At Easter, major magazines and blogs will publish articles claiming to tell us who Jesus was. Every few weeks we see a new book making similar claims. Is it possible to know?

In Who Is Jesus?, Allan Bevere addresses this question from the point of view of a person of faith who takes seriously the gospels and early Christian tradition as documentation of events and of serious theological reflection on those events. According to Bevere, Christian theology was neither an invention, nor a set of random speculations unrelated to reality. Rather, they were the response of early Christianity to the experience of Jesus and the historical pictures as presented in the canonical gospels.

From a discussion of the Old Testament record piecing together the puzzle of biblical messianic prophecy through illumination of the christological controversies of the first five centuries of Christian history, and then back to the four portraits of Jesus given to us in the canonical gospels, this book provides a clear description of how orthodox Christian scholarship can bring together the varied evidence in order to present a coherent theological picture of the Jesus of history. As Bevere contends, history and theology are not easily separated, but are two threads that create an interwoven tapestry in which events have meaning.

This book is good for individual reading, or could easily provide readings and an outline for a small group study.

The word "holiness" has become somewhat unpopular, as people associate it with a holier-than-thou attitude, a judgmental approach to others, or a legalistic approach to Christian life.

But holiness is a word that is used a great deal in scripture and has a long history in Christian theology. Is it possible to talk about holiness as a positive element in living? Can people be called to be holy and in fact called holy?

Dr. Allan Bevere believes so. Working from the Wesleyan tradition, but also examining the broader record of Christian thought and the scriptural witness, he looks at what holiness is and is not. As he does so he finds it helpful and challenging rather than negative and destructive.

Topical Line Drive volumes are intended to point you to the basics and provide a start for deeper study. Individuals and small groups will find this book ideal as a starting point for a study of this important topic. All God''s saints (holy ones!) should understand where they stand as they worship a holy God.

What is a “narrative devotional commentary”? It’s a new way to gain insight into a Bible book with commentary that flows much like the source text.

For those who may have found the gospel of Mark less helpful than the other gospels or who have looked at it more as a collection of stories strung together in order to get us to the end of Jesus’ life, this commentary could be a breakthrough. Allan Bevere follows the story while at the same time bringing insight, both from historical sources and from the history and the faith of the Church. As he does so, the gospel of Mark comes alive as we learn to hear in these stories a connected story leading to who Jesus was, and then who Jesus is.

This short commentary avoids the pitfalls of enumerating dry details on the one hand, while also sticking to a serious, scholarly approach to the text. You can read clear, well-founded ideas about the text in a devotional way without the distraction of excessive notes or long, complex excurses.

This book is suitable for a popular audience who will be led to a more serious understanding of the gospel writers, of Jesus, and of the Gospel that they proclaimed. More scholarly readers will find it a good aid to meditation and to absorbing the devotional message of the text.

When was the last time you heard a sermon drawn from the Old Testament? Not just one with some Old Testament texts, but built from the text? Allan Bevere, a United Methodist pastor, set out to teach more from the first testament.

The Character of Our Discontent grew out of the author''s conviction that pastors do not preach enough about the Old Testament. The result is 19 chapters, each of which represents a sermon on an Old Testament character. These sermons are lively, fast paced, and practical yet are rooted in sound scholarship and are examples of the homiletical art.

Christians who would like to learn how the Old Testament can enlighten and guide their Christian walk, and pastors who would like to learn how to preach more effectively from the Old Testament will both find these sermons an invaluable aid.

While Dr. Bevere specializes in the New Testament and theology, he believes that pastors (and academics as well) can preach and teach effectively outside their areas of specialty. Indeed, they must, and this teaching can enrich their own learning and the fields of study into which they venture.

The Character of Our Discontent is an adventure in preaching and it invites us into the adventure of living in relationship with God, an adventure that has similar characteristics whether we are learning about God''s call to Abraham or how a call to mission in Africa came to a contemporary English teacher nearing retirement.

