Paul and those who had been converted by Jesus and his apostles knew they would not leave the world alive. They wanted to make sure belief in God and in Jesus went hand-in-hand and that Christian churches would be there for generations of believers. Author Eduard Lohse leaves no verse unturned in the Epistles to the COLOSSIANS AND PHILEMON. His book is a learning experience that works with His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama's THE GOOD HEART, Matthew Fox's BREAKTHROUGH, Max Lucado's GOD CAME NEAR, and Thomas Merton's WISDOM OF THE DESERT.

The plan was to have Christian congregations in place for the second coming. But then things changed, and early church organizers needed to map peaceful, secure Christian communities in the non-Christian world. Good conscience, faith and works still mattered, but under non-Christian authorities instead of within the kingdom of God on earth. Writers Martin Dibelius and Hans Conzelmann give the verses of THE PASTORAL EPISTLES to Timothy and Titus a thorough workout. Their book is a clear, insightful read that leads into similar modern concerns discussed in Richard Foster's CELEBRATION OF DISCIPLINE, Matthew Fox's THE COMING OF THE COSMIC CHRIST, Hannah Hurnard's HINDS' FEET ON HIGH PLACES, and PEACE PILGRIM: HER LIFE AND WORK IN HER OWN WORDS.

This book is loaded with tables and footnotes. It's an excruciatingly detailed study of the various New Testament gospels and related sources. You'll find a detailed breakdown of the derivation of the Q synoptic sayings source from Luke and Matthew; comparisons between lost gospels like the Gospel of Peter and the Gospel of Thomas and the canonical texts; a study of the birth accounts; a catalog of the Jesus stories; a bunch of other stuff.

I found it slow going, but it's amazing how much obscure knowledge you can glean from reading through this. I wouldn't recommend it as an introductory text on the Gospels, however.

I couldn't agree more with Midwest Book Review. I absolutely love this book and am fascinated by the content. It's not a book on spirituality, but if you're a history buff and want to understand how the Christian religion evolved, this is a crucial piece of the puzzle. The book covers both canonical and non-canonical literature and summarizes much of the scholarly discussion concerning the sources of the writings, the relationship to oral traditions, evidence of who used what as the basis for gospel development, etc. It gets down into the detail where I'd like to be but lack too much of the background required to get there.

Ancient Christian Gospels: Their History And Development is a scholarly yet completely accessible history of early Christian Gospel literature from the first two centuries of the Christian movement. Professor Koester provides all technical information required by the scholar, including translations of all data, and yet writes with a clarity that makes his material of immense interest to the non-specialist general reader with an interest in the development of the principle texts of the Christian gospel. Highly recommended.

I was disgusted upon reading this book to the point that I could not concentrate. Helmut Koester is obviously an intelligent man, but his writing on the New Testament is blatantly skewed. Almost every page has some sort of unsubstantiated claim that he states as fact (the most common seemed to be: "This is legendary"). This leaves his arguments without legs to stand on. If he has evidence to back up his claims, he should present it; otherwise, I do not know how we can be expected to accept his statements at face value.

Koester also discredits himself by frequently taking quotations out of context. It is absolutely imperative to read this book with a copy of the Bible next to you, in order to check every reference he makes. A number of times, I found that the chapters and verses he quoted had little, if anything, to do with what he was discussing; and if they did, a quick reading of the text preceding or following the citation would often reveal that his interpretation of a particular phrase or sentence failed to take the context into account. This often changed the meaning so much that I wondered how he could even take himself seriously.

To me, it seemed clear that Koester made up his mind about the meanings and history of the New Testament and THEN went to the text in an effort to prove his ideas, instead of using the text to form his opinions. For someone considered a serious scholar, this work is embarrassing.

This book provides an excellent reference source on the background of the NT. It is not the sort of book meant to be read straight through, but one which I have found myself returning to again and again to look up this or that name, movement, or event. A must have for students and pastors.

The academic community is extremely well served with several excellent introductions to the New Testament. The standard introduction is still the one by Kummel which is written in the old style of author, date of writing, etc. Helmut Koester's two-volume introduction to the New Testament is of a different kind and of a different class. Although described as an introduction, it is really for those who already understand the critical issues surrounding New Testament scholarship. Koester writes with unparalleled erudition. His is the only introduction to the New Testament currently available which does full justice to the large body of noncanonical writings that come from the same period as the New Testament. Koester is unapologetic for his rigorously critical approach, inherited from his teacher Rudolph Bultmann. Although the work was originally written in German, the second edition has been completely revised in English and reads like an English work. Those who are interested in New Testament studies will find this an absorbing, complex, satisfying account even if they find themselves disagreeing with Koester at significant points. The best part of the work is that it is written so well that one cannot put it down. In short, the finest introduction to the New Testament on the market.

I must admit that I had serious reservations about using this commentary since it was written by a member of the "Jesus Seminar." However, after using it in a number of studies in Hebrews, I must now admit that it is extremely helpful. It is easy to read for the informed layman and is a goldmine for Greek students. Pastors and teachers will appreciate Attridge's wide knowledge of extra-biblical resources that help understand the original situation. If Attridge is as skeptical of the text of scripture as most other members of the "Jesus Seminar," it does not show up in this commentary. I wonder if Attridge has really adopted the skeptical presuppositions of the seminar, or if he is simply an interested member. At any rate, this commentary was very helpful in my Hebrews studies, along with the work of William Lane, Paul Ellingworth and George Guthrie.

For anyone interested in a rather different perspective of Christian views of Jesus, the non-canonical Gospels can be an eye-opening experience. Non-canonical refers to texts not accepted as part of the New Testament, for a variety of reasons. They aren't necessarily subversive, though some paint rather conflicting views of Jesus and his teachings. But mostly what they provide is simply more material, much of it subject to further interpretation. Some of the material is known as Gnostic material; some is not. Author Ron Cameron has broken the 16 non-canonical works into two broad categories: Traditions of the Sayings of Jesus and Traditions of Stories About Jesus. He gives us extended quotations of such material as the Gospel of Thomas or the Secret Gospel of Mark. In all cases, Cameron then uses the material to shed further light on how Christian thinking about Jesus and his teachings developed beyond the material admitted to the canon. This book assumes a certain knowledge, though not extensive, of early Christian writings. It's a worthy companion to other readings about the Gospels. Particularly worth noting is Cameron's assessment that the cited material, rather than developing out of established canonical works, may well have predated the material we're most familiar with. If the assessment of Cameron and other scholars is correct, the writings are especially worth reading because they could alter our views of the teachings of Jesus.