Many Christians believe that they have to understand everything about their faith for that faith to be genuine. This isn't true. There are many things we don't understand about God, His Word, and His works. And this is actually one of the greatest things about the Christian faith: that there are areas of mystery that lie beyond the keenest scholarship or even the most profound spiritual exercises. Sadly, for many people these problems raise so many questions and uncertainties that faith itself becomes a struggle. But questions, and even doubts, are part of faith. Chris Wright encourages us to face the limitations of our understanding and to acknowledge the pain and grief they can often cause. In The God I Don't Understand, he focuses on four of the most mysterious subjects in the Bible and reflects upon why it's important to ask questions without having to provide the answer: The problem of evil and suffering. The genocide of the Canaanites. The cross and the crucifixion. The end of the world. "However strongly we believe in divine revelation, we must acknowledge both that God has not revealed everything and that much of what he has revealed is not plain. It is because Dr. Wright confronts biblical problems with a combination of honesty and humility that I warmly commend this book." —John Stott
Most Christians would agree that the Bible provides a basis for mission. But Christopher Wright boldly maintains that mission is bigger than that--there is in fact a missional basis for the Bible! The entire Bible is generated by and is all about God's mission. He provides a missional hermeneutic in response to this claim.
Chris Wright’s pioneering 2006 book, The Mission of God, revealed that the typical Christian understanding of “missions” encompasses only a small part of God’s overarching mission for the world. God is relentlessly reclaiming the entire world for himself. In The Mission of God’s People, Wright shows how God’s big-picture plan directs the purpose of God’s people, the church. Wright emphasizes what the Old Testament teaches Christians about being the people of God. He addresses questions of both ecclesiology and missiology with topics like “called to care for creation,” “called to bless the nations,” “sending and being sent,” and “rejecting false gods.” As part of the Biblical Theology for Life Series, this book provides pastors, teachers, and lay learners with first-rate biblical study while at the same time addressing the practical concerns of contemporary ministry. The Mission of God’s People promises to enliven and refocus the study, teaching, and ministry of those truly committed to joining God’s work in the world.
Has the Bible bound Christians to a narrow and mistaken notion of Jesus? To answer this question we need to know what story Jesus claimed for himself. In this revised and updated book Christopher Wright traces the life of Christ as it is illuminated by the Old Testament and describes God?s design for Israel as it is fulfilled in the story of Jesus.
Nothing confuses Christian ethics quite like the Old Testament. Christopher Wright examines a theological, social, and economic framework for Old Testament ethics, exploring themes in relation to contemporary issues: economics, the land and the poor, politics and a world of nations, law and justice, society and culture, and the way of the individual.
In recent sociological approaches to the Old Testament, Christians have been finding unexpected resources for their ethical reflection and action relative to the modern world's pressing social and economic dilemmas. This unique survey by Christopher Wright examines life in Old Testament Israel from an ethical perspective by considering how the economic facts of Israel's social structure were related to the people's religious beliefs. Observing the centrality of the family in social, economic and religious spheres of Israelite life, Wright analyzes Israel's theology of land, the rights and responsibilities of property owners, and the socioeconomic and legal status of dependent persons in ancient Israel - wives, children, and slaves - showing the mutual interaction between such laws, institutions, and customs and the nation's covenant relationship with God. While primarily exegetical, God's People in God's Land contains many useful insights for Christian social ethics: Wright suggests how the ethical application of his findings might proceed as Christians with different theological perspectives and cultural contexts seek to work out the relevance of the Old Testament for today.
A new commentary for today's world, The Story of God Bible Commentary explains and illuminates each passage of Scripture in light of the Bible's grand story. The first commentary series to do so, SGBC offers a clear and compelling exposition of biblical texts, guiding everyday readers in how to creatively and faithfully live out the Bible in their own contexts. Its story-centric approach is ideal for pastors, students, Sunday school teachers, and laypeople alike. Each volume employs three main, easy-to-use sections designed to help readers live out God's story: LISTEN to the Story: Includes complete NIV text with references to other texts at work in each passage, encouraging the reader to hear it within the Bible's grand story. EXPLAIN the Story: Explores and illuminates each text as embedded in its canonical and historical setting. LIVE the Story: Reflects on how each text can be lived today and includes contemporary stories and illustrations to aid preachers, teachers, and students. —Exodus— Exodus' place within the story of God is defined by its record of God's greatest act of redemption until the cross and resurrection of Christ. Its concluding picture of God in all his blessing and glory dwelling in the midst of his people will spark the faith and vision of the concluding picture of the whole Bible. Edited by Scot McKnight and Tremper Longman III, and written by a number of top-notch theologians, The Story of God Bible Commentary series will bring relevant, balanced, and clear-minded theological insight to any biblical education or ministry.
