Tim Chester writes about how the Cross and Resurrection call people to a radical way of living.
How should we live? What does it really mean to be a Christian believer in everyday life?
Intriguingly, when the New Testament writers answered that question, they did not look back to the life of the Lord Jesus. Again and again, they focused on his death and resurrection.
The cross and resurrection provide the pattern for discipleship, calling Christians to a new way of living, with different values, different hopes. This lucid, passionate, practical guidebook gets right to the heart of what it means to be a Christian disciple today.
Tim Chester writes, 'This book strikes a note that is rarely heard today. In particular, the important themes of suffering followed by glory, and the hiddenness of the Christian life, are all but absent in contemporary Christian thought.'
The book concludes with a powerful story of an ordinary hero.
The included discussion questions make this an ideal book to read together in small groups or as a whole church.
Foreword
Introduction
Part One: The pardon of the cross - humble confidence
1. How do you know God loves you?
2. Will God's love stand up in court?
3. Humility
4. Confidence
Part Two: The practice of the cross - sacrificial service
5. The way of Jesus = the way of the cross
6. Everyday martyrdom
7. The value of Jesus
8. The way of the cross = the way of joy
Part Three: The pattern of the cross and resurrection - suffering followed by glory
9. No glory without the cross
10. Bondage followed by liberation
11. Hiddenness followed by revelation
12. Suffering followed by glory
Part Four: The power of the resurrection - power to be weak
13. Resurrection power, freedom and life
14. Power to be weak
15. Freedom to serve, life to die
16. The Spirit of resurrection
Part Five: The promise of the resurrection - adventurous hope
17. A renewed world of life
18. A world of justice, joy and love
19. A world worth living for and world worth dying for
20. The adventure of hope
| Contributors | Tim Chester |
|---|---|
| ISBN | 9781909919075 |
| Format | eBook |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | The Good Book Company |
Endorsement written for Ordinary Hero
To the cross and the empty tomb . . . that’s where this book takes us. Tim Chester does not just set forth theological truth; he sounds the call for Jesus’ death and resurrection to shape our lives. In light of the cross, the chapters clearly unfold the kind of discipleship that involves losing our lives—to live.
I've just finished reading this book with another lady at church and it's been a huge encouragement. The book is wonderfully balanced: on the one hand it helps you remember the utter security you have in Christ, the awesome love and mercy he has lavished on you and the unswerving way God equips his children and on the other, it encourages you to respond to the wonderful privilege you have by getting out of your comfort zone to serve Jesus in ways that are radically and wholeheartedly sacrificial. Every chapter is packed with biblical truth that will inspire you to rely more on God and get stuck in to Kingdom work. The best thing is that it is aimed at ordinary people and shows how every single one of us can live for Christ in this fallen world ... It's not about becoming the next great speaker or evangelist, it's about living a life where God's power flows through human weakness. It's accessible, biblical, practical and thought-provoking. I can't wait to read it again with someone else!
