Five Views on the Gospel presents five different perspectives on the question 'What is the gospel?' Presenting a variety of contemporary and tradition-based perspectives, each contributor answers key questions about the nature of the gospel. Questions contributors address include:
- What is the gospel?
- What is the context for understanding the New Testament teaching about the gospel?
- What are the primary biblical texts that you believe express the gospel and how do you understand them?
- What are people called to do with the gospel and what are the benefits promised by the gospel?
- How can the definition and proclamation of the gospel be contextualized and made relevant today?
- What example of an inadequate gospel and a false gospel can you offer?
- What does it mean to live a life worthy of the gospel?
The CounterPoints format provides a unique opportunity for each contributor to set forth their own understanding of the gospel, to interact with competing perspectives, and for the editors to sum up points of agreement and disagreement and a path forward in the debate.
- Positions and Contributors include:
- Reformation Gospel (Michael Horton)
- King Jesus Gospel (Scot McKnight)
- Wesleyan Gospel (David A. deSilva)
- Asian Pentecostal Gospel (Julie C. Ma)
- Liberation Theology Gospel (Shively T. J. Smith)
The Counterpoints series presents a comparison and critique of scholarly views on topics important to Christians that are both fair-minded and respectful of the biblical text. Each volume is a one-stop reference that allows readers to evaluate the different positions on a specific issue and form their own, educated opinion.
In a world of hype, we may buy into the idea that through Jesus, we'll be healthier and wealthier as well as wiser. So what happens when we become ill, or depressed, or bankrupt? Did we do something wrong? Has God abandoned us? As a child, Michael Horton would run up the down escalator, trying to beat it to the top. As Christians, he notes, we sometimes seek God the same way, believing we can climb to him under our own steam. But we can't, which is why we are blessed that Jesus descends to us, especially during times of trial. In Too Good to Be True, Horton exposes the pop culture that sells Jesus like a product for health and happiness and reminds us that our lives often lead us on difficult routes we must follow by faith. This book offers a series of powerful readings that demonstrate how, through every type of earthly difficulty, our Father keeps his promises from Scripture and works all things together for our good.
How cultivating a healthy fear of God liberates us from our fear of others, our fear of the future, and even our fear of death itself.
At times the world feels like it's losing its mind. From politics to the pandemic, we live with an ever-increasing uncertainty, and many of us have grown to fear the rapid disintegration of our society and our own lives.
Recovering Our Sanity is not another self-help book about how to beat your daily fears for a better life. It's a book that will show you the gravity and glory of a God who's worthy of our fear. It's a book that will reveal how these two biblical phrases-Fear God and Do Not Be Afraid-are not contradictory but actually one coherent message.
Michael Horton-Professor of Theology and Apologetics at Westminster Seminary-shows us that we cannot fight our fears by seeking the absence of fear altogether, but by living with a fear of God that drives out the fear of everything else. Horton will walk you through the case for the fear of God by:
- Developing what it means to fear God, biblically and theologically, and what this kind of fear looks like in practice.
- Categorizing different types of fears-from cultural anxiety to pain and hardship-and what they stem from.
- Focusing on how to confront our earthly fears with our hope in Christ, rooted in the gospel.
- Reminding us that God does not exist for us; we exist for God.
Humbling, thought-provoking, and hope-igniting, Recovering Our Sanity delivers a timely message that will help you shift your focus from a human-centered obsession with self-preservation to a fixation on Christ and his salvation.
Rather than clinging to false securities and promises of immediate gratification, you can gain the lasting joy of knowing the One who has given himself to save us and who says to us, 'Do not be afraid.'
John Calvin, a man adored by some and maligned by others, stands as a legendary figure in Christian history. In Calvin on the Christian Life, professor Michael Horton offers us fresh insights into the Reformer’s personal piety and practical theology by allowing Calvin to speak in his own words.
Drawing not only from his Institutes and biblical commentaries, but also from lesser-known tracts, treatises, and letters, this book will deepen your understanding of Calvin’s theology and ministry by exploring the heart of his spiritual life: confident trust and unwavering joy in the sovereign grace of God.
