Russell wants every Christian to use the Bible to ignite a brandishing flame
within the heart and mind. As a professor of Bible at Talbot School of Theology
and chairman of biblical studies and theology at Biola University, Russell's
teaching experience has spanned 30 years. His passion for the Bible, and the
life-changing work that can result from studying and understanding it, is
contagious. Russell encourages readers to use five steps to effectively
interpret Scripture: identify the genre of the biblical passage (since specific
rules apply to different types of writing), determine the main theme and
condense it into one sentence, make observations about the structure of the
passage, discover the meaning of the Scripture and internalize how it affects
us and, finally, make personal application to our lives. Throughout this
13-chapter text, Russell overviews each biblical book's primary and secondary
contributions, then reflects upon the internal applications gleaned from the
reading. He takes readers through various books of the Bible using a top-down
approach, descending from the overarching biblical genre through the unit,
paragraph, sentence and eventually to a single word. Russell's admonition to
get serious about playing with biblical fire will likely motivate the
serious-minded professional, student or layperson. (June) Copyright 2000
Cahners Business Information.
