Archive for September, 2008

Total Church: A Radical Reshaping Around Gospel and Community will be available in the United States this month!

“Church is not a meeting you attend or a place you enter,” write pastors Tim Chester and Steve Timmis. “It’s an identity that is ours in Christ. An identity that shapes the whole of life so that life and mission become ‘total church.’”

With that as their premise, the authors emphasize two overarching principles to govern the practice of church and mission: being gospel-centered and being community-centered. When these principles take precedence, say the authors, the truth of the Word is upheld, the mission of the gospel is carried out, and the priority of relationships is practiced in radical ways.

By outlining the biblical calling to make both the gospel and community central in the Christian life, Chester and Timmis apply this dual focus to evangelism, social involvement, church planting, discipleship, youth ministry, and more, urging the body of Christ to rethink its perspective and way of life.

Total Church is part of the Re:Lit line.

Here’s a preview from Tim Chester:

Something has changed in American culture.

Atheism, which for years was a little-regarded belief system, has gained a large and increasing national hearing through the writings of “new atheists” such as Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Christopher Hitchens.

Aiming to both inform and equip Christians regarding this cultural shift, R. Albert Mohler Jr. explores the environment that has bred the “new atheism” while also introducing readers to the movement’s four leading thinkers and the contours of their arguments. Mohler—deemed “the reigning intellectual of the evangelical movement in the US” by Time magazine—uses this foundation to then pinpoint eight major distinctives that make the new atheism new and discusses the future of Christianity in relationship to it.

Below is a short clip from Dr. Mohler about his new book, Atheism Remix:

Atheism Remix Clip

“Thoughtful and insightful, this readable work illuminates for scholars, pastors, and students alike the key issues that must be addressed in order to engage the thinking of Dawkins, Harris, Hitchens, and others. I applaud Albert Mohler for his clarity and conviction in helping us understand that biblical theism is the only true alternative to the New Atheism. I gladly recommend this book!”
David S. Dockery, President, Union University

“Instead of becoming just one more voice in the rising debate between Christians and the New Atheists, Dr. Mohler has chosen to provide us with masterful coverage of the dominant writers on both sides. I know of no other introduction to this crucial debate that is as comprehensive and clear in such brief compass. Mohler tells us what’s going on, shows us how much depends on the outcome of this titanic cultural shift, and provides guidance to the resources Christians need to challenge the New Atheism root and branch.”
D. A. Carson, Research Professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Now available in bookstores everywhere.