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404 reviews for:
The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus
Lee Strobel
3.94 AVERAGE
404 reviews for:
The Case for Christ: A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus
Lee Strobel
3.94 AVERAGE
Amazing, cannot recommend highly enough to believers and non-believers alike!
After my Intro to Philosophy class I felt like I needed some mind cleansing. All those crazy philosophical ideas were mostly atheistic or agnostic at best. Some good grounding material in Christianity was the perfect follow up. This book digs deep into the reason to believe that Jesus is who he claimed to be, that his death was real, and that his Resurrection has historical proof. Very good book, that I'll have to read again, and put more work into remembering the proofs he puts forth.
Lee Strobel wasn't a believer - he needed facts to believe in something and he didn't think the Bible had any. After a near-death event caused his wife to become a Christian, Lee felt betrayed since they both agreed to not raise their family in religion. So Lee did what most reporters in his situation would do - he set out to prove God and Jesus did not exist. This is a great story for believers as well as non-believers to read.
I had extreme mixed feelings about this book. I'm a Christian myself, and one who loves researching this Historical Jesus vs. the Biblical Jesus. I say this, because I feel like this book should have been an easy win for me, as it simply reaffirms my Christian beliefs. However, I honestly didn't find it all that convincing. I've read many better books analyzing the arguments for and against the existence and divinity of Jesus Christ, and this was one just mediocre. It is organized into a bunch of interviews Strobel had with different Christian experts. In this I felt was the weakness of the book, because not once does the book take serious consideration for arguments against the general Christian beliefs. Strobel himself, even though he was an atheist, was never an expert in ancient and Biblical teaching, so many of his questions to the experts felt surface level. I guess I just wanted a deeper dive instead of a shallow analysis of the historical reasoning in believing in Jesus Christ. It wasn't a bad book for someone who knows nothing about religion, but it wasn't a great book that I can see, if I had not been Christian, convincing me to become Christian.
"The Case for Christ" is authored by Lee Strobel. Strobel was a legal editor at The Chicago Tribune. As a newspaper man covering crime and courts, Strobel became well versed in evidence, facts, truth, and what it takes to put together a case beyond reasonable doubt. After his wife became a Christian, Strobel endeavored to use his journalistic and legal background to prove whether or not there was a case for Christ (or if he was in good standing continuing on as an atheist).
Spoiler alert: he found the evidence was overwhelming that Jesus Christ was in fact the Messiah as prophesized by the Old Testament.
Each chapter of the book is structured as an interview with an expert giving testimony as part of the case. The idea is that by the end of the book, readers will have heard the evidence and can be the jury to decide the case. Each chapter features plenty of references to other sources, so if a reader wants to study something further, he or she is easily directed to further reading.
Strobel begins each chapter with a little parable of his own about a legal case he had covered and how the evidence presented at that time is the same sort of evidence that will be presented in that chapter of the case for Christ.
Several of the book's chapters (and the evidence presented) include: (1.) eyewitness evidence and testing the biographies of Jesus; (2.) corroborating evidence of Jesus from other sources outside of the Bible; (3.) scientific evidence from archeology; (4.) identity, profile, and psychological evidence of Jesus; (5.) medical evidence examining crucifixion and death; (6.) witness testimony for the missing body, empty tomb, and appearances of Jesus after his death.
I did find that some belief and connecting of the dots required for this case. Its conclusion is not as obvious and air tight as something like D. Tsarnaev being found guilty of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
For example, much reliance is needed in ancient texts. So, in the same way I have to rely on dated material telling me Hannibal crossed the Alps with elephants, the best, but ancient material tells me Jesus was the son of God.
However, attention to detail, ability to debate skeptics, and conviction of Strobel's experts, laid out a solid case that Jesus met all the prophesies of the Old Testament, and changed the culture and practices of thousands of his followers within years of his death. There was no time for his legend or myth to grow beyond what Jesus actually was before being documented in the Bible because several creeds and gospels date back to only shortly after Jesus' death and resurrection.
I found it to be a strong case and would bet that this book would at least give pause to any good atheist.
This book does not get 5 stars primarily because of its age. Published in 1998, this book is now 20 years old. Many of the prominent skeptics and popular arguments of the day against Jesus did not ring a bell to me. So whatever 'Time Magazine' article people were rallying around in 1998 has apparently not held up as well as the Bible has (another point scored in the case for Christ).
Then more personally for me, I was not able to fully grasp this book because of the Bible history alluded to by Strobel that I simply did not know. A reader would do well to brush up on who wrote various books of the Bible? When were they written? etc. Having that basic background would assist readers in going through the case.
Spoiler alert: he found the evidence was overwhelming that Jesus Christ was in fact the Messiah as prophesized by the Old Testament.
Each chapter of the book is structured as an interview with an expert giving testimony as part of the case. The idea is that by the end of the book, readers will have heard the evidence and can be the jury to decide the case. Each chapter features plenty of references to other sources, so if a reader wants to study something further, he or she is easily directed to further reading.
Strobel begins each chapter with a little parable of his own about a legal case he had covered and how the evidence presented at that time is the same sort of evidence that will be presented in that chapter of the case for Christ.
Several of the book's chapters (and the evidence presented) include: (1.) eyewitness evidence and testing the biographies of Jesus; (2.) corroborating evidence of Jesus from other sources outside of the Bible; (3.) scientific evidence from archeology; (4.) identity, profile, and psychological evidence of Jesus; (5.) medical evidence examining crucifixion and death; (6.) witness testimony for the missing body, empty tomb, and appearances of Jesus after his death.
