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OBU—Oklahoma Baptist University

McWilliams Provides Book for Baptist Doctrine Study

Article Date

October 14, 2005

Fear No Evil by Dr. Warren McWilliams, Oklahoma Baptist University's Henry professor of Bible, was recently published by LifeWay Press. The book explores biblical teachings on suffering and providence and was commissioned by LifeWay to be used as the Baptist Doctrine Study for 2006 in Southern Baptist churches.

"The primary theses of Fear No Evil is that God identifies with human suffering and strengthens us in our suffering, and that we should reach out with compassion and comfort to those around us who are suffering because a Christian's character should mirror God's character," said McWilliams.

"Fear No Evil was written primarily for laypersons who want to know what the Bible says about evil and suffering," he said. "There are several reasons that believers need to explore the topics of evil, suffering, and God's providence. We all suffer and wonder why painful experiences happen to us and the Bible is relevant to our experiences with evil and suffering."

The study attempts to answer three questions that are central to the study: Why does God allow or cause suffering? How does God help us when we suffer? What does God expect us to do about the suffering of others?

McWilliams has taught Bible, theology, and ethics at OBU since 1976. He is a graduate of OBU, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, and Vanderbilt University. McWilliams is a frequent contributor to Sunday school curriculum for LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern Baptist Convention, and has written articles for the Holman Bible Dictionary and the Mercer Dictionary of the Bible.

His previously published books include Free in Christ: the New Testament Understanding of Freedom; The Passion of God: Divine Suffering in Contemporary Protestant Theology; When You Walk through Fire; Christ and Narcissus: Prayer in a Self-Centered World; and Dear Chris: Letters on the Life of Faith. McWilliams' latest work is Where Is the God of Justice? Biblical Perspectives on Suffering, an academic book which will be released this winter.

Fear No Evil is a revised edition of McWilliams book When You Walk through Fire, which was published by Broadman Press 20 years ago.