Empfehlungen basierend auf "Prepare Them to Shepherd"

The New York Times bestselling author of Radical challenges Christians to break free from an American gospel that prostitutes Jesus for comfort, power, prosperity, and politics—and fully pursue the true gospel that exalts Jesus above all.Pastor David Platt believes we’ve gotten really good at following a really bad gospel—one that worships American ideas over biblical truth. It’s time for disillusioned, discouraged, and divided Christians, and the next generation, to follow Jesus into a different future.But we have to make a choice: an American gospel or the biblical gospel. Worldly division or otherworldly unity. Compromise with the idols of our country or commitment to God’s call in our lives. In Don’t Hold Back, Platt encourages followers of Jesus to take necessary risks and find unimaginable reward as we:• Work for—not against—each other, especially when we disagree• Turn the tide on centuries of racial division in the church• Trust all of God’s Word with conviction while loving everyone around us with compassion• Do justice with kindness, and experience the good life according to God• Play our part in spreading the gospel to all the nations of the worldWe can experience the full wonder of Jesus and transcendent beauty of his church here and now. But in order to do so, some things need to be different. Starting not in “those people,” but in each one of us. With the gospel in our hearts and God as our prize, let’s press on and don’t hold back.

The last command Jesus gave the church before he ascended to heaven was the Great Commission, the call for Christians to "make disciples of all the nations." But Christians have responded by making "Christians," not "disciples." This, according to brilliant scholar and renowned Christian thinker Dallas Willard, has been the church's Great Omission."The word disciple occurs 269 times in the New Testament," writes Willard. "Christian is found three times and was first introduced to refer precisely to disciples of Jesus. . . . The New Testament is a book about disciples, by disciples, and for disciples of Jesus Christ. But the point is not merely verbal. What is more important is that the kind of life we see in the earliest church is that of a special type of person. All of the assurances and benefits offered to humankind in the gospel evidently presuppose such a life and do not make realistic sense apart from it. The disciple of Jesus is not the deluxe or heavy-duty model of the Christian -- especially padded, textured, streamlined, and empowered for the fast lane on the straight and narrow way. He or she stands on the pages of the New Testament as the first level of basic transportation in the Kingdom of God."Willard boldly challenges the thought that we can be Christians without being disciples, or call ourselves Christians without applying this understanding of life in the Kingdom of God to every aspect of life on earth. He calls on believers to restore what should be the heart of Christianity -- being active disciples of Jesus Christ. Willard shows us that in the school of life, we are apprentices of the Teacher whose brilliance encourages us to rise above traditional church understanding and embrace the true meaning of discipleship -- an active, concrete, 24/7 life with Jesus.

The first edition of The Gospel According to Jesus won wide acclaim in confronting the 'easy-believism' that has characterized some quarters in evangelical Christianity. This expanded edition deepens the debate over 'lordship salvation' and the biblical understanding of faith and works in adding three new chapters and an appendix. The new chapters: - The Vine and the Branches - The Promise of Justification - Tetelestai! The Triumph is Complete -- The appendix contains answers to the most often asked questions on the subject of what Jesus really meant when he said 'Follow me.'

The Divine Conspiracy has revolutionized how we think about the true meaning of Christian discipleship. In this classic work of spiritual formation, one of the most brilliant Christian thinkers of our times and author of the acclaimed The Spirit of Disciplines, Dallas Willard, skillfully weaves together biblical teaching, popular culture, science, scholarship, and spiritual practice, revealing what it means to "apprentice" ourselves to Jesus. Using Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount as his foundation, Willard masterfully explores life-changing ways to experience and be guided by God on a daily basis, resulting in a more authentic and dynamic faith. In this profound exploration of Christian living, you’ll discover: The Kingdom of God: Why the kingdom is not just a future promise but a present reality, offering a practical resource for living an abundant life right now. The Sermon on the Mount: A masterful unpacking of Jesus’s core teachings that reveals an intelligent and deeply relevant guide for your daily existence. A Curriculum for Christlikeness: How to move beyond mere "sin management" and become a true apprentice of Jesus, transforming your character from the inside out. Entering Eternal Life Now: A paradigm-shifting look at what "eternal life" truly means and how to begin experiencing its power today, not just after death.

How do we know the Bible is God's Word? What is sin and where did it come from? How is Jesus fully God and fully man? What are spiritual gifts? When and how will Christ return? If you've asked questions like these, then "systematic theology" is no abstract term. It's an approach to finding answers every Christian needs to know. Bible Doctrine takes a highly commended upper-level textbook on systematic theology and makes it accessible to the average reader. Abridged from Wayne Grudem's award-winning Systematic Theology, Bible Doctrine covers the same essentials of the faith, giving you a firm grasp on seven key topics: The Doctrine of the Word of God The Doctrine of God The Doctrine of Man The Doctrine of Christ The Doctrine of the Application of Redemption The Doctrine of the Church The Doctrine of the Future Like Systematic Theology, this book is marked by its clarity, its strong scriptural emphasis, its thoroughness in scope and detail, and its treatment of such timely topics as spiritual warfare and the gifts of the Spirit. But you don't need to have had several years of Bible school to reap the full benefits of Bible Doctrine. It's easy to understand--and it's packed with solid, biblical answers to your most important questions.