Some people think the Old Testament has nothing to say about God as our Father, or about the Holy Spirit, whilst others try to find Jesus somewhere on every page of the Old Testament. Chris Wright brings a much-needed corrective to these misconceptions in his masterful three-in-one volume, Knowing God – The Trilogy. After exploring the identity and mission of Jesus in the light of the Scriptures he knew so well – our Old Testament, the book goes on to see how God reveals himself as Father in the same Scriptures, and works powerfully through his Spirit. Wright’s thoughtful and engaging exposition of multiple biblical texts invites us to encounter the Trinity not just as a doctrine we affirm but as persons we can know.
What does it mean to be faithful disciples in a violent and unjust world? Habakkuk described an era of rampant moral and social evil among his own people, and a vision of the rapid rise of the Babylonian empire under Nebuchadnezzar. The world he described is familiar in so many eras of human history, including our own. The frightening international tensions, confusion about political alignments and alliances, fractured moral and religious traditions, and social dissolution and degradation cause the same fear and anxiety today as they did back then. Confusing is a mild world for it--international, political, religious, moral confusion. It was (and still is) a world of national wickedness and international turmoil and violence, a world in which God appears to be asleep on his watch and yet claims to be "working a work" in Habakkuk's day and ours. Hearing the Message of Habakkuk walks through the questions the prophet asked God about injustice and the jaw-dropping answers he received. This popular-level exposition addresses: God's silence. God's sovereignty. Living by faith. God's judgement. Trusting God's Word. What we learn from Habakkuk's dialogue with God can help us today as we struggle to work out what it means to believe in God's sovereignty, justice, and love, and to live as faithful disciples in an unjust world.
There is no easy answer to the meaning of life--even when you believe in God. The book of Ecclesiastes seeks to answer the question: "What do people gain from all their labors at which they toil under the sun?" The book's central character is Qoheleth, who wants to understand the meaning of life as far as he possibly can with the tools of his own empirical observation and reason. He struggles to reconcile the beautiful world that we love and enjoy with the baffling world of injustice, suffering, and death. Qoheleth circles around an abyss of nihilism and pessimism. He lives with unanswered questions. Yet he remains a believer. Old Testament scholar Christopher J. H. Wright invites you to join Qoheleth on a journey through wisdom literature from centuries ago, because the message of Ecclesiastes can be strangely reassuring as we put our faith to the test in today's post-modern era. There will be disorienting twists and turns and the occasional complete impasse as complex topics are discussed, like: The meaning of life Mysteries of time and injustice Ambiguities of work, politics, worship, and wealth Hearing the Message of Ecclesiastes won't answer your questions about the meaning of life, but it will ultimately help you live in the tension of God's gifts in Genesis 1-2 and the fallen world of Genesis 3--and still go on trusting in the sovereign goodness of God.
How should Christians live? Some Christians stress the importance of keeping all the rules, while others see the Christian faith as setting us free from religious burdens. Inviting us to live a life in step with the Spirit, Christopher Wright teaches us how to feed on the Word of God, grow in Christlikeness, and live a fruitful life.
