The Case for Christ (2pk) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "When I first met shy and soft-spoken Leo Carter, he was a seventeen-year-old veteran of Chicago's grittiest neighborhood..." (more)
Key Phrases: New Testament, Jesus Seminar, Old Testament (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The Case for Christ records Lee Strobel's attempt to "determine if there's credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God." The book consists primarily of interviews between Strobel (a former legal editor at the Chicago Tribune) and biblical scholars such as Bruce Metzger. Each interview is based on a simple question, concerning historical evidence (for example, "Can the Biographies of Jesus Be Trusted?"), scientific evidence, ("Does Archaeology Confirm or Contradict Jesus' Biographies?"), and "psychiatric evidence" ("Was Jesus Crazy When He Claimed to Be the Son of God?"). Together, these interviews compose a case brief defending Jesus' divinity, and urging readers to reach a verdict of their own. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Review

A Seasoned Journalist Chases Down the Biggest Story in History The Project: Determine if there’s credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the Son of God. The Reporter: Lee Strobel, educated at Yale Law School, award-winning former legal editor of the Chicago Tribune—with a background of atheism. The Experts: A dozen scholars, with doctorates from Cambridge, Princeton, Brandeis, and other top-flight institutions, who are recognized authorities on Jesus. The Story: Retracing his own spiritual journey, Strobel cross-examines the experts with tough, point-blank questions: How reliable is the New Testament? Does evidence exist for Jesus outside the Bible? Is there any reason to believe the resurrection was an actual historical event? . . .

This remarkable book reads like a captivating, fast-paced novel. But it’s not fiction. It’s a riveting quest for the truth about history’s most compelling figure. What will your verdict be in The Case for Christ -- Publisher --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 1728 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan; 2 book edition (September 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310226058
• ISBN-13: 978-0310226055
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (688 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #397,067 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

122 of 134 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One piece of the God puzzle, March 20, 2006

By	sablouwho "sablouwho" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus (Paperback)

This book offers a "Cliff Notes" like approach in that it condenses the work of many leading Christian scholars into an easy to read format. It is a case FOR Christ, not a true courtroom "hear both sides of the issue" book.

Some other reviewers disliked the lack of 2-sided arguments (there are no interviews w/leading atheists and/or Jesus Seminar thinkers). Being that the title is the case FOR Christ, I did not hold this expectation and was not bothered by this. However, as a staunch skeptic who was not raised with a Christian background, I supplied much of the case AGAINST Christ in my own head.

WHAT I LIKED: The book presents a good introduction of Christian scholarship and answers to common objections regarding the historicity of the Gospels--objections which already existed in my own mind. Suggestions for further reading (primary sources by the interview subjects) are included for those who desire a more thorough scholarly approach.

WHAT I DID NOT LIKE: I felt the "re-creation" of Strobel's own search was un-necessary and a bit contrived, as were the comments he interjected when he was interviewing his subjects. Perhaps that is a carry over from his journalism days. I would have prefered a more straightforward interview, but this matter of taste is small and overall I found the book worthwhile despite these stylistic objections.

HOW IT AFFECTED ME: I came to this book as a very skeptical, non-practicing agnostic Jew (who was raised w/a religious education), fresh from my reading CS Lewis' Mere Christianity (which I highly recommend). Book 1 of Lewis, with his logic/philosophy helped me see that the existence of God logically made sense, but I did not yet know *which* version of a monotheistic God was correct--the rest of his book didn't resonate for me on the first reading as it dealt specifically w/Christianity. Strobel's book answered my questions regarding history/fact as it related to the New Testament.

Was The Case for Christ "made" for me in this book? Partially, yes. And partially by Lewis too, which I reread after reading Strobel.

My ultimate conversion came through study of these and other sources, which led me to literally ask God to show himself to me in a way that I would be sure that it was indeed God. I mention this because I believe that for a stubborn skeptic like me, no single source (with the possible exception of the Bible, LOL) would have been able to convince me on its own. Rather, it was a combination of sources/experiences that did so. These included reading the above mentioned books, attending a few church services even while I was still very skeptical, opening myself to the possibility that I had been mistaken in my belief that God didn't matter (if there was even a God to begin with) and literally asking God to let me know him if He was indeed real.

