The SBL Study Bible features the NRSV. The Bible contains thousands of notes authored by scholars. I spent time with this Bible to access it’s value. The pros are that the NRSV is an interesting translation. One that has many positive moments. It contains the Apocryphal books, which are good to have as they provide interesting historical data. The notes are easy to read, and some of the content boxes are helpful. In fact, I cited some of them in... Read more

The Church History Bible is simply amazing! This is not your typical study Bible. Instead of notes written by a panel of contemporary scholars, this Bible features commentary notes from the “greats.” Augustine, Calvin, Luther, Warfield, Wesley, Henry, Edwards (Jonathan), Gill, the Church Fathers, C.S. Lewis, and many others. It’s an incredible array of commentary on every Bible verse by the theologians and scholars of the past. The Bible is elegant and the formatting is wonderful. I highly recommend it.... Read more

Jesus Tradition, Early Christian Memory, and Gospel Writing: The Long Search for the Authentic Source by Alan Kirk is a new scholarly work that gets deep into the weeds of Gospel writing and sources. It’s one of the works I’m citing in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. Here’s a description from the publisher: Breaking a 200-year impasse on the origins of the gospels   Biblical scholars want to get to... Read more

What Is a Gospel? by Francis Watson is a scholarly look at the Gospels. It’s one of the works I’m citing in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. The book is academic, but contains numerous insights that are helpful. This is an excellent description of the book from the publisher: When Christians speak of “the gospels” they’re usually referring to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Other ancient writings about... Read more

That I May Dwell among Them: Incarnation and Atonement in the Tabernacle Narrative is a new book by Gary Anderson. I was interested in this book because the tabernacle and temple are two key pieces of the Eternal Purpose that I’ve spoken and written about often. Anderson’s book is scholarly, and it’s one of the works I’m citing in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. Well written, here’s a... Read more

Eckhard Schnabel is a formidable scholar. For this reason, his many works appear in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. Recently, Schnabel released his mammoth work New Testament Theology. The scope and breadth is, well, breathtaking. Here’s a description from the publisher: New Testament Theology is a major new contribution to New Testament scholarship by renowned scholar Eckhard Schnabel. While many New Testament theologies approach the material through a particular... Read more

Craig Keener is one of the world’s greatest New Testament scholars, if not the greatest of our time. In 2021, Keener released a new commentary entitled 1 Peter: A Comprehensive Cultural & Contextual Bible Commentary on 1 Peter. The book is meaty and comprehensive. It’s so good that I’ve used it as a source for my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. The writing is excellent and the insights are... Read more

The Pillar New Testament Commentary is one of my favorites. In November 2023, The Letter to the Hebrews released, and what a robust work it is. So much so that It’s one of the works I’m citing in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. In this volume, Sigurd Grindheim asks and answers the question, “What does the Letter to the Hebrews have to say to Christians today?” The book... Read more

Gospel Media: Reading, Writing, and Circulating Jesus Traditions is a new scholarly book by Nicholas Elder. It’s one of the works I’m citing in my revised and expanded version of The Untold Story of the New Testament Church, which is forthcoming. Here’s a summary: Contextualizing the gospels in ancient Greco-Roman media practices New Testament scholars have often relied on outdated assumptions for understanding the composition and spread of the gospels. Yet this scholarship has spread myths or misconceptions about how the... Read more

Today we are featuring one of the podcasters who is part of The Deeper Journey Podcast Cross-Promotion Group, which is a group of Christian podcasters who are seeking to make an impact in the world. Question 1: Introduce yourself by your name and something that your friends find interesting about you. My name is Oliver Gann, aka Ollie G.  My peeps would say that I have a powerful testimony on how I came to know the Lord as I was... Read more