27 February 2017
Following the second topic on the Bible (buy or rent online here) in our Towards Belief video discussion series, here are some resources on suffering for further reaction and study.
Browse the descriptions and pick and choose what sounds most relevant…
ARTICLES
- On the 400th anniversary of the King James Version of the Bible in English, our Senior Minister, Sandy Grant, reflected on its continuing impact on our culture and language, and how even the celebrated atheist, Richard Dawkins, decried ignorance of the Bible today.
- 10 Misconceptions About the NT Canon (i.e. how the limits and contents of the New Testament were determined) is a superlative blog series by Michael Kruger on this topic:
- Serious history-lovers may appreciate these five reflections from a life time from Paul Barnett, retired Anglican bishop, and respected ancient historian, on how his appreciation for the historicity of the New Testament has grown as he has aged. A concluding quote from Barnett: “I could not reject the historical reliability of the New Testament, even if I wanted to.”
- Can We Trust the Bible? If you are more of a video than text person, here is an interview (broken into three parts) conducted by John Dickson with Professor Craig Blomberg, author of one of the best books on reliability of the New Testament.
BOOKS
Several of these books are published by the Aussie Christian publisher, Matthias Media, on whose board Sandy serves – where possible links are to their web-store. Otherwise search at Koorong (Australia) or Amazon (elsewhere).
- Can We Trust what the Gospels Say About Jesus? by Andrew Errington – a superb 32-page booklet dealing with the origins of the gospel stories about Jesus; how they got to us today; and evidence for Jesus from outside the Bible.
- The Book of Books: a short guide on reading the Bible by Geoff Robson – an introduction to the Bible for anyone who wants to read it, but especially for those who have never read it before and who are not Christians.
- The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel, – is written by an investigative journalist from the Chicago Tribune, who was an atheist turned Christian. He interviews a dozen scholars with relevant university doctorates about different aspects of the evidence for Christ and the reliability of the Bible’s account of him. Over 400 pages, but reads easily like a fast-paced novel (and therefore with a few simplifications at points).
- Is the New Testament History? by Paul Barnett – perhaps the most accessible of his many books exploring these and related historical questions!
- Can We Still Believe the Bible? by Craig Blomberg. Addresses questions like…Aren’t the Copies of the Bible Hopelessly Corrupt? Wasn’t the Selection of Books for the Canon Just Political? Can We Trust Any of Our Translations of the Bible? Aren’t Several Narrative Genres of the Bible Unhistorical? + more!
