What is the Bible?: How an Ancient Library of Poems, Letters and Stories Can Transform the Way You Think and Feel About Everythi

Description

The New York Times bestselling author Rob Bell, using his inspired and inquisitive approach, focuses on the most widely read book of all time. He provides surprising insights and answers about how the Bible actually works as a source of faith and guidance, showing a brand-new way of reading this sacred text. Rob Bell, the beloved author of Love Wins and What We Talk About When We Talk About God, goes deep into the Bible to show how it is more revelatory, revolutionary, and relevant than we ever imagined - and offers a cogent argument for why we need to look at it in a fresh, new way. In Love Wins, Rob Bell confronted the troubling questions that many people of faith were afraid to ask about heaven, hell, fate, and faith. Using the same inspired, inquisitive approach, he now turns to our most sacred book, the Bible. What Is the Bible? provides insights and answers that make clear why the Bible is so revered and what makes it truly inspiring and essential to our lives. Rob takes us deep into actual passages to reveal the humanity behind the Scriptures. You cannot get to the holy without going through the human, Rob tells us. When considering a passage, we shouldn't ask 'Why did God say ...?' To get to the heart of the Bible's meaning, we should be asking: 'What's the story that's unfolding here and why did people find it important to tell it? What was it that moved them to record these words? What was happening in the world at that time? What does this passage/story/poem/verse/book tell us about how people understood who they were and who God was at that time?' In asking these questions, Rob goes beyond the one-dimensional question of 'Is it true?' to reveal the Bible's authentic transformative power. Rob addresses the concerns of all those who see the Bible as God's Word but are troubled by the ethical dilemmas, errors, and inconsistencies in Scripture. With What Is the Bible?, he recaptures the Good Book's magic and reaffirms its power and inspiration to shape and inspire our lives today.

Rob Bell is the bestselling author of Love Wins, Velvet Elvis, Sex God, Jesus Wants to Save Christians, Drops Like Stars, and What We Talk About When We Talk About God. An international teacher and speaker, he was profiled in The New Yorker and TIME magazine, which named him one of 2011's hundred most influential people.

Praise for Rob Bell: Bell is at the forefront of a rethinking of Christianity.' Time 'One of the most influential evangelical pastors.' The New York Times 'Rob Bell is one of the hottest names.' Boston Globe 'Bell will be joined by the likes of Brian McLaren, James Martin, Diana Butler Bass and Carol Howard Merritt.' Christianity Today 'Forever grateful for the brilliant mind, boundless heart and fierce faith of Rob Bell. His work convinced me that it was possible - maybe necessary and thrilling - to be a person of both faith and intellect ... Please read everything Rob's ever written and then go see him live.' Glennon Doyle Melton, author of Carry On, Warrior 'It isn't easy to develop a biblical imagination that takes in the comprehensive and eternal work of Christ ... Rob Bell goes a long way in helping us acquire just such an imagination - without a trace of soft sentimentality and without compromising an inch of evangelical conviction.' Eugene H. Peterson, Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Theology, Regent College, and author of The Message and The Pastor