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Cases for Christianity for Students
The Case for the Real Jesus Student Edition: A Journalist Investigates Current Challenges to Christianity
Just about everyone you ask has an opinion about Jesus. Some believe he was the Son of God, while others question his existence altogether. Some believe he lived, but that he was merely a good man. Today, scientists and other people are making statements that can make it difficult to know what to believe. So how can you know who the real Jesus was (and is)especially when so many people are working to prove him to be a fake or a fraud? Thats what Lee Strobel wanted to know. As a former journalistand a former atheistLee went on an investigative journey to discover the real Jesus, one that took him across the continent and into the homes of todays most prominent experts on Christian history. He found all the evidence he needed to believe that the Jesus is indeed the Risen Savior. Join Lees investigation and discover the truth about Jesus for yourself. After youve seen all the evidence, youll know for certain who the real Jesus is, and youll be able to help others know him as well.
- GenresChristian
208 pages, ebook
Published August 1, 2009
7 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
About the author
Lee Strobel
225 books1,769 followersLee Patrick Strobel is an American Christian author and a former investigative journalist. He has written several books, including four that received ECPA Christian Book Awards (1994, 1999, 2001, 2005)[2] and a series which addresses challenges to the veracity of Christianity. He also hosted a television program called Faith Under Fire on PAX TV and runs a video apologetics web site.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 30, 2023
Impressive
Superb in many ways. The writing is easy to read, yet scholarly. The research is pristine and well documented.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and recommend.
Superb in many ways. The writing is easy to read, yet scholarly. The research is pristine and well documented.
Overall, I enjoyed the book and recommend.
August 27, 2014
When one thinks of mainstream Christian apologists, Lee Strobel's name is assuredly at the top of the list. A former atheist and journalist, he initially came to recognition by applying his journalistic skill to the excellent book, The Case for Christ. He has since applied the same engaging, journalistic method to several other books such as the The Case for a Creator and the Case for Faith. His typical approach is to tackle questions Christians may discuss with nonbelievers or that they may struggle with themselves. The Case for the Real Jesus (2008, Zondervan) was no different.
In this book, Strobel sets out to address six different challenges:
1) Scholars are uncovering a radically different Jesus through ancient documents just as credible as the four gospels.
2) The Bible's portrait of Jesus can't be trusted because the church tampered with the text.
3) New explanations have disproved Jesus' reurrection.
4) Christianity's beliefs about Jesus were copied from pagan religions.
5) Jesus was an imposter who failed to fulfill the prophecies about the Messiah.
6) People should be free to pick and choose what to believe about Jesus.
In each case, he would find expert theists and apologists to address the questions at hand. Although many people may be unfamiliar with these authors, writers such as Craig Evans, Dan Wallace, and Paul Copan are highly educated, knowledgeable about the topics, and capable of defending. In each case, Strobel essentially lays out his conversations with these individuals to the benefit of the reader.
I would say the only place where I was puzzled was in trying to understand what classified this as a "student edition." I was unable to locate anything specific, other than the cover, that specifically mentioned that it was for students. The writing style employed inside is classic Strobel and doesn't appear different from how he typically writes. Admittedly, I did not have a copy of the non-student edition for comparison, though I suspect they would be vastly similar. Perhaps what made it a student edition was the inclusion of various text boxes, tables, and figures to highlight parts of the text, though to be fair, these "call outs" would be beneficial whether a person was a student or not.
In sum, this was a fine book. It could have been more comprehensive, but that was not the focus and there are other fine volumes to fit that niche. The purpose of answering these basic questions is handled clearly and effectively.
I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
In this book, Strobel sets out to address six different challenges:
1) Scholars are uncovering a radically different Jesus through ancient documents just as credible as the four gospels.
2) The Bible's portrait of Jesus can't be trusted because the church tampered with the text.
3) New explanations have disproved Jesus' reurrection.
4) Christianity's beliefs about Jesus were copied from pagan religions.
5) Jesus was an imposter who failed to fulfill the prophecies about the Messiah.
6) People should be free to pick and choose what to believe about Jesus.
