The incredible true story of one man's imprisonment for the gospel; his brokenness, God's faithfulness and his eventual freedom. In 1993, Andrew Brunson was asked to travel to Turkey, the largest unevangelised country in the world, to serve as a missionary. Though hesitant because of the daunting and dangerous task that lay ahead, Andrew and his wife, Norine, believed this was God's plan for them. What followed was a string of threats and attacks,but also successes in starting new churches in a place where many people had never met a Christian. As their work with refugees from Syria, including Kurds, gained attention and suspicion, Andrew and Norine acknowledged the threat but accepted the risk, determining to stay unless God told them to leave. In 2016, they were arrested. Though the State eventually released Norine, who remained in Turkey, Andrew was imprisoned. Accused of being a spy and being among the plotters of the attempted coup, he became a political pawn whose story soon became known around the world. This is Andrew's remarkable story of his imprisonment and journey of faith.

The root of the word 'mission' means 'sending'. All Christian mission has its fountainhead in the God revealed in Scripture, who sent his Son for us, sends his Spirit to us, and summons all people to himself. The privilege and responsibility of his church, sent into all the world, is to testify by his words and deeds to Jesus Christ, God's unique son, crucified, risen and ascended. The East-West partnership in missiological exploration expounds a variety of Old and New Testament texts, and examines a wide range of issues. The authors' desire is that Jesus Christ might be glorified more and more in the church and in the world; their eager expectation is that one day the whole creation will find its consummation in him, and God will be all and in all.

This well-researched and thorough work presents Chinese Christianity in a way that will lead Christians and others to better understand their faith and China. "The Love of God in China "examines various aspects related to Christianity in this socialist country, including: the status of Chinese Christian churches the policy of Chinese government for state control of religion the attitudes of Chinese people towards Christianity theological perspectives in China the Chinese perception of religious principles successful efforts to cultivate Chinese Christianity

Author John Peale objectively presents the competing and conflicting positions of the diverse Chinese Christian groups. As he identifies the challenges faced by Christian individuals and churches in China, he not only suggests resolutions, but also proposes what Western Christians could learn from their Chinese family in the faith. Peale explores the ways Christianity can be submerged into Chinese culture.

You long for love and happiness. But so often you are blocked from satisfying that longing. What are the barriers? Why are they so troublesome? How does spirituality play a role? Rebecca Manley Pippert examines these persistently human questions in this thoughtful and personal book. She invites you to join her on a journey exploring the region between faith and unbelief where your hopes and doubts mingle. Calling as expert guides such thinkers as Albert Camus and C. S. Lewis, she cites freely her own experiences and sets out the questions all face--questions about significance, meaning, love, life and truth, the search for encouragement and security. Pippert offers no canned formulas or saccharine cliches. In this revised and updated edition she squarely engages your uncertainty, disappointment, longing for fulfillment, and the reality of pain and suffering. Such realism rings in the stories she tells and in the ideas she explores. In doing so she leads you beyond the search for your own significance to the reasons you have for your hope of discovering God.

This title offers a constructive appraisal of the relationship between secular development and Christian mission, demonstrating the opportunities and problems associated with the work of faith-based organisations. This book considers the implications, consequences, opportunities and constraints faced when mission and development endeavours coincide. This is explored from various perspectives, including that of history, theology and those involved in mission work and missionary organizations. Despite eighty percent of the world's population professing religious belief, religion has been largely excluded from consideration of those seeking to aid development in poorer countries. Moreover, the work of missionaries has often involved the provision of basic welfare services that in many parts of the world predate the interventions undertaken by 'professional' secular aid workers. Are missionaries doing development work or is development a critical aspect of mission?

Experts say if you do something for thirty days it becomes a habit. "God has given us the extraordinary privilege of knowing him. I hope that by the end of 30 Days you will want to make spending time with God a lifelong habit." - Nicky Gumbel Nicky has selected thirty fascinating passages from the Old and New Testament, accompanied by a challenging commentary and thoughtful prayer. Designed to be read over thirty days, this book guides the reader through the process of Bible study. It helps answer the important questions like, "How should I read the Bible?", "Where do I start?" and "How is the Bible relevant to my life?" This is an excellent resource for those who have just completed Alpha or anyone who is interested in exploring the Bible.

While much work has been done to apply anthropological insights to the study of missions, the sociological perspective has been generally neglected by missiologists. This volume defines the sociology of missions as a discrete subdiscipline within the sociology of religion and provides a working set of conceptual resources for those involved in mission work to use in furthering their understanding of their task. The author reviews the major areas of sociology that are most relevant to missions and presents his findings as a basis for discussion and a stimulus to further exploration of relevant sociological concepts and theories. One of his main goals is to increase dialogue between missiologists and sociologists of religion, by providing the former with a sociological perspective and the latter with a deeper understanding of the missionary enterprise.