Enlarged print edition now available! Making use of his scholar's understanding, yet writing in an approachable and anecdotal style, Tom Wright shows us the liveliness of cosmopolitan Corinth and reveals the wisdom and challenge of Paul's writing, bringing out the pastoral sensitivity and deep insight that make this letter one of Paul's crowning achievements.Tom Wright has undertaken a tremendous task: to provide guides to all the books of the New Testament, and to include in them his own translation of the entire text. Each short passage is followed by a highly readable discussion with background information, useful explanations and suggestions, and thoughts as to how the text can be relevant to our lives today. A glossary is included at the back of the book. The series is suitable for group study, personal study, or daily devotions.

Enlarged print edition now available! Making use of his scholar's understanding, yet writing in an approachable and anecdotal style, Tom Wright helps us to understand from the beginning of the second letter to the Corinthians that something unexplained yet terrible has happened. We feel the pain of Paul from the very opening lines as he confronts dreadful issues of sorrow and hurt, emerging with a clearer picture of what it meant to say that Jesus himself suffered for us and rose up in triumph. The letter itself moves through tragedy and from there leads into the sunlight.Tom Wright has undertaken a tremendous task: to provide guides to all the books of the New Testament, and to include in them his own translation of the entire text. Each short passage is followed by a highly readable discussion with background information, useful explanations and suggestions, and thoughts as to how the text can be relevant to our lives today. A glossary is included at the back of the book. The series is suitable for group study, personal study, or daily devotions.

The Gospel costs nothing. You can't earn it or buy it. It can only be received as a free gift compliments of God's grace. It doesn't cost anything, but it demands everything. It demands that we go "all in," a term that simply means placing all that you have into God's hands. Pushing it all in. And that's where we get stuck--spiritual no man's land. We're afraid that if we go all in that we might miss out on what this life has to offer. It's not true. The only thing you'll miss out on is everything God has to offer. And the good news is this: if you don't hold out on God, God won't hold out on you. Readers will find Batterson's writing filled with his customary vivid, contemporary illustrations as well as biblical characters like Shamgar and Elisha and Jonathan and . . . Judas.No one has ever sacrificed anything for God. If you always get back more than you gave up, have you sacrificed anything at all? The eternal reward always outweighs the temporal sacrifice. At the end of the day, our greatest regret will be whatever we didn't give back to God. What we didn't push back across the table to Him. Eternity will reveal that holding out is losing out.The message of All In is simple: if Jesus is not Lord of all then Jesus is not Lord at all. It's all or nothing. It's now or never. Kneeling at the foot of cross of Christ and surrendering to His Lordship is a radical act of dethroning yourself and enthroning Christ as King. It's also an act of disowning yourself. Nothing belongs to you. Not even you. Batterson writes, for many years, I thought I was following Jesus. I wasn't. I had invited Jesus to follow me. I call it inverted Christianity. And it's a subtle form of selfishness that masquerades as spirituality. That's when I sold out and bought in. When did we start believing that the gospel is an insurance plan? It's a daring plan. Jesus did not die just to keep us safe. He died to make us dangerous."

In the face of false teachings about Jesus, the apostle John took a direct approach. "I heard Jesus speak," he wrote. "I saw him . . . I even touched him." Just as we would write about someone we knew and loved, John told the early believers the truth about the Savior. But he didn't let them off the hook without an examination of their lives. Pastor John MacArthur will take you through these short but impactful letters, passage by passage, so that you can better understand their message of forgiveness, how to uphold a biblical faith, and the real dangers of spiritual warfare. John was not alone in his concern about the influence of false teachers in the early church. Jude, a half-brother of Christ, also wrote to the believers. In his letter, he firmly urged all believers to fight for truth, and encouraged all followers of Jesus to stand firm in the faith. --ABOUT THE SERIES-- The MacArthur Bible Study series is designed to help you study the Word of God with guidance from widely respected pastor and author John MacArthur. Each guide provides intriguing examinations of the whole of Scripture by examining its parts and incorporates: Extensive, but straight-forward commentary on the text. Detailed observations on overriding themes, timelines, history, and context. Word and phrase studies to help you unlock the broader meaning and apply it to your life. Probing, interactive questions with plenty of space to write down your response and thoughts.

“God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). The Bible tells us that we are to worship the Lord, that we were created for this purpose. But what is true worship? What does the Bible teach about the right—and the wrong—ways to worship God? In this book, pastors Brian Croft and Jason Adkins unpack a biblical theology of worship, discuss the practical matters of planning a worship service, and offer suggestions and insights on the best way to lead a worship service that honors the Lord. The Practical Shepherding series of guides provides pastors and ministry leaders with practical help to do the work of pastoral ministry in a local church. In Gather God’s People, you will learn how to apply biblical doctrine and spirituality to the practice of Christian worship.