Of these three words—faith, hope and love—that became the early Christian shorthand for a well-lived life with Jesus, faith is probably still the most common. We talk about a life of faith, a community of faith, the power of faith. Yet, what is faith? In the descriptions of the New Testament, faith seems to be a life of unwavering conviction about Jesus, unwavering confidence in Jesus and unwavering commitment to Jesus. It is a whole-person, whole-life orientation towards God that gives us something rock-solid to believe in. It is not blind, but an entirely different way to see the world. No wonder Paul once wrote that, "Those that are righteous are those who live by faith."
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Meet the Bible is a day-by-day book of biblically inspired meditations. "Fresh" is a word that the authors often use to describe this innovative blend of Scripture and devotionals. While traditional devotionals often lack the substance that can be found in Scripture, daily reading Bibles are often too dense and time-consuming for the average reader. Using brief but direct excerpts from Scripture, the authors guide readers to the Bible's key passages, themes, and events. Each day gets one to two pages of text and closes with a contemplation, such as "When you experience success, whom do you tend to credit, yourself or God?"
In this now classic book, noted scholar and author Harry Blamires perceptively diagnoses some of the weaknesses besetting the church with insights as fresh and relevant today as they were in the 1960s. Arguing that a distinctively Christian worldview has been swept away by secular modes of thought and politically correct assumptions, the author calls for the authentic recovery of The Christian Mind. "America needs a shot of intellectual insulin directly to its oft-sleepy mind. Harry Blamires is calling out to Christians to think once again. To Blamires, Jesus is not some spongy source of giddy joy. He is the Christ-the hope of 'hard boiled' secularity," Calvin Miller (Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary).
This is 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? 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 being called to join the revolution, and Wright 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.
As a society, we are no less obsessed with the quick fix than when Eugene Peterson first wrote this Christian classic. If anything, email and the Internet may have intensified our quest. But Peterson's time-tested prescription for discipleship remains the same—A Long Obedience In The Same Direction. Tucked away in the Hebrew Psalter, Peterson discovered the Songs of Ascents that were sung by pilgrims on their way up to worship in Jerusalem. In these songs (Psalms 120-134) Peterson finds encouragement for modern pilgrims as we learn to grow in worship, service, joy, work, happiness, humility, community and blessing.
In many ways, we live at once as not just one but two people. At once the person we wish to be...kind, steadfast,unwavering in our Christian beliefs...and the one who never measures up, uncertain, perhaps afraid, and ever wholly human. The gap between those two lives surrounds us and moves us through each moment, seeking an answer to where, if ever, the two can meet.