Privilege the Text!


Book Description

Privilege the Text! spans the conceptual gap between biblical text and life application by providing a rigorous theological hermeneutic for preaching. Kuruvilla describes the theological entity that is the intermediary between ancient text and modern audience, and defines its crucial function in determining valid application. Based on this hermeneutic, he submits a new mode of reading Scripture for preaching: a Christiconic interpretation of the biblical text, a hermeneutically robust way to understand the depiction of the Second Person of the Trinity in Scripture. In addition, Kuruvilla’s work provides a substantive theology of spiritual formation through preaching: what it means to obey God, the Christian’s responsibility to undertake “faith-full” obedience to divine demand, and the incentives for such obedience—all integral to understanding the sermonic movement from text to application. Privilege the Text! promises to be useful not only for preachers, and students and teachers of homiletics, but for all who are interested in the exposition of Scripture that culminates in application for the glory of God.




Faith. Hope. Love.


Book Description

"So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13 Faith, hope, and love—we hear a lot about each on their own, but how are they related? Why is this triad mentioned so often in the New Testament? Written in the form of fifty-eight questions and answers, this book reveals how these three theological virtues—also referred to as "three divine sisters"—together serve as the foundation for our whole Christian life. Deeply scriptural, steeped in key theological texts, and modeled after the classic catechisms of church history, this book will instruct our minds, stir our hearts, and motivate us to faith-filled obedience.




Paul and the Vocation of Israel


Book Description

The Apostle Paul was the greatest early missionary of the Christian gospel. He was also, by his own admission, an Israelite. How can both these realities coexist in one individual? This book argues that Paul viewed his mission to the Gentiles, in and of itself, as the primary expression of his Jewish identity. The concept of Israel’s divine vocation is used to shed fresh light on a number of much-debated passages in Paul’s letter to the Romans.




The Four Pages of the Sermon


Book Description

Doing justice to the complexity of the preaching task and the questions that underlie it, Wilson organizes both the preparation and the content of the sermon around its "four pages." Each "page" addresses a different theological and creative component of what happens in any sermon. Page One presents the trouble or conflict that takes place in or that underscores the biblical text itself. Page Two looks at similar conflict--sin or brokenness--in our own time. Page Three returns to the Bible to identify where God is at work in or behind the text--in other words, to discover the good news. Page Four points to God at work in our world, particularly in relation to the situations described in Page Two.




The One Another Project


Book Description

Outside of his love for God and his family, Pastor Wayne Hoag's greatest love is for the Body of Christ. For forty-three years he has been a shepherd of God's flock. The past twenty-nine years he has served Sierra Bible Church in the mountain town of Truckee, California. Several years ago his attention was drawn to the New Testament admonitions that call God's children to either be or do something for their fellow believers in the local church. In fact, the call appears a total of twenty-nine times. Upon further study, Wayne became convinced that the twenty-nine one another admonitions were God's unique strategy to shape and mold His children into the image of His Son. He began to see that following the work of salvation in one's life, God then placed the new believer in a local fellowship where they would be further shaped and refined by and through their life with other believers. That is when the One Another Project was born. The Project was originally a ten week series of sermons that were then further explored in weekly home study groups. The questions that were asked and explored in the small groups are listed at the end of each chapter. Pastor Wayne has not only taught these truths to his Truckee congregation but also to others who want to more fully understand God's strategy of the One Another call. For further information and discussion about this topic please visit www.oneanotheronline.org. The key verse for this study is Romans 12:5, "...so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another." As you read may you grow in your understanding of just how much you need your brothers and sisters in Christ.










Fight for Your Pastor


Book Description

Practical Ways to Support and Care for Your Pastor Do you pray for your pastors? Do you encourage them? Do you have realistic expectations for them? The office of pastor is simultaneously a rewarding and draining position. Pastors today have immense pressure on their shoulders and they need the support of their congregations. Peter Orr has written Fight for Your Pastor as an exhortation for church members to stand behind their pastors through the difficulties of ministry. Orr specifies ways in which congregations can be intentional in caring for church leaders, including prayer, encouragement, generosity, and forgiveness. Featuring stories from current pastors about their struggles, this book is perfect for thoughtful church members eager to understand the weight of their pastors' positions and support leaders in their important ministry. For Thoughtful Christians: Specifically those wanting to know more about their pastors and how to care for them Current: Features insight from pastors about their personal experiences in ministry Applicable: Gives practical examples of how to love and care for pastors, including specific prayers for church leaders and the best ways to encourage them




The Gospel Comes with a House Key


Book Description

What did God use to draw a radical, committed unbeliever to himself? Did God take her to an evangelistic rally? Or, since she had her doctorate in literature, did he use something in print? No, God used an invitation to dinner in a modest home, from a humble couple who lived out the gospel daily, simply, and authentically. With this story of her conversion as a backdrop, Rosaria Butterfield invites us into her home to show us how God can use this same "radical, ordinary hospitality" to bring the gospel to our lost friends and neighbors. Such hospitality sees our homes as not our own, but as God's tools for the furtherance of his kingdom as we welcome those who look, think, believe, and act differently from us into our everyday, sometimes messy lives—helping them see what true Christian faith really looks like.