Search

The story of Scripture is the story of God's family. That family, like ours today, has its share of hardships, moral failings, betrayals—and dramatic transformations. In Salvation Stories: Family, Failure, and God's Saving Work in Scripture, author Ryan Budd explores the profound humanity of Old Testament figures like Abraham, Jacob, Tobit, Judith, and more and shows how God made his merciful love evident in their sufferings and joy. What Salvation Stories reveals that the families in Scripture experienced all that we do. And just as God shaped their stories for his glory and their good, he does so for each of us.

God's Spirit unites believers to Christ, conforms them to his image, and equips them for witness and ministry. In The Giver of Life, J. V. Fesko reflects on the person and work of the Holy Spirit in the application of Christ's work for the salvation of sinners. Through a combination of biblical, historical, and theological study, Fesko illuminates the blessing of God's presence with his people. Written from a confessionally Reformed perspective in dialogue with the great creeds of the church, The Giver of Life provides a thorough and trustworthy guide to the Holy Spirit's role in salvation.

Belief in the necessity of baptism for salvation is rooted in the New Testament and was forcefully affirmed by the Church Fathers, yet today this belief is treated with unease if not ignored altogether. Over the course of centuries, Catholic theology has wrestled with a doctrine—baptism of desire—that both preserves this fundamental principle and allows for salvation in hard cases, such as catechumens dying unexpectedly. Baptism of Desire and Christian Salvation traces this doctrine's varied history, from its genesis in a fourth century funeral oration given by Ambrose of Milan to its uneasy position in the Anonymous Christianity of Karl Rahner. More than a history, however, this book raises questions about the nature of religious ritual and the sacraments, the mission of the Church, and the essence of salvation. Arguing that theologians of the past two centuries have tended to downplay the role of the sacraments when discussing salvation, Lusvardi suggests that baptism should remain our theological starting point. Engaging with the theological tradition and at times challenging the conventional wisdom, Baptism of Desire and Christian Salvation shows how such a sacramental approach can offer credible—and sometimes surprising—responses to questions related to the salvation of non-Christians, the fate of unbaptized infants, and the relevance of the Church's mission today.

Juan Stam was someone of outstanding academic credentials, a deep, personal faith in Jesus Christ and equally committed to an evangelisation that transformed not only personal lives but also permeated and demanded the transformation of social structures.Rooted in evangelical faith, Stam's early commitment to an incarnational approach to mission drove him to pursue further studies at the Universidad de Costa Rica, in literature and philosophy, and doctoral studies under Barth and Cullmann in Switzerland, and post-doctoral studies in Germany under Küng and Moltmann.Stam considered himself a'radical evangelical,'driven constantly to the roots of his faith in Biblical teaching. Probably the two farthest reaching of his works are this current volume and his massive four-volume commentary on Revelation. He wrote in constant dialogue with both biblical passages and a social analysis, applying his reflection to an evangelical vision for the transformation of Latin America's diverse contexts.

The Latin American theologian Juan Stam addresses one of the most burning yet rather controversial issue in the contemporary world, not least among the evangelical Christians – the relationship between human beings and the natural world. Stam builds a solid

Arthur Schopenhauer (1788–1860) was perhaps the last polymath among the great Germanic philosophers. Switching with ease and elegance between epistemic positions and fields as diverse as idealism and empiricism, fideism and rationalism, realism and nominalism, art and religion, jurisprudence and politics, psychology and occultism, Schopenhauer erected an imposing edifice bearing testimony to his universal learning. This study is an investigation into the very conclusion of Schopenhauer's philosophy and endeavours to answer the following question: did Schopenhauer's doctrine of salvation issue forth organically from his intellectual output or was it annexed to his philosophy as a result of his critical engagement with religion? The labyrinthine paths through which Schopenhauer arrives at the soteriological culmination of his philosophy are subjected to critical assessment; the picture that emerges is of a philosopher who seemed convinced that he had solved some of the most pressing cosmic riddles to have tormented mankind through the ages.

