Books published by InterVarsity Press

Timothy Smith says it isn't enough to have kids who act nice and don't get into trouble. Instead, Christian kids need to be equipped to become influencers who can challenge and change their culture. He targets nine key qualities children need but often lack and shows you how to build them into your children by modeling core values and biblical practices.

In our image-based culture, people need to visualize something to understand it. This has never been more true about our communication of the gospel. But sometimes our understanding of the gospel gets stuck in a rut, and all we know is a particular outline or one-size-fits-all formula. While we hold to only one gospel, the New Testament uses a wealth of dynamic, compelling images for explaining the good news of Jesus, each of which connects with different people at different points of need. Neil Livingstone provides a guided tour of biblical images of the gospel and shows how each offers fresh insight into God's saving work. Walking through Scripture's gallery of pictures of salvation from new life to deliverance, from justification to adoption, Livingstone invites us to deepen our understanding of the gospel.

Tim Stafford identifies thirteen core Christian values like truthfulness, contentment, hard work, joy, rest, forgiveness and putting God first. Then he shows you how to build those values into your children in a way that fits who God made your family to be--unique and different from every other family.

Named one of the 2004 Top Ten Religious Books by the Massachusetts Bible Society #8 on the New York Times Hardcover Advice Bestseller List! (June 14, 2004) #7 on the Publishers Weekly Religion Hardcover Bestseller List (October 2004)Do you wonder whether or not God is real?Do you doubt that religion can be relevant?Do you wish that faith were possible for you?Don't shy away from your questions, says Dr. Timothy Johnson, medical editor for ABC News. He believes that's where God meets you--in the midst of honest grappling with heartfelt issues.In this remarkable book, Dr. Johnson discloses his deeply personal journey of faith. With the same keen mind accustomed to medical and scientific examination, he investigates the plausibility of God's existence and explores the significance of the person of Jesus. Despite all the difficulties of faith, he explains what he believes and why. He writes,"As a physician, I have committed my professional life to healing and wellness. But my public work is only a small part of who I really am--or rather, who I want to be. This book is, in a sense, 'the rest of the story.'"For many people, religion provides answers to the big questions of life. For others, the absolute claims of religion raise more questions than they answer. I have lived on both sides--and in some senses, I still do. My path of faith has wandered through both doubt and belief, often at the same time."Doubt doesn't have to tear down belief, however; it can purify it. When it does, the beliefs on the other side become more certain. This is why I would like to affirm that it is possible to find God even while you are still asking the big questions."Come join a fellow pilgrim on the journey. Ask your questions--and perhaps find God behind them.This new paperback edition includes a new afterword and a study guide with questions for personal reflection or group discussion.

James A. Herrick offers an intellectual history of the New Religious Synthesis, examining the challenges it poses to Judeo-Christian tradition, demonstrating its sources and manifestations in contemporary culture, and questioning its acceptance in church and society.A massive shift in Western religious attitudes has taken place almost without our noticing it. The Judeo-Christian tradition of Western culture has slowly but steadily been eclipsed by a new way of viewing spirituality.This shift has been in the making for some three hundred years. James A. Herrick tells the story of how the old view has been dismantled and a new one created not primarily through academic or institutional channels but by means of popular religious media--books, speeches, magazines and pamphlets, as well as movies, plays, music, radio interviews, television programs and websites.Interest in spirituality increases while participation in institutional religion wanes. Many welcome this evolution of religion. However, few are familiar with its roots, and fewer still have critically examined its prospects. As we stand at a spiritual crossroad, Herrick questions whether we are wise to discard the Western religious tradition and adopt the new spirituality.

Vinita Hampton Wright leads you through the process and practice of integrating the worlds of Christian spirituality and creativity.

Patrick Downey explores the biblical writings of Genesis and the Hebrew prophet Jeremiah, the Greek tragedies, Plato, Aristotle, and political philosophers--such as Rousseau, Hobbes, Nietzsche and Ren? Girard--to seek answers to the profound question, What is the human heart like?

Christian thinking about involvement in human government was not born (or born again!) with the latest elections or with the founding of the Moral Majority in 1979. Greg Forster introduces the history of Christian political thought traced out in Western culture-a culture with a fragmented view of the proper relationship of government and religion.