At Easter, major magazines and blogs will publish articles claiming to tell us who Jesus was. Every few weeks we see a new book making similar claims. Is it possible to know?

In Who Is Jesus?, Allan Bevere addresses this question from the point of view of a person of faith who takes seriously the gospels and early Christian tradition as documentation of events and of serious theological reflection on those events. According to Bevere, Christian theology was neither an invention, nor a set of random speculations unrelated to reality. Rather, they were the response of early Christianity to the experience of Jesus and the historical pictures as presented in the canonical gospels.

From a discussion of the Old Testament record piecing together the puzzle of biblical messianic prophecy through illumination of the christological controversies of the first five centuries of Christian history, and then back to the four portraits of Jesus given to us in the canonical gospels, this book provides a clear description of how orthodox Christian scholarship can bring together the varied evidence in order to present a coherent theological picture of the Jesus of history. As Bevere contends, history and theology are not easily separated, but are two threads that create an interwoven tapestry in which events have meaning.

This book is good for individual reading, or could easily provide readings and an outline for a small group study.

The word "holiness" has become somewhat unpopular, as people associate it with a holier-than-thou attitude, a judgmental approach to others, or a legalistic approach to Christian life.

But holiness is a word that is used a great deal in scripture and has a long history in Christian theology. Is it possible to talk about holiness as a positive element in living? Can people be called to be holy and in fact called holy?

Dr. Allan Bevere believes so. Working from the Wesleyan tradition, but also examining the broader record of Christian thought and the scriptural witness, he looks at what holiness is and is not. As he does so he finds it helpful and challenging rather than negative and destructive.

Topical Line Drive volumes are intended to point you to the basics and provide a start for deeper study. Individuals and small groups will find this book ideal as a starting point for a study of this important topic. All God''s saints (holy ones!) should understand where they stand as they worship a holy God.

What is a “narrative devotional commentary”? It’s a new way to gain insight into a Bible book with commentary that flows much like the source text.

For those who may have found the gospel of Mark less helpful than the other gospels or who have looked at it more as a collection of stories strung together in order to get us to the end of Jesus’ life, this commentary could be a breakthrough. Allan Bevere follows the story while at the same time bringing insight, both from historical sources and from the history and the faith of the Church. As he does so, the gospel of Mark comes alive as we learn to hear in these stories a connected story leading to who Jesus was, and then who Jesus is.

This short commentary avoids the pitfalls of enumerating dry details on the one hand, while also sticking to a serious, scholarly approach to the text. You can read clear, well-founded ideas about the text in a devotional way without the distraction of excessive notes or long, complex excurses.

This book is suitable for a popular audience who will be led to a more serious understanding of the gospel writers, of Jesus, and of the Gospel that they proclaimed. More scholarly readers will find it a good aid to meditation and to absorbing the devotional message of the text.

When was the last time you heard a sermon drawn from the Old Testament? Not just one with some Old Testament texts, but built from the text? Allan Bevere, a United Methodist pastor, set out to teach more from the first testament.

The Character of Our Discontent grew out of the author''s conviction that pastors do not preach enough about the Old Testament. The result is 19 chapters, each of which represents a sermon on an Old Testament character. These sermons are lively, fast paced, and practical yet are rooted in sound scholarship and are examples of the homiletical art.

Christians who would like to learn how the Old Testament can enlighten and guide their Christian walk, and pastors who would like to learn how to preach more effectively from the Old Testament will both find these sermons an invaluable aid.

While Dr. Bevere specializes in the New Testament and theology, he believes that pastors (and academics as well) can preach and teach effectively outside their areas of specialty. Indeed, they must, and this teaching can enrich their own learning and the fields of study into which they venture.

The Character of Our Discontent is an adventure in preaching and it invites us into the adventure of living in relationship with God, an adventure that has similar characteristics whether we are learning about God''s call to Abraham or how a call to mission in Africa came to a contemporary English teacher nearing retirement.