Explore God

Crossover Helping Australian Baptists share Jesus: Resourcing churches in effective communication of the gospel, equipping pastors and leaders, and facilitating mission.

exploregod.com An ever-expanding collect ion of original and curated content. Administered from Texas USA, but the larger team is made up of writers, artists, storytellers, filmmakers, theologians, entrepreneurs, contractors, pastors, partners, and volunteers from around the world (including Australia’s Michael Frost).

The Alpha Course

alpha.org  Alpha is a series of interactive sessions that freely explore the basics of the Christian faith. It runs in churches, bars, coffee shops and homes all around the globe. Typically Alpha has around ten sessions and includes food, a short talk and a discussion at the end where participants can share their thoughts. Rostrevor Baptist has very extensive experience in the use of this course. The excellent Alpha Youth was also launched in 2014.

Christianity Explored

christianityexplored.org  Christianity Explored originated in All Souls Church, Langham Place, London, which produces courses and other materials to help people understand from the Bible who Jesus is, why he came, and what it means to follow him. Their materials have been translated into 20 languages and are being used in 60 countries in all kinds of churches. The basic course is around 10 sessions that feature a ~15 minute video and discussion. Participants are encouraged to read Mark’s gospel, which is the focus of most of the sessions. Andrew Turner has seen this course well used at Glen Osmond and West Beach churches. Free resources for running the course here

Towards Belief

Towards Belief Produced by Australia’s Olive Tree Media and presented by Karl Faase (former Senior Pastor of Gymea Baptist), this 10-episode course focuses on 10 “belief blockers” – reasons many people have lost confidence in the Church and its message. Karl is a highly regarded interviewer and host, with a friendly yet probing style. He has hosted The Men’s Series, The Family Series plus numerous television specials.

We are building a link library of  books that are helpful for enquirers. If you would like to suggest a book to add to this list, please let us know here

Taking the Plunge: Baptism and Belonging to Jesus
Author: Andrew Turner  Category: Point of Commitment   Price: ~$7
Blurb: The news about Jesus Christ is so very, very good – but what to do with it? It’s not just a nice story to keep in the back of our minds. It’s a declaration of love and a proposal. This book is about responding with a big Yes to God, and the remarkable way we’ve been given to do that – not merely with words, but with our whole bodies – in baptism. Just what are we saying Yes to? What does it look like? What difference does it make? And what are we getting ourselves into? Here’s everything you ever wanted to know about baptism without getting wet … yet!

One.Life – Jesus Calls, We Follow
Author: Scot McKnight Category: Discipleship-Evangelism, Vocation Price: ~$17
Blurb: In One.Life, Scot McKnight offers a manifesto of Christian faith that beckons readers out of the rut of religious rituals to the high places of Christian living. What does it look like to follow Jesus? Find out what it means to embrace the vision of God’s kingdom in a way that awakens your finest dreams and shapes your entire life.

Simply Christian – Why Christianity Makes Sense
Author: Tom Wright  Category: Apologetic  Price: ~$15
Blurb: Not since C.S. Lewis’s Mere Christianity has such a wise and informed leader taken the time to explain what Christianity is and how it is practiced. In Simply Christian, renowned biblical scholar and Anglican bishop N.T. Wright makes a case for Christianity from the ground up. Walking the reader through the Christian faith step-by-step and question by question, Wright’s Simply Christian offers explanations for even the toughest doubt-filled skeptics, leaving believers with a reason for renewed faith.

The Case for Grace: A Journalist Explores the Evidence of Transformed Lives
Author: Lee Strobel  Category: Testimony Apologetic Price: ~$15
Blurb: The Case for a Creator explored the scientific evidence for God; The Case for Christ investigated the historical evidence for Jesus; The Case for Faith responded to eight major objections about Christianity; The Case for The Real Jesus refuted the current challenges to the Bible and Christ … Now, in The Case for Grace, Lee Strobel crafts a compelling and highly personal experiential case for God, focusing on God’s transforming work in the lives of men and women today. Writing with unusual candor, Lee draws upon his own journey from atheism to Christianity to explore the depth and breadth of God’s redeeming love for spiritually wayward people. He travels thousands of miles to capture the inspiring stories of everyday people whose values have been radically changed and who have discovered the “how” and “why” behind God’s amazing grace. You’ll encounter racists, addicts, and even murderers who have found new hope and purpose. You’ll meet once-bitter people who have received God’s power to forgive those who have harmed them—and, equally amazing, people mired in guilt who have discovered that they can even forgive themselves.

