Download or read book The End of the Christian Life written by J. Todd Billings and published by Brazos Press. This book was released on 2020-09-15 with total page 281 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We're all going to die. Yet in our medically advanced, technological age, many of us see death as a distant reality--something that happens only at the end of a long life or to other people. In The End of the Christian Life, Todd Billings urges Christians to resist that view. Instead, he calls us to embrace our mortality in our daily life and faith. This is the journey of genuine discipleship, Billings says: following the crucified and resurrected Lord in a world of distraction and false hopes. Drawing on his experience as a professor and father living with incurable cancer, Billings offers a personal yet deeply theological account of the gospel's expansive hope for small, mortal creatures. Artfully weaving rich theology with powerful narrative, Billings writes for church leaders and laypeople alike. Whether we are young or old, reeling from loss or clinging to our own prosperity, this book challenges us to walk a strange but wondrous path: in the midst of joy and lament, to receive mortal limits as a gift, an opportunity to give ourselves over to the Lord of life.

Download or read book R C Sproul written by Stephen J. Nichols and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2021-02-04 with total page 409 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Introducing the First Biography of the Life and Ministry of R. C. Sproul R. C. Sproul (1939–2017) was a pastor, a professor, an author, and the founder and president of Ligonier Ministries. His contributions in the areas of biblical studies, theology, worldview and culture, Christian living, and church history continue to be held in high regard. In this book, Stephen J. Nichols offers an in-depth look at Sproul's life and ministry—his childhood; his formative seminary education; his marriage and partnership with his beloved wife, Vesta; his influence on broader American evangelicalism; and his many friendships with key figures such as James Montgomery Boice, John MacArthur, John Piper, J. I. Packer, and Chuck Colson. This biography details the profound impact Sproul had on the lives of many during his lifetime, and highlights the various ways his legacy continues to influence countless pastors and students worldwide.

Download or read book Hope for the Thinking Christian written by Stephen D. Reese and published by Smyth & Helwys Publishing. This book was released on 2010 with total page 140 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Hope in Times of Fear written by Timothy Keller and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2021-03-09 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Resurrection accounts of Jesus in the Gospels are the most dramatic and impactful stories ever told. One similarity unites each testimony--that none of his most loyal and steadfast followers could "see" it was him, back from the dead. The reason for this is at the very foundation of the Christian faith. She turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. (John 20:14) Hope in the Time of Fear is a book that unlocks the meaning of Jesus's resurrection for readers. Easter is considered the most solemn and important holiday for Christians. It is a time of spiritual rebirth and a time of celebrating the physical rebirth of Jesus after three days in the tomb. For his devoted followers, nothing could prepare them for the moment they met the resurrected Jesus. Each failed to recognize him. All of them physically saw him and yet did not spiritually truly see him. It was only when Jesus reached out and invited them to see who he truly was that their eyes were open. Here the central message of the Christian faith is revealed in a way only Timothy Keller could do it--filled with unshakable belief, piercing insight, and a profound new way to look at a story you think you know. After reading this book, the true meaning of Easter will no longer be unseen.

Download or read book The New City Catechism written by and published by Gospel Coalition. This book was released on 2017 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This modern-day catechism sets forth fifty-two questions and answers designed to build a framework to help adults and children alike understand core Christian beliefs.

Download or read book Nurturing Hope written by Lynne M. Baab and published by Fortress Press. This book was released on 2018-08-01 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Trends and skills for those who offer pastoral care Christian pastoral care has changed a great deal in the past few decades in response to many factors in our rapidly changing world. In part 1 of Nurturing Hope, Lynne Baab discusses seven trends in pastoral care--shifts in who delivers pastoral care, the attitudes and commitments that undergird pastoral care, and societal trends that are shaping pastoral care today. She illustrates them with stories from diverse congregations where Christian caregivers are meeting those challenges in creative and exciting ways. In the second half of the book, Baab presents four practical, doable, energizing skills needed by pastoral carers in our time. Focusing on skills that help carers nurture connections between everyday life and Christian faith, she explores the need for carers to understand common stressors, listen, pray with others, and nurture their personal resilience. Grounded in an understanding of God as the true caregiver and healer, the author offers tips for readers who are training other pastoral carers or developing their own understanding and skills. Each chapter ends with discussion and reflection questions, making the book helpful for groups. Lynne Baab brings readers hope for their caring role and for their own spiritual journey.

