Jesus Is Risen: Paul and the Early Church

by David Limbaugh

Originally confined to a small circle of believers centered in Jerusalem, Christianity's stunning transformation into the world's most popular faith is one of history's greatest, most miraculous stories.

In Jesus Is Risen, #1 bestselling author David Limbaugh provides a riveting account of the birth of Christianity. Using the Book of Acts and six New Testament epistles as his guide, Limbaugh takes readers on an exhilarating journey through the sorrow and suffering, as well as the joys and triumphs, of the apostles and other key figures as Christianity bursts through the borders of Judea following the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

Limbaugh particularly focuses on the crucial role that the Apostle Paul played in these historic events. Facing incredible adversities, from arrests to shipwrecks to violent mobs and murder plots, Paul overcomes countless obstacles as he travels far and wise to spread the Gospel. Limbaugh's passion for the Bible is unmistakable and infectious as he recounts these stories. Replete with deep insights into the actions, arguments, and challenges of the world's first Christian communities, Jesus Is Risen is a faith-affirming book for Christians at all stages of their faith walk. 

Genres: Religion, Christian, Nonfiction, Faith, Christianity, History, Theology

350 pages, Hardcover

Published October 2, 2018

About the author

David Limbaugh is a conservative American political commentator and author. He is the younger brother of talk radio host Rush Limbaugh.

David Limbaugh has a bachelor's degree, cum laude, in political science and a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from the University of Missouri. He also served in the National Guard for six years. He has written columns which are carried by Creators Syndicate, Townhall.com, WorldNetDaily, Jewish World Review, and The Washington Times.

Reviews

[Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Limbaugh's earlier book, The True Jesus, examined the four Gospels. In this book, he focuses on the book of Acts, especially the missionary journeys of Paul, and then on the following letters from Paul: Galatians, Thessalonians 1 & 2, Corinthians 1 & 2, and Romans. For each of these Bible books, the author provides some historical and theological background, and then discusses major events or themes in that book.

I found this to be a good companion piece to reading these Bible books and to understanding how the early Church began to spread throughout the world. Sometimes its easy to forget that the authors of the Gospel and subsequent books of the New Testament didn't have a New Testament to work with! That is, they were Jewish converts who had only the Old Testament as their Bible.

In that sense, this book helped me understand Paul - his determined persecution of Christianity, which he saw as a threat to his Jewish faith; his conversion on the road to Damascus, and his passionate persistence in building the Church for the rest of his life. And especially how Paul evangelizes that Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament covenant between God and his people. Also very interesting to better understand Paul's work in keeping the early Gentile churches (e.g. Corinth) on the right track, as they deal with internal struggles and theological arguments.

[Jay Pruitt]

written very much like a research paper with references to specific lines of scriptures in virtually every other sentence. I suppose it depends on what you're seeking in the book, but I found the writing style difficult to get into.

[Jimmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read the author’s work titled The Emmaus Code: How Jesus Reveals Himself Through the Scriptures. In this volume titled Jesus Is Risen: Paul and the Early Church the author David Limbaugh examines the book of Acts along with six of Paul’s epistles in the New Testament. He manages to do this over twelve chapters in the book, or about 350 pages.
Some of the readers of this review might wonder if the author David Limbaugh is related to the talk radio host Rush Limbaugh. The author is related to Rush Limbaugh: He’s the younger brother of the talk show host but is his own person in his own right. But don’t let political partisanship lead you away from reading this book. Like the first book I read by David Limbaugh I was surprise to see how generally well researched and well written it was for a general reading audience to understand the Bible. The work was a blend of journalistic narrative style of writing plus chapter by chapter Bible commentary at the level of the lay person. I was impressed at Limbaugh’s overall ability to handle the Scripture and summarize the text.
Limbaugh tried to lay out the book in chronological fashion. After the first five chapters on Paul and the book of Acts the book then looks at Galatians, 1-2 Thessalonians, 1-2 Corinthians and finally the book of Romans. I was surprised he took on the book of Romans as that is quite a deep book!
I thought Limbaugh did a good job pointing out how in the book of Acts there are parallels between Peter and Paul; Paul was in some sense like Peter but also exceeding him. Also the book did a good job with looking at the epistles of Paul. I thought it was unfortunate though that in examining the book of Romans the author did not come to a Reformed or Calvinistic conclusion. Though I might add he was sympathetic and courteous towards the Reformed view.
Overall a helpful resource for the general reading lay Christian.

[Vivian Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 STARS

although general, this is a great commentary on the book of Acts and Apostle Paul's missionary epistles!