What is the Church's mission? What does it mean to participate in God's mission personally? How do "mission" and culture interact and conflict? This book articulates various evangelical views regarding the church's mission and provides a healthy, vigorous, and gracious debate on this controversial topic. In a helpful Counterpoints format, this volume demonstrates the unique theological frameworks, doctrinal convictions, and missiological conclusions that inform and distinguish the views: Soteriological Mission: Jonathan Leeman Participatory Mission: Christopher Wright Contextual Mission: John Franke Ecumenical-Political Mission: Peter Leithart Each contributor answers the same key questions based on their biblical interpretations and theological convictions: What is your biblical-theological framework for mission? How does your definition of mission inform your understanding of the church's mission? How does the Mission of God and Kingdom of God relate to the mission of the church? What is the gospel? How does your view on the gospel inform the mission of the church? How do verbal proclamation of the gospel, discipleship, corporate worship, caring for the poor, social justice, restoring shalom, developing culture, and international missions fit into the church's mission? The interactive format helps readers get a clearer picture of why different conclusions are drawn and provide a fresh starting point for discussion and debate of the church's mission. The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.
Christianity Today 2024 Book Award (Missions/Global Church) Outreach 2024 Resource of the Year (Mission and Cross-Cultural) Highly regarded biblical scholar and speaker Christopher Wright shows us that how we read the Bible has a profound impact on how we understand what mission is. According to Wright, "People read (and preach) the Bible in tiny bits and pieces, for its promises or rules or doctrines, and fail to take it . . . as the true story of the universe, past, present, and future, within the plan and purposes of God--a story in which we are called to participate as coworkers with God." Wright encourages us to explore the Bible's grand narrative and to bring the whole counsel of God in Scripture to our understanding of who we are and what we must do as God's people. He helps us understand mission in its broadest sense, including our creational responsibilities. Wright's goal is to get us excited about the dramatic vista of the whole Bible and to help us understand the breadth and depth of missional engagement that we are called to live as actors in that drama.
With the expertise of a veteran biblical scholar and the wisdom of a seasoned pastor, Christopher Wright skillfully guides us on Jesus' journey from the Last Supper to the cross. Through the lens of the Old Testament, Wright navigates the Gospel accounts of the events of Jesus' last, pivotal days, inviting us to meditate on their significance for us.
Section by section exposition with key terms and phrases highlighted and all Hebrew transliterated. A separate section of notes at the close of each chapter provides additional textual and technical comments. Each commentary also includes a selected bibliography as well as Scripture and subject indexes. This set is for serious and general readers alike. Wright is principal of All Nations Christian College in England. His PhD is from Cambridge University.
Jesus sends us into the world just as God the Father sent him - and yet Christians continue to disagree on what this involves. Some believe that the focus of Christian mission is evangelizing and 'saving souls'. Others emphasize global justice issues or relief and development work. Is either view correct on its own? John Stott's classic volume, first published forty years ago, presents an enduring view of Christian mission that is just as needed today. Newly updated and expanded by Christopher J. H. Wright, Christian Mission in the Modern World provides a biblically based approach to mission that addresses both spiritual and physical needs. With his trademark clarity and conviction, Stott illuminates how the Great Commission itself not only assumes the proclamation that makes disciples, but also teaches obedience to the Great Commandment of love and service. Wright has expertly updated the original book and demonstrates the continuing relevance of Stott's prescient thinking. This balanced approach to mission encourages current and future Christians to embrace an unconflicted and holistic model of ministry.
Christopher Wright uses this verse as a lens through which he surveys the Bible’s teaching on 'salvation’. Every phrase in the verse resonates with significant themes in the Old and New Testaments, all of which combine to show that the Bible tells the story of God’s salvation very broadly indeed, in relation to the character and purposes of God, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the redemption of all creation, the joy of Christian experience and the responsibility of Christian mission. This clear, deep and warm-hearted exposition enriches our grasp of the Bible’s multi-faceted teaching about salvation.
A replacement volume in the Bible Speaks Today Old Testament commentary series, this book offers a new exposition on Jeremiah, a book of the victory of God's love and grace. The prophet's redemptive, reconstructive work comprises the book's portrait of the future--a future that we see fulfilled in the New Testament through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus the Messiah.
Combining three volumes into one, Knowing God Through the Old Testament brings together three of Christopher J. H. Wright's best loved books: Knowing God the Father Through the Old Testament, Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament, and Knowing the Holy Spirit Through the Old Testament.
