A Westerner's travels among the persecuted and displaced Christian remnant in Iraq and Syria teach him much about faith under fire. Inside Syria and Iraq, and even along the refugee trail, they're a religious minority persecuted for their Christian faith. Outside the Middle East, they're suspect because of their nationality. A small remnant of Christians is on the run from the Islamic State. If they are wiped out, or scattered to the corners of the...

The book of Acts tells the story of what happened after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The book is filled with adventure and entertainment as Acts narrates God's activity among his people and the world. In this book, I explore one way of reading Acts that attends closely to the plotline of the book and seek to invite readers into the story that Acts tells. Along the way, I examine some of the most important themes of Acts, including divine activity,...

A companion series to the acclaimed Word Biblical Commentary Finding the great themes of the books of the Bible is essential to the study of God's Word and to the preaching and teaching of its truths. These themes and ideas are often like precious gems: they lie beneath the surface and can only be discovered with some difficulty. While commentaries are useful for helping readers understand the content of a verse or chapter, they are not usually designed...

The gospels are dramatic, wild, and wet-set in a rich maritime culture on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus' first disciples were ragtag fishermen, and Jesus' messages and miracles teem with water, fish, fishermen, net-breaking catches, sea crossings, boat-sinking storms, and even a walk on water. Because this world is foreign and distant to us, we've missed much about the disciples' experiences and about following Jesus-until now. Leslie Leyland...

This study guide includes: • Individual access to 5 streaming video sessions • Discussion and reflection questions with video notes • Personal study for between sessions • Leader's Guide If influencers have power over us, who are you allowing to influence you? In an online world obsessed with follows and likes, it's important to consider what you're really searching for. When you follow someone, it's typically because you want to be like them...

Writing to Awaken is an inspirational investigation of the self through expressive writing, guiding you along the path of awakening through radical truth-telling and self-inquiry. With targeted and revelatory questions, you'll be prompted to explore your own personal narrative-to write honestly about your deepest wounds, greatest challenges, hidden gifts, yearnings, and opportunities for growth-in order to discover a deeply authentic understanding...

Where is God when your loved one gets cancer? The easy answers are all wrong. With or Without Me is an unsparing and eloquent critique of religion. Yet Esther Maria Magnis's ire is merely the beginning of an exceptional journey toward belief and God-a journey punctuated by personal losses retold with intense immediacy. "Maybe God is a sadist," she writes, "a big baby who had a terrible upbringing. If, as Christians claim, God is love, then it's a...

This ten-volume set synchronizes the manuscripts of Enoch, Jasher, and Jubilees into the Bible, making one complete storyline. The books are interwoven using the Torah as the backbone, and the extra-biblical texts as the fleshing out of that backbone. The second book in this series contains Genesis chapters 6-17, as well as parts in the following books: Enoch chapters 1-21, 53-57, 63-68, 79; Jasher chapters 4-17; and Jubilees chapters 5-15. Though...

In John's Gospel we find key teachings on work education: 1. continuous education and growth: Jesus spends time teaching and preparing his disciples for the work that awaits them. This teaches us the importance of continuous education and growth in our work, seeking to learn and develop our skills to be more effective and relevant in our work. 2. Faith and trust in God: Jesus emphasizes the need to trust in God and seek His direction in all that we...

The case Jesus presented about the unclean spirit seeking rest after leaving a person shows us, first, that it is not the uninhabited places that demons seek, that demons choose to live in the same urban settlements established by man; and, second, it shows us that demonic forces depend on "man" to exercise their dominion over the earth; or rather, they depend on the facts of this one, or these, to operate with right over the region. The demonic...