A Handbook of the Christian Faith

by John Schwarz

Overview

A Handbook of the Christian Faith is a one- volume overview of the Bible, church history, Christian beliefs and practices, other religions, and other issues of Christianity written in an easy-to-understand style. Organized in ten thematic chapters, the book is designed for use by individuals or study groups. "I cannot think of a more helpful resource for adults who are serious about their faith and the desire to understand it better," says Dr. W. Ward Gasque, President, Pacific Association for Theological Studies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780764229060
Publisher:	Baker Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/01/2004
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	5.38(w) x 8.38(h) x 0.86(d)

About the Author

John Schwarz has academic degrees in business, law, and Christian studies. He spent 30 years in the corporate business world and took early retirement to go to Kenya as a missionary. A Handbook to the Christian Faith grew out of Bible study courses John developed and taught, and it was the study manual for the video course Word Alive! John and his wife live part of the year in Arizona and part in Minnesota.

Table of Contents

1	The Bible
	The Story and Message of the Bible	12
	The Two Covenants or Testaments	12
	The Bible: Formation, Structure and Books	13
	The Hebrew Scriptures	14
	The Apocrypha	16
	The New Testament	18
	The Books of the Bible	20
	The Theme and Message of the Bible	21
	The Biblical Story	21
	The Transmission and Translations of the Bible	23
	Revelation, Inspiration and Authority	25
	Reading the Bible	27
	Bible Translations, Bible Dictionaries and Bible Commentaries	29
2	The Old Testament
	The Old Testament: The Roots of Our Faith	34
	The Pentateuch: Creation, Fall, Election, Salvation and Covenant	34
	The Prologue to the Biblical Story	35
	The Ancestral History of Israel	38
	Exodus: The "Center" of the Old Testament	42
	Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy	45
	The Historical Books: The Rise and Fall of Israel	46
	The Voice and Message of the Prophets	50
	The Writings: Israel's Wisdom and Devotional Literature	54
	Judaism Today	59
3	Jesus of Nazareth
	The World, Life and Ministry of Jesus	64
	The Intertestamental Period	64
	The House of Herod	67
	Jewish Political and Religious Communities in the First Century	69
	The First-Century New Testament World	71
	Jesus of Nazareth: In "The Fullness of Time"	73
	The Birth of Jesus	74
	Brief Outline of Jesus' Ministry	77
	Jesus' Baptism, Testing and Calling Twelve to Be His Disciples	78
	Jesus' Public Ministry	82
	Jesus' Arrest, Crucifixion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension	84
	Jesus' Names, Titles and Symbols	88
4	The Gospels
	The Gospel Testimonies to Jesus	92
	The Gospels: The "Good News"	92
	The Synoptic Gospels	97
	Mark: The Foundation Gospel	99
	Matthew: The Jewish-Christian Gospel	104
	Luke: The Universal Gospel	108
	John: The Spiritual Gospel	113
	Summary Comparison of the Four Gospels	118
5	The Outward Movement
	The Acts and Letters of the Apostles	122
	The Acts of Peter and the Travels of Paul	122
	The Apostle Paul: Ambassador for Christ	126
	Galatians: The Epistle of Freedom From the Law	131
	Romans: Paul's Magnum Opus	133
	The Corinthian Correspondence	135
	Paul's Other Letters	138
	Hebrews, James, Peter, John and Jude	140
	The Book of Revelation	142
	Why Didn't the Jews Accept Jesus?	145
6	The Church
	A Brief History of Christianity	148
	The Apostolic Era	148
	The Church in the Middle Ages	152
	The Protestant Reformation	157
	Christian Missions to All the World	168
	Christianity in America	175
	Important Dates and Events in Christian History	181
7	Christian Beliefs
	A Summary of Christian Doctrines and Beliefs	184
	Christian Theology	184
	God Our Father: All-Mighty and All-Loving	184
	The Doctrine of Creation	188
	Sin: The Human Predicament	190
	Jesus Christ: Lord and Savior	192
	Salvation: By Grace Through Faith	196
	The Holy Spirit: The Perfecter of Our Faith	198
	The Church: Marks and Sacraments	200
	The Church: Polity, Clergy Titles and Calendar	203
	The End Times or Final Things	207
	Angels, Satan and Demons	210
8	Other Religions
	Other Religions and Beliefs	214
	Other World Religions	214
	Hinduism: The Religion of India	214
	Buddhism: The Middle Way	218
	Five Other Eastern Religions	221
	Islam: Christianity's Greatest Competitor	223
	Christian and Non-Christian Cults	232
	The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints	234
	Jehovah's Witnesses	237
	Christian Science	238
	Unity School of Christianity	239
	Recent Religious Movements	240
	The New Age Movement: Blending East and West	242
	Do All Religions Lead to God?	244
9	Growing in and Sharing Christ
	Growing in Christ and Sharing Christ	248
	Christian Apologetics	248
	Challenges to Christianity	250
	Growing in Christ Through Prayer	253
	Growing in Christ Through Study	258
	Obstacles to Growth: The Seven Deadly Sins	261
	The Message of Evangelism: Jesus Christ	264
	The Mechanics of Evangelism: Sharing the Good News	267
	Pascal's "Wager": Betting on God	269
10	Living Christianly
	Biblical Guidelines for Living the Christian Faith	272
	How to Think As a Christian	272
	The Ten Commandments: Rules for Christian Living	275
	The Sermon on the Mount: The Christian Manifesto	281
	The Parable of the Good Samaritan	286
	Parables of Wealth and Possessions	289
	"How Then Should We Live?"	291
	Three Who Lived "for Jesus' Sake"	292
Appendix	World Religions and Belief Systems	297
	The World of the Old and New Testaments Map	299
	The First-Century World of Palestine Map	300
	Index	301

Editorial Reviews

"For those who want to know what the Bible says, what Jesus means about everyday life...this book is ideal."

From the Publisher