Synopses & Reviews
A spirituality resource for individuals and churches, this is a book for those who long to make a difference in the world by living out their faith
"Your life is precious—a precious gift. It is sacred; every moment of it. The opportunity to live rather than sleepwalk through our days belongs to us. This book is a call to wake up. It is a call to each one of us; to wake up, to live before we die."
It's easy to sleepwalk through life without ever really considering what we're here for. But life presents us with continual opportunities to wake up—and to think about not just what we do with our lives, but who we become while living them. Ultimately it is the story that we believe about ourselves, our lives, and the world around us that will shape us—for better or for worse. So where do we find a good story—a convincing narrative that makes sense of it all? Steve Chalke suggests that Jesus' good news about the kingdom of God—a practical, lived-out expression of God's plans for the world—is the best story for us to find ourselves in. Each one of us is called to be part of the drama of the coming kingdom, and it's in this that we find a practical spirituality that helps shape our lives into everything we were meant to be.
Synopsis
"History became legend. Legend became myth. Much was lost. None lived who could remember," wrote JRR Tolkien. Or to put it a little differently, in the words of Dallas Willard, "Presumed familiarity of Jesus and his message has led to unfamiliarity, unfamiliarity as led to contempt and contempt has led to profound ignorance." Have we remade Jesus in our own image and then wondered why our spirituality is less than life changing and exciting? The real Jesus is deeply challenging, something which cannot be said for the stain-glass window figure of so much Christian imagery whether Catholic, or Protestant, Orthodox or Evangelical. The Lost Message of Jesus is written to stir thoughtful debate, to pose fresh questions, perhaps even to shed a little new light and help create a deeper understanding of Jesus and his message. Some Christians might wonder if there is anything new to say about Jesus, and even if the attempt to do so is some kind of denial of the Church's traditional teaching and the authority of the Bible. However, each new generation must grapple with the question of who Jesus is, not because we disregard Scripture, but precisely because we take it so seriously and believe that only through a constant study of Jesus can we discover God himself.
Synopsis
A fresh look at Jesus that will stir thoughtful debate, pose new questions and hopefully create a deeper understanding of Jesus and his message.
Synopsis
A fresh---and perhaps controversial---look at Jesus by one of Britain's most respected Christian authors.Who is the real Jesus? Do we remake him in our own image and then wonder why our spirituality is less than life-changing and exciting? Steve Chalke---a high-profile visionary in the United Kingdom and an evangelical recognized not only by Christians but by the general public as well---believes that the real Jesus is deeply challenging. And each new generation must grapple with the question of who he is, because only through a constant study of Jesus are we able to discover God himself.The Lost Message of Jesus is written to stir thoughtful debate and pose fresh questions that will help create a deeper understanding of Jesus and his message. It is an encounter with the real Jesus of his world---not the Jesus we try to mold to ours. Themes include: *The Kingdom of God---shalom---is available to everyone now, through Jesus*The world outside your own church needs to hear of the depth of God's love and suffering*Jesus was a radical and a revolutionary *Jesus offers immediate forgiveness, without cost, to anyone*Jesus shows us repentance isn't a guilt-laden list of dos and don'ts, but an inspirational vision of a new way to liveFocusing on some of the key episodes, events, and issues of Jesus' life, we will see how too often the message we preach today has been influenced more by the culture we live in than the radical, life-changing, world-shaping message Jesus shared two thousand years ago.
About the Author
Steve Chalke is a pastor, an activist, and the author of more than 40 books, including The Lost Message of Jesus and Stop the Traffik.