"Most of the following essays reveal my interest in the significance of literary forms--both the short literary forms in the Gospels, such as pronouncement stories, and an entire Gospel as a formed narrative. I am interested in the significance of these forms, not just in literary classification systems . . . . I am interested in literary form as a clue to how the text may engage hearers and readers--impact their thought and life--if they are sensitive respondents. The Gospel stories have been shaped in ways that give them particular potentials for significant engagement. Study of literary form can help us recognize these potentials." --from the Introduction Contents Part I: Gospel Sayings and Stories 1 Tension in Synoptic Sayings and Stories 2 The Pronouncement Story and Its Types 3 Varieties of Synoptic Pronouncement Stories 4 Types and Functions of Apophthegms in the Synoptic Gospels 5 The Gospels and Narrative Literature 6 "You Shall Be Complete"--If Your Love Includes All (Matthew 5:48) Part II: The Gospel of Mark 7 The Disciples in Mark: The Function of a Narrative Role 8 The Gospel of Mark as Narrative Christology 9 Reading It Whole: The Function of Mark 8:34-35 in Mark's Story Part III: Paul's Gospel 10 Paul as Liberator and Oppressor: Evaluating Diverse Views of 1 Corinthians 11 Participation in Christ: A Central Theme in Pauline Soteriology

Dr. Norman L. Geisler has been called the "father of evangelical Christian philosophy." He has written more than one hundred books and taught at universities and top seminaries for some fifty-six years. He was the first president of the Evangelical Philosophical Society and the founder and first president of the International Society of Christian Apologetics. He has spoken or debated in more than two dozen countries and held pastoral/pulpit ministries in four states. Many view him as a cross between Thomas Aquinas and Billy Graham. No one has done more to communicate the modern challenges of the Faith to the "average" Christian, to the church, and to the academy. This volume offers creative and constructive essays from twenty-three contributors, all notable in their own right, who preserve and propagate Dr. Geisler's ideas and express appreciation for his influence. Those who know him best say he is "true, faithful, and blessed by God!"

Gospel music was a significant part of not only who Elvis became as a man, but as an artist as well. As Elvis mania continues to consume generation after generation throughout the world, fans still crave new insights into the person of Elvis Presley. This book takes a look at his roots and the role of gospel in his foundational years, as well as the comfort, solace, and strength it offered him in the years of his meteoric rise in popularity. With the addition of "150 Little Known facts about Elvis" and eight unique appendices not included in the original hardcover book, this paperback edition THE GOSPEL SIDE OF ELVIS reveals much about the Elvis so many have yet to discover and is sure to become a collector's treasure.

It is quite easy to assume that if we understand the gospel accurately and preach it faithfully, our ministry will necessarily be shaped by it—but this is not true. Many churches subscribe to gospel doctrines but do not have a ministry that is shaped by, centered on, and empowered through the gospel. Its implications have not yet worked their way into the fabric of how the church actually does ministry. These churches’ theological vision has likely arisen from something other than sustained reflection on the gospel. Gospel-centered ministry is more theologically driven than program driven. To pursue it, we must spend time reflecting on the essence, the truths, and the very patterns of the gospel itself. This eBook contains the second part of Center Church, “Gospel Renewal.”In it, Keller reflects on the history and patterns of revival—how individual and corporate gospel renewal occurs—and what happens as a result.

How do our social, political and religious commitments influence our interpretation of biblical texts? Are obedience and suspicion necessarily opposite ways to respond to the authority of the Bible? Can one criticize and be transformed at the same time? Lydia Neufeld Harder explores these questions from the vantage point of a scholar, a feminist and a member of a faith community. A hermeneutics of obedience, rising out of the Mennonite theological tradition, and a hermeneutics of suspicion, advocated by many feminist theologians, seem to represent opposite approaches to the Bible’s authority. The resulting polarization could easily have led to static definitions of authority and the subtle domination of those who differ from the majority. However, by focusing on the common theological concept of discipleship, Harder has constructed a critical dialogue, beginning a process of creative change in her own view of authority. This new view opens the way for an interpretation of the Gospel of Mark. A new appreciation of both the power and the vulnerability of the biblical text leads to a view of authority that embraces both suspicion and obedience in a dynamic interpretative process.

There are few works in existence that teach gospel singing and even fewer that focus on what gospel soloists need to know. In So You Want to Sing Gospel, Trineice Robinson-Martin offers the first resource to help individual gospel singers at all levels make the most of their primary instrument—their voice. Robinson-Martin gathers together key information on gospel music history, vocal pedagogy, musical style and performance, and its place in music ministry. So You Want to Sing Gospel covers such vital matters as historical, cultural and spiritual perspectives on the gospel music tradition, training one's voice, understanding the dynamic of sound production, grasping gospel style, and bringing together vocal performance with ministerial imperatives. She also includes in her discussion such matters as voice type, repertoire selection, and gospel sub-genres. Additional chapters by Scott McCoy and Wendy LeBorgne, and Matthew Edwards address universal questions of voice science and pedagogy, vocal health, and audio enhancement technology. The So You Want to Sing seriesis produced in partnership with the National Association of Teachers of Singing. Like all books in the series, So You Want to Sing Gospel features online supplemental material on the NATS website. Please visit www.nats.org to access style-specific exercises, audio and video files, and additional resources.

Virtues are in, but the work of Bill Bennett and others says little about specifically Christian virtues. Jonathan Wilson now recounts the recent rise of virtue ethics and provides a compelling Christian account and justification of them. Wilson engages such key figures as Alasdair MacIntyre and Stanley Hauerwas. Focusing especially on the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, he not only sets forth a closely reasoned intellectual argument but suggests how an embrace of virtue ethics might change the nitty-gritty practice of the church's education, worship, and hospitality. Accessible, informed, and faithful, 'Gospel Virtues' is important reading for all who care about issues of character and community.

Reprint of the original, first published in 1845.