Customer Reviews

Christianity 101

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This book clarifies many confusing and sometimes misunderstood aspects of Christian theology, including the triune nature of God and the individual aspects of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, God's original plan for man and how it was impacted by the Fall, and God's plan for man's salvation. I found that it filled a lot of gaps in my knowledge, even though I've been a Christian since childhood and have read and studied the Bible.

Dr. Bilezikian's introduction to basic Christian doctrine is a wonderful distillation of eight basic doctrines of the Church. The book is very easy to read, does not get bogged down in technical debate and does not add endless Scripture references that add little to the point in question. Starting with the doctrine of Revelation, working through each person of the trinity, the church and end times. Bilezikian shows that he has thought through the issues with the question of the average layperson in mind. Bilezikian's chapter on the church is nothing if not inspiring and his chapter on End Times adds a nice touch to a beleaguered area of theology.

I did find some blemishes in the work. At times, Bilezikian jumps to conclusions that are not supported by his argumentation. For instance, on page 16, he makes the claim: "Since the truth of the Old Testament is partial and incomplete, the Old Testament cannot have the final word on any aspect of revelation, unless it is confirmed as such in the New Testament." That is a pretty hard pill to swallow, particularly when one remembers that 2 Tim 3:16 originally referred to the Hebrew Scriptures! More than once, I found myself asking "why" or saying "so what?" after he made some disconnected bold claim (see pp. 156, 183, 201, etc.). His section on predestination was weak in its argumentation, for anyone who has actually studied the issue. Bilezikian argues for corporate election and a self-limitation of God's foreknowledge not unlike the open-theists. It is an interesting argument, but it would have been more helpful to show the reader its weaknesses as well as its strengths. There were a couple of typos in the book ("gopsel" on p.153 etc.) but none were serious. The only major editing flaw was the omission of the discussion questions for chapter 7 (church). I emailed Zondervan about this and a day later the questions were in my inbox -- I was impressed.

Enough nit-picking, all in all, this is a great introductory text with "small-group" or "freshman" written all over it. If you want some basic doctrine in an accessible style, Christianity 101 is the book for you.

Dr. Bilezikian's introduction to basic Christian doctrine is a wonderful distillation of eight basic doctrines of the Church. The book is very easy to read, does not get bogged down in technical debate and does not add endless Scripture references that add little to the point in question. Starting with the doctrine of Revelation, working through each person of the trinity, the church and end times. Bilezikian shows that he has thought through the issues with the question of the average layperson in mind. Bilezikian's chapter on the church is nothing if not inspiring and his chapter on End Times adds a nice touch to a beleaguered area of theology.

I did find some blemishes in the work. At times, Bilezikian jumps to conclusions that are not supported by his argumentation. For instance, on page 16, he makes the claim: "Since the truth of the Old Testament is partial and incomplete, the Old Testament cannot have the final word on any aspect of revelation, unless it is confirmed as such in the New Testament." That is a pretty hard pill to swallow, particularly when one remembers that 2 Tim 3:16 originally referred to the Hebrew Scriptures! More than once, I found myself asking "why" or saying "so what?" after he made some disconnected bold claim (see pp. 156, 183, 201, etc.). His section on predestination was weak in its argumentation, for anyone who has actually studied the issue. Bilezikian argues for corporate election and a self-limitation of God's foreknowledge not unlike the open-theists. It is an interesting argument, but it would have been more helpful to show the reader its weaknesses as well as its strengths.

There were a couple of typos in the book ("gopsel" on p.153 etc.) but none were serious. The only major editing flaw was the omission of the discussion questions for chapter 7 (church). I emailed Zondervan about this and a day later the questions were in my inbox -- I was impressed.

Enough nit-picking, all in all, this is a great introductory text with "small-group" or "freshman" written all over it. If you want some basic doctrine in an accessible style, Christianity 101 is the book for you.

I checked Christianity 101 out of our local library because it was one of the few books in the "Christianity" section that was not heretical. I expected the same old poorly laid out rehashing of doctrine in a sedative format. I figured it was worth a try though. I was suprised. It seems that someone duped our humanist local library into actually buying a useful book! The author makes these eight doctrines come alive. I recommend this book to those new Christians who want to build a solid foundation for their faith as well as all those seeking out the truths of Christianity.