Download or read book Grounded in Heaven written by Michael Allen and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2018-10-02 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eschatology and ethics are joined at the hip, says Michael Allen, and both need theocentric reorientation. In Grounded in Heaven Allen retrieves the traditional concept of the beatific vision and seeks to bring Christ back into the heart of our theology and our lives on earth. Responding to the earthly-mindedness of much recent theology, Allen places his focus on God and the heavenly future while also appreciating ways in which the Reformed tradition provides a unique angle on broadly catholic concerns. Reaching back to classical ethics as well as its reformation by Calvin and other Reformed theologians, Grounded in Heaven offers a distinctly Protestant account of the ascetical calling to be heavenly-minded and to deny one’s self.

Download or read book A Heart for the Future written by Robert Boak Slocum and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2018-02-20 with total page 318 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Apart from impressive liturgical expressions every year in Advent and one stirring statement called "The Christian Hope," which concludes the Prayer Book Catechism, the Episcopal Church is not known for its formation and application of eschatology--the doctrine of last things. A Heart for the Future: Writings on the Christian Hope may change that. The distinguished and diverse contributing authors--including Robert M. Cooper, Robert D. Hughes, Harold T. Lewis, Fredrica Harris Thompsett, Paul F. M. Zahl, and Robert Boak Slocum (who is also the general editor)--differ widely in method, meaning, and approach. They are very much alike, however, in the rigor with which they profess their faith in the Christian future, avoiding the simplistic eschatology that would cleave the Body of Christ in two by creating a false dichotomy between walking with God in this world and walking toward God in the next. The choice Christians must make is not between the now and the external; it is between being forward-looking and being backward-looking. Unless we look with eagerness and longing toward the future, we will stay stranded in the past. To live the Christian life today, we need A Heart for the Future.

Download or read book Suffering written by Paul David Tripp and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2018-09-20 with total page 190 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sometimes life just hurts. Out of nowhere, death, illness, unemployment, or a difficult relationship can change our lives and challenge everything we thought we knew—leaving us feeling unable to cope. But, in the midst if all this pain and confusion, we are not alone. Weaving together his personal story, pastoral ministry experience, and biblical insights, best-selling author Paul David Tripp helps us trust God in the midst of suffering. He identifies traps to avoid in our suffering and points us instead to comforts to embrace. This raw yet hope-filled book will help you cling to God's promises when trials come and move forward with the hope of the gospel.

Download or read book The Christian Life and Hope written by Alister E. McGrath and published by Westminster John Knox Press. This book was released on 2016-03-25 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Again and again, Alister McGrath elegantly performs that central task of any teacher: to enable his students and readers, starting from the familiar ground of what they already know, to go on to explore new territory and begin to see an expanded horizon.†Church Times Popular author Alister E. McGrath explores the great theme of Christian hope and the way in which it transforms and sustains the Christian life in this fifth and final volume in the Heart of Christian Faith series. McGrath reflects on how the creeds give us a framework for Christian living, as well as for Christian believing. Full of stories and helpful illustrations, this book provides spiritual consideration of the difference that our belief in God makes to the way in which we think about ourselves and the world. Also available in the Heart of Christian Faith series: Faith and Creeds, The Living God, Jesus Christ, and The Spirit of Grace.

Download or read book Hope and Christian Ethics written by David Elliot and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-14 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The theological virtue of hope has long been neglected in Christian ethics. However, as social, civic and global anxieties mount, the need to overcome despair has become urgent. This book proposes the theological virtue of hope as a promising source of rejuvenation. Theological hope sustains us from the sloth, presumption and despair that threaten amid injustice, tragedy and dying; it provides an ultimate meaning and transcendent purpose to our lives; and it rejoices and refreshes us 'on the way' with the prospect of eternal beatitude. Rather than degrading this life and world, hope ordains earthly goods to our eschatological end, forming us to pursue social justice with a resilience and vitality that transcend the cynicism and disillusionment so widespread at present. Drawing on Thomas Aquinas and virtue ethics, the book shows how the virtue of hope contributes to human happiness in this life and not just the next.

Download or read book Future Hope written by David Brickner and published by Jews for Jesus. This book was released on 1999 with total page 168 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The timely topic of today is...the future. For many, the outlook is gloomy. But according to David Brickner, Executive Director of Jews for Jesus, Christians can offer a message of a future and a hope. Future Hope Takes a look at biblical prophecies and offers insight into God's prophetic timeline. The book's easy-to-read format, helpful charts and appendices, and evangelistic bent make it appropriate for the scholar, the new believer, and the seeker.

