Jesus Under Fire: Modern Scholarship Reinvents the Historical Jesus

By James Porter Moreland

Book Overview

Who is Jesus? What did he do? What did he say? -Are the traditional answer to these questions still to be trusted? - Did the early church and tradition "Christianize" Jesus? - Was Christianity built on clever conceptions of the church, or on the character and actions of an actual person? These and similar questions have come under scrutiny by a forum of biblical scholars called the Jesus Seminar. Their conclusions have been widely publicized in magazines such as Time and Newsweek. Jesus Under Fire challenges the methodology and findings of the Jesus Seminar, which generally clash with the biblical records. It examines the authenticity of the words, actions, miracles, and resurrection of Jesus, and presents compelling evidence for the traditional biblical teachings. Combining accessibility with scholarly depth, Jesus Under Fire helps readers judge for themselves whether the Jesus of the Bible is the Jesus of history, and whether the gospels' claim is valid that he is the only way to God.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0310211395
• ISBN13: 9780310211396
• Release Date: July 1996
• Publisher: Zondervan Academic
• Length: 254 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.1"
• Age Range: 18 years and up

Customer Reviews

Sober and Scholarly Defense of Jesus and the Gospels

"Jesus Under Fire" was a collection of essays written by scholars who disagreed with the often-publicised views of the Jesus Seminar (e.g. Robert Funk, John Dominic Crossan, etc.) The general reading public should heed the findings of this book and not just pay attention to the often one-sided presentation of the Jesus Seminar. First and foremost, the Jesus Seminar scholars do NOT represent the majority of Christian scholarship in our world today. More often than not, the scholars who make up the Jesus Seminar are the exceptions from the majority scholars - they are, in truth, the surviving vestige of the liberal scholarship from the previous century who have somehow decided to air their views in the public media. Craig Blomberg, Scot McKnight, Darrell Bock, Edwin Yamauchi, Michael Wilkins and J.P. Moreland are representative of Christian scholars from different denominational/university background who examine in a very objective manner the methodologies to be employed in our present "search for the historical Jesus", the reliability of the New Testament writings, the place and purpose for scholarly conjectures/hypotheses, a survey of non-canonical writings like the Nag Hammadi writings and the Gnostic works, etc. The end result is a book that represents for our generation one of the finest defense of the works and words of Jesus as recorded in our Scriptures. It is my prayer that everyone who reads this book will go on from just merely asserting the truth of Jesus' words and works - and go on to study the content of the very same words and works. This will lead you to the truth about the PERSON and TRUTH of the Historical Jesus who is really no different from the Christ of Faith (historic Christianity) - "Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (Mark 1:1).

A scholarly challenge to the skeptics

I happened to find this book in a half-price bookstore and I am now going to send this book to a friend for Christmas. My friend happens to be a believer, but this book could be sent to believer and skeptic alike. For the believer, this book gives scholarly yet understandable defense of the faith; such defense is sorely needed in an age of "scholars" such as the Jesus Seminar. For the skeptic, this book will require you to thorughly inspect your lack of faith and ask what it is based upon. In any case, this book is a must read. The question Jesus asked 2,000 years ago, "Who do you say I am"? remains relevant today. As this book itself states, if Jesus is who the Bible proclaims him to be, it is in our best interests to respond. If Jesus is not who the Bible claims him to be, then the Christian must ask what he/she is basing their faith on. After reading this book with an open and receptive mind, I find it hard to believe one would not take a new look at the Bible and at who Jesus is proclaimed to be.

Under fire, but still standing

JUF is a book that simply needs to be read by all, Christian and skeptic alike. Ten evangelical scholars come togher to refute the naturalistic assumptions of the Jesus Seminar, as well as provide positive evidence for the traditional, orthodox belief in Jesus.In the introduction, Moreland and Wilkins ask: Can we know anything about Jesus?; Are the biblical records of Jesus' activities accurate?; Is the supernatural possible in ancient and modern times? If the answer to these questions is 'yes', then believing that Jesus is Messiah becomes reasonable. Determining the answers to these questions requires the proper use of historiography and logical reasoning, not a vague 'faith' that has no basis in reality (after all, if Jesus never existed, believing that he did is simply idiotic). Throughout the book, the contributors emphasize the importance of truth and reason for religious belief.In ch.1, Craig Blomberg begins by examining the methodology of the Jesus Seminar and finds it lacking. He then provides evidence to support the historical reliability of the gospel accounts. In Ch.2, Scot McKnight takes a look at the history of Jesus scholarship and the varying descriptions that have been offered (Jesus as Sage or Social Revolutionary). He goes on to sketch a view of Jesus based on broad scholarly consensus.In ch.3, Darrell Bock looks at the words of Jesus. Are the words ascribed to Jesus exact quotes(ipissima verba)? Or are they 'his very voice'(ipissima vox)? He draws a distinction between having the precise words of Jesus and having his voice (the intent and meaning) in an accurate summary. In Ch. 4, Craig Evans presents a case for the authenticity of the deeds of Jesus as recorded in the gospels. In Ch.5, Gary Habermas' focus is on whether Jesus performed miracles. In his defense of those miracles, he considers the influence of one's worldview. The Jesus Seminar holds a naturalistic worldview where miracles are anathema. He then shows that the historical evidence itself vouches for the authenticity of Jesus' miracles.In Ch.6, William L. Craig tackles the big question: Did Jesus rise from the dead? He provides three lines of evidence - 1) the empty tomb, 2) the postmortem appearances of Jesus, and 3) the origin of the disciples' belief in Jesus' resurrection. He then gives a slew of evidence supporting each of the three. He concludes that the combined evidence meets the criteria that historians consider in testing a historical hypothesis. In Ch.7, Douglas Geivett addresses the question of Jesus in light of our pluralistic society. He appeals to the importance of careful, rational assessment of a religious truth claim regardless of how that religious truth claim makes you feel. In Ch.8, Edwin Yamauchi looks at the evidence of Jesus in extra-biblical sources, highlighting their usefulness as well as their limitations. The text is easy to understand. It contain

Strong arguments for defending the New Testament Jesus

This is an excellent book !!! It has a unique arrangement with eight chapters written by eight different authors. Each chapter addresses a different issue regarding the arguments over what type of person Jesus of Nazareth really was. Issues such as the reliability of the Gospels, miracles of Jesus, the Resurrection, and others are all addressed in a scholarly and fair manner. No straw man arguments here... Despite the fact that there are eight different authors, the book flows extremely well.The only down side to this book is that each topic isn't covered more in-depth. The editors acknowledge this fact, and offer an excellent list of resources for further study of each specific issue. This book is also an excellent resource for refuting the types of arguments coming from the members of the Jesus Seminar.

Evangelical Biblical Scholars Assess the Jesus Seminar

I've probably bought 4 copies of this book since it came out to distribute to friends as gifts. A fine book that critiques current versions of who scholars think the historical Jesus is. The contributors of the book form a "Who's Who" of some of the finest evangelical scholars in the U.S. This is a very well-balanced, informed, and articulate book that all those interested in Jesus, whether believer or skeptic, should get.