - come to flesh and blood in ways that undo our normal assumptions. In stark contrast to the selfish heroism of pagan literature, the heroism of Genesis triumphs by breaking all the standard rules. Jordan inverts so many of the traditional negative judgments against these patriarchs' alleged weaknesses and "sins" of deception, struggle, and tyranny that they stand forth as heroes rather than scoundrels. And yet this book is not just about the heroes of Genesis. Throughout, Jordan draws a picture of how Christian culture should be imagined and lived in our own day, from creativity and work to tyranny and freedom. You will never be able to read Genesis the same way again.

    The events of the Bible are exciting and awe inspiring, but often the story can get lost among the laws, genealogies, and poetry. Here, Dr. William Marty retells the entire story of the Bible in one easy-to-read, chronological account. All the stories you remember, and many of those you don't, are part of one grand narrative. It's the page-turning story of God's pursuit of you--one you'll want to read again and again. Now fully illustrated.

    Sandra Richter gives an overview of the Old Testament, organizing our disorderly knowledge of the Old Testament people, facts and stories into a memorable and manageable story of redemption that climaxes in the New Testament.

    To understand Christ correctly is to understand the very heart of God, Scripture, and the gospel. To get to the core of this belief, this latest volume in the Foundations of Evangelical Theology series lays out a systematic summary of Christology from philosophical, biblical, and historical perspectives--concluding that Jesus Christ is God the Son incarnate, both fully divine and fully human. Readers will learn to better know, love, trust, and obey Christ--unashamed to proclaim him as the only Lord and Savior.Part of the Foundations of Evangelical Theology series.

    Don’t just read the words of the Bible ... understand them. The Great Adventure Bible makes the complexity of reading the Bible simple. The narrative approach gives the big picture of salvation history and shows how everything ties together. This is the only Bible that incorporates the The Great Adventure’s color-coded Bible Timeline learning system, a system that has made The Great Adventure Bible study resources the most popular and influential in the English speaking world. The color-coded tools make it easy to read and easy to remember. This is a game changer. There has never been another Bible like it. How you’ll learn... Color-coding for easy reference. Uses the popular Bible Timeline system that’s used by hundreds of thousands of Catholics to learn the Bible Articles to help you understand the overarching story and important covenants that tie the entire Bible together. Key event callouts to help you quickly identify important points in the Bible that ordinarily take readers a long time to find and categorize in their head. Detailed charts giving a visual overview of important characters, key events, maps, major covenants, and historical context. Newly Designed Full-Color Maps to help visualize Bible story locations. This Bible, beyond all its teaching features, is a complete Revised Standard Version – Second Catholic Edition Get the Bible that will help guide you through it. Understand Key Catholic Themes. Add this new weapon to your Catholic spiritual arsenal. Features A full-color Bible with a beautiful eye-catching design Each book of the Bible is color-coded with printed tabs, indicating where it belongs within The Bible Timeline. Twelve Timeline charts provide a visual overview of the Bible, including: important characters, Key Events, geography, major covenants, world rulers, and contemporary events in secular his

    Tracing the significance of the concept of "covenant" through both the Old and New Testaments, this book charts a middle way between covenant theology and dispensationalism--exploring the covenantal framework undergirding the history of redemption.

    Hell, judgment, and holy war are hot topics for the Christian faith that have a way of igniting fierce debate far and wide. These hard questions leave many wondering whether God is really good and can truly be trusted."The Skeletons in God's Closet" confronts our popular caricatures of these difficult topics with the beauty and power of the real thing. Josh Butler reveals that these subjects are consistent with, rather than contradictory to, the goodness of God. He explores Scripture to reveal the plotlines that make sense of these tough topics in light of God's goodness. From fresh angles, Josh deals powerfully with such difficult passages as:* The Lake of Fire* Lazarus and the Rich Man* The Slaughter of Canaanites in the Old TestamentUltimately, "The Skeletons in God's Closet" uses our toughest questions to provoke paradigm shifts in how we understand our faith as a whole. It pulls the "skeletons out of God's closet" to reveal they were never really skeletons at all.

    But those ten people would be wrong. Jesus wasn't a Christian. Jesus lived and died as a Jew. Understanding the Jewishness of Jesus is the secret to knowing him better and understanding his message in the twenty-first century.Walking through Jesus' life from birth to death, Rabbi Evan Moffic serves as a tour guide to give Christians a new way to look at familiar teachings and practices that are rooted in the Jewish faith and can illuminate our lives today. Moffic gives fresh insight on how Jesus' contemporaries understood him, explores how Jesus' Jewishness shaped him, offers a new perspective on the Lord's Prayer, and provides renewed appreciation for Jesus' miracles.In encountering his Jewish heritage, you will see Jesus differently, gain a better understanding of his message, and enrich your own faith.

    In this brief yet profound meditation on the meaning of the Seventh Day, Heschel introduced the idea of an "architecture of holiness" that appears not in space but in time. Judaism, he argues, is a religion of time: it finds meaning not in space and the material things that fill it but in time and the eternity that imbues it, so that "the Sabbaths are our great cathedrals."

    The Old Testament is filled with stories: Noah and the ark, Daniel in the lions' den, Ruth and Boaz—stories of great men and women of God.What does God want us to learn from these stories? Is there more to them than meets the eye? Richard L. Pratt says yes, and he carefully outlines a method for grasping the wisdom of these ageless narratives. Beginning with the role of the Holy Spirit, he sets forth a three-step process of biblical interpretation:–Preparation–Investigation–ApplicationPratt is sensitive to the needs of both the beginner and the theological student. He insightfully guides us through considerations of attitudes and orientation, language and history, writers and characters, scenes and events, ancient and modern cultures, and more.

    We feel isolated, confused, and alone. Everyone experiences suffering--even the biblical writers express similar feelings in the Psalms. Through brief meditations on Psalms 88 and 89, J. Ligon Duncan points to hope in the midst of the pain of feeling abandoned by God. These examples of crying out to God show readers how to respond to their own suffering, and assure them of our heavenly Father's mercy that sustains trust even in the darkest of circumstances. With clarity, empathy, and compassion, Duncan points us to the powerful hope found in these psalms that ultimately point us to Christ's promise to never leave us alone.

    It was written in the 1600s by an author of whom we know little, yet it proved to be a critically important and controversial theological text. Penned as dialogue between a minister(Evangelista), a young Christian(Neophytus), a legalist(Nomista) who believes Christianity is a set of rules to be obeyed and Antinomista who thinks it's okay to sin because God will forgive him anyway, it makes for a wonderfully insightful book that remains tremendously relevant for our world today.This newly laid out and eagerly awaited edition includes explanatory notes by the famous puritan Thomas Boston, an introduction by Philip Ryken and an historical introduction by William Vandoodewaard.