[Dave Weiss · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is incredible. David Limbaugh is an attorney, and as such one would not necessarily expect him to be a theologian, but he is and he has done extraordinary work in this book. The book's scope is on Paul and the Early Church and it is great. In it's pages, Limbaugh looks at the conversion and calling of Paul, Luke's account of Paul's life from the book of Acts, and then Paul's letters to the Galatians, 1, 2 Thessalonians, 1,2 Corinthians and Romans. He goes chapter by chapter through each of these books, and it could be seen as something of a commentary, it's plain spoken nature, really helps the reader to grasp the meaning of the text. Limbaugh's work is well researched and thoughtful, citing the works of some of the world's great theologians. To give you some ideas how well researched the book is, the notes section of the book, primarily citing the author's references is 84 pages. I read this book side by side with my Bible and I have to say it enhanced may understanding of many of these passages. This is a really great book that will help anyone understand the Scriptures better. I highly recommend it.

[Teresa Austin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author creates a single narrative of Paul’s life and ministry from Acts and from the Epistles. He also includes the facts of great historians and the ideas of respected theologians along the way. I took pages and pages of notes.

[Randy Tramp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Johnny Tremain, fourteen-year-old, lives through the American Revolutionary War. He injures his hand while as an apprentice silversmith. His new job as a horse-boy, rides for the patriotic newspaper, The Boston Observer. He's a messenger for the Sons of Liberty, meeting people like John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Dr. Joseph Warren. Johnny is involved in events like the Boston Tea Party and the first shots at Lexington.

What a read. Front seat to the events that shaped this nation. Johnny is an interesting character. The action continues throughout the book, keeping the interest high. I loved it. I know my children will as well.

[Ming Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened to it via Libby.

A good, evangelical survey of Acts, and 6 Pauline epistles: Galatians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Corinthians, and Romans. It serves as less of a commentary and an in-depth analysis, and more as a brief tour through the New Testament. Such was the author's explicit purpose, along with instilling a desire in people to read these books for themselves. Despite some theological disagreements that I would have with this author, the coverage for the most part remained sound.

A decent refresher of doctrine and early Church history.

[Robert Conder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book looks at the Apostle Paul in the Book of Acts and in some of his letters. It helps one to understand Paul and the early church. It is written in away for all to understand. Paul’s call for unity in the church and for us to place our faith in Jesus. Limbaugh stresses the point that we must continue to look at the Old Testament and see that it points to Christ. I strongly recommend this book.

[Rachel Grepke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent walk through of Paul and some of his works in the New Testament. Scripturally based, it keeps you focused on the Word but also the time and places. It is like a small expository preaching book on the early church. He really brought many things to light and helped me to understand Paul's writing better. Thanks to David for writing such a unique presentation of these works. I look forward to reading more by him.

[Diane Busch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tedious; detailed; complete. This is an overview of the entire New Testament, verse by verse, chapter by chapter. (I did not know this from the title.) You will learn much about Jesus, his disciples, Paul, and the early church.

[Rick Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written book and commentary on the Apostle Paul and his epistles. Particularly enjoyed the chapters on the Book of Acts as they painted a great historical and cultural perspective of that time period.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book. This book is amazing. It really explains the journey of Paul and gives great explanations of his biblical writings. Pail really comes to life and I felt very drawn to his character.

[Jessica Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2. My reading of this would probably have been deeper if I read the corresponding books along with his chapters. It would be a great Bible study resource and do think it a great overview of (most) of Paul's letters.

[Jack Bush · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great survey of the Book of Acs and several Pauline Epistles. A clear headed, non-divisive reasoning through the text's chapter by chapter. A great starting point to study each of these parts of Scripture.

[Jim Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful. Scholarly Workl

David Limbaugh has established himself as an insightful Biblical scholar. His faith and passion are infused in his work.
Wonderful book.

[Theron Willis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good survey of the book of acts and Pauline epistles. It does drag though.

[Christopher Backa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book to be a good companion to the Bible study I was taking. However all the citations destroy the flow of the audiobook

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-researched and referenced. Would go well with a Bible study.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

A crisp description of one of the more difficult parts of the Bible.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book with lots of information and insights on Paul and his mission.

[Atlantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very detailed and historical analysis of Paul’s writings in the Bible. Recommend for anyone who wants to really get in-depth with the gospels.

[C.S. Areson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good overview. No, I don't agree with all his doctrine but that doesn't diminish the book.

[JT · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only ok. Perhaps I've read way too many exegetical works on the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline epistles, but this was very unoriginal and uninspired.

[Steve Moran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very helpful, to me, walk through Acts, Galatians, Thessalonians, Corinthians, and Romans. Worthwhile if you are newer to Christianity, like me.

[Bill Barrett]

I thought it was an excellent book. I do not usually read religious books but this was well done