Surprised by Hope (Quick Review)

"And, of course, evangelism, which will flourish best if the church is giving itself to works of justice (putting things to rights in the community) and works of beauty (highlighting the glory of creation and the glory yet to be revealed): evangelism will always come as a surprise. You mean there is more? There is a new world, and it has already begun, and it works by healing and forgiveness and new starts and resh energy? Yes, answeres the church, and it comes about as people worship the God in whose image they are made, as they follow the Lord who bore their sins and rose from the dead, as they are indwelt by his Spirit and thereby given new life, a new way of life, a new zest for life" (Wright 232).

I have to say that I am disappointed that I didn't read this book sooner that I actually did.

Because of school and other activities, I was unable to sit down and begin on this incredible work by Bishop N.T. Wright. But now that I had and have a few days to take a break from school, I am in the reading mode (kind of ironic).

I finished the book last night, and I must say that it is exactly what I expected out of Wright and even more. Having already read several of his books, including The Lord and His Prayer, I assumed that I would know exactly what Wright would be talking about in his latest work. I was right and wrong.

The most important thing that I walked away with from his discussion of resurrection and the original context and beliefs in resurrection that the early Church had was how connected the rest of Christianity should be to that belief. Not simply the belief that Christ was resurrected and went straight to heaven, but that Christ defeated death, which in turn means he defeated sin, which means that he is the "firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep" (1 Cor. 15:20), which means that we as Christians must live in the knowledge and joy that we too will follow in the steps of Christ.

"For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead."
- 1 Corinthians 15:21

The most poignant issue that Wright address is how re-thinking the resurrection causes us to re-think justice, beauty (creativity), evangelism, and the Church itself. Each one of these makes perfect sense in light of the resurrection instead of being vaguely passed over or over-emphasized to one extreme or another.

His discussion of how the joy of the Easter should be a celebration should also greatly resonate within the heart and soul of all who read his work.

In order to keep this review "quick and short", I can only tell you one thing about this book (and I know that it is very cliche), but...

GO READ IT!

Seriously

Christianity needs to refocus in on Christ and the resurrection and what that means for the present and future world...


danieldumas