Dios nos dio Su evangelio como un regalo cotidiano, necesario para nuestra vida y devoción. Por lo tanto, si vamos a caminar con Dios mientras diariamente nos auto-predicamos el evangelio, nuestro conocimiento de la salvación (qué, por qué y cómo) es esencial. Sugel Michelén, nos da una valiosa herramienta para fortalecer y profundizar nuestro conocimiento de Dios y la salvación que es nuestra en Jesucristo. God gave us his Gospel as an everyday gift, necessary for life and godliness. Therefore, if we are to walk with God as we preach the gospel to ourselves daily, our knowledge of our salvation (what, why, and how) is essential. Sugel Michelén gives us a valuable tool to strengthen and deepen our knowledge of God and the salvation which is ours in Jesus Christ.

Have you ever been betrayed by friends, stabbed at work, hurt by the church, gossiped about, slandered, let down by your own body, or even crucified by those you trusted? Have you ever been on either side of coercion, fear, shame, or guilt in operation as motivators? Have you ever bullied or been bullied? This book is for your rescue and restoration. Throughout this book, you will hear the author's story of death and resurrection in Christ, which she expects to be ongoing in her life through the grace of Christ. This book is a good choice for Lent or any time of deep engagement with God, in fall, spring, winter, or summer.

Is anything more important than understanding eternal salvation?When it comes down to it, all human beings can be divided into two categories: the saved and the unsaved. Every person longs to find the path to eternal life. Many different paths are tried. But what does the Word of God have to say about it?In The Doctrine of Salvation, Charles Horne explains the basics of this important biblical doctrine. Why is there a need for salvation? What is its basis? What are its results? How can you be assured of it? And how does salvation culminate in eternal life?Using clear and precise language, Dr. Horne lays out the biblical evidence. “The doctrine of salvation is central to the message of Scripture,” he writes. “From Genesis 3 to Revelation 22 we witness the unfolding drama of redemption.” May this book open your eyes to the greatest story ever told!

Have you ever found yourself repeating expressions such as'Jesus saves'or'Jesus died for our sins'without really understanding them? When popular speakers'explain'how Jesus's death satisfied God's wrath so you could be forgiven, do you ever think to yourself,'I don't get it'? If so, you're not alone, you're not dumb, and the problem is not with you. Ron Highfield reframes Christian teaching about the atonement so that it comes alive with fresh meaning. Drawing on biblical and traditional sources, Highfield explains why our frustration in trying to understand how Jesus's death satisfies God's judicial wrath is inevitable... because the idea doesn't make sense and the Bible doesn't teach it! Instead of viewing the atonement as the solution to God's problem of how to forgive sins while remaining perfectly just, Highfield argues that the atonement is God's solution to our problem. In Jesus, God rewrites the human story, forgiving our sins, correcting our mistakes, and realizing our destiny. As one of us, Jesus lives a perfect life, passes through death, and enters into eternal life. As the new Adam, he invites us to join his family, share his life, and enjoy his victory.

Das religiöse Sinnangebot einer letzten Verankerung in Gott, in einem Leben nach dem Tod, in Erlösung und Heil scheint gegenüber der Faszination des Diesseits, dem erfüllt Sein vom Leben im Hier und Jetzt irgendwie zu verblassen. Die Gedanken dieses Buches gehen dem möglichen Hintergrund von Zurückhaltung, fehlender'Musikalität'und Stummheit gegenüber dem Anliegen religiöser Kultur im Gespräch mit drei Autoren nach, deren Werke nachhaltig in die gegenwärtige Gesellschaft wirken: Yuval Noah Harari, Hartmut Rosa und Tomáš Halík. In ihren Büchern wird deutlich: In der Begegnung mit der bewussten Hinwendung zum Diesseits, mit der sich die Gegenwart von einer religiösen Überforderung abwendet und auf sich selbst besinnt, gewinnt der Glaube seine eigene Sprache der Menschlichkeit zurück: Als Einladung an die menschliche Sehnsucht nach tiefer Vitalität, Lebensfreude und Lebenszugewandtheit, sich selbst auch in den Grenzerfahrungen zu vertrauen und ihrer inneren Spur nachzugehen, wenn das dunkle Gegenwort von Krankheit, Erfolglosigkeit, Schmerz, Hass und Tod sie zutiefst bedrängt.

