Rediscovering the Holy Spirit


Book Description

For the Spirit, being somewhat forgotten is an occupational hazard. The Holy Spirit is so actively involved in our lives that we can take his presence for granted. As they say, familiarity breeds contempt. Just as we take breathing for granted, we can take the Holy Spirit for granted simply because we constantly depend on him. Like the cane that soon feels like an extension of the blind man’s own body, we too easily begin to think of the Holy Spirit as an extension of ourselves. Yet the Spirit is at the center of the action in the divine drama from Genesis 1:2 all the way to Revelation 22:17. The Spirit’s work is as essential as the Father’s and the Son’s, yet the Spirit’s work is always directed to the person and work of Christ. In fact, the efficacy of the Holy Spirit’s mission is measured by the extent to which we are focused on Christ. The Holy Spirit is the person of the Trinity who brings the work of the Father, in the Son, to completion. In everything that the Triune God performs, this perfecting work is characteristic of the Spirit. In Rediscovering the Holy Spirit, author, pastor, and theologian Mike Horton introduces readers to the neglected person of the Holy Spirit, showing that the work of God’s Spirit is far more ordinary and common than we realize. Horton argues that we need to take a step back every now and again to focus on the Spirit himself—his person and work—in order to recognize him as someone other than Jesus or ourselves, much less something in creation. Through this contemplation we can gain a fresh dependence on the Holy Spirit in every area of our lives.




The Holy Spirit in the World Today


Book Description

A ground breaking collection of academic papers on the person and work of the Holy spirit, including contributions by Jorgen Moltmann and Miroslav Volf.




Holy Power, Holy Presence


Book Description

Western theology is frequently criticized for not having a fully developed pneumatology. According to these critics, preoccupation with Christology and an excessive focus on the nature and unity of God have come at the expense of a full theology of the three persons. While admitting that there is some truth to these criticisms, Elizabeth Dreyer maintains that those who level them base their conclusions on a narrow range of texts and thus fail to establish a true neglect of the Holy Spirit. Medieval authors offer a wealth of creative language and insight that speaks to the role of the Holy Spirit in contemporary spirituality and contributes to a renewed pneumatology for the twenty-first century. Book jacket.




The Trinity


Book Description

The mystery of the Trinity is the central Christian belief that defines God's essence, God's ongoing love for humanity, and saving grace. Yet, over the past few centuries, especially in the West, Christians have either ceased believing in the Trinity or simply no longer recognize its relevance in their ecclesial or individual lives. Written in an ecumenical spirit that engages contemporary questions and theological viewpoints, The Trinity: Rediscovering the Central Christian Mystery articulates the mystery of the Trinity for people formed by modern historical consciousness, science, awareness of the equal dignity of men and women, and respect for world religions. By first identifying contemporary problems with the Christian proclamation of the Trinity in our culture and major differences among modern theologians, John Farrelly, OSB, explores Scripture, the life and message of Jesus Christ, the various stages of the development of Trinitarian doctrine in Christian History, the relation of the Trinity to creation and salvation, the generation of the Son from the Father within the Trinity and the procession of the Holy Spirit from Father and Son, and the meaning of three persons in one God. He concludes by reflecting on the implications this renewed theology of the Trinity has for ecclesiology and Christian spirituality in our twenty-first century world, especially in relation to other world religions.




The Holy Spirit Before Christianity


Book Description

With his latest book, The Holy Spirit before Christianity, John R. Levison again changes the face and foundation of Christian belief in the Holy Spirit. The categories Christians have used, the boundaries they have created, the proprietary claims they have made--all of these evaporate, now that Levison has looked afresh at Scripture. In a study that is both poignant and provocative, Levison takes readers back five hundred years before Jesus, where he discovers history's first grasp of the Holy Spirit as a personal agent. The prophet Haggai and the author of Isaiah 56-66, in their search for ways to grapple with the tragic events of exile and to articulate hope for the future, took up old exodus traditions of divine agents--pillars of fire, an angel, God's own presence--and fused them with belief in God's Spirit. Since it was the Spirit of God who led Israel up from Egypt and formed them into a holy nation, now, the prophets assured their hearers, the Spirit of God would lead and renew those returning from exile. Taking this point of origin as our guide, Christian pneumatology--belief in the Holy Spirit--is less about an exclusively Christian experience or doctrine and more about the presence of God in the grand scheme of Israel's history, in which Christianity is ancient Israel's heir. This explosive observation traces the essence of Christian pneumatology deep into the heart of the Hebrew Scriptures. The implications are fierce: the priority of Israelite tradition at the headwaters of pneumatology means that Christians can no longer hold stubbornly to the Holy Spirit as an exclusively Christian belief. But the implications are hopeful as well, offering Christians a richer history, a renewed vocabulary, a shared path with Judaism, and the promise of a more expansive and authentic experience of the Holy Spirit.




Rediscovering Holiness


Book Description

"There was a time," writes renowned theologian J. I. Packer in this classic book on biblical holiness, "when all Christians laid great emphasis on God's call to holiness. But how different it is today! To listen to our sermons and to read the books we write, and then to watch the zany, worldly, quarrelsome way we behave, you would never imagine that once the highway of holiness was clearly marked out for Bible-believers." In this revised and updated edition of Rediscovering Holiness, the highway is once more clearly marked out for a new generation of readers, pointing to true freedom and joy, both now and in eternity.




Rediscovering Faith


Book Description

What is true faith? In The Power of Kingdom Faith, Dr. Myles Munroe strips away the common errors and misconceptions surrounding faith to reveal the nature, character, and power of true faith, or, Kingdom faith. Kingdom faith trusts not in the promises of God but in the God who promises; seeks not the blessings of God, but the God who blesses. Kingdom faith will always be tested, but because it places its trust in the King of the universe, will always prevail under testing. Kingdom faith, therefore is a triumphant faith that will overcome the world.




Rediscovering the Church Fathers


Book Description

While the church today looks quite different than it did two thousand years ago, Christians share the same faith with the church fathers. Although separated by time and culture, we have much to learn from their lives and teaching. This book is an organized and convenient introduction to how to read the church fathers from AD 100 to 500. Michael Haykin surveys the lives and teachings of seven of the Fathers, looking at their role in such issues as baptism, martyrdom, and the relationship between church and state. Ignatius, Cyprian, Basil of Caesarea, and Ambrose and others were foundational in the growth and purity of early Christianity, and their impact continues to shape the church today. Evangelical readers interested in the historical roots of Christianity will find this to be a helpful introductory volume.




The Holy Spirit


Book Description

This book studies the Holy Spirit through the lens of both biblical and systematic theology. It provides a comprehensive look at the third person of the Trinity as revealed by Scripture, focusing on eight central themes and assumptions.




He Who Gives Life


Book Description

This comprehensive theology of the Holy Spirit examines and explains the role of the third member of the Trinity.