HUMILITY

Here’s another book I really enjoyed. I was not familiar with Michael Austin until I saw a post about this book in a Dallas Willard Facebook Group I’m apart of (so, of course, I had to check it out and I’m glad that I did). Dive in and enjoy!

Here is an overview via the publisher:

Amid culture wars and church division, Michael W. Austin calls us back to the authentic Way—following Christ in humility and love. 
 
American Christians have lost the Way. We chase power and comfort and coat our self-righteousness in a Christian veneer. We comfort ourselves that we follow the rules and go to church, so life will work out for us. But we have forgotten what it means to truly follow Christ. 
 
Michael Austin brings us back to basics of the Christian life: humility and love. Drawing on Philippians and 1 Corinthians, Austin reminds us how Jesus, in love, poured himself out for others. This other-centeredness stands contrary to vainglorious affirmation in our lives, online and off—and it is the key to healing the deep divisions in our communities.  
 
Austin guides the reader through spiritual disciplines to aid in the formation of this virtue, from praying the Psalms to building healthy communities. For Christians seeking transformative union with God, in their souls and society, Humility is the ideal companion.

The Lost World of the Prophets

I really enjoy The Lost World Series by the Old Testament Scholar, John H. Walton. This volume focuses on Old Testament Prophecy and Apocalyptic Literature in Ancient Context (I believe this one is the 7th in the series): The Lost World of the Prophets.

Here is an overview of the book via the publisher.

Being responsive to God is at the heart of prophecy. But readers of ancient prophecies and apocalyptic literature—including those in the Old Testament—can come away thoroughly perplexed. Are the prophets speaking about their own times, about our present, or about some still-unrealized future?

It’s common to study prophecy with a focus on the sole question of prediction and fulfillment, either for the sake of apologetics or for understanding the end times, but such an approach can fail to track with the original intent of the authors. We need to shake loose both from a paradigm of reading prophecy as an offer of mysterious divination as well as from the habit of constructing eschatological timelines of any sort. How do these books work as meaningful Scripture for Christians today?

John Walton applies his signature method to help us recover the lost world of the prophets. To read these biblical books well, we must understand:

• the role of the prophet
• the nature of prophetic literature
• the theological significance of prophecy
• how apocalyptic differs from prophecy

A fresh reading of the Old Testament text in light of the ancient Near Eastern context can open new avenues of awareness. Walton provides a clear, helpful guide to the nature of biblical prophecy and apocalyptic literature that will help readers avoid potential misuse and reclaim the message of the prophets for their lives.

The books in the Lost World Series follow the pattern set by Bible scholar John H. Walton, bringing a fresh, close reading of the Hebrew text and knowledge of ancient Near Eastern literature to an accessible discussion of the biblical topic at hand using a series of logic-based propositions.

Living In Christ’s Presence

One of the reasons I love this book so much is because it features two of my all time favorite authors (Dallas Willard and John Ortberg). Another reason I love it is because this book contains the last conference Willard shared at prior to his death in 2013. I highly recommend listening to the audio version because it is Willard and Ortberg’s messages along with some Q & A between the sessions.

Here is an overview via the Dallas Willard website:

Dallas teamed up with John Ortberg in February 2013 for the Dallas Willard Center’s inaugural conference in Santa Barbara, California. John and Dallas have been ministry partners for decades, which was quite evident as they taught together and shared insights into living more fully in the presence of Christ daily. The primary passion for the conference was to provide an overview of Dallas’s writings and ministry. His most impassioned ideas. The conference was built around the theme “Knowing Christ Today” and as a way to present the golden thread that runs through all of his primary writing: that it is possible to know the Trinity intimately and to step into their glorious kingdom.

Throughout the conference John and Dallas explored what it means to live well now in light of God’s kingdom. They reflected on the power of the Trinity in our lives, the meaning of knowledge, the state of the university, the importance of spiritual disciplines and much more. Dallas also offered poignant thoughts about what it will be like to transition into the very presence of Christ in heaven. At the end of each session John moderated a wonderful dialogue with Dallas, teasing out further insight and clarity about the topics at hand. Three of the sessions were taught by Dallas and three by John, followed by a final session with the theme of offering a blessing to one another and learning to receive blessing from others.

The talks at the conference by Dallas and John have been edited just a bit to make the transition to create this book, but they retain their conversational feel. At the start of each chapter is one of the prayers that was prayed during the conference. A Discussion Guide written by Gary Moon is included with the book.

Jesus and the Powers

The new book by N. T. Wright and Michael Bird is so good and comes at the right time as we head into an election season. Dive in and enjoy!

