This title addresses some of the major themes within evangelical theology including election, the Holy Spirit, eschatology, and sanctification. It examines the Bible and the Church, and has chapters on worship and the sacraments.

Evangelical Theology is a systematic theology written from the perspective of a biblical scholar. Michael F. Bird contends that the center, unity, and boundary of the evangelical faith is the evangel (= gospel), as opposed to things like justification by faith or inerrancy. The evangel is the unifying thread in evangelical theology and the theological hermeneutic through which the various loci of theology need to be understood. Using the gospel as a theological leitmotif—an approach to Christian doctrine that begins with the gospel and sees each loci through the lens of the gospel—this text presents an authentically evangelical theology, as opposed to an ordinary systematic theology written by an evangelical theologian. According to the author, theology is the drama of gospelizing—performing and living out the gospel in the theatre of Christian life. The text features tables, sidebars, and questions for discussion. The end of every part includes a “What to Take Home” section that gives students a run-down on what they need to know. And since reading theology can often be dry and cerebral, the author applies his unique sense of humor in occasional “Comic Belief” sections so that students may enjoy their learning experience through some theological humor added for good measure.

The second edition of this important foundatinal text for the emerging church includes a new foreword by Biran McLaren and a new afterword from John Franke updating the book for the contemporary church scene.

Lived Theology contains the work of an emerging generation of theologians and scholars who pursue research, teaching, and writing as a form of public responsibility motivated by the conviction that theological ideas aspire in their inner logic toward social expression. Written as a two-year collaboration of the Project on Lived Theology at the University of Virginia, this volume offers a series of illustrations and styles that distinguish Lived Theology in the broader conversation with other major approaches to the religious interpretation of embodied life. The book begins with a modest query: How might theological writing, research, and teaching be expanded to engage lived experience with the same care and precision given by scholars to books and articles? Behind this question lies the claim that theological engagements and interpretations of lived experience offer rich and often surprising insights into God's presence and activity in the world. Answers to, and explorations of, this question form the narrative framework of this groundbreaking volume. Lived theology is shown to be an exceedingly curious enterprise, transgressing disciplinary boundaries as a matter of course, examining circumstance, context, and motivation, and marshalling every available resource for the sake of discerning the theological shape of enacted and embodied faith. Understanding the social consequences of theological ideas is a task with wide ranging significance, inside the academy and in the broader forums of civic discussion. Contributors consider Lived Theology from a diverse array of experiences and locations, including towns in Mississippi struggling with histories of racist violence and murder; a homeless shelter in Atlanta; churches in the Democratic Republic of Congo; faith based volunteer organizations in Columbus, Ohio; and a college classroom in the Midwest. This innovative work offers a fresh and exciting model for scholars, teachers, practitioners, and students seeking to reconnect the lived experience of faith communities with academic study and reflection.

Captures the multiple voices of Christian theology in a diverse and interconnected world through in-depth studies of representative figures and overviews of key movements Providing an unparalleled overview of the subject, The Modern Theologians provides an indispensable guide to the diverse approaches and perspectives within Christian theology from the early twentieth century to the present. Each chapter is written by a leading scholar and explores the development and trajectory of modern theology while presenting critical accounts of a broad range of relevant topics and representative thinkers. The fourth edition of The Modern Theologians is fully updated to provide readers with a clear picture of the broad spectrum and core concerns of modern Christian theology worldwide. It offers new perspectives on key twentieth-century figures and movements from different geographical and ecclesial contexts. There are expanded sections on theological dialogue with non-Christian traditions, and on Christian theology's engagement with the arts and sciences. A new section explores theological responses to urgent global challenges - such as nationalism, racism, and the environmental crisis. Providing the next generation of theologians with the tools needed to take theological conversations forward, The Modern Theologians: Explores Christian theology's engagement with multiple ways of knowing across diverse approaches and traditions Combines introductions to key modern theologians and coverage of the major movements within contemporary theology Identifies common dynamics found across theologies to enable cross-contextual comparisons Positions individual theologians in geographical regions, trans-local movements, and ecclesial contexts Features new and revised chapters written by experts in particular movements, topics, and individuals Providing in-depth critical evaluation and extensive references to further readings and research, Ford's The Modern Theologians: An Introduction to Christian Theology since 1918, Fourth Edition, remains an ideal textbook for undergraduate and graduate courses in Theology and Religious Studies, such as Introduction to Christian Theology, Systematic Theology, Modern Theology, and Modern Theologians. It is also an invaluable resource for researchers, those involved in various forms of Christian ministry, teachers of religious studies, and general readers engaged in independent study.

This book offers in style and content an exciting new perspective on contemporary theology and its future in post-modern times. I welcome this new perspective. The style is agreeable, unpolemical, and enages in dialogue with the best of Barth and Bultmann, Ricoeur and Pannenberg, Cobb and Moltmann, showing what they havea to offer to the larger theological community and transferring it like a ferry boat into the post-modern age. The purpose is to offer an evangelical theology which is at the same time genuinely evangelical and relevant for post-modern ways of thinking. Wood writes with admirable clarity." --Jürgen Moltmann, University of Tübingen

Whether and in what sense the Son of God might eternally submit to his Father's will is a question that has ignited a firestorm of controversy in today's evangelical academy. On one side stand those who regard the affirmation of any inequality whatsoever in the Godhead as a revival of ancient subordinationism. On the other stand persons who consider the Son functionally subordinate to the Father even within the immanent Trinity, without respect to the Incarnation, and regard their belief as integral to historic orthodoxy. Many evangelicals, moreover, view the issue of subordination within the Trinity as pivotal to contemporary disputes about the role of women in church, home, and state. If the relations of the divine persons constitute a paradigm for human life, persons on all sides of the gender question argue, human relations ought to reflect either the divine persons' exceptionless equality or their orderly differentiation of roles. At the same time, others consider the issues of equality in the Trinity and gender relations irrelevant to each other and accuse both complementarians and evangelical feminists of degrading the doctrine of the Trinity into a partisan weapon. The New Evangelical Subordinationism? gathers commentary on evangelical debates about equality and subordination in the Trinity from representatives of the gamut of perspectives just mentioned. Here, evangelical theologians, biblical scholars, and church historians of widely differing theological orientations address themselves to the panoply of questions raised by these debates. This volume, unprecedented in the breadth and depth of its coverage of the controversy over subordination in the Trinity, should become a standard source for teaching and research on its subject.

Written by a skilled theologian with over two decades of classroom experience, this introduction to evangelical theology explains how connecting to five sources of Christian theology--Scripture, tradition, reason, experience, and community--leads to a richer and deeper understanding of the faith. Graham McFarlane calls this the "evangelical quintilateral," which he recommends as a helpful rubric for teaching theology. This integrative model introduces students to the sources, themes, tasks, and goals of evangelical theology, making the book ideal for introductory theology courses.

New Testament studies are witnessing many exciting developments, and Douglas Campbell's groundbreaking publications offer an important contribution to future discussions about Paul. Campbell tackles familiar problems relating to justification, 'old'and 'new' perspectives, and much more besides, in fresh and exciting ways. In doing so he sets down one profound challenge after another to all those involved in Pauline studies. As a consequence, his work demands extended and serious deliberation. This book seeks to facilitate academic engagement with Campbell's work in a unique way. It contains chapters summarizing key themes in his thinking, reflections from friendly critics that aim to challenge or extend his ideas, and his own responseto these interlocutors. In this way, the book allows readers to be drawn into a vitally important conversation. It is academic theology in the making and constitutes a cutting edge in Pauline studies.