Die Frömmigkeit des späten Mittelalters scheint in vielen ihrer Facetten fern und fremd. Volker Leppin erschließt sie neu mit Hilfe der Begriffe'Repräsentation'und'Reenactment'. In beiden geht es um die Wahrnehmung der Gegenwart Gottes in der spätmittelalterlichen Kultur: als deren an bestimmte Orte oder Personen gebundene Gegebenheit in der Repräsentation oder als aktiver Nachvollzug im Reenactment. So führt der Autor quellengesättigt durch bildende Kunst und Gebetspraxis, visionäre Erfahrung und literarische Gestaltung. Spezifisch religiöse Phänomene kommen ebenso zur Sprache wie ästhetische Formung. Es entsteht ein facettenreiches Bild spätmittelalterlicher Frömmigkeitskultur und zugleich ein neuer theoretischer Ansatz zu ihrem Verständnis. Dieser kann theologische wie kulturwissenschaftliche Forschung gleichermaßen anregen und verbinden.

In this book, Kas Saghafi argues that the notion of'the end the world'in Derrida's late work is not a theological or cosmological matter, but a meditation on mourning and the death of the other. He examines this and several other tightly knit motifs in Derrida's work: mourning, survival, the phantasm, the event, and most significantly, the term salut, which in French means at once greeting and salvation. An underlying concern of The World after the End of the World is whether a discourse on salut (saving, being saved, and salvation) can be dissociated from discourse on religion. Saghafi compares Derrida's thought along these lines with similar concerns of Jean-Luc Nancy's. Combining analysis of these themes with reflections on personal loss, this book maintains that, for Derrida, salutation, greeting, and welcoming is resistant to the economy of salvation. This resistance calls for what Derrida refers to as a'spectro-poetics'devoted to and assigned to the other's singularity.

This thought provoking book deals with religious scholarship and important controversies of the early modern period, specifically those relating to the question of the salvation of the pagans and the afterlife. From the Reformation, through the Renaissance and on to the seventeenth and eighteenth century, this was a time when religious scholarship was updated with the discoveries of the New World and colonial expansion. These chapters present new work, shedding light on the interplay of philosophy and theology in key thinkers such as Montaigne, Leibniz, Bayle and Spinoza, but also in less known authors such as Gianfrancesco Pico della Mirandola and Sebastian Castellio.Readers will discover analysis of the reshaping of specific theological issues, focussing on the reception of ancient philosophical traditions such as Platonism, Aristotelianism, Stoicism, Epicureanism, and scepticism. The authors investigate the relationship between the ethical models inspired by the heroes andphilosophers of antiquity and the ‘new philosophy'. Above all, this book enables exploration of the ways in which discussions of the salvation and virtues of pagans intersected with the early modern reception of ancient philosophy, including a reassessment of the question of the moral status of unbelievers in the early modern period.Students and faculty working on early modern intellectual history will find that this book both inspires and enriches their knowledge. Those with an interest in Renaissance humanism, the history of early modern philosophy and science, in theology, or the history of religion will also appreciate the new contributions that it makes.

Innumerable libraries have been written on the Gita. But who truly understands the Gita? Equally untold libraries have been written on the New Testament. But who truly understands the New Testament? Without exploration, and without candid but kind questions, the seeker never finds. We are all designed to find truth and enjoy the heart of God.Organizes the key teachings of Shri Krishna (in the Bhagavad Gita) as well as the key teachings of Jesus Christ (in the New Testament) into categories such as God, humanity, sin, moksa/salvation, and the world.With a unique layout that shows parallels between the two sets of teachings straightaway because they face each other on opposite pages, categorized and numbered.

