Did God Kill Jesus

The popular Patheos blogger wants to restore the cross as primarily a symbol of God’s overwhelming love for us and to rescue Christians from the shame and guilt from seeing our situation as “sinners in the hands of an angry God,” which was an invention of the medieval church and became enshrined as orthodox Christianity. Many Christians believe that God the Father demanded his only Son die a cruel, gruesome death to appease His wrath, since humanity is so irredeemably sinful and therefore repugnant to God. Tony Jones, popular progressive Christian blogger, author, and scholar, argues that this understanding is actually a medieval invention and not what the Bible really teaches. He looks beyond medieval convictions and liberates how we see Jesus’s death on the cross from this restrictive paradigm. Christians today must transcend the shame and guilt that have shaped conceptions of the human soul and made us fearful of God, and replace them with love, grace, and joyfulness, which better expresses what the cross is really about. How we understand the cross reflects directly what kind of God we worship. By letting go of the wrathful God who cannot stand to be in our presence unless he pretends to see Jesus in our place, we discover the biblical God who reaches out to love and embrace us while “we were yet sinners.” Jones offers a positive, loving, inclusive interpretation of the faith that is both challenging and inspiring. Did God Kill Jesus? is essential reading for modern Christians.

Explore this stunning quality of God’s grace: It never ends! In this revision of a foundational work, John Piper reveals how grace is not only God’s undeserved gift to us in the past, but also God’s power to make good happen for us today, tomorrow, and forever. True life for the follower of Jesus really is a moment-by-moment trust that God is dependable and fulfills his promises. This is living by faith in future grace, which provides God's mercy, provision, and wisdom—everything we need—to accomplish his good plans for us. In Future Grace, chapter by chapter—one for each day of the month—Piper reveals how cherishing the promises of God helps break the power of persistent sin issues like anxiety, despondency, greed, lust, bitterness, impatience, pride, misplaced shame, and more. Ultimate joy, peace, and hope in life and death are found in a confident, continual awareness of the reality of future grace.

Millions of readers have thrilled to bestselling authors Bill O'Reilly and historian Martin Dugard's Killing Kennedy and Killing Lincoln, page-turning works of nonfiction that have changed the way we read history. The basis for the 2015 television film available on streaming. Now the iconic anchor of The O'Reilly Factor details the events leading up to the murder of the most influential man in history: Jesus of Nazareth. Nearly two thousand years after this beloved and controversial young revolutionary was brutally killed by Roman soldiers, more than 2.2 billion human beings attempt to follow his teachings and believe he is God. Killing Jesus will take readers inside Jesus's life, recounting the seismic political and historical events that made his death inevitable - and changed the world forever.

The pieces are in place. The curtain rises for the final act. God is about to die. An unprecedented conspiracy of injustice, cruelty, and religious and political interests sentenced a man guilty of no crimes to the most barbaric method of execution ever devised. The victim was no mere man. Jesus was God in the flesh. The Creator of life died. How did such a thing come to be? Who were the onlookers, the players, the fakes, frauds, and heroes? What was it like in the Upper Room that night, in the shadows of Gethsemane, or in the Praetorium awaiting Pilate's verdict? What is the meaning of the last words Jesus uttered as He gasped for breath on the cross? What if all the facts you now so well could come alive in your ind and heart as a living story, rather than as a 2000-year-old ancient account? By piecing together the narrative from the perspective of the participants, John MacArthur invites you to relive the most awesome injustice in the history of man, the unparalleled triumph of the sovereignty of God, and the passion of Christ.

This updated edition by one of the world's leading apologists presents a systematic, positive case for Christianity that reflects the latest work in the contemporary hard sciences and humanities. Brilliant and accessible.

