Month: June 2016

Book Reviews1 Comment

Review of ‘The Bible in America’ by Barna Group

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Barna Group, The Bible in America: The Changing Landscape of Bible Perceptions and Engagement (Ventura, CA: Barna Group, 2016). Barna Group’s new report, The Bible in America, contains good news and bad news. First, the good news: “Americans hold the Bible in high regard.” Eighty-one percent of them consider it a “holy book.” Sixty-eight percent think it’s a “comprehensive guide to a meaningful life.” Fifty-one percent believe it has “too little” influence on American society. Among U.S. adults, 49 percent of men and 59 percent of women consider the Bible either the “actual word of God” or the “inspired word … Continue reading Review of ‘The Bible in America’ by Barna Group

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Review of ‘Grit’ by Angela Duckworth

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Angela Duckworth, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance (New York: Scribner, 2016). Every year, approximately 14,000 high school juniors apply to the United States Military Academy at West Point. Of these, about 4,000 secure the necessary nomination from a member of the U.S. House of Representatives or Senate or from the vice president. Of these, around 2,500 meet West Point’s standards for academics and physical fitness. Of these, only 1,200 are granted admission. And among these, approximately 20 percent drop out before graduation. In other words, only 7 percent of high school juniors who apply to West Point actually … Continue reading Review of ‘Grit’ by Angela Duckworth

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Review of ‘Spiritual Persons, Gifts, and Churches’ by George M. Flattery

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George M. Flattery, Spiritual Persons, Gifts, and Churches: A Commentary on 1 Corinthians 12–14 (Springfield, MO: Network211, 2015). First Corinthians 12–14 presents the apostle Paul’s most detailed description of and instructions about pneumatikōn, typically translated “spiritual gifts.” The contemporary Pentecostal movement has turned to this passage repeatedly both to defend the use of prophecy, tongues, and interpretation in its worship services against cessationist critics, as well as to order that use in those worship services against charismatic excesses. George M. Flattery’s commentary offers a clear survey of the relevant interpretive issues and is thus a welcome contribution to Pentecostal literature … Continue reading Review of ‘Spiritual Persons, Gifts, and Churches’ by George M. Flattery

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[REVISED] Review of ‘Death Comes for the Deconstructionist’ by Daniel Taylor

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Daniel Taylor, Death Comes for the Deconstructionist (Eugene, OR: Slant, 2014). Daniel Taylor’s Death Comes for the Deconstructionist is a story about a man, a murder, and a movement. The man is Jon Mote, grad school dropout (all but dissertation), soon-to-be ex-huband and researcher for hire who is asked to look into the death of his former dissertation director, Richard Pratt. The murder victim, Pratt, was a Deconstructionist literarature professor whose luster, once avant-garde, is already becoming passé. The movement is Deconstructionism, which is complex and hard to explain, but for the purposes of this book holds that words point … Continue reading [REVISED] Review of ‘Death Comes for the Deconstructionist’ by Daniel Taylor

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Review of ‘Missional Church Planting’ by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im

georgepwood

Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im, Planting Missional Churches: Your Guide to Starting Churches That Multiply, 2nd ed. (Nashville: B&H Academic, 2016). Though I am neither a church planter nor the son of a church planter, I read the second edition of Planting Missional Churches by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im with interest. Why? Because it raises questions and teaches ways of thinking about the answers that all North American church leaders need to consider in our increasingly post-Christian society. The process of post-Christianization may be further along in Canada, but of late, the United States seems to be making up … Continue reading Review of ‘Missional Church Planting’ by Ed Stetzer and Daniel Im