In Rediscovering the Holy Spirit, author, pastor, and theologian Mike Horton introduces readers to the neglected person of the Holy Spirit, showing that the work of God's Spirit is far more ordinary and common than we realize. Horton argues that we need to take a step back every now and again to focus on the Spirit himself.
What Do All Christians Believe?
For many people, words like doctrine and theology cause their eyes to glaze over, or they find them difficult to understand and struggle to see how they are relevant to daily life. But theology is far from boring; it is the study of God and should lead to awe and wonder as we better understand who God is and what he has done for us.
In Core Christianity, author, pastor, and theologian Mike Horton tackles the essential and basic beliefs that all Christians share. What is core to the Christian faith? In addition to unpacking these beliefs in a way that is easy to understand, Horton shows why they matter to our lives today.
This introduction to the basic doctrines of Christianity is a helpful guide by a respected theologian and a popular author, and it includes discussion questions for individual or group use. Core Christianity is perfect for those who are new to the faith, as well as those who have an interest in deepening in their understanding of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.
In Ordinary, author and pastor Michael Horton provides a guide to a sustainable faith that happens over the long haul---not a quick fix that leaves you empty with unfulfilled promises. A resource that both challenges and comforts, it shows how the Christian life is not a call to be radical, but a call to be ordinary.
In Ordinary, author and pastor Michael Horton provides a guide to a sustainable faith that happens over the long haul---not a quick fix that leaves you empty with unfulfilled promises. A resource that both challenges and comforts, it shows how the Christian life is not a call to be radical, but a call to be ordinary.
The 2011 award-winning publication The Christian Faith garnered wide praise as a thorough, well-informed treatment of the philosophical foundations of Christian theology, the classical elements of systematic theology, and exegesis of relevant biblical texts. Pilgrim Theology distills the distinctive benefits of this approach into a more accessible introduction designed for classroom and group study.
In this book, Michael Horton guides readers through a preliminary exploration of Christian theology in 'a Reformed key.' Horton reviews the biblical passages that give rise to a particular doctrine in addition to surveying past and present interpretations. Also included are sidebars showing the key distinctions readers need to grasp on a particular subject, helpful charts and tables illuminating exegetical and historical topics, and questions at the end of each chapter for individual, classroom, and small group reflection.
Pilgrim Theology will help undergraduate students of theology and educated laypersons gain an understanding of the Christian tradition's biblical and historical foundations.
The system of theology known as Calvinism has been immensely influential for the past five hundred years, but it is often encountered negatively as a fatalistic belief system that confines human freedom and renders human action and choice irrelevant.
Taking us beyond the caricatures, Michael Horton invites us to explore the teachings of Calvinism, also commonly known as Reformed theology, by showing us how it is biblical and God-centered, leading us to live our lives for the glory of God.
Horton explores the historical roots of Calvinism, walking readers through the distinctive known as the 'Five Points,' and encouraging us to consider its rich resources for faith and practice in the 21st Century.
As a companion to Roger Olson's Against Calvinism, readers will be able to compare contrasting perspectives and form their own opinions on the merits and weaknesses of Calvinism.
In a world of hype, we may buy into the idea that through Jesus, we'll be healthier and wealthier as well as wiser. So what happens when we become ill, or depressed, or bankrupt? Did we do something wrong? Has God abandoned us?
As a child, Michael Horton would run up the down escalator, trying to beat it to the top. As Christians, he notes, we sometimes seek God the same way, believing we can climb to him under our own steam. But we can't, which is why we are blessed that Jesus descends to us, especially during times of trial.
In Too Good to Be True, Horton exposes the pop culture that sells Jesus like a product for health and happiness and reminds us that our lives often lead us on difficult routes we must follow by faith. This book offers a series of powerful readings that demonstrate how, through every type of earthly difficulty, our Father keeps his promises from Scripture and works all things together for our good.