Long-Awaited Systematic Theology by Well-Known Pastor, Author, and President of the Master's Seminary Doctrine isn't just for theologians—it's important for every Christian because it shows us who God is and how we should live. Systematizing the robust theology that has undergirded John MacArthur's well-known preaching ministry for decades, this overview of basic Christian doctrine covers topics such as God the Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Bible, salvation, and more. Comprehensive in scope yet written to be accessible to the average reader—with non-technical vocabulary, minimal footnotes, and a helpful bibliography—this volume offers Christians a solid foundation for what they believe and why.

(GRAYSCALE EDITION) Most people today acknowledge that Jesus was Jewish. Yet a surprising number of Christians and Jews hold the belief that Jesus converted to Christianity at some point in his life or that he actually launched a new religion. In Jesus Uncensored psychologist, journalist and college professor Bernard Starr draws on a wealth of sources, including a close reading of biblical texts, to portray Jesus' lifelong commitment to Judaism, the synagogue, and the Torah. He also reveals that Paul, the founder of Christianity, never gave up his Jewish identity nor, like Jesus, did he intend to launch a new religion. If indeed Jesus was an ardent practicing Jew and preached only to Jews, why then did classical artworks depict Jesus and his fellow Jews as blond, fair-skinned Gentiles? Why did artists transform a community of orthodox Jews into latter-day northern European Christians? Starr takes the reader on a fascinating journey through Medieval and Renaissance art (including a walking tour of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art). He argues that the ethnic cleansing of Jesus and the world around him -so vividly depicted in hundreds of paintings-created a powerful platform for anti-Semitism. Contributing to this was the fact that throughout much of their history Christians were forbidden to own, read, or translate their Bible into a native language, which prevented them from discovering the firm Jewish foundation of Christianity. If the populace had access to the Gospels, says Starr, they surely would have noticed that the "multitudes" of Jesus' followers were Jews. Starr then turns to the crucial question, "Did the Jews kill Jesus?"-a charge that has echoed with deadly consequences since the crucifixion. Carefully scrutinizing the Gospels' account of Jesus' arrest and trial and the events leading up to them, he arrives at a startling conclusion, one that is certain to provoke wide discussion and debate. The accusation that Jews killed Jesus is at the root of virulent and enduring anti-Semitism. What might the thoroughly Jewish Jesus have said to church leaders, monarchs, and other despots who launched murderous acts such as the Crusades, the Inquisition, and genocides in his name? Starr tackles this question in a mock trial, in which Jesus asks these perpetrators, "How do you justify your violent acts based on my teachings and mission?" Mindful that many Christians today are eager to let go of long-standing antagonisms, Starr courageously appeals to fellow Jews to drop the "Jesus Phobia" and accept Jesus as a faithful Jew--without having to embrace the claim that he was the Messiah. Citing the pantheon of false Jewish Messiahs throughout the centuries, many of whom were destructive to Judaism, Starr questions why some "Messiahs" are still revered for their teachings while Jesus is rejected. Finally, Starr explores the popular novel The Da Vinci Code, which, like classical artworks, begins with a Jewish story but promptly converts it into a Christian one. Starr shows how The Da Vinci Code gets recoded when Rabbi Jesus' wife and daughter are authentically recast. In examining the realities of Jesus' life, Starr sheds new light on the history of anti-Semitism and on the destructive forces that have alienated Christians and Jews. His aim is to heal the rift between Christianity and Judaism and to help bring forth a new spirit of reconciliation. Broad in its scope yet intimate in its authoritative detail, Jesus Uncensored will forever change your understanding of Jesus, Judaism, and Christianity.

We know Jesus the Savior, but have we met Jesus, Prince of Peace? When did we accept vengeance as an acceptable part of the Christian life? How did violence and power seep into our understanding of faith and grace? For those troubled by this trend toward the sword, perhaps there is a better way. What if the message of Jesus differs radically differs from the drumbeats of war we hear all around us? Using his own journey from war crier to peacemaker and his in-depth study of peace in the scriptures, author and pastor Brian Zahnd reintroduces us to the gospel of Peace.