Download or read book Confronting the Idols of Our Age written by Thomas P. Power and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2017-02-20 with total page 83 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An idol is a good thing. It is good because God created it. Nothing exists that God did not create and God created all things good. So sex can be an idol, but before it was an idol it was a good creation of God. Materialism is an idol, but to have a material world was God's idea in the first place. Workaholism is an idol, but work is itself a good gift of God. What turns these good gifts of God into idols is what we have done with them. So we have common forms of idolatry expressed in consumerism, individualism, narcissism, careerism, and hedonism; while there are less familiar expressions found in omnism, fatalism, Gnosticism, relativism, positivism, and reductionism. We have put these and other things on a pedestal and made them into mini-gods. In the end they fail to deliver what they promise. These twelve mediations on a scriptural passage by faculty members of Wycliffe College, Toronto, emphasize that the good news is that God can redeem idols. Each one can be restored to its proper place in God's created order and placed under God's authority.
Download or read book No Other Gods written by Kelly Minter and published by David C Cook. This book was released on 2008 with total page 204 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Minter explores what happens when good desires become false gods, robbing people of an intimate relationship with the heavenly Father. (Christian)
Download or read book The Idol of Our Age written by Daniel J. Mahoney and published by Encounter Books. This book was released on 2018-12-04 with total page 162 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is a learned essay at the intersection of politics, philosophy, and religion. It is first and foremost a diagnosis and critique of the secular religion of our time, humanitarianism, or the “religion of humanity.” It argues that the humanitarian impulse to regard modern man as the measure of all things has begun to corrupt Christianity itself, reducing it to an inordinate concern for “social justice,” radical political change, and an increasingly fanatical egalitarianism. Christianity thus loses its transcendental reference points at the same time that it undermines balanced political judgment. Humanitarians, secular or religious, confuse peace with pacifism, equitable social arrangements with socialism, and moral judgment with utopianism and sentimentality. With a foreword by the distinguished political philosopher Pierre Manent, Mahoney’s book follows Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in affirming that Christianity is in no way reducible to a “humanitarian moral message.” In a pungent if respectful analysis, it demonstrates that Pope Francis has increasingly confused the Gospel with left-wing humanitarianism and egalitarianism that owes little to classical or Christian wisdom. It takes its bearings from a series of thinkers (Orestes Brownson, Aurel Kolnai, Vladimir Soloviev, and Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn) who have been instructive critics of the “religion of humanity.” These thinkers were men of peace who rejected ideological pacifism and never confused Christianity with unthinking sentimentality. The book ends by affirming the power of reason, informed by revealed faith, to provide a humanizing alternative to utopian illusions and nihilistic despair.
Download or read book Cultural Counterfeits written by Jen Oshman and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2022-03-03 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Jen Oshman Helps Women Reject Idols and Discover God's Good Purpose for Their Lives In today's culture, women and girls are influenced by idols that promise purpose and meaning for their lives—outward beauty and ability, sex, abortion, and gender fluidity. Christian women aren't exempt from these temptations either, and can even elevate good things like marriage and motherhood to the status of idolatry. Women may sense that these idols are hollow and leave them feeling unsettled, but where should they turn instead? In Cultural Counterfeits, Jen Oshman encourages women to reject the empty, destructive promises these idols offer and embrace something much more satisfying. She casts a vision for women to experience real hope and peace in Jesus, calling them to recognize their unshakable and eternal identities in him. This timely and compelling resource will help women find freedom and joy as they explore God's good design and purpose for their lives. Culturally Relevant: Addresses current topics such as the #MeToo movement, LGBTQIA+, social media, and feminism Explains "How We Got Here": Gives a brief history of the sexual revolution up to today Written by Jen Oshman: Author of Enough about Me: Find Lasting Joy in the Age of Self For Group or Individual Study: Includes discussion questions at the end of each chapter
Download or read book Confronting the Idols of Our Age written by Thomas P. Power and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2017-02-20 with total page 57 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An idol is a good thing. It is good because God created it. Nothing exists that God did not create and God created all things good. So sex can be an idol, but before it was an idol it was a good creation of God. Materialism is an idol, but to have a material world was God's idea in the first place. Workaholism is an idol, but work is itself a good gift of God. What turns these good gifts of God into idols is what we have done with them. So we have common forms of idolatry expressed in consumerism, individualism, narcissism, careerism, and hedonism; while there are less familiar expressions found in omnism, fatalism, Gnosticism, relativism, positivism, and reductionism. We have put these and other things on a pedestal and made them into mini-gods. In the end they fail to deliver what they promise. These twelve mediations on a scriptural passage by faculty members of Wycliffe College, Toronto, emphasize that the good news is that God can redeem idols. Each one can be restored to its proper place in God's created order and placed under God's authority.