In The Holy Spirit and Christian Experience, Simeon Zahl presents a fresh vision for Christian theology that foregrounds the relationship between theological ideas and the experiences of Christians. He argues that theology is always operating in a vibrant landscape of feeling and desiring, and shows that contemporary theology has often operated in problematic isolation from these experiential dynamics. He then argues that a theologically serious doctrine of the Holy Spirit not only authorizes but requires attention to Christian experience. Against this background, Zahl outlines a new methodological approach to Christian theology that attends to the emotional and experiential power of theological ideas. This methodology draws on recent interdisciplinary work on affect and emotion, which has shown that affects are powerful motivating realities that saturate all dimensions of human thinking and acting. In the process, Zahl also explains why contemporary theology has often been ambivalent about subjective experience, and demonstrates that current discourse about God's activity in the world is often artificially abstracted from experience and embodiment. At the heart of the book, Zahl proposes a new account of the theology of grace from this experiential and pneumatological perspective. Focusing on the work of the Holy Spirit in salvation and sanctification, he retrieves insights from Augustine, Luther, and Philip Melanchthon to present an affective and Augustinian vision of salvation as a pedagogy of desire. In articulating this vision, Zahl engages critically with recent emphasis on participation and theosis in Christian soteriology, and charts a new path forward for Protestant theology in a landscape hitherto dominated by the theological visions of Barth and Aquinas.

A stunning reexamination of one of the essential tenets of Christian belief from one of the most provocative and admired writers on religion today“A scathing, vigorous, eloquent attack on those who hold that that there is such a thing as eternal damnation.”—Karen Kilby, Commonweal The great fourth†‘century church father Basil of Caesarea once observed that, in his time, most Christians believed that hell was not everlasting, and that all would eventually attain salvation. But today, this view is no longer prevalent within Christian communities. In this momentous book, David Bentley Hart makes the case that nearly two millennia of dogmatic tradition have misled readers on the crucial matter of universal salvation. On the basis of the earliest Christian writings, theological tradition, scripture, and logic, Hart argues that if God is the good creator of all, he is the savior of all, without fail. And if he is not the savior of all, the Kingdom is only a dream, and creation something considerably worse than a nightmare. But it is not so. There is no such thing as eternal damnation; all will be saved. With great rhetorical power, wit, and emotional range, Hart offers a new perspective on one of Christianity's most important themes.

In Sōtēria: Salvation in Early Christianity and Antiquity, an international team of scholars assembles to honour the distinguished academic career of New Testament scholar Cilliers Breytenbach. Colleagues and friends consider in which manner concepts of salvation were constructed in early Christianity and its Jewish and Graeco-Roman contexts. Studies on aspects of soteriology in the New Testament writings, such as in the narratives on Jesus'life and work, and theological interpretations of his life and death in the epistolary literature, are supplemented by studies on salvation in the Apostolic Fathers, Marcion, early Christian inscriptions and Antiochian theology. The volume starts with some exemplary studies on salvation in the Hebrew Bible, the Dead Sea scrolls, the Septuagint, and popular Graeco-Roman literature and philosophy. Furthermore, some contributions shed light on the ancient cultural background of early Christian soteriological concepts.

'Siamo tutti imbarcati', dirà Pascal. Dove? Sulla Nave dei folli, risponde Hieronymus Bosch. A inseguire vanità delle vanità, dominati dalla'maledetta lupa'dell'invidia e dell'avarizia. Ci salveremo dalla perdizione e dal naufragio? Sarà la misura dell'ironia e la ragionevole fede dell'umanista Erasmo a offrirci una speranza? O soltanto la follia della fede nel Cristo deriso e crocefisso potrà riscattarci? Ma negli inverni e nei sinistri carnevali di Bruegel il Vecchio regnano unicamente la violenza e la lotta per sopravvivere, in un gioco tremendo e crudele che nessuno ormai ha la forza di trascendere.

Since the birth of evangelicalism in the eighteenth century, it has defined itself as a movement keenly interested in salvation. What, however, has the evangelical understanding of salvation been? What is it today? What should it be? What Does It Mean to Be Saved? marshals leading evangelical scholars to probe these questions with the goal of encouraging a more holistic understanding of salvation. Each chapter introduces a distinctive point of view on an aspect of redemption. Issues addressed in the volume include individual and corporate salvation, salvation with regard to women, the poor, the oppressed, and the natural world.