Good reads

Here are books I’ve read recently or are on my “to read” shelf. I got most (used) from Amazon.
*** are absolute must reads. ** must reads.

*** The Body Broken: Embracing the Peace of Christ in a Fragmented Church
Jack Reese does a wonderful job at identifying the causes of church splits without dealing with the issues themselves. Includes about as good a explanation of Phillipians as I’ve read.

*** How to Forgive When You Don't Know How by Bishop, Jacqui; Grunte, Mary
This is about as good as it gets on the subject.

*** Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes: Cultural Studies in the Gospels
Some of the best discussions of parables, SoM, women.

*** Decision Making and the Will of God: A Biblical Alternative to the Traditional View
Friesen will relieve much anxiety in every day decision making.

*** Facing Our Failure: The Fellowship Dilemma in the Conservative Churches of Christ by Todd Deaver – here is a book that discloses many inconsistencies on the part of all RM congregations in extending fellowship.

*** The New Testament World: Insights from Cultural Anthropology by Bruce J Malina

*** American Jesus: How the Son of God Became a National Icon
and
*** Brand Jesus: Christianity in a Consumerist Age
Taken together, these two illuminate a huge obstacle to be overcome in our evangelism.

*** A Tale of three Kings: A Study in Brokenness [Paperback] by Edwards, Gene
Absolute MUST read, especially for elders and wantabe elders

*** Constantine's Bible: Politics and the Making of the New Testament
As good as there is on the canonization of scripture

** Hebrews: A Call to Commitment by Lane, William L.
This is my favorite. A small paperback.

** The Doctrine of the Trinity: Christianity's Self-Inflicted Wound
The best I’ve read on this subject

** Roman Wives, Roman Widows: The Appearance of New Women and the Pauline Communities
Neither egalitarian nor complementarian. Does explain much of Paul’s statements concerning women.

** The Myth of Certainty: The Reflective Christian & the Risk of Commitment
A reminder/warning for all of us.

The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia--and How It Died
A must read for church history buffs

Spiritual Marketplace: Baby Boomers and the Remaking of American Religion

Truth Is Stranger Than It Used to Be: Biblical Faith in a Postmodern Age

Images Of The Church In The New Testament (New Testament Library)

Colossians Remixed: Subverting the Empire

Love Your God With All Your Mind: The Role of Reason in the Life of the Soul

unChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity... and Why It Matters
This is a real eye-opener.

From Symposium to Eucharist: The Banquet in the Early Christian World...
Shows how the Christian assembly mirrored the common meal of the 1st century

Jesus of Nazareth by Pope Benedict 16. An amazing read. No RC propaganda.

Redeemer Nation: The Idea of America's Millennial Role
Documents America’s attempt at policing the world

Stealing Jesus: How Fundamentalism Betrays Christianity

In the Shadow of the Temple: Jewish Influences on Early Christianity

Idols for Destruction: The Conflict of Christian Faith and American Culture
Herbert Schlossberg


The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief
Francis Collins

Render to Caesar: Jesus, the Early Church and the Roman Superpower
Christopher Bryan

Gene Edwards’ depiction of Acts: Peter & Paul’s ministry
These six books should be required reading for every student of the NT church. They are written as adventure novels that fill in the blanks of Acts. Jr High kids enjoy them a great deal. I got a complete set for $50 – well spent.
Revolution - The story of the first seventeen years of the Christian faith. This book begins where The Triumph leaves off . . . at Pentecost. You should know that this is not a book for the faint-hearted. Edwards wrote Revolution at age thirty. It is a book which keeps asking the question: “Does the first 17 years of Christian history look anything like the modern-day practice of Christianity?” If you want your Christian practices challenged, this is the book to read. If you are a Christian desperately struggling with the problem of “church,” you will want to read this book.
The Silas Diary - This book takes up exactly where Revolution ends. It opens with Paul and Barnabas leaving Antioch, until the time they returned four years later. During those four years Paul planted four churches in the Gentile world. When you have finished The Silas Diary you will understand the book of Galatians. In fact, Galatians will come alive to you in Technicolor, 3-D, and stereophonic surround-sound. And if your experience is like others who have read this book you will find yourself saying, “I feel like I was there. I met Paul. I feel like I have met Barnabas. And now I know what it was like to live in the first century. I know the Galatian Christians. I feel like I have been in their homes and gathered with them in their meetings. As to Paul and Barnabas, when they hurt, I hurt; when they were cold, I was cold; when they cried, I cried; when they triumphed over their enemies—the Judaizers, who were trying to destroy those four churches—I stood up and cheered.”
The Titus Diary - This book takes up where The Silas Diary leaves off, Paul is on his second journey, a journey into Greece. (In those days northern Greece was called Macedonia and southern Greece was called Achaia.) This is the story of Paul in Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea and Corinth. When you have finished this book you will feel as though the lashes received at Philippi landed on your back, that you were in that prison cell when the earthquake came. You will feel you actually visited Corinth and smelled its streets, heard the hawkers in the marketplace, and watched the slaves as they pulled ships across dry land. You will understand their problems as three cultures clashed there in that Corinthian church. You will meet the wonderful Priscilla. Later you will sit in the room with Paul as he writes I Thessalonians. You will be able to pick up I Corinthians and understand every word of it, with perfect clarity.
The Timothy Diary - The Timothy Diary tells you the story of Paul's journey, his time in Ephesus and how he trained eight young men to be church planters. In The Timothy Diary Paul's young Christian companion, Timothy, gives a firsthand account of the third journey, how Paul trains a handful of young men to take his place after his death. Stand beside Timothy as he meets the apostle Peter- "The Rock"! Feel Timothy's surprise and nervousness as Paul asks him to preach in Solomon's Colonnade before the entire Jerusalem assembly, including several of the Twelve! Hear Paul's answers to the very difficult questions posed by the church in Corinth.
The Priscilla Diary - Hear the stories of Paul's continued travels to the first-century churches narrated from the unique perspective of Priscilla, a vibrant first-century Christian woman! Paul faces "the darkest days of his entire life" while he frantically searches for the missing Titus. Are Paul's fears warranted? Has Titus been assassinated in Corinth? Read of the writing of Paul's most personally revealing letter to the church at Corinth. And marvel at the truths Paul conveys to the church in Rome, a letter "of all that Paul considered central to the Christian life." In Jerusalem Paul faces his old enemies and stands trial before the Roman and Jewish officials. Paul spends years in jail before the Roman governor issues a ruling that sends Paul to Rome in chains. Paul's final and most harrowing journey by ship awaits him!
The Gaius Diary - Gaius tells of the fall of Jerusalem and the martyrdom of Christians torn apart by wild animals in the Coliseum and of others perishing as human torches in Nero's garden. Near the end of the book Paul's own death is very movingly described. Despite seemingly overwhelming persecution, the church survives and successfully incorporated Gentile and Jewish Christians with the incredible shepherding of two apostles: Paul (founder of many Gentile churches) and Peter (Jesus' disciple and head of the Jerusalem church).