In our image-based culture, people need to visualize something to understand it. This has never been more true about our communication of the gospel. But sometimes our understanding of the gospel gets stuck in a rut, and all we know is a particular outline or one-size-fits-all formula. While we hold to only one gospel, the New Testament uses a wealth of dynamic, compelling images for explaining the good news of Jesus, each of which connects with different people at different points of need. Neil Livingstone provides a guided tour of biblical images of the gospel and shows how each offers fresh insight into God's saving work. Walking through Scripture's gallery of pictures of salvation from new life to deliverance, from justification to adoption, Livingstone invites us to deepen our understanding of the gospel. By letting the truth and power of each permeate our lives, we will be better able to articluate the life-changing gospel of Christ to a world that needs to taste--and see--that the Lord is good.

This book provides a wealth of fascinating information about many significant and lesser-known nineteenth-century Christian authors, mostly women, who were motivated to write material specifically for children's spiritual edification because of their personal faith. It explores three prevalent theological and controversial doctrines of the period, namely Soteriology, Biblical Authority and Eschatology, in relation to children's specifically engendered Christian literature. It traces the ecclesiastical networks and affiliations across the theological spectrum of Evangelical authors, publishers, theologians, clergy and scholars of the period. An unprecedented deluge of Evangelical literature was produced for millions of Sunday School children in the nineteenth century, resulting in one of its most prolific and profitable forms of publishing. It expanded into a vast industry whose magnitude, scope and scale is discussed throughout this book. Rather than dismissing Evangelical children's literature as simplistic, formulaic, moral didacticism, this book argues that, in attempting to convert the mass reading public, nineteenth-century authors and publishers developed a complex, highly competitive genre of children's literature to promote their particular theologies, faith and churchmanships, and to ultimately save the nation.

There has not been conducted much research in religious studies and (linguistic) anthropology analysing Protestant missionary linguistic translations. Contemporary Protestant missionary linguists employ grammars, dictionaries, literacy campaigns, and translations of the Bible (in particular the New Testament) in order to convert local cultures. The North American institutions SIL and Wycliffe Bible Translators (WBT) are one of the greatest scientific-evangelical missionary enterprises in the world. The ultimate objective is to translate the Bible to every language. The author has undertaken systematic research, employing comparative linguistic methodology and field interviews, for a history-of-ideas/religions and epistemologies explication of translated SIL missionary linguistic New Testaments and its premeditated impact upon religions, languages, sociopolitical institutions, and cultures. In addition to taking into account the history of missionary linguistics in America and theological principles of SIL/WBT, the author has examined the intended cultural transformative effects of Bible translations upon cognitive and linguistic systems. A theoretical analytic model of conversion and translation has been put forward for comparative research of religion, ideology, and knowledge systems.

"This is a solid introductory text that will help thoughtful students understand the major world religions and the currents of secular atheism. It is broad in scope, concise in expression and practical for learning and reference. A fine tool for learning." Charlie Self, Ph.D. Director of the Bible and Theology Ph. D. Program. Associate Professor of Church History, Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. "I have known Ron since the fall of 2004, when we hired him and he started teaching sections of World Religions...which focused on comparing and contrasting Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and Taoism...Through the years his students (and the Department Chairs) have consistently given him excellent evaluations. For all of these reasons I highly recommend Dr. Woodworth..." David J. Yount, Ph.D. Former Mesa Community College Professor of Philosophy and Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies. For the introductory student of world religions World Religions & Atheism: A Christian Perspective will serve as a helpful primer to the subject that will provide a framework for assessing the truth claims of any religion. It unapologetically presents Christianity as a religion whose truth claims deserve a fair and honest study, especially over against the absolutist secular claims of Atheism. James D. Hernando, Ph. D., Professor of New Testament, AGTS. Member of the Evangelical Theological Society and the Society of Biblical Literature.

This book examines unintended participatory cultures and media surrounding the American televangelists Robert Tilton and Tammy Faye Bakker-Messner. It brings to light heavily ironic fan followings; print, audio, and video projects; public access television parodies; and other comedic participatory practices associated with these controversial preachers from the 1980s onwards. For Tilton's ministry, some of these activities and artifacts would prove irksome and even threatening, particularly an analog video remix turned online viral sensation. In contrast, Bakker-Messner's "campy" fans - gay men attracted to her "ludicrous tragedy" - would provide her unexpected opportunities for career rehabilitation. Denis J. Bekkering challenges "supply-side" religious economy and branding approaches, suggestions of novelty in religion and "new" media studies, and the emphasis on sincere devotion in research on religion and fandom. He also highlights how everyday individuals have long participated in public negotiations of Christian authenticity through tongue-in-cheek play with purported religious "fakes."