Download or read book The Journal Articles Of Hermann Sasse written by Hermann Sasse and published by New Reformation Publications. This book was released on 2016-11-30 with total page 763 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication of Sasse's RTR articles marks yet another milestone in the continued publication of the works of one of the great Lutheran theologians of the twentieth century. The RTR and Springfielder articles and the many book reviews presented in this volume have been all but inaccessible for decades. All of them bear witness to Sasse's deep knowledge of Church history, the New Testament, Luther, the Reformation, the Eastern Church, and Rome. Though writing as a very convinced confessional Lutheran, Sasse nevertheless affirms the breadth and scope of the Una Sancta. He dispels myths such as the "ancient undivided church" and untangles the riddles of Roman Catholicism with deepest respect and truth.

Download or read book Let the Children Worship written by Jason Helopoulos and published by Christian Focus. This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Biblical take on children in church Written from personal experience Offering practical help

Download or read book After You Believe written by N. T. Wright and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2010-03-02 with total page 326 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the author of the acclaimed Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope comes a book that addresses the question that has plagued humans for centuries—what is our purpose? As Christians, what are we to do with that ambiguous time between baptism and the funeral? It's easy to become preoccupied with who gets into heaven; the real challenge is how we are going to live in the here and now. Wright dispels the common misconception that Christian living is nothing more than a checklist of dos and don'ts. Nor is it a prescription to "follow your heart" wherever it may lead. Instead, After You Believe reveals the Bible's call for a revolution—a transformation of character that takes us beyond our earthly pursuit of money, sex, and power into a virtuous state of living that allows us to reflect God and live more worshipful, fulfilling lives. We are all spiritual seekers, intuitively knowing there is more to life than we suspect. This is a book for anyone who is hoping there is something more while we're here on Earth. There is. We are being called to join the revolution, and Wright insightfully encourages readers to find new purpose and clarity by taking us on an eye-opening journey through key biblical passages that promise to radically alter the work of the church and the direction of our lives.

Download or read book Toward a Hope filled Life written by John W Clarke and published by CSS Publishing. This book was released on 2008 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hope is a virtue we are born with, but that hope does notpeek out at the world unless we feed it and allow it to grow. Hope allows us tolive outside the lines, to face fear and cast it out, and to live life as agift. John W. Clarke has created a Bible study to fuel our hope.This ten-session study guides the reader toward a hope-filled life. This studycounters the despair and futility that pervades the world around us, pointingus toward hope's eternal source. Sessions include: Hope: How Is It Lived -- How Is It Visible? HHope: An Expectation Of Something Yet To Be Hope: That Is Radical Our Hope Is A Forever Thing Hope: And The Power Of God's Presence Hopeful Understanding Hope: Jesus - And God's Loving Concern Living Between Now And Not Yet, and Preserving The Hope-Filled Life Each lesson includes thought-provoking questions fordiscussion and consideration. This study works well for various age groups, from teenagers through seniors, who are working toward a life of hope andpromise. John W. Clarke is an ordained minister in theUnited Church of Christ who currently pastors First Congregational Church inMeriden, Connecticut. He is the author of What Good Is Christianity Anyhow?and A Quest for Silence. Clarke is a graduate of Bangor TheologicalSeminary and Providence Theological Seminary (Otterburn, Manitoba, Canada).

Download or read book Let Creation Rejoice written by Jonathan A. Moo and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2014-05-02 with total page 191 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Let all creation rejoice before the LORD, for he comes." Psalm 96:13 The Bible is bathed with images of God caring for his creation in all its complexity. Yet in the face of climate change and other environmental trends, philosophers, filmmakers, environmentalists, politicians and senior scientists increasingly resort to apocalyptic rhetoric to warn us that a so-called perfect storm of factors threatens the future of life on earth. Jonathan Moo and Robert White ask, "Do these dire predictions amount to nothing more than ideological scaremongering, perhaps hyped-up for political or personal ends? Or are there good reasons for thinking that we may indeed be facing a crisis unprecedented in its scale and in the severity of its effects?" The authors encourage us to assess the evidence for ourselves. Their own conclusion is that there is in fact plenty of cause for concern. Climate change, they suggest, is potentially the most far-reaching threat that our planet faces in the coming decades, and also the most publicized. But there is a wide range of much more obvious, interrelated and damaging effects that a growing number of people, consuming more and more, are having on the planet upon which we all depend. Yet if the Christian gospel fundamentally reorients us in our relationship to God and his world, then there ought to be something radically distinctive about our attitude and approach to such threats. In short, there ought to be a place for hope. And there ought to be a place for Christians to participate in that hope. Moo and White therefore reflect on the difference the Bible's vision of the future of all of creation makes. Why should creation rejoice? Because God loves and cares the world he made.