I first encountered Wallace's work when I read his book Person of Interest. It proceeded to blow my mind so I read a few more of his books. Wallace's expertise is of a forensic nature. He was once a homicide detective (if I recall correctly, he still dabbles in that a bit today). His books are informative, engaging, and filled with detective stories. Cold Case Christianity is the book that started it all, let's see how detective skills will help us find some truth about Jesus of Nazareth.
Overview
Cold Case Christianity has two main sections. Section one is more about methods that Wallace uses to discern the truthfulness of Christianity (more specifically, the claims of the gospels). This section aims to help Christians and skeptics alike to think more objectively, eliminate bias, and seek truth more effectively. Although it includes many arguments for Christianity, they are used more as examples to showcase certain principles in action. Of course, the principles are derived from Wallace's experience with the detective and legal worlds.
The second section is Wallace's findings from his investigation of the New Testament. This is where all the evidence is laid out and the objections dealt with. Wallace continues to use his detective experience to make a case for the validity of the Gospel claims.
Why Read This?
This book is great as a starting point for apologetics reading. The language is clear and understandable. Additionally, the book is intriguing, taking breaks from history and facts every so often with a detective story. The stories are not pointless, though, they make very good points. The book is very well-rounded with information. All of the basic questions you might ask about the Gospel claims can be found here.
Wallace's detective-like approach brings a fresh perspective to apologetics. It was interesting to see an approach that deals with human psychology and common behavior instead of only looking at heaps of manuscripts and whatnot.
Wallace's experience and approach in this book are pretty unique, which makes this book one of the best intro-apologetics books I have ever read.
Potential Pitfalls
The one big question I had was: Can we fairly use modern-day detective principles on people who lived 2000 years before us? How do we know we behaved the same way? I think that is a question worth considering before you dive into this book.
With this being a pretty accessible apologetics book, I would encourage you to not stop here, and study the subjects found in this book further. This book is a great way to get your foot through the door.
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