Big Questions About the Bible: Books for Study & Faith [Godbooks]
How do you make sense of the Gospels? How do you tackle difficult books of the Bible like Hebrews and Psalms? This week, we feature our favorite Godbook Bible study recommendations!
Hebrews: Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching by Thomas Long. Recommended by the Immanuel Men’s Bible Study. Long eloquently brings out details about Hebrews that we never would have seen, and explains why Hebrews is a very important book in the Bible. Rating: 10/10. Purchase on Cokesbury, The Thoughtful Christian, or Amazon.
Jesus Before the Gospels by Bart Ehrman. Recommended by D. McCune. This is a fascinating book; the first half is more about memory than the gospels. From what Ehrman writes about memory – and he cites numerous studies and research to make his case – you can see why he believes that it is important to read the gospels in the context of the time they were written. To quote from the book, “As we have repeatedly seen, memory is not just about what happened in the past; it is also about the present of those who are remembering the past.” Rating: 8/10. Purchase on Cokesbury or Amazon.
Preaching Mark in Two Voices by Brian Blount and Gary Charles. Recommended by Immanuel’s Men’s Bible Study. Blount and Charles bring the Gospel of Mark to life through responsive commentary, each offering a unique perspective. Blount was Immanuel’s Theologian in Residence in 2016. Rating: 10/10. Purchase on Cokesbury, The Thoughtful Christian, or Amazon.
Journey Through the Psalms by Denise Dombkowski Hopkins. Recommended by Billy Kluttz. In this book, Dr. Hopkins, one of my favorite seminary professors, offers a wonderful survey of this book of the Bible. She considers the psalms both collectively, individually, and thematically (such as praise, lament, wisdom and other psalm genres). She draws considerable attention to the use of lament psalms in ancient Israel’s liturgical life, as well as our discomfort with lament today. Through her study, she weaves a powerful vision of faith as active trust, doubt, anger, sadness, and presence. Rating: 8/10. Purchase on Cokesbury or Amazon.
Click here to search the Immanuel library! Click here to recommend a book yourself! Featured image by Marketa. License available here.