First Religion

"I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents..." So begins the first book in the Book of Mormon. In this brief theological introduction, philosopher and theologian Joseph M. Spencer investigates the central themes and purposes of a book he calls a "theological masterpiece". What was Nephi trying to accomplish with his writings? How can readers/listeners today make better sense of Nephi's words? What can an ancient seer offer readers/listeners in the 21st century? Spencer introduces a Nephi for our moment, a complex prophet with an urgent message for a world in turmoil.

Why don't Christians in the church today keep the biblical sabbath? Was the observance of the seventh-day sabbath done away with, canceled, changed, replaced, fulfilled, made obsolete, suppressed, hijacked, or simply forgotten? Even if you already know the answers, you'll want to listen to this book. From Sabbath to Sabbath approaches the question of the sabbath from a completely new messianic Jewish perspective.

A Swan in Heaven blends thought-provoking narrative with stirring afterlife messages from a 16-year-old boy who began communicating with his mother telepathically after his death. What makes this account unique in the world of channeled books is that during his life, this extraordinary child was severely disabled and unable to speak. But after death, his language was fluent and his words were insightful, inspired, and eloquent.

The West has taken to meditation with great enthusiasm. We contemplate. We concentrate. We embrace mindfulness techniques and a multitude of mantras. We have undertaken to “do” meditation. The Aspects of Meditation series is comprised of brief, precious texts in which Osho shows us the core of meditation is not about sitting silently or chanting a mantra. It is, instead, a question of understanding the subtle workings of the mind. In book one, Osho reintroduces us to our body, focusing on the “root” of the human, the soul.

Cristof needs Vicki to be the woman of his dreams. He longs to experience the release of complete surrender, to lose himself completely in the loving worship he longs to give....

Historians, scholars, and theologians agree that first-century Christianity was a sect of Judaism, but where does that information place first-century Gentile Christians? What did it mean to be a Gentile who practiced Judaism in the days of the apostles? These are not just academic questions; they are at the heart of today's growing Messianic Jewish movement. How do non-Jews engage in the modern Messianic Jewish revival?

Yeshua Matters is the story of a pastor who discovers that Jesus Christ was not just a Jewish person, but a practicing Jew, a teacher of Judaism - a rabbi, known during his earthly ministry as Rabbi Yeshua of Nazareth. Yet despite this emerging scholarly consensus, Jesus has lost his Jewishness in the collective heart and mind of the church. We simply don't imagine, interpret, or follow him as a part of the broader tapestry of Jewish life and history.

Why must everything be so black and white? Like many of us, Derwin Gray is weary of the racial divide in our society. He longs to see hurts healed, wrongs corrected, and trust replace distrust. The good news is that the Bible has a lot to say about how to heal our persistent racial divides. In this book, popular Bible teacher Derwin Gray walks us through Scripture, showing us the heart of God—how God from the beginning envisioned a reconciled multiethnic family in loving community, reflecting his beauty and healing presence in the world. This message is central to the gospel itself.

This story teaches us that our intentions matter most to Allah, who knows what’s truly in our hearts. This story is authentic, told to us by the most noble of the messengers, Prophet Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and was collected by Imam Muslim (may Allah have mercy on him) in his Sahih.

The year was 1922: World War I had just come to a close, the Ottoman Empire was in decline, and Asa Jennings, a YMCA worker from upstate New York, had just arrived in the quiet coastal city of Smyrna to teach sports to boys. Several hundred miles to the east in Turkey's interior, tensions between Greeks and Turks had boiled over into deadly violence. Mustapha Kemal, now known as Ataturk, and his Muslim army soon advanced into Smyrna, a Christian city, where a half a million terrified Greek and Armenian refugees had fled in a desperate attempt to escape his troops.

This book is a collection of inspirational sermons given across North America following the 9-11 terrorist attacks. All were written on short notice by pastors who were themselves experiencing 9-11 with the rest of us. They serve to bring us all back to those dark days. Hearing the sermon's and the pastors' comments help you recall and experience the feelings we all felt in September 2001.

Inayat's Song is the story of a young man who struggled with the great questions of existence. Who is God? And who am I? And what is our relationship? Inayat Khan's first-person narrative is read by award-winning actor Tom Alter. Inayat Khan was a gold medal-winning musician, a child prodigy from a musical family, including the renowned musician and music educator, Maulbakhsh Shole Khan. Along with his music education, he showed an aptitude for mystical training and was taken as a pupil of Sufi Master Abu Hashim Madani of Hyderabad.

Andrew Forrest unfolds a simple framework that applies to every single relationship in our lives. Listeners will be inspired and prepared to risk and reach out to others, even or especially when they are afraid of those who are different or when they risk being misunderstood. They will learn how—if they choose—to transform those relationships into friendships of mutual respect. More than that, Love Goes First provides profound insights into the love of God, and they will have a new awe and appreciation for the steps God is taking to redeem the world he has made.

Every person inherits a system of beliefs. Maybe yours came from community, or church, or society, or your parents. But one day you reach a breaking point. You look at the rituals and traditions and worship and theology and it all seems foggy. Foreign. Strange. You wonder why you believe what you believe. If you even believe anymore... Brothers Ryan and Josh Shook reached that breaking point. Their book, Firsthand, is a smart, honest and deeply felt journey that invites you to leave behind handed-down beliefs and find authentic faith.

In 'My First Talk with God,' we meet a little girl named Kesha, who sees her grandma praying and wonders how she can talk to God, too. Her grandma first teaches her a simple prayer then helps her learn how to pray from her own heart, and together, they share a very special moment. When little Kesha tries praying by herself for the very first time, she's thrilled! She discovers she can talk to God anytime she wants, and it feels like making a new friend who is always there to listen.

The little mountain hamlet of Bryson City, North Carolina, offers more than dazzling vistas. For Walt Larimore, a young "flatlander" physician setting up his first practice, the town presents its peculiar challenges as well. Schooled in the latest medical technology, the eager doctor—his wife, Barb, and two-year-old daughter, Kate, in tow—is about to discover that there are some things in rural practice for which medical school just hadn’t prepared him. But he’s about to learn.

The First Apocalypse of James was written in the Coptic language around the second half of the third century CE. It is regarded as part of the New Testament apocrypha. The text was first discovered in the last part of the month of December in 1945. It was found among 52 other Gnostic Christian texts contained in 13 codices or scrolls.

Introduce your child to a variety of classic Bible stories with this enchanting baby book. From Noah's Ark and Jonah and the Whale, to the story of Moses and the birth of Jesus, this book contains 14 of your favorite Bible stories to share and listen aloud to with your child.

Embark on a journey through the Book of Genesis, the foundation of the Bible, with Joseph Lumpkin's in-depth study. This deep exploration offers a complete history of the timeless stories of creation, humanity, and their divine purpose.

When the Holy Spirit first poured out in the 1730s and 1740s, Jonathan Edwards was at the forefront. The United States had not yet declared independence from England, and was an ever-changing landscape of immigrants from all over the world. These cultures brought an array of false idols, religions, witchcraft, and more. A spiritual war had begun in the nation as the devil attempted to undermine what God was doing in the land.