Lesslie Newbigin’s concept of the congregation as hermeneutic of the gospel has been used for over thirty years to discuss the overlap of mission and ecclesiology. This book provides the contextual background to the congregation as hermeneutic of the gospel, then discusses the important components of this concept and how they connect with Newbigin’s lifetime of writings on the nature and identity of the church. Within this discussion, there are three key elements to Newbigin’s ecclesiology as it pertains to the congregation as hermeneutic of the gospel: the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the local congregation, the kingdom of God and the local congregation, and the local congregation within itself. These three components can be found throughout Newbigin’s discussions about the nature of the church ranging from the 1940s until the 1990s. Pulling all these components together and showing how they shed light on Newbigin’s intended meaning by calling the local congregation the hermeneutic of the gospel for their society provides a new interpretation of this concept that will both strengthen and challenge contemporary uses of this concept within the church today.

INSPIRATIONAL

MOVING FROM A "BLUEPRINT HERMENEUTIC" TO A THEOLOGICAL ONE In this book, John Mark Hicks tells the story of his own hermeneutical journey in reading the Bible. Lovingly and graciously, he describes his transition from a "blueprint hermeneutic" to a theological one. Some suggest that moving away from a patternistic command-example-and-necessary-inference approach for understanding what God requires leaves no other alternative, or at least none that both respects biblical authority and seeks to obey the gospel of Jesus the Messiah. In Searching for the Pattern, John Mark offers just such an alternative. His theological hermeneutic is deeply rooted in the way the Bible presents itself as a dramatic history of God's plan to redeem the world as well as his own experience of growing up among Churches of Christ. Seeing the gospel of Jesus as the center of the biblical drama reorients us to what provides our Christian identity and unites us as disciples of Jesus. ********** I pray this book is received with open hearts and open minds because I believe this work could go a long way in helping to bring unity to our fractured fellowship. --Wes McAdams, Preaching Minister for the church of Christ on McDermott Road, Plano, Texas This excellent book helps us understand the inner workings of Bible interpretation among Churches of Christ and provides a persuasive proposal for Bible interpretation that is built on the story of God we find in Scripture--a story into which God calls us. --James L. Gorman, Associate Professor of History, Johnson University Knoxville, Tennessee Finally, a trellis across the chasm! Throughout this book, Hicks does not compromise his high regard for both the church and the Scriptures; and through the grace found therein, he composes this urgent invitation back to the Table, where obedience cooperates with mystery, and we--estranged or conflicted--can find our place as one within God's magnificent story. --Tiffany Mangan Dahlman, Minister at Courtyard Church of Christ, Fayetteville, North Carolina John Mark Hicks is Professor of Theology at Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee. He has taught for thirty-eight years in schools associated with the Churches of Christ. He has published fifteen books and lectured in twenty countries and forty states and is married to Jennifer. They share six children and six grandchildren.

This book fills a real need for pastors and students. Though there is currently a large body of material on the theological interpretation of Scripture, most of it is highly specific and extremely technical. J. Todd Billings here provides a straightforward entryway for students and pastors to understand why theological interpretation matters and how it can be done. / A solid, constructive theological work, The Word of God for the People of God presents a distinctive Trinitarian, participatory approach toward reading Scripture as the church. Billings's accessible yet substantial argument for a theological hermeneutic is rooted in a historic vision of the practice of scriptural interpretation even as it engages a wide range of contemporary issues and includes several exegetical examples that apply to concrete Christian ministry situations.

