The Canterbury Press Lent book for 2021 focuses on the significance of the story at the very centre of Christianity: the crucifixion. Samuel Wells writes as a theologian and pastor to explore the cross in the purposes of God and how this act brings about salvation. Three sections, each with six short chapters, explore the cross in: - the Old Testament (Covenant, Test, Passover, Atonement, Servant, Sacrifice) - the Epistles (Forgiveness, Obedience, Foolishness, Example, Reconciliation, Boast) - the Gospels (Finished, Judged, Betrayed, Pierced, Forsaken, Mocked) Written with characteristic clarity and wearing its considerable learning lightly, A Cross at the Heart of God will give readers a comprehensive understanding of the story at the heart of scripture, the central event in history and a core tenet of the Christian faith. A study guide with questions and prayers makes this ideal for Lent groups as well as individual reading.

The Canterbury Press Lent book for 2021 focuses on the significance of the story at the very centre of Christianity: the crucifixion. Samuel Wells writes as a theologian and pastor to explore the cross in the purposes of God and how this act brings about salvation. Three sections, each with six short chapters, explore the cross in: - the Old Testament (Covenant, Test, Passover, Atonement, Servant, Sacrifice) - the Epistles (Forgiveness, Obedience, Foolishness, Example, Reconciliation, Boast) - the Gospels (Finished, Judged, Betrayed, Pierced, Forsaken, Mocked) Written with characteristic clarity and wearing its considerable learning lightly, A Cross at the Heart of God will give readers a comprehensive understanding of the story at the heart of scripture, the central event in history and a core tenet of the Christian faith. A study guide with questions and prayers makes this ideal for Lent groups as well as individual reading.

"The cross of Christ is the ultimate demonstration of God's unfailing love for humanity. To know that "God is love," we need only look at Jesus on the cross, for in that act, Jesus, who is "of one being with the Father," reveals the heart of God. According to the great Scottish theologian, T. F. Torrance, the cross is a "window into the innermost heart of God," wherein we see the exact nature of God's love for the whole world. In giving himself for us on the cross, God proves that he loves us more than he loves himself (from "A Window into the Heart of God"). Across the globe, there is an awakening to the reality of God's love for all humanity, as revealed in Jesus Christ. Happily, more and more writers today are bringing the good news to a world in profound need of hearing the joyful message that animated the early Christians and empowered them to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ all over the known world. "A Window into the Heart of God" is the first booklet in the author's "Good News Series." In this series of short works, the author joins the many writers today who are finally "putting the good news back into the Gospel!"

Paul Tripp identifies the attitudes and assumptions behind our words and shows how to develop God-honoring communication.

Theologies have often pointed to the cross as a place of suffering and sacrifice, while feminist critiques have frequently argued against interpretations of the cross as patriarchal valorizing of suffering. Wonhee Anne Joh points toward a new interpretation of the cross as a place of love, where God and humanity come together in a surprising way. Interpreting the cross as performing a double gesture that has a subversive effect, Joh argues that the cross works simultaneously to pay homage to and to menace complex oppressive powers. Utilizing the Korean concept ofjeong, Joh constructs a theology that is feminist, political and love-centered, while acknowledging the cross as source of pain and suffering. Joh's innovative vision is a call for political love that is stronger than powers of oppression.

Christians know that God loves them, but can easily feel that he is perpetually disappointed and frustrated, maybe even close to giving up on them. As a result, they focus a lot—and rightly so—on what Jesus has done to appease God’s wrath for sin. But how does Jesus Christ actually feel about his people amid all their sins and failures? This book draws us to Matthew 11, where Jesus describes himself as “gentle and lowly in heart,” longing for his people to find rest in him. The gospel flows from God’s deepest heart for his people, a heart of tender love for the sinful and suffering. These chapters take readers into the depths of Christ’s very heart for sinners, diving deep into Bible passages that speak of who Christ is and encouraging readers with the affections of Christ for his people. His longing heart for sinners comforts and sustains readers in their up-and-down lives.

What if the biggest danger to the church of Jesus Christ is not blatant heresy, the moral failures of church leaders, persecution, the rise of Islam or the loss of our rights? What if the biggest threat is counterfeit gospels within the church, ways of thinking and speaking about the good news that lead to a gradual drift from the truth of Scripture? The gospel is like a three-legged stool. There’s the Gospel Story – the grand narrative of Scripture (Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration). Within that overarching framework, we make the Gospel Announcement about Jesus Christ (His perfect life, substitutionary death, resurrection, exaltation). The gospel announcement then births the Gospel Community: God’s church – the embodiment of the gospel, the manifestation of God’s kingdom. A counterfeit gospel is like a colony of termites, eating away at one of the legs of this stool until the whole thing topples over. This book exposes six common counterfeits (Therapeutic, Judgmentless, Moralist, Quietist, Activist, and Churchless) that would get us off track. The goal of Counterfeit Gospels is to so deepen our love for the unchanging gospel of Jesus Christ that we would easily see through the many counterfeits that leave us impoverished. So come, love the gospel, recognize and overcome the counterfeits, and be empowered for ministry!