What Kind of Relationship Can You Have with Someone You Fear? For most of us, fear is something we try to avoid. And fearing God hardly sounds like an occasion for joy. But Jerry Bridges shows how the fear of the Lord is actually the key that opens the door to a life of true knowledge, wisdom, blessing, and joy. We all want a deeper, more intimate relationship with God–one that’s characterized by joy. But how does fearing God lead to joy? After all, aren’t we supposed to love Him and live in intimate relationship with Him? Jerry Bridges explores this paradox as he unpacks the biblical promise that God delights in those who fear Him. Join him as he unveils the awesome greatness of God–His incredible holiness, deep wisdom, and especially His inspiring love. You’ll gain a deeper understanding of who God is that will draw you into a truly biblical, and surprisingly delightful, fear of God–a fear that includes your own genuine, heartfelt delight in God. You’ll make the startling discovery that the fear of the Lord, far from being something to avoid, is the key to joyful, fulfilling, and genuine intimacy with God. It can change your relationship with God and change your life! Discover the surprising Joy of Fearing God!

The Surprising Good News of the Fear of the Lord "Let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God." — 2 Corinthians 7:1 We all have experienced fear at some point. And if we are honest, we don't usually think of fear as a good thing. So why does the Bible call us to fear the Lord? In this book, Michael Reeves explains that the fear of God is not a gloomy fear marked by anxiety but a heartfelt and happy enjoyment of God as Creator and Redeemer. As we learn more about the surprising good news of the fear of the Lord, we will discover the vital role we play in displaying to the world the awesomeness of our God.

Religion has been on the rise in America for decades—which strikes many as a shocking new development. To the contrary, Jason Stevens asserts, the rumors of the death of God were premature. Americans have always conducted their cultural life through religious symbols, never more so than during the Cold War. In God-Fearing and Free, Stevens discloses how the nation, on top of the world and torn between grandiose self-congratulation and doubt about the future, opened the way for a new master narrative. The book shows how the American public, powered by a national religious revival, was purposefully disillusioned regarding the country’s mythical innocence and fortified for an epochal struggle with totalitarianism. Stevens reveals how the Augustinian doctrine of original sin was refurbished and then mobilized in a variety of cultural discourses that aimed to shore up democratic society against threats preying on the nation’s internal weaknesses. Suddenly, innocence no longer meant a clear conscience. Instead it became synonymous with totalitarian ideologies of the fascist right or the communist left, whose notions of perfectability were dangerously close to millenarian ideals at the heart of American Protestant tradition. As America became riddled with self-doubt, ruminations on the meaning of power and the future of the globe during the “American Century” renewed the impetus to religion. Covering a wide selection of narrative and cultural forms, Stevens shows how writers, artists, and intellectuals, the devout as well as the nonreligious, disseminated the terms of this cultural dialogue, disputing, refining, and challenging it—effectively making the conservative case against modernity as liberals floundered.

He thought Christianity was a sham. Then it changed his life. Skeptic Josh McDowell thought Christians were out of their minds. He ridiculed and insulted them, then decided to combat them with his own thorough research to disprove the claims of Jesus Christ. To his surprise, he discovered that the evidence suggested exactly the opposite--that Jesus, instead of being simply a first-century Hebrew carpenter, truly was the God he claimed to be. Josh went on to write the inspirational work on Christian apologetics, More Than a Carpenter, which has sold over 15 million copies. In this revised and updated edition, with over 15 million copies in print since its original publication, More Than a Carpenter has changed countless lives. Now, in this revised and updated edition, Josh is joined by his son, Sean, as they tackle the questions that today's generation continues to ask: "Can I be spiritual without believing in God?" "How can I make sure that my life counts for something?" "Is it really possible to know anything for sure about God or Jesus?" This edition is an accessible read for seekers and a great evangelism tool.

These days the terms good and God seem synonymous. We believe what’s generally accepted as good must be in line with God’s will. Generosity, humility, justice—good. Selfishness, arrogance, cruelty—evil. The distinction seems pretty straightforward. But is that all there is to it? If good is so obvious, why does the Bible say that we need discernment to recognize it? Good or God? isn’t another self-help message. This book will do more than ask you to change your behavior. It will empower you to engage with God on a level that will change every aspect of your life.

Dr. Randy Stinson and Dr. Timothy Paul Jones have been the primary architects of the theological foundations for whathas become known as “family-equipping ministry”—a recognition that the generations need one another and that parents have an inherent responsibility for the discipleship of their children.

“Scary God brings you face-to-face with our Warrior-King God.” —John Bevere, bestselling author of The Bait of Satan Discover the great wonder and wild freedom the fear of the Lord can bring. God’s character is like a mighty diamond—a glorious convergence of respect, awe, reverence, adoration, thanksgiving, and yes, fear. Yet why is it so difficult to reconcile the wrath of God with the love of God? As Mattie teaches, it is simply a continual awareness of Jesus, our mighty Warrior King. We should not be afraid to come to God; rather we should be afraid to be against Him. Fans of Jefferson Bethke, John Bevere, and Brian Head Welch, will love the straight-talk in Scary God.

We all admire humility when we see it. But how do we practice it? How does humility--the foundational virtue of the normal Christian life--become a normal part of our everyday lives? Jerry Bridges sees in the Beatitudes a series of blessings from Jesus, a pattern for humility in action. Starting with poverty in spirit--an acknowledgment that in and of ourselves we are incapable of living holy lives pleasing to God--and proceeding through our mourning over personal sin, our hunger and thirst for righteousness, our experience of persecutions large and small, and more, we discover that humility is itself a blessing: At every turn, God is present to us, giving grace to the humble and lifting us up to blessing.