In the last sermon he ever preached, John Stott echoed the Apostle Paul when he said that God's greatest desire and plan for us is to become like his Son, Jesus Christ. BUT HOW?Stott prayed daily that God would bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit in his own life; a prayer clearly answered and evident in his Christlikeness. Chris Wright, a close friend of John Stott, reflects on all nine qualities that the Apostle Paul includes in the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians. He shows how they are rooted in the character of God, first revealed in the Old Testament, and modelled and taught by Jesus. With ap.
Chris Wright challenges us to recognize that the problem of insufficient funding does not belong to those experiencing the shortfall but to those entrusted by God with the means to alleviate it.
Preaching about the cross of Christ is one of the greatest privileges and responsibilities any preacher can have! The four Gospel writers who wrote about the cross of Christ and the events leading up to it, did so in their own unique way. Each interpreting the events through the lens of different Old Testament Scriptures and each emphasising different themes. Based on his own sermons preached over a number of years at All Souls Church in London, Christopher Wright explores the rich variety and lets the four Gospels preach the Gospel in their own way. This is an excellent resource for preachers, which is further enriched by the final chapter that provides a personal commentary on how Wright prepared each of the sermons.
In many corners of the world these days the climate of hostility hangs over any overt Christian faith commitment. Any kind of Christian commitment is now assumed to imply intolerance and often prompts reactions that range from a low-grade hostility and exclusion in the West to the vicious and murderous assaults on Christian believers in Pakistan, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Syria and Iraq and elsewhere. Such issues are not new. Christians have faced them ever since Nero’s lions, and even before that. Jews also have faced the same questions all through their history, most tragically sometimes enduring horrendous persecution from states claiming to be Christian. So it is not surprising that the Bible gives a lot of attention to these questions. The book of Daniel tackles the problem head on, both in the stories of Daniel and his friends, and in the visions he received. A major theme of the book is how people who worship the one, true, living God—the God of Israel—can live and work and survive in the midst of a nation, a culture, and a government that are hostile and sometimes life-threatening. What does it mean to live as believers in the midst of a non-Christian state and culture? How can we live “in the world” and yet not let the world own us and squeeze us into the shape of its own fallen values and assumptions? The book was written to encourage believers to keep in mind that the future, no matter how terrifying it may eventually become, rests in the hands of the sovereign Lord God—and in that assurance to get on with the challenging task of living in God’s world for the sake of God’s mission.
Many preachers steer clear of the Old Testament because they feel it is outdated in light of the New Testament and difficult to expound. On the other hand some preachers will preach from the Old Testament frequently but fail to handle it correctly, and end up preaching nothing but legalistic rules or symbolic lessons for our spiritual life. In this book, Christopher J. H. Wright encourages preachers not to ignore the Old Testament! It is the Word of God, it lays the foundation for our faith and it was the Bible that was read and used by Jesus. It is the first part of the great biblical story, from creation to new creation. And because it is the journey that leads to Christ, it is, in fact, part of our story too. Looking first at why we should preach from the Old Testament, the author then moves on to showing the reader how to handle different kinds of literature in it. He guides us through the History, Law, Prophets, Psalms and Wisdom Literature of the Old Testament. Interspersed with detailed checklists, suggested exercises and specimen sermons, this is a very practical handbook for anyone committed to authentic Biblical preaching.
The Prophet Jeremiah addressed the people of Judah and Jerusalem over a forty-year period leading up to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC. The book of Jeremiah addressed the exiles, especially those in Babylon, in the years after the catastrophe. First of all then, says Chris Wright, we must encounter Jeremiah the prophet who, from his youth to old age, delivered the word of God to the people of Israel at the most terrifying time in all their troubled history. Understanding his times is essential to understanding his life and message. Next, we must strive to grasp how this enormous book (the second longest in the Bible, after Psalms) has been put together. And finally, if Jeremiah spoke in his day, and if the book still speaks today, in both cases it is because of the God who called the man to speak and commanded the book to be written. So we must encounter the God of Jeremiah, an encounter that should be both profoundly disturbing and ultimately reassuring, as it was for him. In the end, Jeremiah is a book of the victory of God's love and grace. His redemptive, reconstructive work fills the book's future horizon - a future that we see fulfilled in the New Testament through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Messiah; and ultimately in God's dwelling with his redeemed people forever in the new creation.
