Belief Matters: Grappling with the Essentials of the Christian Faith [Paperback]

Pete Briscoe (Author), Todd Hillard (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 2009

Millions of Christians have never built a foundation of Bible knowledge. They’re left with vague ideas of what they believe, why they believe, and how to articulate those beliefs. Pete Briscoe presents an innovative way to make theology memorable, meaningful, and relevant.

Briscoe divides the Apostles Creed into 16 key phrases and uses a clever M.A.P.S. system (Meditate, Apply, Plot, and Speak) to explain each point and to help readers:

• Identify key Bible passages that support their beliefs
• Explain every major theological aspect of their faith
• Discuss the significance of their faith with those who believe differently
• Explore the wonders of Christianity by experiencing the reality of God and Jesus
• Examine theology without intimidation and with confidence

Readers will discover how greatly belief matters: belief is real, belief is influential, and belief is life–changing. Ideal for churches, groups, and individuals ready for an awakening.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Harvest House Publishers (February 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0736924558
• ISBN-13: 978-0736924559
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,124,847 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Resource, March 22, 2009

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BookBargainsandPreviews.com "www.bookbargains... (New York) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Belief Matters: Grappling with the Essentials of the Christian Faith (Paperback)

This is an approachable guide to the Apostles Creed. The authors liberally intersperse Questions, Definitions, Quotations and Contemplations throughout the text. These are good additions and certainly make it a usable group resource. Belief Matters is easy to read and though informative it is not heavy and is definitely aimed at the broadest market possible, which is actually a good thing. This really is a good book for pastors, group leaders, Sunday School teachers, or even just anyone wanting to give more study to what really is one of the fundamental creeds in the Christian Tradition.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great for beginners, July 16, 2011

By 

Michael A. Johnson (San Jose, California) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Belief Matters: Grappling with the Essentials of the Christian Faith (Paperback)

While it is basically good for all types of readers, it is especially good for beginning Christians so they really get a good grounding in the Christian faith. It covers just what is the important parts and skips lesser and contraverial ones that are argued between denoninations. I found the writing style to be very good.

4.0 out of 5 stars Great introduction to the basics of the faith, January 8, 2010

By 

Chad Lawrence (Lewisville, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Belief Matters: Grappling with the Essentials of the Christian Faith (Paperback)

This book is an examination of the Apostle's Creed, and steps through each line and phrase to explain what the significance is and why it was included. It is a great resource for people who are new to the faith or who have questions about Christian beliefs. The author has a very casual style that is easy to read, interspersed with personal stories that help to explain his point. Even if you're not a big reader, you can get a lot out of this book due to the easy to understand way the information is presented.

My only quibble with the book is that it is peppered with little asides, that sometimes correlate to the text, but sometimes don't. They break up what would otherwise be very good flow, and I found them very distracting. I think this is more of an editing issue than a writing issue, and it is certainly nothing that should discourage you from reading this book.