I did find that some belief and connecting of the dots required for this case. Its conclusion is not as obvious and air tight as something like D. Tsarnaev being found guilty of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
For example, much reliance is needed in ancient texts. So, in the same way I have to rely on dated material telling me Hannibal crossed the Alps with elephants, the best, but ancient material tells me Jesus was the son of God.
However, attention to detail, ability to debate skeptics, and conviction of Strobel's experts, laid out a solid case that Jesus met all the prophesies of the Old Testament, and changed the culture and practices of thousands of his followers within years of his death. There was no time for his legend or myth to grow beyond what Jesus actually was before being documented in the Bible because several creeds and gospels date back to only shortly after Jesus' death and resurrection.
I found it to be a strong case and would bet that this book would at least give pause to any good atheist.
This book does not get 5 stars primarily because of its age. Published in 1998, this book is now 20 years old. Many of the prominent skeptics and popular arguments of the day against Jesus did not ring a bell to me. So whatever 'Time Magazine' article people were rallying around in 1998 has apparently not held up as well as the Bible has (another point scored in the case for Christ).
Then more personally for me, I was not able to fully grasp this book because of the Bible history alluded to by Strobel that I simply did not know. A reader would do well to brush up on who wrote various books of the Bible? When were they written? etc. Having that basic background would assist readers in going through the case.
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Although the narrator style was strange to get used to, I really enjoyed this book. It's a good place for non-believers and believers alike to read about historic facts and evidence for the existence, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
More of a 3.5 if not a 4 for me. I enjoyed the book! It’s a nice tool to help you answer questions you might have as a new believer or help you learn new things as someone who has been a believer for longer. I see this book as more of the survey version of the argument many have tried to have for many years. I personally am a believer and enjoyed this book for what it is, a tool to help answer some questions many people ask. By all means this shouldn’t be your one all to end or start any arguments. It’s a decently written book that I enjoyed reading as my first read of the year.
I learned so much from this book... questions I didn’t even know I could be asking were answered. Many of the prominent people of the Bible were explained to me. Growing up in church, we would listen to their stories, but who these people were and why they are so important was never explained. For example, I had no idea the Apostle Paul was Jesus’ brother and previously was EMBARRASSED of who He was claiming to be until he appeared to him after being resurrected.
I recommend anyone and everyone to read this book... don’t believe? Extremely faithful? Somewhere in between?
“... if the evidence points strongly in this direction, it is only rational and logical to follow it into the experimental realm.” Aka try it out for yourself... “It’s the ongoing encounter with the resurrected Christ that happens all over the world.... They all will testify that more than any single thing in their lives, Jesus Christ has changed them.”
A few chapters stood out most to me...
1. Ch. 10; The Fingerprint Evidence; Louis S. Lapides, MDic, ThM; a Jewish man brought up to basically hate Christians, come to love and believe in Jesus, and found a church for Jews and Gentiles finding wholeness in Christ. This chapter felt so personal for some reason... I’m not Jewish, but his journey to believing in Christ felt like many people. Only recently have I come to understand how important Jesus is to the Christian faith, which sounds silly now, but before I thought it was just a way for people to cheesily talk about faith. Yikes. Now I know how important he is, and how he truly embodies love.
2. Ch 11; The Medical Evidence; Alexander Motherwell, MD, PhD; going along with the above chapter and on the topic of Jesus.... Yes, I always knew Jesus died on the cross for our sins, but wow, I did not know HOW horrible he died. Thankfully this is not taught in Sunday School, but the adult Christian SHOULD KNOW. It’s horrible... the worst, most painful way to die you could imagine times 100. It puts love into perspective again. The originally “I’d take a bullet for you.” & now the bullet doesn’t sounds so bad compared to what He did for us, so that we may understand suffering and feel comfort in death knowing we will be raised up.
Anyway, this book changed my faith. I am so grateful.
I recommend anyone and everyone to read this book... don’t believe? Extremely faithful? Somewhere in between?
“... if the evidence points strongly in this direction, it is only rational and logical to follow it into the experimental realm.” Aka try it out for yourself... “It’s the ongoing encounter with the resurrected Christ that happens all over the world.... They all will testify that more than any single thing in their lives, Jesus Christ has changed them.”
A few chapters stood out most to me...
1. Ch. 10; The Fingerprint Evidence; Louis S. Lapides, MDic, ThM; a Jewish man brought up to basically hate Christians, come to love and believe in Jesus, and found a church for Jews and Gentiles finding wholeness in Christ. This chapter felt so personal for some reason... I’m not Jewish, but his journey to believing in Christ felt like many people. Only recently have I come to understand how important Jesus is to the Christian faith, which sounds silly now, but before I thought it was just a way for people to cheesily talk about faith. Yikes. Now I know how important he is, and how he truly embodies love.
2. Ch 11; The Medical Evidence; Alexander Motherwell, MD, PhD; going along with the above chapter and on the topic of Jesus.... Yes, I always knew Jesus died on the cross for our sins, but wow, I did not know HOW horrible he died. Thankfully this is not taught in Sunday School, but the adult Christian SHOULD KNOW. It’s horrible... the worst, most painful way to die you could imagine times 100. It puts love into perspective again. The originally “I’d take a bullet for you.” & now the bullet doesn’t sounds so bad compared to what He did for us, so that we may understand suffering and feel comfort in death knowing we will be raised up.
Anyway, this book changed my faith. I am so grateful.
I remembered being assigned this book i high school and I adored the text. It was interesting reading someone else’s testimony. Seeing someone who used to hate God, begin to love God. Seeing someone who did not believe in Him, start to believe and trust in Him. It was a read that made me smile, as you watch how God impacts another life, as they began their journey searching why we believe.