Here’s an overview via the publisher:

An urgent call for Christians everywhere to explore the nature of the kingdom amid the political upheaval of our day.

Should Christians be politically withdrawn, avoiding participation in politics to maintain their prophetic voice and to keep from being used as political pawns? Or should Christians be actively involved, seeking to utilize political systems to control the levers of power?

In Jesus and the Powers, N. T. Wright and Michael F. Bird call Christians everywhere to discern the nature of Christian witness in fractured political environments. In an age of ascending autocracies, in a time of fear and fragmentation, amid carnage and crises, Jesus is king, and Jesus’s kingdom remains the object of the church’s witness and work.

Part political theology, part biblical overview, and part church history, this book argues that building for Jesus’s kingdom requires confronting empire in all its forms. This approach should orient Christians toward a form of political engagement that contributes to free democratic societies and vigorously opposes political schemes based on autocracy and nationalism. Throughout, Wright and Bird reflect on the relevance of this kingdom-oriented approach to current events, including the Russian-Ukraine conflict, the China-Taiwan tension, political turmoil in the USA, UK, and Australia, and the problem of Christian nationalism.

Table of Contents

1. The kingdom of Jesus in the shadow of empire
2. The Church between Jesus and Caesar
3. Power and the ‘powers’ in early Christianity: John, Paul and the paradox of biblical politics
4. The kingdom of God as vision and vocation
5. The Church between submission and subversion
6. The Church resisting the powers of today
7. Liberalism and love in a time of fear and fragmentation
8. Conclusion

Hearing God

I’ve recently been going back through this extremely helpful book by Dallas Willard (the 2021 updated edition) — Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God.

Here’s an overview via the Dallas Willard website:

How do we hear God’s voice? How can we be sure that what we think we hear is not our own subconscious? What if what God says to us is not clear?

Being close to God means communicating with him, and this communication is a two-way street—telling him what is on our hearts in prayer and hearing and understanding what he is saying to us. It is this second half of our conversation with God that is so important but can also be so difficult. How can you be sure God is speaking to you? The key is to focus not so much on individual actions and decisions as on building our personal relationship with our Creator. Hearing God is but one dimension of a richly interactive relationship, and obtaining guidance is but one facet of hearing God.

This updated classic, originally published in 1984 as In Search of Guidance, provides rich spiritual insight into how we can hear God’s voice clearly and develop an intimate partnership with him in the work of his kingdom. The reader will learn that divine guidance goes beyond the anxious, sometimes neurotic, quest for “what God wants me to do,” to having a critical role in my becoming a responsible co-laborer with Him, the kind of person He expects me to be. God is inviting us to reorganize our lives in a way that keeps us walking so closely with him that it becomes easy to know his mind and hear his voice.

Chapter one clarifies the tension in which Christians live, believing that hearing God is very important to our walk with him but at the same time lacking a confident understanding of how it works for the individual in practice. Chapter two removes some common misunderstandings about God’s communications with us. Chapter three explains the various ways in which he is with us. Chapter four examines some objections to the very idea of God’s communicating with individuals. Chapter five deals with the various ways in which he communicates and explains and defends the centrality of God’s speaking— God’s Word—to his creation and to the process of redemption. Chapter eight clarifies how we can be sure that we are hearing God. Finally, chapter nine deals with what to do on those occasions, sure to come, when God is not speaking—or at least when we are not hearing him.

Hearing God may be a daring idea—some would say presumptuous and even dangerous. But is it not, in fact, more presumptuous and dangerous to undertake human existence without hearing God? Dr. Willard’s hope is that Hearing God will leave you with a clear sense of how to live confidently in a personal walk that is complemented by an ongoing conversational relationship with God.

Paul: A Biography

This fabulous book by my favorite theologian, N. T. Wright, came out in 2020. I read it back then and just recently decided to go back through it via the audio version. I think it is one you’ll enjoy and learn much from. Enjoy!

Here is an overview of the book via Amazon:

In this definitive biography, renowned Bible scholar, Anglican bishop, and bestselling author N. T. Wright offers a radical look at the apostle Paul, illuminating the humanity and remarkable achievements of this intellectual who invented Christian theology—transforming a faith and changing the world.

For centuries, Paul, the apostle who “saw the light on the Road to Damascus” and made a miraculous conversion from zealous Pharisee persecutor to devoted follower of Christ, has been one of the church’s most widely cited saints. While his influence on Christianity has been profound, N. T. Wright argues that Bible scholars and pastors have focused so much attention on Paul’s letters and theology that they have too often overlooked the essence of the man’s life and the extreme unlikelihood of what he achieved.

