Stiver, Dan R. Life Together in the Way of Jesus Christ: An Introduction to Christian Theology. Baylor University Press, 2009. ISBN: 9781602580619.
Meet the Author
Dan R. Stiver has been Professor of Theology at Logsdon Seminary at Hardin-Simmons University since 1998. Previously, he taught Christian philosophy at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His books include The Philosophy of Religious Language: Sign, Symbol and Story; Theology after Ricoeur: New Directions in Hermeneutical Theology; and Life Together in the Way of Jesus Christ: An Introduction to Christian Theology.
Book Basics 
Life Together in the Way of Jesus Christ is a thoughtful and up-to-date introduction to Christian theology with a free church bias written by an open-minded Baptist. As one who had the privilege of taking graduate courses in theology and philosophy from Dan Stiver, I found the explanation and argumentation to be much like his teaching: thoroughly postmodern and theologically sound yet aware of and in dialogue with the significant voices of the church in every age. For the newcomer to theology, case studies help introduce each chapter and each new concept is both introduced and explained. For the theologically trained academic, pastor, or lay leader, the inclusion of recent developments in theology, especially in light of postmodernism, make the text an important read.
So What?
Stiver’s book does well what every book of this type should by covering all of the traditional topics. It also does well what few disciples of Jesus and even fewer Christian scholars do well by offering firmly held and thoughtfully considered opinions with appropriate humility and in recognition that this voice but one of many in the larger Christian family. This emphasis is most evident in his final chapter on eschatology, which is the area in which he rightly sees the least amount of unity among modern and postmodern Christians. About such he writes, “My language is hesitant and questioning, for that seems to be the appropriate mode of understanding in this area (p.476).”
How well do you know and can you articulate with genuine humility what you believe about a given theological matter and why? How open are you to engaging new ideas and allowing your own views to be formed and reformed through that interaction?
Every believer is called to think theologically. You are a theologian. What are you doing to grow into that role?