LITMIR.BIZ

Slave markets, temple courts, prophetic lawsuits, diplomatic treaties, imperial victory processions, dying and rising deities. These and more are the pictures painted by the New Testament writers as they search for language to describe their life-changing experiences of God through Jesus. Some of these pictures might still resonate with us; many do not. Pictures of Atonement surveys the six most important metaphors of atonement used in the New Testament with a view to, not explaining away the pictures, but being able to see them with fresh eyes. This is now the final volume in a trilogy of books that have looked at the atonement, first from the angle of reason and tradition (Atonement Theories), then from experience (Old Rugged Cross), and now from the viewpoint of New Testament theology.

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Beyond this Darkness is a brand new faith-based recovery program. It is not based on 12 steps, though it takes the best of 12-step wisdom and updates it by adding some of the best things that have been tried in addiction therapy since the 1930s. Addiction therapy has moved on a long way since Bill Wilson and his brilliant book. This book seeks to harness these newer insights and wrap them up within a framework that is inspired by some of the most intriguing and liberating insights of the Apostle Paul. All the way through the reader is encouraged by the voices of addicts that have overcome their habit. There is story after story of victory over the most hopeless cases of alcohol, drug, gambling, and porn addiction–and even one case of chocolate chip cookie addiction! In every case, the program tries to identify what has worked and point the way for the reader to shake themselves free of their darkness.

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Bill Johnson, Joyce Meyer, Heidi Baker. The fame of these names is evidence enough that, though the controversies are less intense, the Charismatic Movement is alive and well today. It continues to attract thousands of adherents who find its vision of a supernatural lifestyle uniquely compelling. Now, for the first time, all that is most theologically innovative about the movement is synthesized into five distinct and original ideas. These five brand new theologies have been created, not by theologians, but by practitioners who believed their concepts were inspired by the Spirit: Inner Healing, Shepherding, Word of Faith, Spiritual Warfare, and Signs and Wonders. Plenty of studies have been written by Pentecostal scholars about Pentecostal theology, but these tend to group the very distinct approaches of Charismatics together with Classical Pentecostals. Bold Faith aims to analyze and evaluate the ways in which practitioners within independent Charismatic networks, especially in their Anglo-American expressions, have responded to the challenges of secular modernity.

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Do you struggle to get into the Christmas spirit? Do you dislike all the trappings of the season and cannot bear its crass materialism? This book is written by a theologian who feels that way too. As an antidote, Ben Pugh tries to take us back to that very first Christmas as described in the Gospels. Particular moments in the story are vividly brought to life and paralleled with the present day. Using good scholarship, Pugh tries to get the reader to imagine actually being there, and suggests a simple prayer of response at the end of each chapter. The chapters are short, the book is small, and the therapy it offers might be just what you need.

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This book is for anyone who yearns to enter more fully into the world Jesus inhabited, not as an intellectual exercise, but as an aid to authentic personal devotion. The King of the Jews ponders five defining moments from the ministry of Jesus and lingers at a series of events that, historically, must have unfolded rapidly. Within twenty-four hours of his arrest, Jesus was dead, yet these events are so momentous that they repay careful meditation: first upon the night of trials, and then the seven sayings from the cross, and finally, the ten thrilling post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. Each meditation adds up to a whole message that presents the King who came to take his throne and who does finally take it. But he takes it not by force, but by facing down evil through the agony of the cross, and now invites the hurting to share in his triumph.

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A lot has been said about the atonement theology of the theologians, but what of ordinary believers and their church leaders? What, if anything, have they done with «penal substitution» or with «Christus Victor»? How, if at all, have these doctrinal approaches helped ordinary Christians to live more devoted lives or lead good church services? Ben Pugh takes the temperature of the church at various points in its history right up to the present day, noting particular emphases that can be detected in various expressions of personal and corporate faith–whether these be hymns, sermons, magazines, or devotional texts. The book aims not only to describe what the implied atonement theologies of the church have in reality been but also to explore why these have taken the forms that they have. This exploration will shed some fresh light on current debates, building on the findings of the author's earlier work, Atonement Theories: A Way through the Maze.

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With the subject of the atonement of Christ attracting such a lot of polemical work at this time, it is easy to conclude that the current debate is generating more heat than light. Atonement Theories presents the beginning student, pastor, or researcher with an accessible and fair treatment of every school of thought on this subject. Atonement Theories significantly updates previous histories of the doctrine, providing analysis of some fascinating and highly significant recent developments. It also intriguingly highlights at various points where aspects of this central message of Christianity might find a connection within contemporary culture. This book will empower the reader to quickly gain a working knowledge of current debates and the history behind them.

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Fictional stories speak to us in a way that is truer than real life. Even Jesus Christ, the greatest teacher of all time, regularly tapped into the power of telling completely untrue–and yet deeply true–stories. This book takes as its starting point the truth of the made up and uses one of the most popular story structures of all time–the Hero's Journey–and invites you to use this as the scaffolding for making meaning out of your own life. It is an invitation to storify your life, to get your bearings, to plot where you are. Are you being called to something? Are you enduring an ordeal? Are you enjoying the hard-won gains of a protracted struggle that is now finally over? By using this book's twelve-part structure you will gain more insight into what the threats and opportunities are at your particular stage of your particular adventure.

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