Download or read book Worship Matters Foreword by Paul Baloche written by Bob Kauflin and published by Crossway. This book was released on 2008-03-26 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nothing is more essential than knowing how to worship the God who created us. This book focuses readers on the essentials of God-honoring worship, combining biblical foundations with practical application in a way that works in the real world. The author, a pastor and noted songwriter, skillfully instructs pastors, musicians, and church leaders so that they can root their congregational worship in unchanging scriptural principles, not divisive cultural trends. Bob Kauflin covers a variety of topics such as the devastating effects of worshiping the wrong things, how to base our worship on God's self-revelation rather than our assumptions, the fuel of worship, the community of worship, and the ways that eternity's worship should affect our earthly worship. Appropriate for Christians from varied backgrounds and for various denominations, this book will bring a vital perspective to what readers think they understand about praising God.
Download or read book The Gospel at Work written by Sebastian Traeger and published by Zondervan. This book was released on 2014-01-28 with total page 132 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Find God’s vision for your job. Reclaim God’s vision for your life. Many Christians fall victim to one of two main problems when it comes to work: either they are idle in their work, or they have made an idol of it. Both of these mindsets are deadly misunderstandings of how God intends for us to think about our employment. In The Gospel at Work, Sebastian Traeger and Greg Gilbert unpack the powerful ways in which the gospel can transform how we do what we do, releasing us from the cultural pressures of both an all-consuming devotion and a punch-in, punch-out mentality—in order to find the freedom of a work ethic rooted in serving Christ. You’ll find answers to some of the tough questions that Christians in the workplace often ask: What factors should matter most in choosing a job? What gospel principles should shape my thinking about how to treat my boss, my co-workers, and my employees? Is full-time Christian work more valuable than my job? Is it okay to be motivated by money? How do you prioritize—or balance—work, family and church responsibilities? Solidly grounded in the gospel, The Gospel at Work confronts both our idleness at work and our idolatry of work with a challenge of its own—to remember that whom we work for is infinitely more important than what we do.
Download or read book Life Matters written by and published by Troubador Publishing Ltd. This book was released on with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Life Matters - Confronting the challenges of our time we see distilled experiences and reflections of a humble and spiritual working-class man. This is an honest depiction by the author, someone who has had to deal with many challenging and painful struggles in his sixty years of life. In a wide range of blogs, devotionals and articles accumulated over many years of prolific writing in the pages of Life Matters, the author explores themes centred on the best and worst of human nature with much clarity and a rare honesty. Topics range from life controlling behaviour to freedom in the Spirit, from human loss and rejection to hope and acceptance. It also covers topics such as envy and insecurity, grace and confidence, anguish and despair, true joy and hope - it's all there! The author's wit, humour and carefully crafted words will help you find encouragement from Jesus Christ, appropriate to the happenings and thoughts that are part of being human. These words would have carried heavenly anointing whenever they had been penned. You will find, in the multitude of diverse subjects close to every one of us, good reason to return and dip into this book time and time again and in the years to come. Not written in a deeply theological manner, this book will appeal just as much to the committed Christian as it does to the casual agnostic or open-minded seeker. Each reading leaves a message of hope in even the most desperate of circumstances.
