What if Jesus didn't die to save us from God? The doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement is not the Gospel. It's a theory that originated in the 1500's under John Calvin. The damage done by this teaching is still being felt today. It's time to abandon this toxic theology in favor of a Christ-centered view of the cross that sets us free from sin and unveils a God of love who would rather die than live without us.

We cannot talk about God with any degree of certainty, because God is, by definition, a being who transcends imagination, expectation, and comprehension. What we know is this: There is more of God to know than any of us will ever fully know in this life. So, let's begin by embracing the mystery of Christ to discover the endlessly unfolding beauty of uncertainty.

God called. He wants his church back. Many Christians have begun to recognize that God desires his church to function as an organism rather than an organization. After over 11 years of experience founding and facilitating a house church, author Keith Giles shares the insights he developed in the trenches. Filled with practical, real-world examples of how to plant and nurture an organic gathering, listeners will find a wealth of information to help them bring Jesus back to the forefront of every meeting.

What if Christ has already returned? The Second Coming of Christ has been "coming soon" ever since 1850, when John Nelson Darby popularized his brand of end times dispensational rapture theology. Many Christians today are unaware that the version of biblical prophecy they've been taught is not what the Church believed for the first 1,800 years. It's time to leave behind the "End Times" and discover an astounding truth - Christ has already returned and our participation is essential to making all things new.

Many Christians are unaware that Universal Reconciliation was the dominant view of the church for the first 500 years, with Annihilation and Eternal Torment as minority positions. Jesus Undefeated is an eye-opening examination of all three views of the afterlife and a God who is even more loving than we dare imagine. Discover the Gospel that is not merely "Good News", but fantastically "Great News."

As the Church has become increasingly entangled in the pursuit of politics, the Gospel has become tarnished and often abandoned as the primary focus of the Body of Christ. Jesus Untangled is a prophetic call for the Church to awaken from the "American Dream" and to return to her first love. Because, as the author powerfully demonstrates, you can't convert a culture that has already converted you.

Do I Stay Christian? addresses in public the powerful question that surprising numbers of people—including pastors, priests, and other religious leaders—are asking in private. Picking up where Faith After Doubt leaves off, Do I Stay Christian? is not McLaren's attempt to persuade Christians to dig in their heels or run for the exit. Instead, he combines his own experience with that of thousands of people who have confided in him over the years to help readers make a responsible, honest, ethical decision about their religious identity.

In the first half of life, we are naturally preoccupied with establishing ourselves; climbing, achieving, and performing. But as we grow older and encounter challenges and mistakes, we need to see ourselves in a different and more life-giving way. This message of falling down - that is in fact moving upward - is the most resisted and counterintuitive of messages in the world's religions. Falling Upward offers a new paradigm for understanding one of the most profound of life's mysteries: how those who have fallen down are the only ones who understand "up".

How did a libertine who lacks even the most basic knowledge of the Christian faith win 81 percent of the white evangelical vote in 2016? And why have white evangelicals become a presidential reprobate's staunchest supporters? Jesus and John Wayne is a sweeping account of the last 75 years of white evangelicalism, showing how American evangelicals have worked for decades to replace the Jesus of the Gospels with an idol of rugged masculinity and Christian nationalism.

In Out of the Embers, Bradley Jersak explores the necessity, perils, and possibilities of the Great Deconstruction—how it has the potential to either sabotage our communion with God or infuse it with the breath of life, the light and life of Christ himself.

Whether our notions of "God" are personal projections or inherited traditions, author and theologian Brad Jersak proposes a radical reassessment, arguing for a more Christlike God and a more beautiful Gospel. A More Christlike God suggests that such a God would be very good news indeed - a God who Jesus "unwrathed" from dead religion, a love that is always toward us, and a grace that pours into this suffering world through willing, human partners.

Intellectual certainty has long been a cornerstone of the Christian faith. But in an age of secularism, skepticism, and cynicism, our worldviews have been shaken. Various solutions exist - some double down on certainty, while others deconstruct their faith until there is nothing left at all. But Brian Zahnd offers a third way: What is needed is not a demolition, but instead a renovation of faith. Written with personal and pastoral experience, Zahnd extends an invitation to move beyond the crisis of faith toward the journey of reconstruction.

In this “eloquent understanding of how death is viewed through many spiritual traditions” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), Bart Ehrman recounts the long history of the afterlife, ranging from The Epic of Gilgamesh up to the writings of Augustine, focusing especially on the teachings of Jesus and his early followers. He discusses ancient guided tours of heaven and hell, in which a living person observes the sublime blessings of heaven for those who are saved and the horrifying torments of hell for those who are damned.

The scriptures are an essential aspect of the Christian faith. But we have often equated them with the living Word himself, even elevating them above the One to whom they point. In doing so, we have distorted their central message - and our view of God. Tragically, this has caused multitudes of people unnecessary doubt, confusion, and pain in their encounters with the scriptures.

In Love Wins, Rob Bell confronted the troubling questions that many people of faith are 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.