In each case, he would find expert theists and apologists to address the questions at hand. Although many people may be unfamiliar with these authors, writers such as Craig Evans, Dan Wallace, and Paul Copan are highly educated, knowledgeable about the topics, and capable of defending. In each case, Strobel essentially lays out his conversations with these individuals to the benefit of the reader.
I would say the only place where I was puzzled was in trying to understand what classified this as a "student edition." I was unable to locate anything specific, other than the cover, that specifically mentioned that it was for students. The writing style employed inside is classic Strobel and doesn't appear different from how he typically writes. Admittedly, I did not have a copy of the non-student edition for comparison, though I suspect they would be vastly similar. Perhaps what made it a student edition was the inclusion of various text boxes, tables, and figures to highlight parts of the text, though to be fair, these "call outs" would be beneficial whether a person was a student or not.
In sum, this was a fine book. It could have been more comprehensive, but that was not the focus and there are other fine volumes to fit that niche. The purpose of answering these basic questions is handled clearly and effectively.
I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
August 10, 2025
Schon beim Aufschlagen des Buches war klar: Das wird kein stilles Schmökern auf der Couch, sondern eine richtige Spurensuche. Meine Tochter und ich, beide fest im Glauben, haben uns mit Keksen, Notizzetteln und einer großen Portion Neugier durch dieses „Kriminaldossier“ über Jesus gearbeitet. Sie war die kritische Fragestellerin, ich der Mit-Ermittler, der sich manchmal von der Begeisterung über die Antworten mitreißen ließ.
Immer wieder haben wir uns angesehen und gesagt: „Das bestätigt doch genau das, was wir glauben!“ – und dann sind wir gleich zur nächsten Spur gesprungen. Die Mischung aus historischen Fakten, wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnissen und den spannenden Interviews hat uns in den Bann gezogen wie eine Serie, die man nicht unterbrechen will. Lee Strobel erzählt so lebendig, dass es sich anfühlt, als säße er bei uns am Tisch und würde mit einem Augenzwinkern sagen: „Schaut mal hier, das müsst ihr sehen!“
Manche Kapitel waren so packend, dass meine Tochter „Weiter, weiter!“ gerufen hat, selbst wenn das Abendessen schon längst kalt war. Und dann diese Momente, in denen wir beide genickt haben – nicht nur, weil die Beweise überzeugend waren, sondern weil sie uns im Herzen berührt haben. Es war wie ein gemeinsames, lautes Amen mitten im Wohnzimmer.
Wir haben gelacht, gestaunt, diskutiert und uns gefreut, wie schön es ist, wenn Glaube nicht nur auf Erfahrung, sondern auch auf nachvollziehbaren Fakten ruht. Für Teens geschrieben, ja – aber wir beide haben genauso viel daraus mitgenommen. Dieses Buch macht klar: Die Geschichte von Jesus ist nicht nur eine schöne Erzählung, sondern trägt ein Fundament, das trägt – im Kopf und im Herzen.
Fazit: Ein spannender Fall, der keinen Zweifel daran lässt, dass Jesus lebt. Ein Leseabenteuer, das den Glauben stärkt und das Herz wärmt. Und für uns vor allem ein wunderbarer Buddyread, bei dem wir gemeinsam Gott noch nähergekommen sind.
Immer wieder haben wir uns angesehen und gesagt: „Das bestätigt doch genau das, was wir glauben!“ – und dann sind wir gleich zur nächsten Spur gesprungen. Die Mischung aus historischen Fakten, wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnissen und den spannenden Interviews hat uns in den Bann gezogen wie eine Serie, die man nicht unterbrechen will. Lee Strobel erzählt so lebendig, dass es sich anfühlt, als säße er bei uns am Tisch und würde mit einem Augenzwinkern sagen: „Schaut mal hier, das müsst ihr sehen!“
Manche Kapitel waren so packend, dass meine Tochter „Weiter, weiter!“ gerufen hat, selbst wenn das Abendessen schon längst kalt war. Und dann diese Momente, in denen wir beide genickt haben – nicht nur, weil die Beweise überzeugend waren, sondern weil sie uns im Herzen berührt haben. Es war wie ein gemeinsames, lautes Amen mitten im Wohnzimmer.
