Two rival analogies compete for our attention: the law of the jungle, and the sacred canopy. As for the former, life consists of the survival of the fittest. As for the latter, the divine mandates serve as a framework for social ethics. This is in keeping with the conviction that we live in God's world, by his grace, and for his glory. The first major segment consists of a paper trail, where the topic is explored in context of biblical narrative. The second discusses the four traditional mandates, as pertains to labor, family, government, and church. The third touches on the endowments, with reference to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. All things considered, the text is calculated to contribute to a Christian world and life view. In greater detail, the mandates serve in a dual capacity. Obviously, to establish the credentials for select social institutions, but also by insisting persons to comply with legitimate social obligations. Meant to superintend God's creation, humans continue to fall short of their appointed task. Along with the diminishing of God's glory. Calling for a commitment to the divine mandates, and their extended implications.

This volume contains two closely related studies: Echoes of the Shema and Our Father’s Footprints. The term Shema is derived from the initial word to hear in the Old Testament: “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Deut. 6:4). Hence, God is deserving of ardent adoration and unqualified commitment. Morris A. Inch discusses God as Spirit, Light, and Love and also touches on divine holiness, grace, and compassion. The second study picks up with Jesus’ allusion to God as our Father (Matt. 6:9). While this reference is primarily related to his authority, Jesus pointedly ties in his benevolent character. In this regard, he exclaims: “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father give good gifts to those who ask him!” (Matt. 7:11). This quotation invites us to reflect on such associated themes as God’s faithfulness, generosity, resolve, forgiveness, and creativity. Echoes of the Shema and Our Father’s Footprints will be a useful text for those interested in exploring the inviting realm of biblical theology.

Do you feel like you can’t “find God”? What if he is waiting for you right where you are? In this intimate and down-to-earth book, Danielle Bean encourages women of all stages of life to slow down and experience the little whispers of God that are present in their everyday moments. Danielle writes about real, heartfelt moments that every woman can relate to. The constant striving after achieving more can be relieved. Even more, the ability to do less with more intention can provide a growing awareness of God’s constant presence and interior peace (even if the exterior is still chaotic). Whisper is perfect for anyone looking to develop a more intimate relationship with the ever-present God. Grab a copy and a cup of tea (or a glass of wine) and dive in to learn from Danielle how to grow closer to God. “Danielle Bean has done it again! Whisper: Finding God in the Everyday is an invitation to be everyday mystics, finding extraordinary encounters with God in our ordinary days. If we will be attentive, there is space for grace to speak to our hearts, leading us closer to our Lord, even as we care for the many needs we encounter in the vocation of marriage and family life.” –Kimberly Hahn, wife, mother, author of Chosen and Cherished: Biblical Wisdom for Your Marriage “She had me at the title, but throughout Danielle’s book Whisper, I found God in baseball, broken pieces, and in ‘not overthinking it.’ This book is beautiful and intimate, itself a whisper from God.” –Sonja Corbitt, creator of LOVE the Word®️ Bible study method “Danielle’s encouragement and practical advice to simply rest and be still was exactly what I needed to read as a young mom who is a recovering busy perfectionist—and the words we all need to hear in a world that emphasizes doing instead of simply being. If you’re exhausted and looking for rest, this book is for you!” –Chloe Langr, author of Letters to Women: Embracing the Feminine Genius in Everyday Life

Against a background of the strife-torn land of Judea two thousand years ago, Mika Waltari has written what is certainly his most important novel. Seeking the meaning to his life in the study of philosophy, the young Roman. Marcus Manilianus, discovers in an Alexandrian library a vast number of predictions, all tending to confirm his own feeling that the world is about to enter upon a new era. Two chance encounters with Jews who proclaim the coming of a world leader whom they call the Messiah or King, cause Marcus to resolve to make a visit to the Holy City of the Jews. He arrives outside Jerusalem in time to see crowds—some curious, some shocked—staring up at three crosses on a nearby mound. Above the center cross, an inscription had been fixed: JESUS OF NAZARETH, KING OF THE JEWS. The quest that ensues leads Marcus through all parts of Jerusalem and into contact with men and women of all stations of life who had known this remarkable man. And by degrees, wonderful if strange things are revealed to him of Jesus’ teaching, and he experiences the odd sensation of almost believing in the destiny of this crucified Roman among the alien Jews, Stands alone on the borderline of two worlds, feelings he belongs to neither, and it becomes vital to him to find “the way, “the Kingdom,” to again knowledge and certainty, not merely belief. What follows, as Marcus pursues his search for the promised secret of the Kingdom, bring to a climax as exciting and deeply moving a novel as Mika Waltari, certainly one of the world’s outstanding historical novelists, has ever written. It is a story of a time long past, yet it deals with a theme as modern as today: the dilemma of modern man and his culture in gaining and retaining a faith. And always present throughout the novel is the splendor, the irony and humor which have so delighted millions of readers of other Waltari novels from The Egyptian to The Etruscan.

Devastating circumstances still enslave most African Americans in American society today, especially in urban environments. They struggle with economic devastation, family disintegration, black-on-black crime, unemployment, political and social injustice, as well as the structural racism that fuels all of these. In the midst of this horrible din, there is a whisper from the Lord, a faith statement upon which there can be established an ethic of transformation for an oppressed African American Christian community. The whispers of faith, hope, and ethical direction that flow out of the New Testament materials have always taken their fleshly shape in light of the context in which African Americans have found themselves. Blount studies selected New Testament texts and evaluates them in light of their first-century contexts, primarily from a socio-linguistic perspective, and then reads them through the eyes of the contemporary African American Christian. This study analyzes the differences between the first century context, which prompted the biblical writers to reflect ethically upon their faith statements as they did, and the present reality of African Americans in the United States, which motivates their Christian leaders to reflect upon these same statements in such radically different ways. An example of a twentieth-century ethical situation is Martin Luther King, Jr.'s campaign of civil disobedience which appeared to be in direct contradiction to the ethical prescriptions in Romans 113 and 1 Peter 2:13-17, which mandate unqualified Christian obedience of government. Blount urges African American Christians to continually reevaluate the ethical principles established for first-century biblical communities in light of the novel circumstances that prevail today. In so doing, African Americans will be giving flesh to the inspirational whisper of the New Testament.