Recommended Resources

Books

The following books are considered recommended resources because they intelligently cover important topics, and yet are well written and so are enjoyable to read. Most of the books can be found in just about any major bookstore.

Note: Resource purchasing though this site is currently unavailable.

Regarding The Plausibility Of Christianity And Its Beliefs

Image: Mere Christianity Mere Christianity
by C. S. Lewis

One of the classic books in modern literary history ("Mere" in the title meaning "basic" or "bare"), in a step by step progressive fashion C.S. Lewis looks at the proposition of there being in addition to the natural and material world and universe that people daily see all around them, that there is also an additional non-material aspect to the universe, and a non-material entity who both created this universe and is in control of it. Interestingly, Lewis does not start from a Christian perspective and base his exploration upon Christian doctrines and beliefs, but instead starts from scratch, that is by looking at things we can observe and things we know, as well as things that we don't understand, about nature and the material world. Importantly, he delves into the thing people have observed and know most about in the material world, mankind itself.

These facts then form the basis for reasoning concerning the possibility of there also being a non-material, spiritual aspect to the universe. Using logical and progressive reasoning C.S. Lewis builds up to the case for the reality of a God, who is both Creator and moral law giver, and then specifically to the God of Christianity, and God's only begotten son Jesus Christ - through whom God offers forgiveness of sin, salvation, and adoption to all. C.S. Lewis also deals with the topic of reasonable Christian behavior in light of the first and second comings of Christ. A very notable positive aspect of the book is that since it is basically the transcriptions of a few public talks given by C.S. Lewis, the contents of the book are organized and presented in a style that is readily readable and understandable to the general public.

The Case For Christ
by Lee Strobel

Who really was Jesus Christ? Was he just a kind and wise spiritual teacher? Was he just a well intentioned Jewish rabbi whose disciples later elevated to godhood? Was Jesus Christ really the Son of God, as Christianity claims he was? The author of this best seller, is Lee Strobel, previously the award-winning legal editor of the Chicago Tribune newspaper and an atheist. Spurred to action as a result of conversations with his wife, he uses his investigative talents to search for, and explore, evidence for Jesus Christ being the one and only Son of God. During the course of his investigation he interviews experts from universities such as Cambridge and Princeton, who are recognized authorities in their fields. He asks important questions, such as "How accurate is the New Testament?", and "Are there any solid reasons to believe that the resurrection of Jesus was an actual event?". He includes summaries of some of the actual newspaper stories that he covered during his newspaper career in order to give readers insight on his investigative methodology, which helps the book read more like a captivating fictional novel. But, it is not fiction, it is a real life investigation into the most important question in human history, "Who was Jesus Christ?". The questions the author brings up and asks are thoughtful and challenging, and the answers from the scholars he interviews are informative, enlightening, thought provoking, and sometimes even surprising.

Christian Lifestyle

Landmines
by Dr. Charles Stanley

After becoming a Christian, the process of growing in spiritual maturity typically is an ongoing process which takes devotion, dedication and effort throughout one's life. Yet along the way lurks various dangers which can interfere, or worse yet completely derail the process and the journey. In this book Dr. Charles Stanley presents the main areas in life where Christians, if not careful, might make major mistakes, or very bad decisions which severely damage their spiritual growth, their relationship with God, as well as many facets of their earthly life. Dr. Stanley devotes one chapter apiece to each of these areas, and points out the serious mistakes and disastrous decisions which people may sometimes make. Dr. Stanley uses Bible passages as well as real life stories to show readers how to recognize and avoid such landmines, and if necessary how to recover from them. It is an important book for any Christian, and especially those who live in modern Western society, where self-indulgence, self-righteousness, and materialism are often the celebrated norm. Dr. Stanley explains how to live in such a society, avoiding the landmines, and live a fulfilling and God honoring life.

Success God's Way
by Dr. Charles Stanley

What is the meaning of "success"? What does success in life look like is a good question, especially for people who live in a Western society, where there is often a strong presence of materialism. Should success be measured, as is often asserted by many people, and propagated often through various forms of the media, by the amount of money a person has in their bank account, or by becoming famous, or the location and size of one's house, or the amount of expensive jewelry that one wears, or some similar measure. If success should be measured in these terms, why is it that numerous of the most successful people in American society have/had lives in which they felt very unfulfilled and unsatisfied; sometimes turning to alcohol or drugs seeking enjoyment and happiness, or even sometimes had lives that have ended in suicide. These things would seem indicate that success should be seen and defined somewhat differently.

In this book Dr. Stanley delves into the topic of the meaning of success. He explains how everyone has particular God given gifts to be used in a God honoring manner, and that Christians are to seek God's guidance to determine, and then faithfully pursue, God sanctioned goals. He shows how to navigate the various possible hindrances to achieving these goals, obstacles which may even include the opinions of well meaning family members,or friends, or even self-defeating tendencies. Conveniently, the book includes many excerpts of scriptures from the Bible which form the basis for the ideas and principles presented and expounded upon in the book. Through reading the book, the reader learns how to seek and recognize their God given gifts, determine God approved goals for their life, make effective plans to achieve them, and to effectively purse them; all of which results in both personal fulfillment and in the end true success.

