Writers such as C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien have helped us understand the power of story-telling to shape the culture’s imagination. A great story can make biblical ideas come alive for people who might never pick up a Bible.

Novelist Robert Whitlow understands this truth. That’s why, after a successful career as an attorney, he tried his hand at writing a legal thriller. That book, “The List,” went on to sell more than 100,000 copies and was adapted into a movie starring Matthew Modine and Malcomb McDowell. Whitlow has since written 18 novels, four of which have been turned into movies.

Today Warren Cole Smith talks with Whitlow about writing mainstream novels with a decidedly Christian bent: How do Christian authors avoid “the Jesus Juke” and portray people of faith authentically?

They also talk about Whitlow’s newest novel, “Chosen People,” which is set in Jerusalem.