You might want to know a bit about me and why I think I have something to say about theology. I am Professor of Religion at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. I’ve taught courses in systematic theology and Christianity and Culture for 32 years. I spent a decade in the ministry before beginning my academic career. I have written ten  books and coauthored or coedited others.

Amazon author page:

https://www.amazon.com/author/ron.highfield

Below are links and descriptions to my books:

Here is my most recent book, April 2021:

From the publisher:

Have you ever found yourself repeating expressions such as “”Jesus saves”” or “”Jesus died for our sins”” without really understanding them? When popular speakers “”explain”” how Jesus’s death satisfied God’s wrath so you could be forgiven, do you ever think to yourself, “”I don’t get it””? If so, you’re not alone, you’re not dumb, and the problem is not with you. Ron Highfield reframes Christian teaching about the atonement so that it comes alive with fresh meaning. Drawing on biblical and traditional sources, Highfield explains why our frustration in trying to understand how Jesus’s death satisfies God’s judicial wrath is inevitable . . . because the idea doesn’t make sense and the Bible doesn’t teach it! Instead of viewing the atonement as the solution to God’s problem of how to forgive sins while remaining perfectly just, Highfield argues that the atonement is God’s solution to our problem. In Jesus, God rewrites the human story, forgiving our sins, correcting our mistakes, and realizing our destiny. As one of us, Jesus lives a perfect life, passes through death, and enters into eternal life. As the new Adam, he invites us to join his family, share his life, and enjoy his victory.

Check it out at Amazon.com. Just search under my name Ron Highfield.

February 2021:

In Rethinking Church, veteran church leader, theologian, and professor Ron Highfield tells the story of how he came to the conclusions that most institutions we call “churches” are really parachurch organizations, much of the “church work” we do focuses on making something happen on Sunday mornings, and much of the money we give goes to pay staff to keep the parachurch functions running. Highfield writes for older believers who feel burned out and disillusioned by years of institutional maintenance. He addresses young people who have never seen the relevance of institutional churches to their lives. To all who view institutional churches as self-serving, hypocritical, money grubbing, growth obsessed, clergy dominated, and backward, Highfield offers a different vision of church life. This church is simple, small, requires no money, needs no clergy, and possesses no property. It does not run like a business, is not organized like a corporation, and does not feel like a theater. It feels like a family, meets around a table, and focuses on the Lord. Highfield invites you to join him in Rethinking Church for your life.

This is a 2017 book:

This book addresses this question: Should conservative churches appoint women to the offices traditionally reserved for men? Many writers are calling for such changes; others oppose them. Are these proposals inspired by a deeper understanding of the gospel of Christ as their defenders claim? Or, are they inspired by contemporary secular philosophies as their opponents allege? Ron Highfield explores these and other questions in Four Views on Women and Church Leadership. In this book, Highfield stages a discussion in which three fictitious characters explain and defend their viewpoints and critique opposing views. The three views are Secular Feminism, Evangelical Egalitarianism, and New Complementarianism. In a fourth view, Highfield charges that the entire debate is based on a defective view of the church. He challenges the gratuitous assumptions that make the discussion necessary and meaningful: the church is a public institution, the ministry is a profession like other professions, and believers assemble to experience a performance. This book’s brevity, non-technical nature, and its questions for discussion at the end of each chapter make it ideal for private study, small group discussions, Sunday school classes, and undergraduate courses

In 2016 book, A Course in Christianity for an Unchurched Church I address many important topics of Christian teaching. In these 51 essays I examine the Christian teaching about God, creation, Trinity, Jesus Christ, sin and salvation, ethics, hell and heaven and many others. These essays are short and simple, ideal for the average Christian’s personal study or for small group discussion. Take a look at:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1539070581/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1477102698&sr=8-5&keywords=ron+highfield

In my recent book, The Faithful Creator: Affirming Creation and Providence in an Age of Anxiety (Intervarsity Press, 400 pages, 2015), I address the Christian doctrines of creation and providence, dealing especially with science and creation, providence and evil, and human freedom. Here is the Amazon page for this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Faithful-Creator-Affirming-Creation-Providence/dp/0830840826/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1437491847&sr=1-5&keywords=ron+highfield

Another book released in Fall 2015, Christianity–Is It Really True: Responsible Faith in a Post-Christian Culture contains 48 essays on apologetics and Christian evidences. I hope it will be used by individuals and groups for faith-strengthening. If you would like to order more than 5 for group studies or gifts, contact me and I can have them sent to you wholesale. Read the blurb on Amazon.com.

http://www.amazon.com/Christianity—Really-True-Responsible-Post-Christian/dp/1515344681/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1440690323&sr=8-6&keywords=Ron+Highfield&pebp=1440690334100&perid=0GJ1WNET2K7070AYGWNM

My previous book (Fall 2014), The Thoughtful Christian Life: Essays On Living A Christian Life In A Post-Christian Culture consists of 55 essays with discussion questions for each chapter designed to aid personal reflection and group discussions. Earlier editions of these essays were posted on this blog during its first year, August 2013 to August 2014. You can see it at this Amazon.com address:

http://www.amazon.com/Thoughtful-Christian-Life-Ron-Highfield/dp/1500979457/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1413987362&sr=1-1&keywords=highfield+thoughtful

My book God, Freedom & Human Dignity: Embracing God-Centered Identity in a Me-Centered Culture (InterVarsity Press) was published in 2013.

Here is the Amazon link to God, Freedom & Human Dignity:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0830827110/ref=s9_simh_gw_p14_d0_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-3&pf_rd_r=0A8JDF5F7MV798H6X3NS&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938811&pf_rd_i=507846

I created this blog primarily to help people to become more thoughtful in their faith. I want it to be stimulating and informative…and brief.

Great is the Lord (Eerdmans 2008) is my best selling book and is used in American seminaries and colleges as a text: