Joe Carter and John Coleman, How to Argue Like Jesus: Learning Persuasion from History’s Greatest Communicator (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2009). $15.99, 174 pages.   As a longtime Christian, I have listened to thousands of sermons over my lifetime. As a preacher, I have delivered hundreds. And it never ceases to amaze me how many of those sermons are simply awful.   Aristotle outlined three elements of persuasive speech: pathos, logos, and ethos. In How to Argue Like Jesus, Joe Carter and John Coleman use this outline “to analyze Jesus’ method of communication and the way that method can illuminate our … Continue reading “How to Argue Like Jesus” by Carter and Coleman

Eckhard J. Schnabel, Paul the Missionary: Realities, Strategies and Methods (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2008). $32.00, 518 pages.   As a pastor, I am constantly in danger of getting so caught up in the maintenance of my church that I forget its mission. To avoid this danger, I read widely in theology, biblical commentary, and spirituality rather than in leadership and management. Leadership and management are important disciplines, of course—spiritual gifts, even. But American society is so permeated by consumerist assumptions and management techniques that pastors must be wary lest in their stewardship of the church, they become conformed … Continue reading “Paul the Missionary” by Eckhard J. Schnabel