Does God invite women to fully participate in all the assemblies of God?Among churches of Christ, the voices of women are typically silent and excluded from visible leadership in assemblies gathered for prayer and praise. In this book, John Mark Hicks tells the story of his own journey to understand how women have served God throughout the unfolding drama of Scripture. John Mark describes his movement from the exclusion of the voices of women and their leadership in the assembly to a limited inclusion, and finally to the full inclusion of those voices and their leadership. Along the way, he describes some of the history of churches of Christ as well as his own story but ultimately focuses on the meaning of biblical texts and how they support the full participation of women in the assemblies of God.Three women, Claire Davidson Frederick, Jantrice Johnson, and Lauren Smelser White, respond to and extend John Mark's thoughts. Bethany Joy Moore also contributes an essay from the perspective a minister's daughter who is now pursuing a graduate degree in theology.John Mark is detailed, fair, and vulnerable about his own journey and our collective journey inChurches of Christ. I recommend John Mark as a trustworthy guide.-Dr. Sara G. Barton, University Chaplain, Pepperdine University, Malibu, CADo we believe that the Holy Spirit equally equips both women and men to carry out Jesus's message of reconciliation? Dr. Hicks is a trusted guide in navigating the depth of scripture and the complexity of our cultural moment. Drink deeply from this well!-Dr. Joshua Graves, Otter Creek Church, Brentwood, Tennessee.With characteristic depth, rigor, and generosity, Hicks offers his own journey toward embracing the inclusion of women's voices in the assembly. Hicks writes with a familiarity of Restoration Movement history that few can boast, with an accompanying dedication to searching the scriptures.- Amy McLaughlin-Sheasby, Instructor in the Department of Bible, Missions, and Ministry, Abilene Christian University.This book is a gift to twenty-first century Churches of Christ. Part autobiography, part history, part exegesis, and part biblical theology, Hicks's exploration of the Bible's teachings on the role of women in congregational gatherings offers several invaluable components.-Dr. James L. Gorman, Associate Professor of History, Johnson University.John Mark Hicks is Professor of Theology at Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. He has taught for thirty-nine years in schools associated with churches of Christ. He has authored or co-authored eighteen books, lectured in twenty-two countries and forty states, and is married to Jennifer. They share five living children and six grandchildren.

The second in the series organized around common FAQs, 40Questions about Interpreting the Bible tackles the major questions thatstudents, pastors and professors ask about the hermeneutics of reading thebible (i.e. understanding the bible).

Privilege the Text! spans the conceptual gap between biblical text and life application by providing a rigorous theological hermeneutic for preaching. Kuruvilla describes the theological entity that is the intermediary between ancient text and modern audience, and defines its crucial function in determining valid application. Based on this hermeneutic, he submits a new mode of reading Scripture for preaching: a Christiconic interpretation of the biblical text, a hermeneutically robust way to understand the depiction of the Second Person of the Trinity in Scripture. In addition, Kuruvilla’s work provides a substantive theology of spiritual formation through preaching: what it means to obey God, the Christian’s responsibility to undertake “faith-full” obedience to divine demand, and the incentives for such obedience—all integral to understanding the sermonic movement from text to application. Privilege the Text! promises to be useful not only for preachers, and students and teachers of homiletics, but for all who are interested in the exposition of Scripture that culminates in application for the glory of God.

Discipleship is eschatological in nature, because the church that makes and receives disciples is eschatological in nature. Often eschatology is thought to refer only to “last things” doctrines. However, eschatology in its broader sense encompasses the Christian view of time and the future of the world, informing both one’s evangelism and ecclesiology. Failing to relate the eschatological dimension to discipleship leaves one with an incomplete worldview, imbalanced discipleship, and eventually, a tragic inability to model the Christian way of life. By answering questions like “What time is it?” and “Where is history going?” Trevin Wax helps Christians view the past, present, and future biblically, and shapes their understanding of following Jesus.

How can biblical authority be a reality for those shaped by the modern world? This book treats the First World as a mission field, offering a unique perspective on the relationship between the gospel and current society by presenting an outsider's view of contemporary Western culture.

The church is called to be the agency through which God is not only known but through which his kingdom is also advanced. This book, therefore, is an attempt to examine the church's influence on communities through social justice practices as part of advancing the gospel of the kingdom of God. The book brings out results of a study about a congregation's significant impact on a local community through varied social justice programs. The book also provides relevant recommendations on how such initiatives can be improved for a more effective kingdom-driven ministry to local communities. It is hoped that the example of J. Jireh Ministry Church provides a case worthy of emulation by other churches, congregations, and similar faith-based community organizations for ministering to social justice needs at the local level.