Wir haben gelacht, gestaunt, diskutiert und uns gefreut, wie schön es ist, wenn Glaube nicht nur auf Erfahrung, sondern auch auf nachvollziehbaren Fakten ruht. Für Teens geschrieben, ja – aber wir beide haben genauso viel daraus mitgenommen. Dieses Buch macht klar: Die Geschichte von Jesus ist nicht nur eine schöne Erzählung, sondern trägt ein Fundament, das trägt – im Kopf und im Herzen.
Fazit: Ein spannender Fall, der keinen Zweifel daran lässt, dass Jesus lebt. Ein Leseabenteuer, das den Glauben stärkt und das Herz wärmt. Und für uns vor allem ein wunderbarer Buddyread, bei dem wir gemeinsam Gott noch nähergekommen sind.
April 2, 2019
Excellent!
A must read, very well written. Powerful and thoughtfully laid out, this book should be read by both the believer AND skeptic.
A must read, very well written. Powerful and thoughtfully laid out, this book should be read by both the believer AND skeptic.
March 6, 2025
This is a must-read book for those who don't have a relationship with Christ Jesus or are skeptics about the Christian faith.
May 25, 2025
Guter Ansatz, mich überzeugt aber kein einziger Argumentationsstrang. Extrem oberflächlich.
August 5, 2014
In The Case for the Real Jesus Student Edition, Lee Strobel tackles 6 different challenges that have been presented to Christians today:
* Scholars are uncovering a radically different Jesus through ancient documents just as credible as the four gospels.
* The Bible’s portrait of Jesus can’t be trusted because the church tampered with the text.
* New explanations have disproved Jesus’ resurrection.
* Christianity’s beliefs about Jesus were copied from pagan religions.
* Jesus was an impostor who failed to fulfill the prophecies of the Messiah.
* People should be free to pick and choose what to believe about Jesus.
Strobel goes to various experts in their field to “get the scoop” on the different challenges. One-by-one the fallacies are revealed through systematic explanations backed by plenty of facts and evidence from the experts. The alternative gospels are shown to be dated too late for historical accuracy, and some are even shown to be hoaxes. The Bible’s portrayal of Christ is shown to be credible through careful studying of varying manuscripts. Attempts to show the resurrection of Christ to be false have fallen short. The theory of pagan roots for Christianity was disproved many decades ago. Through careful study, Jesus has been shown to have fulfilled the OT prophecies of the Messiah. Finally, nothing can change who Jesus was – no matter what we decide to believe about Him.
Strobel concludes with a list of website resources for further study into the Real Jesus. This book is well laid out and thoughtfully presented. Ultimately, it’s up to the reader to decide to believe or not believe based upon the evidence that has been presented.
Three Stars: I liked it.
Disclosure: I received a copy from the publisher to help facilitate the writing of a frank and honest review. A positive review is not expected nor guaranteed. All opinions are my own.
* Scholars are uncovering a radically different Jesus through ancient documents just as credible as the four gospels.
* The Bible’s portrait of Jesus can’t be trusted because the church tampered with the text.
* New explanations have disproved Jesus’ resurrection.
* Christianity’s beliefs about Jesus were copied from pagan religions.
* Jesus was an impostor who failed to fulfill the prophecies of the Messiah.
* People should be free to pick and choose what to believe about Jesus.
Strobel goes to various experts in their field to “get the scoop” on the different challenges. One-by-one the fallacies are revealed through systematic explanations backed by plenty of facts and evidence from the experts. The alternative gospels are shown to be dated too late for historical accuracy, and some are even shown to be hoaxes. The Bible’s portrayal of Christ is shown to be credible through careful studying of varying manuscripts. Attempts to show the resurrection of Christ to be false have fallen short. The theory of pagan roots for Christianity was disproved many decades ago. Through careful study, Jesus has been shown to have fulfilled the OT prophecies of the Messiah. Finally, nothing can change who Jesus was – no matter what we decide to believe about Him.
Strobel concludes with a list of website resources for further study into the Real Jesus. This book is well laid out and thoughtfully presented. Ultimately, it’s up to the reader to decide to believe or not believe based upon the evidence that has been presented.
Three Stars: I liked it.
Disclosure: I received a copy from the publisher to help facilitate the writing of a frank and honest review. A positive review is not expected nor guaranteed. All opinions are my own.
September 19, 2011
This book is perfection.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews