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7th out of 17 books
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5 voters
Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today
by
N.T. Wright
"But what does scripture say?"
That question has echoed through a thousand debates in the life of the worldwide church. All churches have officially endorsed strong statements about the centrality of scripture and its authority in their mission, life, doctrine, and discipline. But there is no agreement on what this might mean or how it might work in practice. Individuals an...more
That question has echoed through a thousand debates in the life of the worldwide church. All churches have officially endorsed strong statements about the centrality of scripture and its authority in their mission, life, doctrine, and discipline. But there is no agreement on what this might mean or how it might work in practice. Individuals an...more
Hardcover, 224 pages
Published
March 1st 2011
by HarperOne
(first published March 18th 2005)
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Too ambitious and not as convincing as I had hoped. Wright tries to defend Christianity from the two flanks that he thinks are destroying it. First, Post-modern skepticism attacks upon the historical validity of the Bible. Second, the Faithful Conservative Evangelicals that take a "shallow reading" of the Bible, interpreting it based on modern agendas for personal needs neglecting the big picture and not taking Jesus seriously. Basically, he argues that Christians should understand, apply, and r...more
N.T. Wright tackles the Scriptures asking questions about what we mean by authority. Questions like - if Jesus has authority, what do we mean by authority? and how does Jesus exercise His authority through the Bible? and since the Bible is mostly narrative, how can a story be authoritative?
Ultimately this is a book about hermeneutics (a fancy word for the framework used by a reader to understand/process what they are reading) and the one that Wright advocates. His focus is on the meta-story line...more
Ultimately this is a book about hermeneutics (a fancy word for the framework used by a reader to understand/process what they are reading) and the one that Wright advocates. His focus is on the meta-story line...more
Scripture and the Authority of God is certainly much better with the addition of the final two expository chapters. The original section - the contents of The Last Word - was not altogether inspiring. I suppose I was looking for a book that would show how the Bible is both absolutely authoritative and inspired while still acknowledging that there are some difficult and seemingly contradictory passages. Though N. T. Wright cleverly reinterprets the phrase 'authority of scripture' to mean 'the aut...more
At the risk of opening up a can of worms…has anybody read NT Wright's new book on the authority of Scripture? (This is one of his books written for a popular audience, so it probably echoes some of what he's already said elsewhere.) If anyone has read, I'd really be interested in discussing it with you. A couple of interesting things that stood out to me…
1) His take on the questions of "the authority of Scripture." He points out that Jesus final words before his ascension were not "all authority...more
1) His take on the questions of "the authority of Scripture." He points out that Jesus final words before his ascension were not "all authority...more
A good introduction to questions of authority and how they relate to the Bible, Wright's work is loosely sketched, aimed at general readers who may not be interested in the scholarly intricacies of some of his other books. Much of what he argues here can be pieced together from his more rigorous studies The New Testament and the People of God and Jesus and the Victory of God. Essentially, his thesis is this: the Bible is authoritative not in itself, but as the mediating agent of the authority of...more
N.T. Wright is an extraordinarily clear communicator and represents an enlightened and educated conservatism. That said both the strengths and the weaknesses of this perspective are evident. Strength wise he obviously loves and honors the Bible as well as knows it thoroughly. He is clear that the authority of Scripture is correctly understood as the authority of God through the Scriptures; thus he avoids bibliolatry the excessive love of or overdone literal interpretation of the Bible. The weakn...more
Parts of it were very interesting, but I also felt he merely scratched the surface to provide some kind of overall picture of things. His thesis of "Authority of Scripture" meaning "The authority of God working through Scripture" is meaningful and brings a lot of balance to bible study.
His case studies where he tries to put this into practice were rather disappointing, though. His presentation on the Sabbath was an incoherent mess, on the one hand attributing it to the Jews as an atemporal point...more
His case studies where he tries to put this into practice were rather disappointing, though. His presentation on the Sabbath was an incoherent mess, on the one hand attributing it to the Jews as an atemporal point...more
N. T. Wright incorporates the authority of Scripture into his theology of salvation: that God is at work on a new creation that will set the world to rights. In this scenario, Scripture is the story of what God's work, both in the past and in the church today. In order to apprehend it, Christians should read Scripture in church, in private study, with appropriate input from scholars, and under the guidance of the church's appointed leaders. (There was one more point but I have forgotten it.)
