D. A. Carson (Ph.D., University of Cambridge) is research professor of New Testament at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. He is the author or coauthor of over 45 books, including the Gold Medallion Award-winning book The Gagging of God and An Introduction to the New Testament, and is general editor of Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns and Worship by the Book. He has served as a pastor and is an active guest lecturer in church and academic settings around the world.

Too often the Christian version of popular culture's sentimentalview of love is that, of all things, Christians should benice. After all, people ask, isn't the Church aboutforgiveness? Aren't Christians supposed to love others withoutcondition?

This book not only focuses on the aspects of Christian love thatare not easy--such as when it comes to loving our enemies, and evenforgiving those loved ones who have hurt us--but also helps readersunderstand, then, what biblical love really is. As author D. A.Carson points out, thinking seriously about Christian love soonembroils us in reflection on justice, revenge, war, the authorityof the state, forgiveness, hate, and much more. This book showssome of the important ways in which the love of Christians is areflection of the love of God, and enables believers to develop anappropriate understanding of how to love in the hard places oflife.