Radical Gospel

New York Times bestseller What is Jesus worth to you? It's easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily... But who do you know who lives like that? Do you? In Radical, David Platt challenges you to consider with an open heart how we have manipulated the gospel to fit our cultural preferences. He shows what Jesus actually said about being his disciple--then invites you to believe and obey what you have heard. And he tells the dramatic story of what is happening as a "successful" suburban church decides to get serious about the gospel according to Jesus. Finally, he urges you to join in The Radical Experiment -- a one-year journey in authentic discipleship that will transform how you live in a world that desperately needs the Good News Jesus came to bring.

Gerhard O. Forde has stood at the forefront of Lutheran thought for most of his career. This new collection of essays and sermons—many previously unpublished— makes Forde's powerful theological vision more widely available. The book aptly captures Forde's deep Lutheran commitment. Here he argues that the most important task of theology is to serve the proclamation of the gospel as discerned on the basis of the doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone. For Forde, the doctrine of justification is not one topic among other theological topics; rather, it is the criterion that guides "all theology and ministry. Throughout the book Forde applies this truth to issues of eschatology, authority, atonement, and ecumenism. Also included are seven insightful sermons that model the Lutheran approach to proclamation.

Why did Jesus have to die? Was it to appease a wrathful God's demand for punishment? Does that mean Jesus died to save us from God? How could someone ever truly love or trust a God like that? How can that ever be called "Good News"? It's questions like these that make so many people want to have nothing to do with Christianity.Healing the Gospel challenges the assumption that the Christian understanding of justice is rooted in a demand for violent punishment, and instead offers a radically different understanding of the gospel based on God's restorative justice. Connecting our own experiences of faith with the New Testament narrative, author Derek Flood shows us an understanding of the cross that not only reveals God's heart of grace, but also models our own way of Christ-like love. It's a vision of the gospel that exposes violence, rather than supporting it--a gospel rooted in love of enemies, rather than retribution. The result is a nonviolent understanding of the atonement that is not only thoroughly biblical, but will help people struggling with their faith to encounter grace.

Can today's Christians reconcile a belief in self-actualization with the extreme ethical demands of the New Testament? The author argues that they can, although not easily, and that the felt uneasiness between two concerns--self-fulfillment and self-gift--may generate a healthy tension. There is then an apparent mismatch between two views of ethics. On the one hand, psychological humanism is based on self-affirmation, acceptance of one's limitations, moderation, and the search for a quality of life in the midst of globalization. On the other hand, the radicalism of the gospel emphasizes passion (in the two senses of this word), self-transcendence towards the infinite, and generosity for God and others. Nonetheless, these two tendencies are neither incompatible nor easily reconcilable. The book uncovers both the pitfalls of self-actualization and the misleading interpretations that have disfigured the radical gospel. It highlights the developmental factors, views of human life, successes, and failures which play a considerable role in a person's journey. It brings psychological, biblical, philosophical, theological, and pastoral clarifications to bear on the issues. This book will help its readers to grasp what a psychologically informed Christian ethic can be, both intellectually and practically.

"Bishop Thomas Gumbleton, ordained a bishop in 1968, was one of the youngest bishops in the United States. He seemed to be a rising star, but at some point, beginning with his outspoken opposition to the Vietnam War, he chose to opt for discipleship rather than a successful church career. He become a prophetic voice for peace and justice, serving as founding president of Pax-Christi USA, and as a member of the committee that drafted the US bishops' historic pastoral letter on nuclear war. Since then he has been an advocate for the poor and homeless, for victims of clergy sex abuse, for welcoming gays in the church, and for promoting the role of women"--

The goals of Management and the Gospel: Luke's Radical Message for the First and Twenty-First Centuries may appear to be simple: it describes what management theory and practice looked like in the first century, uses this as a lens to examine what the Gospel of Luke says about management, and draws out implications for today. However, the book is quite profound in finding that management is a dominant theme in the Gospel, that its message is consistently counter-cultural, and that Luke contains a four-phase 'how to' process model to help readers to implement change. Readers will acquire a new way to understand the Gospel as well as the moral foundations of modern management.

WHAT IS JESUS WORTH TO YOU? It's easy for American Christians to forget how Jesus said his followers would actually live, what their new lifestyle would actually look like. They would, he said, leave behind security, money, convenience, even family for him. They would abandon everything for the gospel. They would take up their crosses daily... BUT WHO DO YOU KNOW WHO LIVES LIKE THAT? DO YOU? In Radical, David Platt challenges you to consider with an open heart how we have manipulated the gospel to fit our cultural preferences. He shows what Jesus actually said about being his disciple--then invites you to believe and obey what you have heard. And he tells the dramatic story of what is happening as a successful" suburban church decides to get serious about the gospel according to Jesus. Finally, he urges you to join in The Radical Experiment -- a one-year journey in authentic discipleship that will transform how you live in a world that desperately needs the Good News Jesus came to bring. (From the 2010 edition)"

Can today’s Christians reconcile a belief in self-actualization with the extreme ethical demands of the New Testament? The author argues that they can, although not easily, and that the felt uneasiness between two concerns—self-fulfillment and self-gift—may generate a healthy tension. There is then an apparent mismatch between two views of ethics. On the one hand, psychological humanism is based on self-affirmation, acceptance of one’s limitations, moderation, and the search for a quality of life in the midst of globalization. On the other hand, the radicalism of the gospel emphasizes passion (in the two senses of this word), self-transcendence towards the infinite, and generosity for God and others. Nonetheless, these two tendencies are neither incompatible nor easily reconcilable. The book uncovers both the pitfalls of self-actualization and the misleading interpretations that have disfigured the radical gospel. It highlights the developmental factors, views of human life, successes, and failures which play a considerable role in a person’s journey. It brings psychological, biblical, philosophical, theological, and pastoral clarifications to bear on the issues. This book will help its readers to grasp what a psychologically informed Christian ethic can be, both intellectually and practically.