Social Observation

The Right Questions: Truth, Meaning & Public Debate
by Phillip E. Johnson

More and more people in society today seem to think that their are no such things as objective right and wrong (i.e. objective morality), or absolute truth. They believe that each person can choose and decide upon whichever morality and truth that they think is right for them, and legitimately act accordingly. There also seems to be more and more people now who don't even seem to care about truth, they just want say or do whatever it takes to to achieve their chosen personal goals or social-political agendas. Both of these kinds of people can be regularly observed in the various forms of today's news media.

There are some very negative consequences to this situation. One is that the public is regularly presented with half-truths and outright un-true information about important social and political issues, and often from people and institutions whom theoretically should provide straight and relatively unbiased information. This has strongly contributed to the harsh type of social-political polarization of recent years.

In this relatively short (200 page) book, author Phillip Johnson examines and explores the concepts of truth and meaning in relation to the topics of education, religion, private life, and public debate, in todays social environment. Intertwined with all of these topics are the modern Goliaths of today's society - modern science, and modern scientific inquiry. They are also examined and explored - both in regards to their benefit to society, as well as their limits, including their incapability to determine and establish moral values. Also noted is how those limits are often glossed over or ignored by society's intellectual elites and the generally liberal leaning news media.

In the book Johnson laments that people who believe there is objective morality and absolute truth (e.g. Christians), too often have been mislead to look at issues using biased premises and mis-represented facts, as well as are goaded into trying to answer the wrong questions concerning important issues; all which leads them to the wrong conclusions. However, not stopping just at stating the problems, Johnson also shows the best way to overcome them; he explains how to determine what the right questions to ask are in the light of absolute truth, how to ask the right questions in an effective manner, and how to seek out answers for them. Asking and seeking answers to the right questions is beneficial both in the private aspects of people's lives, and also beneficial for society by facilitating honest public discussions and debate on important issues.

Bibles

There are numerous different translations of the Bible on the market today, but some are regarded as more accurately reflecting the meaning of the original ancient texts that make up the Bible than others. The New King James Version, New International Version, and American Standard Version are in the group of Bible translations that are in use today and are of good reputation among Bible scholars. Listed in this section are some publications of these translations. Most modern Bible translations are typically published in standard editions (i.e. with no added commentary sections by a particular Christian minister or ministry), and also in various special editions (i.e. with the same Bible text as the standard editions, but with added commentary sections). Selecting and using a standard edition is generally recommended. If selecting a special edition, it is important that the the person or organization behind the special edition be known to have a solid biblical understanding and be of good reputation, among the Christian community at large.

American Standard Version (ASV) - The ASV is an older 20th century translation (1901), which was done as an update to the King James Version. Since it was written about three hundred years after the King James Version and to an extent incorporates American‑centric English language usage, it is generally a little easier to read and understand than the King James Version. Though overall a good and reputable translation, it does not have the added benefit of being aided by archaeological and linguistic discoveries made in the 20th century, as do more modern translations such as the NKJV and NIV. It can be viewed online, and unlike the NKJV and the NIV it can be downloaded in its entirety free of charge. It is available from many major Bible focused Christian websites on the Internet; and in various formats (e.g. text, HTML, .pdf).

New King James Version (NKJV) - The NKJV is a literal (i.e. word for word) translation of the Bible. It is written in modern 20th century English so the text is easy to read, and follow.

NKJV, Value Thinline Bible, Black, Red Letter Edition, Comfort Print, Imitation Leather
New King James Version, Standard Edition

NKJV Large Print Personal Size Reference Bible, Brown LeatherTouch
New King James Version, Standard Edition

New International Version (NIV) - The NIV is somewhat different from The New King James Version, in that the NIV does an idea to idea type translation of scripture when it is thought that doing so can offer clarification, or easier understanding, of the meaning of Bible text than a straight literal translation may do. It is written in modern 20th century English so the text it is easy to read and follow.

NIV, Holy Bible, Soft Touch Edition, Leathersoft, Black, Comfort Print
New International Version, Standard Edition

NIV, Reference Bible, Large Print, Leather-Look, Black, Red Letter Edition
New International Version, Standard Edition

NIV, Teen Study Bible, Compact, Brown, Leathersoft Imitation Leather
New International Version, Special Edition

This Bible is specifically geared towards teenagers and young adults. It features topic focus pages as well as short commentary sections intermixed within the different books of the Bible. The focus pages and commentary sections talk about contemporary issues and situations that teens and young adults often find themselves having to deal with, and offers insight and guidance from scripture concerning such matters. It also features Bible book introductions which are written with young people in mind, a topics index, and a few other features - all of which to help make the Bible more accessible and easier to read and use for young people. The authors have a good sense of the various issues and saturations that modern teens and young people have to deal with, and their commentaries and discussions are based upon and cite scriptural passages, and accurately reflect biblical teachings.

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