Soul Recreation

Soul Recreation
Author: Tom Schwanda
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 315
Release: 2012-04-11
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1610974557

Spiritually there is a great hunger today for contemplative and more satisfying experiences with God. Puritanism might seem to be an unlikely source for this, yet few groups in the history of Christian spirituality have written more extensively or wisely on the subject. Isaac Ambrose (1604-64), a relatively forgotten English Puritan, developed a theological foundation for the spiritual life based upon the Christian's intimate union with Christ, which the Puritans often called "spiritual marriage." Schwanda demonstrates that this vibrant relationship of union and communion with Jesus, inspired by the Holy Spirit, was manifested in a deep contemplative piety of gazing lovingly and gratefully upon God. At the same time, Ambrose did not neglect loving his neighbors. This study reveals how heavenly meditation was one of the significant practices engaged by Ambrose to cultivate spiritual intimacy and enjoyment of God. Further, his experiential reading of Scripture, in particular the Song of Songs, provided him with a language of ravishment and delight in God. This book provides a distinctively Protestant foundation for recovering the contemplative life while recognizing the significant contributions of the Western Catholic tradition.

Seeing God

Seeing God
Author: Hans Boersma
Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing
Total Pages: 487
Release: 2018
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0802876048

Winner of the Christianity Today Book Award in Theology/Ethics (2019) To see God is our heart's desire, our final purpose in life. But what does it mean to see God? And exactly how do we see God--with our physical eyes or with the mind's eye? In this informed study of the beatific vision, Hans Boersma focuses on "vision" as a living metaphor and shows how the vision of God is not just a future but a present reality. Seeing God is both a historical theology and a dogmatic articulation of the beatific vision--of how the invisible God becomes visible to us. In examining what Christian thinkers throughout history have written about the beatific vision, Boersma explores how God trains us to see his character by transforming our eyes and minds, highlighting continuity from this world to the next. Christ-centered, sacramental, and ecumenical, Boersma's work presents life as a never-ending journey toward seeing the face of God in Christ both here and in the world to come.

John Owen between Orthodoxy and Modernity

John Owen between Orthodoxy and Modernity
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2019-02-11
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004391347

This volume offers fresh reflections on John Owen, a leading Reformed theologian who sat on the brink of a new age. His seventeenth- century theology and spirituality reflect the growing tensions, and pre-modern and modern tendencies. Exploring Owen in this context helps readers better understand the seventeenth-century dynamics of individualization and rationalization, the views of God and self, community and the world. The authors of this volume investigate Owen’s approach to various key themes, including his Trinitarian piety, catholicity, doctrine of scripture, and public prayer. Owen’s international reception and current historiographical challenges are also highlighted. Contributors are: Joel R. Beeke, Henk van den Belt, Gert A. van den Brink, Hans Burger, Daniel R. Hyde, Kelly M. Kapic, Reinier W. de Koeijer, Ryan M. McGraw, David P. Murray, Carl R. Trueman, Willem van Vlastuin.

From Faith to Faith

From Faith to Faith
Author: Stanley J Rodes
Publisher: James Clarke & Company
Total Pages: 260
Release: 2014-09-25
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0227902203

The idea that covenant theology is profoundly influential in John Wesley's theological thought seems dissonant. What would an evangelical Arminian have to do with a theological framework that historically belongs to a reformed understanding of salvation?How could this possibly square with his ongoing conflicts with the Calvinism of his day? On the basis of compelling evidence from his sermons and correspondence, this investigation dares to explore the idea that covenant theology is part of the infrastructure of Wesley's thought. The discovery of its role in shaping his narrative of the way of salvation is surprising and intriguing. Wesley is not only informed of and fluent in covenant theology, but also thoroughly committed to it. 'From Faith to Faith' demonstrates that, with theological precision and discernment, Wesley appropriates covenant theology in a way consistent with both its primary theological features and his Arminianism. His distinctive view of 'the gradual process of the work of God in thesoul' supplies valuable grist for further reflection, especially by those charged with the care of souls in the twenty-first century.

The Reformed and Celibate Pastor

The Reformed and Celibate Pastor
Author: Seth D. Osborne
Publisher: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht
Total Pages: 418
Release: 2021-12-06
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 3647560464

Richard Baxter (1615–1691) was arguably the greatest English Puritan of the seventeenth century. He is well known for his ministerial manual "The Reformed Pastor", in which he expressed the unusual conviction that parish ministers were better off unmarried. And yet, Baxter seemed to contradict himself by marrying one of his parishioners, Margaret Charlton. Though Baxter claimed to be happily married, he continued to champion celibacy for the rest of his life. This book explores Baxter's argument for clerical celibacy by placing it in the context of his life and the turbulent events of seventeenth-century England. His viewpoint was shaped by several factors, including the Puritan literature he read, the context of his parish ministry, his burdensome model of soul care, and the formative life experiences shaping his theology and perspective. These factors not only explain why Baxter became the only Puritan to champion clerical celibacy but also why he continued to do so even after marrying.

Incomparable

Incomparable
Author: Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth
Publisher: Moody Publishers
Total Pages: 227
Release: 2024-01-23
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0802473555

Whatever you think about Jesus, He is more. Incomparably more. Get to know this Jesus by joining beloved author and Bible teacher Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth on a fifty-day journey, inspired by J. Oswald Sanders’ classic volume, The Incomparable Christ, to explore His one-of-a-kind story. From heaven to earth. From birth to death. From resurrection to right this minute. From before time to all time. In these meditations, you’ll spend time reflecting on the person of Christ—His humanity, divinity, childhood, adulthood, and more. You’ll consider the work and words of Christ. And you’ll contemplate His preexistence, prayer life, majestic silence, anguish, atoning work, post-resurrection ministry, and promised second coming. Find in Jesus—fully God and fully Man—everything you will ever need. He alone is able to save you to the end and understands you to the core. Able to forgive and befriend you, challenge and change you. This book can be used at any time of the year but serves as an ideal devotional companion for the season leading up to and immediately following Easter. As you walk through these days, you will be reminded that there is no one else like Jesus. He is quite simply . . . Incomparable.