Synopses & Reviews
Foundational: The four gospels come directly fromthe ancient church and are among the primary sourcesfor the church's teachings.
Familiar: Since Christian worship services began, areading from the gospels has played a central role.
Studied: For over two hundred years scholars havechallenged and defended the central claims of thegospels: miracles, historical accuracy, the divinity ofJesus, and more.
But Forgotten: Still, leading Bible scholar N. T.Wright reveals shocking news: We have all forgottenwhat the four gospels are about.
"Despite centuries of intense and heavy industryexpended on the study of all sorts of features of thegospels," Wright writes, "we have often managed tomiss the main thing that they, all four of them, aremost eager to tell us. What we need is not just a bitof fine-tuning, an adjustment here and there. We needa fundamental rethink about what the gospels aretrying to tell us."
What Wright offers is an opportunity to confront thesepowerful texts afresh, as if we are encountering themfor the first time. How God Became King reveals thesurprising, unexpected, and shocking news of thegospels: this is the story of a new king, a new kind ofking, a king who has changed everything, and a kingwho invites us to be part of his new world.
Review
“We often read the beginning and the end of the Gospels without the large middle where the message of the kingdom rings loud and clear. I recommend to everyone who wants to understand the Gospels message in a way that will not only inform the intellect but also transform life.” < b=""> Tremper Longman III <> , Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont College
Review
“Tom Wright continues to urge and prod and propose how the church can regain a kingdom footing and end its empire heritage. And, he shows us how we can reshape both what we think about Jesus and how we follow him in our world.” < b=""> Scot McKnight <> , Karl A. Olsson Professor in Religious Studies, North Park University
Review
“Wright has never been more eloquent and persuasive than in this book that… caps a long, productive theological career.” Booklist (starred review)
Review
“Scholarly, accessible, insightful and challenging . . . an excellent and provocative book.” Christianity Magazine
Review
“The prolific Christian apologist N.T. Wright… now devotes an entire volume, ‘How God Became King to this trendy subject. Wrights insistence that Christianity has got it all wrong seems to mark a turning point for the serious rethinking of heaven.” The Washington Post
Review
“Wright is a scholar who writes as if the material he engages actually matters for the church and the world it lives in… and has again done the church a great favor in presenting the gospel story as the story of God and his kingdom on earth.” Englewood Review of Books
Synopsis
New Testament scholar N.T. Wright reveals how we have been misreading the Gospels for centuries, powerfully restoring the lost central story of the Scripture: that the coronation of God through the acts of Jesus was the climax of human history. Wright fills the gaps that centuries of misdirection have opened up in our collective spiritual story, tracing a narrative from Eden, to Jesus, to today. Wrights powerful re-reading of the Gospels helps us re-align the focus of our spiritual beliefs, which have for too long been focused on the afterlife. Instead, the forgotten story of the Gospels reveals why we should understand that our real charge is to sustain and cooperating with God's kingdom here and now. Echoing the triumphs of Simply Christian and The Meaning of Jesus, Wrights How God Became King is required reading for any Christian searching to understand their mission in the world today.
About the Author
N. T. Wright is the former bishop of Durham in the Church of England and one of the world's leading Bible scholars. He is now serving as the Chair of New Testament and Early Christianity at the School of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews. For twenty years he taught New Testament studies at Cambridge, McGill, and Oxford Universities, and he has been featured on ABC News, Dateline, The Colbert Report, and Fresh Air. Wright is the award-winning author of Surprised by Scripture, The Case for the Psalms, How God Became King, Simply Jesus, After You Believe, Surprised by Hope, Simply Christian, Scripture and the Authority of God, The Meaning of Jesus (coauthored with Marcus Borg), as well as being the translator for The Kingdom New Testament.