Download or read book God Is Not Mad at You written by Joyce Meyer and published by FaithWords. This book was released on 2013-09-03 with total page 166 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: When bestselling author Joyce Meyer posted "God's not mad at you" on Facebook, she didn't anticipate that her words would trigger thousands of responses of gratitude and relief. Apparently many Christians struggle to reconcile their perception of God as both a loving parent and a stern judge. In GOD IS NOT MAD AT YOU, Joyce will help those who haven't truly received God's love because they are afraid of His anger and disapproval. She explores the source of this confusion, so His genuine character can be better understood and His love can be experienced on an entirely new level. Chapter titles include: * Perfectionism and Approval * The Pain of Rejection * Guilt and Shame * Developing Your Potential * Run to God, Not from Him * Getting Comfortable with God "It is important for us to remember that God's anger is directed toward our sinful behavior rather than toward us. If you feel guilty right now and are afraid that God is mad at you, then you are miserable. But your misery can be immediately changed to peace and joy by simply believing God's Word. Believe that God loves you and that He is ready to show you mercy and forgive you completely. Believe that God has a good plan for your life. Believe that God is not mad at you!" --Joyce Meyer
Download or read book Unmasking the New Age written by Douglas Groothuis and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 1986-01-24 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Douglas Groothuis explains what the New Age movement is, analyzes its major doctrines and shows how it is influencing politics, science, health care and education.
Download or read book Playing God written by Andy Crouch and published by InterVarsity Press. This book was released on 2013-09-06 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With Playing God, Andy Crouch opens the subject of power, elucidating its subtle activity in our relationships and institutions. He gives us much more than a warning against abuse, though. Turning the notion of "playing God" on its head, Crouch celebrates power as the gift by which we join in God's creative, redeeming work in the world.
Download or read book The Unfolding Gospel written by John P. Bowen and published by Fortress Press. This book was released on 2021-07-06 with total page 229 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Many congregations and their leaders are discouraged about the future of the church. John Bowen's conviction is that the solution is to be found not in new programs or strategies but in a recovery of theological vision--that of Jesus and his gospel, which transforms every aspect of life. This vision restores hope in the only way realistically possible._ Words like mission, discipleship, church, evangelism, renewal, and church planting are used like billiard balls--all rolling around a single table, unconnected and bouncing randomly off one another. This book pulls these ideas together into a coherent and organic whole. The gospel is the hermeneutical key for understanding each of these topics and what draws them together. Thus, chapter 1 is an exposition of the gospel (God's determination to make all things new through Jesus Christ). Chapter 2 discusses discipleship (we only understand discipleship in light of the gospel), and chapter 3 covers church (we only understand church if we understand discipleship). Chapter 4 considers culture as the arena in which the gospel is lived and talked about, and chapter 5 builds on that with a discussion of translation, not only as a missional necessity but as a ministry which itself incarnates the nature of the gospel. The remaining chapters (on evangelism, the future of "inherited churches," church planting, and leadership) demonstrate how the gospel is the integration point for all._ The author's hope is that church leaders--evangelical and mainline, young and old, emerging and traditional, present and future--will have a transformative "Aha!" moment as this gospel hypothesis unfolds._
Download or read book The Gods Are Broken written by Jeffrey K. Salkin and published by U of Nebraska Press. This book was released on 2013-04-01 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of Abraham smashing his father’s idols might be the most important Jewish story ever told and the key to how Jews define themselves. In a work at once deeply erudite and wonderfully accessible, Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin conducts readers through the life and legacy of this powerful story and explains how it has shaped Jewish consciousness. Offering a radical view of Jewish existence, The Gods Are Broken! views the story of the young Abraham as the “primal trauma” of Jewish history, one critical to the development of a certain Jewish comfort with rebelliousness and one that, happening in every generation, has helped Jews develop a unique identity. Salkin shows how the story continues to reverberate through the ages, even in its connection to the phenomenon of anti-Semitism. Salkin’s work—combining biblical texts, archaeology, rabbinic insights, Hasidic texts (some never before translated), philosophy, history, poetry, contemporary Jewish thought, sociology, and popular culture—is nothing less than a journey through two thousand years of Jewish life and intellectual endeavor.