So,...more
So,...more
N. T. Wright explores the authority of scripture as the authority of God manifest via scripture. Wright makes a strong case that modern readings of scripture are often too shallow, one-dimensional, and easily diverted to serving the interests of the reader rather then the will of God. He argues for a close reading that sees First Testament scripture as fundamentally pointing to the advent of a new creation through the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. Second Testament writings are seen as...more
Here, Wright gives a solid overview of his position.
This book was eye opening for me. I've heard fundamentalist explanations of the authority of the Bible and found them wanting. Wrights explanation is extremely refreshing and helpful. I especially appreciated his answer to the many approaches to reading the Bible, many of which are often misguided and untenable. In the end he offers a way of reading scripture which is fresh, but by no means new, that is most faithful to the text and God's story.
He offers a couple case study's at the end of the...more
He offers a couple case study's at the end of the...more
Wright argues that the Bible's authority is ultimately about God's authority exercised through Scripture. Scripture tells a five-act story, the fifth act of which we still live in: the age of the church. God works through the Scriptures to bring about the Kingdom of God, shaping people and also specifically equipping teachers and leaders. Wright also offers a helpful, short history of how the Bible has been read over time as well as suggestions for being a Scripture-reading community. He ends wi...more
This updated version of The Last Word has been totally recontextualized, and it is the better for it. Not actually addressing a specific theory of inspiration or inerrancy, this book should never have been marketed as a book about the authority of the Scriptures. Instead it is an introduction to N T Wright's hermeneutics. Once the genre has been modified, most of the problems recede (though they may still exist; we just aren't running up against them anymore). There are a few irritants still, bu...more
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Generally good, but I'm not sure I would recommend it. As always, Wright is an engaging writer, and communicates effectively at a lay-level. He paints a grand vision and has some great "big picture" insights. However, several factors make this book one of his worst. First, he dances around the important question of inerrancy. No doubt he would make some dismissive comment about how that is a distinctively North American question (as he does occasionally throughout the book with other issues). He...more
The book was a bit of a surprise as it was marketed as a follow up to some of NT Wright’s recent books such as: “Surprised by Hope” and “After you believe”. In fact it was originally written a long time before and was just re-edited and repackaged. The book title well describes what the book is all about: it is a discussion on how we need to approach our reading of the bible. This was done from a God-honouring, Christian perspective, with a high view of scripture. Fundamental to the discussion w...more
Scripture and the Authority of God
N. T. Wright (Bishop of Durham)
SPCK
ISBN 0-281-05722-2
The back cover starts “What sort of 'authority' does the Bible have? What does it mean for an ancient, complicated and sometimes strange book to be 'authoritative' in the life of the church or individual Christians?” If you don't have a ready answer for the question and would like one, the I suggest you read on. I read it, not because of the back cover, but because it is a set book in my training course. If it...more
N. T. Wright (Bishop of Durham)
SPCK
ISBN 0-281-05722-2
The back cover starts “What sort of 'authority' does the Bible have? What does it mean for an ancient, complicated and sometimes strange book to be 'authoritative' in the life of the church or individual Christians?” If you don't have a ready answer for the question and would like one, the I suggest you read on. I read it, not because of the back cover, but because it is a set book in my training course. If it...more
I had to read this book for a New Testament class and give a presentation. It is good but very dense. I would have taken longer to read it and process the information if I had been reading it on my own. There are certain topics he brings up that makes you think about modern Christianity. He speaks of church leaders having to spend a lot of time on administrative tasks rather than study which I found interesting. Overall a good read. I hope to read more N.T. Wright books as this was my first.
I don't agree with Wright's views on evil, Satan, Hades, the resurrection of the dead, or the virgin birth, but I like what he's done with the plan of redemption and how we are supposed to approach scripture. The last two essays on the Sabbath and monogamy are worth the price of the book themselves, as they demonstrate how the Old Testament's foundation and shadows support the realization of the promises in the New Testament.
A decent book, although the most interesting contribution should have been (and I think has been) an article by Wright in the past. Much of the historical overview of scripture interpretation paints so broad a brush that he misrepresents people like Origen and others in the history of the church.
However, the last two chapters on Sabbath and marriage are worth the price of the book - even if you don't agree with them.
However, the last two chapters on Sabbath and marriage are worth the price of the book - even if you don't agree with them.
So, as other reviewers have mentioned, perhaps this book is better suited to be considered an intro to Wright's hermeneutics rather than an explication on the "authority of God," though they certainly overlap a lot. As someone who is very interested in hermeneutics and how to interpret the Bible, Wright's narrative theology hermeneutics are fascinating and, in my very small study of hermeneutics thus far (this book), useful/correct on a certain level.