The Jesus Storybook Bible
Author: Sally Lloyd-Jones Category: Children Price: ~$16
Blurb: The Jesus Storybook Bible tells the Story beneath all the stories in the Bible. At the centre of the Story is a baby, the child upon whom everything will depend. Every story whispers his name. From Noah to Moses to the great King David – every story points to him. He is like the missing piece in a puzzle – the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together. From the Old Testament through the New Testament, as the Story unfolds, children will pick up the clues and piece together the puzzle.

The Reason for God – Belief in an Age of Skepticism
Author: Tim Keller  Category: Apologetic  Price: ~$10
Blurb: Timothy Keller, the founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, addresses the frequent doubts that skeptics and non-believers bring to religion. Using literature, philosophy, anthropology, pop culture, and intellectual reasoning, Keller explains how the belief in a Christian God is, in fact, a sound and rational one. To true believers he offers a solid platform on which to stand against the backlash toward religion spawned by the Age of Skepticism. And to skeptics, atheists, and agnostics he provides a challenging argument for pursuing the reason for God.

There is a God – How the World’s Most Notorious Athiest Changed His Mind
Author: Anthony Flew Category: Critique of Athiesm  Price: ~$10
Review by Scott Berry: The book starts with why Flew is so important in the history of modern atheism thus giving weight to his story. The opening 3 chapters are about his background and how he became an atheist. The following 7 chapters go on to explain why he changed his mind, stating that “I must follow where the evidence leads” It finishes with 2 appendices; one critiques the new atheists and their complaints and the final one giving NT Wright a chance to speak on Jesus as God’s self revelation and the importance of the resurrection. The book is in the most part engaging but at times lost me. It’s reasonably academic but does not strike me as brilliant, more just an explanation of why he changed. He is open to Christianity but the books credibility benefits from the fact that he does not to seem to have decided on Christianity for certain but has just turned his back on atheism.

Growing Local Missionaries – Book by Dan Stiegerwald
Growing Local Missionaries is about real action for the good of the world – equipping people to move in their neighbourhoods and cities with confidence in both their God-given identity and their capacity to pass on practical missionary skills.

Unofficial Chaplain: A Handbook for Everyday Service to the People Around You by Warren Crank
The ‘Unofficial Chaplain‘ is a simple, cohesive and refreshing model for living an intentional and missional Christian life in an increasingly secular world. It covers eight biblically-based field-tested chaplaincy attitudes and approaches.

The New Parish – Book by Paul Sparks
The New Parish – How Neighbourhood Churches are Transforming Mission, Discipleship and Community  “When . . . faith communities begin connecting together, in and for the neighborhood, they learn to depend on God for strength to love, forgive and show grace like never before. . . . The gospel becomes so much more tangible and compelling when the local church is actually a part of the community, connected to the struggles of the people, and even the land itself.”Paul Sparks, Tim Soerens and Dwight J. Friesen have seen–in cities, suburbs and small towns all over North America–how powerful the gospel can be when it takes root in the context of a place, at the intersection of geography, demography, economy and culture. This is not a new idea–the concept of a parish is as old as Paul’s letters to the various communities of the ancient church. But in an age of dislocation and disengagement, the notion of a church that knows its place and gives itself to where it finds itself is like a breath of fresh air, like a sign of new life.

Life on Mission – Book/Video Series by Tim Harlow
Life on Mission is a Book and Video series by Tim Harlow. Video series is 6x ~15minute videos plus guided discussion. The LIFE ON MISSION kit offers clear biblical teaching and provocative discussion questions designed to empower small groups to share their faith with people in their own backyards. This six-week study looks at topics like how to connect with unbelievers, how serving others can open their hearts to the Gospel, and how paying attention to our own spiritual growth can strengthen our witness.

Book: Reimagining Evangelism  by Rick Richardson
Reimagining Evangelism: Inviting Friends on a Spiritual Journey
[~$15] Finalist, Fourth Annual Outreach Resource of the Year (2006) Sometimes talking about Jesus with your friends can feel like trying to close a deal on a sales call, pushing something on people they may not really want. Imagine being free to be yourself and free for the Spirit to work in you. Imagine that it doesn’t depend on you alone but that you can be an important part of a witnessing community. Imagine telling people stories instead of trying to download content. Here is your invitation to reimagine what evangelism could be for you.

Becoming a Contagious Christian
contagiouschristian.com [Video series ~$35 at Koorong] Developed by Willow Creek in the USA, this popular training program has been completely updated and revised and can now be used in the classic seminar format, or as a church-wide campaign.

Mateship Evangelism
The Natural Evangelism Course – This resource was developed by Australia’s Steve Ingram for use in his own church, and has been shared here. The focus is on evangelism through existing relationships.