Βιβλία
Γιατί άλλο βιβλίο για τον Ιησού; Τι το κάνει αυτό βιβλίο αρκετά μοναδικό για οποιονδήποτε θελεις να το διαβασεις?
Δεν υπήρχε τίποτα μοναδικό στις λέξεις του Ντίκενς μυθιστόρημα Μια ιστορία δύο πόλεων. «It was the best of times· it was the worst of times» όπως όλα τα λόγια του βιβλίου του είχε χρησιμοποιηθεί αμέτρητες φορές στο παρελθόν. Ωστόσο, η διάταξη των λόγων του έδωσε μια νέα προοπτική και, ως εκ τούτου, ένα ιδιαίτερο νόημα στα πράγματα για τα οποία μιλούσε.
Ο Ιησούς που πρέπει να γνωρίζετε είναι μια φρέσκια, νέα προοπτική για τον άνθρωπο Ιησού, τον χαρακτήρα Του, την ακεραιότητά Του, την αφοσίωση στον Θεό, την αγάπη για τους εχθρούς Του, ακόμη και τον λόγο ύπαρξης Του. Ο Greg Treat είναι ένας πολύ καλός φίλος, ένας Χριστιανός αδελφός και συν-παρουσιαστής στο Podcast That They Might Know . Είναι αφοσιωμένος χριστιανός, σύζυγος και πατέρας, δικηγόρος και απόφοιτος του Master's College. Στην κριτική του για αυτό βιβλίο, είπε, «Ορίζετε αυτές τις βιβλικές κατηγορίες και μετά δείχνετε πώς ο Χριστός ήταν ο μεγαλύτερος όλων των εποχών…
Θα μπορούσα να δω τον εαυτό μου ως θαυμαστή του Ιησού».
Ξέρω τι έλεγε ο Γκρεγκ και σε καμία περίπτωση δεν υπονόμευε την πραγματικότητα ότι ο Ιησούς Χριστός είναι Κύριος. Όσοι έρχονται σε Αυτόν πρέπει να πιστέψουν ότι είναι τέτοιος και να υποβάλουν έτσι τη ζωή τους σε Αυτόν. Greg έλεγε ότι η οπτική που βρίσκεται σε αυτό το βιβλίο του έδωσε έναν νέο ζήλο για Ιησούς.
I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH
- Jesus Christ
Joe Durso has teamed up with a faithful brother in the Lord, a good friend, and co-author Greg Treat to write I Will Build My Church. Greg is a graduate of the Master's College and McGeorge School of Law; he practices law in sunny Texas. He has a lovely wife and is the father of three darling girls two boys and a new baby boy. He is the pastor of a home church and an ardent student of Roman history and culture at the time of Christ.
What Joe and Greg have attempted to do in I Will Build My Church is to analyze the Old Testament model of a nation as God proposed for His people. Israel failed because only a remnant was saved. Satan quickly corrupted the majority because they never came under Jesus' control.
Likewise, the Church did not grow only with regenerate believers but enlarged artificially as Satan has contaminated the Church with false converts. Therefore, most people not adhering to God's plans for the Church set in motion systemic problems that even corrupt Authentic followers of Jesus Christ.
By identifying the Old Testament model of growth and government and integrating it into a New Testament Spirit-filled, prayer-filled people of repentance and faith; the Church, not as a nation but as an organized group of families, can fulfill God's plan as it has during periods of revival in the past. To this end, Joe and Greg have written I Will Build My Church.
When Jesus preached His Sermon on the Mount, He identified the reprobate Church. Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by people" (Matthew 5:13).
May the Church arise like never before and heed Jesus' words of victory as an alternative to failure. "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16)
I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH is a look at the church that Jesus' perfect will builds in contrast with that of men who go off track. The caution that all God's people who read Romans 12:2 receive is, "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."
God's will is always good, acceptable, and perfect. However, God's will is not fulfilled through His people unless they are not being conformed to this present world system. Honesty is the key element that must be present if God's people are to escape the snares of the devil who prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
If the readers of this book are as honest about the shortcomings of the church in the West as the writers who penned them, repent of their errors, and trust Christ to restore faithful behavior, there will be less smoke at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
