The Gospel Of God S Reign

No doubt, it is common to hear Christians today declaring their allegiance to God's kingdom. But what does this actually entail, and what difference does it make? In his characteristically provocative and daring way, Christoph Blumhardt articulates a vision of God's kingdom that turns much of our understanding of modern Christianity upside-down. In the present volume, available in English for the first time, Blumhardt leads readers to look at the gospel anew, challenging us to follow Jesus in a way that makes God's reign a reality, here and now. Bypassing vague notions of spirituality, as well as transcending simplistic approaches to faith, Blumhardt inspires us to actually live under the rule and reign of God.

This is a print on demand book and is therefore non- returnable. Jesus came proclaiming the advent of the "kingdom of God." New Testament scholars, however, are by no means agreed about Jesus' meaning or intention, or about whether we have any way of penetrating through the testimony of the early Christians to what Jesus actually said or meant. This study by Paul Rowntree Clifford presses to a scholarly conclusion two key questions: What did Jesus mean by his proclamation of the kingdom? And in what sense has his promise been fulfilled? Following an insightful evaluation of the Gospel evidence, Clifford concludes that the kingdom of God as proclaimed by Jesus is a reality in the light of which we have come to terms with the modern world -- a world where natural catastrophes and humanly created disasters are common occurrences. By focusing on matters of fact, Clifford shows that we end up with a startlingly challenging proclamation of the kingdom of God that is profoundly relevant to the difficult world in which we live.

"No doubt, it is common to hear Christians today declaring their allegiance to God's kingdom. But what does this actually entail, and what difference does it make? In his characteristically provocative and daring way, Christoph Blumhardt articulates a vision of God's kingdom that turns much of our understanding of modern Christianity upside-down. In the present volume, available in English for the first time, Blumhardt leads readers to look at the gospel anew, challenging us to follow Jesus in a way that makes God's reign a reality, here and now. Bypassing vague notions of spirituality, as well as transcending simplistic approaches to faith, Blumhardt inspires us to actually live under the rule and reign of God."

About the Contributor(s): Christian T. Collins Winn is Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at Bethel University, St. Paul, Minnesota, and a licensed minister in the American Baptist Churches (USA). He is author of ""Jesus Is Victor!"" The Significance of the Blumhardts for the Theology of Karl Barth (Pickwick Publications, 2009). Charles E. Moore is a member of the Bruderhof Community, an international community movement based on Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. He teaches Bible and Christian ethics at the Mount Academy, and is an editor and author for Plough Publishing. Collections he has edited include Provocations: Spiritual Writings of Kierkegaard (2003), Sadhu Sundar Singh: Spiritual Writings (2005), and Leo Tolstoy: Spiritual Writings (2006).

In this engaging treatment of the Gospel of Mark, Dawn Ottoni Wilhelm combines biblical scholarship with a close reading of the Gospel text to meet the needs of preachers today. Swift and purposeful, the Gospel of Mark proclaims God's reign and urges the participation of all God's people in the witness of the good news that God has transformed human reality through Jesus Christ. This insightful commentary helps that message come alive while providing pertinent suggestions about how preachers can proclaim this message to today's churchgoers.

Ladd, whose work has included much technical study of the doctrine of the kingdom, here presents a practical and devotional scriptural study of the many aspects of the kingdom, based on the parables, the Sermon on the Mount, and other key passages.

This commentary for preaching Matthew, a companion to WJK's successful Preaching the Gospel of Luke, Preaching the Gospel of John, and Preaching the Gospel of Mark, works through every passage of Matthew's Gospel with exegetical insight and a keen sensitivity to the demands of preaching. Stanley P. Saunders' commentary follows the biblical text, divided into passages. After each passage, a number of possibilities are presented for how to preach that text. He includes a wealth of creative and pertinent tips to help preachers apply Matthew's narrative to the lives of today's churchgoers.