Originally published in 2012. The good folks at the Patheos Book Club asked me to review Francis Chan’s book, Multiply, co-authored with Mark Beuving. And I agreed. Let me say a few words about Francis Chan to begin with . . . things I’ve never stated publicly, until now. Since 2008, I’ve received a steady stream of emails about Chan from readers. Here are some examples: Hey Frank, I just saw a video of Chan talking about the church. Looks like... Read more

 Read more

I recommend the following new books by Eerdmans. Discovering Romans This third volume in the Discovering Biblical Texts series offers readers a compact, up-to-date, and student-friendly introduction to Paul’s letter to the Romans, focusing on its structure, content, theological concerns, key interpretive debates, and historical reception. Anthony C. Thiselton alerts readers to key issues and questions raised by the text, encouraging in-depth study and a sincere grappling with the theological and historical questions raised by this often-controversial epistle. He pays... Read more

The Art & Craft of Biblical Preaching is a massive textbook on preaching with numerous preacher/authors contributing their own short chapters. The chapter by Dallas Willard alone is worth the price of the book. What was lacking, however, is that today’s greatest preachers were completely missing from the book. As well as some of the most powerful lessons/secrets to effective preaching. Here’s the back cover write up from the book. “A Comprehensive Resource for Today’s Communicators This extensive encyclopedia is... Read more

Check out the following books by InterVarsity Press. Jesus Behaving Badly Everybody likes Jesus. Don’t they? We overlook that Jesus was Judgmental―preaching hellfire far more than the apostle Paul Uncompromising―telling people to hate their families Chauvinistic―excluding women from leadership Racist―insulting people from other ethnic groups Anti-environmental―cursing a fig tree and affirming animal sacrifice Angry―overturning tables and chasing moneychangers in the temple He demanded moral perfection, told people to cut off body parts, made prophecies that haven’t come true, and defied... Read more

Charts on the Life, Letters, and Theology of Paul is an excellent chart-book for exploring Paul and his work. Paul’s letters have fascinated and challenged most every reader of the Bible. As a result, many general introductions and specific studies on Paul are available, but none are like Charts on the Life and Letters of Paul, which provides over 100 charts to explore the apostle’s background, life and ministry, letters, and theology. The charts visually offer clarity on: Basic insights... Read more

 Read more

Dave Hickman has just released a new book called Closer Than Close: Awakening to the Freedom of Your Union with Christ. I caught up with Dave to discuss his new book. Enjoy! Instead of asking, “what is your book about,” I’m going to ask the question that’s behind that question. And that unspoken question is, “how are readers going to benefit from reading your book?” Dave Hickman: The book will benefit readers who are huffing and puffing to try to... Read more

Stephen Backhouse has come out with a new biography on the great Christian philosopher Kierkegaard. I recently caught up with Stephen to discuss the new book, Kierkegaard: A Single Life. Enjoy! Instead of asking, “what is your book about,” I’m going to ask the question that’s behind that question. And that unspoken question is, “how are readers going to benefit from reading your book?” Stephen Backhouse: Readers will get an accessible life story of a famously inaccessible man. They will... Read more