I just finished reading Killing Jesus: A History by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. So the anchor of The O’Reilly Factor has once again teamed up with the New York Times best-selling author to produce a third “killing” book. It follows bestsellers Killing Kennedy and Killing Lincoln. The reviews have been very positive. This new release has only been in the stores a short while and already it’s jumped to the number-two spot on the USA Today bestseller list.
From the start, the writers state that this is not meant to be a religious book. Though they are admittedly Roman Catholic, their motive is not evangelism. Then again, it’s probably not possible to write a book about Jesus without touching on basic spiritual questions. For my money, it was a great read, and I recommend it highly. If I were a pastor, I would tell my people to get a copy and read it.
My thinking is that many people will be open to talking about the book because of its popularity, and “I don’t want to be uninformed.”
Then again, I found it extremely helpful, especially in terms of better understanding the political world of Jesus’ time. This included not only the Roman influence, but background on the leading Jewish families also. Long-standing questions were answered for me, such as why our Lord was so careful in the way He presented Himself.
I can also imagine that Killing Jesus will prompt many people to go back and read the gospels. All this is good.
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