Stephen Greggo presents a resource for trained leaders of ministry care groups in a variety of church-related contexts. Its purpose is to assist group leaders in facilitating the development of healing, transforming relationships in the group setting.

"What has Jesus Christ to do with English literature?" ask David Lyle Jeffrey and Gregory Maillet in this insightful survey.First and foremost, they reply, many of the world's best authors of literature in English were formed--for better or worse--by the Christian tradition. Then too, many of the most recognized aesthetic literary forms derive from biblical exemplars. And finally, many great works of literature demand of readers evaluative judgments of the good, the true and the beautiful that can only rightly be understood within a Christian worldview.In this book Jeffrey and Maillet offer a feast of theoretical and practical discernment. After an examination of literature and truth, theological aesthetics, and the literary character of the Bible, they turn to a brief survey of literature from medieval times to the present, highlighting distinctively Christian themes and judgments. In a concluding chapter they suggest a path for budding literary critics through the current state of literary studies.Here is a must-read for all who are interested in a Christian perspective on literary studies.The Christian Worldview Integration Series, edited by J. P. Moreland and Francis J. Beckwith, seeks to promote a robust personal and conceptual integration of Christian faith and learning, with textbooks focused on disciplines such as education, psychology, literature, politics, science, communications, biology, philosophy, and history.

What role should religious citizens take in a liberal democracy? What is the proper separation of church and state? What place should be made for natural rights and the moral law within a secular state? Francis J. Beckwith's cogent introduction to political thought surveys political science, politics and government while making the case for how statecraft may genuinely contribute to soulcraft.

Noted philosopher William Hasker explores a full range of questions concerning the problem of evil. Hasker forges constructive answers in some depth showing why the evil in the world does not provide evidence of a moral fault in God, the world's creator and governor.

Thinking that postmodernism is a threat, many Christians take a duck-and-cover approach to dealing with it. But that will not make postmodernism go away.Can Christians learn from postmodern thinkers and their critique of modernism? Yes, says author Crystal L. Downing. Postmodernism should not be judged by some of the problematic practices carried out in its name.In a lively engagement with literature, philosophy and art, Downing introduces readers to what postmodernism is and where it came from, aiming to show how Christians can best understand, critique and even benefit from its insights.She draws on her own experiences as a graduate student and her careful research into this worldview's modernist and artistic origins, the challenges of foundationalism and poststructuralism, and the complexity of relativism.She ends with a challenge to Christians: that they not be postmodern in their attitudes towards postmodernism, but instead to "be in the world and not of it" and to extend grace where it is most needed.Downing believes that the challenges, questions and insights of postmodernism can contribute to a deeper and clearer grasp of our faith, as well as providing unique paradigms for sharing the truth of Christ.

This introduction to the study of philosophy explores the central questions raised by major Western philosophers, from Socrates to Nietzsche. While addressing questions about evil, morality, and other topics, Wilkens ponders the place of philosophy in the life of the Christian.

William R. Baker brings together noted Restorationist (Stone-Campbell) and evangelical scholars for dialogue on their agreements and disagreements.

Does God's all-encompassing will restrict our freedom? Does God's ownership and mastery over us diminish our dignity?The fear that God is a threat to our freedom and dignity goes far back in Western thought. Such suspicion remains with us today in our so-called secular society. In such a context any talk of God tends to provoke responses that range from defiance to subservience to indifference. How did Western culture come to this place? What impact does this social and intellectual environment have on those who claim to believe in God or more specifically in the Christian God of the Bible?Professor of religion Ron Highfield traces out the development of Western thought that has led us our current frame of mind from Plato, Augustine and Descartes through Locke, Kant, Blake Bentham, Hegel, Nietzsche--all the way down to Charles Taylor's landmark work Sources of the Self. At the heart of the issue is the modern notion of the autonomous self and the inevitable crisis it provokes for a view of human identity, freedom and dignity found in God. Can the modern self really secure its own freedom, dignity and happiness? What alternative do we have? Highfield makes pertinent use of trinitarian theology to show how genuine Christian faith responds to this challenge by directing us to a God who is not in competition with his human creations, but rather who provides us with what we seek but could never give ourselves.God, Freedom and Human Dignity is essential reading for Christian students who are interested in the debates around secularism, modernity and identity formation.