Two features especially distinguish the Two Horizons Old Testament Commentary series: theological exegesis and theological reflection. Both of these features are fully realized in this THOTC volume on Ezra and Nehemiah by David J. Shepherd and Christopher J. H. Wright. Following an introduction and concise, verse-by-verse commentary on both books, Shepherd and Wright highlight key ways in which these Old Testament texts continue to speak to us today. They closely examine what Ezra and Nehemiah tell us about God and the people of Israel, reflect practically on leadership, and engage critically with those portions of the text (such as Ezra's dissolution of the Judeans' marriages with foreigners) that present special problems for contemporary readers. Offering deep theological insight throughout, this volume will prove essential for students, pastors, and other Christian leaders seeking to engage in theological interpretation of Scripture.
Christians desperately need to name and expose the modern-day false gods of prosperity, nationalism, and self-interest. Combining a biblical study of idolatry with practical discipleship, Old Testament scholar Christopher J. H. Wright calls readers to fight the temptation of idolatry as we consider connections between Old Testament patterns and today's culture.
Christopher Wright explores in depth the Father images that pervade the biblical narratives, psalms and prophetic texts of the Old Testament. God is acknowledged as tender yet terrifying, challenging to the nations and yet intimately personal, offering loving care, provision, discipline and forgiveness.
We tend to think of the Holy Spirit as the straggler of the Trinity, a latecomer in God's interaction with the world. But our first introduction to the Holy Spirit is not the drama of Pentecost in the second chapter of Acts. We first meet the Holy Spirit in the second verse of the Bible, hovering there, speaking the world into existence. Christopher Wright begins here and traces the Holy Spirit through the pages of the Old Testament. We see the Third Person of the Trinity in the decrees of prophets and psalmists, in the actions of judges and craftspeople, in the anointing of kings and the promise of a new creation. Knowable and discernable in the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit is thus eminently knowable to us. The witness of the whole of Scripture, from its first pages to its last, directs us to a Holy Spirit empowering the people of God, and sustaining and renewing the face of the earth.
Many preachers ignore preaching from the Old Testament because they feel it is outdated in light of the New Testament and difficult to expound. On the other hand, some preachers will preach from the Old Testament frequently but fail to handle it correctly, turning it into moralistic rules or symbolic lessons for our spiritual life. In How to Preach and Teach the Old Testament for All Its Worth, Christopher J. H. Wright proclaims that preachers must not ignore the Old Testament. It is the Word of God! The Old Testament lays the foundation for our faith and it was the Bible that Jesus read and used. Looking first at why we should preach from the Old Testament, the author moves on to show the reader how they can preach from it. Covering the History, Law, Prophets, Psalms, and Wisdom Literature, interspersed with practical checklists, exercises, and sermons, Wright provides an essential guide on how to handle the Old Testament responsibly.
It's easy to see the Old Testament as confusing, out of date, or irrelevant. Using seven key sentences drawn straight from the Old Testament, Christopher J. H. Wright fits the pieces together, shows us the coherent whole, and points us toward Jesus. This short survey shows God's faithfulness and love for his people and illuminates how the Old Testament Scriptures prepared for the identity and mission of Jesus.
This prophetic biblical book was written in a land awash with false gods and groaning under all kinds of social evil. Eventually, the inevitable happens and God's judgment on his people begins to unfold. A young Ezekiel, carried off to exile in Babylon, is commissioned by the Lord to warn of a more devastating and unthinkable judgment to come. Chris Wright vividly explores Ezekiel's varied and dramatic mission at several levels: - his unwavering commitment to his task - the social and political background to his work - the character of his ministry as watchman, evangelist and pastor - and the wider context of Ezekiel's vision - the knowledge of the Lord in Israel and amongst the nations Ezekiel strived to bring meaning, comfort and hope to a shattered, decimated and demoralised remnant of God's people, Israel - a challenge Christians must all emulate in our increasingly troubled world today. The Bible Speaks Today series covers every book of the Old and New Testaments, as well as Bible themes that run through the whole of Scripture. These revised editions are redesigned inside and out and have been sensitively updated with contemporary language and Bible translations to help you follow, study and teach the Bible in today's world.
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