The Christian Life: Cross or Glory?

By Steven A Hein

This book offers a radically different perspective from that of many best-selling authors concerning how the Christian should measure and evaluate travel along God's path of righteousness. It will endeavor to persuade the reader that by feeding regularly on the Gospel in the Preached Word and The Supper, God promises to have His way with the Christian and He alone will accomplish all that is needed for life in Him to be complete. He is not waiting or requiring you to do anything first (during or after) to provide you with every blessing of the Gospel.

• Language: English
• Publisher: New Reformation Publications
• Release date: Dec 14, 2016
• ISBN: 9781945500619

Book preview

The Christian Life: Cross or Glory?

A Study Guide

The Christian Life: Cross or Glory?

A Study Guide

by

Steven A. Hein

An imprint of 1517 the Legacy Project

The Christian Life: Cross or Glory? A Study Guide

© 2015 Steven A. Hein

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher at the address below.

Published by:

New Reformation Publications

PO Box 54032

Irvine, CA 92619-4032

ISBN: 978-1-945500-60-2 Soft Cover

ISBN: 978-1-945500-61-9 E-book

NRP Books is committed to packaging and promoting the finest content for fueling a new Lutheran Reformation. We promote the defense of the Christian faith, confessional Lutheran theology, vocation and civil courage.

Contents

Introductory Comments

Introduction

Part I: The Cross Life of the Christian

1. Christian Life: Cross or Glory?

2. A Parable on Law and Gospel

3. The Two-Faced God

4. Justification: Getting Saved, Doing Nothing

5. Sanctification: The Powerful Pardon

Part II: The Experience of Living in the Cross

6. The War Within Life

7. Tentatio

Part III: Faithful Life in the Cross

8. Good Works: The Fruit of Faith

9. Vocation: Ordinary Life for Ordinary Saints

10. The Freedom of Grace and the Bondage of the Neighbor: The Paradox of Christian Nurture

11. Some Reflections on Heaven and Hell

Introductory Comments

Study guides can encourage discussion groups to interact in different ways depending on how they are constructed. Not all of them, however, are helpful. For instance, some are designed subversively to encourage members of the study group to parrot or voice approval of the work’s key points by asking leading questions that simply beg the positions of the author. Other unhelpful study guides take an opposite approach. They offer vague open-ended questions that never require readers to examine or critically interact with any of the major points of the work. These study guides are designed to motivate everyone in the group to enjoy sharing their own personal religious opinions without any requirement to evaluate their truth value, much less that of the work. It has been my sincere desire to create a study guide for The Christian Life: Cross or Glory? that avoids both pitfalls. Rather, my intent has been to treat the reader as a Berean Christian who has Bible-in-hand and is motivated to check out this work to see if these things are so.

The objective of this study guide is to move readers within a study group, or an individual in private study, to assess (with Bibles open) the truth value and application of cross theology as the biblical model of a healthy Christian life. As noted in the introduction, our purpose is not to inspire or uplift, but rather to inform and persuade you to reevaluate what constitutes a healthy life in Christ (p. 5). To this end, the study guide is divided into eleven sessions corresponding to each of the chapters in the book. For each study session, readers are encouraged to reflect on and discuss major points of the chapter through a series of quoted sections and questions designed to stimulate discussion and critical reflection. The quotes and questions are suggestions to begin but not limit discussion and critical reflection on the content of each chapter. While the guide targets study sessions of about ninety minutes, it can serve also for more extended time frames as may be helpful. It is my desire that The Christian Life: Cross or Glory? and this study guide may increase your awareness and appreciation that your not-so-great, ordinary faith life is always and forever overcome by the extraordinary grace and forgiveness of the life of the crucified Christ. Enjoy!

Steven A. Hein

Introduction

"For those of gentle religious sensitivities, the crucifixion of Jesus has never been a very popular focus when seeking to develop a more satisfying relationship with God. . . . Let’s face it. For most people, including those who call themselves Christians, crosses that accurately depict what happened to Jesus