Ultimately, the proof came in a manner that goes beyond scientific verifcation or re-creation. Critics of Christianity and of this and other apologetic works make a good point when they claim God cannot be proved scientifically. I agree. God is beyond science. Scientific or logical methods such as textural criticism, formal logic, archaeology, and so on, can help close the gap in accepting the possibility of God's realness, but ultimately, the gap, at least for me, was completely and finally bridged not by book or proof, but by an experience that cannot be tested scientifically nor recreated in a lab. Skeptics, atheists or agnostics who deep down are married to their viewpoints--no matter what--will likely not budge, and may label the non-testability of my "proof experience" as suspect. I don't begrudge that and would have said the same thing. It had to have it happen to me first-hand before I would believe, and I was able to keep God at bay for years due to my own certainty that this God-stuff was for dummies. I was smart and logical and would have none of that God nonsense. So, this experience came as a big surprise--one that in retrospect was very welcome.

Your mileage in reading this book will vary. If you want to learn something, you can. If you are dead set against learning anything new that might be different from what you already know that you know, it is almost guaranteed that this book will have nothing to offer you. I realize that God's allowing us to come to Him only through our own free will sounds like a cop out and is criticized by non-believers as an all too convenient excuse, but as a former non-believer myself (who was proud of it and who ridiculed that free will stuff too), I say, so be it.

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars OK book, but won't convince skeptics., July 21, 2006

By	James M. Williams "jancer1" (Indianapolis, IN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus (Paperback)

I read this book a couple of years ago, when I considered myself a skeptic. Now, I consider myself a Christian. This book is not what convinced me.

If you read the reviews, they are very telling. All the Christians love the book, all the skeptics (whether they be atheist, agnostic, secular humanist, or whatever) hate the book. Everyone is biased; it is impossible not to be. People come into a situation with preconceived notions, and will believe what they want to believe, even when presented with facts that seemingly contradict their views.

Thus, Christians can read this book and come away from it with the view that it reaffirms their faith; skeptics come away from it with the view that it reaffirms their skepticism.

Trying to make the case for faith based on historical and scientific evidence is flawed in and of itself. That's why they call it FAITH. Believing in the divinity of Christ is a leap of faith that one has to take to become a Christian - if it could be proven by scientific and historical evidence, then it wouldn't be faith at all. That's the whole point of it.

I think examining evidence for the existence of the historical Jesus is fine, but when you throw in the key issue of divinity and the resurrection, that's where faith comes in.

The reason I believe in the divinity of Christ has to do with what I feel in my heart, and the major changes that came about in my life due to the change in spiritual perspective that occurred when I went from "skeptic" to "believer". It really is about a personal relationship with God. It has absolutely nothing to do with the church, which is a severely flawed creation organized by man, who has the innate ability to pervert and corrupt everything he is involved with. Likewise, personal faith has very little to do with historical and scientific evidence.

It's very similar to being in love - no one can prove that they're in love - likewise, you can't disprove it. You can't even prove or disprove the existence of love. But you feel it in your heart - you know when you're in love. That's what faith is to me, and to millions of other Christians the world over.

59 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Opened doors, March 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus (Paperback)

I read this book a few years ago while just investigating christianity. I was very skeptical, and had all kinds of doubts, based on my knowledge of evolution, my public school education, exposure to the discovery channel, PBS, etc., which all tend to support a mere mythological view of christianity. I read the whole book in a matter of days, and was very impressed with the amount of topics that were satisfactorily covered in this book.

I'm not going to say I gave my life to Christ immediately, but this book opened the door for me to take Christ seriously, and to apply the same skepticism toward scientific theory that I had previously applied only toward religion. I eventually became convinced of the reality of God and the truth of the gospels, and have since trusted my life to Christ gratefully. I've bought several copies of this book and given it as a gift to family members and other non-believers in hopes that it will open doors for them as it did me.

This book isn't perfect, but its a very readable exploration into christian apologetics for a newcomer. I read The Verdict recently (the book written to counter this one), and it was surprisingly weak. Nearly every major argument in The Verdict was based on the same faulty logic (argument from silence). I started highlighting major logical fallacies from the beginning, and got about halfway through that book before my hand had turned yellow and I decided it just wasn't challenging enough. The sheer inability of the author of The Verdict to adequately challenge the arguments in this book are a testament to its quality. I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone, along with Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis.