Moving to the Margins with Amy Carmichael Follow in the footsteps of Amy Carmichael, whose defiance against injustice shined a light in India’s darkest corners. Her extraordinary journey reveals the profound impact of unwavering faith when pitted against social wrongs. What fierce conviction drove this fiery Irishwoman to forsake the familiar for the forsaken, trading comfort for conflict and compassion? Downward Discipleship beckons you to learn from Amy's life—a beacon that questions the cost of true discipleship in our world of pain and injustice. In these pages, Amy's fifty-year mission to rescue temple-bound girls becomes a canvas for seven invitations of discipleship. Rahma weaves in her own stirring narrative from Jakarta's slums, presenting a model of discipleship that is demanding as it is rewarding, challenging as it is inspiring. This book calls to all who yearn for a faith that is lovingly courageous and radically sacrificial. Rahma points us to a life of downward discipleship. While many in the world clamor to climb the ladders of success and financial security, she invites the reader on a different journey: to follow our savior to unlikely places, meet him among the world’s poor, and experience the joy of abundant life.

This work begins with a transformative idea: human existence is fundamentally relational. Relational Christianity explores how the nature of the Trinity must define the Church and the Christian spiritual life. Utilizing Scripture, Christian spiritual tradition, and philosophy, Pinkham and Gruenberg paint the picture of a Trinitarian, Jesus-centered Christianity, led by the Father and explored in interpersonal oneness. In this view, God’s intimate, unifying love is the theological river that runs through the landscape of biblical revelation and through God’s movement in history. This work of Trinitarian practical theology suggests that the relation between Father, Son, and Spirit should shape and guide all Christian interactions—with God, with others, and with self. In the paradigm of relational Christianity, the formation of genuine personhood and identity are based upon relational connections—first with the Trinity, and second with God’s family. The shape of the new covenant community must reflect the Father’s nature. Church culture must prioritize relationship in the same way the Trinity does.

Who is this Jesus Who calls to us, Who gave His all, and Who asks for everything? Who bids you, “Come, follow Me?” The book, “Authentic Discipleship” tells you what this means. And how does one learn to listen? To pray? To love? To walk with Him? How do you learn to follow Jesus? “Authentic Discipleship” helps you know how. Are you ready to begin the journey?

Balancing cultural relevance with biblical faithfulness, Putman invites ordinary believers to begin having an extraordinary spiritual impact in their unique context.

Narrative Discipleship examines the thematic and theological impact of women in the Gospel of Mark. Using narrative analysis, Aernie explores how Mark intentionally crafts the narratives of women in the Gospel to extend his portrait of discipleship. Mark portrays these women as exemplars of four key aspects of discipleship—restored life, kingdom speech, sacrificial action, and cruciformity. These portraits of discipleship provide a transformative paradigm for Mark’s audience. Mark creates a portrait of narrative discipleship as a means to encourage his audience toward embodied discipleship and faithful participation in God’s in-breaking kingdom.

This Handbook on Discipleship explains why a guru is needed, what a true guru is, and how to follow the guru. It also clears up many common misunderstandings on the subject that are prevalent in current spiritual thinking. These lessons offer a rare opportunity to learn about discipleship from a lifelong disciple of a fully realized Master. Swami Kriyananda has been a disciple of Paramhansa Yogananda for over sixty years. For all of the extraordinary accomplishments of Swami Kriyananda’s life — over one hundred books, over four hundred pieces of music, successful spiritual communities all over the world, and more — he gives full credit to Yogananda and to what he has gained as his disciple.

Concentrate on the biblical author’s message as it unfolds. Designed to assist the pastor and Bible teacher in conveying the significance of God’s Word, the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament series treats the literary context and structure of every passage of the New Testament book in the original Greek. With a unique layout designed to help you comprehend the form and flow of each passage, the ZECNT unpacks: The key message. The author’s original translation. An exegetical outline. Verse-by-verse commentary. Theology in application. While primarily designed for those with a basic knowledge of biblical Greek, all who strive to understand and teach the New Testament will benefit from the depth, format, and scholarship of these volumes. In this volume, Grant Osborne offers pastors, students, and teachers a focused resource for reading the Gospel of Matthew. Through the use of graphic representations of translations, succinct summaries of main ideas, exegetical outlines, and other features, Osborne presents the Gospel of Matthew with precision and accuracy. Because of this series’ focus on the textual structure of the scriptures, readers will better understand the literary elements of Matthew, comprehend the author’s revolutionary goals, and ultimately discovering their vital claims upon the church today.

Vatican II’s famous declaration that "the church on earth is by its very nature missionary” has often been taken out of context and used to support all manner of church initiatives. But, the conclusion of the statement—"since . . . it has its origin in the mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit"—is of monumental importance. In The Way of Discipleship, theologian Anthony Gittins describes the eternal mission of the Trinity, historically brought "down to earth" in the ministry of Jesus, and then continued to the ends of the earth by those called and sent as disciples throughout future generations. Gittins explains that Christian discipleship must be the living out of Jesus' own example in many different times and places. He encourages people of all ages to follow the invitation of Jesus to be missionary disciples. The Way of Discipleship explores several New Testament examples of Jesus' call and commissioning, distills the principles involved, and then recontextualizes the stories so that they pose a direct challenge to disciples today. In this way, Gittins builds up a picture both of "the Way" of Jesus himself, and of the way in which today's disciples can loyally follow his call to mission.

We can have a sense that when we try to do right by one another, we aren't merely striving against ourselves. The feeling is that we are struggling against something--someone-else. As if there's a force-a person- that wishes us ill. In his letter to the Romans, the apostle Paul describes just such a person: Sin, a cosmic tyrant who constrains our moral freedom, confuses our moral judgment, and condemns us to slavery and to death. Commentators have long argued about whether Paul literally means to say Sin is a person or is simply indulging in literary personification, but regardless of Paul's intentions, for modern readers it would seem clear enough: there is no such thing as a cosmic tyrant. Surely it is more reasonable to suppose "Sin" is merely a colorful way of describing individual misdeeds or, at most, a way of evoking the intractability of our social ills. In The Emergence of Sin, Matthew Croasmun suggests we take another look. The vision of Sin he offers is at once scientific and theological, social and individual, corporeal and mythological. He argues both that the cosmic power Sin is nothing more than an emergent feature of a vast human network of transgression and that this power is nevertheless real, personal, and one whom we had better be ready to resist. Ultimately, what is on offer here is an account of the world re-mythologized at the hands of chemists, evolutionary biologists, sociologists, and entomologists. In this world, Paul's text is not a relic of a forgotten mythical past, but a field manual for modern living.

Self-proclaimed “old country bumpkin” Beryl Gardinant has finally settled into his new role as a special instructor for the Liberion Order. After breaking his sword in the fight against Zeno Grable, he seeks out a new blade and stumbles upon yet another of his former students—a skilled blacksmith named Baldur, who promises to forge a custom sword using the monster’s remains. Just one problem: this leaves Beryl without a weapon at his side. One night when Beryl is walking home alone, a young thief takes advantage of his unarmed state and launches a truly unexpected attack—fire magic! And when Beryl consults the commander of the magic corps about this wizard thief, he becomes embroiled in a plot of national proportions. Can Beryl help this young criminal turn their life around? And will any of his pupils finally realize that their “master” is nothing but a normal old man?!