I found Christianity 101 to be rather a tedious reading book written from a clearly neo-evangelical perspective. Provided that one affirms that position, he or she may find this book useful. Perhaps my principal concern is that this book was written for the newer Christian who may not be aware of other positions. Bilezikian often argues in such a manner that the reader would assume his perspective is unassailable, when in fact he simply fails to note arguments to the contrary. This tendency is particularly noticeable in his dealings with eschatology. In this regard, the widely held conservative envangelical position is dealt with in an almost disdainful manner.

In sum, there are other books available which are more academically neutral (and, I would say, honest).

Even though this edition was written in 1993, the content is still relevant now as it was then. This book doesnt pretend to be an academic theological exercise into Christianity but rather Bilezikian presents Christianity in a very straight foward manner. If you want to begin learning about Christianity then this book is a great start. Bilezkian explores what Christians really believe about God, Jesus, The Holy Spirit, the nature of human beings identity, Salvation, the Church and what will happen at the end of time. This book has a lot to offer people exploring Christianity and those people who have embarked on a life with Jesus Christ as the focus of their lives. Try this book, you wont be disappointed.

Christianity 101: Your Guide to Eight Basic Christian Beliefs by Gilbert Bilezikian

This book presents an overview of the generally recognized doctrines which are basic to the Christian Faith. Potential readers should be aware that this presentation is from the Arminian theological perspective, not the Calvinistic or Universalistic perspectives. This author, Bilezikian, typical of Arminians, contends that the Bible teaches that God desires all people to be saved, but God cannot get everyone saved since people have free will which God will not violate. He clearly states that not all people will be saved and that the "saved" can lose their salvation. Actually, this theological school of thought contends that the vast majority of humans will be condemned by God to eternal hell fire for their refusal to accept Christ as their Savior since Jesus is the only way of salvation. This author acknowledges the obvious unfairness of people being condemned to hell who have never even heard of Christ and, therefore, had no chance to be saved.

Bilezikian reveals his compassion for lost souls by stating that God may make an exception in such cases. He, however, totally misrepresents the universalistic view of salvation by saying, "This is the belief that all humans will finally be saved regardless of whether they sought righteousness or rejected it." There is a huge difference between saying that God will not save unbelievers and saying, as Christian Universalists contend, all unbelievers shall, of their own free will, eventually be saved by becoming believers in Christ.

As to the fate of people forever condemned to hell, it first appeared that this author believes in the annihilation of unbelievers so that they will cease to exist rather than God torturing them forever in literal fire. He uses these terms: "Universal renewal by purging of the universe by fire," "Evil and everything contaminated by it will be purged by fire.," "...incineration will be the most merciful thing that could happen...," "Everything unredeemed will disappear into physical nothingness through this cosmic cremation.," "...The author of all evil [Satan] is forcibly immersed in the ultimate baptism of fire.," "Satan, evil, and death disappear into eternal oblivion, out of the presence of God." In spite of these strong statements on extinction, Bilezikian ends up saying that unbelievers may be tormented for ever. He stated, "In other words, one form of punishment suggests instant annihilation, and the other, the suffering of eternal separation." He isn't sure.

Actually, the terms "universal purging by fire," "purged by fire," "baptism of fire," can logically be applied to the Christian Universalistic concept of hell as God's cosmic recycling center wherein sinners are purified by fire. The Bible says that God is a consuming fire (Heb. 12:29). Christian Universalism articulates the obvious truth that all of God's attributes are good including fire since God, as fire, will consumed sin, thereby, purifying sinners. Although annihilation is infinitely more merciful than eternal torture in literal fire, the most merciful thing God can do to unbelievers is not to annihilate them but to purify them and lovingly draw them to Himself, without violating anyone's free will, through his amazing grace which ultimately proves to be irresistible!


Boyd C. Purcell, Ph.D., Author of
Spiritual Terrorism: Spiritual Abuse
from the Womb to the Tomb

Spiritual Terrorism: Spiritual Abuse from the Womb to the Tomb

This book is OK, but it isn't that good. l thought it was confusing and hard to read. But a few chapters were fantastic! lt could have been better, but it was a pretty good book.

Was very disappointed in the condition of the book. It was written and drawn in to the point it was hard to read. Will not order from that supplier again.

This is a great book. An invaluable reference for bible teachers, students and everyone who wants a down to earth explanation of heavenly things. I love the authors liberating view on Predestination, On Baptism of the Holy Spirit, on Community in the church, on the role of women in the church, the end times made simple, and a view of hell that makes sense. The author has a high regard for scripture but yet is able to bring much liberation to the church in the this age. The references to further reading throughout the book are also great in that they lead to works that give further light on specific subjects. I've read numerous books on Christian Belief and this is the one I keep coming back to.