Kevin Giles traces the historic understanding of subordination in relation to the doctrine of the Trinity and investigates the closely related question of whether women are created to be permanently subordinated to men.The concept has been vigorously debated in relation to the doctrine of the Trinity since the fourth century. Certain New Testament texts have made it part of discussions of right relations between men and women. In recent years these two matters have been dramatically brought together. Today the doctrine of the Trinity is being used to support opposing views of the right relationship between men and women in the church.At the center of the debate is the question of whether or not the orthodox view of the trinitarian relations teach the eternal subordination of the Son of God. The author masterfully traces the historic understanding of the doctrine of the Trinity from the patristic age to our own times to help resolve this important question.Giles goes on to provide an illuminating investigation of a closely related question--whether or not women, even in terms of function or role, were created to be permanently subordinated to men. By surveying the church's traditional interpretation of texts relating to the status of women and inquiring into the proper use of the doctrine of the Trinity, Giles lays out his position in this current debate.

Michael Schutt provides insight and guidance about being both a Christian and a lawyer. Some may be skeptical, but he discusses the ins and outs of both law school and legal practice and makes clear many of the practical connections between the daily demands of the profession and following Christ.

The triunity of the Christian God is not just one isolated doctrine among others. Allan Coppedge draws out the implications for our understanding of God's nature, attributes, roles, relationship to creation and providence.

In From Achilles to Christ, Louis Markos introduces readers to the great narratives of classical mythology from a Christian perspective. He dispels common notions about the dangers of reading classical literature and shows how hero stories are a foreshadowing of Christ.

Estrelda Alexander recounts the story of African American Pentecostal origins and development. Whether you come from this tradition or you just want to learn more, this book will unfold all the dimensions of this important movement's history and contribution to the life of the church.

In this practical book written with the non-academic in mind, Manfred Brauch identifies and corrects a number of basic errors in the use of the Bible that interpret and apply biblical texts in ways that distort their meaning and message. Chapters explore issues of context, genre, consistency, author intent and other important considerations with an eye toward addressing not just the act of interpretation, but also the attitudes behind the ways we choose to apply Scripture.

Steven J. Keillor presents the bold thesis that divine judgment can be a fruitful category for historical investigation. In fact, he makes the case that Christianity is rightly grasped as an interpretation of history more than a worldview or philosophy. Grounding his thesis first on a study of God's judgments in the teaching of both the Old and New Testaments, Keillor then revisits two prominent events in U.S. history, the burning of Washington in 1814 and the Civil War, to further explore and test his interpretive principle of divine judgment. He concludes by suggesting the relevance of his thesis to some pressing contemporary concerns.

Moral theology, rooted in Thomas Aquinas, has long found its home in the Catholic and Anglican traditions, and in recent years it has become more familiar through the perspective known as virtue ethics. Renewing Moral Theology unfolds an ethical perspective that is Thomistic in structure, evangelical in conviction and Anglican in ethos.

Moves beyond pat answers to the problem of suffering and takes a deeper look at hard to reconcile issues.

"African American woman."The phrase conjures up a variety of images: Sassy career women. Wise church women. Strong grandmothers. Welfare mothers.But how about "chosen vessels"? Or "keys to change"? Perhaps we need some new images.Women of color have historically been on the bottom of the economic and social ladder. But the paradox of the kingdom of God is that being on the bottom is a plus. God often chooses the rejected and despised to confound the wise and mighty (1 Corinthians 1:27-29). By examining our spiritual history and God-ordained destiny, Rebecca Florence Osaigbovo helps us turn the tide of evil in our own lives and the lives of our families, cities and nations.We are chosen vessels.Here is the help we need to find--and live--our significance in the eyes of God.

While Paul urges the church to "overwhelm them with appreciation and love" (1 Thessalonians 5:13), research and anecdotal evidence shows that most pastors experience little support when they need it the most. The result? One long-time pastor reports that he thinks about quitting the ministry as often as twice a week, and an estimated twenty-five percent of all ministers relocate every year.Jane Rubietta explores the "flip side" of pastoral care--caring for your pastor. She provides everything you need to know to build healthy, caring, mutually sustaining relationships among your church and its leaders.Ministers and their families can profitably read the book along with lay leaders to become more aware of where they need the help and encouragement of their congregations. Questions at the end of each chapter guide pastoral families in reflecting on their own experiences--both positive and negative--of life in the church.