To Wright, “The problem is that Paul is central to any understanding of earliest Christianity, yet Paul was a Jew; for many generations Christians of all kinds have struggled to put this together.” Wright contends that our knowledge of Paul and appreciation for his legacy cannot be complete without an understanding of his Jewish heritage. Giving us a thoughtful, in-depth exploration of the human and intellectual drama that shaped Paul, Wright provides greater clarity of the apostle’s writings, thoughts, and ideas and helps us see them in a fresh, innovative way.

Paul is a compelling modern biography that reveals the apostle’s greater role in Christian history—as an inventor of new paradigms for how we understand Jesus and what he accomplished—and celebrates his stature as one of the most effective and influential intellectuals in human history.

These Resources by BibleProject Will Help You Better Understand the Bible

I’m posting this one again from last year (with one new addition plus a Bible Reading plan at the bottom too) since many people dive into the Bible every New Year. If that’s you, I think you’ll enjoy my favorite, go-to resource for engaging with the Bible: BibleProject (Number 10 on My Top 20).

Here are a few of my favorite things they provide (including something new for 2024 at the bottom):

• BibleProject APP (download it today and spend the next month/year exploring everything they offer).
• How to Read the Bible Series (Learn about the Bible and how to read it well: from an introduction to the important differences of the various literary genres compiled within.)
• Book Overviews (Visualize the shape and core themes of every book of the Bible through an illustrated outline.) I watch these anytime I began reading a Book of the Bible.
• Classroom (Start learning at your own pace with BibleProject Classroom. Each lecture will sharpen your Bible study skills and make Scripture come alive.) These are SO GOOD! I’ve done them all and I’m excited about the new ones that will be released later this year.
• Podcast (The BibleProject podcast features detailed conversations between Tim and Jon and occasional guests, inviting you to explore the biblical theology behind each animated video and series we create.)
• Playlist: It’s easy to get lost studying the Bible—this year, practice meditating on Scripture with us, one section at a time. Each week, explore a selection of content on the BibleProject app that will guide you through the Sermon on the Mount (Jesus’ most famous teachings).

So, take some time this year and dive into these resources and you’ll gain a better understanding of the Bible and how it applies to your life.

PS: If you’re looking for a great plan to read through the Bible this year, I think you’ll love this one from BibleProject (it’s not too late to get started) — https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/4820-bibleproject-the-bible

Three Bible Study Resources

Here are 3 resources you’ll find helpful when studying the Bible:

• StudyLight.org
• BibleGateway.com
• YouVersion Bible

Erich’s note: take some time today to browse around all the great options and tools these websites provide to help you dig deeper in your study of God’s Word.

Your turn… What are some other online resources you use for Bible study?

Three Passages that Frame the Story of Noah

So, a lot has been written about Noah the past few days since the release of the movie. Today I thought I would simply share 3 passages that frame the story of Noah (spend some time reflecting on these today):

• Genesis 6:5-7

The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.”

• Genesis 6:8-9

But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord. This is the account of Noah and his family. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God.

• Genesis 8:1

But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and the livestock that were with him in the ark, and he sent a wind over the earth, and the waters receded.

Note: you can read the rest of the story in Genesis 6-9 and Hebrews 11:7 to learn about his obedience, his faith, God’s covenant, and Noah’s sinfulness in the end. Here are three other passages worth looking at relating to Noah and God’s love and His judgment: 1 Peter 3:19-21; 2 Peter 2:4-6 and Matthew 24:37-39.

Your turn: What scriptures stand out to you the most from the life of Noah? What do you learn from these 3 passages?

 

Three Articles Focusing on the Movie Noah

I was really looking forward to seeing the movie Noah. I was hopeful it would be a fair treatment of the story found in Genesis; in spite of the fact the director is an atheist (I know, I know). I walked away very disappointed (this adaptation had too many strange and bizarre detours from the truth and that is putting it mildly; hopefully, it will lead lots of people back to the Bible to read the story for themselves). Here are 3 articles you might want to take a look at (the first one is a CNN article focusing on the controversy and the last 2 are detailed reviews of the film):

• Does God Have a Prayer in Hollywood by Daniel Burke (CNN Belief Blog)
• I’m a Christian and I Think ‘Noah’ Deserves a 4 Star Review via The Matt Walsh Blog (make sure you read to the end to see what actually gets 4 stars in this honest, humorous review)
• The Noah Movie: Our Detailed Review via Answers In Genesis (this one is a more straightforward point by point critique by a conservative creation research organization)

Your turn… What are some other articles focusing on Noah that we should take a look at?