The latter chapters were very instructive an...more
The latter chapters were very instructive an...more
Anything by N.T.Wright is a good read in my opinion. In this readable book Wright looks at the notion of "authority" and what it means for understanding scripture. Generally Wright in this book challenges both literalist reading of scripture and the post-modernist rejection of a meta-narrative. The Bible is authoritative because it has Christ's authority in interpreting it. It is not the Bible which gives authority to Christ, but Christ who gives authority to the Bible.
Dummy me - had this on my shelf since it came out - forgetting what it was (an updated version of "The Last Word), and ran across a copy of "The Last Word" at the library, so I grabbed it and read it. DOH!! So, I read this book's additional chapters and therefore include my review from "The Last Word" onto this edition too.
Our modern society is in need of instruction when it comes to how to handle God's Word, and this book is a great foundational look at the topic. What does it mean when someone...more
Our modern society is in need of instruction when it comes to how to handle God's Word, and this book is a great foundational look at the topic. What does it mean when someone...more
Short review: This is the best theology book I have read this year. What I appreciate about Wright is that he is not just an academic, he is a pastor. You can tell from his writing that his real interest is in serving the church. This is a re-working of his 2005 book "The Last Word". The main text is not supposed to be much different from The Last Word, but Wright added two chapters at the end to help illustrate how we should work our in real life a scriptural issue. The two chapters are about t...more
Short Review: This is the second time I have read this (last time was an audiobook, this time on kindle) in the last couple months. Still as impressive as before. I read it this time as part of a book discussion and was very interested in how others understood it.
My full review is at http://bookwi.se/scripture-authority-...
The original review, which is a better overview is at http://bookwi.se/scripture-authority-...
My full review is at http://bookwi.se/scripture-authority-...
The original review, which is a better overview is at http://bookwi.se/scripture-authority-...
Not quite as good as "Surprised by Hope." While enjoyable, I couldn't help but feel like there were topics Wright was all to happy to simply gloss over, or ignore. This particularly showed up in the appendixes where he attempted to apply his "method" to a actual situation. I find myself largely agreeing with his conclusions, but I couldn't always follow his logic and reasoning.
Excellent work on the role and authority of Scripture today. Wright shows how reading the Bible as a narrative of God restoring creation can eliminate seemingly contradictory passages, especially those between the Old and New Testaments.
He uses as examples the cases of Sabbath keeping and monogamy. An interesting read.
He uses as examples the cases of Sabbath keeping and monogamy. An interesting read.
Not as good (read fresh, insightful, well-argued) as Wright's other books, but a solid overview of his approach to the authority of Scripture. If you're familiar with Wright's other works and textbook hermeneutics then you can pass on this.
It would be pretty easy to resent NT Wright: he's ubiquitous, brilliant, and just slightly cocky. But the fact is, he's one of the church's wisest voices right now. Don't let all the adulation distract you from listening to him. It's always worth it. This book is no exception. Cuts to the chase without over simplifying. It reminds us that the authority of Scripture is really about the reign of God.
This book is a new edition of an earlier book called "The Last Word." But it includes 2 new excursuses: one on sabbath, the other on monogamy. Even if you own the first edition of this title, those two additional essays are worth the price of buying this new edition of the book.
I feel like this author did a pretty poor job of making his points. There were a lot of places where, rather than going into detail, he simply said he talked more about it in some other book. I have no interest in reading any more of his books.
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N. T. Wright is the former Bishop of Durham in the Church of England (2003-2010) and one of the world's leading Bible scholars. He is now serving as the chair of New Testament and Early Christianity at the School of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews. He has been featured on ABC News, Dateline NBC, The Colbert Report, and Fresh Air, and he has taught New Testament studies at Cambridge, McGi...more
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“The gospel by which individuals come to personal faith, and so to that radical transformation of life spoken of so often in the new Testament, is the personalizing of the larger challenge just mentioned: the call to every child, woman, and man to submit in faith to the lordship of the crucified and risen Jesus and so to become, through baptism and membership in the body of Christ, a living, breathing anticipation of the final new creation itself”
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“We read scripture in order to be refreshed in our memory and understanding of the story within which we ourselves are actors, to be reminded where it has come from and where it is going to, and hence what our own part within it ought to be.”
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