Download or read book Hard Words for Desperate Times written by Caleb Gundlach and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2020-01-31 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The challenge of reading the Old Testament as Christian Scripture is nowhere more evident than in the book of Ezekiel. Its judgmental attitude, harsh words, and bizarre imagery provoke Christian readers who, familiar with the gospel, are unsure of what to do with such a strange book. This volume from the Wycliffe Studies in Gospel, Church, and Culture series offers some Christ-centered reflections on the book of Ezekiel, showing us that, even here, the same God present to us in Jesus Christ can be heard through an attentive listening to what Ezekiel is saying to us. From words of judgement and bizarre imagery of heaven, to redemptive forecasts of a hopeful future, these meditations cover the difficult terrain of Ezekiel’s visions and draw out a life-giving and Christ-centered reading of his strange message.
Download or read book Hope in Troubled Times written by Bob Goudzwaard and published by Baker Academic. This book was released on 2007-05 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides hope for real-world solutions to life-threatening problems such as global poverty, environmental destruction, and terrorism.
Download or read book Kingdom Manifesto written by Jason N. Yuh and published by Wipf and Stock Publishers. This book was released on 2021-08-16 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Even a cursory read of the Gospel of Matthew makes clear that it is concerned with the identity of Jesus Christ. These meditations attempt not to focus on tangential topics that relate to Jesus, even though these are important. Rather, they seek to focus simply on who Jesus is. Because 2020 exposed the fragility, corruption, and misery of humanity, such a focus is not only welcome but sorely needed. Humanity does not merely require self-help books that provide practical steps for improvement or philosophical musings that explain away suffering. Humanity is in dire need of something outside of itself: a Savior. The authors of these chapters are soberly aware of this truth, and they resist the temptation to reduce Jesus to a miracle worker who provides temporary relief or a commendable example that is to be imitated. Instead, in their own distinctive ways, they affirm the bold and ever-urgent proclamation that Jesus is the exclusive Savior of all people.
Download or read book Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth written by Thaddeus J. Williams and published by Zondervan Academic. This book was released on 2020-12-22 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: God does not suggest, he commands that we do justice. Social justice is not optional for the Christian. All injustice affects others, so talking about justice that isn't social is like talking about water that isn't wet or a square with no right angles. But the Bible's call to seek justice is not a call to superficial, kneejerk activism. We are not merely commanded to execute justice, but to "truly execute justice." The God who commands us to seek justice is the same God who commands us to "test everything" and "hold fast to what is good." Drawing from a diverse range of theologians, sociologists, artists, and activists, Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth, by Thaddeus Williams, makes the case that we must be discerning if we are to "truly execute justice" as Scripture commands. Not everything called "social justice" today is compatible with a biblical vision of a better world. The Bible offers hopeful and distinctive answers to deep questions of worship, community, salvation, and knowledge that ought to mark a uniquely Christian pursuit of justice. Topics addressed include: Racism Sexuality Socialism Culture War Abortion Tribalism Critical Theory Identity Politics Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth also brings in unique voices to talk about their experiences with these various social justice issues, including: Michelle-Lee Barnwall Suresh Budhaprithi Eddie Byun Freddie Cardoza Becket Cook Bella Danusiar Monique Duson Ojo Okeye Edwin Ramirez Samuel Sey Neil Shenvi Walt Sobchak In Confronting Injustice without Compromising Truth, Thaddeus Williams transcends our religious and political tribalism and challenges readers to discover what the Bible and the example of Jesus have to teach us about justice. He presents a compelling vision of justice for all God's image-bearers that offers hopeful answers to life's biggest questions.
